Revenge: A Path of Destruction
Chapter 103: Preparation 1 (Flashback)

Chapter 103: Preparation 1 (Flashback)

His mother’s image remained in a sorrowful stillness.

Eyes that once beamed with fierce love were now dulled by weariness.

She wasn’t looking at him—

She was looking through time,

At the boy she once knew,

At the son she could no longer protect.

Alex didn’t move.

He couldn’t.

His body felt cold, but his chest burned.

The warmth was not comfort—it was pressure.

A coil of emotion too tangled to unravel.

He knew why she looked like that.

She knew what he had chosen.

And she was mourning him already.

Then her voice returned, low and steady:

"So you chose the path of revenge after all..."

Her lips trembled slightly before the rest of her face followed.

Not with anger.

But grief.

"...Can’t say I’m surprised."

Her gaze dipped, as if trying to hide the truth in her eyes, but her voice betrayed the sadness she couldn’t bury.

"With that mindset of yours... it would’ve been a miracle if you had chosen otherwise."

Alex’s jaw clenched.

His fists were already white-knuckled, trembling with restrained energy.

He didn’t want to hear this.

He did.

He didn’t know what he wanted anymore.

His breathing was uneven.

Memories flashed through him—Logan’s crushed ribs,

Mogan’s in a pool of her blood—

The silence when his mother’s voice cut out that final time in real life.

His father’s battered body.

His mother’s voice told him to run.

To run.

He ran.

And now... he was here.

"There’s one thing I want to tell you now, Alex," her voice said again, firmer.

"The path of revenge is one full of destruction..."

He didn’t flinch.

"...pain..."

His pupils narrowed.

Something inside him twitched.

"...and bloodshed."

That was when it happened.

A smile crept onto his face.

It was unbidden, unconscious—

But it was there, curling slowly like ink dropped in clear water.

Alex didn’t even realize he was smiling.

But Nyxara did.

She turned her head sharply.

Her bright eyes widened slightly,

Not out of fear... but grief.

She hadn’t seen that smile before.

And it baffled her, as she had known Alex all her life, as they had been bonded from childhood.

She had seen him smile, laugh, and cry, but this was different..., it was not even his usual mischief smile.

On him.

But she said nothing.

Even she didn’t know how to reach him anymore, how to comfort him anymore.

The screen crackled with faint static, and the console lights pulsed softly—As if the entire room held its breath.

Then his mother’s voice returned, quieter now, like a whisper from beyond:

"The death of millions will be on your hands if you walk this path.

Her image leaned forward ever so slightly,

Eyes fixed squarely on his,

Like she knew he was watching.

"So let me ask again..."

"Do you want to go down this path, Alex?"

The hum of the console grew louder.

The lights dimmed around him, leaving only the monitor’s glow to illuminate his face.

His golden aura shimmered faintly...

Then flickered.

Darkness bled into it.

Not entirely—just faint tendrils of black weaving into the gold.

A creeping corruption.

Not evil...

Just inevitable.

Alex stared at the screen.

He didn’t speak.

Didn’t blink.

He looked ahead, thought about it, but it was still all the same; he wanted blood. He wants to see the despair, the fear on the face of the ones who did it, so his answer was still the same thing, which was

The Path of Revenge.

Alex didn’t move.

The room remained dim, bathed only in the soft glow of the now-frozen screen. A countdown timer had appeared in the bottom corner:

10... 9... 8...

The seconds ticked away.

His golden-black aura hummed softly around him, shifting like restless smoke. Nyxara stayed beside him, though her gaze often drifted to his face—the subtle curl of his smile hadn’t disappeared.

3... 2... 1...

The screen flickered.

Then the video resumed.

But this time... the woman on the screen was different.

Gone was the sorrow.

Gone was the quiet grief in her eyes.

In its place was a new fire.

Sharp. Clear. Dangerous.

It was the look of a mother ready to burn the world to clear a path for her son.

"So now," she began, voice calm but ironclad, "let’s start the preparations."

She leaned forward slightly, her tone turning brisk, almost military.

"The path you just chose will be full of danger. And as a mother... the best thing I can do now is help reduce those dangers."

Alex’s expression tightened, the amusement gone, replaced with quiet focus. His eyes didn’t leave hers—not even for a blink.

"There are four things I’ve prepared to aid you in your journey, Alex."

"The first is NOVA—a system-based AI I created from scratch, with a learning core and quantum-memory feedback loops. She’s the brain that’ll help you think two steps ahead of your enemies. But we’ll talk more about her later."

Alex’s eyes flickered; the name sounded familiar.

"The second..."

The lights in the room shifted.

A subtle click echoed from the back of the chamber.

Alex’s head snapped toward the source, instantly on guard.

He had scanned this room—every surface, every rune-engraved tile—

Yet the wall to his left slowly receded, revealing a hidden alcove bathed in pale blue light.

It had been cloaked, runes etched into the air, masked beyond his current perception.

In the center stood a cylindrical stasis tube—about human-sized—its surface fogged slightly from within.

And suspended inside it...

A suit.

Smooth. Black. Sleek like liquid obsidian.

It was shaped like leather, but the aura it gave off was anything but ordinary.

Even with the suppression runes layered on the tube, Alex could feel the suit’s dormant power crawling across his skin like static.

His eyes widened.

"That’s a nano suit," his mother’s voice said. "It’s something I created. It adapts with the user, mana-conductive fibers, cloaking ability, and kinetic dampening. Everything you’ll need to survive against high-level threats."

Alex didn’t speak, but Nyxara caught the subtle shift in his stance—an unspoken acknowledgment of respect.

"The third..."

Her voice paused, a breath of deliberation in it.

"...is Nyxara."

Alex turned his head sharply. His gaze met the tigress’s.

Nyxara blinked.

"...What?" she said under her breath, ears twitching slightly.

Even she looked confused, tail flicking once behind her.

Alex tilted his head, eyes narrowing—not in doubt, but in anticipation.

"You might not know this, Alex," his mother continued, "but Nyxara’s talent isn’t Empress-rank like your siblings’ bonded beasts..."

She gave a knowing smile.

Pride laced with something deeper—secrecy long held.

"Nyxara is Mystic-ranked."

A beat of silence.

Nyxara’s eyes widened.

Alex’s entire body went still.

Mystic-rank?

In the world today, there isn’t even a mystic rank beast, much less one bonded with one. In the Thunder Clan, tamed beasts typically reached King and Queen, sometimes knight rank for branch family descendants—but Mystic?

That wasn’t just rare, especially when the beast’s strength will always be below the one they are bonded to.

It was unheard of.

"...Mystic..." Alex whispered, half in disbelief.

Nyxara was still staring at the screen as if trying to process her own identity.

"We’ll talk more about what that means later," his mother said, her tone now tightening.

"And the last thing..."

She paused again. This time... the weight in her voice was unmistakable.

"The final item is the demi-god rank weapon bestowed upon your father by the Thunder God himself."

At that moment, both Alex and Nyxara froze.

Alex’s pupils constricted.

Nyxara’s fur bristled instinctively.

A Thunder God’s weapon?

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