Within seconds, chaos erupted. A deafening sound echoed through the woods, and the darkness seemed to shift. The hunters hadn't realized they had long since become the hunted.
A laugh echoed through the icy night air, piercing and full of mockery. Lukas stood in the middle of the empty square, surrounded by hundreds of soldiers, snipers, and heavily armed units. Tanks, drones, and armored vehicles lined up around him, ready to respond to a single command. The darkness was pierced by searchlights that mercilessly thrust him into the center of attention.
He shook his head slowly as his laughter died away. His face was a mixture of arrogance and amusement as he began to speak.
"You know," he said quietly, but his voice was so clear it carried across the entire square, "it's getting... boring. It's always the same routine. You chase me, plan your little attacks, think you can somehow stop me—but in the end? Always the same result. You fail."
The soldiers didn't move. Every movement was precise, their weapons aimed at Lukas. But you could feel the tension in the air, the fluttering of nerves about to snap.
"Why?" Lukas continued, pacing slowly back and forth, his steps casual, almost prancing. "Have you ever asked yourself that? Why do you fail every time? It's not me. It's you."
He stopped, pointed his finger at the nearest group of soldiers, his gaze piercing.
"You are weak," he said, his voice sharp as a knife. "You are prisoners of your own fear. You cling to your weapons, your technology, your so-called strength—but deep down, you know it doesn't matter. You are... meaningless."
An imperceptible tremor ran through the ranks. Lukas smiled, a cold, calculating smile that knew no warmth.
"And yet," he continued, "here you are. Once again. Like small, loyal dogs chasing a wagon, not knowing what to do if they ever catch it."
His gaze raked over the soldiers as if studying each of them.
"You're stupid," he said, his voice louder now, almost a command. "You think I'm here because I have no other choice? That you've cornered me? No. I'm here because I want to. Because I want to show you how pointless your fight is."
A sniper in a nearby building twitched slightly, his fingers trembling on the trigger. Lukas's eyes moved directly to him, his attention like a spotlight.
"Pull the trigger," he said calmly, the smile lingering on his face. "I promise you, it will be the last thing you do."
The words were like a dagger stabbing into the soldiers' already crumbling morale. Some retreated imperceptibly, others clung desperately to their rifles as if they could give them courage.
"You will never win," Lukas concluded, his voice now a soft whisper that nevertheless reached everyone. "Not today, not tomorrow, not ever. You are nothing but pawns in a game you don't understand. And me?" He let the words hang, a grin spreading across his face. "I am the player."
A slight smile flitted across Lukas's face as he approached the soldiers. His words seemed to intensify the chill in the air as he began to speak in a voice as calm as it was threatening.
"Do you really want to continue? Do you really want to think you can stop me? You are so desperate, so blind in your pursuit, that you don't even realize what this is really about."
He paused, letting the silence sink in as his gaze moved from face to face, piercing each one.
"You think I'm the problem. The enemy. The chaos that's destroying your perfect world. But you know?" He let out a dry laugh, bitter and mocking. "You have always been your own undoing. You cursed the world long before I was here. I am not your enemy. I am your punishment."
The words echoed across the square, filling the void and penetrating the minds of those listening.
"Humanity..." he continued, his voice now quieter but full of emphasis. "You call yourselves a crown of creation, a blessing, a miracle. But you are not. You are a parasite, a virus, and a stain. Everything you have ever touched, you have destroyed. The earth, the oceans, the air, each other."
He spread his arms as if to embrace the entire scene.
"Now you're here, with your weapons and your pride, and you really think you can wipe me out? No. I'm not an accident, not a freak of fate. I am what you created. Your sins, your mistakes, your shame—I am all of that. I am everything you've ever done wrong, in a single form. And I'm here to do what must be done."
He took a step forward, closer to the ranks of soldiers, his gaze unwavering.
"I am the curse you deserve. I am the judgment you've ignored for so long. You didn't fight me because you were strong, but because you were too weak to admit your failure. Humanity is not a blessing. It's a curse. And I'm here to end that curse."
The last words were like thunder, unmistakable and final. The soldiers froze, and for a moment, time seemed to stand still. Lukas looked into the rigid faces and smiled, a smile that promised no mercy.
Aurora stepped forward, her voice trembling slightly, but she spoke with firm determination: "Enough is enough. You're right. We're destroying our planet."
Lukas interrupted her abruptly: "Yes, I know I'm right."
He paused, allowing the silence to sink in, before continuing: "You want examples? Let's consider the darkest chapters in human history:
The Holocaust: The systematic murder of six million Jews by the Nazi regime.
The transatlantic slave trade: Millions of Africans were enslaved, transported, and exploited under inhumane conditions.
The Armenian genocide: Approximately 1.5 million Armenians were killed by the Ottoman Empire during World War I.
The atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki: Hundreds of thousands of civilians died in the first and only nuclear attacks in history.
The crimes of the Khmer Rouge in Cambodia: Under Pol Pot's regime, approximately two million people were killed through executions, forced labor, and starvation.
The Rwandan genocide: In 1994, around 800,000 Tutsi and moderate Hutu brutally murdered.
