Good evening, listeners, interdimensional beings, monsters of the underworld, and whoever else is listening. This is Breaking Dawn Radio ninety point six, your nightly radio show with your oh so lovely host. As always, I remain anonymous to keep me safe from whatever otherworldly adversaries would want to come after me. Now, I know I can't be the only one who's seen strange cloaked figures around town, right? They appear right in the corner of your vision, just out of sight. By the time you can get a good look at them, they're gone as if your mind simply made the whole thing up. I hear the main park in the center of town is where I'm getting most of the reports. Feel free to call in and share any similar experiences, even new ones. Every other radio station and person in power wants you to believe there's nothing weird about this town. Well, this local radio host begs to differ.
Sora smiled, pushing his headphones closer to his ears as he was on the bus. The sky had settled into tones of deep green and blue as the sun was just below the horizon. By this point, he had the time this mystery man's radio show was on memorized: seven p.m. sharp every week night and sometimes on weekends too. A lot of people thought he was just acting and making up the weird happenings he went on about, but Sora knew they were true. Just before this, when he was waiting at the bus stop, he knew he had seen one of those cloaked figures. It wasn't even in the corner of his eye, it had been right in front of him across the street. In the dim light of the street lamps, he had seen them standing there, shrouded by the shadows of trees and bushes. For a long while, Sora had simply stood there, completely frozen. He wasn't even sure if he would've been able to do anything if they came rushing at him. But as soon as he saw them, they vanished. Not only that, sometimes when he was on the phone with someone, he swore he heard another voice like a hoarse whisper, saying odd things through the static, same with the tv. That, and, well, the guy had a nice voice, and there was a strange familiarity to it. On his calls with his friend Kairi, he had mentioned the radio host several times. Finally, she suggested Sora call in and tell him about his experiences. Of course, she also suggested he just stake out the radio station and see who it is that comes out, which Sora had immediately declined.
"That would just be creepy! Maybe..I'll get a chance to meet him. He sounds like he's around our age, though I guess it's possible he could be some older dude with a younger sounding voice, but I really hope that's not the case."
Sadly, contact with his other friend, Riku had become few and far between after the trio had to inevitably part ways due to college and jobs. Sora had decided to stick with lacrosse, hoisting his sport bag back onto his lap as it had started slip. He wasn't quite sure what Riku had decided to do, but he hoped he had found his aspiration. He was pretty lost in highschool when it came to the future.
'I think there's even something more troubling than the cloaked figures. I swear, when I'm on the phone or watching TV..anything electronic, I hear this other voice, but I can never make out what it's saying.'
'I have noticed that as well. In fact, I had an experience with an entity in the woods. It might sound strange, but sometimes I just go into the woods in the dead of night when I can't sleep. There's something peaceful about the dead silence of a forest at night. As I came to a clearing, this huge shadowy figure..maybe around nine feet tall, looked right at me with these piercing red eyes. I couldn't move. It was as if something had reached into my head and had a hold on my mind. I wanted to scream..run away, but I couldn't do anything. After it let me go, I passed out and woke up the next morning in that same spot.'
Sora's own experience was nothing like that, but he gained a bit of courage at hearing other's stories calling in. As soon as the host said the number again, Sora opened his phone app, tapping in the number. All of a sudden, his hands felt slippery with sweat. His heart was practically pounding out of his chest, but no, he was going to do this. No, chickening out..no matter how hot he sounded.
"Hello, new caller. You're on air. So, what's your story? Unless you're a skeptic."
Sora felt like he could just die right there. That smooth voice was talking directly to him. He swallowed dryly before clearing his throat and praying his voice wouldn't crack.
"H-hi! I'm Sora, and yes, in fact, it literally just happened before I got on the bus just now." So far so good, no voice crack besides the stammering.
"...oh, uh, right! Well, please, tell me about it." That was strange. He hadn't really heard the host trip up like that before, but there had been a definite pause as if he had been distracted by something.
"Well, I was waiting at the bus stop. I happened to look across the street, and I saw definitely saw a cloaked figure standing right under the trees right across from me. It was the first time I had actually seen one for an extended period of time and not just for a split second in the corner of my eye like usual. I just..wonder what it means. I really hope I'm not in any danger where I'll be whisked away to an alternate dimension or something." Sora finished it with a nervous laugh, hoping he wasn't ranting too much.
