The sixth month had become the easiest one to forget.
Not because anything had changed. Because nothing had. The portal remained open. Every day, the same reports came in. No movement. No new radiation spike. No unknown signal. No one had crossed from the other side.
The world had spent months preparing for something that refused to arrive. Eventually, people learned how to live with it. Soldiers still trained. Aircraft still patrolled. OPESTM still monitored the Bermuda Triangle around the clock. Governments still received daily reports. The portal still stood there, open and silent, like a door nobody had the courage to close.
And somewhere inside all of that routine, fear had stopped feeling like fear. It had become part of life.
Until Corlowall changed.
It happened without warning. The first signs appeared in the middle of the night. The jailor had been making his usual rounds when he heard something from the cell. At first, he thought Corlowall was talking to himself. That wasn't unusual anymore.
But when the sound continued, the jailor stopped. He listened. Corlowall was standing in the middle of the cell. Barefoot. His hair was disheveled. His eyes were wide, fixed on something that wasn't there.
-They are coming.
The jailer frowned.
-Sir?
Corlowall turned toward him.
-You don't understand.
His voice was shaking.
-They are coming.
The jailor stepped closer to the bars.
-Who?
Corlowall stared at him.
For a moment, there was something almost painfully lucid in his expression. Then it disappeared.
-All of them.
The jailor didn't answer. Corlowall suddenly grabbed the bars.
-You need to move them.
-Move who?
-Everyone!
His voice echoed through the corridor.
-Everyone has to leave.
The jailor stepped back. Corlowall slammed both hands against the bars.
-They're coming!
The alarm was raised soon afterward. Not because anyone believed him. Because they no longer knew what else to do.
By the time the security team arrived, Corlowall had become impossible to control. He shouted at the walls. He shouted at the ceiling. He shouted at people who weren't there.
Sometimes he begged. Sometimes he threatened. Sometimes he simply stood completely still for several minutes, staring at an empty corner of the room as though someone were standing there. And every few minutes, the same words returned.
-They're coming.
The medical officer tried to calm him.
-Corlowall, look at me.
Corlowall didn't.
-You need to breathe.
He laughed. Not because anything was funny. It was the laugh of a man who had reached the end of something inside himself.
-Breathe?
The doctor remained still.
-Corlowall...
-He'll breathe for us.
The doctor frowned.
-Who?
Corlowall finally looked at him. The terror in his eyes was so complete that the doctor forgot what he had been about to say.
-You still don't understand.
He whispered it this time.
-None of you understand.
The security team eventually had to restrain him. They moved him to a more secure cell. They tied his hands. Then his legs. Not because they wanted to hurt him. Because they were afraid he would hurt himself.
Corlowall didn't resist. That was somehow worse. Once he was secured, he lay against the wall for several minutes. The people outside watched him through the reinforced glass. His breathing slowly settled. One of the guards lowered his voice.
-Maybe he's finally calming down.
The medical officer didn't answer. Corlowall opened his eyes. He stared directly through the glass.
-You should call them.
The guard looked at him.
-Call who?
Corlowall's expression changed. For one brief second, he looked almost like the man they remembered. Tired and old Human.
-Your families.
The guard said nothing. Corlowall looked away.
-Because tomorrow...
He stopped. His lips trembled. Then he started laughing again. The sound continued into the night. Hours passed. The guards changed shifts. The doctors came and went. The lights remained on. Corlowall never stopped screaming. Sometimes the words were clear.
-They're coming!
Sometimes they were nothing more than broken sounds. Sometimes he called for people who had been dead for years. Sometimes he begged someone to close the portal. Sometimes he simply repeated the same sentence until his voice became hoarse.
-This is the end of Earth.
Again.
Again.
Again.
By dawn, the entire facility had heard him. The final guard of the night stood outside the cell with bloodshot eyes. He had listened to Corlowall for hours. Now there was silence. He looked through the glass.
Corlowall was sitting against the wall. His head was lowered. The guard exhaled.