The colonization of America: European conquerors brought death and destruction over indigenous peoples, led to their mass dying through violence and inserted diseases.
The Inquisition: For centuries, people have been tortured and executed because of their faith.
The Holodomor: A famine caused by Stalin in Ukraine, which cost millions of life.
Apartheid in South Africa: A system of institutionalized racial segregation and discrimination, which suppressed millions of people.
The persecution and murder of witches: thousands, mostly women, were accused of witchcraft and burned.
The crimes of IS: destruction of cultural heritage, mass murders and enslavement of innocent people.
Josef Stalin's crimes: Millions fell victim to the cleansing, forced relocations and labor camps.
The crimes by Mao Zedong: Political campaigns Such as the "Great Leap Forward" led to famine and the deaths of millions.
The crimes of Adolf Hitler: His racial madness led not only to the Holocaust, but also to World War II, with millions of deaths.
The crimes of Leopold II in the Congo: Under his rule, millions of Congolese were enslaved, mutilated, and killed.
The crimes of the Spanish conquerors in South America: The destruction of entire cultures and civilizations such as the Incas and Aztecs.
The crimes of the Japanese army in World War II: Massacres such as that of Nanking, in which hundreds of thousands of civilians were killed.
The crimes of the European witch hunts: Thousands of innocent people were tortured and executed.
The crimes of humanity against nature: Deforestation of the rainforests, pollution of the oceans, extinction of countless animal species.
Lukas' voice grew quieter, but sharper: "These are just a few examples of the depths you're capable of. You're not just a curse to yourselves, but to the entire planet. And I'm here to put an end to that curse."
The tense silence was broken by an officer's sudden, piercing cry: "Lay down your weapons!" His voice echoed across the battlefield, loud and relentless. Astonishment spread among the soldiers. But no one resisted. Slowly, one by one, they lowered their weapons.
"What is he doing?" a soldier whispered to his comrade. "Is that an order?" But no one questioned the officer.
Another officer stepped forward, his voice firm: "He's right. We're destroying ourselves. Perhaps he is the curse, but we paved the way for him."
Aurora, standing next to Schäfer, suddenly screamed, her voice filled with despair: "How many has he killed in this time?" Her eyes searched Lukas's face, as if trying to force a truth.
Lukas shrugged and answered coolly: "As far as I know, none yet." His gaze was arrogant, challenging.
Aurora turned to the officer, her eyes full of emotion. She nodded. The agreement was quiet but clear.
Suddenly, a technician shouted from a control center: "Alarm! Nuclear weapon failure!" The news caused the tension to explode.
Aurora's voice cut through the chaos: "Perfect. We won't see each other again. Bye-bye, Lukas." Her words were like a dagger piercing the silence.
Lukas's eyes widened. He looked around frantically, reality hitting him like a blow. "No," he mumbled at first, then shouted: "NO!"
Aurora paused, turning to him once more, a faint smile on her lips before turning away.
"You're smarter, Aurora," Lukas said softly, his voice trembling with rage. "But I'll see you in damned hell." His whisper was a threat, a grim promise.
No sooner had it begun than a blinding light flared up, consuming everything. It was so bright that no one could see. Voices fell silent as the brightness erased every line of shadow. The world seemed to hold its breath in that moment.
Then, through the deafening silence, a single, piercing scream pierced. A woman's voice, full of despair and pain, cut through the endless silence like a snapping thread. It was as if that scream carried all the anguish of humanity, a final echo in a world that had surrendered to nothingness.
And then—nothing. No sounds, no voices, no movement. Only the empty echo of that single voice, fading yet indelible in the room.
The world was... destroyed.
***
Aurora opened her eyes and blinked against the dim morning light. Her head pounded, and a tight feeling lay on her chest. She turned to Schäfer, who lay sleepily beside her. "Schäfer," she whispered hoarsely, "I feel so bad... What day is it?"
Schäfer mumbled something unintelligible and reached for the alarm clock on the nightstand. His eyes half-open, he shook his head. "I don't know..."
Aurora sighed and glanced at the digital clock next to him. The red numbers read 7:39. Her heart skipped a beat. "Oh my God!" she cried, sitting up abruptly. "We have to wake Max!"
Schäfer slowly sat up, his hair disheveled. "What? What's the rush?" he asked sleepily, but Aurora was already up and rushing to the door.
She hurried into Max's room and opened the curtains. "Max! Get up! We're late!"
Max turned sleepily, rubbed his eyes, and then suddenly jumped out of bed. "Okay, Mom! All right!" He was immediately full of energy, quickly dressed, and ran toward the door.
"Mom!" he called as he hastily put on his shoes. "Do you want to watch the demolition of the hospital today?"
Aurora hesitated briefly, a fleeting shadow passing over her face, but finally she smiled and nodded. "Yes," she said quietly, "we're going to watch the demolition of the hospital today."
*EPILOGUE*
In the midst of the united states of america, a TT&C station received a signal.
"Holy Shit!" Someone screamed, almost falling of their chair.
Another person quickly came running as the received signal was being decoded and displayed on a comically large screen.
"--- -. --- ..- .-. .-- .- -.--" The signal was displayed in morse code, decoded to the best of their current technological abilities.
"Is that... morse code?"