Boom!
Explosions erupted from all directions. Red flames devoured the buildings, cars, and trees around them with ruthless ferocity.
But that wasn't the most horrifying sight. It was the streets, littered with lifeless bodies. Some had their heads severed, others were missing arms, and there were more gruesome injuries besides.
The asphalt was slick with fresh, flowing blood.
Bang!
Thunder cracked across the sky, followed by a downpour. The already tense atmosphere grew even heavier.
Roar!
Amid the chaos, a dragon-shaped monster let out a deafening roar. Its towering body—about four meters high—and its widespread wings declared it the source of the destruction.
"Sniff… sniff… Mom… Dad… Why… why is this happening?"
Behind an overturned car, a five-year-old boy sobbed, trembling at the scene before him.
Both his parents were gone. He was completely alone.
"Dad… Mom… wake up! I don't want to be alone! Please… don't leave me! Please…" His tears streamed freely as despair gripped him.
But no matter how loudly he called, the two figures lying about two meters away showed no sign of waking.
He tried to stand, only to find his legs completely unresponsive.
"Move! I want to see my father and mother! Come on!" He growled, struggling in vain.
His legs remained useless, as if they had forgotten how to function. Gritting his teeth, he was forced to drag himself forward with his hands.
When he finally reached them, he clutched them tightly, sobbing uncontrollably.
"This can't be real! You can't be dead! Argh… Dad… Mom… don't leave me!"
Boom!
Thunder ripped through the dark sky, immediately followed by the monster's soul-shaking roar.
...
"Hah…!"
Arthur's eyes snapped open, and he sat up quickly, panting.
"Was that… just a dream?" He muttered softly, squinting as he tried to steady himself.
Cold sweat soaked his pajamas, and his heart pounded violently.
Weary, he lifted his gaze, taking in the quiet hospital room.
To the right, near the windows, stood a wardrobe. A nightstand rested beside the bed, and a two-seater sofa with a table in front of it occupied the center.
Two windows near the wardrobe let in pale moonlight, while on the left side of the room, a dispenser sat atop a table.
The room wasn't luxurious, but it was neat and complete.
Being nighttime, it was dim, illuminated only by the moonlight streaming through the windows.
"Hah… How awful. How many times have I had nightmares like that?" he said with a wry smile, shaking his head.
The incident fifteen years ago was a trauma he never wanted to recall. That moment had marked the start of his extraordinary suffering.
If he could erase that memory, he would do it without hesitation.
Sighing softly, he leaned back against the headboard and reached for the black remote on the nightstand.
Click!
The dim lights flickered on, slowly illuminating the room. Arthur glanced at the clock—it was already two in the morning.
Normally, he would try to sleep again, but tonight, for some reason, sleep wouldn't come.
Perhaps it was the nightmare that made him afraid to close his eyes again.
He picked up another remote and turned on the television in front of him.
Instantly, the screen filled with news about today's events.
["Good evening, viewers. Today, a third-level disaster monster appeared in the middle of the city. Many victims have fallen. Reports confirm twenty deaths: ten women, five men, and five children."]
The images shifted to show the city in chaos.
Flames consumed buildings, while corpses littered the streets, creating a horrifying scene.
A two-and-a-half-meter-tall, bee-shaped monster tore into one of the bodies with ravenous hunger.
Arthur's eyes narrowed, burning with murderous intent.
"Another victim… How long will this continue? How long must we endure this chaos?" He clenched his fists tightly.
A hundred years ago—in 2050—this peaceful world was suddenly struck by a catastrophic disaster.
A gate, hundreds of meters high, appeared in New York City. At first, people thought it was an invasion by strange creatures, then called "Aliens."
But the truth was far worse: the gate was a portal to another world. Once it opened, waves of terrifying monsters poured into the city.
Millions of lives were lost in just a few hours. Even more terrifying, the disaster wasn't limited to New York—it spread to other cities across America and around the world.
Many superpowers at the time—Japan, China, South Korea, and Russia—suffered devastating blows from the monsters that poured through the gates.
Humanity's supposedly advanced technology proved useless against them. Those countries eventually fell, and humanity teetered on the brink of extinction.
Amid this extraordinary crisis, people with superpowers emerged. They were called "Eclipses."
With their help, waves of monsters were pushed back, and the gates were destroyed.
But the disaster didn't end there. Portals to other worlds continued to appear, and monsters—both weak and powerful—kept claiming countless innocent lives.
Thankfully, with the Eclipses' help, humanity still had a chance to survive.
"Eclipse…" Arthur bowed his head, biting his lower lip. "If only I had had powers back then… If only I had been the chosen one… None of this would have happened, right?"
He stared at his paralyzed legs and gave a bitter smile. At first, he had thought they were only temporarily immobile.
But the truth was harsh—his paralysis was permanent. In a world like this, being paralyzed was as good as being dead.
He had long since lost the will to live, yet he couldn't be selfish. He had a younger sister—the only family left to him.
If he disappeared, what would happen to her?
Just as despair threatened to swallow him, footsteps sounded outside, and the bedroom door creaked open.
"Brother? Are you awake again?"