LXVI

The aftermath of the attack left us battered, physically and emotionally. Stefan was dead—rest in peace. His lifeless body now lay in one of Selena’s shrunken caskets, a grim reminder of what we’d lost. Mourning him properly would have to wait; there was no time to grieve.

A troubling thought gnawed at me. What was the Prophet’s goal in conducting this attack? The destruction seemed calculated, but to what end?

Butterflies I’d never imagined fluttered in my stomach, their chaotic dance reflecting my scattered thoughts. I exhaled slowly, trying to organize my thoughts. If I was going to explain this, I needed to make it clear—and fast, before anyone decided I’d lost my mind.

"Okay," I began, "let me show you something."

Leora raised an eyebrow but didn’t interrupt. Selena crossed her arms, leaning back against the wall with a smirk, as if daring me to surprise her. Leon, nestled in Leora’s arms, cooed softly, oblivious to the tension in the room.

I drew on my aura, weaving it into something visible. Borrowing Leora’s light attribute, I created a glowing sphere in the air, hovering just above my palm. It shimmered faintly, casting soft rays of light across the dim cabin.

“This,” I said, “is Earth. Or rather, how it used to be.”

I snapped my fingers, and the glowing sphere crumbled into countless fragments, scattering in every direction like a miniature explosion. The fragments hovered in midair, suspended by the faintest threads of aura.

“And this,” I continued, gesturing to the floating debris, “is Earth now.”

That finally got their attention. Selena straightened slightly, her smirk fading as she studied the glowing fragments. Leora’s gaze sharpened, her grip on Leon tightening instinctively. Even Leon seemed captivated, reaching out with tiny hands to try and catch the glowing lights.

“Outer space knowledge isn’t censored, right?” I asked, glancing at them.

Selena shrugged. “Not really. Mundane schools teach the Earth is round. Why?”

“Because it was round,” I said, pointing to the original sphere. “Until something changed.”

I drew another thread of aura, shaping it into a faint, glowing mist that enveloped the scattered fragments.

“I don’t know exactly what caused it,” I admitted. “The rifts? Aura? Something else? But at some point, the Earth started to collapse. The continents fragmented, the balance of the world shattered. Aura wasn’t just discovered—it was used to save what was left of the world.”

The glowing mist pulsed faintly, holding the floating fragments together like an invisible glue.

“This,” I said, gesturing to the mist, “is aura. It’s what keeps this world intact, magically holding it together. Without it, everything would fall apart—literally.”

The room was silent, save for Leon’s soft giggles as he swatted at the glowing fragments. I watched him for a moment, a pang of guilt twisting in my chest. I’d postponed this conversation for too long, using the Prophet and my plans as an excuse.

In truth, I’d been afraid. Afraid of the reality that had crashed into my life when I realized my novel was real. Afraid of the responsibility that came with being a father in a world I barely understood anymore.

Leora’s voice pulled me back to the present. “So… what?”

I took a deep breath, zooming in on one of the fragments. With a flick of my wrist, I shaped it into a miniature map—a perfect replica of the Claimed Lands.

“This,” I said, pointing to the glowing map, “is the Claimed Lands. The world we know. Inside these walls, we’re relatively safe. The World Wall keeps the lands intact and protects us from cryptid invasions.”

I swiped my hand to the left, revealing another glowing image—a towering barrier that shimmered faintly with an otherworldly light.

“This is the World Wall,” I explained. “It’s not just a physical barrier—it’s a manifestation of aura and science. Without it, the Claimed Lands would be overrun.”

I scrolled the projection a bit further, revealing a dark, chaotic expanse beyond the wall. The glow of aura was faint here, almost nonexistent.

“And this,” I said, “is the Forbidden Region. The world beyond the wall. Out here, cryptids are as common as ants. Rifts are larger, more unstable. Floating islands dot the sky, remnants of the Earth’s fragmentation.”

I glanced at Leon, who was now flinging tiny sparks of aura at the projection. His giggles filled the room, a stark contrast to the grim reality I was describing.

“This place,” I said softly, “was meant to be the real setting of the story. The protagonist—” I hesitated, correcting myself. “Leon was supposed to grow up here. To become strong enough to save the world from collapsing entirely.”

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Leora’s eyes flicked between me and the projection, her expression unreadable. Selena tilted her head, her usual smirk replaced by something more thoughtful.

“So,” Selena said finally, “the world’s held together by magic duct tape, and you’re telling us your son is the only one who can fix it?”

“Essentially,” I admitted.

Selena let out a low whistle. “No pressure, huh?”

Leora’s gaze softened as she looked at Leon, her arms tightening protectively around him. “And what about you?” she asked, her voice quiet but firm. “What’s your role in all of this?”

I hesitated, the weight of the question pressing down on me. “I don’t know,” I admitted. “But I’ll do whatever it takes to make sure Leon has a chance.”

The room fell silent again, the glowing fragments of the Earth casting faint shadows on the walls.

Leora crossed her arms, tilting her head as she studied me. “How do you even know all this stuff? The best I remember from history class is dinosaurs and those boring lectures on the Capital’s early years…”

I hesitated, my mind racing for an explanation that wouldn’t make me sound insane. I could tell the truth, risk being called crazy by my wife, and throw everything into chaos—or I could lie.

Before I could utter a word, Atropos stepped in. “It’s knowledge he knows because of his lineage.”

The words hit me like a brick. “What?” I blurted, completely thrown off.

