The first sound of rain was heard when Harith opened his eyes.
He didn't know how long he had been unconscious but the smell of ozone and blood filled his nose.
The sky outside the window was gray-purple and from the gaps in the clouds, the sun reflected two lights at once, one white, one faintly black.
He woke up slowly.
His hands were shaking, but his skin wasn't completely the same, beneath the surface, black veins were visible, moving slowly like life.
The mirror of the study table next to him was cracked.
Harith looked and was shocked when he saw it... his eyes were two colors now.
The right one was pitch black. The left one was normal.
"What have I done..."
"You're alive. That's enough," the voice whispered, not outside, but inside his own head.
He looked around, his room was damaged, but real. There was no longer a glass dimension.
Aina was lying on the floor, still unconscious. Harith ran towards him.
"Aina! Wake up, Aina!"
He patted her cheek gently. The girl opened her eyes, blurred, breathing rapidly.
"Where are we…?"
"Still in our world."
"No… I see two suns…"
Harith looked outside, there were indeed two suns, but one seemed faded, like a reflection trying to imitate.
And along the street outside the house, human shadows stood without a master upright under the cloudy sky, silent.
"Harith…" Aina's voice broke. "Do you know what that means?"
"What?"
"The eclipse has started."
---
That evening, the news began to spread on TV.
The national broadcaster showed street camera footage showing human shadows moving on their own in big cities.
In Putrajaya, several police officers were said to have "lost their reflections" while on duty.
People began to panic. The hashtag #DuniaTanpaBayang was trending.
Harith sat thoughtfully in the living room, Aina next to him.
He had just finished taking a shower but every time he looked in the mirror, his reflection smiled back.
Sometimes it was a minute late. Sometimes he kept whispering
"You'll get used to it later."
Aina noticed the change.
"You heard his voice, right?"
"Yes."
"What did he say?"
"He wants me to… eat the shadow."
Aina swallowed. "Don't, Harith."
"If I don't, he said another shadow will come looking for me."
In the blink of an eye, the house lights flickered.
A dragging sound was heard from the kitchen like nails scratching tiles.
Harith and Aina looked at each other.
He reached for the kitchen knife slowly, taking careful steps.
"Aina, sit behind me."
When they reached the kitchen, the refrigerator door was wide open.
The floor was wet.
And in the middle of it, there was a human shadow sitting crouched with its head down but no body.
Just a black shape, like a paintbrush spilled but breathing.
"Harith… don't come any closer"
Too late.
The shadow turned, faceless, just a dark hole shaped like a mouth.
The voice came from an inappropriate direction from the wall, floor, and ceiling all at once.
"I'm hungry…"
It jumped, enveloping Harith in darkness.
Aina screamed. Harith was thrown against the wall, his breath caught.
The shadow tried to penetrate his skin, entering through pores like smoke.
In his head, Rai's voice screamed:
"If you don't eat him, he'll eat you!"
Harith shivered, but his hands moved on their own.
His eyes shone two colors.
He grasped the shadow and for the first time, he absorbed it.
The air trembled.
The light went out.
Aina covered her ears, holding back the scream that didn't belong to a human.
When everything calmed down, Harith stood in the middle of the room. His breathing was heavy.
Around him, only black dust floated slowly.
The shadow under his feet was thicker now, as if adding a new layer.
"What have you done…" Aina whispered.
"I… feel like he's inside me now."
"Harith, that's not power but a curse."
"A curse can also be a weapon if this world is getting destroyed."
She looked outside, the street was quiet but every mirror reflection outside the house showed an additional shadow standing behind every human.
The sound of the news from the TV was faint in the living room
"The Ministry of Public Security advises everyone not to go out when the sun rises…"
Harith clutched Aina's pendant which was still faintly glowing.
"Aina, if all these shadows start looking for new masters, our world will never be the same again."
"So what do you want to do?"
"I'll find the cause and if I have to eat all the shadows to stop this…"
"…I'll eat them all."
Rai chuckled in her head.
"Finally you're starting to understand, Harith. To fight the darkness, sometimes you have to be part of it."
The sky rumbled. The light of the second eclipse was becoming clearer.
And in the distance, from behind Kangar Hill, there was a tall black figure taking shape, as big as a building, slowly opening its eyes.