I used my Day Pass to get home, switching tram lines only twice along the way.
I was worried that if ZK-0 entered the tram, someone might stumble on his cloaked self – something that would cause me a lot of trouble. So instead, I ordered him to climb the tram’s roof, and then to follow me again once I hopped off.
I entered my district – the Central-East. It was exactly what the name implied: the central area of the eastern side of the platform. If you looked at Orlinth from above and compared it to a watch, my home district would sit right at the center of the three-hour line.
Like most residential districts in Orlinth, Central-East was extremely cramped. Residential buildings couldn’t exceed five floors – or fifteen meters. Officially, this was to prevent buildings from reaching Skyhaven’s platform above.
But, I mean, come on…that’s laughable.
Skyhaven was a whole kilometer above our highest rooftops. There was really no harm in adding a few more floors to spread people out. Instead, builders narrowed the structures, practically gluing them together in places while making most apartments barely fit for living in.
As I entered the district proper, my COG beeped with a notification.
[17:45]
[Notification]
[Dear Annual Expo attendees, a message from your leader will now play through the Divine’s central phonotube array]
Dalton Rose was about to give a speech at the Divine? Maybe that’s how Valdemar’s attack begins. Meaning I had little time to waste.
I quickened my pace, threading through the mostly-empty, familiar walkways toward my building. That was when I stumbled on a familiar, unexpected face.
Emma. A high school friend and one-time crush. I hadn’t seen her since graduation day.
She stood near the entrance of one of the buildings, smoking a cigarette, brown hair pulled into a ponytail, her dark green stark against pale skin.
“Viktor?” she said, eyes wide. “What are you doing here?”
As surprising as it was to see her, I wasn’t in the mood to catch up.
“I live here,” I said, already angling to move past. “Listen, can we do this – “
“How are you?” she cut in. “I’m so glad to see you…you know…not behind bars. That night in the bar – it was wild…”
My chest tightened at the memory of what I’d done, the guy I’d beaten bloody. “Yeah…well, thanks for testifying in my favor. It helped.”
Her expression shifted, guilt and disappointment replacing the smile. “Actually, Viktor…” She hesitated, looking on the verge of tears. “I think it’s fate I saw you today. Or more like divine punishment.”
Divine punishment? Really?
“What’s up?” I asked warily.
“The truth is…I didn’t testify at all,” she said, looking away.
“Wait…you didn’t testify?”
She shook her head. “My father said there was no way you’d avoid execution no matter what, and standing up for you would only tarnish our family’s name, so – “ Her voice broke. “I’ve been feeling horrible ever since. Most nights, I couldn't sleep thinking about what a disgusting person I am.”
She started crying.
I blinked, growing confused, but quickly got a hold of myself.
It’s not important right now.
I sighed – deeply. “Well,” I said, stepping around her. “The others were enough. So…thanks for nothing.”
“Wait!” she called after me. “Please forgive me! I need to know you forgave me!”
I ignored her and kept moving.
A new realization formed in my mind: maybe people in Orlinth weren’t much different from those in Skyhaven. In the end, everyone just looked out for themselves.
***
I climbed the staircase of our building, passing rusty railings, peeling paint, and dirty floor.
“Stay here,” I whispered to ZK-0. The last thing I wanted was for him to come out of camouflage and scare Dad.
At the door, I fished the key from my pocket and unlocked it.
Inside, Dad was siting in our cramped living room, elbows on knees, face buried in his hands. His brown hair was messy after what looked like a sleepless night. He looked up the moment he heard me.
He shot to his feet and crossed the room in three strides, pulling me into a tight hug. “Oh, Viktor, thank goodness you’re alright!”
“I am, Dad,” I said, hugging him back, feeling his warmth. “I’m sorry I didn’t contact you sooner.”
“Don’t worry about it.” He stepped back, scanning me. “Where were you?”
I sighed, looking away. “On the way back from Dr. Aresa, I…I was arrested again.”
Dad’s eyes widened, his face went pale. He looked like his greatest fear came true. “What? What happened?”
