Chapter 1: Fractured Peace
Somewhere in the sprawling coastal city of Lumeris, the mansion atop the hills of the affluent district of Lektria shivered under the weight of shouting voices. Polished marble floors reflected heated arguments as tension clashed like storms against the walls.
"I'm telling you! That curse bearer knew something! And yet you went ahead and killed her without extracting any answers!" Leviathan's voice thundered, echoing through the high-ceilinged hall. His hands were clenched into fists, knuckles white, as if trying to grip the very air.
Paul leaned casually against the ornate staircase railing, his expression icy calm, yet a dangerous edge lingered in his amber eyes. "Levi, you're just being paranoid. Calm yourself."
"Paranoid?" Leviathan spat, eyes blazing. "Paranoid?! You're the one acting like a fool! Seems like you're mad, Paul!"
For thirty minutes, the argument raged. The mansion's ornate chandeliers trembled under the storm of voices. Paintings on the walls seemed to watch silently as sibling against sibling, fury against reason, played out.
A sharp, trembling voice cut through the storm.
"Stop it, you guys!"
Aria, barely sixteen, stood at the bottom of the stairs. Pale from sleepless nights and worry, she clutched the banister as if it were the only thing holding her world together. Why can't they just… stop? she thought, feeling her chest tighten.
"What's going on here?" another sibling asked, stepping into the hallway, eyes flicking nervously between the brothers.
"Finally, the fun spoiler arrives," James said, smirking lazily, a hint of mischief in his eyes, as if watching a private performance.
"You don't have to say that," Mary replied sharply, her voice cutting through the tension. "I don't like you either."
Aria's eyes glistened with tears she had been holding back. "You guys… you're always fighting. I wish—"
"Don't wish," Leviathan growled, the fire of his fury igniting. "He's gone. You don't get to wish."
"Oh my God… Levi, why would you say that?" another sister's voice cracked, disbelief and pain mixing with anger. "She's your sister—"
"I don't care!" Leviathan's roar made the walls tremble. "Look at what she's saying. Don't push me any further!"
Aria's legs trembled. With quiet, desperate steps, she fled upstairs, her sobs echoing faintly in the hall like fragile glass breaking. In her room, she sank onto the edge of her bed and clutched a photograph beside her pillow.
I… I miss you so much, she whispered, voice cracking.
Mary entered quietly, her presence gentle, but commanding in its calm. Sitting beside Aria, she placed a comforting hand on her sister's shoulder. I miss him too, she thought aloud, tears slipping down her cheeks.
They cried together, the room thick with unspoken grief. Eventually, exhaustion overtook sorrow. Aria's eyes fluttered closed, and she drifted into dreams—a world without sorrow, without tears, a place of pure peace and warmth, as if her subconscious tried to build a sanctuary her reality could not provide.
Far from the mansion, deep beneath the city of Lumeris, the headquarters of a shadowed organization throbbed with quiet efficiency. The Experimental Wing, a sterile labyrinth of white corridors and humming lights, waited silently.
A lock beeped sharply, breaking the monotony. A large, reinforced door slid open with a hiss. A lone figure stepped inside, his movements precise, almost mechanical, unbothered by the cold sterility of the lab.
"You are fortunate," said a calm, measured voice. "Your attendant has come to aid you. You may ascend to the surface. You are free."
The figure before the words smiled under a gas mask, stepping forward with slow, deliberate movements. The mask reflected the harsh fluorescent lights, concealing most features, but the grin beneath was unmistakable. As he entered the elevator, the faint flicker of a psychotic smile crept across his face—teeth unnaturally sharp, eyes glinting with cruel anticipation.
The elevator doors slid shut with a muted thunk, cutting him off from the sterile lab behind. Red digits above blinked upward—level by level, inching him closer to the surface… closer to the world above, where chaos would soon awaken.
Even from this distance, the faint aura of his Resonance pulsed subtly through the building—a whisper of destructive potential that made the air in the lab thicken, like a storm waiting to break.
Outside, the city of Lumeris slept, unaware that the fragile order they relied upon was already beginning to fracture. Somewhere, a storm was coming—a storm masked in blood, deception, and madness.
To Be Continued…