***January 1st, 2018 - 1800 hours.

"Kelly, package for you!"

The words echoed down the hallway and so did my footsteps, running toward the front door. I slowed down to come face to face with the wooden door with no windows, painted black. I looked down. "Is this it?"

"I would assume. It's all you've talked about for the past two weeks. I'm glad it's over now," my mom smiled as she picked up the six pound package and put it in my already outstretched hands. "You know, I don't even know how you like that kind of music. It's kinda demeaning."

"Mom, you of all people should know that you shouldn't reflect others by what music they listen to. You worked at Interscope for eight years...you know, before it went bankrupt in 2014. This band was on that label until its 25th release came out in 2007."

"Since when are you to criticize me, Kel?"

I gave a grin, right in her face. Before she could do anything, I was galloping toward my room. Another echo down the hallway, "Hey, have you seen Ian?"

"Probably fucking around outside," I said promptly, and when I entered my room, I shut the door, a little too hard; the knob came off and cracked the floor beneath. I laid the package on my couch and grabbed the nearest thing that I could use to open it - a spoon.

Slowly but surely the box opened little by little and I could already smell the industrial rockage inside. I threw the spoon toward my boston terrier Spark, who sniffed it and started to chew on it, and I opened the cardboard box at last.

After the bubble wrap was tossed aside (to pop later), the letters Halo Thirty Seven shined brightly into my eyes. So did the words Ghosts V-VIII, a golden lettering, beneath the white Nine Inch Nails logo, which hadn't changed in thirty years.

I took out the first CD and placed it gingerly in my CD player. I couldn't wait to test out the brand new surround system I had just got set up. Ok...maybe I had it set up for a month, just waiting for the CDs to come, while the monitors were gathering dust.

I turned up the volume to half its capacity and pressed the big rubber Play button. I waited for the ecstasy.

It came.

I fell back on to my Tempur-Pedic and let the insanely awesome music pump through my speakers and into my two ears, organs I would die without. The first track finished, then the second. I felt like I was on nitrous oxide, and I couldn't remember being happier. Spark, however, was not, and left the my room and walked into the kitchen.

"Heh, can't handle it huh?" I said out loud. Then the third song came, and then halfway through the fourth song...

BANG.

I sprang up and jumped out of my bed. What was that, I thought. It wasn't a plate breaking, or a window shattering. It sounded more...like a gunshot.

I didn't bother to hit Pause as I emerged from my room and closed the door behind. Ghosts V-VIII sounded muffled as I slowly walked toward the kitchen, where I figured the sound had come from. I came closer and closer. I had just finished watching Alias and kinda knew how to deal with these situations, so I jumped toward it and half-crawled, half-walked against the wall. I wish I hadn't, because I walked into the kitchen, seeing Spark lie flat on the floor, blood everywhere.

"Oh....my god..." I lay there as ears were dripping everywhere, just watching the lifeless dog on the marble. "MOM!!" I finally managed to scream. At that moment however. I saw my mom collapse on the stairs and tumble down. "SHIT!" I yelled, and went to see if at least she was still alive. I checked her pulse. I felt. it, but then...

BOOM.

Someone had hit me on my head with...a crowbar. I fell back slowly and saw white. I might have heard my music in the background, but I definitely heard more clearly:

"Welcome to Project Xaeda. We hope you will cooperate."