Ness, a planet identified as suitable for humans. As problems and population increased on Earth, most of us were transported there. But here's the catch: once you go there, there is no turning back. It is rumored that Ness contains creatures of such intelligence that it was impossible for us to survive, therefore people were recruited to tame and control a certain species of these creatures, named the winged ones, for protection. Not all were successful. Some even lost their lives, but there were people who succeeded and these victorious ones were called the Winged Riders.

My name is Terra Faith and I am a sixteen year old who lives on Earth. But now my life was going to change. I have been selected to be transported to Ness while leaving my family behind. I just received a letter from the organization today and will be leaving for Ness tomorrow, permanently.

No one knows much about Ness. Some say it is heaven compared to Earth while others say it was the most dangerous place they had ever heard about. Communication attempts from Ness rarely got through to Earth but it is easy for people to send a message there. Maybe it was due to the lack of technology there. Despite the uncertainty the government thought that the plan of setting up a settlement there was worth the risk. Anyways, it was just a matter of time before I would find out the truth.

"Are all your clothes packed? Do you have the emergency kit with you? What about your identity card? It is in there, right?"

I closed my eyes for a while and sighed as my Mom began lecturing me for the umpteenth time.

I couldn't blame her. Her actions were justifiable since she would not be seeing me for the rest of her life after this. I looked on quietly as Mom continued to talk almost endlessly until tears started forming in her eyes.

I grimaced. Not again, especially not today. I did not want to go through the whole process of grieving again. Upon receiving that letter this morning, I had already shed lots of tears with my best friends and family until no more could be forced out and I had no intention of doing that again.

What had happened could not be changed. I had to deal with it no mater how wrong I felt.

"Sweetheart, I'm sorry. I am really, really sorry. I could not do anything to keep you here. Please take good care of yourself for me and don't do anything dangerous. Please." Mom said with the pain sharply evident in her eyes.

Not trusting my voice, I simply nodded in response and looked down to avoid her intense gaze.

I won't cry.

As Mom gently touched my cheek with her warm hand as if it was so fragile, the doorbell rang. Mom rushed to the door while I quietly followed behind her, still lost in thoughts.

"Hey sis! I got you the solar charger."

It was my elder brother, Shane. Upon approaching the door, another figure behind him became visible. I gasped as I recognized whom it belonged to. My childhood sweetheart, Nathan.

What was he doing here? He was not suppose to anything about this! I had even forced myself to initiate the breakup. I wanted him to be free of me. To forget me. To move on with his life. Now, it would be difficult for him. As he walked in, I did everything in my power to avoid his insane gaze.

"I will put it in your backpack," Shane continued, "and one more thing, I didn't tell him anything." He gestured towards the somewhat furious boy who now stood beside him.

Yes, his eyes did show anger but it was also tinted with another emotion unexplored before. I quietly swore as Nathan grabbed my hand firmly and dragged me out of the house.

"Nathan! Wait, where are you taking me? I haven't finished packing my bag." I retorted while trying to pull free from his grip. He did not respond. Instead, he continued to drag me towards the only park that was left in the city.

That park was the only salvation for us human beings here. That park was where I had accidentally disclosed my love for him. That park was where we had shared our first kiss. Upon reaching the unusual greenery, he stopped abruptly, causing me to bump into him.

"Why? Why didn't you tell me?" He whispered with his back still facing me.

"How did you end up thinking that it was not important to inform me about this? Did you expect me to find out about this later and take it lightly. Did you even care about the guilt I would overcome with?" I flinched at the pain in his voice.

"I...I'm sorry. I was afraid. I-I am afraid." I said while I forced back my tears. Nathan slowly turned to face me, revealing the tears which shined brightly in the rays of the sunset.

I closed that inch of gap which was between us and wrapped my arms around him tightly as if promising never to let go. I felt him shiver slightly while he rested his head on my shoulder and let his tears flow freely.

I couldn't control myself and soon joined him. To be never allowed to touch him again, hug him again, let alone kiss him, it was the hardest thing to ever imagine. We had been together since childhood. Being there for each other had become a part of our lives and now, without him, it would feel so empty.

