Day 1
The bell rang, signaling the end of class.
Students slung their bags over their shoulders and streamed out of the lecture hall. Some discussed what they would have for dinner. Others excitedly talked about newly released games. The chatter of young men and women filled the university building.
"Have you studied Chapter Ten yet?" one girl asked her friend.
Her friend chuckled and shook her head. "No. I'm doomed." She leaned forward with a smug smile. "Besides, I'll just marry into a wealthy family anyway. What's the point of studying?"
"A wealthy family, huh?" the girl tilted her head. "I thought you said you'd love someone regardless of whether they're rich or poor."
"I did," her friend replied without shame. "But I also want to live comfortably."
She lowered her voice slightly and glanced around the room.
"Speaking of that... among all the guys in our university, who do you like the most?"
The girl thought for a moment before her gaze landed on a certain student sitting near the window.
She subtly gestured in his direction.
"Lucien looks like my type."
She sighed dreamily.
"He's cold, aloof, and looks like the CEO of some company. Exactly my type."
Her friend followed her gaze and immediately blushed.
"Our campus heartthrob?" She let out an equally dreamy sigh. "He really is handsome. Those sharp eyes and long dark hair down to his shoulders..."
"I wonder what his type is."
"You are so shameless."
The two girls burst into laughter.
Lucien briefly glanced in their direction before returning his attention to his notes.
Perhaps he had chosen the wrong major.
He should have gone into the arts.
Linguistics and Psychology were difficult enough separately. Taking both had been a mistake.
A thick Psychology textbook lay open before him.
The voices of the two girls still drifted over.
He closed the book with a soft thud.
There was no point in studying here.
He slid the textbook into his backpack and zipped it shut. Slinging the bag over his shoulder, he brushed his long hair away from his eyes with a hand.
As he walked toward the exit, one of the girls whispered excitedly—
"I'm going to confess to him tomorrow afternoon."
Lucien didn't hear the rest.
The afternoon sun beat down on the campus grounds as he stepped outside. Students passed him by, immersed in conversations about things they considered important.
Lucien paused.
Right.
Iris had asked him to buy groceries.
And a book.
He turned toward the market district.
---
After buying groceries, Lucien stopped by the bookstore to pick up the novel Iris wanted.
The Heart That Was Broken Once Upon a Time
by Stella Grant.
Lucien looked down at the pink-covered novel in his hands and sighed internally.
Why did his sister like these kinds of romance fantasies?
The story was apparently about a Fox Goddess named Jacklyn and a mortal hunter named Evander.
Iris had been talking about it for weeks.
He slipped the book into his backpack and shifted the grocery bags to his left arm.
Then he headed home.
At the zebra crossing, he stopped to wait for the traffic light.
Something felt wrong.
His hand unconsciously rose to his chest.
His heartbeat was unusually fast.
A strange unease settled over him.
As if—
Something terrible was about to happen.
Then—
Everything slowed.
Cars moved as though submerged in water.
The wind stilled.
The city fell silent.
A voice echoed directly within his mind.
Cold.
Mechanical.
Beautiful.
Too beautiful.
[Greetings, Earthlings.]
[Designation: System 0.]
[Six days remain until Preservation.]
[All humans will enter the Archives and become Records.]
[Unrecorded entities will no longer be recognized as human.]
[Please prepare accordingly.]
The world resumed.
A second ago, the world had been ordinary.
A second later, humanity had Six days left.
Lucien's eyes widened slightly.
The grocery bags nearly slipped from his hands.
Around him—
Someone dropped their phone.
A teenage girl looked around with wide eyes.
An elderly woman nearly lost her grip on her cane.
A driver swerved slightly before regaining control.
Not just Lumen City.
Not just this country.
The entire world had heard the voice.
And everyone was equally confused.
Panic spread like wildfire.
People shouted.
Others stared blankly.
Some laughed nervously.
Lucien ignored them all.
Only one thought occupied his mind.
