The Whimsical Fate of A Heir

A subtle tremor flowed through the void as Victor was ready to embrace the emptiness completely. "Huh? What was that?"

This odd sensation was unlike anything he had felt before. Surprised, he turned his head, seeking the source of the disruption. "Where did that came from?"

Another tremor soon followed before Victor could understand the situation, this one stronger than the first, accompanied by a peculiar sensation – a thought?

It obviously didn't belong to him, but it brushed more strongly against the edges of his mind, like a distant memory and personally, Victor didn't know how to describe it in words, but he could sense it through his emotion, and his feeling that it felt rather familiar.

"What the hell is going on?!" Victor exclaimed, his voice sharp in the sudden silence. The tremors had stopped as abruptly as they began, leaving him feeling disoriented and strangely… curious.

"Did I… did I just feel that?" he muttered, his brow furrowed in concentration. "Some kind of… thought? But whose?"

The idea was preposterous, absurd even. Thoughts belonged to the living, didn't they? How could a thought exist in this… this nothingness?

But the feeling lingered a faint echo of something familiar, something… human. It was like a whisper on the wind, a fleeting sensation that refused to be ignored.

"Well, this is getting interesting," Victor said, a hint of excitement creeping into his voice. "Maybe this place isn't as empty as I thought."

"Here I go." He muttered, pushed off, propelling himself towards the source of the tremor, his curiosity now piqued. If there were others… things… here, other beings, then perhaps he wasn't alone after all. 

After a while of travelling, Victor noticed the tremors that originally had stopped, resumed and became more frequent over time with the distortions in the void more pronounced. Sometimes, the darkness would ripple and distort, as if something was trying to break through. Other times, he would feel a sudden chill, a shiver down his spine that had nothing to do with the constant coldness of the void.

"What the hell is going on here?" Victor muttered, his voice laced with a newfound urgency. "Is this place… alive or something?"

"Okay, okay, I think I've had enough of this," Victor muttered after investigating for a while with his voice trembling slightly as he felt like the void itself was trying to crush him, to squeeze the life out of him, whatever that meant in this… place.

He pushed off harder, his movements frantic now. He had to get away, had to escape this… whatever this was. Victor didn't know where he was going, or if there even was a "where" in this endless nothingness. But he had to keep moving, had to keep pushing forward.

"Come on, come on," Victor urged himself, his breath coming in ragged gasps. "You can do this. You've survived worse."

He thought back to his life on the streets, the countless times he had dodged bullets, outrun the cops, and escaped from impossible situations. He had always found a way out and always survived. He would survive this, too.

Victor pushed himself harder, his body straining against the invisible forces that seemed to be pulling him back. He could feel the darkness closing in, the tremors intensifying, the void itself screaming at him. "Urghhhhhhhh….."

"Yes, yes, yes…" Victor roared, his voice echoing through the void as he somehow managed to gather all of his remaining strength at the last second and escape the crushing darkness. He stumbled forward, his body trembling, his heart pounding like a drum. He had made it. He was free.

But then, he stopped. His jaw dropped, his eyes widening in disbelief.

In the distance, a vast, swirling expanse of light and colour appeared. It was a breathtaking sight, a celestial ballet of stars and nebulae, galaxies swirling and colliding in a cosmic dance.

"What the hell?" Victor muttered, his voice barely a whisper. "Where the hell am I now?"

Then, a flicker of movement soon caught his attention, a pinprick of light appearing in the distance among the brightness. It pulsed a soft blue glow that grew brighter and mesmerising. "What is that?" 

"Is that…a blue light?" Victor muttered, focused on it, the small spark igniting a flicker of curiosity. "Is that real? Or is it a hallucination that appeared because I'm tired?"

As if to answer his thoughts, another light bloomed. This one, a deep, pulsating violet, hummed with an energy that sent a phantom vibration toward him. Then another one appeared, a vibrant green, followed by a swirling red.

More lights materialised, an assortment of colours blooming in the endless nothing with different intensities.

Victor, for lack of a better word, stared, a mix of terror and awe battling within him.

"Who are you?" he croaked, his voice barely a whisper.

Silence. The lights continued their erratic dance, flickering and swirling without any discernible pattern. Victor tried again, his voice laced with urgency. "Hey! Can you hear me? Who are you? What is this place?"

The lights continued their silent ballet, offering no response. Frustration bubbled up. "Damn it! Answer me!"

But they remained silent, offering no response to his desperate call. He then tried focusing on one, willing it closer, hoping for some interaction.

"Hello? Can you hear me? Anyone there?" His voice, though disembodied, held a desperate urgency.

The vibrant emerald light pulsed once, then drifted away, joining the chaotic dance of its brethren. Frustration gnawed at him. Was this some kind of cruel joke? Would he be trapped here forever, surrounded by these silent, mocking lights?

"Damn it!" he roared, the sound echoing endlessly. "At least give me some kind of response! Or even anything"

The lights continued their silent dance, their only response a random flicker, increasing Victor's annoyance. He then tried everything he could, but these lights seemed completely unresponsive.

"Fine," he muttered, forcing a semblance of calm into his disembodied voice. "If you don't want to talk, it's fine. Let's see what happens if I move closer." 

"What would your reaction be?" Victor grinned, focusing his sight on a fiery red light, the closest one to him that was almost 10 kilometres. With all his strength, he immediately pushed himself towards it, trying to make some kind of contact.

But for some reason, as he approached the fiery red light, it flickers erratically, then darts away, leaving him behind. 

"Hey!" Victor shouted, his voice echoing through the void. "Come back!" 

He chased after it with all of his might, but the light was faster. It twisted and turned, weaving through the other lights, taunting him with its elusive nature. Victor's anger began to boil.

