"Paul, are you ready to begin the mission?”

  The soft female voice asked one last time through the earpiece the young man was wearing. He looked down, admiring the distance between his feet, planted on the ship, and the lush forest far below.

  “Ready to jump, just give the word,” he replied impatiently.

  “Confirmed. Rescue mission #42 begins now.”

  Meanwhile, somewhere else…

  “Kana, don’t go too far.”

  “Don’t worry, Mom!”

  Like any other day, Kana, an ordinary girl, left home to play with her little sister, ignoring her mother’s usual warnings — What could possibly happen? she always thought when she heard them. She hurried to the door and flung it open, feeling a soft breeze brush against her legs. She ran with her sister past the last old houses of the village and into her favorite place: the forest. She knew every corner of it, every tree, even every animal.

  “Come on, Alma, don’t fall behind!” she cheered her little sister.

  “But we’re already far enough,” Alma panted, trying to catch her breath.

  “Well then, we’ll stay here,” Kana agreed, reluctantly.

  Despite her effort to appear upset, she actually thought it was a good spot too. It wasn’t too far from the village, and the trees partially blocked the sun, creating a pleasant sensation as the breeze blew through. And most importantly, she could see a group of squirrels — one of her favorite animals — in trees that weren’t too far away. Kana gently patted her sister’s head to get her attention.

  “Alma, look, over there,” she decided to share her discovery. Her sister, who had been focused on some kind of flower she’d found, lifted her gaze until she spotted the squirrels.

  CRACKKKKK

  Suddenly, a loud crash pierced the sisters’ ears, scaring the squirrels, which scattered in all directions.

  “What was that?” the younger one asked first, frightened.

  “Probably just an animal breaking a branch,” Kana replied. “Wait here, I’m going to check it out.”

  She had tried to give a plausible explanation, but she wasn’t entirely convinced. What kind of animal made a sound like that? As far as she knew, there were no bears or any other large mammals around. She quickly began to consider other explanations as she approached. Could it be old Jack, returning from hunting? Some kind of vehicle? Driven by curiosity, she passed the trees the squirrels had fled from — and soon found something interesting.

  It wasn’t a branch — it was an entire tree trunk, snapped from its rooted half. The cut was clean, perfect. As if something had split it in a single blow. She noticed there were no tracks of any kind, though the ground was dry and firm, making tracks unlikely to form anyway. Shortly after, Alma arrived at the scene.

  “I told you to wait for me,” she scolded her.

  “I was scared…”

  Kana sighed at her sister’s disobedience but didn’t make a big deal of it. She began scanning the area, trying to figure out what could have made such a cut and such a noise. She looked to her left, then her right. When she was sure there was nothing, she gave up and turned back to Alma.

  “There’s nothing here,” she said, disappointed.

  Just as they were about to leave, the ground began to rumble. Both girls turned, puzzled. Soon after, they heard heavy footsteps approaching from that direction.

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  “Do you hear that...? Kana... I’m scared…” Alma asked, clearly panicking.

  “Yeah,” Kana replied quickly. “We should—” Before she could finish the sentence, they saw what they’d been trying to avoid. A massive humanoid figure, about two meters tall, with insect-like features. Its torso was slim and widened toward the head, supported by two thick legs protected by what seemed to be an exoskeleton — the same as its arms, from which extended razor-sharp claws. Its head was elongated, the effect made more dramatic by its hunched posture.

  In that moment, Kana could feel every tiny sensation in her body. Her legs trembled, sweat trickled down her back under her sweatshirt, and her heart was racing wildly. Thinking about how her sister must be feeling broke her paralysis — “RUUUUN!” she screamed, grabbing Alma’s hand. The monster reacted instantly, chasing them through the forest.

