New World

Chapter 1

The air was dense, the threat of catastrophe hanging heavy, weighing it down. Televisions and radios all blare the same broadcast. A nuclear bomb was dropped right outside of the city. The sirens ring out, filling the air space while infiltrating homes, businesses, and schools. The streets are crowded with people trying to make it to their bunkers. Everywhere was chaos, and chaos was everywhere. Cars were crashing in the street, being left where they were. People were being trampled to death as the panic that set in became their ringmaster, the leading force driving the crowds clustered in the roads. Children were crying as the shouts and screams of terror echoed alongside them. The broadcast said the fallout from the initial bomb would hit the area within minutes.

Hongjoong is running, but he tries to run faster, heading in the direction that will lead him back to his family home where their bunker awaits. He longs for home where safety is beckoning him. His older brother, BumJoong, keeps pace beside him. They were so close to being out of the city and into the countryside where the roads were less crowded. Running against the commotion was proving difficult, but he had to keep going. He knew the bunker in the city would be full by the time they made it there. They were conditioned runners, having competitively ran cross country. They could cross the distance home in time.

That morning had started out like any other spring day. Trees littered the sidewalks throughout the entire city. The cherry blossoms were in bloom and were set to start falling any day now. A few early bloomers were beginning to litter the sidewalks in soft pink petals, giving the area a whimsical, fairy tale feel. The sun was bright, casting its golden rays across the crisp blue sky that was littered with soft, puffy, white clouds. The sun gleamed against the glass windows that covered the sides of the skyscrapers lining the streets casting glares as they stood tall against the horizon. It was a picture-perfect day. The brothers were in town spending the day together. Something they rarely got to do anymore between work and school. They woke up, had breakfast, and left to go into the city, laughing and joking with each other on the drive there. The two of them lived together in a quaint, two-bedroom single story home bordering the country and the city lines. It was a familial home; having been passed down throughout the last five generations since it was built.

It had been just the two of them for two years, their parents passing away in an unfortunate car accident. They inherited the family home, eventually getting jobs on opposite shifts to keep the bills paid while continuing their education. His brother was two years older than he was, making him 23 years old. BumJoong was his best friend, his biggest supporter, and had been since they were little. BumJoong had taken the brunt of responsibilities so HongJoong could chase his passions for sports, taking on a full-time job, cutting back his own school hours, and dropping out of the cross-country team. They had no other relatives; none they were in contact with. All they had was each other.
The brothers had just exited the movie theater in search of a place to get lunch only to find madness all around them. Fear immediately gripped HongJoong's chest. The scene was terrifying, and he was scared. The day had started out bright, but the scene that had unfolded in front of them was dark.  This all felt surreal, almost as if they were walking into a grim drama, but this wasn't a tv program. This was happening in real time. It just demonstrated how quickly things could turn for the worse.

Overwhelmed and confused by the sights and sounds, the brothers grabbed their cellphones to see what was going on only to find there was no service, their cellphones' display stating usage was for emergencies only. They exchange a worried look before they head into the nearest building in search of answers. That's where they heard it. A broadcast played on the television of the noodle shop they entered. It was almost yelling at them as if in an effort to be heard over the sound of the sirens and screaming that was occurring right outside. They stood between tables, facing the television mounted in the corner of the restaurant. The same segment repeated on loop, the transmission cutting in and out. The picture flickers and the sound on the TV fades in and out as static fills the empty screen before it comes to life again. The emergency warning sound echoes in the background between words.