2026-02-02 10:01:00Adrian tried to move his fingers, but a surge of agonizing pain struck again, causing him to jerk so violently that his metal gurney let out a sharp, piercing screech.
Pain... let this pain remain, he thought, his heart seething with a burning vengeance. Don't let this pain fade, so that I will always remember what you all did to me today.
Outside, the faint sound of fireworks echoed from a distance. The Durnevra family was likely celebrating their heir's recovery under the beautiful night sky. They had no idea that in this stifling basement, the seeds of their destruction had just begun to sprout.
Adrian’s eyes, once filled with tears, now flew wide open in the darkness. There was no longer a glimmer of hope left in them. There was only a cold, profound emptiness.
"I will return," he whispered into the darkness, his voice no longer sounding like that of a pitiful nineteen-year-old boy. "And when I do, you will all beg to die by my hand."
Suddenly, the heart monitor in the corner of the room, which had been dead until then, emitted a single, incredibly loud beep, even though the cables were not connected to Adrian’s body.
Adrian startled. His heart began to beat with an unnatural intensity. He felt a strange sensation crawling from his scars, something cold, like an invisible current of electricity.
"Who's there?" he hissed into the gloom.
There was no answer. However, a pale blue transparent screen suddenly manifested before his eyes, hovering in the air with glowing text.
[ INITIALIZING THE ALTAR OF LOSS: SUBJECT WITH MAXIMUM DESPAIR DETECTED ]
Adrian gasped, his eyes widening as he stared at the words. "What... what is this?"
[ DO YOU WISH TO TRADE YOUR REMAINING HUMANITY FOR THE POWER TO SEEK VENGEANCE? ]
At that exact moment, the door to the room creaked open, revealing the shadow of someone standing there with a scalpel in hand, not to provide treatment, but to ensure the 'spare' would no longer be a burden to the Durnevra family.
Adrian stared at the shadow in the doorway with bated breath. The transparent blue screen in front of him continued to glow, floating in the air like a mirage mocking his sanity. The figure stepped forward into the dim light, and Adrian recognized the silhouette. It wasn't Dr. Vane. It was Nurse Mia, her hands trembling violently as she held a metal tray.
"Nurse..." Adrian’s voice was barely a whisper, nothing more than the dry rasp of air in his throat.
Mia jumped, nearly dropping her tray. She glanced back at the tightly closed door, then rushed toward Adrian’s bed. "Adrian? You’re still conscious? Oh, God... you’re supposed to be under the influence of the sedatives."
"The bell..." Adrian moved his pale fingers toward the nurse call button at his bedside. "Dead. No one... came."
Mia looked down, her eyes welling with tears as she checked the call bell cable, which had been intentionally pulled from the wall panel. "They don't want you disturbing anyone, Adrian. Dr. Vane ordered total isolation for this ward."
"Where is Mother?" Adrian asked. The question felt like a thorn lodged in his tongue. "Dimitri? Are they... waiting for Julian?"
Mia fell silent. She placed the tray on a rusted table and began replacing Adrian's IV bag with frantic, unsteady movements. She didn't dare meet the young man's eyes.
"Tell me, Mia," Adrian urged. The pain in his left abdomen began to throb again, sharper than before. "Where are they?"
"They’re gone, Adrian," Mia finally whispered, her voice breaking. "An hour ago. The Durnevra private jet took off for the Alps."
Adrian’s world seemed to stop spinning. "The Alps? For what?"
"A celebratory vacation," Mia answered softly. "They said Julian needs the clean mountain air for his post-op recovery. They... they took the entire personal medical staff with them, except for me."
Adrian laughed. It was the most wretched sound Mia had ever heard, a short, dry laugh laced with poison. "A vacation. They’re celebrating Julian’s recovery on top of the pieces of my body, while I’m left to rot here."