  At first, they managed to keep some distance. It wasn’t extremely fast, but it was faster than them — especially faster than Alma, whose short legs couldn’t keep up with Kana’s awkward sprint. Still, Kana’s familiarity with the forest helped her navigate quickly around trees and obstacles, guiding her sister along by the hand. But she soon realized Alma wouldn’t be able to keep up much longer — she had to make a decision in seconds.

  “Keep going! Don’t look back!” Kana shouted. She let go of Alma’s hand and slowed slightly, drawing the monster’s attention. Once she confirmed it was following her, she picked up speed again. She grabbed onto a tree trunk and used it to pivot sharply, leading the danger away from her sister and becoming the monster’s new target. Relieved that Alma was safe, she continued running, weaving between trees. She ran and ran, but there was no end in sight. The beast remained fixated on her, as if reaching her was its only purpose.

  Kana felt her strength fading. At one point, she turned her head to check the distance between her and the pursuer — and tragically tripped over a branch sticking out between two trees, crashing to the ground. She tried to get up, but a sharp pain in her ankle made it impossible. She dragged herself toward a tree, using it to try and stand. She had a little more success — only to fall again, landing hard and hitting her back against the trunk.

  When she looked up, the monster was just a few meters away, walking slowly, savoring the moment it had caught its prey. Kana swallowed hard, lowered her head, and let her shoulders slump in resignation. The creature approached over a few seconds that felt like an eternity. When it was close enough, it raised its right arm and extended its claws.

  In a final act of defiance, Kana grabbed a rock and threw it at the monster’s head with all the strength she had left. As expected, it bounced off harmlessly — the creature didn’t even flinch. Kana swallowed again, bracing for execution.

  She was about to close her eyes and give up when—

  Suddenly, she felt intense heat on her cheeks. She looked up, and as if by miracle, saw the monster — the one that had been about to end her life — sliced in half at the waist. Its upper body and head flew through the air and then crashed to the ground, shaking the earth. At the cut site, a blazing, reddish fire left a glowing trail, leading directly to the source.

  It was a young man, just entering adulthood, about her age. In his right hand, he held an enormous weapon resting against the ground — like a sword, but absurdly long and wide. Wreathed in flames, it vanished a moment later, to Kana’s astonished gaze.

  “Are you okay?” the mysterious boy asked once he noticed Kana’s presence.

  “Yeah, thanks… I think I just twisted my ankle,” she replied gratefully. The boy, satisfied she was okay, looked away.

  “Sorry… what was that thing?” Kana asked.

  The boy seemed distracted, fiddling with some kind of device in his ear, apparently without success. He half-heard the question and replied absentmindedly.

  “A creature of the Corruption, what else would it be?” he said incredulously.

  Kana couldn’t believe what she had just lived through. She’d been chased by an abominable monster she’d never seen before, saved by someone who, from any perspective, was superhuman — and now he was talking about something she’d never even heard of, as if it were totally normal. Am I dreaming? she wondered. She wanted to believe that, but pinching herself didn’t work.

  “Hey, do you know how to get to Goodwinds? Supposed to be a village around here, but I can’t see anything. I’m looking for someone there,” the boy suddenly asked, catching Kana off guard with a name that sounded extremely familiar. Goodwinds was the name of her village.

  “O-o-of course, I live there,” she stammered. “Who are you looking for? Maybe I know them.”

  “Mmmm, not sure yet…” the boy scratched his chin, trying in vain to remember. “But I think I’ll know when I see her. I’m a rescue professional, you know?”

  Kana put her hand to her face in exasperation — He might be strong, but he’s a complete idiot, she thought. After a moment of consideration, she came back to her senses.

  “Alright, then come with me. It’s not far,” she offered. “But hey, what do you mean by rescue? Are you a firefighter or something?” she joked.

  “Oh, I didn’t introduce myself. I’m Paul. I’m part of the Anti-Corruption Rescue Team 01. We rescue people endangered by the Corruption, obviously.”

  Kana let out a loud sigh of frustration.

  “But what the hell is the Corruption?”