Fumiko's eyes snap open.
She sits upright in bed instantly, her chest rising and falling in sharp, uneven breaths.
The dream.
The glowing figure.
The endless sea of light.
It's gone.
The familiar ceiling of her bedroom replaces it.
Moonlight slips quietly through the half-open window, casting pale silver lines across the walls and floor.
For a moment, Fumiko simply sits there, trying to steady her breathing.
Her heart is racing.
Too fast.
Too loud.
"What… was that…?"
Her whisper barely escapes her lips.
The room feels colder than before.
The air presses against her skin in a way that makes the tiny hairs on her arms stand up.
Sweat clings to her forehead, dampening strands of her hair.
She wipes it away slowly.
"Just a dream…"
She mutters weakly.
But even as she says it, something inside her refuses to believe it.
Because the feeling in the room has changed.
The silence feels different.
Heavier.
Thicker.
Like something unseen is watching.
Fumiko's gaze slowly drifts toward the bedroom door.
And that's when she sees it.
A shadow.
It spreads across the wooden door like spilled ink.
At first, she assumes it's just the moonlight playing tricks on her eyes.
But then–
It moves.
Very slowly.
The shadow stretches across the floor, its shape twisting unnaturally as it crawls toward her.
Fumiko's breath catches in her throat.
Her body stiffens.
Her eyes widen.
"There's… nothing there…"
She whispers, staring at the door.
No one is outside.
Nothing blocks the moonlight.
There is no object that could create that shadow.
Yet it continues moving.
The dark shape grows larger.
Taller.
Its edges ripple like thick smoke rising from a fire.
A faint sound fills the room.
A quiet hiss.
High-pitched.
Unnatural.
But she can't ignore the feelings that in the hiss of this strange shadow, there's something...or some words, which she is unable to decode.
But this isn't time to do decoding language or things!
Fumiko's heartbeat slams against her ribs.
Move.
Her mind screams at her.
Move!
But her body refuses.
Her muscles lock in place.
The shadow swells further.
It rises from the floor slowly, stretching upward into a distorted shape that almost resembles a human figure.
But something about it is horribly wrong.
Its limbs are too long.
Its body shifts like liquid darkness.
Its form constantly twisting.
The hiss grows louder.
A cold wave of fear crashes through Fumiko's chest.
Her voice finally breaks free.
"Stay away!"
She scrambles off the bed, nearly tripping as she backs toward the window.
Her breathing becomes frantic.
The shadow continues advancing.
Slow.
Patient.
Like a predator enjoying the hunt.
Moonlight spills through the window behind her, creating a faint barrier between her and the creature.
But it doesn't stop.
The darkness stretches across the floor like living tar.
"DON'T COME NEAR ME!"
Her voice cracks with panic.
She grabs the nearest thing she can reach.
Her school bag.
Without thinking, she throws it with all her strength.
The bag flies straight toward the shadow.
But instead of hitting something–
It passesthrough.
Like throwing an object through smoke.
The bag lands on the floor with a dull thud behind the creature.
The shadow doesn't even react.
Fumiko's stomach drops.
"Oh god…"
Her back hits the cold glass of the window.
She turns her head slightly.
Outside, the city sleeps peacefully beneath the pale glow of the moon.
Streetlights glow softly.
Everything looks normal.
Too normal.
Her mind races desperately.
"I can't fight this thing."
"What even is it?"
Her eyes dart between the window and the approaching darkness.
A terrifying thought forms in her mind.
"If I jump…"
She swallows hard.
"I might survive the fall."
Her heart pounds violently.
"But if that thing catches me…"
Her voice trembles.
"I won't survive at all."
Her hands shake as she climbs onto the window frame.
The cold wind brushes against her face.
Her legs tremble.
She grips the edge tightly.
"One jump…"
She whispers to herself.
"Just jump."
But before she can move–
The shadow suddenly lashes forward.
Long tendrils of darkness shoot out like whips.
