The Distortion
Prelude

It was just another Sunday. Nothing special or different about this week either. Both brothers were still sleeping; it was already noon. They earned a lengthy rest—however exaggerated—after a mundane week of waking up at seven in the morning for the past six days, which made Sundays a precious opportunity.

Mama had a different opinion though.

“KIIIDS, ARE YOU STILL ASLEEP?!” she shouted.

Not the most pleasant way to wake someone up. Both brothers loved their mother, but this was one instance where they wished she wasn’t around so they wouldn’t have to wake up to that sudden war cry.

The younger one was always the first to get up. Outside the fact that he was very much a light sleeper, he’d rather not have his ears experience a seismic shock and suffer lasting damage. He was far too young to have to deal with hearing deficiency. The older one would desperately try to squeeze a few more minutes of sleep before he remembered what a terrible mistake that was. He tried it once only to suffer a second round of the shouting treatment…he had it rough for the rest of the day.

After the bathroom session, during which they acted like two zombies afraid allergic to water, it was time for breakfast. Another hassle they had to go through. Neither of them really ate much for breakfast anyway and waking up at noon didn’t help either. And yet, Mrs. Kacem would still prepare a full table for them. No skipping meals, not on her watch. It’s particularly tricky for the younger one, Laith. Whenever he tried to talk his way out of eating, he would always hear the same old generic sentence, “You are fifteen years old, mama, you have to eat more so you can grow tall and strong!”

That was one argument he wasn’t willing to go into this early…

Fortunately, baba would come in to save the day.

“You boys are still eating breakfast? It’s almost lunchtime, hurry up and get on with it already.”

That was always the perfect escape from the situation because “baba is scary and we don’t argue with him”. At least that was the ridiculous and completely inaccurate reason they always told their mother. The two boys would take advantage of baba’s intervention to slip out of the kitchen and loaf around uselessly checking their phones before the next hassle they had to endure: studying.

This was undoubtedly the most unpleasant time of the day, as many people of their age would consider it. Luckily, Adam, the older brother, made the distinction between what was pleasant and what was necessary…eventually…after a few years of slacking. Finding the motivation to open his books on his own remained hard, and so he developed a manipulative technique to help himself.

“Aren’t you gonna study for your finals?” Adam asked.

“None of your business. If you’re so eager to study, don’t drag me into it.” Laith knew his brother’s true intentions.

“Come on, I bet you’d feel a bit more motivated if you have someone in the same boat as you.”

“I’m not falling for it. It is you who’re looking at me as a source of motivation.”

“You know we’ll have to do it eventually…”

Laith sighed. “Aren’t you tired of having the same old conversation every single week?”

That’s how it usually started. It would take a while before Laith yielded to his brother’s demands. Fortunately, the lack of motivation wasn’t detrimental to their academic careers; each one had a way to work around it. Laith, being a first-year student in high school, was in fact pretty smart and a fairly quick learner, but the only thing preventing him from excellence was his laziness. He was just content with being good with minimal effort, being top of the class hardly interested him—definitely not worth the extra hours either.

Adam, barely twenty, was wrestling with engineering school. While he suffered from the same weak will as his brother, Adam could overcome it. He was a hard-working student and while he liked to complain—a lot—he always did put in the extra effort. Even if his brother was being a constant nuisance.

“Hey Adam, there’s something I don’t get about this question.”

“Deal with it yourself.”

“I was kind enough to share in your misery, can’t you do the same?”

“One, you’re not doing it for me and two, I know you don’t need my help and you just wanna annoy me.”

“Alright can I borrow your pen then? Mine is dead.”

“Laith, get off my back and get back to work.”

“Ever the asshole, eh…”

Ultimately, both brothers knew that the only way to lead a comfortable life in their future was through a decent educational curriculum. Their parents successfully managed to have them always remember that fact. Baba and mama had long insisted on the fact that they had nothing in their possession for the children to inherit, no castles, no treasure boxes, no royal blood…They were two regular workers who had nothing else to invest in other than their own children.

Granted, the parents resorted to the nagging technique every now and then, with the occasional disciplinary measures—consisting of either mama’s infuriating grounding or baba’s good old slaps—to remind the boys of their responsibilities. Being strict was part of the job, but thankfully it led this little family to live an enjoyable and humble life. And for that, each one of them was grateful.

Studying may have been the worst part of this egregious Sunday, but at least it was the last. After that borefest, it was finally time to blow off some steam.

