Chapter 0:
Echoes of the Past
The Void: The Collapse of Reality
A warm wind blew across the soft hills covered with bright green grass, caressing the surface as if the universe itself was breathing peacefully. Iridescent flowers, whose petals emitted a bluish glow on contact with the breeze, danced softly under a crystalline sky, and in the background, a futuristic city rose amidst the perfect harmony of steel and nature. It was Utopia-7, the last bastion of a civilization that thought it had mastered the cosmic balance. Technological towers covered with vegetation vibrated with living energy, as if they shared the pulse of the Earth itself.
From then on, the anomaly repeated itself: space vibrated slightly, as if reality were a badly stretched canvas. In those instants, between the flicker of a streetlight and the next, something materialized. It was not human, not even organic: a black silhouette, faceless and formless, fading away before the mind could register it. Then the world regained its facade of normality, as if the darkness had never breathed through its cracks.
The sky gradually became deeper, more vast... until it began to crack. A cleft snaked across the firmament like a freshly opened wound, and within it, something that did not belong to this world was glimpsed.
The translucent dome covering the city reflected the last hues of the day as Korrin ran out of the school with a group of children, sprinting between intelligent buildings that whispered data as passersby passed by.
She paused for a moment, looking up, far above the dome, where a line of light vibrated fleetingly in the sky.
Korrin paused, his hair tousled in the wind. Above the city dome, a line of light vibrated across the sky like the fluttering of a cosmic dragonfly. He squinted, trying to follow its trajectory, but the flash faded.
"Did you see it?" asked Korrin, pointing to the void where the light had been.
His friends kept running, laughing at something Kaito said. Yuki, the most observant, turned back for a moment.
"The what?" asked Yuki, looking at Korrin in confusion.
But Korrin shook his head. "Nothing...! I have to be late for Dad's lab."
"No, not again...!" he muttered, closing the message with a curt gesture.
Hearing the scuff of feet behind the door, she forced a smile. Korrin was there, nibbling at the hem of her dress and staring at the hologram with startled eyes.
"Do you want a closer look?" he asked without looking, knowing it was Korrin.
She entered. Korrin took a step, then another, until she was standing next to him. Korrin spoke softly, due to his shyness but also his fascination with that hologram.
"Dad, look, she's alive!"
Dr. Elias held his breath. That reaction was not programmed... Was the quantum core detecting something in her? But he hid his concern behind a soft laugh."Of course it recognizes you, little one. After all, it will be your home someday. What you see there is not just a ship. It's the dream of generations... A mobile city, an ark, a bridge to other worlds."
Dr. Elias rose from his seat and walked over to where Korrin was standing, then paused momentarily before continuing to speak.
"And someday, if you want to, you'll learn to fly it."
"Could I really, Daddy?"
"Of course. When I get back from Andromeda... I'll show you. It won't be long now."
Before speaking, Korrin lowered her head as if disappointed in herself.
"Motors are like fireflies. They are noisy, but harmless if you treat them with care."
After those words, Dr. Elias pulled from the pockets of his robe an artifact that turned out to be a small blue crystal key, with internal filaments that seemed to move like a living nebula, and handed it to Korrin.
"Keep it safe. Someday, this key will give you courage... or open a door for you when you need it most."
Korrin held it with both hands, not daring to speak. The crystal vibrated softly, as if breathing.
Afterwards, Dr. Elias stood up to get back to work on his research.
"I remember those days when the whole universe breathed hope. Joy was infinite... or so we thought. Now I know that even in the brightest light shadows are hidden."
From then on, the anomaly repeated itself: space vibrated slightly, as if reality were a badly stretched canvas. In those instants, between the flicker of a streetlight and the next, something materialized. It was not human, not even organic: a black silhouette, faceless and formless, fading away before the mind could register it. Then the world regained its facade of normality, as if the darkness had never breathed through its cracks.
The sky gradually became deeper, more vast... until it began to crack. A cleft snaked across the firmament like a freshly opened wound, and within it, something that did not belong to this world was glimpsed.
The translucent dome covering the city reflected the last hues of the day as Korrin ran out of the school with a group of children, sprinting between intelligent buildings that whispered data as passersby passed by.
She paused for a moment, looking up, far above the dome, where a line of light vibrated fleetingly in the sky.
Korrin paused, his hair tousled in the wind. Above the city dome, a line of light vibrated across the sky like the fluttering of a cosmic dragonfly. He squinted, trying to follow its trajectory, but the flash faded.
"Did you see it?" asked Korrin, pointing to the void where the light had been.
His friends kept running, laughing at something Kaito said. Yuki, the most observant, turned back for a moment.
