Paulo had been mentally preparing himself along the way, expecting to find a building full of bodies and scattered limbs. Maybe even a few survivors. But when he opened the door, he was greeted only by an eerie silence and an empty building. Nothing out of place. The employees’ desks and chairs were neatly arranged, as if people were just waiting for the next shift. The coffee machine, still with a full pot of coffee (now cold, obviously), stood ready to be used, if not for the lack of power.

Everything was so... normal. Which made the situation even more absurd. “What kind of public office is this that’s this tidy? Not even in a perfect world would this be like this, let alone in the apocalypse.” Paulo let out a dry laugh and shook his head. “Yeah, if this wouldn’t be believable on a regular day, imagine after the world has turned upside down.”

He didn’t bother talking to himself anymore. In fact, his voice grew louder each time. “Maybe I’m in a coma, and all of this is one giant nightmare,” he mused, even pinching himself to make sure. “Ow, fuck! Nope, not a dream. Better start looking for a weapon before I end up as monster food.”

Determined, Paulo started searching the rooms. The first stop was the clerk’s office. “Maybe they keep something useful here, right?” But of course, no luck. Everything was perfectly arranged, as if they were expecting an inspection. “So neat? This has to be a joke!”

Room after room, Paulo searched for something more useful than the kitchen machete he was carrying. Sure, it was a big-ass machete, as long as his arm, but still, just a knife. He scoured the entire first floor, even the janitor’s closet, just to say he tried. Each drawer he opened was more frustrating than the last, until, so fed up, he kicked a metal file cabinet drawer that jammed from the impact. He let out a roar of pain. “Fucking hell! This is definitely not a dream.”

The pain snapped Paulo back into focus. He couldn’t waste more time searching an empty building. He didn’t know when those creatures would return, but he was sure he didn’t want to be inside when darkness fell again.

He headed upstairs and went straight to the chief’s office. Before that, he tried to open the EVIDENCE room door, but it was locked, secured by two padlocks. The padlocks themselves wouldn’t be a problem, but the lock required more skill than he had at the moment. “Of course it’s locked, right? The universe just loves screwing me over.”

Turning the knob to the chief’s office, he finally found something different. Although neatly arranged, like everything else, there were signs someone alive had passed through. A coffee mug from the local football team — or rather, from the greatest team in the world — still had coffee inside, sitting on the desk next to some crumpled papers.

Out of pure curiosity — or maybe desperation — Paulo smoothed out the papers, hoping to find some clue about where everyone had gone. Maybe it would have the name of the cleaning person who worked some magic arranging everything, who knows?

But when he opened the first sheet, Paulo’s blood boiled. In the top left corner, the logo and initials of the dictator who had nearly gotten him expelled from university. One of the most hated men in the country, at least by the thinking part of the population — which, after last night, had probably shrunk considerably.

A case of content theft: this narrative is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.

The document read:

“To the attention of all officers, department heads, and security forces: Due to information regarding upcoming events and the gravity they will entail, I hereby order, without question, the immediate summoning for an emergency meeting to be held in the state capital. Your presence is not just expected; it is mandatory. Absence without express approved justification will be treated as an act of grave insubordination and will result in severe sanctions, ranging from substantial fines to summary and irreversible dismissal for insubordination. I emphasize that the President of the Republic, along with the state ministers, will be present, underscoring the urgency and seriousness of this meeting. This is a critical moment, and your participation is not optional. I repeat: leave any secondary function or activity you are currently performing and proceed to the capital with the utmost urgency. Any hesitation will be seen as direct disrespect to superior orders and will be dealt with with the due rigor the situation demands.”

“That bastard is so arrogant he didn’t even bother putting his name. Just threw a digital signature on the side of the page.” Paulo snorted. At least now he knew why there were neither police nor military around. “Even the president, that drunk asshole, went to that meeting?!”

Then, he noticed the date at the top of the document. The summons had been sent exactly one day before the comet’s night. Coincidence? Of course not. They knew something was going to happen. “Bastards!”

Following that train of thought, Paulo figured, “Maybe there’s a silver lining in all of this. With all those idiots together, the chances of one of them getting taken out by these creatures has to be pretty high. Hahaha!”

Still fuming, he decided to stash the rest of the papers. He didn’t have the patience to keep reading anything written by those pests. He began ransacking the chief’s office with less care now, not bothering to leave things neat. However, his search didn’t yield much. He found only a torch-style lighter, which he pocketed. “At least this might come in handy.”

He knew he couldn’t waste any more time. Minutes earlier, he had heard the church bell toll, signaling it was noon. “Well, if someone’s still there to wind that bell, I’m definitely not the only survivor.” Feeling slightly more hopeful, Paulo muttered, “Better start heading to the church. Spending another night alone with those monsters is definitely not in my plans.”

The street in front of him seemed deserted, but Paulo didn’t let his guard down. He knew the apparent calm was just an illusion, and that at any moment those creatures could emerge from the shadows. The wind carried the metallic smell, growing stronger, as if the air itself were saturated with something he couldn’t understand. The scene around him only reinforced the urgency of the situation. Abandoned cars, broken doors, and, in the distance, columns of flames slowly rose toward the darkened sky.

The idea of reaching the church seemed like a good one, but the walk there would be treacherous. “If I’m lucky, I’ll make it without encountering anything on the way... if I’m really lucky.” He chuckled without humor, knowing that luck was a word that no longer applied to his reality. At every corner, he stopped, carefully observed, and then moved forward. He knew those monsters were lurking, waiting for the right moment to strike.

Paulo gripped tightly onto the machete he’d found, the only weapon he had to defend himself. “This is all that stands between me and a slow, painful death,” he thought, feeling a chill run down his spine. In the distance, the church bell rang again, echoing through the deserted city. That made him pick up the pace, determined not to spend another night alone.

“That’s it, Paulo. No more hiding. Either you go to them, or they come to you.”