Grey stood in the doorway, staring at the lifeless bodies sprawled across the cold tiles. The bathroom reeked of antiseptics, a sharp, sterile scent that drowned out any traces of decay. The chemicals had done their job-no rot, no flies, just pale, motionless corpses.
He exhaled, stepping inside.
The bathroom was small, barely enough space for him to move without stepping over them. He crouched down, running a gloved hand over one of the bodies. The skin was cold, almost like wax. Perfectly preserved.
Grey wasn't a believer. He had never been one to accept things just because the masses said so. Atheism had been his armor, a refusal to let blind faith dictate his choices. But that was before—before the incident that shattered his certainty.
Before he saw something he couldn't explain.
He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small, leather-bound book. The pages were old, yellowed, filled with symbols and instructions written in a language no one spoke anymore. He had spent weeks translating them, cross-referencing ancient medical texts, making sure every step was perfect.
This wasn't faith.
This was science.
A science beyond modern medicine.
He flipped to the marked page, eyes scanning the instructions. The symbols had to be drawn in a specific order.
The bodies had to be arranged precisely. A mistake could mean failure-or worse.
Grey moved with precision, dragging the bodies one by one, placing them in a circle around him. Their empty eyes stared upward, as if waiting for something.
His hands were steady as he dipped a brush into a bowl of thick, dark liquid-his own blood, mixed with the prescribed reagents. He began drawing the symbols on the floor, each stroke deliberate.
As he finished the final mark, the air in the room grew heavier.
Grey felt it.
A shift.
A pressure in his chest, like something unseen was watching him.
He set the brush down, kneeling at the center of the circle. His fingers trembled as he whispered the first words of the ritual.
The lights flickered.
The exhaust fan groaned, slowing to a stop.
And then
A breath.
Not his.
Something exhaled, right next to his ear.
He rubbed his temples, his breathing uneven. He had followed every instruction in the book, yet nothing had happened. His mind raced with questions, his heart pounded against his ribs.
Did I misinterpret something? Was there a step I missed?
The words from the book echoed in his head: No second chance to failures.
His grip tightened around the book as frustration twisted inside him. His entire world had been built on reason, on logic. He had spent years scoffing at the idea of fate, of gods, of the supernatural. Yet, when something impossible happened-those dreams, the book— he had no choice but to listen.
And now? Nothing.
A sharp vibration broke his spiral of thoughts.
His phone.
Grey glanced at the screen. Rosie.
"Grey, is everything okay? You seemed to be in a rush?"
She had noticed.
Of course, she had. Rosie was sharp-too sharp sometimes.
For a second, he thought about replying. Maybe even meeting her, just to get away from all this madness. Maybe there was still a way back, a way to be normal again.
But then his gaze fell on the corpses.
The children, lying there, lifeless. Silent.
No. There was no going back.
Swallowing hard, he set his phone down without answering. Right now, he had bigger things to deal with.
He grabbed a glass, filled it with water, and gulped it down, forcing himself to think clearly. The ritual failed. That meant the dreams should stop, right?
I'll dump the bodies.
It was the only logical thing to do. If the ritual didn't work, then he had nothing to gain from keeping them. He just needed to get rid of them and wait. If the dreams stopped, it meant it was all just some freak coincidence.
Comforting himself with that thought, he sat down, turning on the news.
BREAKING NEWS: INVESTIGATION CONTINUES ON MISSING CHILDREN CASE
Grey stiffened. The screen displayed images of the thirteen children-smiling, alive, unaware of the fate that had awaited them. His stomach twisted as the news anchor spoke.
"Authorities say the search is intensifying, with new evidence suggesting the children were taken to an abandoned location before disappearing completely. Police have urged the public to report anything suspicious. A full search of all old properties in the area has been ordered."
Grey exhaled slowly.
They're getting closer.
His mind drifted to the past.