Before Border

Neighboring Nations

"Yes, Yuichi, there is another world out there, a planet we call Meedem. People living there, for the most part, do not know of Trion." Jin's mother spoke to him. He wore the face of the bewildered.

"Wow, mom, will we ever visit? How about for my birthday?" Jin was excited. He loved to explore, and couldn't stand being confined to just his planet nation, Kyokou.

"Honey, that's what your father and I were planning to do for your eighth birthday!" She smiled, and Jin clapped his hands. He would begin to count the days until April 9th, his birthday.

"Thank you mommy!" His 7 year-old voice cooed.

"You're welcome, anything for the next leader of Kyokou! Thank your father too, when he gets home." She said, and Jin nodded excitedly. He ran to his Father's desk, pulling out a piece of paper and some markers.

Jin began to draw Meedem as he imagined, humming his favorite song as he drew. His mother smiled to herself, proud of her young boy. He would grow up to be the greatest leader Kyokou had seen, better than her husband. Or at least she thought he would.

April 2nd

"Papa!" Jin exclaimed upon hearing the front door open. He flew down the marble stairs of their extravagant house, jumping up into the arms of his expecting father.

"Ahh! Yuichi, what a sight for sore eyes!" His father set him down, along with his briefcase. Jin's mother smiled until her husband opened his arms. The hugged, and she gave him a brief kiss on the cheek.

"How was work?" She asked as Jin ran off to get more of his drawings of Meedem to show his father.

"Tiring as always, but I'll be fine. The extra Trion we'll get from Meedem will save the crumbling edges, since Korusuma has began to weaken. Perhaps we can even find a new God." He said, and her face lit up at the idea.

"A new God? Do Meedem's monkeys really have that much Trion?" Jin's mother asked, surprised.

"It's just like us, they're humanoids, so it varies. But, some research teams have revealed that there may be some who have far superior Trion levels than even the Gods of Aftokrator." Jin's father spoke. His wife smiled.

"The outer towns and cattle will survive then?" She asked, and he nodded. Before he could explain more, Jin ran to his father's side.

"Look dad, it's me and you and mom meeting the people from Meedem!" He said, and his father knelt down to him.

"Wow buddy, I love your drawing, but we won't meet people from Meedem. We're just going there for vacation." He lied. And Jin frowned.

"Why don't we meet the people?" Jin asked, and his father sighed. His mother looked at his father with a concerned look.

"Because the people aren't like us, they're mean, and they attack you. But don't worry, Trion soldiers are coming with us to protect us from them." His father spun a tale.

"Oh. Ok." Jin said, happy as a clam again. He ran off to do who knows what, leaving his mother and father to talk more about the plans to kidnap the people from Meedem, using them as Trion slaves.

April 6th

"Yuichi, please start packing, we're only staying in Meedem for a day, but you need to bring some snacks for the ride there. Also, go get some good jackets from your closet, we don't know what the weather will be like this time of year. Meedem has seasons." Jin's mother told him as he finished up washing his cereal bowl.

"Okay mommy!" Jin jumped off the little stool in front of the kitchen sink, and pretended to be a spacecraft running to his bedroom.

Jin's mother smiled at her young child, laughing internally at his 5 year-old tendencies. Jin was always one to act much younger than he was, but in school he took his studies seriously. He was at the top of his class.

Seasons... Jin thought as he picked out his favorite warm blue jacket. Kyokou didn't have seasons, but the errant nation he had visited when he turned four did. Each season lasted for a week or two, and Jin had gotten to experience a season called Winter, where white frozen water fell from the sky. But it wasn't like the ice you got out of the freezer on a hot day, it was soft to stand on. It crunched under your feet, and it was called snow.

Jin hoped that it would be winter on Meedem, and that snow would greet them when they arrived. He smiled at the memories of having a 'snowball fight' with his mom and dad, and having dreams about it weeks after. Jin didn't like the constant Summer of Kyokou. He always wished to feel the brushing of snowflakes on his cheeks, stinging them to a red color.

After grabbing several layers to go under the blue jacket, Jin walked back to the kitchen, but his mom wasn't there anymore. He checked the living room to find her sitting on the couch, knitting a scarf.

"Who is that for?" Jin asked, setting his clothes in the suitcase his mom had laid on the floor for him.

"It's for daddy, his other scarf got a hole in it from moths, since I knitted it with wool yarn." She explained, and Jin nodded.

"Ohhh. Can I help?" Jin asked, and his mother nodded, smiling.

"Hide the tail like you did when I made you the blanket on your bed." She handed him the end of the growing scarf, along with a yarn needle.

"Okay!" Jin jumped onto the couch next to her, and began to weave the tail of yarn sticking out into the complex pattern of the scarf.

April 9th

Jin opened his eyes to the sound of a party popper, the familiar voices of his parents joining it.

"Happy birthday Yuichi!" The yelled, smiling.

"Yay! We get to go to Meedem today!" Jin jumped out of bed, hugging his awaiting parents.

"Yes, Yuichi, get ready! Don't forget to bring your trigger." His dad said, and Jin frowned.

"Daddy, why do I need a trigger?" Jin was rather unskilled in the area of self defense, since he always tried to avoid the class. He didn't want to hurt anyone.

"Because Meedem can be dangerous, it's just a precaution." His mom reassured, and Jin nodded, still feeling uneasy. His parents left his room after wishing him a happy birthday again, and he got dressed in a white t shirt and black jeans, since he didn't have to worry about layers until he got Meedem.

He took his Scorpion trigger out of the top drawer of his dresser, clutching it tightly in his hand. He was scared to use it in fear of harming his parents, and didn't like the idea of killing. But he had to obey. His parents knew what was best.

The trigger found a home it his pocket, and soon Jin was eating break fast with his parents, enjoying the eggs his mother had made.

"Are you excited to see Meedem?" Jin's father asked as they ate. Jin nodded excitedly, the frowned.

"What's wrong, Yuichi?" His mom knitted her eyebrows.

"Why are the people mean? Can't we be friends with them? I'm sure they're just scared because maybe they don't know about the planet nations, but Meedem people are people too." Jin said, and his parents frowned, looking at each other. Jin's father set down his fork, and wiped his mouth. He took a deep breath, and leaned back in his chair.

"Son, a long time ago, the people of Meedem invaded Kyokou, finding a way to break the Gate seal. My great-great-great grandfather got murdered by Meedem's army general. They don't like neighbors. They are prejudice against us." Jin's father lied, his eyes looking around, anywhere but Jin.

"But daddy, why are we going there, if not to attack them?" Jin knew something was wrong. His father always shifted his eyes when he lied.

"Meedem is very beautiful, plus, there are natural Trion deposites." The lies stretched further. This was the first time Jin's side effect worked well. He had tried time and time again to see the future, but had never done it. But now he could. Now he was sure that his parents weren't the amazing people he thought they were. No matter what path was taken, one thing remained the same.

Meedem was doomed. And Jin was the only one who could save it.