Come with us

The night was so dark it seemed to swallow the entire city. The wind roared, bending the palm trees until they creaked, and the rain fell as if it wanted to pierce through everything. In the middle of that chaos, a figure ran at full speed.

It was a woman. Her breath came in ragged gasps as she clutched a baby wrapped in blankets to her chest.

“Shhh… easy, my son. Everything’s going to be alright,” she whispered, though her voice trembled.

She looked back. Nothing… but she didn’t slow down. She reached an old building with a heavy-looking gate. An orphanage. Leaning over the baby, she caressed his damp cheek.

“I hope you have a life in peace…”

A quick kiss, tears mixing with the rain. She set him down at the door, knocked, and ran. The storm would erase her tracks… and her tears.

The afternoon sun was at its highest when Axel, Luz, and Pedro walked out of school. Between backpacks and laughter, the conversation, as always, ended up on complaints about the math test.

“The teacher said it would be easy… and he destroyed us!” Axel grumbled, kicking a stone.

“Relax,” Luz said. “If there’s a make-up test, we’ll help you study.”

Pedro let out a short laugh.
“Don’t even bother, Luz. When he gets like this, there’s no pulling him out of drama mode.”

“I’m just worried,” she insisted. “If he does badly, they won’t let him come on the trip.”

“Eh, his folks will let him anyway,” Pedro shrugged.

“I can hear you, you know!” Axel cut in. “You haven’t seen my mom when she’s angry.”

“Really? She looks so nice…” Luz raised an eyebrow.

“She is—when you’re around. But now they’re traveling… so they won’t find out.”

They parted ways, and Axel boarded the bus. It wasn’t crowded, so he took his usual spot: just in front of the wheel. He leaned against the window, headphones in, same playlist as always.

Five minutes later, something shifted. No rumble of the engine, no voices, no city. He opened his eyes: white, endless white. No up, no down, but he was standing. The strangest thing was the warmth—it didn’t burn, it embraced him.

“Hello, Axel…” a clear voice echoed beside him.

He turned. Floating in the air was a bright sky-blue flame, vaguely shaped like a human.

“Who are you?” he asked, heart pounding.

“That doesn’t matter. I’m here to help you. You’ll understand soon enough… in the meantime… wake up.”

And the world blinked out.

Axel’s eyes shot open on the bus, sweat on his forehead. A few passengers were staring. Heat rose to his cheeks. He hit the stop button and got off, even though he was still a block from home.

In a nearby alley, light bloomed like a silent explosion. Two figures stepped out of a portal: one tall, the other shorter.

“Is this the boy?” the tall one asked, holding up a photo.

“Yes. Time to set the pieces in motion,” the other replied.

He crumpled the picture—Axel’s face frozen in a smile—and burned it with a violet flame.

Axel opened his front door. Dark, cold, silent… typical when his parents were away. He walked toward his room, but the loneliness hit hard.

My friends think my mom’s a saint and my dad’s is quiet unique… They’d think differently if they knew the truth…

He shook his head. Enough. A shower would help. He stepped into the bathroom, turned on the hot water, began to undress… and froze.

Voices.

He shut the water off. Silence. Again—voices, from the living room. His pulse quickened.

He tied the towel at his waist, grabbed the floor mop like a weapon, and stepped out.

“Are you sure about this, Lexus?” a female voice asked—sweet, but sharp-edged.

“Yes, Lucy. We’re out of options,” a man’s deep, dry voice answered.

“But wouldn’t it be better—” she began, then stopped. Axel was behind Lexus, ready to strike.

Lexus didn’t move. Lucy did: she raised a finger and fired a beam of light. The mop disintegrated.

Axel fell back onto the floor, stunned.

“Who are you? What are you doing in my house?” His voice was tight.

“Easy—we don’t want to hurt you,” Lucy said.

She looked young—blonde, shoulder-length hair, light brown eyes, a long black coat hiding the rest of her.

“As my partner says, we come in peace… but you’ll have to come with us,” Lexus added.

“What?” Axel blurted.

The man was older than Lucy, with a brown mohawk, strong features, and a patch over his right eye. He wore the same outfit as her.

He leaned closer, his voice rumbling through the room:

“Axel… our world needs you.”