Chapter 1 – The Kind of Life Worth Living
The sky was a digital masterpiece.
Hover-trains glided between towering skyscrapers, their neon trails painting the skyline in shifting hues of violet and blue. Autonomous air taxis weaved effortlessly through the traffic-laden sky, their sleek silver bodies reflecting the city's artificial glow. Below, the streets pulsed with life—holographic advertisements reshaping themselves with every step a person took, smart-clothes adjusting to body temperature and mood, AI-driven vendors crafting personalized meals before customers even voiced their orders.
A city at its technological peak.
Lucian Graves had lived in it his whole life, yet sometimes, it felt as foreign as a dream.
Tonight, he stood among the elite, attending an aerospace ceremony as one of the field's most distinguished researchers. Despite being only twenty-eight, his reputation was legendary. Corporations fought to have him, governments sent offers, yet he turned them all down. He preferred discovery over profit, research over politics.
But it wasn't just his intellect that turned heads.
Lucian was effortlessly charming, almost unfairly handsome. His sharp silver-gray eyes held an enigmatic depth, his dark hair always slightly tousled, as if the wind itself conspired to make him look perfect. His sculpted features and composed aura made him impossible to ignore.
Even in a room filled with scientists, CEOs, and politicians, he stood out.
A group of teenage girls, attending as young scholars, whispered among themselves at the edge of the grand hall. Some stole glances, others openly stared. One girl—no older than sixteen—blushed furiously when he met her gaze.
Lucian exhaled, amused. He was used to it.
"Mr. Graves."
A voice interrupted his thoughts. The host of the ceremony, a well-known aerospace director, gestured for him to step forward. Lucian adjusted the cuffs of his black formal jacket and walked onto the stage, every step smooth and confident. He wasn't a fan of grand events like these, but tonight wasn't about him. It was about pushing technology further. And despite everything, he was a man of science.
He should be happy.
The world was at peace. No wars. No invasions. No heroes. And certainly, no demons.
A society that thrived on intelligence and progress.
And yet…
---
Visions of Another Life
A dull ache settled at the back of his mind. The same ache that always came when he tried to convince himself that this was the life he wanted.
The visions had started when he was a child. Faint at first, like déjà vu—flashes of things he shouldn't know, feelings that didn't belong to him. As he grew older, they became clearer. Memories.
A past life.
Lucian had studied history, not because he wanted to, but because he had to. The glimpses of another era haunted him, fragments of a time not too long ago. Somewhere between 2000 and 2030, when the world was different.
He remembered standing on a battlefield, surrounded by fire. The weight of a weapon in his hand. The scent of blood. The roaring of a thousand voices.
He remembered being a hero.
No, not a hero.
A soldier.
A man with powers beyond human comprehension, sent into battle not out of duty, but because he had nothing else to do. There was no grand purpose, no righteousness—just war.
His only brother had died in a car accident.
He had no family. No love. Nothing worth protecting.
He fought, not because he believed in saving the world, but because there was nothing else left for him. He was young when he joined the Hero Army, where those with abilities were more like soldiers than saviors, working for money rather than ambition. They were never told where the demons came from. No one questioned it.
Lucian never tried to know.
He never cared to know.
He only remembered one thing.
The last mission.
A massive attack. A storm. Screams. A shockwave so powerful it seemed to tear through time itself.
Then—nothing. Darkness.
And when he opened his eyes, he was here.
---
This Life Was Different
Here, he had a family.
His mother's voice was the first thing he remembered loving. Warm, strong, always fussing over him no matter how much he pretended to be independent. She was the reason he had learned to appreciate life instead of throwing it away.
His older sister, Eleanor, was a fearless businesswoman, always teasing him for being too serious. The only one who dared to ruffle his perfect hair and get away with it.
And then there was Noah—his younger brother. Bright-eyed, full of dreams, looking up to him like he was invincible.
Noah wanted to follow in his footsteps, to one day be an aerospace researcher too.
Their father had died when Lucian was young, but it never affected him much. He had no memories of the man, only the legacy he left behind.
Lucian followed in his father's footsteps not out of grief, but because he truly found meaning in the stars.
I admit, he sometimes thought, I don't like all this technology that much… but this is the kind of life worth living.
He didn't want to be a hero. He didn't want to fight.
He had a family now. A future.
So why…
Why did it feel like something was about to go horribly wrong?
---
A Glimpse of Fate
As the ceremony ended, Lucian stepped out onto the balcony, letting the neon skyline stretch before him. The cool night air did little to ease his restlessness.
And then—a sharp, splitting pain in his skull.
A vision.
This one was different. More real, more urgent.
The screams. The fire. The shadows shifting, crawling. A city burning.
And then—Noah.
His younger brother, standing in the middle of a street, his face frozen in terror.
Lucian's heart clenched.
He had never seen a vision of this life before.
His hands trembled as he gripped the balcony railing.
And for the first time in years, Lucian felt something he thought he had long buried.
Fear.
---
The Woman Beside Him
A soft voice broke through his thoughts.
"You always disappear at these events."
Lucian turned, blinking away the last traces of the vision.
Vera Kain stood beside him, her gaze calm yet knowing.
She was beautiful, but in an effortless way. Her long brown hair cascaded over one shoulder, her dark eyes carrying an intelligence most people overlooked. Unlike the others in the grand hall, she wasn't dressed in extravagant attire—just a simple, elegant black dress.
A history professor. A woman grounded in facts, in logic.
His fiancée.
Lucian exhaled slowly, forcing his usual composed expression back into place.
"Needed a breath of fresh air," he said smoothly.
She raised an eyebrow. "You mean, you got bored."