For Laith, the answer was an obvious one: video games. He wouldn’t waste another second to jump at the opportunity to dive into the magnificent worlds created inside the elaborate software. His older brother usually tagged along, and while sharing some degree of enthusiasm, he certainly didn’t share the same level of success when it came to results. Laith’s obsession and his competitive spirit made it hard to keep up.

Adam was more interested in having his actual body live the thrilling experience. And that included getting physical. The sense of sweat streaming down his face was ironically refreshing to him. The backyard of the house was his terrain in this time of the day…but also his crime scene.

The place had sustained considerable damage at the hand of the one-hundred-and-fifty-sixth ball—a rough approximation. Obviously, mama wouldn’t let it slide and would get all hysterical. And if mama wasn’t around, it would have been the grumpy neighbor who would either confiscate or straight-up stab the ball with utter malice. His ball count was currently at one hundred and fifty-five.

Poor Laith would always get dragged into the mess, even if he was nowhere near as guilty as his brother. He was never as enthusiastic about the entire thing either, but Adam would drag him along. That was usually how things worked between them. Whatever other interests they had, they usually ended up sharing the experience together, even when one of them didn’t much care for it.

Naturally, that came with its own set of problems such as conversations getting heated when butting head over how good a certain movie, anime, show or book was. Perhaps the most notable instance was whenever Laith escalated the argument into a physical brawl. His excuse was his competitive spirit, which roughly translated to his being a sore loser.

And yet, both the friendly banter and the tense arguments helped forge their brotherhood. They never paid much attention to it, but the fact was that they always had each other, no matter the circumstances. Even though each one claimed he was vastly different from his sibling, they were a lot more alike than they cared to admit. People around them would always comment on the strong bond between them, but they were quick to dismiss it.

They had to realize that that very same bond between them would one day prove its worth, on a scale beyond anything anyone could imagine.

It was just another Sunday. Except maybe for dinner.

The habit of leaving the TV ramble on when having dinner was almost a ritual in their household. Ironically, none amongst the Kacem family paid it any attention. The same old people telling the same old news almost every night. It would either take a large-scale disruption or a bizarre instance to catch their attention.

This time, it was the latter.

It was one of those peculiar shows that took interest in strange and shady cases, borderline paranormal. The incident reported in this episode happened fairly recently, no longer than two weeks ago, and in a neighboring country no less. Multiple cases of murder occurring within a small timeframe, a chain of murders that seemingly followed the same pattern. The murders alone were enough to cause a commotion, but early reports claiming that it was done by an individual—the same individual—sent both authorities and the public into a state of confusion.

The aftermath in each of the crime scenes wasn’t something that could be explained by ordinary human feats. The level of destruction left in the wake of the different assaults was far too great to be caused by a criminal’s limited physical capabilities. Fallen roofs, thick layers of wall shattered, high levels of security rendered useless, human bodies torn apart, sometimes in two halves, sometimes more…one might think it was a raging beast or a natural disaster, not a single bare-handed human.

Yet, it was reported that it was neither natural disaster nor beast and there was no evidence of use of any sort of weapons which was supported by witnesses who survived the onslaught. Obviously, the legitimacy of these claims was questioned by investigators. The fact that the criminal left witnesses alive threw a wrench in the entire matter.

Adding more confusion to the already chaotic situation was the fact that the time span of all the murders simply didn’t add up. The different incidents occurred in different cities and to cover such a distance would normally require hours, and that’s by vehicle. It was stated that it was done within a matter of minutes.

“So baba, what’s your take on this? Being a lawyer and all.” Adam asked.

“Bullshit is what this is…can’t believe they still broadcast this garbage.” Mr. Kacem was hardly interested in what he considered to be rubbish.

Both brothers choked on their food from the sudden chuckle. It was always a golden moment whenever their father swore.

“Language, darling. Not to mention we’re eating.” Mrs. Kacem shot her husband a disappointed look.

“So what, you deny those people were dead baba?” Laith wondered.

“No, just denying the ridiculous set of circumstances. It’s actually disgraceful that they’re using the victims’ lives to fabricate their own folk tale.”

“True that.”

Everyone eventually finished their dinner while still listening to the various “absurd” analysis and speculations proposed by the guests on the show. Not to mention how the host was playing it up as hard as he could, what with his ridiculous questions and spooky tone. They were clearly trying to promote this whole matter as one of those “mysterious mysteries” that would remain unsolved for decades to come, thus serving as good material to adapt into whatever medium. The story would be romanticized and gain almost mythical proportions…you know the drill.

Back in their room after having stuffed their stomach, both brothers had a funny topic of conversation to indulge in.

“So, what would be your valuable insight on the matter, Mr. Laith?” Adam asked his younger brother, mimicking the tone of the host’s show.

