(POV – Victor Hale)
As he watched the being made entirely of mosaic in the center of the lake, Victor felt a mix of fascination and unease ripple through his body. Something about the scene was deeply wrong, though he couldn't put his finger on exactly what. His eyes locked onto the fragmented figure, reflecting in the still waters with an almost hypnotic shimmer.
Instinctively, his hands clenched tightly, knuckles pressing into his palms until a reddish mark began to form, as if his own body were reacting to the silent danger radiating from that enigmatic presence.
Each breath felt heavier, each heartbeat echoed in his head, while the mosaic remained still, yet brimming with a quiet threat Victor couldn't yet comprehend.
Victor had dreamed of this day countless times, but never imagined what it would actually feel like. Anger? Maybe — anger at that thing that had completely destroyed his future, that had reduced his plans to rubble. Anger for leaving his sister in that deplorable state, bedridden, a fragile shadow of the vibrant, lively person she once was.
Or was it sorrow? Sorrow for the simple days now out of reach, when all that mattered was hearing her laughter as she ran around, lighthearted and carefree, with no hurry, no fear.
He wanted to feel something concrete, but the emptiness in his chest kept confusing him, making the pain even quieter and more unbearable. Yet, above the whirlwind of emotions consuming Victor in that moment, there was one feeling that overshadowed all the others: relentless self-criticism.
It was a suffocating guilt — guilt for not being able to save her, for being nothing more than a fragile human in front of an entity that could very well be considered a god. He blamed himself for his helplessness, for being... so useless just when his sister — the person he loved most, the last true tie to his family — needed him the most.
As the environment fell into tense silence at the sudden appearance of the mosaic being, everyone seemed to hesitate in taking a breath. It was Laura who, with restrained courage, broke the silence with cautious words, almost whispered, yet heavy with apprehension: "I don't want to be a buzzkill, but... what was the plan when we found the anomaly again?"
No one had time to answer Laura. The instant she spoke, the mosaic being hovering a few seconds above the lake simply vanished, as if swallowed by the air. Emily, Laura, and Victor widened their eyes in disbelief, hearts racing.
Their faces darted in every direction, frantically searching for the anomaly, but the still surface of the lake and the silent surroundings gave no clue as to where it could have gone. A cold wind swept along the shore, stirring small waves that reflected the soft light of the evening.
No matter where they looked, Victor, Emily, and Laura could find no trace of the mosaic anomaly. It was as if the strange phenomenon had never existed. The silence that followed weighed heavily in the air, broken only by Emily's quiet whisper.
Until then silent, she finally spoke, her voice trembling slightly as it echoed through the clearing, filled with doubt: "Was... that an illusion?"
Laura and Victor exchanged quick glances, each trying to decipher their own disbelief. The emptiness left by the vanished mosaic was unsettling, and the wind rustling through the trees seemed to mock their confusion.
Although Emily's words sounded more like a question to herself than a concrete answer, Laura and Victor felt something similar. The thought appeared and vanished as quickly as it came, leaving only a shadow of doubt — was it just an illusion?
Yet, at that moment, something unexpected happened: a shared feeling arose in all three of them at the same time, a silent, almost tangible connection that seemed to pulse between them, aligning their perceptions in a single instant of strange clarity.
They felt it clearly: something was behind them, very close. But since when had it been there? Seconds ago, the feeling hadn't existed, and now it appeared suddenly, as if the presence had materialized from nowhere, silent and cold.
A shiver ran down their spines, and the faint sound of leaves being crushed in the distance made their hearts race, while the certainty that they were not alone rooted itself uncomfortably. Emily, Laura, and Victor slowly turned, only to find another mosaic anomaly standing still behind the [Angel of Death].
Strangely, the [Angel of Death] seemed oblivious to the new presence, keeping her gaze fixed on Victor, Emily, and Laura, with that cold, indifferent expression she always carried. But her indifference didn't last long.
With a sudden movement, the [Angel of Death] spun on her heels, and for an instant that seemed to stretch forever, the two anomalies stared at each other. The air around them thickened, heavy with tension, as if their mere gaze could shift the balance of everything nearby. Yes, with a simple motion — as natural as breathing for the mosaic anomaly — she extended her hand.
In the next instant, a sharp, dry snap cut through the air. Victor, Emily, and Laura's eyes widened, unsure how to react, as the presence that had been beside them moments ago — the [Angel of Death] — vanished, as if reality itself had been paused and restarted without her.
One moment she was there; the next, nothing remained but air and heavy silence. It was as if she had been erased from the scene, wiped from existence with a single, definitive snap.
***
(POV – Protagonist)
My body was locked in an endless battle between melting and regenerating. The faster I plummeted toward the earth, the more heat radiated from me, as if every second of the fall fueled an internal furnace.