He smirked. "Something like that."
Vera studied him for a long moment. She knew him well enough to tell when something was wrong, but she never pried. That was one of the reasons he liked her.
After a moment, she simply leaned beside him against the railing.
"I've been thinking," she said. "About how heroes vanished."
Lucian glanced at her.
"People with abilities," she clarified. "There used to be so many, but now… nothing. Doesn't that seem strange?"
He shrugged. "People adapt. Maybe they just aren't needed anymore."
Vera tilted her head slightly, as if she didn't quite believe that.
Lucian didn't either.
But he had no desire to dig deeper.
Heroes were gone. Their existence erased.
And for now, that was enough.
Even if, deep down, something told him…
That wouldn't last much longer.
---
Visions That Shouldn't Exist
Lucian didn't sleep that night.
The vision had been brief, fragmented—but it was enough to unsettle him.
His younger brother, standing alone in the middle of a street. Eyes wide with fear. Something closing in.
Lucian had never seen Noah in his visions before. His past life never overlapped with this one. Until now.
Lying in bed, staring at the sleek digital ceiling interface displaying simulated constellations, he tried to rationalize it.
Just stress. Overwork. Nothing more.
Yet, no matter how much he tried to dismiss it, an instinct buried deep inside him refused to let go. The same instinct that had kept him alive in another life.
Something was coming.
---
Morning Routine, Normalcy Disguised as Peace
The morning came like any other. The artificial sunlight adjusted itself according to Lucian's programmed preferences, filtering through the window in a golden hue. His home—a minimalist yet advanced apartment—automatically brewed his preferred coffee as he stepped out of his room.
The smell of freshly cooked breakfast filled the air, though he knew it wasn't the work of any household AI.
"Morning, Lucian," Eleanor greeted, flipping pancakes at the kitchen counter. Unlike him, she had always preferred doing things the old-fashioned way, refusing to let machines take over the simple pleasures of life.
"Didn't sleep?" she asked, glancing at him with her usual perceptiveness.
Lucian smirked slightly. "That obvious?"
"You only drink coffee this early when you're overthinking."
He took a sip. "Maybe I just like coffee."
Eleanor rolled her eyes but let it go.
A moment later, Noah walked in, still looking half-asleep but already dressed in casual university attire. His black hair was slightly messy, and his sharp hazel eyes were focused on the holographic interface projected from his wristband.
"Morning," he mumbled before shooting Lucian a tired grin. "You're trending again."
Lucian arched a brow. "For what?"
Noah flicked his fingers, enlarging the projection for them to see. An article floated midair:
"Lucian Graves – Aerospace Prodigy or Future Industry Overlord?"
Eleanor snorted. "Overlord? That's new."
Lucian sighed. "I do research, not world domination."
Noah smirked. "That's exactly what a future overlord would say."
Lucian flicked his younger brother's forehead lightly, earning a chuckle.
For a moment, everything felt normal.
He wanted it to stay that way.
---
An Omen in the News
Breakfast passed with the usual chatter. Noah talked about his coursework, Eleanor shared business updates, and their mother—still out of town—sent a brief message checking in.
Then the news broadcast shifted.
Lucian barely glanced at it—until a particular headline caught his attention.
"Unidentified Energy Surge Detected in Outskirts – Authorities Investigating."
His grip on the coffee mug tightened.
The footage showed a vague, distorted recording of an abandoned district outside the city. Flickers of something unnatural. A ripple in the air. A phenomenon that had no place in this world of science and logic.
Lucian felt his heartbeat slow.
It wasn't just an energy surge.
It was familiar.
His mind flashed back to his vision. The burning city. The shadows.
And Noah.
A cold realization settled in his gut.
This was the beginning.
---
Beneath the Surface
Lucian spent the rest of the day at the research facility, yet his mind wasn't fully there.
He moved through meetings, analyzed data, exchanged ideas with colleagues—but something lingered at the back of his mind. A growing unease.
Then, as he walked through the facility halls, he found Vera waiting for him.
She wasn't dressed formally today. A simple coat over casual wear, her brown hair tied back, dark eyes sharp with curiosity.
"I did some digging," she said without preamble.
Lucian gave her a sideways glance. "On?"
"The disappearance of heroes."
He kept walking, but she fell in step beside him.
"It's strange, isn't it?" she continued. "There are records of heroes throughout history. Even in the early 2000s, they were still mentioned. But then, somewhere around thirty years ago, they vanish."
Lucian's steps slowed slightly.
"No traces," Vera went on. "No gradual decline, no natural evolution into something else. Just… gone."
He finally met her gaze. "And what do you think happened to them?"
Vera studied him carefully. "I think someone erased them."
Lucian's chest felt tight for reasons he couldn't explain.
Vera tilted her head, watching his reaction. "You don't seem surprised."
"I think," Lucian said evenly, "that they weren't needed anymore."
"That's an easy answer."
"It's the simplest one."
She didn't push further.
But as she walked away, he knew she wasn't done searching.
And for the first time, he wondered if she would find something he wasn't ready to face.
---
The Shadow of the Past
That night, the vision returned.
Lucian stood on a battlefield, but this time, he saw more.
His past self—clad in dark, battle-worn armor—facing an enemy cloaked in shadows.
The storm. The screams. The energy surging through his veins.
But there was something else.
A reflection of himself in a cracked surface—his own eyes glowing with something inhuman.
A voice, distant yet familiar, echoed through the chaos.
"You did this."
Lucian jolted awake, breath ragged.
The city outside remained unchanged—peaceful, futuristic, untouched by war.
But he knew better.
The past wasn't finished with him.
And soon, neither was the future.
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[End of Chapter 1]
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