“How should I know…I mean apparently there is an evil superman who was living under our noses all this time.”

“Haha, very funny…”

“What do you want me to say man. As much as I’d like for fantasy to be part of our lives, it’s likely nothing more than…bullshit.” Laith shrugged. “Although I do wonder what the truth behind these types of stories is…”

“I’d wager it’s quite disappointing. They tend to dramatize the thing too much reality ends up paling in comparison.” Adam replied. “Kinda like real history now that I think about it.”

“What do you mean?”

“You know, how many historical events are often a lot more glorified and romanticized than what they really were.”

“Well, that’s no fun…I guess I’d rather stick with whatever distorted version of whatever story or event in that case.”

It was nearly time to sleep so the dawdling and chilling came to an end. What started as a regular boring Sunday, ended with quite the “spicy” story, albeit a silly one.

Little did they know…

* * *

Waking up Monday morning was an absolute pain in the butt for the brothers, a serious contender for the title of the most despicable moment of the entire week. The expression on their faces spoke volumes of how they felt about getting up that early. It was so bad it usually pushed the boys to question their existence and reflect on their life decisions which led them to this juncture, awake at Monday morning while it was still dark and having to go to school.

It didn’t help that baba and mama had a cheerful attitude and wore the widest smiles. If their sons didn’t any better, they would have thought it a sadistic smile, for it was inconceivable to them how anyone could be delighted to be up at this hour. It should have been an inspiring sight for the boys, but on the contrary, it was quite irritating. Merriment and Monday morning were simply not commensurate inside the Kacem brothers’ heads.

After the usual struggle with breakfast, everyone finished getting ready—with varying degrees of speed—got in the car and hit the road. The traffic was what one would normally expect from the start of the week, which presented a neat opportunity for Laith and Adam to enjoy a few more minutes of sleep. Well, calling it “sleep” was fairly generous since it was nothing more than some moments of drowsiness interrupted by the intermittent car horns. All in all, what you would expect from a Monday morning.

However, nothing about what happened next could be called expected. Not a single thing.

As everyone was sitting in the car waiting to finally be released from the clutches of the road, nobody anticipated that a sudden tear in the fabric of reality would be the event that would save them from the endless torture of waiting out the traffic. It was as if the air itself was ripped apart like a thin membrane, opening the way for some ominous entity to come out. Except nothing came out of this hole. It simply started spreading to the entire scenery, multiple tears manifesting throughout the sky above and the ground beneath. The eerie part was that there were no physical ramifications to this phenomenon.

Unlike a natural disaster, the rips in the earth didn’t swallow whatever was above it and the cracks in the skies didn’t make way for a meteorite to flatten whatever was beneath it. However, everyone could tell that it all felt wrong and no good would come out of this. They may not have felt a tremor or a disturbance, but something was indeed crumbling. And that something may very well be reality itself, whatever that meant.

The reactions to such a strange and sudden phenomenon varied. Some people had tried to run, from what, they did not know. Instinct kicked in and compelled them to move in whatever direction they deemed safe, screams shrill with shock filling the background. Except nowhere was safe and their attempt was nothing more than a futile endeavor. The whole world was rendered no more than a piece of cloth eventually to be torn.

It was simply inevitable. And some people seemed to have made peace with that inevitability. Or they were simply too shocked to even move a muscle. They were stuck in their position, gazing desolately with a gaping mouth, not sure what to make of any of it. Their brains froze so it was only natural that no command was conveyed to their bodies. Their minds were a jumbled mess, swinging between staggering confusion and haunting terror.

Impending doom was seemingly upon them, and no one had the faintest idea about what it was or what triggered it or what could be done to repel it. The short answer was nothing, humanity was at the receiving end of a cataclysmic event way beyond their grasp. They could only hope to watch the spectacle unfold, a spectacle that was far from over.

What followed was an intangible sphere that rapidly collapsed on itself, into a singular point everything turning into complete darkness. Each individual hovered in nothingness for a brief moment before bursting into the light again. It was over in a flash, and young Laith was finally able to see properly.

He should have been glad that he was unaffected—unlike many others—but that barely crossed his mind. The first concern came in the form of his mother and brother’s vanishing. His father was a few steps away from him, a bit relieved that his younger son was still with him but perplexed all the same.

“Honey? Adam? Where are you? Can you hear me?!” Mr. Kacem kept shouting, desperately waiting for a response that would never come. He was trying to keep his cool and not panic in front of his son as he knew that suddenly—and inexplicably—losing sight of two family members could traumatize the young teenager.

