Jake pushed through the crowd, rushing toward them—Then suddenly, the air inside the bus grew heavy.
A suffocating pressure descended without warning, as though gravity itself had intensified around them.
The passengers cried out as they struggled to steady themselves. Some of the elderly coughed up blood before collapsing on the spot.
The pressure kept increasing, Breathing had became nearly impossible.
Jake's eyes turned bloodshot, his chest tightening as he fought for air. Desperately, he crawled toward James and Emily, each movement slower than the last.
His vision blurred.
The final thing he saw before losing consciousness was every passenger collapsing—and James still clutching Emily, struggling to stay awake.
—-J—-
As darkness crept into his vision, James tightened his hold around Emily.
The crushing force pressed against every inch of his body.
What is happening…?
He forced his head up painfully.
Around him, every passenger had fallen unconscious. Jake remained collapsed on the floor in the same crawling position.
Are we going to die?
His thoughts drifted wildly.
I haven't told my parents I forgive them…
And I haven't told her…
He looked down at Emily's pale face in his arms.
The memory of their moment together flashed through his mind.
Those were his final thoughts before darkness claimed him.
A blinding light engulfed the bus.It lasted only a moment.
Then it vanished.
To the outside world, it was as if the bus had disappeared into thin air.
Similar events unfolded across the globe—buses, cars, and entire vehicles vanishing without a trace.
—
"Hey, James. James, wake up."
The words echoed in his ears as he struggled to open his eyes.
"Wake up, man, or I'm going to tell Addy the truth."
His eyes shot open. He frantically looked around.
"Don't!" he screamed instinctively.
Jake burst into laughter.
"Relax, I'm just joking. But seriously—you need to get up. I don't think we're in New York anymore."
Jake's eyes were fixed nervously on the view outside the bus window.
James frowned.
"What are you talking about? And where's Emily?"
He pushed himself upright using the seat for support, only then realizing he had been lying across it. Emily was nowhere beside him.
"She's fine. She's over there," Jake said, pointing toward the front of the bus.
James followed his hand.
Emily sat among a group of girls while a mid aged woman carefully tended to the wound on her head.
"As for what I said earlier…" Jake continued, his voice quieter now. "You might want to see it for yourself."
Frowning, James moved toward the bus door—but his legs gave out beneath him.
He staggered forward.
Jake quickly caught him.
"Easy there. Guess your body's still weak."
"I'm fine," James growled, regaining his footing. "And using her name like that wasn't funny."
He continued forward.
"Stubborn as always," Jake muttered under his breath.Sighing inwardly, he followed after him.
James rushed to Emily's side.
"How are you feeling?"
"I'm fine," Emily replied quietly.
"She'll be okay," the woman tending to her said. "She's just shaken from the blow to her head. Fortunately, it's not serious."
"That's a relief," Jake said as he stepped closer.
The woman smiled warmly.
"You're lucky to have two boys worrying so much over you."
Emily immediately blushed.
The woman finished securing the final bandage and stood.
"Alright, I'm done. You boys take care of her. Ladies, give them some space."
She shooed the surrounding girls away and began walking toward the exit.
"Thank you, Miss—" James started, then hesitated.
"Rachel. Nurse Rachel."
"Thank you, Miss Rachel," James and Jake said together.
She waved dismissively before stepping off the bus.
James and Jake sat beside Emily.
"Are you sure you're alright?" James asked again, concern filling his voice.
"I said I'm fine," Emily replied, glaring at him.
"Just making sure." He scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
Jake watched them silently before speaking.
"Alright, if you're fine… then you need to see this too."
Emily frowned.
"See what?"
"He said we're not in New York anymore," James answered.
Emily stared at him.
"That's impossible. We were on the bridge heading upstate."
"Well…" Jake turned toward the door. "Come see for yourself."
The two exchanged glances before following him outside.The moment they stepped off the bus—Their bodies sank slightly, as if gravity itself had changed
Then they looked up.And froze.The sky was different
Instead of clear blue, it swirled with shades of crimson and violet like a living aurora.
Three suns burned overhead.
The air itself felt thicker and heavier, charged with something unfamiliar.
"How do you explain that?" Jake asked quietly.
Emily stared upward, speechless.
"So you're saying we somehow magically teleported here?"