They wrap around her wrists.
Her waist.
Her chest.
"NOOO!!"
The tendrils yank her backward violently.
She crashes onto the floor. Hard.
"LET GO!"
Her scream echoes through the room.
The darkness tightens its grip.
It feels freezing.
Like being submerged in icy water.
The tendrils squeeze harder around her chest.
Crushing the air from her lungs.
Fumiko gasps desperately.
"I… can't…"
Her fingers claw at the shadowy grip.
But her hands pass straight through it.
Her strength begins fading.
Her vision blurs.
Dark spots creep into the corners of her sight.
The creature's hiss grows louder.
Hungrier.
It feels like something is draining her.
Pulling the life out of her body.
"I can't breathe…"
Her voice becomes faint.
The moonlight above her dims.
Her eyelids grow heavy.
The world begins fading.
"Is this… how I die?"
Tears gather at the corners of her eyes.
No.
A sudden spark ignites deep inside her chest.
No!
Her fingers curl into fists.
Her heart roars with desperate defiance.
"I can't die like this."
"Not here."
"Not tonight."
Not before she understands anything.
Her mind screams.
"I don't even know what's happening yet!"
The warmth inside her chest grows stronger.
Brighter.
A memory flashes in her mind.
The glowing figure.
You carry a light capable of breaking the darkness.
Her heart pounds louder.
"No…"
Her voice trembles weakly.
"I won't die…"
Her fingers begin to glow faintly.
The warmth spreads through her arms.
Her palms burn with rising energy.
"I WON'T DIE LIKE THIS!"
With the last of her strength, she throws her head back and screams.
"LEAVE ME ALONE!!!"
Light erupts from her hands.
Blinding.
Brilliant.
A burst of pure radiance explodes outward like a miniature sun.
The room floods with golden light.
The shadow creature shrieks.
A horrible, piercing scream fills the air.
Its tendrils recoil violently.
The darkness burns away where the light touches it.
Like shadows dissolving under sunlight.
The creature writhes wildly.
Its form breaking apart.
The hiss turns into a tortured screech.
Then–
The shadow collapses.
Its body dissolves into smoke.
And disappears completely.
Silence fills the room.
The light slowly fades.
Fumiko collapses onto the floor.
Her chest heaves desperately as she gasps for air.
Her lungs burn.
Her body trembles uncontrollably.
For several seconds she just lies there.
Breathing.
Alive.
Slowly, she lifts her shaking hands.
They still feel warm.
Tingling.
But they look completely normal.
No glow.
No marks.
Just her own trembling fingers.
"What…"
Her voice shakes.
"What just happened…?"
Her mind struggles to process everything.
"The shadow…"
She looks around the room frantically.
It's gone.
No sign of it remains.
The room looks exactly the same.
Her messy bed.
The swaying curtains.
The moonlight spilling across the floor.
Like nothing ever happened.
But her racing heartbeat tells a different story.
"Did I…"
Her voice becomes barely audible.
"…do that?"
She slowly pushes herself to her feet.
Her legs feel weak.
Unstable.
She walks toward the open window.
The night air brushes softly against her face.
The moon hangs high in the sky.
Bright and silent.
The peaceful city stretches far below.
Completely unaware of what just happened.
Fumiko stares down at her hands again.
Memories flash through her mind.
The glowing figure.
The strange words.
Child of dawn.
A light capable of breaking the darkness.
Her voice trembles softly.
"That thing…"
She swallows hard.
"Was it part of the Abyss?"
The word feels heavy in her mouth.
Her chest tightens.
"Is this what they meant…"
She whispers.
"…by powers?"
The questions swirl endlessly inside her mind.
But there are no answers.
Only the quiet night.
And the steady beating of her heart.
Fumiko looks up at the moon.
Her reflection stares back at her from the window glass.
But something about her eyes looks different now.
Stronger.
Awake.
Whatever just happened tonight
She knows one thing for certain.
This was not the end.
This was only the beginning.