I shook my head. “Don’t worry. It was De – “ I stopped myself, clearing my throat. “Their system malfunctioned and flagged me as Libra. It was just a mistake.”
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“Libra? You?” His brow furrowed. “Are they stupid?”
“Yes,” I said, thinking of Devin. “Yes, they are.”
He exhaled in relief. “Well, at least you’re okay.” Then his eyes widened. “Wait, what about the Expo? Let’s get you there quickly – maybe it’s not too late – “
“Dad.” I stopped him. “It’s too late.”
His expression softened, sadness in his eyes. “Oh, Son, I’m sorry. I know how much this meant to you. You’ve been talking about it for – “
“No,” I cut in. “It’s fine. It wasn’t that important.”
He didn’t look convinced, so before he could say anything else, I went on.
“Listen, Dad. I really need to ask you something.”
He froze, then smirked at the mood I set with the question. “I think you’re a bit too old to be asking where babies come from.”
I chuckled, but only weakly. My failure when confronting Valdemar still gnawed at me.
“Let’s sit,” I said, lowering myself onto the couch – old, worn, and stained. But that’s what happens when you refuse to replace something that reminds you of someone, or even move it an inch.
“Sit?” he echoed, still smiling but with a trace of tension in his voice. “Must be serious.”
He sat beside me.
I took a moment, working out how to approach this in the smoothest way possible.
“I don’t want you jumping into wild conclusions,” I began. “And no counter-questions. Just trust me and answer what you can. Okay?”
He studied me for a long moment, then nodded. “Of course, Son.”
I let out a small breath. Good start.
“When I was little, back when Mother was still around…did any of her colleagues visit often?” I fired away the first question.
He looked like he might ask something, then caught himself and smiled.
“Well…your mother usually worked in her old guild’s workshop, rarely at home,” he said. “But if there was someone who visited a lot, it was Richard Watson.”
The name rang a bell. I saw him in Memory Fragment #6.
He was also the man I assumed handed me her Dematerializer during one of time loop’s previous runs.
But the Memory Fragment showed him meeting Valdemar. How the masked man terrorized him mentally, openly blaming him for Mother’s murder, and handing him the device – calling it his burden.
Richard Watson couldn’t be Valdemar.
“He was her classmate,” Dad continued. “He was accepted to Skyhaven not long after her too. I hear he’s the Chief Engineer at DGO – “
“Anyone else comes to mind?” I interrupted. “You mentioned her old guild – what was it called again?”
“Blackthorn,” he said.
“Right.” I nodded, remembering the name. “Anyone from there used to drop by? Even just socially?”
Dad tapped his chin, then gave me a worried look. “I know you told me not to ask, but…I can’t help myself. Did someone from your mother’s past approached you?”
I sighed.
I couldn’t tell him the truth. And I didn’t have time to waste. But…he was Dad. The man who’d raised me alone, worked himself ragged so I’d have everything I needed. I didn’t want to be rude. I didn’t want to lie either.
“Dad,” I said, quieter than intended. “Everything will be okay. Just…help me with this, will you? I’ll explain later.”
He held my gaze, then exhaled.
“No one comes to mind. Maybe a few one-off visits, but nothing regular. And it’s been so long, I barely remember their names or faces.”
I closed my eyes, rubbing my temples, at a loss.
“If you’re looking for someone who knew your mother and saw you a lot as a baby during that time, it’s her guild you should be looking at,” Dad suddenly said. “And forgive me if I made the wrong connection.”
He made the right connection. But…
“Why her guild?”
“She took you there constantly,” he replied. “She could never just sit at home – her mind was always working. Most of the time she’d strap you into a baby sling and take you to work. She did it so often her guild eventually even set up a crib for you in her workshop.”
My confusion deepened. Suddenly, the cold image I’d built of my mother over the years began showing cracks. That was…almost wholesome.
“What? Why is this the first time I’m hearing about it?”
Dad raised an eyebrow. “I’m a hundred percent sure I shared this with you before.”
No way. I wouldn’t forget something like that. It wasn't surprising to hear him say that, though. It wasn't the first time he mixed things like this up.