Leora’s suspicious gaze locked onto me. “Lineage?” she echoed, her tone sharp with curiosity.

I shrugged helplessly, utterly clueless. “I have no idea what she’s talking about.”

Selena snorted, leaning back against the wall with a dramatic eye roll. “This is total BS drama, and I’m officially over it. The world’s on the brink of ending? Big news! Who knew?”

Atropos, ever the helpful informant, chimed in, “The Government, the World Order, and the Hunter’s Association.”

“What even is the World Order?” Selena’s expression twisted into a mix of anger and vindication. “Fucking conspiracy! I told you! And you—” she pointed a finger at me, “—lineage? What are you, secretly part of the Old Nobility or something?”

I shook my head firmly. “No way. If I were, I’d have been kidnapped for ransom or shipped off to some place they’d want me to be. I’m not some secret noble.”

Selena raised an eyebrow, clearly unimpressed. “Then what’s the deal? Spill.”

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Look, my sister and I… we’re estranged. That’s it. There’s no grand secret or conspiracy.”

Leora stepped forward, her expression unreadable. She gently handed Leon to Selena, who grumbled but accepted the squirming toddler. “Damn it, stop grabbing my boob, kid,” Selena muttered as Leon giggled. “Because its bouncy doesn’t mean it’s a toy.”

Leora ignored her and grabbed my hand, pulling me toward a chair. She sat down, tugging me to sit beside her.

“What are you doing?” I asked, baffled.

She clasped my hand tightly in hers, her gaze steady. “You’ve been running around trying to put a target on your back. Care to explain why?”

I hesitated, unsure how much to say. “It’s… complicated.”

“Try me,” she said, her voice soft but insistent.

I took a deep breath. “Because it wasn’t entirely wasted. My ‘act’—whatever you want to call it—helped me reconnect with an estranged sister I barely knew existed. I’ve learned how to use aura, gotten stronger, and maybe… just maybe, I’ve found a place in the world of hunters, even though I came from what I thought was a mundane background.”

Leora’s grip on my hand tightened slightly. “So, not so mundane after all?”

I shrugged, feeling the weight of everything I’d been hiding. “Apparently not.”

She smiled faintly, her eyes softening. “Remember when you used to complain about me ghosting you for two years after the hunter fiasco?”

I groaned, already knowing where this was going. “Please don’t bring that up.”

She grinned, clearly enjoying my discomfort. “And that whole speech you gave me about doing the hunting?”

“Ugh… cringe,” I muttered, burying my face in my free hand.

Leora laughed softly. “How about we do none of that and just… forget everything for now?”

Her words were tempting, a brief escape from the mounting pressure. But I couldn’t forget. Not when the Prophet was still out there, waiting for the chance to kill Leon.

I pulled my hand from hers and looked her in the eye. “We can’t forget, Leora. Not yet. The Prophet is still out there. And they won’t stop until they’ve taken Leon.”

Her expression darkened, and she nodded slowly. “Then we don’t stop either.”

Selena, who had been quietly trying to stop Leon from pulling her hair, snorted. “Great. More drama. Just what we need.”

“We go with Plan B,” I said, my voice steady despite the storm inside me.

Leora’s eyes narrowed as she crossed her arms. “What’s Plan B?”

Selena scoffed. “We have a Plan B?”

Atropos tilted her head. “What was Plan A anyway?”

I sighed, running a hand through my hair. “Plan A was me trying to engineer a ‘kill’ for the Prophet via borrowed knife. It didn’t work. I forced the narrative instead of outwitting it.”

Leora’s expression softened slightly, but her gaze remained expectant.

I couldn’t tell them the truth—that this world was a novel I’d written. But the idea was painfully simple: manipulate the narrative to our advantage. “The future is fixed in certain ways,” I began, choosing my words carefully. “There’s no escaping destiny. The only thing we can do is bend to it and satiate it.”

Leora frowned, her grip tightening on my arm. “What are you saying?”

I exhaled slowly. “Once Leon reaches the age of ten, he’ll be orphaned and set off on his adventure in the Forbidden Region—or at least part of it. This is a definite truth.”

Selena’s eyes widened, her usual sarcasm absent. “Wait, what? Orphaned? You mean…”

I turned to her, nodding gravely. “Selena, I want you to be his godmother.”

Selena froze, uncharacteristically silent.

Leora’s hand trembled in mine. “You don’t mean…”

I gave her a sad smile. “I saw the future.” Or, more accurately, I’d written it.

Her face crumpled, tears streaming down her cheeks. “We… we die?”

I nodded, pulling her into a hug. “Yes. But that doesn’t mean we have to go quietly.”

Leora’s sobs grew louder as she clung to me. “And you’re thinking of faking our deaths?”

I held her tighter, my own heart breaking. “It’s the only way to give Leon the chance he needs. We have eight years, Leora. Eight years to prepare him, to love him, to make every moment count.”

“It doesn’t make it better,” she cried, her voice muffled against my chest.

“I know,” I whispered, my voice cracking. “But it’s all we have.”

Selena finally found her voice, though it was softer than I’d ever heard it. “So… what’s the plan?”

I looked at each of them in turn—Selena, Atropos, Leora. My family, my allies, my only hope. “We outwit the narrative. We prepare for what’s coming, and when the time is right, we bend destiny to our will.” The weight of the world pressed down on me, but as I held Leora close and met Selena’s determined gaze, I felt a flicker of hope. This wasn’t the end. Not yet.

~066