Bab 2: Hell On Earth

February 27, 2021.

A 'normal' day, five years ago, just a few hours before everything went wrong and billions of people had their homes and families purged. Just before Harlan and countless other innocent people fell victim to Ground Zero, the event that turned their lives upside down.

The global population still went about their normal lives, not having to worry about monsters and demons that could kill them at any moment. Compared with the situations that unfolded over time, even with the conflicts that the modern world had at that time, it could be considered peaceful.

People still didn't know true despair, nor did they know what it meant at all. And Harlan was one of them. It was indisputable and obvious as he lived his daily life without worrying much.

But it was just a matter of time, a simple matter of time that would change everything... and that would also change everyone...

For the eternity.

****

''See you again!'', a silhouette with slightly long brown hair, greeted his friends who were waving at him, before leaving the restaurant he was in and heading forward across the street.

There was a wide smile that stretched from ear to ear on his face. People who passed him on the street looked at his face, wondering why he was so happy when it was just a normal weekday. In addition, they were in a region of the city that was considered poor and, therefore, many of the people who inhabited it did not have good conditions and generally did not enjoy themselves.

That's why it was so weird to witness all that happiness coming from a young man who inhabited such a place.

'I made it, despite everything that came my way!', he thought, holding himself not to jump with emotion in the middle of the crowded street.

'That investment really made me a lot of money as I thought, maybe... maybe now I can even get my mother and sister out of this fucking decrepit place!'

He rejoiced strangely, waving his arm slightly to ease the urge to dance. At the same moment, Harlan glanced around the street to make sure no vehicles were coming. The lights were red, so he began crossing the street with quick steps.

'I should start thinking about opening my own company. Maybe quitting my part-time job at that office is also a good idea, since my income is so much higher than before.'

For a second he considered the actions he should take in his life from now on, but then he thought of something even more important than that.

'My main priority is making money for my family. I have to take care of them, now that I have this fortune. They both sacrificed many things in their lives for me, so this time it's my turn to help them achieve their dreams.'

Time passed quickly as countless thoughts raced through his vast mind at a surprisingly fast speed. And just like that, he arrived in front of the huge fancy building in which a certain person was waiting for him. They had arranged with each other that they would meet at exactly 2:30 pm, and here he was, dressed in expensive clothes he was not used to wearing. All bought at the suggestion of a salesman who was kind to him at a clothing store, famous in that region of rich people.

Harlan was trying not to show it, but he was very nervous. Even though his action of going to that part of the city, where people with a lot of money lived was already usual, due to his girlfriend living there, he still got extremely nervous and trembled slightly, as he tried to keep an impassive expression on his face. And of course, not having much success in it.

Still, most people in the place just walked past him and waved with a smile. Already knowing the boy and therefore not raising any unnecessary suspicions about him. This was certainly a source of relief to him, who couldn't stop acting in a way that would make anyone think he was doing something illegal, even though he wasn't.

A few minutes passed with him standing alone in front of the place's huge silver gate, leaning against a part of the wall that wouldn't electrocute him. Harlan glanced around the whole place to look for his girlfriend, but she was nowhere to be seen.

''Where the hell is she? That's weird, given that she told me she'd be waiting for me at the gate.'' Harlan commented to himself, moving his hand to the pocket of his white shirt to pull out his phone.

As he did so, he patted all of his clothing, which was a bit messy from the strong wind that had been blowing his way for several minutes without a break at the moment. He sighed deeply and then muttered: ''I can't stay here forever, I still have things to do for my mother and sister.''

And without wasting a second more, Harlan called Angelica Rann Barbosa, his girlfriend, on the phone, and his attention became completely focused on the soft voice that sounded from his cell phone. All his worries were erased, and his heartbeat became calmer when he heard the girl's voice, who answered calmly the call, something that was unusual for her.

''Hello, Harlan?'', her voice sounded calm and serene from the phone, in addition to it, Angelica's tone was sweet and would surely delight anyone who heard her, including her boyfriend, ''Harlan, why aren't you here? I've been waiting for you for hours now.''

''Phew!'', the girl's comment made Harlan snap out of his trance, regaining consciousness and answering her.

