Chapter 13 — The Woman Who Waited
Victor didn't sleep.
He tried.
For almost three hours, he lay on the narrow bed inside the secure facility, staring at the ceiling.
Every time he closed his eyes, he saw her.
Red eyes.
Pale skin.
Black hair.
Seraphina.
He didn't remember meeting her.
He didn't remember touching her.
He didn't remember loving her.
Yet his body reacted to her name as though it belonged somewhere deeper than memory.
Victor finally sat up.
"System."
The blue panel appeared in front of him.
[SYSTEM ONLINE]
Name: Victor Hale
Level: 1
Race: Human
Condition: Stable
Memory: 0.07%
Power: Locked
Skills: None
Gate Affinity: Unknown
Bloodline: Locked
Victor stared at the last two entries.
"Why am I still level one?"
[INSUFFICIENT QUALIFICATION.]
"Qualification for what?"
No response.
Victor sighed.
"Of course."
He looked at the memory section.
[MEMORY FRAGMENT AVAILABLE]
[SERAPHINA VALE]
[RECOVERY COST: 2.1%]
Victor's eyes narrowed.
"Can I recover only part of it?"
[POSSIBLE.]
"How much?"
[MINIMUM RECOVERY: 0.1%]
Victor thought about it.
If the cost was proportional, perhaps he could recover only a small piece.
He didn't want to sacrifice a significant portion of his remaining memories.
"Recover 0.1%."
The System paused.
[CONFIRMATION REQUIRED.]
Victor hesitated.
Then:
"Confirm."
Pain exploded behind his eyes.
Victor grabbed his head.
A memory appeared.
Rain.
Heavy rain.
Victor stood beneath the awning of a small café.
He was younger.
Not much.
Perhaps twenty-four.
Someone stood beside him.
Seraphina.
She was holding an umbrella.
Victor looked at her.
"You know you're supposed to open that."
She looked down at the closed umbrella.
Then back at him.
"I know."
"Then why aren't you?"
She smiled.
"Because you haven't asked nicely."
Victor laughed.
"I didn't know vampires needed manners."
Seraphina stepped closer.
"We don't."
She opened the umbrella.
"Humans do."
Victor smiled.
"You're impossible."
"I've been told."
They walked together through the rain.
Seraphina looked at him.
"Victor."
"Hm?"
"If you ever disappear..."
Victor glanced at her.
"Why would I disappear?"
"Just answer."
He smiled.
"Then you'll find me."
She stopped walking.
"You promise?"
Victor turned toward her.
"I promise."
Seraphina looked at him for several seconds.
Then she smiled.
"Good."
The memory broke.
Victor opened his eyes.
He was back in his room.
His breathing was heavy.
Tears were running down his face.
He wiped them away.
He hadn't realized he was crying.
The memory wasn't important.
It contained nothing about Gates.
Nothing about Project Eclipse.
Nothing about his powers.
Yet it hurt more than any of those things.
Because for the first time—
Victor remembered what it felt like to be happy.
With her.
The System appeared.
[MEMORY RECOVERY COMPLETE.]
[MEMORY REMAINING: 0.06%]
Victor stared.
He frowned.
"Wait."
His expression changed.
"Why did my memory percentage go down?"
No response.
Victor looked at the panel again.
0.06%.
It had returned to the previous value.
His stomach tightened.
The System hadn't restored a memory.
It had replaced one fragment with another.
He whispered:
"What did I lose?"
Silence.
Victor closed his eyes.
He couldn't remember.
That was the terrifying part.
He had no idea what was missing.
A knock came at the door.
Victor looked up.
"Come in."
Ward entered.
He carried a folder.
"You've been awake."
Victor gave him a tired look.
"Apparently."
Ward noticed his expression.
"You all right?"
Victor hesitated.
"I remembered Seraphina."
Ward stopped.
"How much?"
"A few minutes."
"What did you see?"
Victor looked at him.
"Rain."
Ward frowned.
"And?"
"We were together."
Ward remained silent.
Victor studied his face.
"You knew."
"I suspected."
"You knew we were together."
Ward sighed.
"Yes."
Victor stood.
"Then why didn't you tell me?"
"Because you needed to remember her yourself."
"That's convenient."
Ward's expression hardened.
"I've spent nine years trying to find you."
Victor said nothing.
Ward placed the folder on the desk.
"There's something you need to see."
Victor opened it.
Inside was a photograph.
Seraphina.
Victor's eyes narrowed.
It wasn't the same photograph as before.
This one had been taken at night.
Seraphina stood outside a building.
Beside her was Victor.
They were holding hands.
Victor looked at the photograph.
"When was this?"
"Three weeks before the Eclipse incident."
Victor stared.
"She was on Earth."
"Yes."
"How?"
