90 - I'd Give The World To You (1.9k words)
Karrak's POV
I loved to wander into places that most would avoid, searching for forgotten tomes or lost treasures I could put to good use.
My research, though useful, sometimes had unintended consequences. People viewed me as a nuisance, someone who stirred up chaos instead of helping.
Despite the warnings and the growing distrust around me, I kept scavenging, kept tinkering, convinced I was on the verge of something great.
It wasn't until disaster struck─something far beyond my control─that I realized the cost of my actions.
What happened to my planet was all my fault. The portal I activated with that artifact caused a swarm of zergs from another dimension to infest our land, eating and polluting our resources. They killed off our livestock, and then our people, and in the end, the planet itself.
The only reason I was still alive was that artifact sucked me into another dimension. One with advanced technology that also struggled with the invasion of the Zergs.
I wanted to find a way to fix my mistake and save my planet, but the situation was so dire that only a time machine could save it. Thus, my path to getting my hands on one began. Either way, I continued to travel to other dimensions, using their knowledge and technologies to try and save mine.
I promised myself never to seek happiness and forever live the life of a recluse. I had no right to desire, no right to dream, and no right to yearn for someone. No matter how hard I tried to make amends, my sin could never be forgiven.
My mind was already a walking corpse, and the only thing that kept me going was the thought that I didn't deserve to die either. It was an endless loop of punishment and guilt.
And then, another sin appeared to add to the weight on my shoulders.
It started as a curiosity at first, then became admiration, and then...
I looked around the room covered with images of her. My obsession with this person grew out of control, and I didn't know how to stop it.
Red strings crisscrossed the room, connecting pins stuck into maps, timelines, and notes. Each string represented a connection I thought I'd uncovered, a clue that might explain who she really was. The more I tried to piece it all together, the more I felt the obsession tightening its grip on me. I couldn't stop, even though I knew I was losing myself in the madness.
I couldn't go a day without seeing her. At some point, I began to think about how everything happened just so we could meet.
It was a sick thought which made me feel even more like a monster. If she wanted to destroy the entire universe, I would give her the tools to do so. I would have done anything for her, and it scared me.
Even if the gods were kind enough to bless me with her, what future could we possibly have?
I activated the screen within my contact lenses and watched the live feed through the new nano camera I infiltrated inside The Emperor's base.
She was shackled to the wall, her head hung low. This was the general everyone admired and feared, the leader who conquered new lands and crushed the opposing faction. Her glorious title and achievements were nothing but a front to hide her miserable reality.
I just wanted to see what she did during her days off, how a person like her would live a normal life, and maybe even find out her favorite color and food.
Instead, I found her like this.
Restrained.
Beaten.
Humiliated.
The heiress of The Grand Empire. The Emperor always acted like a loving and proud father to her in front of his people. Was it all a show to appease the masses?
I didn't realize how much my hands were shaking until I accidentally activated the wrong command, and the screen switched to a different angle.
She lifted her head, looking at the camera, almost like she could see me.
"Turn it off, Creep. He is coming."
I gasped, quickly shutting the whole thing down. I sat there for a while, staring at the wall and listening to my labored breaths.
This was the first time she addressed me directly, the first time...
I took a deep breath, trying to calm myself, and turned the camera back on.
The moment I did so, she spoke up again.
"Stop being a pervert, will you?"
Her voice was muffled, yet filled with venom.
If she could detect me, it meant her father could...
Crap!
Before I could shut the system down, the man appeared before me. Without a second thought, I activated the time machine and transported myself back to the past. It was a red crystal that fit in the palm of my hand, pulsing with energy and warmth.
I was shaken. My hands and legs felt numb, and my heart was beating so fast it might leap out of my chest.
That man's presence wasn't something I could handle. He was like an ancient demon, who had lived long enough to master everything.
He had a sick type of entertainment, like giving his daughter everything only to strip her off of it...just because he was bored.
In the face of such great power, there was nothing she could do. No one would stand up for her. No one would take her side. Behind everyone's backs, she would always be the ungrateful princess who deserved everything that happened to her.
