Rae had a pretty standard room. It had a bed with a white wooden headboard with a simple design carved into it. It was enchanted to smell like lavender to help her sleep. She had a chest of drawers in the corner of her room that she never used because she hung up most of her clothes. It only had pajamas in it most of the time. Her vanity was simple, made of some sort of wood and painted white to match the chest of drawers and the bed. The mirror was in the shape of an arch, and a chair was in front of it. She also had a desk in the corner opposite her chest made of solid oak. It was the only piece of non-white furniture in the room. She also had various posters hung up around the room of her favorite movies or bands. A pretty standard, regular room, all things considered. 

Except for today. Today, she had four framed messages. We’re coming. Expect us. It was different than the messages she’d been receiving about who she could trust, which was no one, apparently. Now they were coming. Whoever they were. Did she tell her mom and dad? Or just wait and see if anyone showed up? Her mom had been concerned enough to take her to the doctor to get her checked out. Everything had come up normal. The scans on her brain didn’t show anything wrong. The magical diagnosis for various mental disorders had come back negative. Other than a mysterious freckle, she was completely healthy. And the freckle was probably just that, a freckle. Nothing was medically wrong with her. She wasn’t under any illusions that her mom could find. Her optical chip wasn’t malfunctioning. Everything checked out.

And yet, she still was seeing all these messages. And it was finally going to come to a head. Expect us, she read again. That sounded so ominous. Why couldn’t they just send her a nice, formatted letter with their desires and intentions? Give her all the details upfront and let her decide if she wanted anything to do with them. Instead, they harass her for a week with mysterious messages showing up everywhere. Whoever they were, they were powerful. Or, at the very least, resourceful. Being able to show her illusions without her mother detecting them. Hacking her optical chip without any fault being detected. 

“Honey, I’m about to leave for work. Pancakes are on the table,” Mrs. Riot called from the other side of Rae’s bedroom door. “Clean up after yourself. Have fun with Liz today.” Oh yeah, Rae thought. She was hanging out with Liz today. The messages she had woken up to had caught her off guard, and she forgot what was going on. They didn’t freak her out anymore. She had grown used to them. They were still a little weird, though. But she was excited to finally meet whoever was behind them.

“Okay, mom. Love you.”

“Love you, too.” Rae heard her mom walking down the hallway. She stood up and walked toward her closet to pick out her clothes for today. It was nothing fancy; they were meeting at a coffee shop. Should she dress fancy for her unknown visitors? Probably not. She didn’t even know when to expect them. She grabbed some jeans and a t-shirt with one of her favorite superheroes on it, Ms. Wonder, and slipped into them. She suddenly found herself with a sense of unease. Why was she so calm about these messages? They could be dangerous. Yet she found herself resolutely calm about them. She hadn’t been calm about them before. They terrified her. But today felt different. Why was today different? The sense of uneasiness went as quickly as it came, and she was back to being carefree. 

She walked out of the closet and grabbed her usual jacket off the back of her vanity chair. She ducked down to look in the vanity mirror. Her green eyes stared back at her, and her wavy blonde hair was a mess. She flicked her wrist. Her hair put itself into a bun, the band materializing around it as it usually did. She made her way down the hall, down the stairs, and into the kitchen, where the pancakes awaited her on the table. She contemplated not eating this morning and instead getting a muffin at the coffee shop. She was meeting Liz in about thirty minutes. And the muffins were fantastic. She was going to opt for muffins. She flicked her wrist, and the pancakes flew toward the cabinet where a plastic container met them. The lid was placed on the container, and they flew toward the refrigerator. She reached out, grabbed the handle with her magic, and opened the fridge before the container flew in and landed lightly on the shelf. She then made another hand motion. The plate launched toward the sink and was met with a sponge. It washed itself as Rae walked towards the front of the house. It felt good to use magic again. She had been so sparing with it the last several days. She needed to start looking at the positive side of things.

Why was she being so fucking positive? What was going on today? She should be worried about these strange messages, and magic is still not something she was ready to indulge in. But she had the overwhelming urge to remain calm and let herself sink into the magic. Drown in the comfort it offered. But why? Just as earlier, the concern washed away as quickly as it came on. Rae made it to the front of the house and slipped her shoes on. She stepped out of the house. The crisp winter air greeted her like an old friend. It felt good against her skin, but she still zipped her jacket up a little more. She tucked her hands in her jacket pockets and started down the driveway before heading down the sidewalk.

