1 A Message from the Universe

"Ethan White White! Come back here right now!" An angry voice yelled in the street.

It was what was usually heard by the neighbors every day.

Ethan White, the only son of the prestigious White family, always heard his parents complaining about his academy qualifications.

Later on, he began to disregard his parent's concerns, being aware that his parents' worry was only related to him inheriting the company.

His common arguments with his parents caused him to be famous in the neighborhood. He would usually be careful not to go overboard, but this time, he could not help it.

His only friend disappeared a week ago. Ethan White spent the entire week looking for him around the city, asking around to see if someone had seen him. He even made a few dangerous trips into the suburbs.

Today, Ethan White was getting ready to go back to look around for his friend when his mother got a call from the police, notifying them to do not leave the city. Oscar was found dead in a warehouse, and it was a warehouse owned by their company.

After getting the notice, Ethan White lost all the strength on his legs, falling to the floor. Getting the help from his mother to get up, he ran away from his house. His goal was warehouse number 21. The warehouse used by his parent's company to stock refined metals.

He did not know how his friend's dead body appeared there, but he needed to see it by himself, otherwise he would believe that this was only a nightmare.

After arriving in the warehouse's vicinity, what he saw frozen his head.

A high number of people in black uniforms, the police's uniform, were going into and out of the warehouse. They had cordoned off the entire area around the building to avoid civilians meddling in.

However, when a group of people entirely clothed in white presented themselves in front of one of the police's officers, they would be given entry.

'The scientific police… this is not a nightmare… Oscar really is dead.' Ethan White's mind broke. Now he knew this was real.

With tears falling from his face, Ethan White forced his body to move, dragging his heavy and sluggish feet toward the outskirts of the city, where a glimmering lake sat undisturbed.

It is a place he usually frequented when he was a child. It had crystalline water, and few people came close. The lake was also the place where he met his friend for the first time.

Lying down alongside the shore, Ethan White began to contemplate how much his life changed in this last week. He lost his best friend. His corpse appeared in one of the warehouses owned by his family... Ethan White could not help but suspect that something was wrong with his life.

With tears in his eyes, Ethan White spent the whole night there.

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A loud rumble echoed in the whole cosmos.

Minor earthquakes resonated around Earth, accompanied by high winds. Electric storms were appearing from nowhere all around the globe. Tornadoes were being seen in the skies while many maelstroms were changing the ocean's appearance.

Another deafening rumble reverberated in the entire galaxy.

The stars vibrated. Many tiny asteroids turned into dust.

A mysterious ancient voice echoed in the head of every living being in the Milky Way. An absolute presence descended.

"Universal Language condition reached."

"Galaxy C3Z2A1 has fulfilled the requirements for an upgrade."

"Removing the seal on the stars."

"Localizing the primitive civilizations."

"Upgrading the level of their major planets."

Chaos unfurled in all civilizations in the galaxy. On Earth, the people were yelling at the top of their lungs, trying to stop the loud voice from destroying their insides.

After a few moments, only one more sentence was heard:

"Welcome to the Stellar Age, Galaxy C3Z2A1."

The galaxy turned quiet at this instant.

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"We do not know what this strange phenomenon is yet, but one thing is for sure. We are the focus of an alien civilization!"

"At this moment, the leaders of every country are having an urgent gathering in the UN. The meeting is scheduled to finish in a few hours."

"A huge number of people are going out to the streets, claiming that the government is hiding information from them. There are reported incidents involving the looting of private business."

"The number of hospitalized people increased after the strange incident during this night, with a high number of suicides shocking the region."

"In the last hour, there have been many coups in some parts of Africa and Asia."

"Thomas, turn off the TV." said a young woman. A distinctive, authoritative tone filled his feminine voice.

The owner of the voice, Sarah, was a woman in her twenties, with marked abdominal and powerful muscles on her legs.

"Sure, but focus on your running. Are you sure that your performance was lower? I do not understand how a person can run 800 meters at full speed and still have the energy to complain about the TV." said Thomas, a smug smirk on his face.