Whenever Yaya saw her helplessness in other people, being suppressed and betrayed mainly by the ones that were supposed to protect them, I could see her crumbling under the weight. She would go out of her way to crush them and make them suffer as if trying to cope with her own situation.
The more she did that, the more her eyes looked dead inside. They were a reminder that I still had a lot to lose and a lot to protect.
I tried to save her, tried to help her get revenge on her father. But no matter what I did, her fate would always be the same. She would never be able to escape her father's grasp, and every time I interfered, things got worse.
We would lose too much.
Again, and again, and again.
I would give a world to her, but an eclipse seemed to be all we would ever get.
Yet, I still refused to give up.
She was my last sin. The last.
I didn't know why I never learned my lesson. Maybe it was an inner trait, one I was born with and could never shake. She also had her characteristic traits, ones that made her, her.
The journey with her made me accept my mistakes and, in a way, made me a better person I never thought I could be.
The self-hatred and loathing were still there, but they were not as consuming as before.
· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·
A few years later...
My admiration grew into an obsessive infatuation, and my infatuation morphed into an unhealthy addiction.
I could no longer touch her, could no longer feel her warmth.
Not directly.
Watching her from afar became enough.
It had to be enough.
For a very long time, it looked like we only had each other.
I had no one, and she had no one.
Until he appeared.
His name was Vicerion. The way he looked at her was sickening. The way he talked to her made me want to strangle him. While I reached my current position after countless failures, he was a genius who got the hang of everything right away.
I was jealous of him at first, but the way she highlighted his flaws made me see him differently. While I was a lucky fellow who brought misfortune to those around me, Vick was an unlucky guy who brought good luck to everyone else.
She chose him despite all his imperfections, while he chose her despite the burden and problems she brought.
Together, they became something more, something beautiful, something that could only be obtained by sacrificing their own happiness for each other.
I could see her growing closer to Vick, see her making little steps toward freedom. But I could also see her fear of taking more than she could afford to lose. I had to find a way to stop her father from taking everything away from her again, even if it was the last thing I did.
I finally became powerful enough to move around undetected and could influence things without anyone noticing, keeping a distance from her while also keeping an eye on her.
Every time she won and made a step forward, I would cheer and laugh until my throat went hoarse and my stomach hurt. And every time she lost and got hurt, I would mourn and grieve.
· · ─────── · ⊱❈⊰· ─────── · ·
A few years later...
I found the dimension her friend loved and remembered how Vick suggested she take in more males. No matter how many times I questioned his deeds, he always knew what was best for her and did it whether she liked it or not.
I wasn't even sure if she would like Curtis or Muir. They weren't perfect copies of Vick, but she showed some interest in the sacrifices they were ready to make for their female and how they wanted the best for her despite their twisted minds.
I was ready to protect her new family in case her father decided to target them. I had grown fond of them, and it made me a bit bolder, which resulted in me showing myself in front of her (inside the volcano).
Then I remembered the rules I set up and how badly everything turned out when I broke them. She would suffer because of me again. Her heart would break and shatter. Her hope would turn to ashes, and we would be separated, just like before.
Because of the time machine, she no longer carried my spousal imprint, but I could still locate her and feel the familiarity of my past Yaya as if I wasn't bonded just to her body but to the being that she was.
This was the worst part of having the power to alter time. Her forgetting all about me, was the biggest price I had to pay.
Vulture beastmen were connected to the cycle of life and death. We didn't hunt living creatures, nor did we kill them. We saw the spirits and the souls of the dead animals, who led us to their corpses, allowing us to consume them.
We communicated and coexisted with nature, detected areas where life was flourishing or fading, and even perceived a place's history through the lives of those who have passed there.
That was also why I was sensitive to the flow of time, making me efficient in handling the time machine, unlike other artifacts I've found before.
╔═══ Author's note ════╗
I hope this chapter helped you understand Karrak a bit more. 😊
The Ice Bead can stop time, while the Fire Bead can do the exact opposite.🧐
It seems like there's a past between YY and Karrak only Karak knows about? 🫨
Could YY still be carrying his spousal imprint, somewhere?🫢
╚═════════════════╝