As we stood there in each other's embrace, I let everything out. Why was I even chosen? I had the perfect life here. Mom, who loved me so much and supported the family even when father had abandoned us. Shane who teased me and made my life even brighter everyday. My best friends, classmates and Nathan, my love.

Without them, my life would be hell.

Why can't they just chose someone who already hates this world so much? I bet there are millions of people trying to escape this deathtrap as they called it. To them this is not the place to live in.

The sight of greenery here is rare. There were no flowers which magnified beauty like the descriptions in fairytales would usually involve. There were no birds which sang the tunes of life. You would rarely catch one even alive, flying in the open sky tarnished with streaks of grey smog.

Still, I loved this place. It meant more than home to me. It was where warmth of belonging, love and family could be felt, something I could not survive without.

By the time we reached home darkness had taken its place. Nathan decided to camp over at my house tonight to be by my side. Tomorrow. Tomorrow was the day I was supposed to be transferred over to Ness. After a quick dinner and last minute packing, Mom had insisted that I should sleep early to catch my last sunrise on Earth. No one knew whether there was any sun rising on the other side.

I opened my eyes after a short sleep. Daybreak. I ran out of the house and towards the park as soon as I woke up, not caring about my appearance. I was just in time to watch the sun rise. To watch it cast out all the darkness. My last sunrise. As I watched the sun slowly appear to take its place, a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around my waist.

"Good morning, Nathan."

"Morning." Nathan whispered lazily into my ears, sending shivers down my spine. We stayed there for a few minutes, watching the grey sky change colour. Each moment was special to me.

"Come on, we have to get you to the head quarters." Nathan spoke softly, breaking the silence. I nodded slowly in agreement. Nathan gently grabbed my hand and pulled me against himself as we started to walk back home.

After I had a quick shower, I wrapped a towel around me and walked out to my bedroom to find a suit laid on my bed. It was not an ordinary suit. Those being transported to Ness were told to buy a few of these as it was the norm in Ness. Our bodies would take time to adapt to the environment so we would be wearing these for a while.

The suit my mother had bought for me yesterday was green in colour, the colour which once filled the lands on Earth. It was a tight fit for me. Mom had told me that there were not many left in the stores, so the sizes available were limited. That was expected since a whole group of people were going to be transported over today. I walked towards the living room where Mom, Shane and Nathan were waiting. I sighed as I felt my eyes become misty.

"Come on Terra, lets go." I heard Shane speak up while taking my backpack outside towards the Trans. The Trans was just a superior vehicle which was made to replace most cars as it ran on biofuel. To me, it was just another pathetic attempt made my the governments to revive this planet.

Without a word, Nathan interlocked his hands with mine and led me towards the Trans and Mom followed behind us. Silence dominated the whole drive. It wasn't long before we finally arrived at the largest building in the city area. As I got out of the Trans, I gaped at the sight of the huge crowd. Families gathered around their own vehicles bidding their loved ones farewell. People surrounded the entrances waving goodbyes to those who entered the building. Somehow, this atmosphere had calmed me down. I was not alone.

After Mom got out of the Trans, she kissed me on the cheek and handed me that cursed letter and some papers. I faked a smile and hugged her for a few minutes after I brushed off the tears on her cheeks. Then I turned to face Shane whose face an unusual sorrow.

"You better be good to Mom."

Without any warning, Shane pulled me into a hug. I forced a laugh and patted his back as I felt his wet cheeks brush against mine. After a few seconds passed, I walked towards Nathan who held my backpack.

"I'll walk you there."

I nodded and followed Nathan through the crowded. As I did, I turned around to see Mom and Shane's figures fading in the background. I stood still for a while as I stifled a desire to run back towards them. I waved in their direction before running towards Nathan to catch up with him. Amidst the crowd of families and goodbyes, I felt terribly nauseous. As if my life was coming to an end and there was nothing I could do except hold back my tears and see this unexpected change through.

