Rohan
Tuesday, March 22nd, 2022 (The day of the Shutdown)
Rohan woke up in a cold sweat, his fingers twisting into the grass to make sure he was still there – still alive. Breathing heavily, he lay there as stiff as a log.
The sky had actually turned red — that at least he hadn't dreamt — but there was no snake.
Of course there isn't, he sighed, his heart beating at his chest like a war drum. That would've been ridiculous.
Around him, it was like he teleported into a different realm. Everything had become a different shade of red, from the grove of trees transforming into an ominous sangria while the whitewashed walls of the school became light pink.
Even without the devilish wind and snake, every part of his body unconsciously tensed. Checking the football pitch to make sure it remained undisturbed, he raced to the school.
The first thing that caught his attention as he entered were the lights.
They were on a timer to turn on at 3:00 p.m. and were on when Rohan escaped his unequivocally tedious after-school club, but now, they were turned off. Walking down the darkened hall of the southeastern wing of his school, he turned the corner and saw around 40 students of different clubs standing in the atrium.
Large floor-to-ceiling windows covered the wall facing the backfields, partially hidden from view by a trophy case meant to show visitors how impressive his gifted school was. From his position, he could see the entrances to the other sections of the school across the atrium and the main entrance behind another half-filled display case to his right.
The students were visibly annoyed they’d been herded away from the windows, and now were collectively grumbling at the center of the atrium. Many of them were complaining loudly, waving the black screens of their phones in front of each other. The two teachers who remained after school to chaperone the clubs were in intense discussions.
Deciding on a whim it would be better to remain hidden until his parents came to pick him up, he took one last look at the group of students. Just as he prepared to leave, he locked eyes with the last person he wanted to see.
“Hey, why does Rohan get to wander off?” a high-pitched nasally voice complained.
Serena gave him a mocking smirk.
“... the heck is her problem?” Rohan hissed under his breath.
Accepting the inevitable, he surrendered himself to the crowd of students who had all turned to ogle him. Mrs. Crouch and Mr. Langley, the latter of whom had mentored his own ‘Youth Excellence’ club, broke off from their conversation to watch him approach.
“Where have you been?” Mrs. Crouch asked, her voice filled with genuine concern.
She’d been a teacher for decades, but she was one of the few who still maintained their original purpose of becoming a teacher: educating the next generation of leaders. A rare occurrence in his experience.
Scratching his head awkwardly, he replied, “I was sleeping outside.”
Mr. Langley hid a grin behind his hand. At least one of them is not taking me seriously. Serena hungrily looked between the two, waiting for Mrs. Crouch to reprimand him but she was left disappointed. Shaking her head, Mrs. Crouch waved him towards the group of students and went back to her conversation.
Walking past Serena who curled her lip in disgust, he weaved through the crowd and found Jake lounging on a bench with a book in his hands. Glancing over the top of his book at the sound of footsteps, he put it down when he saw who it was.
He and Jake were kindred spirits, spending most of the time that was supposed to be directed towards club activities to anything but. After all, they were both here so they would be able to put it on their resumes.
Sitting down beside him, Rohan watched the rest of the students resume their heated conversations.
“What’s going on?” he asked placidly, sitting on his hands to hide his frayed nerves from Jake.
“You haven’t noticed? The sky turned red,” he replied sarcastically before returning to his book.
Noticing his deadpan expression, Jake sighed. “It was strange. We noticed the sky turning red and then the lights and our computers shut off. Now we’re here while the adults try to figure out what happened.”
Rohan raised an eyebrow at the scant explanation.
“So picture this, right? I’m playing — actually, that’s not important — but out of nowhere, BAM!” he yelled, slamming a fist into his palm. “The screen goes black. But it's not just me. Everyone started reporting similar problems, so after realizing it affected the entire school, he sent us here.”
Rohan gave him a quizzical look. “You came here instead of staying in Room 212?”
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“Mr. Langley had his beloved computer die, so he decided that we would have to join his suffering and leave the couches.”
Nodding like that was a completely logical response from Mr. Langley, Rohan focused back on the cluster of students.
The presidents of the clubs were working in conjunction with the teachers to get everyone to calm down. I bet they’ll talk about it in their university interviews next year. It took a while, but order was restored and all of the students arrayed themselves around the edges of the forum.
Uncomfortable in front of 40 students, Mr. Langley cleared his throat before starting. “We have to terminate club activities for today, so we’ll be trying to contact your parents.”
“For those who live nearby, you’ll be allowed to leave after you’ve signed out with Mrs. Crouch” — he explained, waving his hand in the general direction of the elderly teacher— “so yeah… go do that.”