"The what?" asked Yuki, looking at Korrin in confusion.
But Korrin shook his head. "Nothing...! I have to be late for Dad's lab."
She lied, sprinting again between the buildings that whispered encrypted data as passersby passed by.
Inside the city's tallest tower, called the Dawn Spire, a scientist stopped abruptly as he noticed the holograms in his lab flickering and distorting. Dr. Elias raised his head as the holograms flickered. A low hum, like the roar of a buried beast, shook the surgically ordered instruments on his workbench. His eyes were riveted on a warning panel that only he could see: "GRAVITATIONAL ANOMALY IN SECTOR 7-B. THREAT LEVEL: ██████"."No, not again...!" he muttered, closing the message with a curt gesture.
Hearing the scuff of feet behind the door, she forced a smile. Korrin was there, nibbling at the hem of her dress and staring at the hologram with startled eyes.
"Do you want a closer look?" he asked without looking, knowing it was Korrin.
She entered. Korrin took a step, then another, until she was standing next to him. Korrin spoke softly, due to his shyness but also his fascination with that hologram.
"It's beautiful..."
"Dad, look, she's alive!"
Dr. Elias held his breath. That reaction was not programmed... Was the quantum core detecting something in her? But he hid his concern behind a soft laugh."Of course it recognizes you, little one. After all, it will be your home someday. What you see there is not just a ship. It's the dream of generations... A mobile city, an ark, a bridge to other worlds."
Dr. Elias rose from his seat and walked over to where Korrin was standing, then paused momentarily before continuing to speak.
"And someday, if you want to, you'll learn to fly it."
"Could I really, Daddy?"
"Of course. When I get back from Andromeda... I'll show you. It won't be long now."
Before speaking, Korrin lowered her head as if disappointed in herself.
"But... I'm afraid of engines. They are so noisy...".
"Motors are like fireflies. They are noisy, but harmless if you treat them with care."
After those words, Dr. Elias pulled from the pockets of his robe an artifact that turned out to be a small blue crystal key, with internal filaments that seemed to move like a living nebula, and handed it to Korrin.
"Keep it safe. Someday, this key will give you courage... or open a door for you when you need it most."
Korrin held it with both hands, not daring to speak. The crystal vibrated softly, as if breathing.
Afterwards, Dr. Elias stood up to get back to work on his research.
"Now go with your friends. I don't want you to be late for your holo-game tournament. You promised you'd beat that boy with the messy hair, didn't you?"
Korrin looked at his father with a smile.
"Yes, Daddy, this time I'm going to crush it!"
Before leaving, Korrin took one last look at the hologram. That ship was now turning, showing an escape route marked in red: a winding path through unknown constellations. Her father, concentrating on adjusting coordinates, didn't notice her memorizing each point. However, when she looked up at him, he smiled back.
"I love you, my little explorer," he said to his daughter Korrin without looking away from the computer.
But Korrin, in a low but audible voice, said, "I love you too, Daddy...".
Korrin emerged from the lab with the crystal key burning like a slice of night sky in his pocket. As she ran toward the meadow, she passed a group of engineers carrying armored containers marked with stamps reading "SECTOR 7-B: URGENT CONTAINMENT." One of them, upon seeing her, pressed a picture of her family against his chest before closing the box with a metallic click.
In the meadow, Kaito and Yuki were discussing how to attract firefly-holograms. Korrin joined them, but each of their laughter sounded a little more forced. The key core vibrated to the rhythm of his pulse, as if recalling the forbidden symbols he had seen.
Korrin looked at his father with a smile.
"Yes, Daddy, this time I'm going to crush it!"
Before leaving, Korrin took one last look at the hologram. That ship was now turning, showing an escape route marked in red: a winding path through unknown constellations. Her father, concentrating on adjusting coordinates, didn't notice her memorizing each point. However, when she looked up at him, he smiled back.
"I love you, my little explorer," he said to his daughter Korrin without looking away from the computer.
But Korrin, in a low but audible voice, said, "I love you too, Daddy...".
Korrin emerged from the lab with the crystal key burning like a slice of night sky in his pocket. As she ran toward the meadow, she passed a group of engineers carrying armored containers marked with stamps reading "SECTOR 7-B: URGENT CONTAINMENT." One of them, upon seeing her, pressed a picture of her family against his chest before closing the box with a metallic click.
In the meadow, Kaito and Yuki were discussing how to attract firefly-holograms. Korrin joined them, but each of their laughter sounded a little more forced. The key core vibrated to the rhythm of his pulse, as if recalling the forbidden symbols he had seen.
Please sign in to leave a comment.