"I..think you'll be okay. So far, they seem to just watch people. I haven't gotten any reports of them actually abducting or hurting someone. But, it is a surprise to hear you saw one dead on. I'd be curious to hear if this happens again. Perhaps, they're changing their behavior patterns." There was that same sort of hesitation as he spoke. "In any case, thank you..Sora, for your story. Stories like yours will help to enlighten all of us as to what's happening in this town." There was that pause again, and he swore he heard him whisper something under his breath.
"Yeah, no problem! I'll call in again if something else happens. Bye!"
As quick as he could, he switched it back to the radio app.
Well, it seems sightings of these figures are becoming more and more frequent as well as a mysterious entity with red eyes. Stay vigilant, stay safe, listeners. I'll be back in a moment with more.
The station soon switched to the usual music that played: mostly ambient soundtracks peppered in with a few vocal songs here and there. It never failed to put Sora at ease as he sat back against the bus seat, watching houses and street lights go by in a blur.
He was already half expecting it, but on cue, as soon as he walked into his apartment, he immediately got a call from Kairi.
"Hey, Kairi! Isn't it like super early in the morning where you are?" He often forgot she was in a totally different time zone, sometimes making the mistake of calling her in the middle of the night.
"Yeah, but who cares? I was listening to that radio station you told me about through an app. You know, the one with the guy with the nice voice that you're falling in love with." Her tone was most definitely teasing, but Sora was used to that by now.
"Kairi! I-it's not..it's just embarrassing when you say it like that," Sora whined, scratching the back of his head. "S-so, you heard me call in?"
"I did, and I definitely have some thoughts to share. You must've noticed too, especially when you said your name. He paused for a good few seconds, and his voice changed slightly."
"Did you hear him whisper something? I swear I did, but I couldn't make out what it was." Kairi usually had a better ear for those sorts of things.
"I did. It was difficult, but it sounded like he was repeating your name? I'm not exactly sure myself, but my take on this is he definitely knows you. I already had my suspicions from listening to his voice so much, so I went through my phone and found old videos of you, me, and Riku, specifically listening to Riku's voice from back then and comparing. I think you know what I'm implying here." Sora clasped a hand over his mouth with an audible gasp.
"Wait, wait, wait..are you saying..you think the radio host is Riku? I mean, I guess I can't disprove it. We don't know where he went after we all parted ways, and he's hardly active on social media." The more Sora thought about it, the more possible it could be.
"Mmhmm. Don't you remember all of us going on his 'cryptid hunts' when we were younger? We never really found anything, but it was still a lot of fun. If you saw something weird, I guess that cryptid stuff wasn't all just made up if you had an experience."
"Yeah, I guess so. It's just strange. I never would've imagined him starting his own radio station, and why hasn't he kept in touch with us? Maybe he's just been busy? Or he didn't want to weird us out?" Sora was a bit hurt by that, but there had to be a reason. Nevermind the fact that the voice he had been falling in love with might just be Riku.
"Well, you know your mission now. You gotta find him and get him to spill it. I may be far away from you guys, but I expect a successful mission." She paused for a second, seeming to be checking something. "Hey, Sora, turn on the radio. He's talking again." In the process of reaching his small radio, he managed to fall nearly face first on the floor.
You know, I often wonder a lot of things about this world. At first glance, it seems so ordinary, but just underneath the surface, there seems to be a world that's much different than our own. These various sightings and occurrences are only proof of that. How are these worlds linked to us and why? As a kid, of course, I simply thought they were cool, but as I got older, I began to go into studying them and where they came from. However, there's only so much I know. But as always, I will try to answer any questions to the best of my knowledge. I have seen things many shouldn't, but it's all for the sake of knowledge and understanding these strange beings. From that, I know twilight and dusk are when the beings appear the most. And I will leave you all with that. Stay vigilant. Stay aware. This is your host signing off for the night.
"Hmm, he ended it a bit earlier than usual," Sora noted, knowing full well he sometimes went well past midnight at times.
"This only further proves my point that it's Riku. You probably really shocked him with that phone call. I bet he's all flustered," Kairi chuckled with that familiar mischievous tone to her voice.
"Ugh, come on, this is embarrassing enough as it is."
Still, Sora couldn't really deny his own feelings that he had kept hidden down deep inside whenever it came to thinking about Riku. In the past, they had always been there for each other through thick and thin. That is, until they parted ways, and Riku went off doing whatever it was.
"Do you really think he visited this other world he keeps talking about..if that is him on the radio?"
"Who knows? You'll just have to ask him yourself, but it definitely sounds like he's seen a lot of weird stuff. I'm counting on you for a successful mission, okay?"
"Yeah, yeah, I'll do it. Tomorrow should work, right?" Getting into bed was starting to sound really good right about now.
