The almost silent hum of jet engines vibrated through the fuselage as the jet cruised at thirty thousand [30,000] feet above sea level. Ephil—a college student majoring in intelligence and robotics—sat in his window seat, hunched over his laptop, finishing up minor details on his renders and display models.
The faint glow from the screen illumination bated his focused expression, his fingers flying across the keyboard in a rush. He and his other classmates had been invited to the World Technological Summit [WTS-NAT] on New Age Technological Innovation, a prestigious event for agents of big brands, pioneers of New Age major startups, college students from across the globe, and child prodigies of the grand families.
This year, it was held at the renowned Qa'id Genesis Tower (الجينيسيس)—a brutalist marvel of innovative engineering and one of many testaments to humanity's latest advancements in technology. For Ephil, attending this event was a dream come true—a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to showcase his research on automatons and conceptual ideas for the upcoming network upgrades—the 11G network, towers, and design innovations.
The project was something he had been working on from scratch, with several drafts, papers, tests, and other discarded notes littering his room for years since he received the invite eight years prior. This was a customary Deacdial event—a prestigious gathering held every ten years, with invitations sent two years after the previous one.
He had designed a model and system to revolutionise AI and gaming and further innovations in space development in response to the recent deployment of drones capable of coordinating in real-time with network speeds of faster-than-sonic movement, and though he wasn't sure it was groundbreaking to compare, Ephil hoped, dreamed and believed it could leave a mark in history.
Subtle footsteps could be heard moving behind the cabin as a middle-aged man walked to the front of the bulkhead. He was his professor for the course. A 36-year-old man dressed in a three-piece navy blue suit stood at the bulkhead, planning to briefly elaborate to his students right before they reached the tower pads.
He stood hunched with his hair slightly messed up; his eyes were baggy with dark circles underneath, forming from the stress COMPILED from those previous three weeks combined toward the event.
He straightened his hunch and shoved his loose hair to the back and soon began to speak with a deep voice that made his words echo in the cabin, But then the plane began to shake and vibrate…
The plane's intercom cracked to life. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We've entered a slight turbulence zone. Please fasten your seatbelts."
Neuwera barely looked up, but around him, his classmates and the teachers adjusted their seatbelts or settled into their seats. The cabin went entirely muted, with hardly any occasional laugh cutting through the quiet. It was known preflight that there might be some disturbances and turbulence, but just an hour ago, it was called in that a storm had begun brewing southwards in the direction they were travelling to. Neuwera returned to his laptop, tweaking the final slides of his presentation. He was so absorbed that he almost missed the faint shudder that ran through the plane.
Then, it hit.
A thunderous explosion rocked the aircraft. The cabin lights flickered and dimmed as the plane jolted violently to the side. Gasps and screams erupted as oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling. Neuwera's laptop flew out of his hands, clattering to the floor right before a chip hit him. Heart racing, he fumbled for the mask above his head, securing it with trembling hands.
The intercom buzzed again, but the captain's voice was barely audible over the chaos. "Brace for—"
—
Neuwera jolted awake, his body drenched in sweat. His chest heaved as he gasped for air, his pulse pounding in his ears. Disoriented, he reached for the oxygen mask—but there was none. His fingers grasped at empty air.
The familiar walls of his dimly lit dorm room surrounded him. His laptop sat on the desk, still open, its screen glowing faintly. The soft hum of the ceiling fan replaced the roar of the engines. His sheets were soaked, clinging to his body.
His breathing slowed, but something felt wrong.
He wiped his hand across his forehead. His fingers came away slick with sweat—but also something warm. He turned on his bedside lamp and looked at his hand.
A thin streak of blood.
Neuwera froze.
A memory—or was it a dream?—flashed in his mind: the moment the shard struck him on the plane. But that was impossible. It wasn't real.
His mind still dazy looked around the bed for something and anything to clarify, but before long, his door slammed open as small hands wrapped around him. He looked down to see who it was—it was his younger sister hugging him tightly as he heard his mother's voice.
"Did anything happen to you?"
The plane's intercom cracked to life. "Ladies and gentlemen, this is your captain speaking. We've entered a slight turbulence zone. Please fasten your seatbelts."
Ephil barely looked up. Around him, passengers adjusted their seatbelts or settled into their seats. The cabin buzzed with muted conversations, the occasional laugh cutting through the quiet. Ephil returned to his laptop, tweaking the final slides of his presentation. He was so absorbed that he almost missed the faint shudder that ran through the plane.
Then, it hit.
A thunderous explosion rocked the aircraft. The cabin lights flickered and dimmed as the plane jolted violently to the side. Gasps and screams erupted as oxygen masks dropped from the ceiling. Ephil's laptop flew out of his hands, clattering to the floor. Heart racing, he fumbled for the mask above his head, securing it with trembling hands.
The intercom buzzed again, but the captain's voice was barely audible over the chaos. "Brace for—"
The plane plummeted. Ephil's stomach lurched as gravity seemed to vanish. Outside the window, flames engulfed one of the wings, and the world tilted into a dizzying spiral. Passengers cried out, clutching at armrests and each other. Ephil's mind raced with fragmented thoughts: his family, his unfinished project, the future he'd never see.
