I gripped the steering wheel, my knuckles white as I peered through the foggy windshield of my shitty old Pathfinder. Rain pounded relentlessly onto the glass, transforming the world outside my climate-controlled bubble into a black and gray blur. Lightning flashed over me, followed immediately by the deep rumble of thunder. I could feel the thunder in my bones. My wipers worked furiously, but they were losing against the overwhelming volume of water pouring from the sky.

"Severe weather tonight across the state. Officials advice everyone to find shelter as soon as possible." The radio crackled between bursts of heavy static. "We are currently seeing heavy rain with high winds and severe lightning across the northern half of the state. Also, dozens of reports of people going missing have begun to flood the—"

I hit the button on my console to shut off the annoying chatter, switching over to my phone's Bluetooth. I knew what the weather was doing. I had my own eyes. I didn't need someone trying to tell me something I could see for myself.

The dim headlights of my Pathfinder barely cut through the darkness of the highway, softly illuminating the sheets of rain and the occasional reflective road sign. I leaned forward, straining to see the familiar landmarks that would guide me home. I'd driven this route countless times from work, but tonight everything seemed off. The clock on my dashboard read 1:37 PM, far later than I'd planned to be out.

"I just had to let Devon go early. It ended up being another hour once I found all the litter on the tables outside the cart." I grumbled to myself, my deep baritone drowned out by another peal of thunder. A gust of wind buffeted the car, thrusting the vehicle to the right. I tightened my grip on the wheel. Taking a deep breath, I steered my car back into the center of the lane, then, minutes later, made my way onto the exit ramp. The welcome sign of my little rural town appeared out of the gloom.

I was almost there.

I wasn't a nervous guy, but tonight's weather had me on edge. My eyes scanned the horizon, and the dark outline of the trees that surrounded Riverton loomed in the distance after every lightning strike, looking like some ancient forest in the dark.

I lived in a small place out on the far side of town in a small neighborhood tucked in the woods. It was away from all the bustle of the city and the claustrophobia of the town. It was just me and my cabin. I normally loved the solitude, but tonight, that seclusion felt like it would swallow me whole. I drove on, my foot pressing the accelerator a little harder. A few minutes later. I could see the streetlights of Riverton's little downtown poking through the trees. I was close. I passed the large sign with a deer warning for motorists that was at the edge of town, then crossed over the bridge. I was getting close.

Once I reached the edge of town, I slowed down to a crawl, not wanting to get another ticket. Who gets a ticket for going seven over? Cop was an asshole. But, as I crawled my way through the flooding streets, I noticed that the downtown was a ghost town. There wasn't a single person, and all the shops were closed. It made the old brick buildings feel old and desolate, giving me the chills. I made it to the single street light in town, which was violently swinging in the heavy wind. It was red.

I reached for my phone, hoping to check the weather forecast. I tapped at the screen with my thumb and pulled up the local radar, which showed an enormous red circle centered around my town. Then, a notification popped up:

[Severe Weather Warning]

[Find Shelter Immediately]

"Yeah, no shit!" I yelled to absolutely no one. The Bluetooth music coming from my phone started to glitch, then shut off. The phone's screen flickered weakly before going dark, the battery finally giving out.

This book's true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.

"Fuck."

I looked down at my pitiful charging cable sticking out of console. It had frayed away to nothing a year ago, and I never bothered to replace it, a laziness I regretted in exactly that moment. I tossed the useless device onto the passenger seat with a frustrated sigh. Gripping the wheel with both hands, I sighed as the wind shook my car and a bolt of lightning cascaded through the sky above me.

I tried to recall the last weather report I'd seen before I left the bar. How long was this storm supposed to last? Was it going to get worse? I considered pulling over at the library to wait out the storm, but the thought of sitting helpless in a flooded parking lot seemed an even worse idea than staying out drinking with coworkers until early morning then night of a major storm. With no way to call for help if something went wrong, I decided to run the red light, not being willing to be stuck out there longer than I needed to be. I saw the bright white flash of the ticket camera. A problem for another day.

I made it a few more miles, the streets getting more and more flooded and the storm picking up as I did. Hydroplaning twice, I slowed down to ten and crawled my way home. Just as I began to pull into my neighborhood, a strange vibration rippled through the car. The ground beneath my tires seemed to shift. My heart raced as I realized something was wrong. There wasn't enough water on the street to slide around at this speed. I pressed the accelerator, desperate to get to stable ground, but the car barely moved.

I felt as if I were driving on ice, the wheels struggling to grip the unstable road. Then, the car lurched. A deep, rumbling sound rose above the patter of rain and the howl of wind. It was a primal noise that sent shivers down my spine. I scanned the roadside, looking for somewhere safe to pull over. That's when I noticed that the right shoulder of the road was gone.

My heart leapt out of my body.

I hit the gas and I swerved hard to the left just as the earth groaned and split open under the right side of my car. I managed to undo my seat belt and throw open the door just as my car began sliding into the sinkhole. I threw myself out and landed with a hard, wet thud on the narrow sidewalk, rolled twice, then watched in horror as my vehicle teetered on the edge of the rapidly expanding maw. With a final metallic groan, my trusty old car disappeared into the depths, leaving me stranded in the raging storm.

The ground continued to crumble, the sinkhole growing larger with each passing second. I scrambled backward, my feet slipping on the wet concrete as I tried to put distance between myself and the expanding chasm. My knee hurt like hell, but I didn't have time to worry about it. Rain pelted my face, obscuring my vision and adding to my disorientation. Luckily, a few moments later, I sat at the edge of the ruined road, chest heaving, looking down at my dim, shitty headlights as they stared up at me. A moment later, they flickered and went out forever.

I stood frozen, rain pelting my face, staring at the spot where my car had vanished. I knew I had to make a decision: attempt to walk the final mile to my home or find something taller than me to sit under until the storm passed. The wind howled around me, providing a compelling argument for the former. A lightning bolt flashed above me, arguing for the latter. I didn't want to stay out in this, so I took a few steps toward home, but my knee was banged up. I could feel it swelling, and it didn't want to bend.

My clothes were already soaked through, clinging to my skin and chilling me to the bone. I weighed my options, trying to think. Home was still at least a mile away—a distance that seemed insurmountable in these conditions and with a busted knee.

A nearby oak tree stood tall in the dark night, it's wide branches reaching out like a sentinel amidst the storm, its thick foliage offering a promise of protection. Lightning illuminated the sky once more, and in that brief flash, I saw that the road ahead was more flooded than before.

I looked around a final time, looking for any other options. None presenting themselves, I made my decision.

Each step was a battle against the wind, the elements, and my rapidly worsening knee. Reaching the tree, I pressed my soaked body against the sturdy tree's trunk and thanked the nature gods for oak trees. A few minutes later, I sat at its base, enjoying the slight protection against the elements it provided.

The wind and rain picked up after some time, maybe half an hour, and the lightning got closer and closer. My knee hurt like hell, and it had swollen to the point where my pant leg was starting to stretch.

As I huddled beneath the oak's branches, a blinding flash filled my vision. Then another, and another. I reached out with my left hand and braced against the tree to stand back up. Just then, a deafening crack split the air above me and my vision went completely white.

Pain exploded through my left side. It felt like my right foot was shot. I was flying backwards. My back hit the ground, hard. Something hot and sharp was hitting my skin.

Then everything went black.