Death. A natural form of life, something that comes easy for some, something that comes painfully, some accept it, some deny it, some pray for it to end their suffering, while others beg for another chance at life; either way, it is something that eventually comes knocking at your front door, something unpredictable.
And now, death had come with fire and screams.
The skies above the modern world cracked open like fragile glass, raining down destruction upon a civilization drunk on its own inventions. Sirens wailed. Cities burned. Portals of shadow and flame tore reality, kingdoms built out of greed fell to the god's feet, a promise that nothing was eternal.
Something similar to the apocalypse came to face the world of the modern; the world where men depended on technology now had no way to save their lives, to help them escape the fate before their eyes.
Throughout the city, screams could be heard as monsters descended from the sky and portals opened out of thin air with monstrous-looking beings exiting them, running amok in the city as the people tried to get to shelter to save themselves or their loved ones.
Some went down on their knees praying out to the gods for help, screaming their names in their last moments, hoping for some shred of hope as the streets were being painted red for all those who defied.
Among them was a young man named Sion.
Once a gifted student, a fallen and unwanted noble of a powerful house and a soldier, Sion had been sent into a secret military project under the guise of helping his nation, but he knew better than that. Yet, his voice did not matter; he was shoved into a den, one that sought to enhance the human body for warfare.
Thrown aside by the people he once called family. But everything went sideways when the first wave of the invasion struck; the experiment collapsed. He lost a leg, part of an arm, and nearly his life. He was thrown aside yet again, another casualty in a war no one understood.
Now, he lay in a failing hospital, his body more metal and scars than flesh, staring out of a window onto a dying world. His breath came shallow. Machines beeped, with nothing but the sound of the chaos ripping through the nation to keep him company.
Sion had many injuries, both internal and physical, rendering him on the brink of death. His injuries were so severe that the doctors could not do anything to extend his life; anything that they could try would lead to one thing... Death.
He knew that he had little time to live and now he was lying in the hospital bed, looking out the large windows as flames reflected in the sky within the city, screams and sirens as well as bullets being shot—he could hear them from a mile away.
The soldiers desperately tried to do their jobs and defend themselves as well as the people within the city from the monsters, but to no avail. Some of the creature's bodies were enhanced; some of them could withstand the impact of the bullets, which bounced off of them as though they were made from steel.
He could see some of the nurses and doctors, as well as other patients, rushing around the hospital, desperately trying to seek shelter away from the invasion, as the lights flickered in the hospital and their wails echoed throughout the empty hallways. The hospital shook from everything that was happening.
Sion did not move—could not move. He simply watched. He looked outside of the window of his room, feeling nothing but numbness.
The sky burned purple and red, swirling like a vortex. Beneath that cursed aurora, he saw what no man could hope to fight. This was no longer a battle; humanity was on the losing side. This was the gods.... No, maybe it wasn't after all; this was cleansing, and humanity was the stain that scarred the once beautiful landscape.
While he was lost in his thoughts, the room's door burst open. A nurse—young, frightened, the one who had sat beside him when no one else would—rushed to his side.
"Sion, do not worry, I will find help; just stay here!" She cried, gripping his hand. Her voice cracked with fear, not worrying about her own safety, but his, one that did not have any future.
She was someone who had often taken care of him and kept him company during his time in the hospital and he smiled at her gently before slowly raising his hand with the little bit of strength he had left, brushing away the tears that streaked her pale cheeks.
"It's alright…" he murmured, his voice more breath than sound. "You don't have to lie to me; you can go if you want. Try and find help if you like."
He wanted to comfort her, to make her believe for a few more seconds that someone had answers. But deep down, they both knew the truth.
There was no help.
There was no escape for any of them who dared to hope.
She met his gaze and shook her head, causing him to let out a small sigh. He knew no matter what he said, she was not going to leave his side, not when she had already seen a glimpse of the reality others do not want to face.
Seeing her by his side made him think back on his own life; he was discarded by parents who saw him as a mistake, left to carve meaning from a world that gave him nothing. Even in this moment, as the world crumbled, he mourned not for himself—but for the life he never had.
"I just… wanted a chance," he whispered, with an almost rueful chuckle, and she glanced at him.
He had no idea what it was like to have a family; he hoped that someday he would be able to have that privilege, but now, that hope was slowly fading away.
At that moment, as the glow in the sky intensified, it reflected in his and the nurse's eyes as she clung to his side and their skins began feeling as though they were being scorched, even though there was nothing to give off heat around them, not even the sun.
He felt fear, dread, and anger; all of the emotions that he had held back within him for years came flowing in all at once. He did not want to die; like most, he wanted a chance at life, one that he never got the chance to live. He wanted a second chance.
He gritted his teeth as everything went still around them, holding the nurse close in a final act of defiance.
The windows shattered—yet time seemed to freeze. Shards of glass hung suspended in the air. The pain surged—and then vanished.
'I do not want to die...please, gods above...give me one last chance.'
That was his final thought before everything around him went dark in a loud shriek and the darkness consumed and claimed everything.