Noah tiptoed across the hallway, careful not to alert anyone. He furtively peeked around, making sure Aunt Sarah wasn't present. If she saw the Beridium in his arms, he would have to sit through another one of her nightmarish nagging sessions.

Just as he was about to pass by his sister's room, a heated argument between her and his aunt made him pause.

"Your stubbornness will put him in danger!" Sarah hissed. "Haven't you been following the news? The scale of attacks is just shy of all-out war, and every nation is preparing for the eventuality. I understand why you're being so protective, but now's not the right time for your pig-headedness. After what happened, the Zon won't let up. Listen to me and tell him the truth. It's the best solution."

"No," Ava stated, her calm voice in stark contrast to his aunt's tone. "It'll distress him."

There was a sudden thud of wood, and Noah was sure Sarah had banged her fist on the table.

"You should be worried about his physical safety, not emotional well-being!" she seethed. "What will it take to convince you? It's stunning how much you resemble Mila!"

Noah's heart plummeted. His happiness at getting his hands on the Beridium dissipated faster than smoke. Not in the mood to keep listening, he rushed towards his room but not before hearing Sarah's words.

"Sorry," she sighed. "I didn't mean to mention her. It's just ….. you resemble her so much, it's uncanny."

Back in his room, he dumped the metal on his bed and tried to distract himself by working on it. But his mother's name kept jumping around in his head, and he couldn't stop himself from wondering about his parents. His mind conjured the images of a man and a woman with blank features. For as long as he could remember, his parents had been absent from his life. Apart from their names, he knew nothing about them. Whenever he questioned Ava, she would freeze mid-action and say, "Don't worry about them" before remembering an urgent task and rushing off.

After a while, he gave up on getting answers and acted like he didn't care. It was doable when no one mentioned them, but hearing his mother's name made it difficult. Laying down on the bed, he wondered why Ava refused to speak about them.

Soft footfalls on the wooden floorboards interrupted his thoughts. He quickly sat up and started working on the Beridium, forgetting that he shouldn't have it with him in the first place. Shimmering violet strings of energy originated from his fingers and connected with the metal. The door opened with a soft click, but he pretended to be preoccupied and didn't react to the sound.

"You're doing it wrong," Ava's soft voice reached him. "Didn't you master that part? Why're you making a mistake?"

"I'm trying something new," he lied. He didn't want her knowing that he overheard the conversation. It would end up making the situation awkward, and it wasn't like he was going to get any answers.

A stream of blue energy wrapped around the metal and interrupted the process. "You're lucky Aunt Sarah left, or she would've blown her top. Why do you keep messing around? Beridium is not a toy. It's dangerous."

"I know," he griped. "Stop saying that. You're starting to sound like a broken radio."

"If you listen to me, I won't have to keep repeating myself now, would I? Why you're being so stubborn? All I'm asking is for you to be careful."

Noah huffed in annoyance. She never answered his questions but expected him to do as he was told. It was so unfair. "The chances of something going wrong are one in a million. I'll be all right."

"Fine! If that's how you're going to be, then make sure that piece you've got lasts a while. You won't be getting your hands on another one for a long time."

"What? No!" he shouted and faced his sister.

She was staring at him with her arms crossed and black eyes narrowed in anger.

'Uh-oh.' He messed up. When she got that look, he knew she would follow up on her threat.

"It wasn't reckless experimentation. I was applying my knowledge to see if I can create something new," he defended himself.

Instead of pacifying her, the excuse appeared to have further angered her. She looked like a raging bull getting ready to charge. He knew there was only one way to calm her and immediately fell back to his final resort.

"I'm sorry. It won't happen again. I promise."

The magic words had an immediate effect. Sure enough, the intensity of her glare dropped. "Are you going to keep your promise this time?"

"For sure!" He hoped his words were enough to convince her. His sister lectured him on the importance of keeping promises many times, and he didn't want to sit through another one.

"Remember this Noah, a person who cannot keep their promise is worth nothing." She continued glaring at him to make sure he got the message.

Noah donned his serious face, but internally scoffed at her explanation. It was another thing she kept repeating. Why did he have to follow it when no one else did? Still, it wasn't the right time to say it, so he kept quiet.

After becoming convinced of his sincerity, she relaxed and grinned. "Excited for tomorrow? You're gonna hit double digits!"

"What's so exciting about becoming 10?" he muttered. Any enthusiasm he had towards the birthday had evaporated. It only served to make his parent's absence glaringly obvious. He would rather sit in his room and do something productive.

"Hmm?" She carefully regarded him. "Not the reaction I expected. It's a good thing I showed up then. I have just the thing to cheer you. An early birthday present if you will, and possibly the worst one you'll ever receive. Do you want it?"

"Uh…" What was he supposed to say to that? If it was so bad, couldn't she choose another one? How was it supposed to cheer him up anyway?

"Got nothing to say?"

"Thank you?"

She laughed. "You'll understand why I said that when you grow up." Studying his face for a few moments, she took a deep breath. "Do you want to hear about our parents?"

"What?" It was so unexpected he couldn't immediately comprehend it. Then his face lit up like a bulb. "Really? You mean it?!"

"Yes."

"Thank you, sis!" He jumped onto her and fiercely hugged her. "Thanks a lot!"

"I can't believe I'm doing this," she muttered. "Don't thank me yet. You might regret it."

He doubted that but nodded all the same. The sudden change in her attitude really took him by surprise. No matter what she said, it was going to be the best present she ever gave him. "Do you have any pictures of them?"

She muttered something illegible before saying, "Yes. I dumped them all in a box. Let me go get them."

Before either of them could move, a balloon popping sound reached them.

"What did you get balloons for?" he asked, but Ava wasn't listening and kept staring in the direction of the noise with an ashen face. "Sis?"

The noise multiplied, like hundreds of balloons kept bursting, and then he heard a stranger's voice from the hallway. "It's a portal! Ava, take him and go! RUN!"