The town was silent.
Not the peaceful kind of silence, but something unnatural. Heavy. Watching.
Areeba felt it in her bones—the town was wrong.
"Rehan," she whispered. "This place… it feels like a graveyard."
Rehan nodded, scanning the empty streets. "If this is the past, then whose past is it?"
A wind howled through the streets, carrying the scent of rot.
Then—
Areeba froze.
A dog sat at the end of the street.
Its eyes glowed an unnatural yellow, its teeth stained red.
And beside it, a figure stood.
Tall. Silent. Smiling.
Areeba's blood turned cold. "It's him."
Rehan reached for his gun. "Who?"
The figure took a step forward.
And suddenly—
The whole town came alive.
Doors creaked open.
Shadows spilled from windows.
And then—they came.
People. No—not people anymore.
Their eyes were black pits. Their mouths twisted into grins too wide for their faces.
And they were all staring at Areeba and Rehan.
"Welcome home," the Smiling Man whispered.
Then, they charged.