She made it to the bus stop before long and sat on the bench. She pulled up her optical chip and messaged Liz that she was on the way. She then pulled up Elysium and began scrolling. She saw posts of people being accepted into their respective academies. She reacted with likes and hearts to all of the posts. It was nice that life was working out for so many of her friends. Liz had even been accepted into Pious Academy. It was something to be celebrated. It was why Rae had agreed to go out with her. Meetup and gossip and give her someone to gush to. Rae knew she was excited, and she had every reason to be.

Before too long, the bus drove up. Rae hopped off the bench and climbed onto the bus, scanning the chip reader as she did. She paid the toll and sat in one of the empty seats at the front. The bus pulled off, and she continued scrolling Elysium. She saw a post from someone she didn’t know. John Thorson. Nice last name, bro. She looked at his profile. He was about the same age as her parents from the looks of it. Mid-forties, black hair, barrel-chested; how did he get on her friends list? That’s weird. Oh well. Maybe she added him when she was drunk one night. She’d gotten drunk at a friend’s house on more than one occasion. She usually held her alcohol pretty well, but that didn’t mean she always did.

She returned to her feed and continued scrolling until she reached her stop. She almost missed it from getting so caught up endlessly scrolling. Social media was dangerous like that. She got off the bus and instantly felt colder than before. It was as if all the warmth had disappeared from the world. The sun was higher in the sky, so it made no sense. She pulled her jacket up around her cheeks and saw her breath escape her lips. 

As she looked down the street toward the coffee shop, she noticed a line in the air. It wasn’t a wire or a string. It was just a line. Completely two-dimensional. She walked up to it and looked around it. There was no depth to it. It looked the same from every direction. A black line in the air. She lifted her hand to touch it. As she did, it splintered. It wasn’t a line. It was a crack. A crack in the air. As she pushed on it more, the crack spread until it was the size of her torso. A shard fell off and left darkness, unlike anything Rae had ever seen. It was pitch black. She walked around the crack. It still looked the same from all angles. A break in the fabric of reality. It seemed as though part of it was falling in on itself. She reached out to touch the air where the crack was again. Another shard fell to the ground and shattered like glass. She wanted to reach into the darkness but was afraid. What was it?

A man walked behind her and bumped into Rae’s shoulder. It startled her so much that she nearly jumped out of her skin. She turned for a second before turning back to the crack. It was gone. The shattered pieces on the ground had disappeared, and the crack was gone entirely. She walked around where the crack had been to see if maybe it was just hidden from sight. But it was gone as if it had never been there. What was that? She should have used her magic on it. It would have let her tell what the origin of it was better. It also could have backfired horribly. Just then, another man bumped into her.

“You can’t just stand there, idiot,” the man said as he pushed by her. He was right. It was a busy street. But then, how had nobody else seen the crack? Where were all of the people then?

“Rae! Hey!” Rae looked up to see Liz standing outside of the coffee shop waving. She was short and slim with an athletic figure. Her black hair cascaded down past her shoulders and down to her shoulder blades. Her blue eyes twinkled with all the promise of a girl who had just been given the world. Rae slowly started toward her, only glancing back at the location the crack had been a couple of times. 

“Hey, Liz,” Rae said, offering her friend a hug. The slight warmth had returned to the air. “Is the temperature changing like crazy, or am I just going crazy?”

“It’s a nice chill today, but it’s been the same chill since I left the house. At least, I think. I was in the car on the way here.”

“Maybe I’m coming down with something. Don’t worry about it. How’ve you been!? Let’s go inside.” Rae opened the door, and Liz followed her inside. They ordered their coffee and sat at the booth furthest from the door.

“So, tell me, what’s it like gearing up for Pious Academy?” Rae asked as she sipped her coffee.

“Oh my gods, it’s great. I can’t believe I got in! I knew I scored high on the placements, but my grades in high school were definitely mid. My dad pulled some strings, though, and they overlooked all of that. You know what they say; it’s about who you know.” Liz took a sip of her coffee and looked slightly embarrassed.