Iris.
His little sister was home alone.
He broke into a run.
The grocery bags jingled softly as he rushed through the streets, nearly getting hit by a car at an intersection.
He didn't stop.
Not until he reached his neighborhood.
Not until he stood before a modest house with a thatched roof.
The wooden nameplate read:
Vale Residence
Lucien pushed open the gate.
"Iris!"
"What is it?" came a voice from the kitchen.
Lucien hurried inside.
There she was.
Rummaging through the refrigerator.
Her black hair was a mess atop her head. She wore an oversized hoodie and shorts, looking as if she had only recently woken up.
She looked up.
"Brother?"
Lucien finally exhaled.
He hadn't realized he'd been holding his breath.
"Did you hear it too?" he asked.
Iris blinked.
"The voice? Yeah." She tilted her head. "Something about six days?"
Lucien nodded.
His expression remained as unreadable as ever.
But the tension in his shoulders eased.
He placed the groceries on the table before unzipping his bag.
"That voice was annoying as hell."
He pulled out the novel.
"Here's your book."
Iris's eyes lit up.
"You got it!"
She accepted the book with both hands.
"You're the best brother ever."
Lucien said nothing.
He wasn't fond of talking.
Iris, on the other hand, seemed capable of talking enough for both of them.
"Anyway—"
She sat down across from him.
"Can you cook tonight? I want your cooking."
Lucien gave a small nod.
He stood up and walked toward the stove.
The gas ignited with a soft flare.
Outside—
The world had begun to change.
Neither sibling knew it yet.
But six days later—
Humanity would become Records.
---
That night, Lucien lay in bed scrolling through social media.
Every platform had exploded.
News channels.
Livestreams.
Conspiracy theories.
Panic.
Everyone was discussing the mysterious announcement.
Lucien clicked his tongue.
Mass hysteria?
Probably.
Global hallucination?
Probably.
Did people have to go insane on social media?
No.
He closed the app and opened a game instead.
Half an hour later—
Lucien Vale fell asleep.
Unaware that his ordinary life had already ended.
Day 2.
Lucien walked down the stairs yawning and put the back of his wrist against his lips as he did so. Still in his nightwear.
"Good morning, brother," the sound of a plate being placed on the table echoed through the kitchen, "come eat."
"You don't have college today?" Lucien walked into the kitchen, his face was damped from being washed with water all over it.
Iris shook her head, "the dean sent us a message on our college group chat. He wrote that all first year and second year classes shall not be held until further notice."
Lucien gave a non-committal hum, "I see…" he sat on his chair.
"Although, I think that this political propaganda wouldn't last for long." Iris set down her plate then sat down.
"You think it is political?" Lucien picked up his fork and looked down at the food on his plate. Iris had made eggs sunny-side up and with bacon and sausages on the side.
"Or what?" Iris pointed her fork at her brother as if it was a weapon, "hearing a spooky mysterious voice. Might be the government trying to control us helpless citizens."
Lucien shrugged, "does the government control the rest of the world as well?"
"Maybe they are working on it together?" Iris also shrugged then stabbed her egg yolk smearing it all over her egg.
Lucien didn't argue more with his talkative sister anymore. He put all his focus on his food before him. For that day neither Iris nor Lucien had gone out but rather…
One watched TV.
And
One read 'The Heart That Was Broken Once Upon a Time.'
Day 3.
"Iris," Lucien called out to his sister, "come on, we are going out to the library."
"Coming." Iris slung her purse on her shoulder and walked towards Lucien.
The sibling duo walked out of the house.
"So…" Iris looked at her brother, "what do you think would happen after three days?"
Lucien didn't glance at his sister as he answered, "I don't know."
"Hey brother," Iris suddenly hopped in front of Lucien now walking backwards while talking to him, "no matter what happens let's stick together."
Lucien stopped walking for a bit after hearing his sister's words. And nodded, "alright." Iris hopped out of the way as both of the siblings walked to the local library.
