Ren walked down the crowded street, dreadlocks tied up in a ponytail, bobbing slightly to the rhythm of the music playing in his ears. His brown skin glistened with a subtle sheen of sweat, a testament to the sweltering city heat. The sounds of car horns, chatter, and wailing sirens filled the air as he navigated through the throngs of people.
As he turned a corner, his gaze fell upon a large city TV display mounted on the side of a building. A male journalist's serious face appeared on the screen, and Ren's eyes instinctively shifted from the pavement to the news report. The journalist's words caught his attention: "...another victim of GWAT, the mysterious abductions that have left the city on edge."
Ren's fingers paused, and he pulled out his ear buds, joining the crowd in watching the report. The worry etched on the faces of passersby was palpable. Some stopped, like Ren, while others hurried along, casting anxious glances at the screen.
The journalist continued,
"The latest victim, a 22-year-old woman, was last seen leaving her job at a downtown café. Her phone and personal belongings were found abandoned near the park, but there was no sign of her. The police are urging anyone with information to come forward."
Ren's eyes scanned the crowd, seeing the concern and fear reflected in the faces around him. He felt a shiver run down his spine as he wondered if anyone was safe in the city. The music in his ears seemed trivial now, and he let the sounds of the city wash over him – the horns honking, the chatter, and the distant hum of traffic.
As the report ended, the TV display flickered to a public awareness campaign, urging citizens to stay vigilant and report any suspicious activity. Ren stood there for a moment, taking in the information, before tucking his ear-buds back in and continuing on his way home, the city's unease lingering in his mind.
***
Finally at home Ren shut the door behind him, dropped his backpack on the floor, and fell back onto his bed, exhausted.
"What a day," he muttered to himself. After a moment's rest, he got up to cook himself some noodles. As he waited for them to cook, he couldn't help but think about the events of the day.
Once his noodles were ready, Ren sat down, phone in hand, and watched a YouTube video about a professor who had a unique theory about the GWAT disappearances. The professor introduced himself as Greenwood and began explaining his hypothesis:
"Imagine a doorway, not just a physical entrance, but a portal to another dimension, one that exists parallel to our own. It's possible that people are being drawn into this reality, sucked in by forces beyond our understanding. 'The Gate,' as I've come to call it, is not a place of darkness and despair, but perhaps a realm of infinite possibility."
The professor's words were both captivating and unsettling. He continued, "The government would have you believe it's either criminal activity or the result of suicidal tendencies, but I'm here to tell you that's not the whole story. We need to think outside the box, to consider the possibility that there's more to reality than what we can see and touch."
Ren listened intently as the professor urged his viewers not to dismiss the idea but to consider it, to think beyond the conventional explanations. After finishing his noodles and watching the video, Ren thought the theory was interesting but probably a bit far-fetched.
"Good theory, but probably insane," he remarked.
"The GWAT [Gone Without a Trace] phenomenon as the masses call it, began two years ago, in the aftermath of a devastating earthquake and torrential rainfall that shook the city to its core. A year later,the first reported disappearance sparked a chain reaction of events that would leave the government scrambling for answers. As the cases piled up, authorities implemented curfews, increased surveillance, and launched investigations, but to no avail. The people grew fearful, whispering among themselves about supernatural forces and unknown entities. Meanwhile, on the internet, theories began to merge: some pointed to a dimensional breach, others to an unknown predator, and a few even suggested a government conspiracy. The truth, however, remained elusive, fueling the flames of speculation and terror."
***
As Ren stepped into the shower, the warm water washed away his fatigue. But as he began to relax, he thought he heard a whisper – his name, softly spoken. Ren stopped, looking around, but there was no one there. The whisper seemed to come from all directions and nowhere at the same time.
He continued his bath, but the experience repeated itself. Ren heard his name whispered again, and once more, he stopped to listen. The voice stopped, leaving only the sound of the water.
After his bath, Ren lay down on his bed, still thinking about the professor's theory. He scrolled through the comments on the video, noticing that opinions were divided. Some people thought the professor was onto something, while others called him crazy. Ren couldn't help but lean towards the latter opinion.
As he continued to browse, his eyelids grew heavy, and before he knew it, he had drifted off to sleep, the city outside his window humming softly in the background.
***
3:04.a.m Ren Kael woke up gasping, his sheets tangled around him, soaked with sweat. The room was dark, except for the sliver of moonlight cutting across the floor, casting an eerie glow. His heart pounded like he'd just finished running, but he couldn't remember why. A dream, perhaps, or a nightmare that slipped away the moment he opened his eyes. Ren sat up and rubbed his face, his fingers freezing as he noticed something on his hand.
A mark, dark, jagged, and pulsing faintly like a weak heartbeat, adorned his palm and stretched halfway up his wrist. It resembled a cracked eye with a single vertical slit. Ren's mind reeled as he stared at the mark, unsure what to make of it. It didn't hurt, but it didn't feel natural either. Like it didn't belong to him.
Ren grabbed his phone from the nightstand, the screens light casting strange shadows on the wall behind him, making his small room feel unfamiliar. 3:07 a.m. No messages. He turned the camera on, pointing it at his hand, but the mark didn't show up. Yet, he could still see it, still feel it, and... Wait, hear it? A whisper, like wind through dead branches or someone breathing behind a closed door, seemed to emanate from the mark.
Ren stood up, stumbling toward the mirror. His reflection stared back – same face, same messy black hair, same tired eyes. But the mark remained, even if it didn't show up in the reflection. His fingers trembled as he realized it wasn't paint, wasn't a cut. It was... something else.
The air in Ren's room shifted, growing heavier like a storm was brewing. Shadows on the floor stretched too far, bending in ways they shouldn't. The closet door creaked open by itself, just an inch. Ren backed away, his heart racing. His phone screen went black, then white, displaying a message: *DO YOU SEE THE ECHO?* the question blinked once before vanishing, leaving Ren confused.
The phone turned off completely, plunging Ren into darkness. He turned toward the closet, now open wider. A shape, thin and crooked like a puppet made of smoke and bone, stood inside. Its eyes glowed faint white, watching Ren with an unnerving intensity. Ren's breath caught in his throat as the shape spoke in a voice like broken glass scraping against wood: "The Gate has found you, Ren Kael."
Ren didn't scream, didn't run. Instead, he took a step forward, his heart pounding in his chest. The darkness seemed to close in around him, and he felt himself drawn into a world beyond his own.