An inexplicable sound ruptured the ears of many on the day of what would soon be known as the Rapture.
Fires erupted across small kingdoms and villages, plaguing the world into a situation where they would need to rely on each other to survive. Thousands were killed by strange creatures and unnatural humanoid beings that invaded the privacy of their homes.
To survive in a world where division was the status quo, where people were unchanging and those who made movements were censored, it was clear something needed to be done.
**In another world**
A young boy, two months past the age of 18, had assembled a criteria on his work method. Lately, he had been slacking during his classes, and he often excused that behavior as tiredness from the needed energy to apply for colleges and scholarships. He knew though, better than anyone, that he had been wasting his time in idle, and was woefully unprepared to venture out into the world. He'd been unable to exert himself in his classes, he'd looked at many colleges but couldn't seem to bring himself to apply, and he'd stopped attending his clubs and extracurriculars. All of which could be seen as a sign of a failure.
The youth's name was Josh Grayson, and he was, without a doubt, one of the most sorry creatures to grace the planet Earth.
Josh had three close friends, Audrey Grace, Ash Brias, and Arthur Logan. Arthur was a delinquent. No, he was more than that. Josh considered him to be the type to end up in jail for murder in the future. He had brown hair and green eyes, and Josh regarded him as a kid in need of help. He had skipped college and was doing rather poorly at his job. Josh appreciated the effort he put in however, as despite how he acted, he was rather determined to make that his way of life. He despised the school system and had wanted to get straight to work to begin a life where he could be independent and free, but he was rather uncultured, and given the opportunity, Josh would think he'd be a villain.
Audrey Grace, she was a beautiful blonde girl with sapphire blue gems for her eyes. She was the type to help the disabled and volunteer at an orphanage even when she needed to focus on her studies and apply herself for the upcoming university she would be attending. She was treasured by many in the volunteering community, and she knew most of the worse off people by name. She was quite the extroverted person, and Josh often envied her outgoing personality. She was smart and adapted to any environment very quickly, with straight As in all of her classes.
Then you had Ash Brias. Ash was someone who Josh considered to be his best friend, and he felt that the feeling was reciprocated. Ash had black hair, fitting for his dreary name, and brown eyes. Ash was honestly the most down-to-earth person Josh had ever met, and he expected great things from the youth in the future. He was morally right in Josh's eyes and stood up for the things he believed in. He wasn't one to have his spirit broken easily, if breaking it was even possible, and he was a funny and kind guy.
Josh sighed, and set his pen down. *Looks like I'm going nowhere with this once again.* He surveyed his room, and the desk he was at, noticing his empty glass of water. Josh room consisted of wooden walls, a queen-sized bed with plush animals that he had never had the heart to throw away, a couple bookshelves, a dresser that held his money and clothes, and his desk that held his school supplies. He had another room connected to it that contained a futon, a TV where he regularly gamed, and a mini-fridge.
Josh observed his plush animals and resolved himself to donate them when he (hopefully) made his way to college. *Just leaving them would be a waste if I never plan to use them. I believe that if I can make someone else happy without it being a burden to me, then there's really no reason for me not to, right? Hmm... I should probably fill up my glass, shouldn't I?*
Josh picked up his glass of water and headed for the stairs. He lived in the basement of his parent's house, and he didn't like how it sounded aloud. His mind pondered as he walked up the stairs. He'd been blessed to live in a middle class home his whole life. His parents were employed and worked hard to keep him and his siblings comfortable and spoiled, though he often felt like he took that for granted and behaved in an ill-manner towards them despite his good intentions.
He was single, and he felt a little lonely at times, but he knew it was probably for the better. Being in relationships almost felt like shackling himself for other people, it's not that he didn't exactly like being in relationships, in fact, it's quite the opposite. He just felt that that sort of thing was draining and required too much energy and attention. He didn't know why though, considering he didn't do much anyway. But he'd managed to score at least three good friends at the very least.
Josh filled up the glass and looked outside his kitchen window. It was dusk out and looked like it was sprinkling just a bit. *If I'm not going to do anything else, I may as well go on a walk to maybe clear my head.* He drank three sips of the cup and set it down gently. His parents and siblings were out getting ice cream, and he had made them promise to bring him one back. He had been allowed to stay as long as he was focused on his schoolwork.
He opened his front door and felt the cool air hit him. It was chilly enough that he wanted a jacket, but he didn't feel like going downstairs again, so he headed out.
The rain hit his head and he shivered as it began to wet his hair and soak his clothes. He didn't understand why some people hated the rain. Josh could see the argument when you didn't want your clothes to get wet, but other than that he immediately dismissed any counter argument he heard.
Josh decided to head towards the lake that he lived nearby, named the Roselle County lake. It was normally used for walkers and bikers, and had a circular sidewalk situation going on, surrounding it. The side walks were on the hills that surrounded it, so people would be able to overlook the lake. Josh got on the pavement and began to make his laps. One lap usually took 40 minutes to complete, though, so it'd be likely he'd walk for ten minutes and then return home to appear to have been studying. *Maybe I should've worn my jacket then, because now I'm all wet.*
He lamented his laziness, and casually began to walk home. On his way there, he tripped and stumbled onto the pavement, cutting his chin and leaving him with a nasty bruise. Warm blood oozes down his twisting face, and the smell of iron was soon replaced by the smell of dirt as his face was forcibly pressed into it. He gasped as he realized he was rolling down the hill.
As he gasped, he rolled down the hill overlooking the lake and plopped in. It wasn't a pretty sight, *Though neither am I*, and he flailed around in the lake, unable to tell which way was up and which way was down. Bubbles floated up from his mouth, and he reminded himself not to waste air just in case this really was a dire situation. *I REFUSE to die here*, came his determined thoughts.
Eventually his hand found cool air and he crawled out, coughing and cursing at himself for tripping. *Now it's entirely impossible for me to go home without dripping everywhe—* "Gah!!!" Josh raised a shrill cry and curled into a ball, clutching at his head. His head has suddenly begun pounding, and he whimpered in pain as it grew worse and worse.
*AGH!!! It feels like someone's hammering a nail into my skull!!!* This was the best way he could describe it. Josh didn't think a little tumble and a mini swim trip was capable of causing an ache this bad.
Josh rolled around in the mud, until he felt something peculiar happen. The squishy mess shifted, and the ground grew warm and hard. Underneath him was warm dirt. His headache also cleared up, and his blurry vision took a minute to clear up.
When it did, he took a look at his surrounded and tensed. There were flaming buildings around him, but their structure was one that was unfamiliar to him. He got up and realized he was no longer dripping wet when he ran his hand through his hair. He had no idea where he was, but he had three strands of thoughts thoughts race through his mind.
One, *I need to find the screaming, but not get too close. Just in case it's dangerous. But if someone's burning and I can save them, then I should.*
Two, *I need to figure out where I am and head home. Somehow I'm in a completely different area, did I pass out and get moved somehow?*
And three, *I need to stay safe*