Anyway, I can’t lose focus now.
“Her old guild – do you still remember the address?”
He nodded, standing. “I’m pretty sure I had it written somewhere. Let me check.”
He headed for his workshop, while the gears in my mind were still turning.
I called after him. “This’ll sound stupid, but…I need something that screams “Blackthorn”. Do we have anything like that?”
***
Dad searched for a while. Eventually he gave me a medal.
It was brass – Mother’s prize for placing first in her guild’s annual inner competition for new recruits when she was only eighteen.
On the back, engraved neatly was the letter 'B' surrounded by a circle - Blackthorn's logo.
I half-expected the Déjà vu System to reject it, to throw up some new hurdle. But my worry was for nothing – the medal vanished from my hand and reappeared inside the Inventory.
Thinking of the Armor-Piercer made me realize I actually had nothing to worry about. The gun had Stanford’s initials engraved on it – something the system hadn't found problematic even though it was a soft clue – so there was no reason the same logic wouldn’t apply to this medal.
Dad was reluctant to see me go after I just got back. He said that I should rest after everything that happened. And I’d be lying if I said I didn’t want to.
But I couldn’t rest. Not when so much depended on me.
I left, promising to return soon.
The address he gave me was only a twenty-minute walk away, but it cut through gang territory.
“Zee, watch my back,” I ordered the automaton.
Yes, I called it Zee. Like Skarn said, it wasn't my family's dog, so I was reluctant at first. But Zee just rolled off the tongue better than ZK-0.
The streets were emptier than usual. Like…entirely empty. No soul outside other than me.
But the lights inside the buildings around gave me some comfort.
Somewhere along the way, the System displayed a message and I realized it wasn’t gangs I had to worry about on this short journey of mine.
It was Erebus.
[Déjà vu System Alert]
[Darkness Ascension Imminent]
[Countdown to the End of the World: 00:19:59]
[System will collapse after this event]
Déjà vu rang in my mind, and my heart began beating faster.
My last conversation with Chronos eased some of my worries. At least I didn’t have to look for ways to kill myself before Darkness claimed me.
But my concern wasn’t me – it was Zee.
I glanced at the cloaked hound, my mind reeling.
There was no way I was going to the Asylum in the next run to get it. Not again.
Valdemar might not show up to save me next time, and I couldn’t trust my amnesiac self not to walk into the same sleeping gas trap twice.
“What do I do with you? I sighed, crouching to rest my hand on its head.
Suddenly, an idea crossed my mind.
“Can I…?” I muttered before –
Store.
The automaton vanished.
Eyes wide, I opened the Inventory screen:
- Key Item: ZK-O, Aetherprint: SKO-03543
Unbelievable.
A grin spread across my face. It worked. It actually worked!
Then my gaze snagged on the two words before its name: Key Item.
What did that mean? Another question for Chronos, I guess…
With the run almost over, I reminded myself – next loop, I’d be watching the two new Memory Fragments for the first time. This will trigger the Obsidian Crow’s appearance.
The thought was chilling…but, surprisingly, it didn’t last.
I summoned something else I grabbed before leaving the house – a photograph of me and Dad when I was seven. He’d rented a camera to capture us working together in his workshop.
There was a whole album of those pictures somewhere in the house, but only one had been framed. I took it as a reminder.
Maybe seeing Dad this run gave me more hope. Reminded me of who I was fighting for. Reminded me that I needed to be better, smarter, and more cunning if I wanted to succeed.
Because against the Primarch, Libra, and the literal Embodiment of Darkness nothing other than perfect wouldn’t cut it.
Either way, I was ready.
For the Crow. For Valdemar. Even for Erebus himself.
No half measures. No half-assing this.
Bring it on.
Ideas kept crossing my mind. I could only hope I'd remember them all in the runs to come.
Oh, I couldn’t wait for the restart.
A few minutes later, I died.
New release schedule (for now): one new chapter every other day, starting today. That means: Sun-Tue-Thu-Sat this week, then Mon-Wed-Fri next week. Overall, that's 7 chapters every two weeks (instead of 10).