Mason walked through a hallway full of students in black and white uniforms. It was something he hated doing. All eyes turned to him and a few chuckled at him as he approached the cafeteria. The air in the atmosphere felt awry and stuffy, like the normal mixed with a tinge of unusual. At the door of the cafeteria, a boy taller than him stepped in front of him, followed by two others.“Where do you think you're going?” The boy bellowed.Mason looked up at the figure in front of him.It was Oliver O'Hara, the most famous, and brilliant student in school. He brushed his red hair and smirked at Mason, while the other two laughed.Mason hated him because he had stolen Alice from his hands with his money and fame. Alice was also dull for letting such a dummy take her hands.Mason exhaled and tried to evade him to continue to the cafeteria, but he was pushed. He crashed to the floor of the cafeteria, in front of everyone.The whole crowd of students in the cafeteria and the hallway burs

The memory struck a sad chord in Mason's heart. He remembered that day, ten years ago, when the first Anomaly Storm struck. He was only eight years old. The evening had suddenly turned dark. He heard screams outside, but his mother held him back from going to the window. She and his father rushed him to his room. His father handed over his silver necklace to him and hugged him. “Stay here and don't make any noise, Mason. Do you hear me?” his mother said before she rushed out again and locked the door. The next thing he heard was the wall of their house crashing, followed by his mother's scream, and then a loud roar. He peeped through a slit by the door frame. He gasped as he watched his father trying to defend his mother from three vicious human-like creatures, while a shadowed manly figure with a hood stood around the corner watching. His father fought strong, but couldn't protect his mother from an attack from the man in hood. He strained to see who it must've been, but a

“System, what's a portal pass?” Mason asked as he cornered into a bustling street. It looked like the catastrophe that struck the city had subsided or like monsters were not on the run — businesses were open, stores and malls were stocked with customers and cars zoomed on both lanes of most of the streets of Griffin City. “A special card that grants free passage to any person going through the portals without restrictions or consequences. Every portal traveller must have a copy of the pass, either virtual or a hard copy, when they intend to officially go through a portal,” the system replied with its automated voice which he was getting accustomed to. “You never said anything about this.” “You never asked,” the system's reply came in a neutral tone. “How do I get one?” “Portal passes are gotten from the Protectors' Guild, an authorized association that was established to protect the city from the effect of the Anomaly Storm since its first occurrence a decade ago. They onl

Mr. Raymond paced from one part of their tight kitchen to the other. He stopped, and stared at Simon through the open doorway that led to the sitting room. Simon was seated on his wheelchair, gazing out of the window. He had taken to the comfort of the window side, a place that mirrored what he yearned to have once more. Yet, the scenery outside was far from what he could imagine – several purplish circles emerging out of thin air and hovering over a wreckage of buildings and structures, with mysterious creatures creeping out of them like they had just walked into the interior of their abode. The image of Mason trying to save him from one of those hit his mind and a tear dropped. “Look at him, darling,” Mr. Raymond gestured to Simon in his spot. Lucia turned to stare and clasped her lips together. “We can’t stay here any longer, it’s not safe. Two days ago they tore down his room and the backdoor, who knows where they attack next. I don’t want any more losses, we have to move out.”

Ryan and his group of protectors battled fiercely with the huge monster that accompanied Mason out of the S portal. They tried to hold their grounds and never gave the monster any breathing space. Ryan's arm was now engulfed with a blue laser beam shaped like blade. He swooshed past the monster in the air, slashing through its thick skin like it was made of leather. Two other protectors released consecutive shots of green and red beams from their palms. It dealt so much damage on the monster. It had sores all over its body and thick black fluid trickled down from some of the cuts. Meanwhile, Mason had rushed to the car. The floating monsters scattered, but reassembled two minutes later. When Mason looked up, there were two times their initial number. He reached for the door and pulled but it was jammed. He saw Simon tapping on the windshield of the car with so much panic in his eyes. He watched him for a while and glanced back at the monsters. “Not this time. I won't let a