Zephyra's Diary: I won't forgive him!

   After the funeral, I became the head of the Naberius family.

   The funeral itself passed in a blur. I barely registered the condolences or polite gestures offered by the attendees. Their words, their carefully constructed sympathy—it all meant nothing. I stood there, watching dirt fall onto the graves of the two people who mattered to me so much, while the voice in the back of my mind repeated the same words over and over again.

   You’ll regret this.

   Victor. I knew he was responsible.

   That day, I made a vow. I would find Victor, no matter how long it takes, no matter what I have to sacrifice. And when I did, he would pay for what he had done.

* * *

   For 11 years, I searched relentlessly.

   Every lead, every whisper, every rumour—I pursued them all. My quest eventually led me to the faint traces of a spatial collapse. I had a feeling that I couldn't leave it alone, so I decided to check it. Following the trail, I came upon an area concealed by an advanced illusion spell.

   I pushed through the barrier. On the other side stood a hidden facility, surrounded by the desert and shielded from all known detection methods. I moved cautiously, keeping to the shadows.

   Strange machines lined the inner chambers, pulsating with power. Even without inspecting them closely, I could tell what they were for—dimensional gate devices, modified versions of old theoretical designs I once saw in early military blueprints.

   Suddenly—without any ceremony or signal, a set of large gates activated.

   From them, trucks began pouring out, one after another. Boxy, armored, with no visible markings. I couldn’t see inside, and I didn’t have time to try. I needed answers first.

   I slipped deeper into the facility, moving quickly and quietly until I reached the archive wing. The room was cold and sterile, the hum of machinery filling the silence. I moved quickly, connecting my flash drive to the main terminal. The interface was complex, but I’d dealt with systems like this before. My fingers danced across the keyboard, hacking into the network and downloading as much data as I could.

   As the files transferred, I combed through the database, searching for anything that could lead me to Victor.

   It didn’t take long to find what I was looking for. His name was everywhere. Victor Naberius wasn’t just associated with this facility—he was its manager.

   The flash drive beeped, signalling the completion of the download. I grabbed it, tucking it safely into my pocket—.

   Thud, thud, thud

   Suddenly I've heard footsteps.

   I turned sharply as a guard stepped into the room, his eyes locking on me in confusion. He opened his mouth, reaching for the comm on his vest, but I was already moving. My hand shot forward, with a use of a spell, I materialized a paralyzer that jabbed into his neck before he could make a sound. He convulsed and collapsed, out cold.

   I dragged his body behind the archive cabinet, quickly stripping him of his gear. The uniform was slightly tight in some places, but it would do. I pulled the visor low over my face, clipped on the ID, and stepped into the hallway as though I belonged there.

   The disguise worked better than I’d hoped. No one gave me a second look as I walked the corridors, silent and observant. The place was larger than I had anticipated—long halls that curved into testing wings and observation chambers, rooms full of equipment that radiated soft pulses of mana, and branching corridors that led deeper into administrative levels.

   Eventually, I reached the central wing. A digital map mounted on the wall gave me everything I needed. While I was heading there, I went with a shortcut into a side hall and passed by the canteen. Through the glass, I saw a group of children eating—some chatting quietly, most eating in silence. They were all young. Too young. And while their clothes were clean and their bodies uninjured, there was an unmistakable emptiness in their eyes that twisted something inside my chest.

   I moved on before it could slow me down.

   It didn’t take long to reach Victor’s office. A reinforced door stood at the end of the hallway, sealed tight. I didn’t bother with codes.

   With use of spell, I covered my hand in steel and turned it into a giant fist and blasted the door open without hesitation.

   The door flew off its hinges, and I stepped inside, I used the same spell to materialize a gun in my hand and aimed.

   Victor sat at his desk, calm and unbothered. He leaned back in his chair, his hands folded neatly in his lap.

   “Well,” he said with a smirk, “it’s nice to see you again after all these years.”

   I didn’t lower my weapon. My grip tightened as I stared him down.

   “I think so too,” I said coldly. “You don’t even know how much.”

   Despite the fury burning inside me, I kept my voice steady. My heart pounded in my chest, but my aim didn’t waver.

   Victor’s smile didn’t falter. “Please don't misunderstand. It's not like I wanted my brother dead,” he began, “But I had no choice. He stood in the way of progress. I had to—”

   The gunshot echoed through the room, cutting him off mid-sentence.

   The bullet missed, grazing his cheek. A thin line of blood appeared, but his expression remained eerily composed.

   “You had no choice, huh?” I snapped. “You had a choice, just like everyone else. Just like I do now.” My voice dropped, low and venomous. “You betrayed us! You took my family from me, Victor. And now you’re going to pay for it.”

   Victor shrugged, his calm demeanour infuriating. “Fine.”

   I blinked, taken aback. “What?”

   “I don’t mind dying,” he said, his tone indifferent. “I have already fulfilled my purpose. The only thing left was for you to find me.”

   The realization hit me like a blow to the chest.

   “You lured me here?” 

   Victor’s smile widened. “Clever as always. ” He stood slowly, his presence looming despite the smugness in his tone. “The time of our era is already coming to an end. The next step in the evolution of this world is upon us. And that means the likes of you and me—well, we’re obsolete.”

   His words made my blood run cold. For the first time, I felt the weight of his resolve, the depth of his madness.

   Before I could respond, the screams began.

   Not one. Not two. Dozens—rising from deep within the facility. I froze, listening.

   “Looks like it started already.” Victor glanced at me, his smile now strangely calm. “See you in the new world.”

   And then it happened.

   The explosion was deafening, a wave of raw energy that tore through the facility. The force threw me backward, pain shooting through my body as I slammed into the wall. The last thing I saw before everything went black was Victor, standing amidst the chaos, his figure obscured by the blinding light.

* * *

   I don’t remember much after the explosion.

   The heat, the force—it felt like the world itself had been torn apart. When I woke up, I was barely alive. Every part of my body screamed in pain, my vision blurred as I struggled to breathe. But somehow, I had survived.

   The facility was gone, reduced to rubble and ash. Nothing remained except a gaping void where Victor’s madness had taken root.

   I don’t know what I was hoping to find as I wandered away from the destruction. I walked for over an hour, my legs heavy and unsteady. The air was thick, the taste of smoke still lingering in my throat. The world around me felt distant, almost unreal. I kept moving, though I didn’t know where I was going.

   And then, I saw him.

   A boy lay sprawled on the ground, his body still. His clothes were torn and dirty, his hair matted with dirt and ash. For a moment, I thought he was dead, but as I stepped closer, I saw the faint rise and fall of his chest.

    I looked at him, my gaze lingering on his face. Something stirred inside me—a feeling I hadn’t experienced in a long time. My breath caught in my throat, and without warning, tears began to stream down my face. I couldn’t stop them, even if I wanted to. I dropped to my knees beside him, my hands trembling as I reached out.

   The words came out before I could stop them.

   “I found you.”