Chapter One: When the Sky Spoke
The kitchen smelled like cinnamon and toasted bread.
It was a quiet morning, the kind that made Michael feel all warm inside. The sun was shining through the kitchen window, casting soft beams across the table. Michael was slouched over a bowl of cereal, lazily stirring the milk in circles, watching the little bubbles rise and pop as he pushed the spoon around.
His mom was humming in the kitchen, her pregnant belly poking out beneath her loose sweater, her slippers squeaking as she moved around. She was cutting fruit, her face calm and content, and it made Michael feel like everything was normal. Like everything always would be. His dad, as usual, was sipping his coffee at the table, looking at his phone with that furrowed brow of someone pretending they weren't distracted.
Michael took another spoonful of cereal and chewed slowly, his mind already halfway out the door, thinking about the school day ahead.
"Mike, don't forget your math test today," his mom reminded him, her voice soft and motherly. "You don't want to come home with an excuse for that one."
He groaned. "I know, I know. You say it every morning." He grabbed his bag from the back of the chair and swung it over his shoulder. "It's not like I can fail it. I'm a math genius."
His dad snorted from the other side of the table. "Uh-huh, sure you are. Just don't forget your lunch this time."
Michael grinned, already halfway to the door. "I'll be fine, Dad. You worry too much."
Just as he reached for the door handle, the TV in the corner of the kitchen flickered on with that strange, sharp beep that made Michael stop in his tracks.
The broadcast, an emergency alert, filled the room, cutting through the soft sounds of morning. The anchor on the screen looked pale, her usual smile replaced with a serious expression.
"This is an emergency update from the Global Space Watch Alliance. All networks are advised to broadcast the following statement immediately..."
Michael blinked, frowning. He had seen those updates before—whenever there was something big in the sky, but this... something felt different about it.
His mom looked up from the fruit she was slicing, her knife pausing mid-cut. "What's going on?"
Michael's dad put down his coffee, eyes narrowing as he adjusted the volume. "Let's see."
The anchor cleared her throat, her voice steady but strained. "Approximately fourteen hours ago, our orbital satellites detected an unidentified object entering our solar system. Its trajectory is currently heading toward Earth, and it will arrive within the next twenty-four to thirty hours."
Michael's stomach dropped, a strange chill creeping up his spine. He looked at his parents, but neither of them seemed to know what to say.
The anchor continued. "We do not recognize the composition or origin of the object, and further information will follow. All citizens are urged to remain calm and stay tuned for updates."
Michael's mom shook her head, the worry clear in her eyes. She placed a gentle hand on her stomach without thinking, like instinct. "Unidentified... What do they mean by that?"
Michael frowned. "Is it a comet or something?"
His dad sighed, running a hand through his hair. "Maybe. Maybe it's just a space rock." But his voice didn't sound convinced. "Still... not knowing what it is makes me uneasy."
Michael felt a tightness in his chest. It was one thing to talk about comets and asteroids as if they were just another lesson in class, but this was real. This was different.
He swallowed. "Should I still go to school?"
His mom glanced at his dad, and they exchanged a look that Michael didn't quite understand. His dad put a reassuring hand on his shoulder. "Yeah, you should go. Don't worry about that. It's probably nothing. We'll find out what it is later. You've got your test, right?"
Michael nodded, trying to shake the weird feeling in his stomach. "Yeah, I'll go. But, you know... I don't really care about the test anymore. This is way cooler."
His dad chuckled. "Just get through the day, kiddo. We'll be fine."
It was still early when Michael left the house, the air crisp and cool for spring. The sky above him felt... different, somehow. It was too quiet, like the world was holding its breath.
The usual sounds of the city filled the streets, but they felt muted, distant. People were already starting to look up at the sky, talking in hushed voices, eyes fixed on something Michael couldn't quite see yet.
He walked with his head tilted back, watching the clouds as they drifted lazily by. They didn't look any different at first, but as he continued walking, he noticed it—there was something strange in the air, something shimmering on the horizon.
By the time he reached school, the whole place seemed unsettled. Teachers tried to act like nothing was wrong, but everyone had their eyes on their phones, on the TV in the corner of the classroom. The whispers were constant, but no one seemed to know anything new. The buzz in the air made Michael's legs twitch like he wanted to run, but there was nowhere to run to.
By the time school was over, everything had changed.
Michael stepped out the school doors, and the first thing he noticed was how the sky was glowing. At first, he thought it was just the sun, but then he realized: it was blue. Not like the usual sky blue—this was a deep, almost unnatural blue, spreading out like a ripple over everything.
People on the street were already looking up, pointing, muttering to each other, but Michael couldn't take his eyes off the sky.
"What the heck is that?"
His heart raced, a pulse of nervous excitement rushing through him. He didn't know why, but he felt like this was it. The moment that everything changed. He clutched the strap of his backpack tighter without realizing it, knuckles pale.
His phone buzzed in his pocket, and he pulled it out, but before he could check the message, the second emergency broadcast blared out from every speaker and screen in the city.
"This is a Level Red alert. The object that was heading toward Earth has now reached the outer atmosphere. It is not slowing down. We are preparing for a possible atmospheric impact. We urge all civilians to return to their homes or seek shelter immediately."
His stomach dropped. "Impact?"
Michael's breath caught in his throat, and he turned his eyes back to the sky, watching as the blue glow spread like a blanket, darkening the entire world. It was as if the heavens themselves had been stretched thin, pulled tight, and everything in his chest felt like it was about to burst. This wasn't just some comet or asteroid anymore.
This was something else.
And then, just like that, the sky roared.
Then from there the pillar will descend on them.