Antonio’s office was quiet except for the soft rustle of papers as he packed the remaining documents for the day. The city skyline glimmered faintly through the tinted glass windows, reflecting the fading light of early evening in muted streaks of gold and orange. The hum of the air conditioning provided a calm background, steady and constant, almost meditative in contrast to the storm brewing outside. Antonio had just finished organizing the last of the folders, stacking them neatly and aligning each document with exacting precision, when a sudden crash shattered the calm, reverberating through the office like a cannon blast in an empty hall.Five older men, dressed in muted tones but moving with deliberate, almost predatory precision, burst into the office. Their faces were set, hard lines etched with years of experience, and their eyes glimmered with cold focus, scanning the room as if mapping every corner for advantage. In their hands gleamed weapons polished to a deadly shine—met

Upon hearing from the man that Antonio was finally dead, Tina could hardly believe it. For a brief second, the words felt distant, as though they belonged to someone else’s story. The weight of what she had orchestrated—the careful planning, the calculated risks, the deliberate instructions—pressed against her thoughts. The precision with which the men had carried out the operation seemed almost unreal. She had anticipated resistance. She had prepared for complications. Yet the finality in the man’s voice suggested something undeniable.She stood silently, phone still at her ear, allowing the information to settle. Her mind raced with a mixture of disbelief and satisfaction. Months of quiet strategy had culminated in this single confirmation. Every conversation, every concealed motive, every carefully placed instruction had led here. A slow exhale escaped her lips as she steadied herself, regaining the composure she was known for.Then, with a sharp breath, she addressed the men on th

The following morning at Bellagio Group began like any other working day, but beneath the surface of routine greetings and elevator chimes, something was wrong. The reception desk operated as usual. Assistants sorted files. Managers reviewed schedules. The building’s glass exterior reflected the early sun in calm brilliance. Yet an invisible tension drifted quietly through the corridors.Antonio had not arrived.At first, no one paid it much attention. He was known for discipline, but on rare occasions he shifted his schedule without broad announcements. Still, as minutes stretched into an hour, concern began to surface. His office had remained locked from the inside the previous night. Security had followed standard procedure and unlocked it in the early hours.It was empty.His desk was undisturbed. His chair was positioned neatly. Nothing appeared stolen or broken. Yet he was not there.His phone was unreachable.His vehicle was not in the parking lot.No one had seen him leave.Wi

The creature regarded Antonio steadily. Its expression did not carry cruelty, but it carried certainty.“There is no other way,” it said.Antonio’s chest tightened.“No alternative?” he pressed. “No different path? No partial surrender? Nothing?”The creature shook its head slowly.“There is nothing else you can do if you truly want to return to Earth and live,” it said calmly. “Unless you no longer desire to return to life.”The words settled heavily in the air.Antonio stared at the creature, searching its face for hesitation, for flexibility, for even the slightest loophole.There was none.“You mean,” Antonio whispered, “my only option is to go down?”“Yes.”“And lose everything?”“Yes.”“And if I refuse?”“Then you remain here,” the creature answered evenly. “You exist, but you do not return. Your earthly story ends as it already has.”Antonio swallowed hard.He thought of Earth—of unfinished conversations, unresolved betrayals, Cynthia’s face, the empire he had built, the power

The following morning broke with an uneasy stillness.Across the city, headlines flashed across television screens, trended across social media feeds, and echoed through radio broadcasts: Bellagio Group was no more.What had once stood as a towering symbol of influence and wealth now existed only in memory and rubble.People gathered in clusters—at cafés, in offices, along sidewalks—speaking in hushed disbelief.“It collapsed overnight.”“No warning?”“They said the entire building just gave way.”“How does something like that even happen?”The questions multiplied, but answers were nowhere to be found.Cynthia heard the news from the small sitting room where she had barely slept. Her television had been left on from the night before, the volume low. She had drifted in and out of shallow rest, her thoughts consumed with Antonio’s disappearance and the growing instability within the company.When the breaking news banner flashed across the screen, she froze.The reporter stood before a