Ward sat down.
"That's what we don't know."
Victor looked at him.
"She's a vampire."
"According to the records."
"So?"
"So she shouldn't have been able to remain here unnoticed."
Victor frowned.
"Why?"
Ward opened another document.
"Because vampires weren't supposed to exist on Earth."
Victor stared.
"What?"
Ward looked toward the closed door.
Then lowered his voice.
"At least, not naturally."
Victor felt a chill.
"What does that mean?"
Ward leaned forward.
"We had records of supernatural entities appearing around Gates."
"That's normal."
"No."
Ward shook his head.
"The first Gates appeared only six years ago."
Victor froze.
"Six?"
"Yes."
Victor stared at him.
"But the photograph..."
"Was taken nine years ago."
Neither spoke.
Victor slowly put the photograph down.
"Then how did Seraphina get here?"
Ward looked at him.
"That's the question."
Victor thought about the Gate.
The ruined city.
The creature.
His blood.
The System.
And Seraphina.
Something didn't fit.
If Gates appeared six years ago—
how had Victor met a vampire nine years ago?
Unless—
Gates weren't the beginning.
They were only the moment humanity noticed them.
Victor looked at Ward.
"You lied to me."
Ward frowned.
"What?"
"The Gates."
Victor pointed at the photograph.
"You said they appeared six years ago."
"That's what the official records say."
"Official."
Ward didn't answer.
Victor stood.
"How long have they really existed?"
Ward looked away.
"I don't know."
Victor laughed quietly.
"That's becoming your favorite answer."
Ward ignored him.
"There is something else."
He opened the folder.
A document was inside.
At the top was a black classification stamp.
PROJECT ECLIPSE — INCIDENT 09
Victor read the first line.
SUBJECT: VICTOR HALE
His eyes moved downward.
Then stopped.
STATUS: PRESUMED DECEASED
Below it:
SECONDARY SUBJECT: SERAPHINA VALE
STATUS: MISSING
Victor's eyes narrowed.
"Where is the rest?"
Ward took the document back.
"Classified."
"Of course."
Ward looked at him.
"Victor."
"What?"
"There's a reason I brought you this."
He placed another photograph on the table.
Victor stared.
His blood ran cold.
It showed the Eclipse facility.
The same circular Gate structure he'd seen in his memories.
But there was something else.
Written on the wall behind it were several words.
Not English.
Not any language Victor recognized.
Yet when he looked at them—
he understood.
THE DOOR REMEMBERS ITS KING.
Victor stared at the words.
The System appeared.
[MEMORY RESONANCE: 18.7%]
Victor stepped backward.
"No."
Ward stood.
"What?"
Victor looked at him.
"Nothing."
But the System continued.
[GATE CONNECTION DETECTED.]
[SUBJECT: VICTOR HALE]
[STATUS: REGISTERED.]
Victor's heart pounded.
Registered.
As if the Gates knew him.
As if he belonged to them.
Then another message appeared.
[WARNING.]
[AN EXTERNAL ENTITY HAS DETECTED YOUR AWAKENING.]
Victor froze.
Ward watched him.
"What happened?"
Victor didn't answer.
A final line appeared.
[ENTITY DESIGNATION: UNKNOWN]
[MESSAGE RECEIVED.]
Victor stared.
The message appeared slowly.
One word at a time.
I HAVE BEEN WAITING.
Victor's blood went cold.
Then another line appeared.
COME BACK.
Victor's breathing stopped.
The room suddenly felt smaller.
The words disappeared.
The System vanished.
Ward looked at him.
"Victor?"
Victor slowly raised his eyes.
For the first time since waking in the grave, he understood something.
His past wasn't simply waiting for him to discover it.
Something from his past was actively looking for him.
And somewhere beyond the Gates—
a woman sat alone upon a black throne.
She opened her eyes.
A faint smile touched her lips.
"He's awake."
A kneeling figure lowered its head.
"My Queen."
She looked toward the distant Gate.
"Tell Seraphina."
The servant hesitated.
"What should I tell her?"
The Queen smiled.
"Tell her..."
Her red eyes gleamed in the darkness.
"...that her lost lover has finally returned."
She rose from the throne.
"And tell her she has permission to find him."
The servant bowed.
"As you command."
The Queen walked toward the enormous window overlooking an unfamiliar world.
Thousands of lights burned beneath her.
An entire civilization lived beneath her palace.
And beyond that civilization—
another Gate opened.
Then another.
Then another.
The Queen watched them appear.
One after another.
Her smile widened.
"Nine years..."
She whispered.
"Welcome home, Victor."
Behind her, something enormous moved in the darkness.
And the Queen's expression suddenly became cold.
"But this time..."
Her fingers tightened around the armrest.
"...no one is taking you from me."