The starry sky, filled with the twinkling of countless stars, was a sight to behold. Such a view was impossible in any city, but that wasn't the case at Neil Island, Andaman and Nicobar.
Under the heavenly vision of the stars of milky way, was an exquisite villa built on a beautiful hillside. An old man stood on one of the balcony, overlooking the hills and forest.
The vision of the old man shifted to the sea of stars up above, however the eyes turned hazy and glazed as if lost in memories.
Suddenly, his hand clutched the glass railings of the balcony, his breathing rough and forceful.
"Your Bp is running high, sir. Would you like your medicine?" A calm voice called out from behind.
The old man stopped and after a pause he sighed, waving his hand signalling the rejection. Understanding his gesture, the servant bowed and slowly backed away.
'Arnav Kairav, the richest and the strongest man on Earth. What is causing him so much distress?' Curious but not daring to overreach his boundaries, servant moved out of the balcony.
Leaning onto the railings, Arnav softly spoke out to the empty air, "30 years.... And there's still no clue about you, Aureliya."
It's the later stage of his life now, being an old man in his 60s, his body has started to fail him as well as his mind. Forgetfulness and knee pains were common occurrence for him nowadays.
However, no matter what, Arnav could never forget this. The one and only regret of his life, her mysterious disappearance.
The only thing she left behind before her disappearance, was their child. The child who doesn't even visit his own old father anymore.
Even after becoming the richest and the most powerful man, he couldn't find the slightest clue of her. The heart that would ache and burn in anger as well as regret, was strangely calm today.
"Perhaps i will die soon. Must be because of my old wounds." Arnav lamented.
The path to becoming the most powerful, even in a non-martial society, is filled with constant dangers and death. He doesn't even remember how many assassination attempts has he survived up until now.
Numerous wounds which cannot be healed fully, including hidden wounds, could easily kill as more time passed. Arnav was no exception.
"I don't regret living such a life. I don't regret neglecting our child, causing him to be distant. Probably i lived my life in vain, wasting all of it in search of you."
There was a hint of melancholy in the air, but his face was cold. He stretched his arm out, towards the twinkling stars. So close, yet so far.
"But i only regret not trying harder to find you."
However, a cold smile spread on to his ever frozen face. His outstretched palm clenched the stars.
Time: 12:00, he could see the time ticking to exact 12-o-clock on his antique watch, causing Arnav's smile to spread deep.
As if on cue, a loud sound of glass breaking echoed. The heavenly sky collapsed, the stars were disappearing gradually, swallowed up by an unknown rainbow mist.
Unknown as to where it originated, in no time at all, the world had been encased entirely with beautiful mist, causing immediate mass panic and chaos. If one looked from the space, Earth would look like a colourful sphere instead of the usual blue.
"So it wasn't all rubbish, this watch...." Arnav couldn't finish his words before something ethereal illuminated before his eyes.
[Prepare for the Trial, Earthlings. The unknown awaits you.]
[24:00:00]
[23:59:59]
[23:59:58]
A mysterious message with a countdown. Arnav's eyes widened, he focused back on to his antique watch.
It was a silver watch with an ancient aura to it, making unusually loud sounds of clicking. Not paying attention to the design, he gently pushed the only button which was normally used to adjust the time.
But unexpectedly, the watch began to malfunction. The arrows which would move once per seconds was now revolving as if it never knew what slowness ever meant.
The sounds of ticking became so swift, it was grating to the ears. However, gradually the tickings turned into coherent sounds of someone speaking.
"On 12th of March 2025, the world will change. The current peaks will crumble, giving rise to new seeds. People will be born, capable of lifting mountains, stomping the sky and tearing the earth with bare hands. Prepare well, descendants of Kairav."
Arnav's expression didn't change, he clicked the button again and again, expecting a change. But to his disappointment, the message remained the same as it was before.
"Fortunately, i didn't treat it as complete rubbish. The preparation of 20 years, will be of use today." Slowly putting down his left hand, he turned around to regard the person behind him.
Standing on an impressive 6'1, towering above Arnav, was a women in black suit, her green eyes covered in black glasses. Her sunkissed pale brown skin didn't failed to glow under the starlight as her face was expressionless while her covered eyes stared only at him.
"Prepare the resources before the sunrise, we are beginning Operation 0." A cold command leaked out of his mouth, none of the melancholy to be seen.
The women in black silently nodded. Arnav didn't pay attention to her anymore and turned around.
"Perhaps, this will be considered my second coming." His eyes sharpened, awaiting the sunrise.