RUN, KIAN, RUN
"Kian..! run! Run!”
The voice echoed through the darkness.
It belonged to a boy around Kian’s age, his best friend, Zeno.
The place they were in was terrifying.
Dead trees stood everywhere, their twisted branches reaching toward the dark sky. Deep holes covered the ground, surrounded by human remains, scattered bones, and the terrible smell of decay.
The bodies had been killed in horrifying ways. Some were missing their heads. Others had been struck by arrows or burned by fire.
Above them, the moon was completely red, staining the sky with an eerie crimson glow.
Strange howls echoed through the darkness.
Kian clung tightly to Zeno, tears streaming down his face.
“I’m not leaving without you, Zeno! I’m not leaving you! I’m not going anywhere!”
Suddenly…
WHOOSH!
A small ancient axe flew through the air.
Before Kian could react, it struck Zeno.
“ZENOOOOOO!”
Kian screamed.
His voice echoed through the horrifying darkness.
Then…
Kian suddenly woke up.
“ZENOOOOOO!”
He shot upright in bed, breathing heavily.
His scream was loud enough to shake the quiet morning.
Downstairs, his parents were preparing breakfast in the dining room when they heard him.
They immediately rushed upstairs.
BANG!
The bedroom door flew open.
Kian’s father and mother rushed inside, looking alarmed.
His mother hurried to his bedside and grabbed his hand.
“Kian, can you hear me? Answer me, my son. Are you okay?”
Kian sat frozen on his bed.
His eyes were wide, his breathing uneven.
He looked around the room, still shaken by the nightmare.
“Are you listening to me, Kian? Answer me, my son. Are you okay?”
His mother carefully checked him, making sure he wasn’t hurt.
“Mom…”
Kian suddenly wrapped his arms around her.
“I missed you.”
His mother patted his back.
Once.
Twice.
Then again.
“You stupid child… honestly, what’s wrong with you?”
Suddenly…
WHOOSH!
An apple flew across the room.
Kian instinctively caught it.
Everyone turned toward the doorway.
Standing there was Kian’s older brother, Rian.
He had just thrown the apple.
With his hands behind his back, Rian walked toward his younger brother with an annoyed expression.
Kian and his mother simply stared at him.
Kian slowly hid behind his mother.
Rian raised an eyebrow.
Then suddenly…
He brought both hands forward with a grin.
“Tada!”
He held up a pair of tickets.
“Tada, tada! I bought you a ticket for Sepo Camp!”
The moment Kian saw the tickets, his face lit up.
He grabbed them happily and hugged his older brother.
“Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you, big brother!”
He even kissed Rian on the cheek.
Rian immediately pushed him away.
“Okay, okay! Enough!”
He pointed toward Kian’s room.
“I got you the ticket, so pack your things and hurry to school. You’re going with your classmates to Sepo Island, the island famous for its war museum.”
“Okay, okay, okay! Out, out, out, out!”
Kian started pushing his mother and brother toward the door.
“Hey!”
“Out!”
“Kian!”
“Out!”
CLICK!
He shut the door behind them.
His mother stared at the closed door.
“That boy… puberty is really doing something to him.”
From the dining room came his father’s voice.
“Who, me? My behavior? He got that from you!”
Rian hurried back to the dining room and immediately started devouring his breakfast.
His mother joined him.
A few moments later, Kian appeared with his backpack.
It was packed with clothes, his laptop, and snacks for the trip to Sepo Island with his classmates.
He placed the bag down and looked at his ticket.
SEPO ISLAND.
There were rumors about that place.
People called it a Cursed Island.
They said that once you went there, you might never return.
Even those who had survived the island claimed it was beautiful under the bright sunlight.
But when the moon appeared…
Everything changed.
“Sepo Island is beautiful during the day…”
Kian stared at the ticket.
“…but never stay there when the moon is shining.”
He swallowed.
For some reason, those words reminded him of his nightmare.
The red moon.
The dead forest.
And Zeno’s voice.
Run, Kian… run.
Kian slowly looked toward the window.
Outside, the morning sun was shining peacefully.
Everything looked normal.
He tightened his grip around the ticket.
