2023-05-29 15:37:43"Ugh!"
Andrew jolted, his eyes snapped open. He looked around and the bloodstains on the walls reminded him of the altercation with Orlando. Strangely, Andrew didn't feel any pain in his body. In fact, he felt much fresher now.
His hand reached for his head, still leaving traces of blood. But the wound has healed. "Shit. How is this even possible? I thought I was badly hurt."
As if disbelieving the situation he found himself in, Andrew rose and approached the mirror in the corner of the room.
"I'm okay. But... Where's my necklace?"
Andrew felt his neck, and the necklace that had been with him for almost 20 years was gone. He had no idea that the heirloom necklace from his family was what gave him the power to be reborn.
"Oh no, I lost the necklace from my great-grandmother. Argh! Everything I had is gone!"
However, the bloodstains on the walls and his body that felt so different slowly brought Andrew to memories of decades ago, to be precise just before his grandpa died.
“Andrew, wear this necklace. Take care and don't lose it. It will help you, when the time comes, no one will be able to beat you.”
Andrew then widened, he again felt his neck and muttered. "Is it all because of the necklace that grandpa gave to me?"
The ringing of the cellphone was then heard and interrupted Andrew's reverie, he immediately went to take the cellphone and found a call from the deputy director of the company where he worked.
"Hello, sir."
"Andrew, can you come to the office now? There are some things we need to discuss."
"Yes, sir. I'll be there soon."
"Great, I'll be waiting for you at the office."
Andrew furrowed his brow and muttered, "Maybe I should tell them what I heard from Orlando earlier. I can't stay silent and let them trap me."
He threw his phone onto the bed, then walked toward the bathroom to clean himself up. The photo of him and Nadine displayed on the wall near the kitchen in his apartment seemed to emit a different vibe. Andrew used to always feel excited when he saw his lover's smile, but now, it only left him with disappointment.
"You're the worst woman in my life, Nadine," he murmured.
**
Thirty minutes passed, and Andrew arrived on the fifth floor of his office to meet the deputy director. His steps appeared confident and self-assured, disregarding the cynical and condescending gazes of the other employees.
"Good afternoon, sir," Andrew entered the deputy director's office, bowing his head.
However, his confidence was disrupted when he saw Orlando, who was none other than present in the room as well.
"Ah, Andrew. Hello, thief!" Orlando greeted sarcastically.
"Andrew, please have a seat."
Andrew tried to stay calm and focused on the deputy director, who invited him to sit next to Orlando. However, Andrew's mind began to suspect the purpose of this summons.
"Mr. Douglaz, you should just speak up to Andrew. It's not good to let a thief like him stay in this company for too long. Surely, you don't want him to successfully take all the employee data, right?"
Andrew turned to Orlando, his anger no longer containable, and he said, "What do you mean, Orlando?!"
"Andrew, you're fired."
Andrew's eyes widened as the words came out of the deputy director's mouth. His gaze shifted away from Orlando. He looked at the white-haired deputy director and asked, "I'm sorry, sir, but what happened? What did I do? If this is all because of the adult videos found in the presentation earlier, it's all a misunderstanding. I didn't do it, and it was a trap set up by Orlando. I heard everything he said to bring me down, sir!"
"I'm sorry, Andrew, but we found evidence that you stole Mr. Orlando's data and sabotaged his identity, causing harm to Orlando and his family. There is enough evidence to make you leave this company," the deputy director replied.
"I didn't do anything, sir! Clearly, this is all a trap orchestrated by Orlando to get rid of me! Can you explain what benefit I would have from sabotaging Orlando's identity and files that I didn't even know existed?"
"Enough, Andrew! You're just jealous and bitter because Nadine no longer wants to be with you. You deliberately hacked into my social media accounts, changed the existing identities, and sent numerous embarrassing portfolios to my colleagues! Don't deny it! Do you want to destroy our family? Well, my father really liked you and wanted to give you a better position than what you have now."
Andrew stood up and pointed at Orlando. "I never did any of that, and you know it!"
"Andrew, calm down! Fighting against what has been decided will only worsen the situation. Our decision is final and cannot be questioned. You have to be fired. If you still don't believe it, let me show you the evidence," the deputy director said. He handed Andrew several sheets of paper filled with photos.
There, a social media platform displayed a user with Andrew's name and photo offering a significant amount of money for Orlando's data. The next sheets showed conversations between Andrew and a man believed to be a hacker hired by Andrew to hack and sabotage all of Orlando's social media accounts.
Orlando wore a sly smile and said, "Looks like he wants more evidence. I'll bring it to you, Andrew."
The man in the blue shirt got up from his chair and left the room. Meanwhile, Andrew spoke to the deputy director again, clasping his hands and saying, "Sir, you have to believe me, this is all Orlando's trap. He's angry because his father wanted to give me a good salary and position. Besides, he also attacked me. The wound on my head can serve as evidence of his cruelty earlier. I--."
The door opened again, and Andrew stopped his sentence as he saw Nadine entering with three other men.
"Okay, Andrew. This is real evidence of all your crimes. I prepared this so that you can't deny it and admit your mistakes. Nadine knows about your plans, and everything is recorded in the conversations on Nadine's phone. Furthermore, these three people are a group of hackers who have breached my data. So, what other excuses do you have, Andrew?"
Andrew looked at Nadine, the woman he loved, as she raised her head and put on a scornful expression. Andrew clenched his fists and turned to the deputy director. The thick-mustached man shrugged his shoulders and said, "Andrew, you are fired. And you will pay the company for all damages. Total 500,000 dollars."