However, the middle-aged father didn’t know that the misfortune of losing his wife and oldest son would be the least of his worries.

“Baba, where are we….?” Laith said, his voice trembling.

And that was Laith’s second and major concern. One look at his surroundings and Mr. Kacem realized the situation was a lot direr than he could have ever imagined. Not being inside the car stuck in the middle of the road was one thing, but no longer being in their small country was another thing entirely.

However, where they were exactly, they couldn’t tell. It wasn’t like they couldn’t recognize what they were seeing, they just couldn’t make any sense of it. After all, how would you rationalize the fact that the great pyramid of Giza was now located near the Eiffel tower, right in the middle of a random forest they couldn’t possibly identify?

Laith and his father were left flabbergasted in front of what stood before them, so befuddled they barely realized their feet were soaking in a streaming river. At least, that was what they thought it was. They were not to blame. It was a classic disposition of a river, a stream of water surrounded by land on both sides. No one noticed that the water was actually salty and originally belonged to the Pacific Ocean.

Not yet.

Every man, woman, and child, including Mr. Kacem and his son, realized that the unidentified disruption had actually encompassed the entire world, upon seeing what kind of place they found themselves in. Unfortunately, the madness still wasn’t over. As if matters weren’t strange enough as it was, it got a whole lot stranger. And a whole lot more dangerous.

A deafening roar boomed in the air, a scream a lot of people hadn’t gotten the chance to hear up close in their lifetime, but they were still familiar with. After all, it was very characteristic of a certain species…with an unexpected spin no less. The beast responsible for the devastating sound showed itself. It was huge, equipped with tusks, long ones…and covered in brown fur.

A mammoth, an extinct species, in the flesh, came out of the forest charging at a terrifying speed. Most men and women fled hysterically at the sight of the rampaging beast, barely sparing a thought to the fact that an animal, one that should not have been alive anymore, was walking the earth once again. In a repeat of the scene that happened moments ago, others froze in place, unable to move from their spot. The reason for that was…well, it could have been anything from the river to the pyramid to the mammoth. An argument could be made for either one of the oddities.

Young Laith belonged to the latter category, replaceing it impossible to process what he was witnessing. If not for his father, who managed to muster up all the courage he had to grab his son and get as far away as possible, Laith would have fallen victim to the mammoth’s panic attack, like many other unfortunate souls who were in the nearest area.

The end result was not pretty, a mammoth rampaging across a land, razing the surrounding landscape to the ground, stomping indiscriminately on the unlucky individuals who were in his path and thrusting his tusks inside persons foolish enough to resist him in any capacity. A complete devastation…albeit a minor one.

At the time, most hadn’t realized that the incident with the mammoth would be considered rather diminutive compared to what this existence held for them. In fact, a mere mammoth was something to be look down upon even, considering the horrors, the true horrors, everyone would have to face in the future.

Amidst the utter mayhem happening around him, Laith was still lost in his thoughts, desperately coming to terms with what had transpired, his father’s words in one ear and out the other—loud though they were.

“Grab on tight so you don’t drown!” Mr. Kacem screamed.

They reached another water surface. Who knew if it was a sea, ocean or river…none of that mattered considering their current predicament. Mr. Kacem was so caught up with the fact that he needed to get himself and his son to safety, he didn’t even notice he was swimming at an inhuman speed. A speed no man could reach, no matter how hard he trained, no matter how scared he was, no matter how far he was pushed. You could not, and should not, outrun a shark that was after your blood. It should be an impossible feat, especially for a mere lawyer. Yet it happened.

It was no longer the world that humanity had come to know up until this point. It felt like the same world, but turned upside down, shuffled randomly like a deck of cards that used to be arranged in a defined order.

However, one major and final difference prevented it from being the exact same world they knew.

As his mind was slowly going blank, Laith noticed a vaguely shaped silhouette flying in the sky above them. It was a shadow of an unconventional bird. Calling it a bird would be inaccurate though, since only the front half of his body was that of a bird. The back half was that of a horse.

“A hippogriff?!” Laith exclaimed as he regained his senses.

A little ironic that the thing that snapped him out of his stupor was a fantastical creature. A creature that only existed in myths and legends, was now gracefully navigating the skies. It was even more beautiful than all the artists’ depictions that Laith had come across through various media. His father heard the word “hippogriff” but had no clue what his son was talking about. He didn’t bother asking as his immediate priority was to replace a safe spot to breathe in this mess of a world.

Wishful thinking at best.

There was one possible outcome to these large-scale disruptions: a long-lasting chaos.