"No! You should go right now. He's done with his radio stuff, right? That means he'll be leaving the station soon. You gotta catch him on his way out," Kairi suggested, though it sounded more like a command.
"Right now? I just got back, and I'm pretty sure that station is like in the middle of the woods, and it's..dark out." The mere thought of running into another cloaked figure sent shivers up his spine. They even say you can hear whispers between the trees.
"Come on, where's the brave Sora I know? You're an athlete. You should be just fine. Don't you want to find out if it is Riku?" Her voice took on a much more sweet tone.
"Ughhhhh, fine! But I'm gonna video call you if I get too scared."
"I'll be awake. I mean, I gotta know how this goes, so keep me posted. Talk to you soon, Sora!"
"Bye, Kairi."
Sora glanced at his bed forlornly, trying not to think about how warm and comfortable he could be right now. With a sigh, he slipped his hoodie back on along with some gloves. In the middle of October, the wind could be quite harsh. Walking outside, he drew his hood up and began making his way down the street. By now, the sky was completely dark with shimmering stars. He was thankful it was a clear night, and the full moon at least provided some light. It loomed overhead, gigantic in an orange light.
"Wow, a harvest moon!" Sora smiled to himself as he kept making his way to the forest.
Standing at the entrance, it almost felt like he was about to enter an entirely new world. Sora shivered as a lone breeze rushed past him from deep within the forest. The dry leaves rustled a discordant melody. Was this really worth it to see someone who might not even be Riku? Though if he went back now, he wouldn't hear the end of it from Kairi. With one last deep breath, Sora willed himself forward, taking the path. The station's remote location was probably why most people didn't go seeking it out especially with all the weird stuff happening. This place really was like a world of its own. Sora tread carefully, being sure to keep his eyes towards the ground to avoid stepping on sticks or rocks. The gigantic harvest moon in the distance provided just enough ambient light where at least the path was visible. As he ventured further, the forest just seemed to grow thicker and much more wild. At one point, his eyes might've have started playing tricks on him. He swore he saw shadows between the trees move like there were people darting in and out, but when he turned fully in that direction, there was nothing but the slight movement of branches from the wind.
"Um, is there anyone there? I swear if someone's playing tricks on me.." He wasn't met by anything but silence. With a gulp, he continued on.
This place..was familiar. Didn't the host mention something happening to him here? There was a clearing up ahead. The branches of the trees framed the moon in the sky perfectly. Sora squinted his eyes as he saw something in the middle of the moon: something flying. He immediately stepped back when he spotted bright red eyes glaring down at him.
"Oh no..it's that thing.." There was nothing he could do. He could already feel his body freezing up, not listening to what he wanted to do.
"Don't look at it!" It was that voice. If Sora wasn't in some amount of potential danger, he probably would've swooned. A force from behind knocked him down, pushing his face down into the ground.
"Hey, what are you-"
"I said don't look at it. It'll go away eventually." Not able to come up with a better idea, Sora lied down on the ground still, squeezing his eyes shut. In the silence, he could hear the ragged breathing of whoever was pinning him along with the thump of their heartbeat against his back. There was no stopping Sora's face from instantly heating up. He didn't attempt to move until he felt the weight of the other off of him. Now that he had the chance, he whipped his head around, eager to see who it was. His breath caught in his throat, awestruck as he saw that silvery hair and bright eyes. Just seeing him after such a long time brought tears to his eyes. Riku was visibly taken aback as the tears flowed freely down his cheeks.
"Geez, you're crying already?" he asked, following it with a nervous laugh. "Guess you haven't changed very much, huh, Sora?"
That nonchalantness changed Sora's expression to a pout, furrowing his brows. He stood up suddenly, poking a finger harshly against Riku's chest.
"Where have you been? What have you been doing besides the radio stuff? We all went to do our own things, but Kairi still kept in touch with me. It was like you vanished off the face of the Earth. You could've at least kept up with messaging me or something!" Sora continually poked at his chest for emphasis since Riku had the advantage of his height.
"That's, um, well, it's kind of a long story." He couldn't help but chuckle at Sora's attempt to stare daggers into him. "Fine, I'll explain, but let's go somewhere safer. The radio station."
"Aha! You are the host!" Sora was not about to just say that he..sort of fell in love with his voice. "And fine. Lead the way."
After that encounter, Sora stuck close to Riku, walking practically right behind him. It was more about feeling safe than anything as he clung onto the back of his jacket.