“Hey, you don’t know that. You might’ve gotten in on your own merit. What was your total score anyways?” Rae asked to be polite. She knew it was a ninety-seven. One of the highest scores you could get. She was genuinely shocked it wasn’t enough to get Liz straight into Pious Academy.

“Oh, I got a ninety-seven!” Liz practically gushed. “It’s great. I never thought I’d score higher than my dad! Being the daughter of a ninety-five has always been so intimidating. I mean, you know the pressure! Wait, shit.” Liz bit her lip as if she wanted those words back. “I’m sorry…”

“No, it’s fine!” Rae said with a bit of unexpected honesty. “I’ve had time to reflect on it, and there are options my parents are exploring for me. Besides, I still have enough magic to do this.” Rae flicked her finger. A drop of the coffee flew from Liz’s cup and onto her forehead. They both laughed.

“That’s good, Rae. I’m glad you’re okay with it. You’re still the same person you’ve always been.” She put her hand out to reach for Rae’s. Rae met her on the table. “I love you, Rae. It’s going to be okay.”

“I know. Like I said, I still have magic. In fact, I have three times the magic I’ve ever had. Sure, it’s not as much as I’d like. But that’s okay.” Rae felt conflicted in her own head again. Why was she all of a sudden so okay with everything? Not that it was a bad thing. It was good to be okay with her fate. It was just weird to be okay with it all of a sudden. Just yesterday, she was still on her magic strike, only using it when necessary. She had even washed her dishes by hand after dinner.

“Good. Good, good, good.” Just then, Liz snapped straight up. Her face changed from warm and comforting to blank. Her eyes lost any sort of glimmer they ever had. “Listen to me, Rae Riot. The world you know is a lie,” she said in a monotone voice.

“Uh. Liz?” Rae asked. She had a concerned look on her face. What was going on? Why did she use her full name?

“My name is Camille. Call me Cami. But that’s not important right now. Go home and go to sleep. Use the sleeping spell on page thirteen of your general magic textbook from your senior year.”

“What the fuck are you talking about?”

“Go. Trust me. Reality may not last much longer. We can’t risk a break while you’re awake.”

“Wait, are you talking about that crack I saw earlier? Do you know what that was?”

“Whatever you do, don’t interact with those cracks. Your mind might splinter if you do. We can’t have that. Not when we’re so close. Go home. Sleep.”

“How do I know I can trust you? And what did you do with Liz?”

“Forget your friend. This is more important. Go home. Sleep. Do not trust anything on the way there. We have one hour to do this. Hurry.” Liz went limp, her head hung low. Rae reached over to make sure she was still breathing. She was alive, at least. What was that all about? Should Rae listen? There was nothing to lose. And whoever that was — whatever that was — seemed serious. 

“What’s going on?” Liz blinked back to life. 

“Hey, Liz. You’re okay. You kind of blanked out for a second there. Are you feeling alright?”

“I think so… it’s like I blinked for a long time, and then my head was hanging,” Liz was blinking and looked a little woozy.

“Yeah, that’s basically what happened. I think you should go home and get some rest. Let me call you a ride; you shouldn’t be driving.”

“What about my car?”

“I’ll drive it to my house. My mom called, and I have to run home real quick. Once you’re up and feeling better, I’ll bring it to your house. You can just take me back home, or I’ll catch a bus or something.”

“Why don’t you just drive it back to my house and then catch the bus home?”

“My mom needs something from the house at her office. She asked me to be as quick as possible. I promise I’ll give it back to you in one piece. Pleaseeee?” Rae looked at her with the best puppy dog eyes she could manage.

“Fine, weirdo. But you’re paying for my ride home.”

“Definitely, no problem.” Rae pulled up her optical chip and navigated to the ride-sharing app, Mega. She punched in Liz’s address and paid for the ride. “It’ll be here in five minutes. Blue sedan, a driver named James. He looks cute. Keys?”

