The wrinkles on his face overlapped like the bark of ancient trees. But that weary look faded quickly; his eyes rose again, alive and sharp.
"You, Noah…" he said my new name slowly. "You brought fear back with you."
My chest tightened.
"Me? What do you mean?"
The old man smiled. He hesitated before speaking again, clutching the notebook in his hands even tighter.
"You don't know yet. But you will remember." As he spoke and drew closer, his voice carried a faint tremor of madness. "You can't follow what he says. It'll kill us all even faster."
I didn't understand what he meant but my fear deepened when he reached me and grabbed my shoulders. In his right hand, I could still feel the notebook pressed against my arm, trembling with his grip.
"Do you hear me, Noah? You can choose… no you must choose."
[MEMORY DIVERGENCE DETECTED]
[STORYLINE INTERFERENCE DETECTED]
Out of nowhere, that window reappeared this time glowing red. The color had consumed it entirely, and the air itself seemed to hum with dread.
[CORRECTION PLANNING…]
[CORRECTION IN PROGRESS]
It all happened too fast. In seconds, the conversation changed, and I was still trying to grasp what he meant when a sharp sound broke the silence.
A soft beep from the desk, followed by another and then a distant alarm began to wail.
The old man frowned and turned toward the door. As if on cue, it burst open with a metallic crash. The captain and several soldiers stormed inside, their faces pale and frantic.
With the door open, the distant noise grew deeper, heavier like the sound of the earth itself groaning.
"What happened?" the Counselor demanded, his brow furrowed.
The calm, composed captain I'd seen minutes ago was gone. She looked ghostly pale, and the iron bar in her hands trembled.
"Counselor..." one of the soldiers stammered, his voice quivering, "we received reports that the wall was… behaving abnormally. When we checked"
He couldn't finish. The others behind him trembled visibly.
"What? Speak up!" the Counselor barked.
The soldier took a shuddering breath.
"When we checked, there were… there were Ecorvos hundreds of them coming out of the walls." His voice cracked into a sob at the end.
The Counselor, who until then had been steady and firm, staggered and gripped the desk for support.
"What? How… how is that possible?"
"Counselor, what do we do?" another soldier, younger, asked. "Counselor?"
He didn't seem to hear them. His lips moved slowly.
"How can it be… how…?"
The soldiers began shouting over each other, desperate for direction.
"No…" the Counselor muttered under his breath. "Not now. Not yet."
I turned, confused, looking from one terrified face to another.
"What's happening?"
That seemed to remind them I was there. They all turned toward me at once. From the back, Raul the man from the captain's group strode forward with fire in his eyes.
"It's you!" he shouted, grabbing me by the collar. "This is your doing, you filthy church dog!"
"He's from the Church?"
"What's one of the zealots doing here with the Counselor?"
The whispers grew into shouts.
"Let him go, Raul!"
The captain was at my side now, gripping Raul's arm with restrained fury.
"But, Captain, it has to be him! This has never happened before not in all these years!"
She hesitated. And in that moment, another soldier stumbled into the doorway, his uniform soaked in blood.
"Some of them got through…" he gasped. "We won't hold for long."
From outside came a heavy dragging sound that shook the floor. The lights flickered.
The Counselor seemed to awaken at last. He marched toward me and, with surprising strength, pried Raul's hand off my collar.
"Noah, listen to me carefully," he said, his voice trembling but resolute. "You need to leave. Now. I was foolish to think they'd let me do this…"
There was sadness in his tone but the others, though panicked, quieted as soon as he spoke. His presence commanded respect; it held them together.
Before I could answer, an earsplitting roar echoed from the corridor. Screams followed. Through the open door, I could see a haze of smoke rolling in and through it, something moved. A grotesque shadow. Flesh, bone, and something white.
The old man glanced toward it, but only for a heartbeat. Then he rushed to the side, pushing the heavy desk aside.
Beneath it, on the left, he pressed something an old mechanism.
A section of the wall behind the bookshelf slid open with a low rumble.
The others exchanged frightened looks but didn't question him.
"This way!" he ordered.
We hurried toward the passage. It led to a narrow iron staircase descending into the dark.
The Counselor grabbed my arm tightly his hand trembled, but his gaze burned with purpose.
"Go," he said, his tone a mix of urgency and surrender. "Down the stairs. Don't stop for anything. And take this."
He placed the purple notebook in my hand. The paper felt unnaturally soft almost like skin.