The radio station was small to say the least. It looked more like a hideout as it was nestled snugly within a cluster of trees. It was simply one room: radio equipment and booth on one side and a cozy little lounge on the other.
"I can definitely see how people don't know where this place is now," Sora said with an impressed whistle.
"Yeah, pretty much the perfect place for my ramblings where I can't be bothered."
There was no ignoring the trace of blush on Riku's cheeks. Whether it was out of embarrassment or something else, Sora had to admit it was kind of...cute. Riku couldn't do much to hide it on his pale skin.
"Alright, spill it. And it better be a good excuse." Despite being overjoyed to see his friend again, Sora remained firm.
Riku took a deep breath, slumping back in his chair. He was in deep thought as he was deciding where to even start.
"Look, it's not like I wanted to just disappear, but when I started getting more into the occult, things started following me. I guess I figured it was easier to go it alone than risk putting either of you two in any danger. So, I isolated myself and started delving more into cryptozoology and portals..stuff like that."
"Riku..you really are sounding like a paranoid conspiracy theorist."
"Hey, you saw that thing out there too. You know I'm not crazy," Riku interjected, squinting his eyes at Sora.
"Okay, okay, sorry. But, Riku, you know Kairi and I would be there for you no matter what, even if there was some danger. Isolating yourself isn't good. I..really missed you..you know." Sora bit his lip before reaching out to hold Riku's hand. "I thought maybe you had left for good and found better friends, a new life. I mean, I'd be happy for you if that was the case." At this point, Riku was equally as red in the face as Sora but managed to give his hand a squeeze.
"I was planning on coming back to you guys. I promise. You hold special places in my heart..I really mean that."
Sora smiled brightly, simply happy to see him again. As he felt the outline of his phone in his pocket, he remembered what he had promised Kairi.
"Oh! Right, Kairi wants to say hi." From the look on Riku's face, he didn't seem particularly pleased, but it wasn't like there was much he could do to stop this. It wasn't long before Kairi was on screen. The first thing Sora did was flip the camera, so it showed Riku.
"Rikuuuu! It is you! I knew it. Where have you been, you big dumb idiot?"
"Nice to see you too, Kairi. I can tell you in more detail later. All you need to know right now was that I was away for a while, but I was always planning on coming back to you guys," Riku said, combatting her pissed off look with a smirk of his own.
"Hey, did Sora not tell you yet?"
"Tell me what? That you guys missed me?" Riku perked up an eyebrow at the sneaky look on her face.
"Kairi, I swear-"
"Oh, would you look at the time. I really should be going to bed. You better tell him, Sora. Goodnight, guys!" She promptly hung up a few seconds later.
The two of them exchanged looks, an air of silence between them for more than a few seconds.
"Sooo, you have something to tell me apparently?" Riku placed a hand on his chin, studying Sora carefully.
"Um, well, you see..the thing is before now, I didn't know you were the radio host, but I really loved listening to your show. The music you play is good too. I liked the creepy subject matter and found it super interesting, but another reason I listened so much was..I really liked your voice. And it got to a point where..and don't laugh..I had a crush on your voice.." Sora shrunk back into the chair further, tensing up as he awaited whatever response was going to come from Riku. Looking back on it now, he had always sort of had a thing for Riku. From the moment they first met, they both just clicked. In his teen years, he had been too oblivious to see what it really had been.
"You were crushing..on my voice?" Riku had heard stranger things before. Was Sora actually admitting..he felt like he was about to die right there, but he continued to play it cool. "Well, I'm flattered. I didn't know my voice had such an affect on you."
"Well..maybe I'm realizing things that my younger self was too much of an idiot to see, you know?" How was he just supposed to outright say it?
"Heh, no worries, Sora. I know what you mean." Riku's face was still beet red, hardly believing this was actually happening. He cleared his throat and got back up on his feet, offering Sora a hand. "How about I get you back to your place? I'm sure you have stuff to do tomorrow."
"It's a good thing my practice tomorrow is in the afternoon. After having to walk through the woods at night, I'm not sure how easily I'm gonna be able to sleep," Sora laughed, happily accepting the helping hand. He gulped as he stared down at his hand holding Riku's. "Is it..alright if I keep holding your hand?"
"Sure, scaredy cat. I'll walk you home."
"You can stay for a bit..at my place I mean..if you want. I mean, I haven't seen you in years after all. I'm not gonna let you just drop me off and slink back off to who knows where." Sora chuckled half heartedly. Without really thinking, he pressed close to Riku as a cold breeze whipped past them.
"I'm not going anywhere. I promise."