The next evening, while Noah was finishing his analysis of several notes on Nodes, his phone vibrated.

Bzzz.

[Angel: Come on, crawl out of your cave. Come have a beer with us.]

Noah raised an eyebrow.

[Noah: Us ?]

The answer came almost immediately.

[Angel: Yeah. Aurel will be there too. Meet us at the Black Lion.]

A faint smile appeared on Noah’s face.

[Noah: Ok. I’ll be there.]

Angel and Aurel.

His two oldest friends.

They had met in high school.

After graduation, their paths had diverged. Angel had pursued a career in professional football. Aurel and Noah had entered Cambridge.

But while Noah had buried himself in biology and biochemistry, Aurel had chosen physics. Both of them had graduated with honors.

Despite the years and their chaotic schedules, they still met from time to time.

Enough to preserve something rare. A real friendship.

The sun was disappearing behind the London buildings when Noah arrived in front of the Black Lion.

The pub belonged to that category of establishments that seemed to have existed forever. Dark brick walls, an aging sign, warm light filtering through the windows, a piece of old London refusing to die.

The moment he crossed the door, the smell of beer, old wood, and grilled food wrapped around him.

Then a mass charged straight at him.

"Bro !"

Crack.

Noah’s ribs immediately protested.

"Finally out of your cave !"

Angel finally let him go.

Noah inhaled deeply.

"Are you trying to kill me ?"

"I was just checking you were still alive."

Angel burst out laughing, faithful to himself.

Tall. Athletic. Lean muscle forged by years of competition. A blue t-shirt. Jogging pants. A hoodie tied around his waist. He always looked capable of running a marathon on a whim or starting a fight in the same interval.

"You need this."

Angel pointed at the counter.

"A good beer."

"I doubt that heals anything."

"It doesn’t heal the soul."

Angel slung an arm around his shoulders.

"But it helps you breathe before diving back in."

Noah could not hold back a faint smile.

"You really think one pint is enough ?"

"Let’s start with that pint."

Angel winked at him.

"We’ll see where destiny takes us after that."

At their table, Aurel looked up from his phone.

Unlike Angel, he had a discreet silhouette. Blond and slim. Always impeccably dressed. An indigo shirt. Rectangular glasses. The kind of man one imagined more easily in front of a board full of equations than on a sports field.

"You really should take time to breathe."

Aurel put away his phone.

"Obsession is a very bad advisor in science."

Noah burst out laughing.

"You’re telling me that ?"

Aurel frowned.

"Yes."

"Aside from me, you’re probably the researcher who spends the most time locked inside a laboratory."

"Slander."

"Scientific truth."

"I am perfectly balanced."

Angel burst out laughing.

"Did you really just say that with a straight face ?"

"Absolutely."

"I’m scared of what you consider balanced."

The three men took their seats around an oak table.

For a few minutes, Noah let himself be carried by the normality of the moment. The conversations. The laughter. The noise of the pub. It felt strange, as if he were rediscovering something he had forgotten.

Then Aurel took a sip of beer.

"By the way."

Noah immediately felt that sentence did not announce anything good.

"Grace sends her condolences."

Noah’s smile vanished instantly.

"I see."

His voice had gone cold.

"What nerve."

Aurel sighed.

"I know."

"And I find you even more shameless for passing along the message."

"Believe me."

Aurel raised his hands.

"I’m not doing this for fun."

"She tried to contact you herself."

"I blocked her."

"I know."

Silence fell for a few seconds.

Grace.

The subject remained sensitive. Very sensitive.

After what she had done, Noah had cut off all contact for good.

Angel immediately sensed the tension.

"Alright."

He raised his beer.

"Let’s avoid topics that piss people off."

Excellent idea.

The conversation quickly drifted toward lighter subjects.

"So, Angel."

Aurel crossed his arms.

"When are you going back to football ?"

Something changed in their friend’s eyes. Subtly. But Noah noticed.

"I don’t think I’m going back."

The silence was immediate.

"Seriously ?"

Angel nodded.

"Yeah."

"I’m thinking about another path."

This time, even Noah looked up.

"What path ?"

Angel finished his beer, then smiled.

"We’re not here to talk about me."

He pointed at Noah.

"We’re here to get you drunk."

"How noble."

"I know."

"A true national hero."

"Exactly."

And once again, laughter broke around the table.

"You’re not alone, you know."

Aurel’s voice had become calmer.

More serious.

He adjusted his glasses slightly.

"Even if we don’t see each other often, I’m always here if you need anything."

Noah lowered his eyes toward his beer.

The foam had almost entirely dissolved.

"I know."

His voice was lower.

"Seriously. Thanks."

Angel returned from the counter with another round.

"And me too, bro."

