The sky was falling.

Piece by piece, chips of blue and gray showered from wherever they were supposed to be. I simply ceased my meaningless, aimless stroll through the desolate street and turned my gaze toward the vast firmament now speckled with the blackness of a void. I knew it was no space; there were no celestial bodies nor any hint of subdued light streaming from the satellite. All that returned my gaze was something far from spirited, but rather, deprived of emotion, warmth, and life itself.

The sky was not the only thing deteriorating by the second. Buildings, sylvan beings and whatsoever were flickering as if the entire world was a three dimensional projection malfunctioning. Nevertheless, pedestrians walked on, even managing to give a distasteful look when they crashed into me, who was halting in the middle of the sidewalk.

“Are you blind?”

The question one limping vagrant spat at my face was so ironic that I could not help inviting a smirk on my face. I held my ground, watching the tramp as he hobbled along with the crowd, apparently headed for nowhere. The truth is, no one ever had a destination. And that meant that I had none, either. But I had always thought to myself that I had it, like someone of a greater mind had programmed ‘You must move busily to run an errand where there is none.’ The realization came to me like a hurtling wave the moment a single debris of what was meant to be perpetual landed before my feet. I had no purpose.

Now there was more darkness than there was light. The painfully static abyss ate away the world with vigor unprecedented. The silent yet voracious beast stuffed its foul stomach with all that was left of the cerulean sky and eventually reached the ground. At the far end of the street, I could see its gaping mouth filled with venomous fangs. Yet people walked towards the welcoming monster without a moment of hesitation, or realization. I watched as the unaware sacrifices willingly plunged into the insatiable throat and dissipated altogether. I knew it was an inevitable future reserved for me, too. There was no point in running.

I chose to close my eyes as the inky judgement approached me with such menacing posture. Its breath, which was probably the fruit of my imagination, swept across the barren street and brushed my face. I could tell it was no more than ten seconds away from devouring me. Seized by panic and formidable sense of futility, a droplet of briny despair skidded down my cheek, when…

When I heard its voice.

“Are you awake?”

I could only look up in surprise. The nothingness was speaking to me.

“Yes, no…I-I don’t know,” I let out a husky voice with honesty. Since there was absolutely nothing besides me and the endless sea of the vacuum, I wasn’t sure where to set my eyes on.

“Are you afraid?” It asked again. Its voice was hardly anything I had expected; it was soothing like a spring zephyr, yet profound like the echo in a cave.

“…Yes.”

The void spared itself some time to consider my answer.

“May I ask you why?”

“It’s…Isn’t it obvious? I don’t want to die---or, cease to exist. Not that I was anything meaningful, but…Oh, I wish I was asleep like the others,” I groaned, falling to my knees listlessly.

“How ironic to hear the word ‘asleep’ from you.”

“……”

“But child, do you realize who you are?” I lifted my eyes to that question.

“Am I not…,” I slurred the end of my sentence, because all of a sudden, I had the hopes that were aroused from the doubt in the perception I had experienced earlier.

“No, you are not,” said the void.

“Then who…?”

“You are the creator. The owner.”

My heart began to race. I rose to my feet, a grin starting to form on my face. I was saved by the colossus which I had thought would shred my identity and existence with no hesitancy.

“Then who are you?” I could feel my voice trembling, mostly from glee and anticipation.

“Some call me the Ender, some call me the Desolation, but I call myself…the Morning.”

Simultaneously, the darkness swirled around me to forge a colossal wall of hurricane. Contrary to my surroundings, I had never felt a more genuine placidity within my heart, lulling me to a sense of security and comfort inexplicable by mere words. The blackness was as bright as a dawning of a day, and the chaos as calming as a serene lagoon.

“Sleep, child, to awake.”

The void’s voice melted in my head and soon, my consciousness started to drift elsewhere. My body was lighter than air, and haziness swarmed in my brain, as if injecting some kind of anesthetic drug. And finally, I allowed myself to oblivion.

I opened my eyes.

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Hey guys! I decided to gather all my short stories into one published collection, hence this book and the taking down of my other books. I will upload one story per week on Fridays(KST).

Please comment and vote! Thank you♡