The last thing he remembered was the deafening roar of the engines as the ground rushed up to meet them.
Ephil awoke to a nightmare. The acrid smell of burning fuel filled his lungs, and his head throbbed with pain. Groaning, he opened his eyes to a scene of utter devastation. He was still strapped into his seat, but it now lay amidst a sprawling field of wreckage. Shards of metal jutted from the ground like jagged teeth, and flames licked at the twisted remains of the plane.
How am I still alive?
Unbuckling his seatbelt, Ephil stumbled to his feet, his legs trembling beneath him. Around him, bodies lay scattered—some motionless, others stirring weakly. He forced himself to look away, nausea rising in his throat.
A faint voice broke through the haze. "Help..."
Ephil turned to see a woman pinned beneath a piece of fuselage. Her face was pale, her breaths shallow. Without thinking, he rushed to her side.
"Hold on," he said, gripping the edge of the metal. "I'll get you out."
He strained against the wreckage, his muscles burning with effort, but it wouldn't budge. The woman's eyes filled with tears. "Please..."
Before Ephil could respond, a deep, guttural roar echoed across the wreckage. He froze. It wasn't the sound of an engine or an explosion. It was something alive.
"What the hell was that?" he whispered, his eyes scanning the horizon.
In the distance, a massive shadow loomed, moving with unnatural speed through the haze of smoke. As it drew closer, Ephil's breath caught in his throat. The creature was monstrous, its body covered in shimmering, metallic scales. Its glowing eyes radiated malice, and its maw bristled with jagged teeth.
"Run," the woman gasped, her voice trembling with terror. "You have to run."
Ephil hesitated, torn between fear and the instinct to help. The beast let out another roar, the force of it shaking the ground. It turned its gaze toward him, and in that moment, Ephil knew he was its target.
The creature lunged, its claws slicing through the air. Ephil dove to the ground, narrowly avoiding the attack. Scrambling to his feet, he ran, adrenaline propelling him forward. The beast roared again, its heavy footsteps thundering behind him.
He didn't know where he was going. He didn't care. All that mattered was survival. Spotting a jagged outcrop of rocks in the distance, he sprinted toward it, his lungs burning with exertion. He dove behind the rocks, pressing himself against the cool stone.
The beast's footsteps grew louder. Ephil held his breath, his heart hammering in his chest. Peering through a crack in the rocks, he saw the creature sniffing the air, its glowing eyes scanning the area. For a moment, it seemed to lose interest, turning away. But then it stopped, its head snapping back toward the rocks.
Ephil's blood ran cold. The beast's growl deepened, and it began to claw at the stones, each strike sending vibrations through his hiding spot. He clenched his fists, his mind racing. What should I do?
Before the beast could reach him, a blinding light enveloped Ephil. He felt a strange pull as if his body were being torn apart and reassembled. The heat and noise of the wreckage vanished, replaced by an eerie stillness.
Ephil opened his eyes to an alien world. Towering trees with bioluminescent leaves stretched toward a twilight sky, their roots twisting like veins through the forest floor. Strange, ethereal creatures flitted through the air, their forms glowing faintly. The air was thick with the scent of earth and something sweet, almost intoxicating.
Where am I?
Staggering forward, Ephil tried to make sense of his surroundings. A rustling sound caught his attention, and he turned to see a figure emerging from the shadows. It was humanoid but distinctly otherworldly, with deep blue skin and glowing eyes. The figure's cloak shimmered like liquid metal, and its presence exuded an aura of authority.
"Welcome," the figure said, its voice smooth and melodic. "You've crossed into the Resonance."
Ephil started, his mind reeling. "The Resonance? What are you talking about? Where am I?"
The figure's lips curved into a faint smile. "Your old world is gone. You've been chosen."
"Chosen?" Ephil repeated, his voice rising with panic. "Chosen for what?"
The figure's glowing eyes seemed to pierce through him. "To hunt."
Before Ephil could respond, the ground beneath him shifted. The forest blurred, and he felt himself falling into darkness. He screamed, the sound swallowed by the void.
When Ephil awoke again, he was lying on the forest floor. The distant sound of roaring beasts echoed through the trees, and shadows flitted between the trunks. He sat up, his heart pounding. This wasn't a dream.
Beside him, something glinted in the dirt. It was a blade, its surface etched with glowing symbols. Ephil picked it up, the weight of it feeling both foreign and familiar in his hand.
A low growl broke the silence. Turning, he saw a pair of glowing eyes staring at him from the shadows. A creature stepped into the light—a wolf-like beast with scales instead of fur and fangs that glistened like obsidian.
Ephil's grip tightened on the blade. The wolf snarled, its muscles coiling as it prepared to pounce. Ephil raised the weapon, his hands trembling.
The wolf lunged. Ephil swung the blade, the symbols flaring with light as it connected. The clash of metal and scales rang out, and Ephil felt a surge of energy coursing through him. The wolf staggered back, growling in pain.
For the first time, Ephil realised he wasn't powerless. This world was dangerous, but it had rules. And if he wanted to survive, he'd have to learn them fast.