A massive, burning resolve ignited deep inside the young boy's chest. He hated war. He absolutely hated the rival nations. He hated the endless, pointless fighting.
"I will stop the wars," young Raven promised himself silently. He stared at the gray, cloudy sky. "I will make sure nobody ever feels this terrible sadness again. I will find a way to create absolute, permanent peace."
The memory moved forward rapidly. Young Raven grew up. He read thousands of thick, complicated books. He studied advanced magic. He studied complex science. He worked incredibly hard every single day. He became a top, highly respected researcher for the Empire. He wanted to invent a permanent solution to global conflict.
He met Dr. Carrion. They became partners. They worked in a bright, clean, highly advanced laboratory. They studied very rare magical elements.
Raven developed a very specific, incredibly dark philosophy over the years. He thought about his father's tragic death constantly. He realized that polite peace treaties did not work. Diplomatic negotiations always failed. Armies always fought. Kings always wanted more land.
"People only stop fighting when they are totally terrified," Raven concluded. He stood alone in his laboratory. He looked closely at a glowing green vial of raw Solurious radiation. "If a nation possesses a weapon of unimaginable, absolute destruction, nobody will ever dare to attack them. Fear is the ultimate peacemaker. Overwhelming violence will halt all future violence completely."
He completely believed this twisted logic. He thought a massive, scary bomb would act as a perfect, flawless deterrent. If the Belmontia Empire held the ultimate weapon, the rival nations would instantly surrender. There would be no more border skirmishes. No more dead fathers. No more crying mothers.
He presented his grand idea to Dr. Carrion. Carrion looked absolutely horrified.
"This is pure madness!" Carrion shouted loudly. He pointed a shaking finger at the glowing green vial. "This radiation is incredibly toxic! It melts human skin! It poisons the land for centuries! We cannot build a bomb out of this material! It is a complete atrocity!"
"It is a strict necessity!" Raven argued fiercely. His eyes burned with obsession. "We will not actually use it! We will just show it to the world! The sheer terror of its existence will force them to sign permanent peace treaties!"
Carrion totally refused to help. He locked his research away in a hidden vault. He threatened to expose the dangerous project to the Emperor.
Raven felt completely desperate. He believed he was saving the entire country. He believed he was doing the right thing. He made a terrible, entirely unforgivable choice. He hired Anny. He ordered the brutal assassination of his brilliant partner.
Raven watched the laboratory explode. He stole the secret blueprints from the rubble. He allied with corrupt politicians like Lord Voss. He knew Voss was incredibly greedy, but Raven desperately needed the massive amount of money to build the bomb. He compromised his morals for his grand vision. He built the Solurious weapon facility deep inside the eastern mountains.
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The memory slowly faded away. The dark, cold walls of the prison cell returned.
Dr. Raven sat on his thin mattress. The flickering light bulb cast long, sad shadows across the stone floor. He wrapped his arms tightly around his chest. He felt incredibly cold.
He thought about the recent news broadcast. The prison guards talked about it very loudly in the hallways. He heard every single word they said.
The Solurious weapon was actually fired. But it was not fired as a harmless test. It was not used as a peaceful deterrent. The Black Magicians hijacked his hidden facility. They launched the bomb directly at the Bluemoon Kingdom. They destroyed a friendly, allied nation. Millions of innocent people were turned into gray ash in a single second.
The world did not become peaceful. The world did not surrender in fear.
The global community was absolutely furious. Rival nations closed their borders immediately. Kings gathered their massive armies. The entire continent prepared for a massive, catastrophic global war.
Dr. Raven stared down at his dirty hands. His hands shook violently.
He wanted to prevent war. He wanted to save innocent lives. He wanted to honor his fallen father.
But his creation caused the exact opposite outcome. His terrible bomb ignited the biggest, most deadly conflict in history. He gave the absolute worst villains a weapon of mass destruction. He did not create peace. He created a literal apocalypse.
"I was wrong," Dr. Raven whispered to the empty cell. His voice cracked with pure, unfiltered despair. Tears filled his eyes. They rolled down his cheeks and dripped onto his gray prison uniform. "I was completely wrong."
He remembered his father's kind, gentle smile. He knew his father would be deeply, profoundly ashamed of him right now. He was not a brave hero. He was a terrible monster. He caused the tragic death of millions.
Dr. Raven buried his face in his hands. He wept loudly in the dark room. He sobbed for the innocent people of Bluemoon. He sobbed for his dead friend, Dr. Carrion. He sobbed for his own ruined, corrupted soul.
He finally understood the massive magnitude of his failure. His dangerous creation did not halt the violence at all. It multiplied the violence a million times over. He was trapped in a cold cell, and he knew he deserved to stay there forever.
---
Laxmi punched a giant green beetle. The beetle flew across the cobblestone street. It crashed into a brick wall. It exploded into gray ash. Laxmi laughed out loud. She tossed a bright orange flame between her fingers. She looked completely thrilled.
"That is fifty bugs for me!" Laxmi cheered happily. She pumped her fist into the air. "I am absolutely dominating this scoreboard! Bring me more bugs! I want to break my own record!"
Naomi dashed past Laxmi. Green wind magic swirled around Naomi's combat boots. She moved with blinding speed. She spun her twin silver daggers. She sliced a flying wasp right in half. The wasp vanished into dust. Naomi landed perfectly on her feet. She sheathed her daggers. She smiled a very bright, warm smile.
Ken Eliot sat on a broken stone bench. He slouched his shoulders. His navy blue suit pants looked very dusty. His white dress shirt hung completely untucked over his belt. He did not wear a tie. His black hair stuck up in wild, messy spikes.
He held a massive bag of cheese-flavored popcorn. He grabbed a handful of popcorn. He tossed the food into the air. He caught the popcorn in his mouth. Crunch. Crunch. Crunch.
"You guys are doing a fantastic job," Ken mumbled lazily. He chewed his food. "This is exactly like grinding low-level mobs in a role-playing game. You just stand in one spot. The weak enemies run at you. You press the attack button. You collect the experience points. It is a very relaxing strategy."
Naomi walked over to the stone bench. She did not scowl at him. She did not yell about his untucked shirt. Her green eyes sparkled with genuine affection.
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