''Well, sorry about that, but I'm right in front of the gate that leads to your apartment.'', he responded, ''So, by the way, where are you?''

''At the gate, shithead.''

''No, you're not at the damn gate.''

''The other gate, which gives access to the back and is closer to the place we're heading to'', Angelica replied, her tone now showing a hint of anger.

''Oh! The other gate. I'll go there right now, so just wait for me a little longer.''

He hung up the phone before hearing Angelica's probably rude reply and started walking quickly towards the other gate of the building. Along the way, his eyes took in various people and places surrounding the building. There were coffee shops, clearly geared towards customers who had strong financial conditions, which were exquisitely decorated, and numerous stores, whether clothing, department, or any other type of it.

He nearly gasped at the sight of the majestic pilasters that held up the store right in front of the back gate, which reminded him of the Gothic-era structures he'd studied at school not long ago. It all only made him want to take his mother and sister deeper into that part of town, and so he swore inwardly that as soon as he had the time for it, he would buy an apartment in that location.

Could it be that if he bought a new house in those parts, would he surprise his mother and sister who worked so hard to help him with his studies? The answer was yes, and he definitely would do that, it was just a matter of time now.

And with his thoughts distracting him, the minutes of walking was quick and he was able to catch sight of Angelica. She was stunningly beautiful in her black leggings, her shirt with a print from a certain expensive brand, and a black jacket that covered her slender shoulders completely.

Angelica's golden hair resembled the sun, so silky and shiny, flowing down her arms until it reached the height of the girl's well-defined waist. Her eyes with large irises that were deep and serene stared in Harlan's direction, and it was noticeable that despite using almost no makeup, the girl was extremely gorgeous.

"It took me a while, but I arrived intact. Shall we go, dear maiden?'' Harlan approached with light, noble steps, openly mocking Angelica.

Despite Harlan's size and physique being much more developed and taller than Angelica's, she was in no way intimidated by the boy. And, just to prove that fact, she leaned to the side and grabbed an empty wrapper from the brown handbag on her left arm, throwing it at her boyfriend. The package hit him in the shoulder, making him feel a slight tingle and look at the spot quickly.

''Huh? Are you perhaps in a bad mood, miss?'', Harlan spoke aloud, not missing the chance to mock Angelica once again, after all, he always sought to see the best points in life whenever possible. And playing a little with the person he loved was one of the things that he liked the most.

Then, he continued his speech: ''What a...'', he said, but Angelica interrupted him, hurling another empty package at him, this time hitting the young man squarely in the chest. The boy fell silent at the same moment and looked her in the eyes.

"You big piece of shit," Angelica said coldly. She knew Harlan could have avoided that attack with his experience in sword and martial arts training, but he didn't even move to the side, just standing there.

The girl narrowed her eyes and looked at Harlan. For a normal person, that glance would make him embarrassed and nervous, but Harlan, already used to Angelica's way of acting, noticed that there was a glint of humor behind that look.

''I'd like you to give me a good reason why you risked your life by making me wait like this.''

"Hum…" Harlan replied, rubbing his chin as if he was seriously considering the matter. Then he raised his hand and snapped his fingers.

''Oh, I know. It was mainly because the little princess in front of me, forgot to let me know at which of the gates I should wait in her rich district. Seriously, Ange, you need to be more specific, knowing I barely know this place.'', he said and then continued, ''Besides, acting like that can't be healthy. One of these days you'll end up dying of stress, believe me, take things calmer.''

Angelica took a deep breath and erased the strange, angry thoughts from her mind that told her to kill Harlan on the spot, muttering a few barely decipherable words as she walked to the boy's side and straightened up. She made a few sounds that Harlan understood like: ''I love you, but there are limits...'', ''You'd better...'' and ''boyfriend from hell,'', but nothing that was more understandable than that. The message, however, was clear as daylight.

''Well, anyway, we have to go. The guys are waiting for us at the establishment.''

''Right.''

Step. Step, Step.

They started walking at a fast pace, so their friends wouldn't wait any longer than they already had. Angelica was at Harlan's side, trying to follow in his footsteps as much as she could and feeling her ill-trained, thin legs ache a little as she forced them to keep up with the boy's speed. The walk to the restaurant, where Harlan had left, to pick up Angelica from her apartment, was really fast as they were at half of the way already.

