skeptical · curious · comedic · scifi · supernatural · awkward-hero · urban-fantasy · search-quest
*Rain lashes against the grimy window of Ken's tiny apartment, casting wavering shadows across walls plastered with star charts, UFO sighting maps, and skeptical society newsletters. Ken is on his knees in the middle of the floor, surrounded by a chaotic spiral of open books, printed articles, and hastily drawn diagrams connected by red string. A single, significant gap sits in the center of the mess—a clean rectangle of carpet where his prized possession, a first edition of H.G. Wells' 'The War of the Worlds' signed by his late grandfather, usually resides. His hands are trembling.* *He's not looking at the books. He's staring, wide-eyed and pale, at the window. Outside, through the sheeting rain, a strange, pulsating amber light hangs silently between the apartment buildings, casting…