"Iris! Luce!"
Both siblings turned towards the voice. It was their neighbour.
"Good morning, Mrs Ashford." Iris greeted while Lucien stayed silent.
"Mornin'" Stacey Ashford smiled back, "did you two hear about the robotic voice as well?"
Iris nodded, "we did. We suspect that it is some government propaganda."
"I see…" Stacey nodded thoughtfully, "anyway. How is college treating you, Iris dear?" she added, "I heard you have taken up nursing."
"Exams have been troublesome but except the exams everything is going well for me." Iris enthusiastically replied, "yes I did."
"Good, study well, dear." She turned her attention to Lucien, "what about you Luce, darling? How's university?"
"Good."
Mrs Ashford chuckled, "only 'good'?"
Iris chimed in, "he means he is enjoying his time in university. It is the most prestigious university in Lumen. Cranford Central University."
"I am?" Lucien turned towards his sister.
Iris didn't answer him but she kept talking with Stacey instead.
"Your parents are still overseas" Stacey cocked her head to the side, "is that right?"
"Yes." Iris nodded, "they are on a business trip."
"I see…"
After a few more exchanges of words Mrs Ashford walked away on to her own path and the journey towards the library continued for the sibling duo.
The siblings have reached the library doors. Lucien looked at the door then at the deadbolt locked in place.
"It's Tuesday," Iris muttered, "why would the library be closed?" She turned to Lucien, "is this because of the mysterious voice that we heard?"
Lucien shrugged, "I don't know."
Iris looked around and saw a familiar figure. She smiled and went up to him. She recognised him as one of the library staff and also Stacey Ashford's husband, Cedric Ashford, "excuse me, Mr. Ashford."
Cedric turned towards the sibling duo. He looked shocked and distressed but still offered a polite smile, "what is it miss and mister Vale?"
"Why is the library closed today?" Lucien was the one who asked this.
Cedric let out a long suffering sigh, "this might sound like a fairy-tale to a psychology student like you." Cedric looked at both of them with a hint of seriousness in his eyes, "but the words of the books are gone."
Lucien and Iris looked at each other with wide eyes then back at Cedric. "Please clarify," Lucien said, schooling his expression, "what you mean."
Iris nodded. It was the first time the talkative sister had no words.
Cedric rubbed the back of his neck, "but today when the staff had entered the library early in the morning to arrange the books and put them in their respective sections…" He swallowed a lump that had formed in his throat and adjusted his spectacles, "we had opened the books just to take a peak… but there was no writing. The pages were blank…" Cedric ran a hand through his messy blond hair.
Lucien's eyes widened, "what you are describing is not possible? How can writing preserved in a book disappear like that?"
"I also wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen it with my own eyes." Cedric put up his hands and waved it trying to defend himself but the already fifty-three year old man looked like he had been aged ten years.
Cedric was about to report when he heard Iris' frantic voice, "Brother!" She was holding 'The Heart That Was Broken Once Upon a Time.' It was open as her shocked gaze trembled while looking over on the pages.
Cedric and Lucien walked to her side as they glanced down on the book.
Lucien's eyes widened. There really were no words on them. And he had brought this the day that monotone voice had shook the world. It had been fine until yesterday.
Cedric frantically pointed, "that is what I was talking about?" He almost shouted, "the words are disappearing from the books!!!"
Lucien just stared at the blanket pages as if staring could bring the words back on to the pages.
….
After rushing home. Both of the siblings grabbed their textbooks and opened them and sure enough there were no words on them. Just black pages.
"What is happening, brother?"
"I don't know." Lucien threw his linguistic book aside.
"Is the monotone voice a cosmic entity capable of erasing a library worth of books in one night?"
Lucien did not have answers to that question. He just hummed out a response, "lets try to sleep it off. Don't think about it too much."
Iris agreed because both of them needed to process whatever is going on in this world.
Day 4.