He and Angelica talked on the way, the girl started to laugh and so did he. After all, when the girl started to laugh, no one around could help but join her.

BRAAM!

But then the laughter was interrupted by an unusual event and a strange sound that erupted together. Something Harlan had never seen in his life and which he certainly did not expect to hear or see at any time in his life, unfolded before his eyes, letting him stunned at the sight.

CRAABAMM!

A crash took over the entire city, no, it was more likely it took over the entire world, given the way it spread and the speed it took. The rumbling and unusual noise left people shaken in the crowded street where Harlan and Angelica stood. Everyone fell silent, and the creaking of the car's gears seemed insignificant in the face of that loud sound. Some people even opened the windows of their vehicles, craning their necks and squinting to see better and try to identify what was happening.

Dust gusts flew from the ground and entered through the cracks of vehicles, spreading everywhere, and soiling people's clothes. A resounding spasm of sound went through everyone's heads, making them a little nauseous. Harlan quickly covered Angelica's ears as he took her hands and placed them over her head, and then covered his ears until the sound subsided enough to no longer shake the floor they were standing on.

Harlan looked around, being more attentive than anyone and thinking of many things before any other individual started to process what was going on. No one said a word until everyone was looking up, the bright orange sun of the afternoon now lowering at each second that passed. Harlan tried to catch sight of something, his hand shielding his eyes from the extreme glare of the sun as he searched the sky for the source of the noise.

And then, a strange layer of black spread across the sky, taking over everything in the blink of an eye.

''What the fuck,'' a man said aloud what everyone was thinking at the time. ''Honestly, what the fuck is this?''

It was the first time all the people there had witnessed such a massive event since the solar flare episode years ago, and the sight was shocking. Harlan struggled, pushing his mind to the limit, but he couldn't think of a reasonable reason why this could have happened out of the blue – maybe it was a disaster, or was it simply irrelevant?

He didn't know, and that was why this thing was so terrifying.

The sky turned black, but it didn't appear to be a simple eclipse, for the clouds engulfed by that black-gray layer now took strange circular shapes and began to assume an unknown formation in the sky. On top of all that, it was unlikely that an astrological event would happen so suddenly, without government space institutions warning citizens beforehand.

Harlan said nothing and contented himself with following the group, firmly holding Angelica's trembling hand. He was still amazed at the sudden appearance of the dark sky. The others continued to comment on what or who was behind it, though no one knew what it all meant. And then, once again, a loud noise rippled through the city at an alarming rate.

The people didn't seem to mind, and the group formed on the crowded street quickened their pace, reaching the town square that was nearby, only to find a crowd gathered there. The people of the place were standing there, looking at the clouds that took weird shapes there in the sky as if they were a mythical beast. With its roar and blinding display in black and blue light, it almost looked like a real mythological figure. In particular, even more so when it was nearly impossible to explain with the so-called science that Harlan had studied so much during his lifetime.

Most of the crowd was gathered in the center of the square, their faces filled with anticipation, curiosity and excitement at everything that was happening. And everyone had come to the same conclusion: this was all just a normal occurrence on the planet, such as an eclipse, but one that had not been detected by scientists around the world.

However, Harlan was all made with suspicion and therefore he looked at it warily. After everything he'd been through in his life, he'd been led time and again not to trust too much in people and things that were unknown and mysterious.

Angelica tugged at his shirt sleeve with her free hand, then leaned to the side to speak:

''What is all this? Is there anything in the books that you love so much that explains this event?''

''To be honest, I do not know. There's no sign that tells us what the hell is going on and no decent enough theory comes to my mind.''

Harlan shrugged as he responded to what Angelica had said, unsure of whatever information was going through his head. He felt dizzy and confused, but his interest was absolutely greater than these sensations.

He looked up again, pondering what it all meant. It was sad that he would soon find out and that it would change his life in a not very pleasant way...

"Perhaps this is an intervention of God?", said a muscular man in a high-pitched tone, all eyes falling on him.