He paused for effect, but it came off as an uneasy silence as he searched for his next words.
“For those who live far from here, just raise your hand for a second.”
After a brief moment, three-quarters of the students raised their hands.
“Well… shit.”
Shaking her head, Mrs. Crouch pushed past her colleague to address them. “What Mr. Langley meant to say is that those who don’t have a safe way to get home will remain here for the moment until we can find an amicable solution.”
“What if we take the city bus?” a young voice in the crowd piped up.
“If that’s the case, we would prefer you to stay here until a time when we deem it safe to use public transportation. For those whose parents are going to pick them, we would ask the same.”
The two groups formed promptly without argument, one of them being led upstairs to Room 212 by the club presidents while the teachers stayed behind to mediate the signout process.
“At least this means we probably won’t have school tomorrow,” Rohan mumbled to Jake as they trailed behind the group of people heading upstairs.
Jake chuckled at his remark but said nothing more.
“Yeah, you’re probably right. We’re never that lucky,” Rohan resigned, staring up at the lifeless panels above him. If only…
Sitting in the classroom, a corner of the room was abuzz with gossip, with many of the students continuing their discussion from downstairs. Jake sat at the window, observing the changes outside.
Having seen enough of it, Rohan stretched out on one of the couches, his mind already suffering from fatigue. Closing his eyes, he drifted under the welcoming embrace of sleep.
Bit by bit, he slowly removed the surrounding sounds from his peripherals until he could only hear the ticking of the clock. Coordinating his breathing with its tempo, he felt the cumulative strain on his body leave him. Eventually, his heart rate pumped feebly as it returned to its resting rate and he embraced sleep.
Something he came to regret, very quickly.
***
It was the same setting as before – he was back on the football pitch in his school’s backfields.
This time he didn’t hesitate.
Scrambling to his feet, he sprinted in haste down the length of the field, all his thoughts directed at trying to escape into the school as fast as he could.
The lethargy that plagued him before wasn’t present but this time, it was like the ground was actively working against him. With every step he took forward, his heels sunk a few inches into the soil.
Caught off balance by the uneven terrain, he fell forwards. Throwing his hands in front of him to break his fall, he blinked in confusion as he sunk up to his forearms. Pulling them back in a heartbeat, he watched the layer of dirt drip off him like a fluid.
What the fudge?!
Continuing to run forward, the earth started to suck eagerly at his bare skin.
Why a what? Where the hell are my shoes?
Looking around, he watched in horror as they sank deeper into the ground until the earth closed up on top of it, leaving no indication of the freak incident.
Ungluing his feet before he shared the same fate as his shoes, he sprinted towards the school’s doors, his skin peeling off his feet from the suction. Yet the pain was replaced by relief when he saw he was closing in on the last 100 meters.
His luck didn’t last.
As his feet slammed against the pathway to the door, the cracking of thunder announced the awakening of the wind creature. Only 25 meters now. He was so close, the handle was practically within arm’s reach.
Finding its prey running away, it released a deafening shriek.
But it mattered not as Rohan was only a step away. Grinning, he wrapped his thin fingers around the metal handle when a whistling sound caused him to hesitate. Checking over his shoulder, a 7-foot-long goalpost skewered into his back and sunk deep into the ground, anchoring him in place.
Dumbfounded, his fingers slipped off the door handle and a harsh cough rattled his ribcage.
Staring at his reflection in the glass door, his mouth was dripping blood from its corners. It trickled down his chin and landed onto the asphalt where it bubbled and hissed.
Damn it.
Waiting for the wind to swallow and flay him alive, a new shadow made him reconsider his worst fears. Weakly turning his head, he lost control of his bladder.
Towering over the land, the body of a snake blocked out what little sunlight managed to pass through the red veil. As it grew taller, the sky began to warp around it, fracture lines growing until it shattered to reveal the cosmos beyond.
But despite the splendor of the background, his attention was captured by the glowing chain that bound the serpent to the spiraling galaxy above. Fighting against its authority, the snake let out a harrowing wail that shook the chain. Yet it remained staunchly around its neck.
Watching as it relentlessly fought against it, the panic that had vanished when he realized it was chained, returned tenfold as some of the links began to stretch until with the sound of glass shattering, the chain disintegrated into golden sparks.
The serpent let out a howl of triumph and as quickly as it began, the trial ended with a clear victor.
The red sky returned, rolling in like a storm front. Lowering its massive head beneath the veil until its glistening olive-green eyes were level with where Rohan was impaled, without giving him a chance to cry out, it lunged for him, venom dripping from its fangs.
The last thing he remembered was looking at a black abyss as its jaw closed around him.