It was noon, maybe, the sun was on the top of the sky, but time is already irrelevant. Akino and Alexa finally reached the outskirts of the Manhattan ruins. They can see clearly the black sphere floating in the center of decimated city, well not really. Some buildings, most are ready to topple down, are still standing still at the perimeter of that ruins. The sphere floats on a deserted land, which is the heart of the place. Alexa saw a convenient store that was three blocks near to the deserted land. Akino parked near to that store, and they checked out what’s inside.

Akino: We already got food, right?

Alexa: But we don’t got any ice cream. My tongue wants ice cream.

Akino: The ultimate lifeform that craves for ice cream…

Alexa: Why not? Everyone wants something, even that bacteria on your face wants something.

Akino: Haha, alright. Go get what you want, so we can see that hole clearly during this daytime.

Alexa: We got a lot of time, AND we can clearly see in the dark. No point in making me hurry.

Akino went outside of the store to look around. She gazes at the buildings covered in huge vines made of red crystals, the ground was painted with red and blue grasses, and the sky was bright blue with the huge floating creatures in it, all on the outside perimeter of the ruins. Akino looked on the southern region, she saw some clouds, raging with lightning but it was odd, the clouds were brown, like a sandstorm. She looked at the makeshift device she created that was attached on her left arm, it beeps, and a satellite image of a huge storm near their area pops on her screen.

Akino: It’s approaching fast.

Akino went back in the store and approached Alexa. Alexa was searching the freezers in the isle of the store, and was laughing like there’s no tomorrow.

Alexa: HAHAHAHAHA! You know what? These ice creams were supposed to be expired, and should be lumped with toxic chemicals. But it wasn’t! They are so fresh like they were made yesterday! HAHAHA!

Akino: I get it, but we got a problem.

Alexa: What now?

Akino: The storm south of us? Its approaching here, fast. We need to take shelter here.

Alexa: Oh, how about the SUV? Should we leave it outside?

Akino: Can you create strong plant roots that can penetrate deep the ground?

Alexa: Yeah?

Akino: Ok, come with me.

Two of them went outside, Akino started producing black wires as thick as fingers, and Alexa attaches it with roots on each of the end of it. They tied up the SUV with their weird wires, and used the roots to anchor the wires deep the cement road. The sky turns darker, well, a bit browner compared to the blue sky earlier. The winds howl louder, and stronger. Alexa sniffs the air and smacks her lips, then spits on the ground.

Alexa: Ugh, that’s sand. But, it’s a bit metallic?

Akino: Iron? There’s iron in the air. What’s going on?

They went back to the store, shut the doors and windows. They put the shelves on the side to clear the middle of the store. The lights were still working, somehow, all the appliances were working. They wait inside, the winds steadily get stronger, and the sky was getting darker. Seconds, minutes, then an hour, the storm still takes time to reach their place. Akino was tweaking the device on her arm, while Alexa was looking for a head on the stalls that will fit on her cat-like ears.

Akino: You found one?

Alexa: Yeah, but its not pink…

Akino: Better to have one than none.

Alexa: Alright… hey, about that storm. Is it really heading here?

Akino: Its trajectory was straight towards this area. Actually, we can get a glimpse on its eye, and see what really this ‘sand-cyclone’ is.

Alexa: Oh, oh! Put a drone outside! So, we can see it better!

Akino: Good idea, then what? We get blown away as we put it outside?

Alexa: Come on! I can put it outside!

Akino: Fine, fine. No need to, I’ll do it myself.

Alexa: Still not trusting me, huh?

Akino: Ugh…

Metallic liquid spilled from Akino’s arm, then the liquid turned into a drone rover. Alexa took the drone and placed it near the door.

Akino: Ready?

Alexa: Yeah!

Alexa opened the door, and the drone immediately rushed outside the store. As the drone leaves, Alexa shuts the door, and a bit of sand entered the store. Alexa reaches for the window to view the drone, which is still roving on the ground near the anchored SUV as the winds can be seen gushing violently.

