Chapter 24 — The Long Wait
The afternoon sunlight poured gently through the half-open curtains, scattering soft patterns across Soma's room.
A faint breeze drifted through the window, stirring the corner of a comic book lying open on his lap.
The air smelled faintly of old paper, soap, and dust — the kind of scent that lingers when days pass without much happening.
Soma turned a page, then stopped halfway through, his expression blank.
Finally, with a sigh, he tossed the comic onto the bed.
"I'm bored to death," he muttered.
It had been over five days since the blackout incident — the day the world went dark for twelve long seconds. Because of the lockdown, he hadn't left the house once. The stillness was suffocating.
Across the room, Alex hovered in her compact form — a faint sphere of light pulsing softly near the window.
Soma looked up at her. "Hey," he said, half joking, half serious. "Why don't we check on the twin-sun world?"
> "More than seven hundred years have passed there," Alex replied, her voice smooth and even. "We should see how the Void Filler machine is performing."
Soma's eyes brightened slightly. "Then let's do it."
Without another word, Alex's form unraveled into a beam of silver light and entered Soma's chest.
He closed his eyes and exhaled slowly. The hum of the ceiling fan faded, replaced by a deep silence.
Within that silence, the Rune appeared —as he focused on the closed-eye symbol, his mind slipped into stillness—and the next breath carried him into another world.
---
When his consciousness returned, Soma stood in open space.
The stars stretched endlessly across the black expanse. Below his feet lay a vast, continent-sized world — flat and scarred, like a broken painting.
He recognized it immediately.
The painted world.
But it was no longer what it once had been.
The twin mountains that once stood proud had fractured into colossal shards. Thousands of kilometers of stone had fallen inward, forming vast craters that glowed with molten light. Fire spread across the planet's surface, rivers of lava cutting through what had once been green valleys.
As Soma drifted lower, he could feel the air itself tremble. And from the ashes, something shimmered — countless souls, rising from the burning planet's surface like trails of mist. They drifted upward, joining him one by one, until they merged with his form in a soft silver glow.
It felt peaceful… and heartbreaking.
> "Creator…"
The voice echoed faintly from within him, a whisper that trembled with awe and fear.
Soma looked up.
The two suns that had once burned side by side were now locked in a slow, violent dance. Their magnetic fields intertwined, twisting light and flame into colossal spirals.
The space between them had nearly vanished. Waves of plasma surged between their bodies, forming bridges of fire that tore across the void.
It was beautiful and terrifying at the same time.
> "Creator, we should go back," Alex's voice broke the trance. "The space is unstable. A single solar flare could send us thousands of kilometers away."
Soma nodded silently. He closed his eyes and focused once again on the closed eye of the Rune.
---
When he opened them, the world around him was small again — quiet , safe.
The ceiling fan spun lazily overhead. His comic still lay on the bed where he'd dropped it.
Alex floated nearby, her glow dimmer than before.
> "The twin suns have begun merging," she said quietly. "Creator needs to increase the time ratio inside that world."
Soma rubbed his forehead. "How long will it take for them to stabilize — and for a new planet to form?"
Alex paused, processing the calculation.
> "From stellar fusion to full stabilization and planetary cooling…" she said finally, "approximately seven to ten million years."
Soma sat up, groaning. "Ten million years? That's ridiculous."
He flopped back onto the bed, groaning softly. I can't wait ten million years, Alex.
Closing his eyes again, he visualized the Rune once more. This time, he focused on the Third Ring — Chronos: The Ring of Time.
The glowing symbols began to orbit slowly, each radiating a steady, rhythmic light.
---
First Symbol
> Time Ratio: 10×
Required 1,000 Awakened Souls to activate.
Soma focused on the Second Symbol.
> Time Ratio: 100×
Unlock Requirement: 10,000 Awakened Souls
Yes / No
He selected Yes.
A ripple of energy spread through the symbol, awakening it.
Third Symbol
> Time Ratio: 1,000×
Unlock Requirement: 1,000 Intelligent Souls or 1,000,000 Awakened Souls
Yes / No
"Let's go with yes again," Soma murmured.
The Rune's glow deepened.
Fourth Symbol
> Time Ratio: 10,000×
Unlock Requirement: 10,000 Intelligent Souls or 10,000,000 Awakened Souls
Yes / No
After a moment's hesitation, Soma whispered, "Yes."
The symbol pulsed once — then a faint fifth symbol flickered, half-formed.
> Not enough souls.
Requires 10,000 Transcendental Souls to unlock .
Alex's calm voice filled his mind.