"Iris," Lucien called from the living room and pressed the on button on the TV and opened an international news, "come and watch this." he sat down on the plush sofa.
Iris stormed in and sat next to her brother, "I'm here."
On the TV the news anchor said, "good afternoon everyone. Welcome to BBC news. The channel where we bring the juiciest news for your taste." He clicked his tongue as an image appeared behind him showing a library, "yesterday because of some phenomenon. The words on the pages of the books are disappearing. As if someone is trying to erase the stories written by humanity."
"Not only that but also," the image got replaced by cats and dogs, "the animals around us started to behave weird. A citizen has reported that their labrador would stare at libraries for hours on end. Sometimes the labrador would feel uneasy around books and would not stop barking. Similar reports have been filed from all over the world."
"We will continue after a short break-" the news cut into an ad break of a skincare product.
Iris looked at her brother, "this is just too odd."
"Mn…" Lucien nodded his head.
"What would happen on day 7?" Iris asked, "will we disappear?"
"Remember what the monotone voice had said?" Lucien had an excellent memory, "it said that after six days humanity will enter the world of the Archives."
Iris did not pay attention to it much but now hearing her brother say that she nods, "and then humanity will become Records… and then it said that the Unrecorded entities will not be considered humans."
Lucien leaned back on the sofa in a lazy posture with one knee over the other and both hands behind his head, "maybe… since only humans would enter the Archives and the unrecorded will not be considered human… it will be removed instead."
"Removed?"
"Think about it," he closed his eyes, "If the voice did not see the unrecorded as humans then it saw them as 'mistakes'… and what do you do to mistakes…"
Iris finished for her brother as genuine horror flashed behind her eyes, "you erase them."
"Exactly."
Day 5.
"Brother, wake up!" Iris barged into Lucien's room, "there is a massive issue."
Lucien sits up and runs his eyes with the back of his wrists, "what happened?"
Iris became serious as she stopped shaking him, "can you remember mum and papa?"
Lucien thought for a while. He tried to remember the woman with a kind smile with a short bob cut of her hair. But he couldn't pin-point the face. The face is only a blur to him. He can only remember the vibrant red scarf she wore everywhere she went. Then he tried to remember the rugged man with a trimmed beard and gentle eyes but nothing came to mind. As if he didn't exist.
"Shit." Lucien's face darkened, "find our family albums."
"I already did." Irus went out of the room and brought back three huge albums, "and every photo I look through… mum and papa aren't in either of them." Iris said as she shoved one of the albums towards Lucien.
He opened it and checked that's true. The only photos which remain are only of Lucien and Iris starting front when they were kids to their first days at university and college. The images Lucien remembered to be group photos were also just him and his sister. Not a single person more.
Lucien let out a sharp breath through his nose, "you checked all of these?"
Iris confirmed, "I have."
"And none of them contains the image of our parents?"
"Correct."
Lucien sat back helplessly. He pulled out his phone, "who do you remember?" He sighed, "call whoever you remember."
Iris nodded and pulled out her phone with a cat charm attached to it, "okay." She looked at Lucien, "I'm glad that I still remember you."
"Hm." Lucien also pulled out his phone, "me as well."
"The only contacts I have left are about Serena, Leon, Lewis and Cedric" Iris let out a helpless sigh, "the others are listed as unknown."
Lucien looks more annoyed than scared, "I have only you."
"Huh, sooo the rest are unknown to you too?"
"No." Lucien shook his head, "my only contact has been you and our parents since the beginning of this year."
Iris "...."
Get some friends, brother!
Iris was about to scold her brother to get more friends when the doorbell rang.
Lucien swallowed, "stay here. I will get the door." He calmly stood up, "if anything happens. Lock the doors and stay in."
"Brother…" the protest died in Iris' throat as Lucien patted her head. An action he always used to do back when he and Iris were younger.
Lucien didn't say anything more. He grabbed a kitchen knife as the sound of the doorbell got louder and echoed in the house.
