The sky looked heavy that evening, like it was about to rain. Thick gray clouds covered most of the sun, and the streets already had that damp smell of water in the air. It was the kind of weather where people hurried home, not wanting to get caught in the downpour.
Kai walked out of the tall iron gates of his high school for the last time. Graduation was finally over. The ceremony had been long, full of speeches and cheering. Everyone was smiling and taking pictures. His classmates had been shouting things like, "We did it!" and "Let's meet up again soon!" Some were already making plans for karaoke or parties.
Kai didn't join them. He just smiled a little, gave a few polite nods, and slipped away. That was his style—quiet, unnoticed.
Graduation was supposed to feel like a big deal. The end of one chapter, the start of another. But walking alone down the street, Kai didn't feel much. His bag was hanging from his shoulder, his shoes tapped lightly on the ground, and his hands were shoved into his pockets.
He was calm.
Maybe it was because of karate. Kai had trained in it for years, and it shaped him more than school ever did. He wasn't the best at talking with people, but in the dojo, he felt alive. His body moved with discipline. His mind was always steady. Even now, when he walked, there was no wasted motion, no slouch. Every step had balance.
He tilted his head up and looked at the skyline. Neon signs were flickering on, fighting against the shadows of evening. Cars rushed by, and the sound of dogs barking echoed from somewhere. He noticed all of it. His father once told him, "A martial artist should walk like still water, but always see what ripples around him." Those words stuck.
Kai turned into a narrow alley, his usual shortcut home. He had walked this path hundreds of times. It was dim and cramped, but familiar.
Halfway through, he heard it.
Footsteps.
Not casual ones, but fast and sharp, echoing against the walls. His instincts kicked in immediately. His shoulders straightened, and his eyes flicked behind him.
Three men appeared. Hoodies, rough movements, shadows hiding their faces.
"Hey, kid," one of them called out, his voice low. A knife glinted in his hand. "Hand over the bag."
Kai stopped walking. His pulse stayed steady, though. He shifted his weight, not quite a stance, but ready if he needed to move.
"I don't want trouble," he said quietly. His voice wasn't pleading—it was warning.
The man sneered. "Too bad."
The first one rushed him, swinging the knife. It was wild, untrained. Kai's hand shot out, catching the man's wrist. He twisted, and with a sharp strike, the knife clattered to the ground. The attacker shouted in pain.
The second one didn't wait. He swung a punch at Kai's head. Kai ducked and slammed his palm into the man's chest, then kicked hard into his ribs. The man stumbled back, wheezing and clutching his side.
Kai's eyes narrowed. Sloppy. They don't know what they're doing.
But before he could reset his stance, he felt it—movement from behind. His instincts screamed. He turned too late.
Stab.
Agony tore through his side. The third man had slipped behind and driven a blade into him. His breath caught, his body stiffened. Warm blood rushed down his uniform.
The knife pulled free, and Kai staggered. His knees buckled, his hand pressed against the wound.
The three men froze, realizing what they had done. Panic flashed across their faces.
"Damn it!" one of them cursed. "He's bleeding out!"
"Forget him, let's go!"
Their footsteps faded quickly, leaving Kai alone in the alley.
He collapsed against the wall, sliding down until he hit the ground. His hand pressed the wound tightly, but blood seeped through his fingers, warm and sticky. His breaths were shallow, each one harder than the last.
So this is it?
His mind blurred, but memories flickered. His father's lessons at the dojo. His mother's quiet smile at the dinner table. The hours of training, the sweat, the pain, the small victories. It all played in flashes, like a film strip snapping apart.
Kai let out a bitter laugh that sounded more like a cough. "Graduated today… and now I die?" His voice was barely a whisper.
His vision dimmed, the streetlights above turning into glowing blobs. The world tilted, swaying like he was falling even though he sat still.
Then he saw it.
A light.
Not from the lamps, but something pure. Bright. Blinding. It shimmered at the edges of his vision, then spread, swallowing everything.
His body grew lighter. The pain faded. The cold pavement was gone. He was being pulled, lifted upward, weightless.
The light grew brighter and brighter until it was all he could see. And then—
Darkness.
The world disappeared.
Kai opened his eyes—or maybe just his mind. There was no body. No ground beneath him. No sky above. Only an endless, empty darkness stretching in every direction.
He floated there, confused.
Where am I?
He tried to breathe, but there was no breath. He tried to move, but there was no body to move. His thoughts were the only thing left, echoing loudly in the silence.
Time didn't make sense. Seconds? Minutes? Hours? Everything blended into one long stretch of nothing.
At first, he was calm. But slowly, unease crept in. The silence was too deep, the darkness too endless. For the first time since the knife, real fear started to settle in.
Something was here.
He couldn't see it, couldn't hear it, but his instincts screamed louder than ever before. He wasn't alone.
The light from before stirred again. Faint, pulsing like a heartbeat in the middle of the void. It wasn't gone. It was waiting.
Kai's thoughts sharpened. His instincts told him the truth.
This wasn't the end.
It was only the beginning