"I’ll try to find help, Adrian. But this hospital belongs to Durnevra Corp. Everyone here is paid to look the other way," Mia said, clutching Adrian’s ice-cold hand. "I smuggled in some antibiotics, but the supplies in this old wing are almost gone."
Suddenly, Adrian convulsed. His body arched off the bed as an excruciating pain tore through his chest. He coughed violently, and a thick red liquid stained the dull, white sheets.
"Adrian!" Mia cried out under her breath. She immediately checked the remaining manual monitor. "Your blood pressure is plummeting! Oh, no... this isn't just the surgical wounds."
"It hurts... my chest..." Adrian clawed at the sheets, his fingernails turning white.
"Secondary organ failure," Mia murmured, her face turning deathly pale. "Your right kidney... the workload is too much, and it looks like there's internal bleeding near the liver. You need an operating room right now!"
"Call... call them..."
"I already tried calling Master Dimitri’s assistant!" Mia began to sob in frustration. "They said not to disturb the family’s rest. They said... they said Subject B-02 has fulfilled its purpose."
Adrian stared up at the cracked ceiling. So, this was the end. He was no longer a son, no longer a brother, not even a human being. He was a disposable item. A battery that had been drained of its energy and tossed into the trash.
Subject B-02 has fulfilled its purpose.
That sentence echoed in his head, shattering the last remnants of affection he had kept in the furthest corners of his soul. He remembered how he had always tried to be the perfect child, how he had studied so hard just to earn a word of praise from Dimitri that never came, and how he had given up his toys just to see Julian smile.
It was all for nothing. Nineteen years of sacrifice were worth no more than a scrap of meat on a butcher's block.
Do you see it now?
The voice returned. Heavy, cold, and vibrating deep within his bone marrow. The blue screen that had momentarily vanished reappeared, brighter and more vivid than before.
[ STATUS: CRITICAL ]
[ HEART FUNCTION: 22% AND DECLINING ]
[ FINAL OFFER: SURRENDER YOUR 'FILIAL PIETY'. EXCHANGE IT FOR LIFE AND POWER. ]
Adrian stared at the text as his vision began to blur. Beside him, Mia was frantically searching for an oxygen tank, only to find it was empty. He could feel his life force beginning to seep out of his very pores.
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Who is B-01
My hands are shaking violently. The red marker I was gripping tightly falls to the floor, rolling under the dark desk. I try to reach for it, but my arm feels as heavy as lead. My breath is ragged, short and sharp, as if the air in this room has suddenly turned to poison.Damn it, why now?My vision blurs. The monitor in front of me, still displaying Julian’s face covered in red scribbles, seems to melt and merge with the darkness. A familiar pain begins to crawl from the base of my spine, cold and piercing all the way to the crown of my head. This isn't ordinary physical pain. This is a thirst demanding to be quenched."[ WARNING: SUBJECT BODY STABILITY BELOW 15% ]"The system's voice echoes in my head, louder than usual. Cold. Uncompromising."[ ALTAR ENERGY REACHING CRITICAL POINT. MOTOR FUNCTIONS WILL BE DEACTIVATED IN 60 SECONDS. ]""Shut up," I hiss, gripping the edge of the desk. My knuckles turn white, digging into the wooden surface until they leave marks. "Give me... recover
First target
The television screen in front of me glowed brightly, bathing the dark corners of the room in a piercing blue light that strained the eyes. There, in the center of a stage decorated with white lilies symbols of purity stood Julian Durnevra. He looked more vibrant than the last time I saw him, when he was lying at death's door. That suit, crafted by the finest tailors, hugged his body perfectly, hiding the surgical scars that, ironically, were made using a part of my own body."Julian, how does it feel to return to the public eye after your battle with that rare illness?" a female host asked, her voice dripping with adoration.Julian smiled the specific kind of smile he always used to get exactly what he wanted. "Incredible. I feel like I've been given a second chance to serve the world through Durnevra Corp.""You are a true hero, Julian. A survivor who inspires so many," the host continued.I snorted softly, my voice sounding dry in the silence of the room. "A hero? He couldn't even
Subject B-01?
