Episode 1

Year 2147.

High above the clouds floated the city Astra Nova.

From the ground, it looked like a shining paradise.

Clean towers.

Flying transport lines.

Artificial sunlight.

But below the city…

Far beneath its perfect streets…

Was a place forgotten by the future.

The Rust District.

Broken pipes dripped water from the ceiling.

Old machines rattled endlessly.

Electric wires hung like spiderwebs across narrow streets.

This was where the people lived who the future didn’t need anymore.

And among them…

Was a boy named Kai.

⸻

Kai sat on top of a broken metal container, staring up through a hole in the ceiling.

Through the crack, he could see the floating city far above.

“Must be nice up there…” he muttered.

A little kid nearby asked him:

“Hey Kai… do you think I’ll become a pilot?”

Kai smiled slightly.

“Maybe.”

“But the Future Scan will tell you.”

Every citizen in Astra Nova had to take The Future Scan when they turned sixteen.

The scan revealed everything:

• Your future job

• Your lifespan

• Your destiny

It was powered by the most powerful machine on Earth.

The Chrono Core.

A machine capable of seeing every possible future.

⸻

Today was Kai’s turn.

A loudspeaker echoed across the Rust District.

“Citizen KAI-117.”

“Report to Scan Station 9 immediately.”

Kai sighed.

“Well… guess it’s time to see my glorious destiny.”

The little kid laughed.

“Maybe you’ll become a hero!”

Kai jumped down from the container.

“Or maybe a garbage collector.”

⸻

Scan Station 9 looked nothing like the rich city scanners.

This one was old.

Rusty.

Barely functioning.

A tired technician sat inside.

“Name?”

“Kai.”

“Age?”

“Sixteen.”

The technician pressed a button.

The scan chamber opened.

“Step inside.”

Kai walked in casually.

The door sealed shut.

Machines began to hum.

Lights flickered.

A robotic voice spoke.

“Beginning future analysis.”

⸻

Inside the control room, monitors started filling with data.

The system analyzed billions of possibilities.

Normally, results appeared within seconds.

But this time…

Something strange happened.

The screen froze.

The technician frowned.

“Huh?”

The machine beeped again.

Then a warning flashed.

SYSTEM ERROR

“What the…”

The technician started typing.

The machine attempted the scan again.

But instead of showing Kai’s future…

The screen printed a single message.

⸻

FUTURE NOT FOUND

⸻

The technician stared in shock.

“That’s… impossible.”

He immediately contacted central headquarters.

Up in the floating city, inside a massive control room, dozens of scientists watched the system alerts.

One scientist shouted:

“We have a scan anomaly!”

The director of the Chrono Core program turned slowly.

“What kind of anomaly?”

The scientist swallowed.

“The system cannot detect the subject’s future.”

The room went silent.

“That has never happened before…”

The director whispered.

“What is the subject’s name?”

The scientist checked the file.

“Kai… from the Rust District.”

The director’s eyes narrowed.

“Bring him in.”

⸻

Back in the scanner chamber, the door opened.

Kai stepped out.

“So… what’s my destiny?”

The technician looked nervous.

“Uh… we need to run more tests.”

Kai raised an eyebrow.

“What? Am I going to become the president or something?”

The technician didn’t laugh.

Instead, soldiers suddenly burst into the building.

Kai blinked.

“Okay… that’s new.”

The commander pointed at him.

“Citizen Kai.”

“You are coming with us.”

Kai stepped back.

“For what?”

No one answered.

The soldiers moved closer.

Something about the situation felt wrong.

Very wrong.

⸻

Suddenly the lights went out.

Everything went dark.

Then—

CRASH.

A window exploded.

Smoke filled the room.

Someone grabbed Kai’s hand.

“Run!”

Kai was pulled through the smoke by a girl wearing a dark hood.

They ran down the hallway.

Alarms blared everywhere.

Kai shouted while running:

“HEY! Who are you?!”

The girl didn’t slow down.

“Someone who knows what happens if you get caught.”

They burst outside into the night streets.

Soldiers were already chasing them.

“How do you know where to go?!” Kai yelled.

The girl turned left into a narrow alley.

“Because I’ve done this before.”

Kai stopped.

“What?”

She finally turned to face him.

Her eyes were strange.

Almost sad.

“My name is Mira.”

“And in my timeline…”

She looked directly at him.

“You destroy the future.”

Kai blinked.

“Yeah… I think you grabbed the wrong guy.”

Mira shook her head.

“No.”

“You destroy the Chrono Core.”

“And when you do…”

“The entire world changes.”

Kai laughed.

“Okay, that’s insane.”

Mira stepped closer.

“But before you succeed…”

Her voice became quiet.

“You die.”

Kai’s smile faded.

At that moment soldiers surrounded the alley.

Weapons raised.

“Don’t move!”

Mira sighed.

“See?”

Kai whispered:

“…See what?”

She looked at him seriously.

“This is exactly how it happened last time.”

Then she grabbed his hand again.

“Let’s try not to repeat it.”

And suddenly—

A massive explosion shook the street.

⸻

END OF EPISODE 1

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