1. The Day that Sunlight Faded
I have been feeling a bit dizzy for some days now. Could it be the stress I have been receiving while working in the convenience store? Or maybe I haven't been consuming enough vitamins.
I pick up my phone to call my manager.
"Frost! Why are you calling this early?" he asks rudely immediately he picks up the call.
"I just wanted to let you know I won't be coming to the store today. I have a hospital appointment," I reply.
"That's coming out of your monthly pay." He hangs up on me.
I couldn't care less about his opinion. He has always been a bitter bastard from the very start. The only reason I still work at the store is because the pay is decent, and it's really hard to find another store or blue-collar job that pays as much.
I booked a hospital appointment about three days ago, the moment I almost passed out at work. And it takes a while for an appointment with a renowned doctor to be processed.
It's 30 minutes to 8 a.m. I had better get ready to get going.
This bed has gotten weaker. I need to replace the frame. How much was it again?
I glance slightly over at my deceased parents' photos. It has been 4 years since their departure from this world. Ever since then, I had to fend for myself. As for my life, it became… bland.
As long as I eat well, sleep well, and wear good clothes, I'm okay. Since this is the basic life every average citizen of this country aims to attain. Have I ever wanted something more? Of course. I still do and will take the opportunity if it presents itself. But for now, I'm okay the way I am.
In this corrupted world run by connection and influence, an average guy like me can hardly get any higher than where I already am.
My water is already boiling. Time to brew my signature coffee. I don't know why, but coffee helps to keep me sharp and bring a bit of life into me.
I'm done with everything I have to do. Time to get going.
After boarding the bus at the station, I arrive at the hospital and take my seat, waiting for my turn.
"No. 50," the receptionist calls out.
That's my number. Time to head to the doctor's office.
I open the door.
"Good morning, sir. Please have a seat," he points his hand towards a chair.
"We have conducted all the necessary tests with the samples you made available," he inhales deeply, "also judging from your complaints. The test results just came in, and it saddens me to let you know that you have been diagnosed with terminal stage cancer."
I knew it wasn't something good from his facial expression already. But terminal cancer? How? When? These are the questions running through my mind right now.
"This is the hard part," he continues.
So there's even more?
"This isn't a disease that can be cured or managed," he takes another deep breath. "You have roughly 2 months to live. I know it's hard, but I suggest that you spend your last moments with your loved ones and endeavor to do the activities you have always wanted to do."
There is no visible reaction on my face at the moment because I don't know which one to make. Should I burst into tears? Go on a rampage? Neither of these will change the current situation.
"Thanks for taking your time to explain properly. If you will excuse me, I will be taking my leave now." I stand up from the chair.
"No, thank you for handling it so professionally. Others would have outbursts. I'm really surprised you stayed calm," he replies.
If only he knew the turbulence of emotions within me, he would take back what he just said.
I walk out of the office.
After leaving the hospital, I sit on an empty bench across the road. The wind blows across my face as I look up into the sky.
I don't have any loved ones. Neither do I have anything significant I want to do at the moment.
2 months is quite long… or short.
I think I will quit my job and make use of my savings to go on one last trip.
I have never been afraid of death. If anything, I think of it as a cold embrace — the last and final comfort life has to offer before the afterlife, if there is any.
I take my phone out of my pocket.
"What is it ag—"
I cut him off.
"I quit. You can keep this month's pay and use it to treat your severely low self-esteem."
I hang up on him.
Now that I have gotten that out of my system, time to head home.
Rumble! Rumble!
Is this an earthquake? The ground begins to shake.
Oh, it has stopped. Maybe it was just a mini quake.
Is it night already? Daylight begins to fade.
I look up.
Holy shit!.
Where's the sun?
The sun is gone.
Boom!
A giant ring-like halo appears in the sky, illuminating the darkness sparsely.
What's going on? Is the world finally coming to an end?
I look closer. Something's falling. I see a flash of red light, like something is descending.
Booooommmmm!
I fall to the ground due to the impact of a massive shockwave.
What just happened?
I look up and see something straight and long extending from below beyond the sky.
"A huge tower-like structure has just descended at the center of the earth!" a livestreamer announces from my phone speakers.
Rumble, rumble.
The ground continues to shake. What is it this time?
"Huge stone doors have begun to appear in different parts of the world," she takes a deep breath. "Shanghai, Tokyo, New York, Venezuela, Manchester. They just keep on appearing. What does the government have to say about this?"
I can see comments of people panicking. I myself am still in shock. Just when I thought my day couldn't get any worse.
Certainly it can't get worse than this, right?
"Hello, hello earthlings!" a voice echoes loudly from above the sky.
"I don't think they can hear me, Venny!."
"The speaker is on, Deputy Chief. They can hear you loud and clear," another voice echoes.
"Ahem! People of Earth, rejoice, for the Mistrium Tower has descended upon your unsightly world."
It sounds like a young female's voice, but where is it coming from?
A huge screen suddenly appears in the sky.
In the middle of the halo, a 12-year-old human-looking girl and an adult male with red eyes stand.
"They can see clearly now, Deputy Chief," the man turns towards the girl.
"Oh, nice! Venny!," she replies, waving through the screen.
Who the hell are they?