Chapter 1: A Promise Made
Aadi sat in the hallway, legs curled under him, small hands clutching the corner of the couch as he peeked into the living room. His mother was crying. His father was yelling again.
"I'm done!" his father shouted, slamming his fist on the table. "I don't want this family. I'm better off alone!"
"But we have children!" his mother pleaded, one hand over her swollen belly. "You can't just walk away."
His father turned to the door without another word. He didn't even look back. The door slammed behind him. Silence followed, broken only by the soft, muffled sobs of Aadi's mother.
That night, Aadi sat beside her. He was only six years old, but something inside him had changed.
His mother placed a gentle hand on his head. "Aadi, listen to me," she whispered, her voice trembling. "Soon, you'll have a brother or sister. I don't know who they'll be… but promise me something."
Aadi nodded.
"Protect them. No matter what happens. Protect this family. Can you promise me that?"
Aadi looked into her tired eyes, swallowed the lump in his throat, and whispered, "I promise."
Time passed. The day of delivery came. Aadi waited outside the hospital room, his heart pounding with fear and hope. Then, the doctor came out, smiling.
"It's twins!" he said.
Twins. A boy and a girl. Aadi's mother named them King and Queen—she believed they would rule their destiny, rise above the pain their family had suffered. But when she looked at Aadi, she whispered, "And you, Aadi… you are the one who will protect them, even if the world must be destroyed for it."
Years passed. Aadi was now in the 7th grade. He was quiet, always alone, but no one dared mess with him. Early in middle school, a boy tried to bully him—mocking his worn-out shoes and silent demeanor. Aadi didn't say a word. He just punched him so hard the kid never dared speak to him again.
Since then, everyone kept their distance. Rumors spread. Some said Aadi was cursed. Others said he was crazy. But no one knew the truth: Aadi didn't care what they thought. His only concern was King and Queen.
They were now in the 5th standard, attending the same school. Wherever they went, Aadi followed. Anyone who so much as looked at them wrong found themselves on the receiving end of Aadi's quiet fury.
But things changed during the final exam week.
On the last day of exams, strange cracks appeared across the schoolyard—shimmering tears in the air, like someone had ripped open the sky. Students screamed. Teachers ran. But Aadi stood still. He had seen things like this in the books he read late at night—science, engineering, survival guides, and even old texts about time-space theories. He had prepared for anything. Not for fame. Not for pride. For them.
As chaos spread, Aadi turned to look for King and Queen. But they were gone.
He ran.
In the shattered remains of the hallway, he found Queen dangling near a glowing crack in the floor, King holding her wrist, struggling to pull her up. Without a second thought, Aadi rushed in, grabbed them both, and yanked them to safety. But as the floor gave way beneath them, they were pulled into the crack together.
Darkness swallowed them.
When Aadi opened his eyes, everything was silent.
A faint breeze swept through the cracked red sands around him. His body ached. His clothes were torn. Queen and King lay beside him, unconscious. Before he could move, a shadow fell over him.
A man stood there, not quite human. His skin glowed faintly like gold under the sun. His eyes were sharp, bright as fire. Behind him were massive wings, folded at his back, and his arms were covered in markings like runes.
"You're awake," the man said.
Aadi sat up slowly. "Where… where are we?"
The man tilted his head. "You've landed in the Deadlands of the Desert. But you're not from this world, are you?"
Aadi shook his head. "No. We're from Earth. We came through a… crack in the air."
The man nodded. "A space-time portal. Rare, but not unheard of."
"Who are you?" Aadi asked.
"I am the leader of the Star Eagle Clan," the man said. "This is not a human world. The beings here… we only resemble humans because of a form of adaptive magic. In truth, we are something much older."
He stepped forward, revealing lion-like limbs, thick and powerful, a mane down his back, and claws at the end of his fingers.
Aadi's mind raced. "What is this place really? What kind of world is this?"
The clan leader's face grew serious. "This world is dying. Food and water are scarce. Our only hope lies in the Central Island—a land filled with resources and power. But it is guarded. Only the strongest can reach it."
He paused, then added, "Every thousand years, a grand tournament is held. The winner earns control over the Space-Time Control Stone—a power that can open any portal… even back to your world."
Aadi's eyes narrowed. "Then I'll win it."
The clan leader looked surprised. "You? A human boy?"
"I don't care what I look like. I made a promise. I'll do whatever it takes."
The leader studied him, then nodded slowly. "You have seven days. We will train you. But understand—here, one day equals 300,000 years in your world's time. Every moment counts."
Aadi looked at his siblings, still unconscious beside him.
"I'm ready," he said.
The journey of Deadland had begun.