"You are the chosen one to protect the safety of this world. Your life is to guard this safety. Your birth is to protect the safety of this world. And I... I will always be by your side and will always be beside you. This is a story about a child born to protect the world.
A woman with long hair is sitting on the floor of a white room, where there are no humans or anything else, only books floating in that room, and the woman is reading a book while talking, no one knows who she's talking to.
◇◇◇
At the Aldridge Family Home,
That afternoon, Nova Aldridge, who was 12 years old, was lying relaxed on his bed. He had just returned from school and was still wearing his school pants. In his hands, a book was open wide, his black eyes reading the book with a flat expression.
Nova was indeed the type of child who preferred solitude. His messy black hair covered part of his face, making him look like a young hikikomori. His room was on the second floor, to the left of the staircase.
The Aldridge family home had two floors with a fairly simple design. The second floor consisted of three bedrooms neatly arranged to the left of the staircase, while on the right there was a family bathroom. The ground floor was a common area with a living room, kitchen, and their parents' bedroom, plus one additional bathroom.
While he was relaxing and reading, suddenly, his bedroom door opened with a loud sound.
"Big brother! Come out, let's go to the park!"
The shrill voice of a little girl broke the silence of Nova's room. Hina Aldridge, his younger sister who was 11 years old, stood at the doorway with a bright face. Her long black hair with dark blue eyes, similar to their mother.
"Haa, Hina!" Nova closed his book with slight annoyance. "I've told you many times, knock on the door first before entering!"
"What's wrong with that?" Hina walked in while shrugging indifferently. "We're siblings, there's nothing wrong with me entering my own brother's room like this, right?"
Nova shook his head, already used to his sister's nature who never wanted to listen. "You... Haa, never mind. So what's up?"
"I already told you!" Hina raised her voice with an annoyed tone. "Let's go out and play at the park! Are you deaf or what?"
"Don't get angry like that, humans will always ask again even though they've heard clearly"
"Big brother, you're so weird"
"Shut up! So why do I have to come?" Nova got up from his bed, looking at his sister with a lazy expression. "There's Noah, and there's also your friend Ena. Why do I have to come?"
"MOOOM! BIG BROTHER DOESN'T WANT TO PLAY WITH HIS SISTER!" Hina suddenly screamed loudly.
"HEY! What are you doing?!" Nova immediately panicked and covered his sister's mouth with his hand. He knew exactly what would happen if their mother heard Hina's scream.
"What's wrong, big brother?" Hina removed Nova's hand while grinning mischievously. "Scared that your allowance will be cut because you don't want to play with me?"
"Don't be a naughty child, okay!" Nova pulled both of his sister's cheeks. Nova sighed deeply and released both of his sister's cheeks. What Hina said was indeed true. Their mother, Hanah Aldridge, had a strict rule that Nova must always take care of and play with his siblings when they wanted to go out. If he refused, his allowance would be cut drastically.
"Don't you feel sorry for your brother? Your brother just came home from school..."
"No," Hina answered with a flat face.
Nova scratched his messy hair. "Alright, let's go. But I don't want to play with you guys or listen to your friend's chatter."
Nova knew exactly who was waiting outside. Besides Hina, there was Noah Aldridge, his younger brother who was also 11 years old. Although Noah and Hina were both 11 years old, Noah was born one minute earlier, so technically he was Hina's older brother. Then there was Ena Sakura, the neighbor's child who had been close friends with both of his siblings.
Nova took a black hoodie from the hanger and put it on. After placing the book he was reading back in its place, he left the room with Hina.
"Mom, we're going out!" Hina shouted as they went down to the ground floor.
"Yes, be careful playing and don't play too long!" Hanah replied from the kitchen.
When Nova opened the front door, he saw Noah and Ena already waiting on the house terrace. Noah, with neat short black hair and wearing a white kimono. Meanwhile Ena, a girl with black hair and blue eyes, looked toward Nova as Nova came out of his house.
"Wahhh, I didn't expect you would come too, Nova?" Ena asked.
"I think you already know that I'm forced to come," Nova answered with a flat face. "Don't pretend you don't know."
"Haha, caught?" Ena laughed softly. "Actually, I don't want to play with you either, but since Hina wants to force you to come, what can we do?"
"Haha, don't worry," Nova pulled his hoodie deeper. "I won't play with you. I'll just stay quiet and watch my siblings."
"Hey, how long are we going to wait here?" Noah finally spoke up with a slightly annoyed tone. "Come on, let's move, go to the park!"
"Yes, you're right," Ena replied. "Let's go!"
The four of them started walking toward the city park. The distance wasn't too far from home, only about 3-4 minutes walking through a quiet residential street. The park was a favorite place for children in their neighborhood, with various fairly complete play facilities.
◇◇◇
At the City Park,
"Hey, don't you guys feel something strange?" Ena asked when they arrived at the park.
Nova looked around the entire park area. Usually this place was crowded with children playing, parents supervising, or at least there were some people jogging in the evening. But today...
"Yes, you're right," Nova nodded while observing the surroundings. "Why is this park so empty?"
The park that was usually lively now looked like a dead city. What they saw was only swings, a big tree in the middle of the park, a wooden hut for children to play, and a soccer field that was usually filled with children but now empty.
"Big brother," Hina pulled Nova's black hoodie with a worried face. "I feel uneasy. I think it's better if we just go home."
Not only Hina felt something strange. They all felt the same thing.
"Alright," Nova nodded while hugging his sister. "I think it's better if we just go home. I feel un—"
Suddenly, Nova was shocked by what happened around them.
Thick grayish smoke began to appear from all directions. The smoke wasn't like ordinary cigarette smoke, but thicker and had a strange smell—like a mixture of burnt metal and something rotten.
"What... what is this?" Nova covered his nose and mouth with his hoodie sleeve. "This isn't ordinary smoke!"
The smoke got thicker and began to envelop the entire park area. Their visibility decreased drastically, even to see each other was already difficult.
"Hey, can you guys still hear me?" Nova shouted while trying to find his siblings. "If you can hear me, let's quickly get out of this smoke!"
No answer was heard.
Nova began to feel dizzy and nauseous. His legs felt weak, and his vision began to blur. He tried to hold on, but his body seemed unwilling to obey his wishes.
"What... what kind of smoke is this really?" he mumbled with an increasingly weak voice. "There's something strange about this smoke..."
Before he could understand what was happening, Nova felt his body sway and lose consciousness. He fell on the park grass, while the mysterious smoke continued to envelop the entire area.
The last thing he remembered was the sound of footsteps approaching."