My temperature at that moment must have rivaled a erupting volcano, skin burning, muscles contracting under the weight of invisible flames consuming me. Still, despite feeling like a walking furnace, all I could do was close my eyes for a moment and pray I didn't land on some poor soul in my path.
My vision was completely blurred — though it hardly mattered, as technically I didn't need my own eyes to see. Watching the situation from a higher perspective, in third person, my consciousness projected itself over the scene, as if floating above the world.
Only then, through the clouds of confusion and indistinct blurs, did I finally make out the firm texture of the earth beneath my feet, solid and unyielding, offering a silent relief amidst the chaos.
The place looked like a small town, with a few scattered houses and narrow streets partially covered in snow. In the center stood the largest building, which at first glance seemed like some kind of market or maybe a community hall.
Everything around was blanketed in white, and the cold was almost tangible, making the air feel like crystal. Every breath formed little clouds in front of my scorched face. For a moment, I imagined being somewhere in the remote Arctic—or at least somewhere so cold that every detail of the town seemed swallowed by ice.
At the same time, now transformed into a ball of burning fire, I slammed into the snow-covered ground. My body, already starting to melt on impact, spread out violently over the frozen concrete, deforming into a viscous, disgusting mass.
The steaming goo spread in all directions, giving off a sharp, burnt smell that mixed with the biting cold of the surrounding snow. Tiny pops and wisps of smoke appeared wherever I touched. Even though I had expected something like this might happen, seeing my body fragment into pieces was still deeply unsettling.
It's not that I felt pain or any real physical discomfort, but the strange sense of being scattered in pieces, each one in a different place, is... at the very least, disturbing. It's like a part of my consciousness tries to follow each fragment, creating a constant feeling of disorientation.
Still, as always, my regeneration started to do its work. I could feel, perfectly, the parts of my body being pulled back together, as if some invisible, persistent force was dragging them into the right place.
At the same time, murmurs started echoing from all around, indistinct and enveloping. The closer they got, the clearer they became, until I finally managed to make out what they were saying.
"... A meteor?" murmured a male voice, full of surprise and awe, clearly an adult.
"Oh my God... if it had hit a house... I don't even want to imagine what could have happened" said another female voice, trembling with fear.
"I saw it fall from the sky... everything turned red for a moment..." The female voice shook with anxiety and disbelief: "But... there wasn't an explosion? I... I heard meteors that size can wipe out half a big city"
The voices appeared slowly, like distant echoes cutting through the persistent ringing in my ears after the impact. Each word felt like an invisible thread pulling my consciousness back, forcing me to emerge from the murky abyss I was sinking into.
I could still feel parts of my body dragging along, grotesquely joining together as if obeying their own will, but it was impossible to ignore the murmurs growing around me, intertwining and gaining strength, demanding my attention.
"Look... something's moving inside the crater!" A distinctly male voice carried a tone of apprehension.
"Don't go near it! I heard these meteorites can be radioactive" a female voice, different from the others, echoed through the area.
With every murmur reaching my ears, the air around seemed to harden, becoming sharper. The cold from the snow mingled with the strange heat still radiating from me, forming a dense, wavering mist that wrapped around me like a spectral cloak.
Some people backed away, their steps crunching in the snow under the weight of contained panic; others stayed frozen, caught between fear and curiosity, eyes fixed on me as if I were a presence defying reality itself.
"Is this really a meteor?" someone murmured cautiously: "It's weird that there wasn't any explosion... not even a flash, nothing"
"No... I can see something moving down there! No doubt... there's something alive"
The murmurs continued around me, but honestly, I didn't care. The more my body regenerated, the more my movements returned, as if every fiber was regaining its own consciousness. My whole body was practically restored, only my legs left, as if they had been ripped off and thrown far away.
The steam rising from the clash of biting cold and the heat I emitted, mixed with the thick smoke from the crater, began to dissipate slowly, revealing the terrain around me again, marked by the chaos I had left behind.
Although not completely clear, I could make out several silhouettes at the edges of the crater, watching me silently. Honestly, I wasn't afraid of being seen—at this point, the whole world probably already knew about the anomalies.
The real problem was something else: most humans would react by shooting at the first sign of something unusual. Of course, it goes without saying that this majority would be wiped out in seconds, unable to grasp the reality hiding behind what they called an "anomaly".
Anyway, as the silhouettes around the crater became clearer to me, I realized they were probably seeing me just as clearly. Just as I expected: wide-eyed stares began to spread across the crowd forming around the crater.
And me? What was I doing in the meantime? Actually... nothing. Or rather, what could I do without my two legs? I stayed there, motionless, just waiting for them to come back, feeling every second drag on as the tension around me increased.
The more people finally noticed me in the crater, the more their faces twisted into a confused mix of surprise and fear. Eyes met, nervous whispers floated through the air, and a few took a step back instinctively. Seriously... no one's just going to start shooting at me out of nowhere, right? That would definitely be... rude.