Alexa: That was heavy?

Akino: So it won’t get blown easily, what do you think?

Alexa: Is that all you got?

Akino: Ho-ho! You have some lifting power, huh?

Alexa took a table and placed it in the middle of the store. She placed her left arm on the table, and pointed her other towards Akino.

Alexa: We haven’t tried this yet, so, I challenge you in an arm wrestling!

Akino: Woah there! You? Challenging me? This will be fun.

Alexa: HA! It will!

Alexa’s arm became muscular, covered in scales like a pangolin. Akino’s arm have some hydraulic pipes as tendons, and muscles were covered in black hexagonal plates. They wrestle for minutes. No one won, and miraculously the table wasn’t broken. After giving up on wrestling, they looked for the appliances inside the store. They took the flat screen television, and Alexa connected her smartphone to it.

Alexa: The internet is still working, isn’t?

Akino: Apparently, and conveniently, yes.

They tried to search for some videos or articles about the ‘Enigma event’ but they didn’t get any, instead they watched on the television a recorded livestream of the GenshinxHonkai Play-offs. While watching, a loud banging suddenly can be heard, and louder howls of the wind. The storm already hit their area. They checked if the doors and windows are strong enough to withstand the storm. Akino tweaked the ventilation to not let the sand get inside the store. After checking the whole place, they went back to watching the stream.

Alexa: So, the drone is still outside?

Akino: Yeah, it can’t be blown away that easily. It has anchoring systems designed to withstand winds exceeding three hundred kilometers per hour.

Alexa: Wait, that’s weird?

Akino: What’s weird?

Alexa: The metallic smell, it’s getting stronger. It’s like there’s someone spraying blood.

Akino raised her left hand, filled with sensors. She looked at the monitor on her arm as it beeps.

Akino: Iron? And the carbon dioxide levels is rising!

Alexa: Hemoglobin.

Akino: What?

Alexa: Its – its hemoglobin. But why?

Akino looked back at her device. It beeps louder, and faster.

Akino: The storm’s eyewall will hit us soon, we better check the drone.

Akino connected her arm to the television, and the video feed of the drone outside was streamed on the screen. The feed shows the sands being blown by the wind. Cracking lightnings can also be seen in the darkened sky. And then some red droplets were appearing on the feed, until it full covers the screen with red.

Akino: What the fuck?

Alexa: Aki! Look!

Alexa pulled Akino to look on the window. As she faces towards the window, the red droplets are visible to her, it keeps on increasing as if someone was spilling buckets of blood on the windows. The wind gushes harder as well as the red liquid for minutes, then it stops. Akino looked back to her arm device, the beeping sound slows down.

Akino: The storm is slowing down, why?

Akino gazed to Alexa, and saw her ears twitching randomly.

Akino: What was that?

Alexa: Can you hear it?

Akino stopped tinkering her arm device, and she turned her arm into a sonar sensor.

Akino: Yeah, I’m hearing it.

Distant voices: Help us…

Alexa: Someone needs help!

Distant voices: HELP us…

Akino: Alexa! Stop!

Alexa rushes towards the door but Akino grabs her arm.

Alexa: Aki! They need help!

Akino: Think straight! We are in the middle of the storm’s eye! And some people were just walking in it?! That’s bullshit!

Alexa: But we have to check them! There is still a possibility that someone is still alive in this fucked up world!

Akino sighs, she can’t agree to Alexa, but the possibility of some survivors walking inside the eye of the storm was still a plausible in that fucked up world. Maybe, just maybe, some people are stuck in that eye of the storm. So, she turned her arms into assault rifles and covered her body in hexagonal armor.

Akino: If you want to save someone, then get ready. The one you’re going to save might be an enemy.

Alexa: You – you got it!

Alexa covered herself in scales and turned her claws much larger. Both went outside, they saw the ground covered in red, the eyewall above them that extends kilometers high the sky was all red compared to the brownish clouds they saw earlier, and the lightning was still showing up in the eyewall.