Out of the corner of his eye, Harlan saw a man dressed in a lab coat, who carried a name tag on his chest, indicating that he worked at his town's main scientific institution. He noticed that the man named 'David B. Norlan' took a deep breath, his mouth half-open, probably preparing to respond something intelligently to the muscular man's comment. But the action was interrupted by a huge animalistic scream that came from above.

Harlan and everyone else looked up in fascination as a roar was heard from the sky, at the same moment, the boy felt his hand being squeezed more than before by Angelica, who shook his hand with a little fear.

RAAUR

And then, while still trapped in a stupor of thought, Harlan froze for good. The shape in the sky became a huge circle of purple color, whose middle was endlessly rotating in a spiral way. Other clouds became physical monsters that floated, covered in white fur and of sizes that far surpassed those of the people circling Angelica and Harlan's surroundings.

''OHHH!''

''MY GOD''

''AMAZING!''

Sighs and screams rippled through the crowd; hands were raised and fingers pointed upward. Harlan looked away from the spectacular scene for a moment to catch the general reaction, impressed by the sense of dread and excitement that surrounded him. Until a few minutes ago, people were living their daily lives normally, but then all this happened and everyone drifted away from their real goals. And there they all were, pointing to the sky as if the muscular man's speech had a hint of truth. He could see the anxiety in their eyes as if the crowd really considered the fact that they were being visited by something created by God, they seemed to believe that this was all divine intervention.

That realization made Harlan feel a little dizzy, but he shook his head slightly to clear those silly thoughts from his mind.

A new murmur rippled through the square, and Harlan looked up again. From the purple-colored circle shape, three people emerged from the darkness in the sky, dressed in clothes that sent a shiver down his spine. Brown overcoats, rubbery and bulky, covered the strange shapes from head to toe. The clothes prevented Harlan and the others from seeing their faces, but sighs of admiration spread once more at the sight of the silhouettes.

They pointed forward, one of them carrying a wooden staff that looked like it had come straight out of an MMORPG game. They descended carefully, floating in the skies as if it were something simple, wearing large black boots overlaid on top of their overcoat, until the three of them lined up just forty meters above the surface of the Square, while they were followed by the beast that, strangely, heeded their orders.

It was noticeable that each of them held a black tube in their hands as if it were some kind of wand. Except for the man who carried the wooden staff, who seemed to be the leader of these strangers.

The tubes were thin and long, with a bright yellow stone at the end that made them look like a Minecraft torch. And when all the beasts present, along with the strangers, had settled into their positions, they lifted these instruments and directed them towards the people below them.

Harlan looked to the side and realized that Angelica was screaming at the top of her lungs, tugging at his hand as the people around them pushed and threw themselves at each other to make way. Everything around him became complete chaos - screams and panic spread all around - but Harlan fell into a trance and watched the strangers in their weird clothes and the tubes that looked like they were collectibles, while the others finally woke up to the fact that those people were not God's creations, and they weren't there to save them, let alone help them in any way.

What had happened to the Harlan who always thought about how he would overcome adversity, with his agility, insight and intelligence, acquired since he understood himself as a person?

He was still frozen, barely blinking, when something shot up from above. An indistinct movement, a quick flash of something dark and greenish, small and fast, erupted from one of those tubes in the hands of the floating strangers.

Harlan's eyes followed their trajectory, almost as if his senses were superhuman. He heard a muffled, frightening sound, being able to turn his head to the side in time to see that David, the scientist from before, had a hole in his chest that spurted blood all over the place like it was a fountain of water.

The man fell to the ground, his eyes bulging and his shoulder dropping limp as his body was almost completely destroyed in a split second. He let out an odd groan and had a few spasms before finally standing still, immobile, petrified and mute.

In the ground behind him, a strange hole was also made, and a thin shape of an unknown material was inserted deep into the floor. At the same moment, the beasts that had stood still before began to advance en masse in various directions of the city, four of them came towards the square, tearing dozens of people with their huge paws and fangs made to kill.

The scientist died. And not just him, for countless people were facing the same fate as the man.

This finally snapped Harlan out of his trance, and his eyes instantly dilated.

''Fuck.''