> "10,000× is sufficient. At that ratio, one day on Earth equals roughly 1,440,000 years in the twin-sun world. To reach ten million years there, you'll only need to wait about… one week."
Soma exhaled softly. "One week, huh? That's not bad at all."
He focused again on the fourth symbol.
> Requires 1,000 Awakened Souls to Activate.
Yes / No
As he selected "Yes," the symbol began to spin, light rippling outward like waves across still water.
Soma leaned back against his pillow, letting out a long, steady breath.
"Now we have to wait," he murmured.
----
The late afternoon light slanted across the small study room, spilling over stacks of papers, old books, and half-drunk cups of tea.
A man sat at a wooden workbench, his glasses slightly crooked, eyes fixed on a single sheet of paper — studying it as though it held some hidden magic.
"Papa! Papa!" a small girl called, her laughter echoing down the hallway. "Play with me!"
The man smiled wearily and lifted her into his arms. "Not now, my little queen," he said gently. "Papa has a lot of work today."
From the kitchen, a soft clatter of dishes followed by the smell of warm curry drifted in. A woman stepped out, wiping her hands on her apron.
"Don't bother your papa while he's working," she said with a fond smile, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear.
Standing beside him, she glanced at the desk. "Nilesh, you've been staring at that paper for nearly an hour. What's so special about it?"
Nilesh exhaled softly, still focused on the sheet in front of him.
"You noticed, huh?" He tapped the page with his pen. "It's a history test paper. But these answers… they're something else."
He looked at her, a spark of fascination in his tired eyes.
"It doesn't read like a high school student wrote it. It's more like… something a graduate scholar or historian would write — precise, layered, even poetic in places."
The woman tilted her head, curiosity flickering. "Oh? What's the student's name?"
Nilesh adjusted his glasses and read aloud, "Soma Jaswan."
The woman smiled, bouncing the little girl gently in her arms. "That's a lovely name. So what's wrong with his paper?"
"Nothing," Nilesh said, his tone softening. "Except his handwriting — it's awful." He chuckled. "But the answers… flawless. Almost too flawless."
He stared at the paper for a long moment, then added quietly, as if to himself,
"It's like whoever wrote this has lived a thousand lifetimes before putting down a single word."
----
The faint clinking of dishes echoed through the kitchen as Savitri stirred a bowl of rice. The smell of cumin and ghee lingered warmly in the air.
She glanced over her shoulder at Soma, who was finishing his dinner.
Holding a spoon in one hand, she said casually,
> "Soma, the grass in our garden has grown too tall again. Could you clean it up for me tomorrow?"
Soma rinsed his plate, nodding. "Sure. I don't have anything else to do anyway."
Savitri smiled, her eyes softening.
> "Thank you, dear. I'll prepare a little surprise for you then."
He chuckled faintly. "Now that sounds suspicious."
She laughed quietly and waved him off. "Go, go — get some sleep. You've been looking tired lately."
Drying his hands, Soma said good night and headed toward his room. The hallway lights glowed dimly, casting long golden shadows along the floor.
---
When he opened his door, he froze for a moment.
Alex hovered in front of the computer screen, her body a faint shimmer of silver light. The monitor flickered with complex diagrams — rotating planets, atmospheric charts, and glowing digital models.
Soma leaned against the doorway.
> "What are you doing this late at night?"
Without turning, Alex replied calmly, her voice low.
> "Researching the best methods for planetary terraformation."
He stepped closer, curiosity lighting his eyes.
> "So? What did you find?"
Alex rotated slightly, projecting a holographic model above the desk — a swirling blue sphere surrounded by rings of light.
> "First," she explained, "we must locate a planet within the habitable zone. Then we create an atmosphere — layer by layer — and wait for the surface to cool. Once the temperature stabilizes, we introduce water vapor to form oceans. Finally, we can spread tree seeds and microbial life to prepare the planet for larger beings."
Soma rubbed his eyes, the glow of the screen reflecting in them.
> "And how long will all that take?"
> "If everything goes well… about a few millions years for the planet to become fully habitable."
He let out a soft breath, half a sigh, half a laugh.
> "A millions years, huh? Guess patience really is part of creation."
Alex tilted her head slightly, the corners of her glow flickering like a quiet smile.
Soma stretched, exhaustion settling over him. Six days passed so quickly… Great job, Alex. Let's continue tomorrow.
The room dimmed as the computer powered down, leaving only the faint silver glow of Alex's light.
Soma lay back on his bed, the soft hum of the ceiling fan mixing with the night's stillness.
Outside, the crickets sang under the moonlit sky — a quiet, fragile song beneath the rhythm of distant stars.