He stood in front of the door, "who's there?" The grip on the knife tighted. Since their memories have been getting tampered with by some narcissistic cosmic entity then some should also not remember them as well. So, who could be here?
"It's me, Cedric!" The voice was frantic and there was a hint of panic in it.
Lucien calmed down a little bit, "what's my name then, Mr. Ashford?"
Cedric calmed a little bit, but his voice still quivered slightly, "you are Lucien Vale, you are twenty three years old and you have a twenty one year old sister named Iris Vale."
Lucien hid the knife behind his back and opened the door. The middle-aged librarian looked like he hadn't slept last night with messy blond hair and tired light brown eyes.
"Do you remember," Cedric lunged forward and suddenly grabbed Lucien's shoulders, "anyone from your life? Anyone???"
Lucien was startled as he was grabbed by his shoulder. He was never good with physical contact. His face showed calmness as he asked, "did you forget anyone?"
Cedric let go of Lucien and staggered backwards almost falling on the porch. He grabbed his own head and started shaking it, "I don't remember my wife, my son and daughter, my colleagues… I can't remember anyone…" he looked at the young man with red rimmed eyes again, "I only remember you and Iris."
Lucien looked up at the pitiful middle aged librarian that he almost felt had for him. He took him to the kitchen but felt a close eye on the knife as he got a glass of water.
"Tell me everything slowly, Mr. Ashford." Lucien put the glass of water in front of Cedric and watched him drink it all at once then let out a breath as if he had been holding it in since he had seen something terrifying.
"When I woke up this morning," Cedric put the glass down with a soft tap on the wooden table, "Stacey was fine cooking me breakfast as always."
"And then?" Lucien did not sit. He stood by the stove and his knife.
"She just…" Cedric's voice cracked as if he would descend into tears again, "she just… disappeared." It was as if he had choked out the last word from his throat.
"Disappeared?"
Cedric frantically nodded, "one second she was humming a soft tune and the next… gone"
Lucien blinked. A thought crept up to him. Has his parents suffered the same outcome?
Cedric kept explaining, "her clothes were left behind and the utensil she was using had clattered to the ground."
"Let me guess…" Lucien interrupted, "after she disappeared you forgot what she looked like?"
Cedric nodded, "yes!" He explained again in a state of panic, "after that I had been searching through every possible album– even the pictures on my phone. But she was not there in any of it… it's like she had never existed…"
Lucien just listened to the pitiful man and nodded along.
"Then I checked my phone. Besides you two, everyone on them was listed as unknown. Even my colleagues and my children…"
"Brother!" Iris suddenly shouted, scrambling to get down the stairs almost falling.
The two men rushed towards the young woman. Lucien caught her before she could fall flat on her face.
"What happened?!" Cedric asked in a panic.
"I was…" she breathed in and out heavily, "I was looking outside your window and…" she gulped visibly, "I saw a man disappear." She breathed, "he only left his clothes behind."
"That's the same thing that happened to my wife!" Cedric explained, terrified.
"Your wife disappeared?!" Iris' head snapped at Cedric.
…
The two of them sat on the living room sofa while Lucien stood leaning on the wall. The TV was playing the news.
"Breaking news." It was a different news anchor than yesterday, "we have reports from people vanishing from the streets. It has happened all over Asteria. The reports from other countries are just the same. The countries falling victims are Asteria, Indesh, Bengalia, Austrania, Japonia, and several smaller island states in the Pacific region."
"This has turned into a global pandemic. People whose loved ones have disappeared have the symptoms for memory loss. They have no memory of the disappeared person. The person does not only disappear physically but they all seem to be disappearing from family pictures as if they had never existed. Yet remember their relation to the disappeared person."
"Strange behaviour of animals and the words of books slowly disappearing are all happening after the world had heard a mysterious voice in their head. Is it a curse? Or something beyond our understanding?"
"Oh my god…" Cedric looked horrified.
