Prologue - Project: Fade

[January 12, 2053]

The cackling thunder broke the silence of the night.

A young man shrouded in a large hoodie struggled to catch his breath through his mask. Rain showered over him relentlessly, a sharp chill scattering from head to toe.

With a soft grunt, he stared at the person in his arms—unresponsive and lifeless.

The cold rain embraced him, trickling down his face and onto his maroon hair. The droplets, however, met with disturbing shades of red, curdling his stomach. “Please... Please be okay.”

- -

There he was, my partner in crime. Except, I believe what we strived for was anything but wrong.

We hardly made it out safe, and in all honesty, we were unsure if "safe" was the right word. I may have lost a part of myself in that clash.

Beyond his will, I injected my most valuable trump card. And the next thing I knew, I was in an unfamiliar place. Dark, cold, and empty

Empty of everything but our screams.

I struggled to let go of his grip, reality pulling me down until I was drowning in disbelief.

It didn’t take long until I found myself behind a glass dome. Trapped. My erratic bangs to the glass made no difference.

The man on the other side simply stared at me. My life flashed before me as steam from the bottom made its way to my face. Everything felt so soon, so sudden. But most of all, I dreaded the thought that I was going to lose her.

That damn smile. Somehow, some way, it always made me a different person.

As my consciousness withered, I swore one last thing. Though, whether it meant anything at this point was a question I couldn’t answer.

“I’m going to.. save you..."

"I promise, Nera.”