I stood atop a building in Trenton.
The wind blew hard.
The city lights flickered in the distance.
—…
I was about to go to Somerset.
But I stopped.
—No… not yet.
I closed my eyes.
—What matters right now…
—Is my ambition.
The purple eye.
"The Lord."
All of that…
—Second priority.
For now.
I slowly opened my eyes.
—Ah… right.
A faint smile appeared.
—The school.
I disappeared.
---
Inside the School
Darkness.
Total silence.
—…
I appeared in the middle of the hallway.
Empty.
Cold.
—Perfect.
I raised my hand.
—Water magic.
The air trembled.
A faint murmur began to echo.
Then…
WATER.
From pipes.
From walls.
From the very air itself.
—Hahaha…
The water started to accumulate.
Rising.
Spreading.
Uncontrollable.
—Good…
I turned my head.
—Now…
—A couple of days off.
I turned away.
—Problem solved.
But before leaving…
I remembered something.
—…
—Vivian.
—Brittany.
I sighed.
—I still haven't warned them.
Silence.
—But they'll be fine.
Pause.
—For now.
My eyes narrowed.
—Those twins…
—They got interested too quickly.
—Sarra knows them…
Maybe.
—…
I shook my head.
—Thinking without information is useless.
—Only questions.
—No answers.
I snapped my fingers.
—Better to move forward.
I disappeared.
---
My Room
I appeared in front of the computer.
—…
I smiled.
—Now then.
I cracked my fingers.
—Let the real game begin.
I sat down.
Turned on the system.
Blue screen.
Old.
Limited.
—Windows XP…
—What a pain.
But my fingers were already moving.
Fast.
Precise.
—…
—Project.
I thought of several ideas.
Apps.
Systems.
Platforms.
—…
—No.
Then I remembered.
—Freelance.
A faint smile grew.
—But better.
—Much better.
An organized system.
Professional.
Efficient.
—Programmers.
—Translators.
—Marketing.
—Designers.
—Editors.
—All in one place.
My eyes gleamed.
—This…
—Will work.
But then…
I sighed.
—Marketing…
Snap.
—YouTube.
—Two channels.
—Programming.
—Entertainment.
—Not bad.
But…
I looked at the screen.
—I don't have a microphone.
—And editing…
—Mediocre.
—…
—Problems on top of problems.
I kept working.
Hours.
Errors.
Fixes.
Code.
More code.
—…
When I looked up—
—08:00 AM.
I blinked.
—…
—All night.
I leaned back in the chair.
—At least…
I looked at the screen.
—It works.
I smiled slightly.
—Perfect.
---
Morning
I walked toward the school.
—…
A small laugh escaped me.
—I hope they liked my gift.
There were students outside.
Confusion.
Noise.
—What happened? —I asked someone.
—No one knows —he replied—. The school got flooded.
—Everything's soaked.
I nodded.
—Wow…
—What a tragedy.
Internally…
—Exactly as planned.
The principal appeared.
—There will be no classes today.
Perfect.
As I walked away…
I saw her.
Maya.
—…
She looked normal.
Calm.
—Too normal.
But I didn't stop.
—Not a priority.
I kept walking.
---
Later…
Vivian and Brittany were talking with the cheerleading club.
—We can train another day —Brittany said.
—A break won't hurt.
The others nodded.
Normal.
—…
Until—
A car approached.
The same one from before.
The twins.
Vivian sighed.
—Trouble.
Brittany shook her head.
—Again…
The girls around them started whispering.
Interested.
—…
The twins stepped out.
Confident.
—Hi, Vivian —said the redhead.
—Jack.
—How are you, Brittany? —said the blond.
—Justin.
—I'm fine —Brittany replied.
Jack smiled.
—Want to go for a ride?
—We can't —Vivian replied.
—We have things to do.
Silence.
—We can drive you home —Justin insisted.
Vivian hesitated.
Brittany stepped in.
—No.
—Thanks.
They turned around.
And left.
The twins watched them.
Smiling.
—…
Other girls immediately approached.
Flirting.
Seeking attention.
They responded.
But without real interest.
—…
Something didn't add up.
---
Meanwhile…
I was at home.
Programming.
—…
—Name…
I thought.
Nothing.
Empty.
Then—
I disappeared.
Jumped between places.
Streets.
Stores.
Signs.
Ideas.
—…
And then—
I smiled.
—Nexum.
I nodded.
—Perfect.
I returned.
—That will be the name.
I typed.
Designed.
Built.
—Nexum.
A platform.
Professional.
Organized.
Better than anything in this era.
—I'm one year ahead…
A low laugh.
—Absolute advantage.
---
Later
I went out to buy a microphone.
—…
I was in a good mood.
—This is just the beginning.
From a distance…
Vivian saw me.
—…
She didn't really know me.
But…
She recognized me.
—Ryan…
The guy who was always around Madison and Chloe.
She frowned slightly.
—…
And kept walking.
---
Night
I returned home.
Recorded the video.
Edited it.
—…
—Not bad.
I uploaded the content.
Lay down.
Looked at the moon.
—…
—Tomorrow…
My eyes darkened.
—I start moving for real.
A faint smile.
—The purple eye…
—The intruders…
—All of them.
I closed my eyes.
—I'm coming for you.