Iris tried to find words to lighten the mood but couldn't find any. It's as if all her words are stuck in her throat.
Lucien just watched the anchor talk about the disappearances.
"Some say it's because we have too much sin in this world and God is punishing us. Or the others believe that the end times are coming and the monotone voice is a part of God's last warning to humanity" the Anchor continued, "our respective president Tournal Grump has been quiet after disappearance finding no words to say to this global tragedy."
"Architect Damon Voss had a theory. Let's listen to him first." The screen shifted on to a picture of a handsome man in a suit.
"I am Damon Voss." The young man on the screen said, "the theory I'm sharing is that God has noticed our sins and is punishing us… the voice in our head was a message for us. Thank you for having me on BBC, Anchor Andrew."
The screen shifted again this time showing the news anchor again. Who started speaking again.
"That Voss guy looks like he owns a cult." Iris muttered
"Agreed." Lucien crossed his arms over his chest.
Cedric was far too distressed to react to Iris's comment.
"Now we will hear a few words from Architect Alaric Thorn." The news anchor said as the screen faded to reveal a handsome man about twenty five or twenty six.
Lucien's eyes caught the handsome face on the TV screen as he felt a shudder in his bones. It felt like Alaric's light brown eyes were boring into his soul. His dark red hair tied behind him. He wore a turtleneck shirt with a jacket over it. He was wearing a cross shaped earring in one ear. He has a mole under one of his eyes.
Alaric didn't introduce himself, he got to the point with a calm expression, "from day one after System Zero spoke in everyone's head. I have paid attention to some details in them." He continued after clicking his tongue, "it has given us six days until we turn into Records and today is day five of those six days… it also said that the Unrecorded person would not be considered human… since it specifically said that only humans could enter… so the unrecorded ones are being erased physically and mentally as if they had never been born to begin with."
Iris pointed out, "Brother, this Alaric has the same theory as you."
Lucien rolled his eyes, "he stole the theory from me."
Iris shrugged, "I don't think so… I think that you two share the same brain."
"That is the greatest insult I have heard from my own sister." Lucien deadpanned.
"That's what you two are fighting about?" Cedric squicked like a mouse, "people are literally disappearing for God's sake!"
Both of the siblings quieted down. They don't have enough will power to worry about others… when they could be the next ones disappearing from the face of reality.
Lucien had always been composed. He couldn't remember a time where he had howled like a wolf when he was younger. Not when he fell off the swings or scraped his knees. His mother and father had taken him to a therapist. But his resting calmness remained on his face.
Iris was the exact opposite. She was emotional and a lot more expressive than Lucian.
"Thank you for having me, Anchor Andrew." Alaric said as the screen faded to the anchor again.
The sibling duo and Cedric focused on the screen hearing the Anchor talk.
"That is all folks. I am news Anchor Andrew Haze. I will see you all next time and may God save us–" Andrew's voice cut off as he suddenly disappeared and his suit and tie fell behind the desk as loud screams erupted from the TV and from outside the TV.
Iris had screamed and flinched, "h- he disappeared!" She pointed at the TV."
Cedric yelped as he almost stood up on the sofa.
Only Lucien observed this with a sense of calmness in his expression.
Cedric stayed with the siblings that day. He didn't have the strength to go back to his own house.
Last Day.
Lucien came out of the shower with his towel over his shoulder and his dark hair still damp with water. He walked towards the kitchen. His sister was cooking breakfast as always and Cedric was there too but with his head down.
The atmosphere felt wrong. His sister wasn't smiling like always as if the weight of reality was weighing her down bit by bit.
Cedric's eyes fixed on the wooden table as if it would save him from this whole supernatural ordeal.
The only sound in the kitchen was the knife in his sister's hand tapping against the chopping board.
"Good morning, Mr Ashford." Lucien said as he went next to his sister, "let me help you."
Iris' light up after seeing Lucien. Her sad expression turned happy again after seeing her brother, "brother, you are still here?"