"Thomas, I already told you that I do not know what happened. You know that I only run to deal with my anxiety. After today's shock, I decided to run to clear my mind. Everything was normal. I do not understand how I can run this much now."

"Maybe... you got possessed by ghosts." Thomas said while laughing. His peals of laughter were heard in the entire gymnasium.

"You seriously have to stop watching that TV show about ghosts. It is affecting your IQ." said Sarah scornfully before going back to running.

"Sure, sure. I have to make a call. Stay here while I am out." replied Thomas like he did not even hear what she just said about his beloved 'Your wife could be a ghost' TV show.

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A knock was heard on the exceptionally expensive wooden door of the house. A couple of seconds later, the door opened, showing the worried expression of a middle-aged woman.

"I am so glad you are here! My little one, I am sorry for what happened to Oscar." Loren White welcomed him, hugging him.

The hug took him by surprise, standing still until his mother, Loren White, stopped hugging him.

"My little boy, I know you are going through a difficult time, but I was called just a few minutes ago to go to the police's station. Please, do not run away again. I will be back in an hour~"

After his mother left, Ethan White suddenly found himself alone in the house. Well, the White's House always got their fair amount of maids, but he was taught since little by his mother to not talk to them like friends.

Sometimes, though, he would ask the chef to teach him how to cook, finding enjoyment in cooking for himself. One would even say he has some talent for cuisine. This was one of his favored activities, since he usually found himself alone in the house.

His parents were the controlling shareholders of one of the most important companies in the country. The company was in charge of extracting and refining rare metals, which get sold to up-tech companies.

Ethan White did not want to inherit the company. Since childhood, he has been aware of some methods his parents used to get the rights over a mine or how they forced companies to close a deal.

Ethan White decided at an early age not to dirty his hands with innocent blood, being this the reason for his usual conflict with his parents.

Deciding to divert his mind's thoughts away from his dead friend, Ethan White checked his phone for the last news and became instantly shocked!

All people in the world heard a voice in their mind? Countries collapsing? The leaders of the world are discussing how to proceed? What is happening? Ethan White spent the entire night sleeping alongside the lake, and he never got awake, nor did he hear any strange voice in his mind!

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"I, the President of the United States, alongside the Presidents of Russia and China, hereby announce an alliance between the West and the East. The name of this alliance will be called Earth Alliance. Our goal is to unite the world against future threats and to face together the changes in our world. Equally important, our experts are analyzing, researching and discussing the changes. We have made some discoveries, which will be announced after we make comprehensible results."

"This is the end of the press conference. Thank you."

After walking down from the stand, a man in his thirties greeted him. He was wearing a blue jacket suit with a red necktie, a formal attire that matched his social status.

"Mr. President, you made an excellent speech." The man congratulated him.

"Save the formalities. Do we have any report about what the big families are doing?"

The United States's President felt uneasy, drops of sweat covering his face. First the climate suddenly changed and after, a horrific deep voice talked to them by telepathy. How was a president supposed to proceed in a situation like this one?

"Sir, we have detected a large number of movements on their assets. They seem to be planning something. We are also getting pressure from them to delay the announcement." The man showed his iPad's Screen to the President.

The President of the United States could see as every minute a new email was received, urging them to delay the announcement while offering some deals. This was an email direction only shared with the influential and powerful families.

It meant that all the mighty families in the world were trying to meddle in the Earth Alliance's affairs.

"Make some calls. We will delay the announcement if they promise to support the alliance. After one year, we will announce the changes to the world before we lose credibility."

"After one year? Will people not find out on their own the changes in their bodies, sir?" The formal clothed man asked, surprised to hear the President's answer.

"There will probably be rumors about it, but without an official announcement, people will be too afraid to try it out. The one year is not solely to halt the pressure from the big families, but we also need to prepare ourselves. I can feel a storm is coming. The changes to our bodies are only the beginning."