Upon arriving in Artimia, the trio's excitement quickly dissolved into horror. The town lay in ruins. Its once-peaceful streets were overrun with armored soldiers, their blades gleaming and flames dancing at their heels.
Men on horseback tore through the roads, weapons drawn, while townspeople fled in terror, tripping over one another to escape the onslaught.
Theo stared, his voice trembling. "What's going on?"
"The town is…" Dawn whispered, her eyes wide with disbelief, "...it's burning."
David's mind raced, trying to make sense of it all. "A raid?"
They ducked behind a stone wall, watching the chaos unfold. Flames consumed buildings. Smoke curled high into the air. Screams echoed, mingling with the roar of fire and the clang of steel.
Theo clenched his fists. "We should split up. Find our families faster."
David grabbed his shoulder. "No. We stick together."
Tension crackled between them, but Dawn stepped in quickly.
"Theo, listen to me. David's right. They taught us what to do if something like this ever happened."
David nodded. "Our families are probably already at the meeting place."
"They're waiting for us," Dawn said, steadying her voice.
Theo looked from one friend to the other. Then he took a breath and nodded. "Yeah. You're right."
They crept along the burning streets, sticking to the shadows. As they passed charred storefronts and smoldering homes, Dawn pointed to a group of soldiers breaking into buildings.
"What are they doing?" she whispered.
Theo narrowed his eyes. "Maybe looking for something?"
David's sharp gaze shifted. "Over there. Look."
A group of townspeople knelt on the ground as if they were praying. And pacing before them, unmistakable in his presence, was a madman in shimmering light armor, his movements deliberate and theatrical.
Sedgwick Fullerman—Section Commander of Sector Five.
Though average in height, he stood out in light armor and a cosmic blue and gold cloak, its linen glinting with a shifting prism pattern.
His face was unnervingly smooth, doll-like, almost feminine. His long, sleek hair draped down his back, tied into a decorative braid that coiled like a snake.
"I wouldn't need to do this if you had just paid your taxes!" Sedgwick shouted, pacing in front of the trembling crowd. "Why haven't the taxes been paid?"
A desperate man looked up. "Please, sir—we've been dealing with a drought. The crops… they won't grow. With help, we can repay you—"
"Are you suggesting His Grace does not support you fools?" Sedgwick's voice turned cold. "You Wasteland scum should be honored to breathe his air!"
He raised his hand and hovered it over the man's neck, where a visible microchip was implanted.
"Please, no!" the man begged. "I apologize, Section Commander Sedgwick!"
A bright glow flared from Sedgwick's palm. The chip sparked. The man's body convulsed. His eyes rolled back. Foam bubbled from his lips as he collapsed—mind-wiped.
Some of the townsfolk bolted in fear. Sedgwick didn't stop them. Instead, he waved a hand.
"Let them run. Kill whoever you catch."
His soldiers obeyed without hesitation.
Sedgwick inhaled deeply, eyes half-lidded. "Ah. Nothing like a good mind-wipe to start the day."
Theo gritted his teeth. "What was that? What did he do to him?"
Dawn shook her head. "No idea…"
"It looked like he burned out his KC," David whispered. "Fried his brain."
Sedgwick's voice rang out again. "Once more, I ask—where are the children?" Or are you telling me they've all miraculously aged since my last visit?"
The townspeople said nothing. Their silence was thick with fear.
Then, one man lifted his chin. "There are no children here."
Sedgwick's smile vanished. His hand glowed again. A flash—and the man collapsed, lifeless.
"Lies!" Sedgwick snapped. "All of you lie! I do everything to ensure your happiness in Sector Five—and this is how I'm repaid?"
Theo and Dawn exchanged a glance, their bodies rigid with fear.
"Let's go," David said, tugging Theo's arm. "We have to reach the meeting point."
Just as they turned to leave, two soldiers marched up to Sedgwick, dragging a man and a woman behind them.
"Section Commander!" one called.
"What is it?" Sedgwick snarled. "I'm busy!"
"Apologies, sir, but we found these two."
Sedgwick turned slowly, his eyes lowering onto the couple being shoved to the ground before him.
"A man and his whore...? And what use do you imbeciles think I would have for them!?" he spat, his voice sharp enough to slice flesh.
"We found them escorting children out of town, sir."
Sedgwick's demeanor shifted instantly.
"Children? How many?"
"Three, sir."
Sedgwick's lips curled into a satisfied grin.
"Better than nothing. Keep searching."
As the soldiers left, Sedgwick loomed over the couple, now cowering at his feet.
"Where are the rest of the children?" he hissed. "Tell me, and maybe I'll let you beg for your life."
