The world ended with a thunderous crack that shattered the sky.
Aria's breath caught mid-scream as the ground beneath her feet exploded into a churning inferno. Flames roared up like angry beasts, swallowing everything — cars, buildings, the people running blindly in every direction. The once-bustling city street turned into a warzone in seconds.
Glass rained down, cutting through the smoky air. She stumbled backward, arms flailing, heart hammering in terror and disbelief. The world she knew was crumbling around her, and there was nowhere left to run.
Her mother's desperate voice echoed in her mind, warning of the coming disaster, but it was too late.
Amid the chaos, a deafening silence fell — the kind that feels heavier than any noise. The sirens stopped. The shouting died. The city held its breath.
Aria's eyes scanned the burning horizon, every instinct screaming to survive. But when the dust settled, the silence was absolute.
This was the new world — broken, merciless, and silent.
The acrid smell of smoke clawed at Aria's throat as she forced herself to move, limbs shaking but relentless. The streets were chaos — broken cars, fires licking at abandoned storefronts, distant screams swallowed by the crackling air. Her pulse hammered like a war drum in her ears.
She darted through the rubble, every step a gamble. Somewhere behind her, a collapse thundered, sending a wave of dust and debris crashing down. She barely dodged, heart spiking with raw adrenaline.
"Mom! Dad!" she gasped, searching frantically for any sign of them in the chaos. But the city had swallowed them whole.
The ground trembled again, sharper this time. A low rumble that grew into a roar. Buildings groaned and cracked, glass exploding outward like deadly shards. Aria dove behind the wreckage of a burnt-out car, pressing her cheek against cold metal.
Tears blurred her vision, but she refused to let them fall.
"Keep moving," she whispered to herself. "Keep surviving."
A shadow flickered at the edge of her vision — a man, moving with purpose through the carnage. His eyes met hers for a brief second — sharp, calculating, but something softer flickered beneath the surface.
"Hey," he called, voice steady despite the chaos. "You okay?"
Aria hesitated, knife tightening in her hand. Trust was a luxury she hadn't afforded in a long time.
"I'm Aria," she said, voice firm.
"Elias," he replied, offering a quick nod before scanning the area. "We need to get out of here before the aftershocks hit."
Before she could answer, the ground shook violently, sending a fresh wave of destruction around them. Sirens blared faintly in the distance, but the silence had returned — a silence heavier than before.
"We don't have much time," Elias said. "Follow me if you want to live."
Aria didn't hesitate.
Aria followed Elias through the wreckage, each step uncertain, her eyes scanning for movement. Fires burned unchecked, casting long, flickering shadows. Somewhere in the distance, a dog barked wildly before being silenced by a sharp, echoing crack.
He didn't speak, just led her down a side street where the buildings had collapsed inward, leaving a narrow corridor through concrete and glass. He moved like someone who'd done this before — too steady, too calm.
"Where are we going?" she asked, keeping pace despite the tight squeeze.
"There's a safe point on the west side," Elias replied. "Or at least there was before communications went dark."
"You military?" she asked.
"No. Just… someone who knows how to stay alive."
That didn't comfort her, but she nodded anyway. In this world, survival trumped titles. Still, something about his calmness unsettled her.
They ducked into a half-demolished apartment building, climbing a slanted stairwell. A body lay crushed beneath a beam on the landing — Aria turned her face away, jaw clenched. She wouldn't cry. Not again.
"Was it a bomb?" she asked.
Elias stopped at a doorway, scanning the hallway before motioning her through. "No one knows. Some say a solar flare. Others say it was man-made. Whatever it was, it wasn't just an attack."
"What do you mean?"
He met her eyes. "The silence after. Cities aren't just burning — they're... shutting down. Like something pulled the plug on the world."
Aria's stomach turned. She remembered the way the street had gone still, like the air itself had frozen in grief.
Inside the apartment, it was dark and hollow. Shelves overturned, dust and soot covering everything. He locked the door behind them, then began pushing furniture against it. Aria joined him without being asked.
Once secure, he sank to the floor, back against the wall. Aria stood by the window, watching orange light bleed into the night sky.
"Thank you," she said finally, though her voice came out smaller than she wanted. "For helping me."
He shrugged. "You didn't scream. Most do. You ran. That's something."
Aria turned to face him. "That was your measure? Not screaming?"
"In times like this?" he said. "It might be the only measure that matters."
She should have felt insulted, but there was no heat in his words — just weary truth. Aria sat down across from him, knees drawn to her chest.
"I lost my family," she said, voice flat. "I went to get my father's medication. When I came back, the whole block was gone."
Elias didn't offer condolences. He just nodded once. "Mine too."
For a moment, they sat in silence, two strangers bound by shared loss. The world outside cracked and burned, but inside, the quiet was almost unbearable.
Suddenly, there was a sound — a metallic creak. Elias was on his feet in a flash, motioning her to stay down.
The sound came again. Not a building groaning — something lighter. Movement.
He drew a long blade from his jacket. Aria reached instinctively for the hunting knife she kept tucked into her boot.
A figure stumbled into the hallway outside the door, dragging a limp foot. A low, guttural breath rasped through the air. Not quite human. Not anymore.
Elias glanced at her. "Stay back."
He moved with brutal precision — kicking the door open before the creature could reach it. The thing let out a choked snarl, lunging with unnerving speed. Elias met it head-on, blade slashing.
Aria watched in frozen horror as black blood splattered the wall. The creature — once a man — hit the floor twitching before falling still.
Elias stepped back, breathing hard, eyes dark.
"What was that?" she whispered.
"One of them."
"One of what?"
"They're not dead. But they're not alive either. First the silence… then these things started appearing. Twisted. Changed. Like the world didn't just break — it mutated."
Aria stared at the body, bile rising in her throat.
"How do you know all this?" she asked, voice shaking.
"I was at ground zero."
That silenced her.
Elias sheathed his blade. "Rest if you can. We move again at dawn."
She didn't sleep.
How could she, knowing the world had turned into something monstrous — and that somehow, the man sitting across from her knew more than he was letting on?
Outside, the silence stretched on, thicker than any night she'd known before.
Inside, Aria's heart whispered one word again and again:
Survive.