The Storm Begins

Prologue

What if the world ended? What would it be like to be one of the last people on earth? These are the questions I often wondered as a kid. Never did I imagine that I would experience what most people have considered “the end of the world.”

My name is Nova Isari. I was only 14 when the war started. At the time, it seemed so far away that I didn't worry about it hitting home, but I soon found out I was wrong. Bombings started getting closer and closer, and I was 16 when the world was destroyed. Two years ago, I would have said that I live in a small apartment with my mom and younger brother, and I’m a senior at Loyola High School, my best friend being a guy named Jay Callen, whom I’ve known pretty much my whole life, but, things are different now. Nowadays, I live on the streets with Jay and his sister Zadie, struggling to survive in the ruins of what was once Los Angeles, California. We weren’t the only ones in our area who survived; much to our dismay, a guy named Arian Nokomis, nicknamed Blade, his brother Evan, and his best friend Jax Colefield also survived. Together they roam the city to find other survivors, executing those who won’t join their gang. We were some of the few people to survive the bombings of 3036, and are now some of the last people on earth. What would it be like if the world ended? I’ll tell you exactly what it would be like.

***

I will never forget the day the first bombs hit Los Angeles. I remember it in perfect detail like it was yesterday, even though it’s been two years now.

I was at school. It started off as a normal day...

 “Nova Isari?”

 “Here.” I tuned out the rest of attendance and checked my smart watch for any messages. I’d gotten one from Mom and three from Jay.

Jay: Nova, come to my house today. There’s something I want to show you
Mom: What are you doing after school? I’m working late again.
Jay: Bring ice cream and some soda
Jay: Make sure Dono doesn’t follow you

I turned my back to the teacher and muttered into my watch. “Cleo, tell Mom I’m going to Jay's after school.”

 “Alright. Telling Mom that you are going to Jay’s after school,” my watch said, loud enough that the whole class heard it.

 “Nova, how many times must I tell you to not use your watch in class? It’s taken away. You can get it back at the end of the day. Next time, I’ll be calling your mom,” my teacher, Mr. Soru, said as he came to stand by my desk. I took off my watch and handed it to him. I slumped in my desk and looked out the window as he walked back to the front of the classroom.

Like most days, I didn’t hear most of his lecture as I stared off into space, thinking about summer and my friends and anything but the lesson. I remember drifting off into sleep. How long I was asleep I don’t know, but I was woken up suddenly by screaming and a shaking floor. I remember thinking it was an earthquake at first. I soon found out how wrong I was. Looking out the window, I saw the building next to us engulfed in flames. That’s when I realized that the bombings had hit home.