"Don't lose it. Ever." He leaned closer, whispering hoarsely, "Even if you have to abandon the others, don't lose it."
The sounds outside were growing louder. The walls shuddered, screams and metal tearing blending into one deafening chaos.
The Counselor turned to face the others soldiers, civilians, all trembling but standing. His expression softened, heavy with sorrow.
"I'm sorry," he murmured, barely audible. "I can't save you all."
The words struck the room like a funeral bell. The youngest soldiers began to cry openly. The older ones only closed their eyes some whispered prayers, others smirked bitterly, resigned.
There was no despair only exhaustion, and something like peace.
The Counselor straightened his back and raised his chin. His voice regained its weight.
"If you still trust me, then hear me now," he said firmly. "I need you all to complete one final mission."
Something lit up in their eyes. The tears dried. Weapons were raised axes, improvised blades, iron rods. Their hands trembled, but none stepped back.
The old man turned to Mei. His gaze softened again.
"Captain… take your group. Protect Noah."
She flinched, her composure cracking.
"But… what about you, Grandfather?"
The old man sighed. Weariness seemed to flow out of him like breath. He took two slow steps toward her and placed a wrinkled hand on her head.
"My mission is over, Mei," he said quietly.
A faint, melancholy smile curved his lips.
"It should've ended long ago. I've been useless for years…"
The lines on his face deepened, but his eyes gleamed with fire once more.
"But you..." he looked at me, then back at her " you brought someone who might reignite what little hope we have left."
The others turned toward me, eyes full of doubt and something close to awe. Raul's face twisted with disbelief.
Then, a crash at the door made everyone turn. The walls shook violently. A squad of soldiers stumbled inside, their armor torn. Behind them came an inhuman shriek high, broken, and hungry.
"Counselor!" one of them gasped. "We have to evacuate you now!"
The old man didn't answer. His gaze swept over the faces before him people he had led for decades, and others barely older than children. Finally, he spoke.
"Today… will likely be our last battle."
Silence followed. Only the alarms and distant roars filled the void.
He took a deep breath.
"Those with courage left fight with me."
He walked toward a side wall and drew a blade from its sheath its edge glowed faintly blue.
The remaining soldiers exchanged glances. Then, one raised his bloodstained sword. Another lifted an axe. Someone grabbed a broken pipe and slammed it against the floor.
Soon, the room thundered with rhythm metal and wood striking the ground in unison. The sound grew, spreading, echoing, becoming something primal.
They began to shout not in fear, but in defiance.
The Counselor smiled, one last time.
"That's enough," he said softly.
Then he turned to me. His eyes were calm, almost kind.
He started walking toward the door, and as he did, his voice reached me once more:
"Noah… run."
Mei approached. Her eyes were red, but she didn't cry. She placed a hand on my shoulder and looked one last time toward the old man leading his people to their final stand. For a moment, she stood frozen as if committing that image to memory.
Then she sighed, turned to me, and whispered, "Let's go."
Her push was firm, decisive. I nearly dropped the notebook but clutched it tighter against my chest.
Raul still stood by the doorway, watching the Counselor and the soldiers readying their weapons. For a second, I thought he'd stay behind.
But when he heard Mei's voice, he gritted his teeth and turned.
"Let's move, damn it!" he barked, calling to the others.
Only one answered.
Josh the thin old man appeared behind us, panting, his crossbow loaded and a quiver slung across his shoulder.
The strong woman stayed.
Raul's face twisted. "Sofia! Move it!"
Sofia looked back once, spinning her axe in silence, and joined the line of soldiers. Her face was calm at peace.
"Damn it!" Raul spat, starting toward her, but Mei shook her head.
"Leave her."
He cursed again, fists clenched, but obeyed.
The Counselor glanced at Sofia and gave her a faint nod of respect.
That was the last thing I saw before we began our descent.
The staircase groaned with each step, the metal cold under our boots.
The farther we went, the more distant the sounds of battle became muffled by the earth between us.
At some point, Mei switched on a small emergency baton. The light flickered weakly, just enough to keep the darkness at bay.
When the door slammed shut above us, all that remained was the fading echo of chaos and the weight of the purple notebook pressed against my heart.
I knew we weren't safe. The red window still hovered in my mind, bright and pulsing.
[CORRECTION IN PROGRESS]
The message felt like a nail being driven into flesh reminding me that whatever was happening… wasn't over.