Liz handed her keys to Rae and made her promise to be careful. Rae promised and broke out in a light jog toward the door. She found Liz’s car parked on the street. It was a blocky red car that looked almost as old as Rae. It was surprising, given how wealthy Liz’s parents were, but they were also very frugal. Liz had expected a new car as a graduation gift. Instead, she got a low-interest savings account that she couldn’t access until she graduated academy. Rae climbed in the driver’s seat and started the car up. It didn’t run off magic like Rae’s family’s cars. It was an electric car. It hummed a little bit as she began to pull off, but it sounded nothing like the jet engine that her family’s cars were.

As she navigated the streets back to her home, she was met with a bright orange sign that read Construction. Detour on Regal Ave. Regal Avenue? Fuck, that was going to add twenty minutes to her drive. Where had this construction come from? It wasn’t here earlier today. That meant it couldn’t have been that underway yet. Do not trust anything on the way there. Maybe this is what Cami meant? Rae didn’t see anyone behind the sign. She did see another of those lines from earlier. This one was significantly larger. Rae whipped her hand and pushed the construction sign out of the way. As she did, the line splintered into a crack just as the smaller line had earlier. She slowly drove around it, making sure to steer clear of any of the lines that shot off it. 

She continued down the road and noticed an apparent lack of construction. There was no shortage of those cracks, though. They appeared in the road at such a rapid pace that Rae had almost run into several. As she turned onto her street, she saw a large crack that spanned the entire road. There was no way to drive around it. It just hung in the air as if suspended by an invisible string. Rae got out of the car and walked toward the crack. It spanned both sidewalks. There was no way around it. She needed to get home, though. Whoever Cami was, she was right. Something was trying to stop her from getting home. Or maybe it was just trying to stop her in general. A chill ran down Rae’s spine as she got closer to the crack. The same cold that had hit her earlier was back. We have one hour to do this. Rae checked her optical chip. She had twenty minutes to get to the house and get to sleep. 

Wait. Why was she listening to someone who had possessed her friend? Why was she so calm through all of this? She had been seeing creepy messages for days. Then someone possessed Liz in a coffee shop. Why was Rae just listening to them as if it had been her mother who told her what to do? She wasn’t going to go home and sleep. She was going to take Liz her car and talk to her mom about this when she got home. She could show her the cracks if they were still here. At the very least, she had something to investigate now. Cracks floating in air had to be documented somewhere. It had to be magic. Right?

“No, it’s not magic. Well, in a manner of speaking.” Rae turned around to find one of her neighbors standing in the street with the same deadpan expression Liz had earlier. “It’s me, Cami. Again. Look, I know you have no reason to trust me. Everything you’re thinking is normal. We tried to relax you using magic, but there’s only so much we can do.”

“Who is we?”

“Everything will become apparent soon. You see these cracks? That’s not where it ends. Your world is falling apart. Your magic is tearing it apart. We helped a little with that, but it’s accelerated much faster than we thought. Just go home. Sleep. Or sleep here. I can tell you the spell. You just need to get to sleep. Fast.”

“You see the cracks, too?”

“Not the same way you do, but yes, I see them. Now go. I’ll seal this one.” Her neighbor ran her hand over the crack, and it slowly receded to a single line in the center of the street. “Leave the car. Go.”

Whoever this was, they were able to see the cracks. They could even control them. And they seemed genuine about what they were saying. The world being ripped apart seemed a little dramatic, but Rae couldn’t think of another explanation for literal cracks in the fabric of space. What did they mean it was Rae’s magic? Rae wasn’t that powerful. Maybe if she were a hundred-cell witch, it would make a modicum of sense. But even those witches weren’t unheard of. And reality was still well intact with them running around. No, something else was going on. 

Rae ran down the sidewalk and up the driveway to her house. She ran up the stairs to her house and through the door. As she did, she noticed one of the cracks in the doorway to the kitchen. That was the only way upstairs from where she was. Shit. Well, now that she was home, she didn’t necessarily need to be in her room. She used her optical chip to look up a sleep spell and walked into the living room. She read the incantation aloud and made the hand symbols. She felt herself getting drowsy, so she laid down on the couch. Her eyes began to close, and she saw one of the cracks open above her. As her eyes closed, the crack began to spread above her, and the shards started to fall to the ground. She saw nothing but absolute darkness as she drifted into unconsciousness.