"Goddamn it!" he exclaimed, his voice cracking. "This is getting nowhere!" 

Frustration gnawed at him to the very core. Victor fell forward with a sigh, his shoulders slumped. "Screw it!" 

"I gave up," he uttered, feeling a little ridiculous from the realisation he had been chasing some random lights. "What the hell is the point of this anyway?" 

As Victor was about to give up, something caught his eye. One of the lights, a soft, golden one, began to flicker and dim. Unlike the others, its erratic dance was replaced with a slow, fading glow.

"Hey!" he called out, a flicker of concern sparking. "Are you ok? What's happening to you?" 

The dimming continued, the golden light shrinking in size. Panic clawed at his throat. While Victor had no idea what these lights were, their presence had offered a sliver of comfort that felt familiar to him in this endless nothingness. Now, one of them was fading, and with it, a piece of that comfort seemed slipping away.

Without hesitation, he surged towards the dimming light. It was a futile effort, of course, but the instinct was stronger than the logic of his mind. 

As Victor neared the fading light, a blinding flash erupted from nowhere, engulfing him in a white-hot brilliance. He shielded his nonexistent eyes, a primal scream rising in his throat.

"AAAAHHHHHHHH...!!!!"

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-

Meanwhile, in the hallway located within the imposing headquarters, two women walked side-by-side, their heels clicking a steady rhythm against the polished marble floor.

The first, Elara, from the Analytics Department, wore a crisp white blouse and a navy pencil skirt, her blonde hair pulled back in a sleek chignon. She carried a tablet, its screen glowing faintly with the day's reports.

Beside her, Lyra, from the Financial Department, moved with a more relaxed grace, her emerald green dress flowing elegantly with each step. Her fiery red hair was styled in loose waves, a few strands escaping to frame her face.

"Can you believe it's already Friday?" Elara exclaimed a hint of relief in her voice. "This week has felt like an eternity."

Lyra chuckled, "Tell me about it. Those quarterly reports almost drove me insane. And don't even get me started on that idiot in accounting."

Elara grimaced. "Brokkr? He's a nightmare. Always growling and snapping at everyone. I swear, he'd rather wrestle a gryphon than file a single expense report."

"And let's not forget 'Charming' Cedric," Lyra added, her voice dripping with sarcasm. "The way he struts around convinced he's the most important person in the entire universe."

Elara snorted. "The universe? Oh please. He probably thinks he's responsible for the tides."

They continued their walk, their conversation growing more animated with each passing step.

"I swear," Elara continued, "if I have to listen to him drone on about his 'brilliant' ideas one more time, I might just scream."

Lyra nodded in agreement. "He reminds me of a peacock, all show and no substance."

Suddenly, Elara's eyes widened. "Oh, shit!"

Lyra turned to see what had startled her. Elara pointed towards the end of the hallway, where a large, imposing oak door stood slightly ajar.

"That's... that's the Director's office!" she whispered, her voice dropping to a hushed tone. "We should probably keep our voices down."

Lyra's face paled. "Yeah, we don't want to risk him overhearing anything that can get us in trouble"

As they hurried past the Director's office, inside the room itself, a man sat at his desk, his fingers dancing across the keyboard as he typed away at a report. The room was bathed in a soft, artificial glow, the only sound breaking the silence being the rhythmic tapping of keys and the occasional rustle of paper.

He was dressed in a charcoal-grey tailored suit. The suit was impeccably cut, with a slim fit accentuating his muscular build and his sharp, intelligent gaze and strong jawline. Beneath the suit, he wore a crisp white dress shirt with a navy silk tie. A silver watch adorned his left wrist, and his shoes were polished to a mirror finish.

As the black-haired man, Odin, was completely absorbed in his work, a message popped up on his computer screen. It was from his old friend, Arnold, inviting him out for drinks.

"Drinks? Like the old days?" Arnold's message read. "I'm free tonight. Let's catch up!"

Odin smiled faintly. He missed those days, the late-night discussions, the endless debates, the shared laughter. But tonight wasn't the night. He had a mountain of reports to finish, and a meeting with the other executives tomorrow.

"Sorry, Loki," he replied, typing quickly. "Another time. I'm swamped tonight."

A faint glint caught his eye as he hit send and returned to his work. Odin paused, his brow furrowing slightly, and glanced down at his desk drawers.

"Huh? This is rather unexpected," he uttered, his eyes widening in surprise. A soft, ethereal light emanated from one of his desk drawers. "Who is it this time?"

With his curiosity piqued, he quickly pulled the drawer open. Inside was a leather-covered book, nestled amongst a stack of papers and files. The light was coming from the book itself, a gentle, almost pulsating glow that seemed to emanate from within its pages. The man's eyes widened even further.

"You have to be kidding with me." He groaned, his voice filled with astonishment. "I thought my story was over after I'd taken this position back then."

A light smile crept across his lips as he took out the book. "But I guess I was wrong on that."

Odin's smile faltered slightly as he heard the door creak open and looked to see a woman burst into the room, her blonde hair bouncing as she rushed into the room. 

She wore a sleek, ivory-coloured pantsuit that mirrored the man's style. A matching blouse with a delicate lace collar complemented the suit, and a silver watch adorned her right wrist.

"Hey honey, what are you doing right now?" she asked, her eyes sparkling with curiosity. Despite the sudden intrusion, Odin recovered his composure quickly, and with his voice calm and collected, he replied, "I'm just finishing up a report for the next meeting." 

"Hhmmmm….?"

The blond woman paused, scanning around the room before landing on the book being held by the man. At first, she was surprised at the sight but quickly crossed her arms against each other and pouted her lips. "That's not fair."

To Be Continued