Upon reaching the section where the armed soldiers separated the entrance from the crowd, Nathan placed my backpack on the ground and pulled me against himself. He cupped my face in his hands and put his lips on mine. It was the sweetest, undemanding kiss ever. It was the last. Once he felt tears rolling down my cheeks, he pulled back. His misty eyes were filled with sorrow and pain as were mine. Without any words, he picked up the backpack and helped me get it on.

"Go. I won't ever forget you. I will always love you." Nathan finally said as he moved my bangs to the side and kissed my forehead.

Without glancing back I walked towards the nearest guard and showed him the papers in my hand. He looked through them then allowed me to go in. As I neared the entrance I sighed and looked back at the crowd. Nathan was nowhere to be seen. I followed the rest of the people into the building as I rubbed my wet cheeks dry.

The building from the inside was totally different from what I had expected it to look like. Unlike its tarnished exterior, the floors and even the walls inside were of pure polished white. No sight of dust or smoke. It was crystal clear in here.

I looked around for a while at the different people who were selected for this process. There was a variety of age groups but most of them were in their teens. I joined a queue which led to the next stage of the process according to the instructions I had received from the guards. As I waited in the queue, my hands fumbled with the identification card that I had taken out from my backpack. Time passed quickly. My turn came closer and I felt a surge of anxiety. A sudden pat on my shoulder brought me out of my trance. I turned to face a girl who looked a bit older than me. Her hair was raven black and her skin was tanned. Her face showed some unusual enthusiasm.

"Don't let the nervousness get to you. It will be alright." Her voice seemed to fill me with hope somehow.

"Thanks."

"My name is Ria. And you are..." She continued the conversation.

"Terra. Terra Faith."

"Well, Terra, don't be too anxious. In a while, this will be all over and we will be starting a new life."

"How can you be so excited about this? Won't you miss being here?" I asked softly and looked down feeling guilty that I might have hurt her.

"Yes, I will miss Earth. I will miss my family but that does not mean I should curse my fate. We were carefully chosen by the governments to go over to Ness. To help our kind to survive. Why do you think they would force most youths to go over to Ness? Earth may not have a future anymore, Terra. When they send us over, they are sending their only hope to ensure the survival of our kind." She remarked with a hint of anger in her voice. Upon noticing my guilt, she sighed.

"Terra, I know it is difficult for us to go through such a change but we will get through this somehow." Ria stated as she placed a hand on my shoulder. Soon, it was my turn to get my identification checked. I handed over my card and papers to the lady at the counter. After checking my papers she handed me a box and a new card. I walked towards the other side of the hall and waited there while I curiously looked at the box and the card in my hand. Ria came towards me after a while. She had the same package in her hands.

"Its a Solar device. It will help us communicate with the others in Ness. Lets go, the transportation will take place in a few minutes." Ria remarked with a smile.

I sighed and followed Ria as she walked towards a large hall where most of the people had gathered. There weren't that many people. I remember Mom telling me that there were about a hundred who were selected. I was glad that Ria was by my side. Her presence assured me that this was not going to be as bad as I would have imagined. As we entered the area, I gasped upon seeing the large circular gate way.

"That's the portal. We just have to walk through it." Ria whispered to me.

"The Transition will begin in five minutes." A voice echoed across the hall. I closed my eyes and tried to remember every memory I had of this beautiful place. Each moment that I had spent with Mom, with Shane, Clara and Sera, my best friends and with Nathan. Soon enough, there was another announcement.

"Transition to Ness will be starting now." Just as the voice announced this, I heard the engines at the gate start up. After a few seconds, the gate began to glow neon blue.

"We wish you good luck for your new life." The voice stated, hinting the people to cross over. Soon enough, everyone in the hall started moving towards the gate. When they stepped into it, they disappeared. As if noticing my panic, Ria grabbed my hand and walked forward, following the crowd.

"Together." She whispered as we neared the gate. I nodded and let her lead me. I closed my eyes again and thought of the last few moments I had spent outside.

"I won't ever forget you. I will always love you too." I whispered, as if trying to reply to Nathan's farewell, as I opened my eyes and stepped into the blue light with Ria.