Fallen General's Omega (BL)
Chapter 130: Ruins and Rage

Chapter 130: Ruins and Rage

I’m barely functioning. The exhaustion weighs down on me, pressing into every muscle, every bone. Rage and anxiety have been my fuel, the only things keeping me upright, moving, pushing forward. The moment I see the capital’s distant lights on the horizon, I can’t even muster relief. There’s nothing but a hollow ache, a gnawing dread that worsens with every step. My horse gives up not far from the gates, collapsing beneath me. Its sides heave, its eyes rolling, as if it too is consumed by the frantic pace I’ve set. But I can’t care for it. I can’t even bring myself to look back at the poor beast as I abandon it, stumbling forward on foot, every step a test of my willpower.

Each step I take toward Seraphina’s Heart brings a fresh wave of dread, clawing at me like a curse. My bones feel hollow, scraped clean by exhaustion and fear, yet something deeper drives me forward. My beloved star is out there, and I am bound to him with every fiber of my being. Two weeks without rest, my body fueled only by the constant hum of panic that has infected my every thought. I’ve changed horses more times than I can count, ridden them to exhaustion, left them behind like hollow shells, and kept moving. I’ve forsaken sleep, food, any semblance of rest, in this relentless journey back to him. I barely even know how I’m still standing, but I force myself to walk, faster, and faster still, until I finally him.

Night has fallen, and the streets are eerily quiet. The capital sleeps, unaware of the storm raging inside me. The buildings rise like silent specters, their shadows long and menacing under the moonlight. I walk—no, I force myself to move, to put one foot in front of the other. It’s all I can do to not collapse here and now. Every breath is labored, every heartbeat like a drum in my ears, loud and unforgiving.

I fall at some point, my body betraying me in a dark alley. My knees hit the cold ground with a thud, and I feel my legs buckle. The cold cobblestone presses against my hands, and I can’t even summon the strength to curse myself for being weak. Not now. Not when Noelle might be—

No. I can’t let my mind go there.

A stranger approaches, a good Samaritan in the dead of night. They see a man broken, on the edge of collapse, and they offer me water and course bread. I don’t even taste it. I gulp the water like I’ve been stranded in the desert for weeks. The bread turns to dust in my mouth, but I force it down. I need the energy to keep going, to get home. I mumble a thank you I don’t really feel, and then I’m moving again.

When I finally reach the outskirts of what was once Seraphina’s Heart, I stop.

And my world falls apart.

The walls that once loomed so proudly are nothing but charred remains, the strong stone blackened and crumbling. The windows have shattered, sharp shards gleaming in the moonlight . The gardens, where Noelle and I once walked among lush greenery, are now nothing more than twisted, blackened skeletons. The greenhouse, that precious sanctuary, has collapsed inward, reduced to nothing but ashes.

I stand there, frozen, my heart beating so painfully in my chest I think it might tear itself apart. I’m numb. Completely numb. I want to cry, scream, do something—anything—but I can’t. I can only stare at the devastation before me.

My feet move, but I don’t remember telling them to. I walk closer to the castle grounds, my legs trembling with exhaustion, my breath coming in shallow gasps. The smell of burnt wood and death hangs heavy in the air, suffocating me. I pass the bodies. Bodies of the people who had once called this place home. Guards. Servants. Innocent people. All of them strewn across the ground like broken dolls, their limbs twisted in unnatural angles.

My heart falls.

I want to turn away. I want to shut my eyes and pretend that this isn’t real, that this is just some sick, twisted dream. But I can’t. I force myself to look. To keep looking. I spend hours—hours—searching through the bodies, dread settling deeper into my bones with every step. Each face I see, each lifeless body I turn over, I thank the gods that it isn’t him. That it isn’t Noelle. But the relief is fleeting, replaced by the sinking feeling that I still haven’t found him.

I find myself in what was once our room. The room where Noelle’s laughter echoed, where his warmth filled every corner. Now, it’s a ruin. The bed we shared is nothing but a twisted metal frame; the tapestries are gone, replaced by ash-covered walls. I stand in the middle of the devastation, surrounded by fragments of memories threatening to overwhelm me.

I make my way to the underground passageways, the secret paths known only to a few. The air down here is thick, damp, the smell of death stronger than ever. The walls are cold, the stone rough under my fingers as I steady myself. I don’t know why I keep going. Maybe it’s hope. Maybe it’s desperation. Maybe it’s both.

I don’t know how long I wander, scouring the broken remnants of Seraphina’s Heart. My legs shake, my vision swims, my body is begging for rest, but I force it into submission. I search every room, every hall, ignoring the corpses I pass, my mind fixed on one thing, one person.

And then, I find her.

Doris.

She’s barely alive, slumped against the stone wall, surrounded by bodies. Hundreds of them lie at her feet, their blood pooling around her, soaking her clothing.

I rush to her side, my hands shaking as I reach out to her. Her skin is cold, her breathing shallow. She’s covered in blood—whether it’s hers or someone else’s, I can’t tell. I kneel beside her, my throat tight, my heart pounding in my chest.

"Doris..." My voice cracks, barely a whisper.She opens her eyes, those familiar eyes dulled with pain and exhaustion, but she sees me. Recognition dawn’s in her eyes.

Her lips move, a whisper of sound escaping her. I lean closer, desperate to hear her, to understand, straining to hear her.

"Elaris," she whispers, the word barely more than a breath.

And then she’s gone.

I can’t breathe. The world blurs, tilting around me as I clutch her lifeless hand. She’s gone. She’s gone, and Noelle... Noelle might be, too.

A strangled sound escapes me—a sob, a scream, I don’t even know. The grief claws at me, tearing me apart from the inside out.

And then, the numbness fades. Replaced by something darker, deeper, more dangerous.

Rage.