-Finally.
The medical officer entered the room. Corlowall didn't look up. The officer crouched in front of him.
-Corlowall.
Nothing.
-Corlowall, can you hear me?
His head slowly lifted. His eyes were exhausted.
-Yes.
The officer studied him.
-Do you know where you are?
Corlowall smiled faintly.
-Yes.
-Do you know what happened last night?
A pause.
-I warned you.
The officer's expression tightened.
-About what?
Corlowall looked toward the wall.
-You still haven't listened.
The officer sighed.
-You need rest.
Corlowall closed his eyes.
-I've been resting for years.
The officer didn't understand. Perhaps there was nothing to understand. He stood.
-We will come back later.
Corlowall opened his eyes one last time.
-Don't.
The officer stopped. Corlowall looked directly at him.
-Don't leave me alone.
It was the first time all night his voice sounded afraid rather than angry. The officer hesitated. Then nodded.
-I'm not going anywhere.
But the promise lasted only minutes. The officer was called outside. There was another patient. Another report. Another problem. By the time he returned, Corlowall had already made his decision.
The guards found him motionless. Blood covered his mouth. His tongue had been bitten through. There was nothing anyone could do.
Corlowall was dead.
For several seconds, nobody spoke. The medical officer stood beside him, staring down at the man who had once commanded one of the most powerful organizations on Earth. The jailer looked through the doorway.
-Why would he do that?
The doctor didn't answer immediately. He looked at Corlowall's face. Even in death, the fear had never completely left it.
-I don't know.
The jailor swallowed.
-After all that screaming...
The doctor lowered his eyes.
-Perhaps that was the only thing he was still trying to say.
The jailor looked toward the empty corridor.
-What?
The doctor remained silent. Because there was no answer he could give. Not one he believed. Not yet.
The next morning, Earth woke up.
People went to work. Children went to school. Trains moved through cities. Traffic filled the roads. News channels continued reporting on the same stories they had reported for months. The world was still there.
For the moment.
At OPESTM headquarters, David walked through the main operations floor carrying a tablet. The room was busy. Officers spoke across desks. Technicians monitored dozens of screens. Soldiers moved between divisions.
Nothing looked unusual.
David stopped beside Fiana.
-Any change?
She shook her head.
-Same as yesterday.
David looked at the central display. The portal appeared exactly as it had for months. Open, still, and untouched.
He stared at it for a few seconds. Then looked away.
-What about the prison?
Fiana's expression changed.
-Corlowall died this morning.
David stopped. He didn't respond immediately.
-I know.
Fiana looked at him.
-You knew?
-I was informed an hour ago.
She lowered her voice.
-Do you think he knew something?
David looked back at the portal. For a long moment, he said nothing.
Then:
-I think he believed he did.
Fiana didn't answer. David's eyes remained on the screen. A technician suddenly called from across the room.
-Sir.
David turned. The technician was staring at his monitor.
-What?
The technician didn't answer immediately. He checked the reading again. Then another screen. Then another.
-David...
The room gradually became quieter. David rushed toward him.
-What happened?
The technician pointed at the monitor.
-I don't know.
David looked at the numbers. The portal's readings had changed. Not dramatically. Not enough to trigger the emergency system. Just enough to be wrong. David's expression hardened.
-Run it again.
The technician did. The result came back identical. Another technician looked over.
-That's impossible.
David didn't take his eyes off the screen.
-What is?
The technician swallowed.
-The reading.
A pause.
-It isn't coming from our side.
Nobody moved. David slowly turned toward the main observation screen. The portal remained open and silent. For six months, Earth had watched it. For six months, nothing had happened. Now, for the first time...
Something was moving on the other side. David's voice was barely above a whisper.
-Get everyone ready.
The room erupted. Alarms began to sound. Soldiers started running. Officers shouted orders. Screens changed. The world that had spent six months waiting suddenly had no more time left to wait. And somewhere beyond the portal...
Something had finally arrived.
To be continued...