He set the glasses down in front of them.

"We’re here."

Noah raised an eyebrow.

"Since when did you become sentimental ?"

Angel looked offended.

"Since certain depressed scientists refuse to leave their homes."

"I knew there was a hidden reason."

"What a heartless man."

The trio burst out laughing. A real laugh honest and simple.

For a few moments, the weight of the last few weeks seemed to move away.

When they finally left the Black Lion, night had completely wrapped London.

The air was cool, the streets still shining from the day’s rain. Streetlamps cast golden halos across the wet asphalt.

The three friends walked side by side without any real destination, simply enjoying the moment. Angel was telling a particularly ridiculous story involving a coach and a parrot. Aurel was laughing. Noah too.

Then Angel stopped abruptly. His smile vanished. His gaze fixed on a dark alley they had just passed.

"Guys."

His voice had changed.

"Do you hear that ?"

Noah frowned.

"Hear what ?"

Angel remained silent for a few seconds. As if he were trying to catch something. Then he shook his head.

"Nothing."

He started walking again.

"Probably my imagination."

Aurel snorted.

"Maybe you had too much beer."

"Impossible."

"I remind you that after our graduation party, you drank so much beer we nicknamed you the Bottomless Sink."

Noah burst out laughing. Angel rolled his eyes.

"You two nerds are getting way too confident."

"Facts are facts."

"Let me remind you that during all of high school, I was the one defending you from bullies."

"That is a very romanticized version of history."

"No, that is the exact version."

Angel opened his mouth to answer, then stopped. His gaze returned to the alley. This time, his expression hardened completely. Like a predator that had just caught a familiar scent.

"Hm."

Without warning, he suddenly turned around.

"Go on without me."

Then he started running at full speed.

"Angel ?"

Aurel froze.

"What the hell is wrong with him ?"

No answer. The athlete was already far away. Noah watched him disappear around the corner.

Then frowned.

'Something is wrong.'

"Did you see his face ?"

Aurel nodded.

"Yeah."

"We follow him."

The two men started running. A few seconds later.

A scream tore through the night.

"Kyaaaah !"

A female scream filled with terror. Noah immediately felt his stomach twist.

Aurel went pale.

"You heard that ?"

"Yes."

Noah accelerated.

"Quick."

The two men finally emerged into the alley. Then stopped, shocked. Angel stood in the middle of the street. An unconscious young woman in his arms. His forearm was bleeding heavily and facing him...

A creature.

Noah felt his brain refuse what it was seeing.

'Impossible.'

The rat was nearly one meter long, maybe more. Its black fur looked as thick as armor. Its claws scratched the concrete. Its yellowish teeth were as long as knives. Two red eyes stared at Angel with disturbing intelligence.

Then Noah noticed something else. Behind the creature, the ground. Or rather, what was tearing the ground open.

A rift.

An opening vibrating with bluish light. The space around it seemed to ripple. As if reality itself were struggling to remain stable.

His heart skipped a beat.

'A Hole.'

Aurel took a step back.

"What the hell is that ?!"

Noah answered without taking his eyes off the creature.

"A rat."

"Thank you, Noah."

"A very big rat."

"Thank you very much, Noah."

"Probably a mutant from a Hole."

Silence fell. Then Aurel swallowed.

"I preferred the first answer."

The rat growled.

"Griiiih."

Then it leapt straight at Angel. The creature’s speed was absurd.

Yet Angel moved without hesitation, without thinking. He pivoted and dodged. The claw passed a few centimeters from his face. Then he retreated, still holding the young woman in his arms.

'Wait.'

Noah blinked.

'He’s fast.'

Very fast, even for a professional athlete.

The rat attacked again. Angel dodged again. Then kicked.

Boom.

The creature was pushed back several meters.

"Griiih !"

It howled in pain.

Noah felt his gaze lock onto his friend.

'Since when does Angel hit that hard ?'

A thought began to emerge. A hypothesis but he did not have time to explore it. The rat had turned its head. Toward them. Toward Noah and Aurel. And suddenly, the two scientists understood that they represented much easier prey.

"Shit."

The monster growled, then charged straight at them.

"Griiiih !"

Angel went pale.

"What the hell are you doing here ?!"

He immediately launched himself after it.

"Run !"

Aurel looked at the rat. Then Noah. Then the rat. Then Noah.

"Uh..."

His voice trembled.

"I think we’re screwed."

"Remarkable analysis."

Noah spun around.

"RUN !"

The two men broke into a sprint. Behind them, the rat’s claws struck the asphalt. Closer and closer. Faster and faster.

"Griiiih !"

And judging by the sound... The creature was gaining ground. A claw flashed into Noah’s field of vision.

Too close, far too close.