Alexa: This is – this is blood!

Akino: Alex! Calm down!

As Akino comforts the confused Alexa, they slowly face towards the center of the eye. They saw a monstrosity. They don’t know how many, hundreds or even thousands, but it was too damn many. A lump of elongated people, crumpled like a ball of spaghetti, was floating in the center of the eye. They all looked in pain, and all of them were screaming “Help us”. Then they looked towards the two girls on the ground. They began saying different phrases as their noodle hands reaches the two.

Voice of a girl: God…

Voice of a man: Help us!

High pitched voice: Nos abandonaste…

Screeching voice: Onegai! Tasukete!

Deep voice: Oh Dio perche.

Voice of a man: Ascend with us, oh God!

Akino started firing her rifles towards the lumping humans, but they just ignored her continued on extending their hands towards them. One of the hands was able to grab Alexa, they lifted her towards the center.

Alexa: Aaahhh!!!

Akino: ALEXA!

Alexa used her claws and teeth to maul the hands grabbing her, she was able to tear the hands and she dropped on the ground. As Alexa drops, Akino grabbed her and rushed towards the store. They made it inside of the store and used all the shelves to block the windows and doors.

Akino: You alright?

Alexa: Yeah, yeah. I’m – I’m fine…

Akino: You sure?

Alexa: No, really. I am. I screamed because I freaked out, not because I’m hurt. It was just… they just lifted me…

Akino and Alexa looked on the window. Hands were wiping on the outside, as well as faces while they keep on repeating their pleads of help, questions on abandonment, and the word ‘Ascension’ and ‘God’. They don’t force themselves in the store, they just wipe their hands and faces on the surface of window, with the sounds of wet caressing skin on the surfaces.

Akino: What. The. Fuck?!

Voice of a man: Help us…

Scratchy voice: Oh God…

Voice of a girl: Be one with us, God…

Low pitched voice: Why did you leave us? Why?

Screeching voice: Please, come with us…

Voice of a girl: You will not suffer anymore…

Akino: This is creeping me out.

Alexa: What should we do?

Akino: We’ll wait.

Seconds passing in the store seems like hours for them, the creatures insist on staying there, continuously wiping themselves on the outside. Akino readies her rifle, while Alexa was staying beside her preparing her claws to maul the moment the monster breaches in. Akino’s arm beeped, and she looked on it.

Akino: The storm is moving now, but slowly.

The wiping hands stopped, and then the creature headed to north, floating ominously at the center of the storm. As the creature reaches the far end of the horizon, the other side of the eyewall hits the area bringing back the raining blood and thundering roars.

Alexa: So, they are causing this storm?

Akino: Satellite feeds shows the center as a hollow area, no visuals of that monster. so, I don’t know. Sensors can’t even pick up its thermal signature.

They waited for three hours until the whole sky was a clear blue once again. At the outside, the scenery didn’t change that much except for the reddish more surroundings, and the addition of the stinking metallic smell of blood that both lasted for five minutes.

Akino: The blood didn’t evaporated? It just – disappeared?

Alexa: The microbes, and these plants. They – they consumed it already…

Akino: That fast?

Alexa: Yeah.

Unfortunately, both the SUV and the drone were missing. Must have been blown away, so they’ve got no choice but to walk straight towards the ruins. Akino looked at her arm device, and noticed that the storm that passed them regain its speed. The ruins were all sand, a circular desert at the center of an abandoned city. As they walk, they saw a huge lump of metal covered in blood and full of dents and scratches, some scratches end with some white hard pigment. They went near to it to investigate.

Akino: Wait, wait. Don’t tell me this is –

Alexa: What? Oh shit, these are fingernails!

Akino: This is the SUV, and the drone in it…

They took a closer look, and the dents were shaped as faces that were pressed on hard metal. Smiling, smiling like the ones on the creepy clown masks, the total opposite of the faces they saw earlier on the creature.