Theo gasped. "Mom… Dad…"
Alvin and Alicia Gray.
Theo's parents.
Sedgwick didn't know who they were. But Theo did. He watched in helpless horror.
Alvin's face twisted with defiance. "As if we'd ever deal with filth like you."
He spat on Sedgwick's boot.
Sedgwick's eyes twitched with rage. He shoved his boot into Alvin's face.
Alicia cried out, struggling, but held firm.
"Take a look at this lovely couple," Sedgwick sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. "To honor them, I'll send them to the afterlife together!"
The soldiers roared with laughter, jeering as they circled Alvin and Alicia like vultures waiting to feed.
From the shadows behind a crumbled wall, Theo clenched his fists, trembling with fury. His breath hitched as tears welled in his eyes, blurring the sight of his parents kneeling in the dust.
He surged forward—
But David caught him.
"Don't!" David hissed, arms locking around Theo's shoulders. "You can't help them!"
"Let me go!" Theo growled, straining against David's grip. "That's my mom and dad!"
David held firm, muscles shaking with the effort. "I know. But if you go out there, they die for nothing!"
Across the ways, as if hearing their voices in the wind, Alvin lifted his head.
And he saw them.
His eyes met Theo's—just for a second. A flicker of recognition. A flash of pride.
Alvin smiled. A soft, knowing smile that cut deeper than any scream.
He turned to Alicia, gripping her hand tightly.
"Live!" he shouted, voice cracking. "Live and change this world!"
A blinding light flared from Sedgwick's hand.
The moment stretched—
Then, the light vanished.
Alvin and Alicia collapsed where they knelt.
Silent. Empty.
Then—crack.
A second burst of light tore through the air, hitting Alvin's skull and snapping it back in a gruesome jolt.
Sedgwick lowered his glowing finger, eyes burning with cruel satisfaction.
The soldiers roared with laughter.
"What a lunatic," Sedgwick said, wiping imaginary dust from his cloak. "Just started shouting nonsense out of nowhere."
He turned back to the line of the townsfolk.
"So. Who's next?"
Theo's breath came in ragged gasps. His vision blurred—not from the smoke billowing throughout the town, but from tears welling too fast to blink away.
His world had just shattered. Not slowly. Not with a warning. In an instant. A detonation in his chest that left only wreckage.
He couldn't breathe. Couldn't think. Just the image of their bodies—his mother and father—crumpled and lifeless in the dust.
His ears rang, drowning out the flames, the soldiers' laughter, the cries of the townsfolk.
It was like the whole world had gone mute except for the sound of his heart—pounding, wild, like it was trying to escape his chest.
"Theo," David whispered behind him. "Don't."
But Theo wasn't listening.
His fists trembled at his sides, fingers curled so tightly they dug into his palms. Something hot and awful boiled in his stomach—rage, yes, but more than that.
Grief. Helplessness. A scream that couldn't leave his throat.
He turned to look at them one more time.
Alvin's hand still held Alicia's. Even in death.
Something snapped inside him.
Dawn reached for his arm, her voice shaking. "Theo, please—don't do this. They'd want you to live…"
He yanked his arm free from David's grip, his voice hoarse and low.
"I'm not hiding anymore."
"Theo..." Dawn's voice broke, panicked.
But it was too late.
He stepped out from behind the rubble.
Then he ran.
Toward the soldiers.
Toward vengeance.
Every step felt like falling. Like he was running off the edge of a cliff and didn't care if there was anything or anyone to catch him.
His friends shouted behind him, but their voices were swallowed by the roar in his head.
The world narrowed to one man.
One monster.
Sedgwick Fullerman.
"I'll kill you!" Theo screamed, voice cracked and raw, like it was tearing itself from his soul.
His feet pounded the dirt, heart hammering louder than the war drums of his fear.
Soldiers turned, and their eyes widened.
Theo's feet thundered against the scorched ground, kicking up ash and dust. He sprinted like a bullet—raw, reckless, and roaring with grief.
His fists clenched, every step powered by fury.
Crackling light gathered in soldiers' palms—pulsing, unstable. The hum of charged energy filled the air like a siren.
But Theo, he didn't stop.
He didn't blink.
Because he wasn't thinking. He wasn't planning.
He was done hiding.
Theo didn't care if he lived or died.
Because they were gone.
And someone had to answer for it.
"Sir! Target approaching!" one soldier shouted.
David and Dawn's voices tore through the chaos, screaming Theo's name from behind the rubble—but their words were drowned beneath the rising howl of converging energy.
Theo's eyes locked on Sedgwick.
That smug grin. That casual stance. Like he was already bored.
Like Theo's rage meant nothing.
Then—
The world erupted.