"That's the only explanation I can think of," Jake replied.
Nearby, a bespectacled boy around their age was arguing with the bus driver.
"How is that logical? There's no such thing as magic!" the driver snapped.
"Then explain how we suddenly appeared in a clearing!" the boy shot back. "We were on a bridge—now we're in the middle of a forest!"
The driver fell silent.
Only then did James fully take in their surroundings.
The bus sat in a vast grassy field, surrounded on all sides by towering mountains and enormous ancient-looking trees.
"I'm pretty sure New York doesn't have mountains that big…" James muttered.
"You think?" Jake deadpanned.
James ignored him.
"I've studied every map of New York. Nothing near the city looks like this."
The bespectacled boy turned toward them.
"Exactly. We're not in New York anymore."
Panic began spreading through the passengers.
"Alright, enough!" the driver shouted. "Stop talking nonsense! There's no such thing as teleportation or magic. Everyone, stay calm and call for help!"
"There's no signal!" a girl cried out.
Others quickly checked their phones.
None of them had service.The driver's expression tightened.
"Okay… everyone remain calm. I'll radio the station."
He hurried back onto the bus and grabbed the radio.
"Dispatch, Bus 1224. 10-13. 10-33 requested."
Sheeee… sheeee…
No response came.
"Dispatch, do you copy?" the driver called again into the radio.
Sheeee… sheeee…
Still nothing.
Outside, the passengers stood with their phones raised, desperately searching for a signal.
"What is that?!" one of the girls shouted suddenly.
Everyone turned toward her.She was pointing at the sky.
Following her gaze, they spotted a tiny black dot racing toward them from above.It grew larger with terrifying speed.Then they saw it clearly.
A massive winged creature covered in scales.Its wingspan stretched over fifty feet.Its hind legs ended in razor-sharp talons.
It was flying straight at them.
Screams erupted.
Everyone rushed for the bus.
Some scrambled inside while Jake and Emily tried climbing aboard—but James grabbed them both.
"Wait! I don't think it's coming for us!"
"Are you insane?!" Jake shouted, yanking his arm free.
"I'm serious—I just feel it!" James argued.
"You expect us to trust a feeling?!"
Before James could answer—
The creature reached them.With a deafening screech, it seized the bus in its talons and ripped it off the ground.
Passengers trying to climb aboard were thrown backward.
The people inside screamed as the bus was carried high into the air.
Then—The creature released it.
BOOM!
The bus slammed into the earth and exploded in a storm of fire and twisted metal.
ROOOAR!
The beast wheeled around in midair and charged straight for the remaining survivors.
Jake's eyes widened.
"I follow your feelings! RUN!"
He grabbed James and Emily and dragged them toward the forest.
"Run!!" the boy with glasses shouted.
The others followed, sprinting desperately for the trees while the creature pursued from behind.
"Help—!"
An elderly man screamed.
Looking back, they saw the beast land on him, its talons piercing straight through his body.
Only then did they fully recognize the monster.
A wyvern.
It swallowed the man whole, lifted its head, and locked onto the fleeing survivors.
Then it charged again.
James's group reached the forest first.
The moment they crossed beneath the trees, the wyvern vanished from sight.
"Where did it go?!" Emily gasped, breathless and shaking.
One by one, the remaining passengers stumbled into the forest behind them.
Only a small group of girls remained outside in the clearing.
"Hurry u—"
Before the warning could leave his mouth—Fire rained from above.
The girls were engulfed instantly, their screams cut short as their bodies turned to ash.
The wyvern soared overhead before flying back toward the distant mountains.
Silence fell.
Only seven people remain.
James.
Jake.
Emily.
The bespectacled boy.
Nurse Rachel.
And two other girls.
One of the girls collapsed to her knees, sobbing uncontrollably.
"I want to go home…"
Fear gripped the entire group.
The boy with glasses stared blankly.
"That was a wyvern…" he whispered. "A fucking wyvern… They're not supposed to exist…"
Emily trembled.
"This… this isn't Earth."
James looked at Jake, Neither of them spoke
The terror in their eyes said everything.Then Rachel's voice broke the silence.
"I think… we're not alone."
Her trembling hand pointed upward.
Red glowing eyes stared down at them from the treetops.