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Latest Chapter
4-17
Night fell over the savanna like a heavy curtain, drowning the horizon in ink-black darkness. The team made camp in an abandoned outpost—crumbling stone walls, rusted radio towers, and dust-covered supply crates long forgotten by whatever expedition once called this place home.Sahara slept under Yuki’s protective wards, her breath shallow but steady. Emerald Shadow pulsed beneath her skin, responding to every fluctuation of Andrew’s aura—every flicker of the dying Sapphire, every spike of Noir’s unstable Phoenix fire.Andrew watched her from the doorway.“You’re restless,” Noir murmured behind him.Andrew startled—he hadn’t heard Noir approach. Phoenix fire made Noir’s presence erratic. Sometimes he radiated heat like a furnace; other times he felt cold, ghostlike.Tonight, he felt both.Andrew didn’t look away from Sahara. “She saw our futures.”Noir’s voice dropped. “I know.”Andrew clenched his jaw. “She said I die under a sky with no stars.”“And?” Noir asked quietly.“And she sa
4-16
Andrew didn’t remember waking.He only remembered the sensation of drowning in fire—Phoenix fire—and Noir’s scream echoing inside the collapsing cavern. Then weightlessness. Then nothing.Until now.He gasped sharply, sucking in air that tasted like earth, dust, and humidity. Not fire. Not brimstone. Real air. Damp, almost cold against his burned lungs.His vision blurred, then adjusted.He was lying in a tent.Canvas walls swayed gently. Rain—real rain this time—pattered outside like a thousand tiny drums.Yuki sat beside him, dark circles under her eyes, hands resting on Andrew’s chest, her aura woven into weak healing lines. Jiro stood near the entrance, arms crossed, staring at the storm. Rayan snored on the floor. Mika polished blood off her gauntlets, jaw tight.Andrew tried to sit up.Yuki pressed him back down instantly. “No.”He croaked, “Noir—”Yuki’s expression twisted—fear, grief, confusion. “He’s alive. But changed.”Jiro answered without turning. “Phoenix didn’t consume
4-15
The storm had followed them.Not rain—not wind—but heat.Dry, metallic, suffocating heat that smelled like scorched feathers and old blood.They reached the edge of Mount Vaelor at dawn, the sun barely strong enough to pierce the iron-red haze. The mountain’s surface resembled a giant slag heap of volcanic stone, cracked into patterns that glowed faintly with crimson fire.Andrew’s steps faltered at the base.The Sapphire in his chest flickered—once, twice—then dimmed almost completely.Yuki caught his arm. “Andrew—stop. You’re not stable.”Andrew shoved away the pain and forced a breath. “The residue of Red Phoenix is up there. I feel it pulling me.”“It’s not pulling you.” Jiro’s voice dropped. “It’s pulling Noir.”Rayan scanned the glowing crevices. “Or both of you. Soul twins. Great. Love that for us.”Mika frowned. “We need a plan. Phoenix residue isn’t like Crystal Sol. It doesn’t explode. It invades. Corrupts. Burns anything it touches.”“And Noir might be trying to absorb
4-14
Andrew awoke inside a memory.Not a dream—not a vision—a memory.Except it wasn’t his.The world around him shimmered like wet paint. Colors bled into each other. The ground felt weightless. The sky rippled like fabric in slow motion. Andrew blinked, disoriented, as the shapes solidified into something familiar:A long white corridor.Cold lights.Footsteps echoing against marble.He knew this place.This was the Helios Research Wing.Thirty years ago.Before he was born.Except—Andrew had never been here.Not as himself.He looked down.He was smaller. Weightless. Like watching through the eyes of something that wasn’t fully alive yet.A voice echoed down the corridor.Calm. Commanding. Too familiar.William.Andrew’s father.Andrew tensed as the man came into view—a tall figure in a dark coat, posture strict, eyes cold enough to freeze molten stone. Another figure walked beside him: a woman with long raven hair—Andrew’s mother.She was shaking.Andrew’s breath hitched. “Mom…?”She
4-13
They reached the outskirts of Vessela at sunset.The city should have been alive—markets busy, lights turning on, traffic flowing, the usual hum of an evening settling in. Instead, they were met with silence. Not peaceful silence, but a suffocating blankness that made the air taste metallic.Andrew slowed.Yuki whispered, “Something’s wrong.”Jiro unsheathed his blades. “Noir.”Andrew didn’t answer, but he already knew.Noir was here.Hours ago.The Sapphire in Andrew’s chest pulsed weakly, flickering like a dying candle. Each beat felt thinner. Fainter. He pushed forward anyway, because the call—those scattered pieces of his missing soul—pulled him deeper into the city.They turned a corner.And froze.The streets were full of people.Standing perfectly still.Men.Women.Children.Old, young, workers, students—all frozen mid-step, mid-motion, mid-breath. Hundreds of them. Their eyes were open, staring forward, but empty—hollow glass marbles with no light behind them.Rayan swallowed
4-12
Rain chased them as they moved north, the storm growing thicker, heavier, almost sentient—as if the world itself was warning them to turn around. Lightning carved jagged scars through the clouds, illuminating the mountains like the ribs of some ancient, slumbering beast.Andrew walked at the front.Barely.Every step felt like knives grinding in his bones. His breathing rasped. His vision blurred. The cracks in the Sapphire spread with each heartbeat, glowing faint blue-white before dimming again. But he didn’t slow down.Couldn’t.Noir was moving, and Andrew could feel him like a faint echo—a second pulse buried inside his own failing one.The others followed close, watching him with a mix of fear and helpless frustration.“Andrew,” Yuki murmured, her voice barely carrying over the wind. “You need to stop. You’re burning through your soul energy too fast.”Andrew didn’t look back. “If I stop, I won’t be able to start again.”Rayan clicked his tongue. “This is suicide. We should bind
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