Adrian stared at the monitor displaying Durnevra Corp’s organizational structure. Every day, he felt his humanity eroding further. Hunger remained, but he only ate because of system alerts. He slept only because Altar demanded the restoration of cognitive functions. Happiness, sadness, even exhaustion seemed to have been erased from his vocabulary."Two weeks," Adrian murmured. "Two weeks to get into their system."He opened a file recently sent by one of his new informants. It was internal data regarding the construction tender for a secret laboratory on the outskirts of the city. There, listed as the project lead, was the name Julian Durnevra."So you’re the one holding the reins, Brother?" Adrian gave a thin smile. A smile that didn't reach his dark eyes.He typed a series of commands, infiltrating Julian’s financial server. There, he found something far more interesting than mere numbers. Julian had been embezzling company funds to cover his exorbitant medical expenses, treatments
Revenant is my name
The small bell above the door of the Black Crow Bar chimed weakly, swallowed by the low thrum of bass vibrating through the smoky room. Adrian stepped inside, pulling his hoodie lower. The pungent smell of tobacco and cheap alcohol filled the air, but to his numb tongue, it all felt like hollow vapor."Aris?" a stout man with a jagged scar across his cheek waved from a dim corner. That was Silas, the information broker who controlled the communication lines of the Gray District.Adrian sat in front of Silas without a word. His cold eyes scanned the bar, noting every exit and the number of potential threats."You look like a lost college kid, boy," Silas chuckled, pouring a yellow liquid into a glass. "Are you sure you want to play here? One and a half million dollars can vanish overnight if you make the wrong move.""I didn't come here to drink, Silas," Adrian replied flatly. His voice sounded like the scraping of metal. "I came to buy a network. I need access to Durnevra Corp’s black
Adrian's plan
[ OFFER AVAILABLE 'ABSOLUTE MARKET ANALYSIS' ABILITY. ][ PRICE: SENSE OF TASTE. ]Adrian fell silent. His hand, holding a piece of bread, stopped in mid-air. His sense of taste?"You mean I’ll never taste food again?" he asked flatly.[ CORRECT. HUMANS USE TASTE FOR PLEASURE. AN ARCHITECT ONLY REQUIRES NUTRITION. DO YOU ACCEPT? ]Adrian remembered Elena. He remembered how his mother always ordered five-star chefs to prepare Julian's favorite dishes, while Adrian often received only leftovers or was put on a strict diet to maintain the quality of his organs. His tongue had never truly tasted the luxury of affection."Take it," Adrian said without hesitation. "The taste of food won't help me drag Dimitri to hell."Instantly, a sensation like melting ice spread from the base of his tongue to his throat. Adrian felt as if every nerve in his mouth had gone numb. He tried to take another bite of the bread.Tasteless.The bread no longer had the flavor of wheat or yeast. Its texture felt li
New Identity
Adrian leapt out through the shattered glass window, landing smoothly on the asphalt of the underground parking lot. He moved quickly toward the back gate, dodging the sweep of patrol lights that were beginning to flood the hospital’s front lawn.That night, the world felt different to Adrian. He no longer felt the cold, no longer felt fear. The void in his chest provided a terrifying tranquility. He slipped through narrow alleys, moving away from the city center toward a neglected industrial district.A few hours later, as dawn began to peek over the eastern horizon, Adrian stood atop a crumbling, half-collapsed old building. The sharp morning wind played with his messy strands of hair.[ STATUS: ESCAPE SUCCESSFUL. ][ ALTAR ENERGY: 45%. REST RECOMMENDED. ]Adrian stared at the blue folder in his hand, the one he had stolen from beside his bed the folder that labeled him as Subject B-02. With a slow movement, he tore the papers into small pieces, letting them scatter in the wind."Th
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