When The Sun Died

Chapter 11

Elara’s pov

The supermarket was too quiet.

Nia slept huddled against a threadbare blanket I’d spread across the floor between two empty shelves. Her small chest rose and fell slowly, oblivious to the chaos outside.

For a moment, I let myself believe the red eclipse couldn’t touch her here, couldn’t reach this fragile pocket of safety.

Then it came, the screaming.

Faint at first, ragged and jagged, like metal being torn apart. My stomach tightened.

My hand gripped the knife so hard it ached. Nia stirred, murmuring in her sleep. I leaned down, brushing her hair from her face.

“Shh… it’s okay, Nia . I’m right here,” I whispered.

The screams grew sharper, closer, as though something, someone was running for their life. Then a single gunshot rang out, followed by another piercing scream.

My blood ran cold. The door rattled violently. Someone was trying to get in.

“Nia ! Behind the crates, now!” I hissed, yanking her into the shadows behind a stack of empty boxes. Her small hands clutched my arm, trembling.

The supermarket doors groaned, then slammed. Whoever or whatever was outside was relentless.

Without thinking, I bolted to the door.

“GET IN!” I screamed. I flung it open, trying to pull them inside.

They stumbled through, breathing hard, blood smearing their clothes. I froze.

My pulse pounded so hard I thought the walls themselves would hear it. I raised the knife, stepping between them and the door.

Nia peeked from behind me, eyes wide. Fear, confusion, hope they all swirled together in that single, terrified glance.

“Step back!” I shouted, voice cracking. “I don’t know who you are!”

The man’s eyes were wild, panicked. “I…I’m fine! I’m not one of them!” His words tumbled over themselves as black veins snaked from his hands toward his shoulder, blood oozing from the bite.

I sensed Serena’s presence before I saw her, a cold, hard edge in her voice as she aimed a rifle at him.

“We know what happens when someone gets bitten,” she said flatly.

My heart slammed against my ribs. My knife shook. Survival was a blur of split-second choices now.

“No!” the man gasped. “I’m not… please! I’m not one of them!”

I glanced at Nia . She clutched my shirt so tightly, I could feel every beat of her small heart. I couldn’t let her see this… couldn’t let her see what came next.

The man collapsed to his knees. Black veins crept faster over his skin, moving like ink in water. Serena’s finger tightened on the trigger, steady, unyielding.

I couldn’t just watch. I knelt beside him, ignoring the fear clawing at my chest.

The black veins pulsed under my palm, alive, furious but for a moment, they slowed. His body convulsed, sweat and blood mixing, but he didn’t transform, not yet.

The doctor’s voice broke the tension, trembling so badly I thought he might collapse. “How… how is he not transforming?” Ignored the him and continued talking to the Man

“Don’t… let it take you,” I murmured, low, steady, like a prayer. “You’re not a monster yet.”

The man’s body shook violently. His breath hitched. “I… I don’t want to die… please,” he gasped.

Minutes passed or maybe seconds. I couldn’t tell. And then… stillness. He wasn’t turning. The bite on his arm was already healing, the black veins retreating like smoke in the wind.

I stood, knife in hand, sweat trickling down my face, and looked at the others.

Nia clutched my leg, trembling. “Are we… going to be okay?”

I swallowed hard, voice tight. “I… I don’t know. But we survive. Together.”

The silence after the man’s convulsions felt deafening.

Even the red-tinged light from outside seemed to pause, it felt like even the eclipse born were waiting for him to transform. I lowered the knife slightly, my arms trembling, but my eyes never left him.

He lay there, chest rising and falling unevenly, black veins retreating like ink in water. He didn’t move. His skin was pale, but alive. My heart pounded in my chest. I had no idea how…why he hadn’t transformed .

Serena and Kane stood, frozen behind me, their faces pale, mouths slightly open. Serena’s gun wavered in her hand as she glanced between me and the unconscious man.

“He… he’s not… turning?” Kane whispered, voice barely audible.

I shook my head slowly. “Not yet. I don’t know why, but… he’s still human.”

Serena lowered her weapon fully, though her eyes never left him. “You…what did you do?” Her tone was a mixture of disbelief and something else,respect, maybe? “How… how did you stop it?”

I hesitated, keeping my voice steady even though my body felt like it might collapse. “I… didn’t do anything, this is all on him, I just talked to him”

Kane’s mouth fell open again. “Talk to him ?That’s…” He stopped, shaking his head. “No… that’s impossible. Does that mean Asher is immune to their bite or whatever it is that’s making people turn?”

I swallowed hard, my throat dry. “I… I think so,” I admitted, my voice barely more than a whisper. “Whatever that is… it’s not affecting him.”

Serena’s eyes narrowed, the disbelief giving way to cautious calculation. “Immune?” she murmured, almost to herself. “No one’s supposed to survive that.” Her fingers still trembled on the gun, though she had lowered it. “If he’s immune… this changes everything.”

Kane knelt closer, peering at the black veins fading from the man’s arm. His glasses fogged slightly from his rapid breathing. “But how? Why?” He looked at me, then at Serena. “This isn’t… natural.”

Kane leaned back slightly, voice barely above a whisper. “If he’s immune… think about what this could mean. We might have a chance. A real one.”

I barely had time to absorb what Kane had said when a low, guttural growl vibrated through the air. The supermarket’s quiet shattered.

Three figures dropped through the sky, landing with unnatural grace. The red light from the eclipse cast their twisted silhouettes across the aisles.

They moved differently from the others, the way they tilted their heads, scanning, calculating. Smarter. Deadlier. They weren’t here to hunt aimlessly; they were hunting him.

“Serena!” I hissed, gripping my knife tighter. “I think they are here for him !”

Her eyes sharpened, rifle raised again. Kane froze beside me, pipe in hand, panic flickering in his face. Nia squeaked from behind the crates, her small body trembling against my legs.

The first creature crouched, jaw splitting unnaturally wide, teeth glinting. Its black-veined arms flexed, muscles coiled like a predator ready to spring.

“They came for him,” I muttered, voice trembling. “For… for him. Asher.”

The man on the floor, Asher still unconscious, vulnerable. My heart hammered so hard I thought it might burst.

“Hold them off,” Serena barked, moving forward, gunfire ripping through the stale air. Bullets slammed into the nearest figure, but it didn’t slow. The Eclipseborn twisted, dodged, calculating their movements with terrifying intelligence.

Kane swung the pipe, hitting one across the shoulder. It screeched, but even as it stumbled, its black veins pulsed with unnatural speed.

I crouched beside Asher, checking him quickly. He was pale, but his chest rose and fell steadily. Immune… but still helpless.

“Stay back, Nia!” I hissed. Her small hands clutched my shirt tighter.

The creatures advanced. They weren’t rushing blind they circled, cutting off exits, forcing us into the open floor.

“Serena!”