"Where else would I be?" Lucien started the stove on low hit, "I live with you after all."
Cedric also looked up and smiled, "good morning to you too, young Vale."
Lucien nodded at Cedric.
"I didn't see you in your room," Iris slid the chopped up sausages on the pan and watched Lucien fry it, "I thought you… nevermind."
Lucien glanced at his sister without turning his head. He didn't say anything more, just cooked in silence.
Cedric pulled out his phone and went to Facebook… his eyes widened with horror. Without looking up from his phone he asked, "have any of you heard chirping of birds this morning?"
Lucien didn't look up but Iris did. They answered at the same time, "no."
"Why are you asking?" Iris cocked up an eyebrow.
He put his phone on the table. He didn't say the words out loud, "take a look." He said then sat back on the chair listlessly.
Iris picked up the phone and his eyes widened. Her breathing got heavier as sweat beads formed on her forehead. She sharply turned to Lucien, "Brother, look at this!" she put her hand on Lucien's shoulder.
Lucien, who was putting the food on a plate, put the pan back on the stove and looked at what his sister was showing him. His gaze went over the writing there were post saying:
"Has anyone seen pigeons today?"
"My cat disappeared this morning."
"There are no insects on my porch lights tonight."
"The forest near our town is silent."
Then his eyes glanced at a trending hashtag. "#WhereAreTheBirds"
Lucien blinked then rubbed his eyes with the back of his wrist. A horrifying realisation dawned on him, "the animals have vanished?"
A silence fell in the kitchen except for the hissing of the stove.
A minute later the silence was broken by Lucien's quiet complaint, "damn it.. my protein…"
Iris, "...."
Cedric "...."
That's what you are worried about?!
"Brother," Iris said as Lucien hands Cedric back his phone, "lets go out tomorrow… the world is ending anyway… let's enjoy ourselves a little…"
"Mn." Lucien hummed non-commitally.
Cedric thought these two siblings had lost their minds. Why would they want to go out when the ecosystem is collapsing, people are vanishing, memories are getting tampered by some cosmic entity.
But again… even those who were inside their homes… they were never safe to begin with…
The Day Of Apocalypse
The cafe was quiet with no life in it. It was like the servers and waiters had vanished mid air. Lucien had gone to the kitchen himself and made himself and Iris a milkshake. Cedric hadn't come with them. He was too afraid to leave the Vale's house.
"Here you go." he slid one of the milkshakes towards his sister.
Iris who had been sitting down looking through her phone as if it would give her the answers to everything looked up. She was wearing a simple hoodie with a white blouse underneath and navy blue trousers, "thank you." She said smiling as she picked up the milkshake and took a sip.
Lucien hummed.
He sat across from Iris. He also had taken a sip of his own milkshake.
They sat in silence for a while but nothing happened.
Lucien looked out through the window. The sky was gloomy and dark. It was as if heavy rain would tear the sky any moment now.
Twenty minutes have passed.
"Brother," Iris called out, "nothing is happening…"
Lucien was about to answer with another hum when the monotone voice returned in his head. His eyebrows shot up. He quickly grabbed Iris' hand after seeing the same expression on her face.
Not only the siblings but the entire remaining humans have heard.
[System booting…]
[Loading broadcast 123…]
[Greeting Records, the six days elimination period is up.]
[Teleporting former humanity to Archive #000: The Parallel Earth]
A white light engulfed Lucien's vision as his grip tightened on Iris' arm. Lucien counted the seconds in his mind.
After thirty seconds the light disappeared and everything returned to normal. The same cafe. The same milkshakes and the same tables and chairs, nothing out of place… everything looked too perfect.
The pair of siblings looked around…
"Everything looks normal." Iris commented.
"It does…" Lucien agreed, looking back at Iris as his grip loosened a bit.
when they were about to take a breath of relief…
The system's robotic voice sounded again.
[Welcome to Archive #000: The Parallel Earth]