May 1st, 2028. London, modern-day Earth.
The sun blazed high in the sky, punishing humanity for its years of recklessness. The ozone layer, long past salvation, was in ruins, allowing ultraviolet rays to sear through with merciless intensity. It was a normal day—until it wasn't.
"Hey, Asher."
A young man turned at the mention of his name. He stood tall at 6'1", light-skinned, with a face that could have made him the most popular guy in any high school. With slick blonde hair and pale blue eyes, he looked like he belonged on the cover of a magazine. He could've ruled the modeling industry—but he had other plans.
"Sup, Kyle?" Asher responded, his gaze shifting to the young man beside him.
Kyle, just a few days shy of 18, had the lean build of someone who hadn't quite grown into himself yet. His curly brown hair was a mess, and his deep black eyes carried the tiredness of a teenager juggling too much at once.
"How's your internship going?" Asher asked as Kyle joined him. They stood on a rooftop terrace, overlooking the brilliance of London from 150 meters high.
"Stressful. If I fetch one more coffee, I'll officially be crowned the floor butler." Kyle sighed, rubbing his temple. Sad fact—it wasn't even noon yet.
Asher burst into laughter, thoroughly enjoying his best friend's misery.
"You heard anything from Miles?" he asked once his laughter died down.
"Last I heard, he got a job at a bar five blocks away," Kyle said with a shrug.
Asher arched a brow. "Is he a waiter or something?"
"Maybe." Another shrug. "He didn't tell me the specifics."
"I bet he's a waiter," Asher said, a mischievous grin spreading across his face.
"Why don't we pay him a visit after our shift?"
"Not a bad idea." Kyle rubbed his beardless chin, mirroring the same grin.
For the next few minutes, they stood there, enjoying the view while plotting all the ways they could tease Miles when they saw him.
Then… the world ended.
Well, not literally. But one second, the sun was there—scorching, blinding—and the next, it was gone. Darkness swallowed the city whole, as if someone had thrown a massive blackout curtain over the world. The streetlights, neon signs, even phone screens—everything went dark.
Panic struck instantly.
Car tires screeched, metal crunched as vehicles collided blindly. Horns blared, voices screamed, and a cacophony of terror rippled through the city like a wave of pure, unfiltered chaos. People stumbled in the dark, crashing into one another, crying out in confusion and fear.
Kyle's breath hitched. His pulse pounded in his ears. "What the hell—"
"Kyle, you there?" Asher's slightly shaking voice sounded beside him.
Then, just as suddenly as it vanished, the light returned.
It wasn't a gradual restoration. The man-made lights flickered for a few seconds and came back into existence, blessing them with light in the absence of the Sun. Cars shrouded in darkness were now visible—some flipped, others dented beyond recognition, and their drivers slumped over motionless.
Taking advantage of the light, Kyle turned, surveying the streets below. A gnawing unease crawled into his chest. The destruction was staggering. People lay motionless on sidewalks, bodies scattered between burning wrecks. Some still moved, wailing, clutching at wounds, at loved ones who no longer breathed.
A cold chill trickled down his spine.
"We have to leave." Asher's voice broke through his thoughts. Kyle turned to see fear flickering in his best friend's usually confident blue eyes. "The building might collapse."
Kyle nodded, looking at the cars that has crashed into the building. They turned and rushed toward the elevator—only to find a mob of panicked employees shoving and fighting to squeeze in.
"The stairs," Asher suggested.
Luckily, no one else had thought of them. They pushed through the emergency exit, descending the steps two at a time. Every few floors, they heard people crying or calling for help, but there was no time to stop. The terror gnawed at Kyle's insides, his heart hammering against his ribs. He couldn't shake the feeling that something much, much worse was about to happen.
By the time they reached ground level, their legs burned from the effort. They burst out of the building into the open street—
—and were met with madness.
London was unrecognizable.
Fires raged in the distance, thick smoke curling into the sky. People ran, pushing past one another in sheer panic. Families clutched their children and wept over the bodies of loved ones. A mother screamed frantically for her missing son. The sounds of agony, confusion, and terror blended into a single, deafening roar of devastation.
Kyle took a deep breath and looked away from the carnage. "Let's go find Miles."
Asher nodded and followed behind him.
Then it happened.
It was subtle—at first. A strange sensation washed over them, like a gentle breeze passing through their bodies. But it wasn't wind. It was… something else. Something unseen. A pressure, an energy that twisted the air around them, making it thick and heavy.
A cold dread coiled around Kyle's chest. He turned to Asher, about to speak—
But Asher's legs buckled beneath him.
Thud.
"Asher?"
Kyle barely had time to register what was happening. His best friend lay motionless on the pavement. His eyes were closed, his body utterly still.
Kyle reached out, his heart hammering—
Then his vision blurred.
The world tilted.
"What the—"
Thud.
Kyle never finished the sentence. His body collapsed, the city around him fading into the void.
And it wasn't just them.
Across the city, across the country, across the planet—
Every living thing collapsed into deep, uncontrollable sleep.
The world did not scream.
The world did not fight.
The world simply… slept.
And just like that, Earth and its inhabitants were swallowed by the sweet embrace of slumber—for untold millennia.