PART I 

War. What a fascinating concept to envision and ponder about. Of course, still, no one truly wants to be in a full-out war while having to endure it, but it is exciting to play around within an innocuous fictional realm; to develop a story, a setting, a time, characters, the plot. To be entranced in that dreamlike state, maybe even mentally confined to it. It all deters down to one thing and one thing only, however, what happens with the story you have now created? Will the so-called story become the vile truth to those innocently involved with the plot? Or will the story spring an idea to a new form of government ever so great? Will the fictional book transform into one's veracity? Will a civil war rage on the galaxy as it did in the book's design? This is precisely what my home is undergoing, a civil war, and I am afraid I unknowingly started it when I began that horrific, dystopian book. Let me start to tell you what happened from the very beginning.

I lived in a galaxy where peace reigned for as long as anyone could remember. There had never been a war between the planets that dwelled in the Krikyu Galaxy for millennia. There was always someone that attempted to ignite unpopular wars but never succeeded with more than maybe a short battle, if not nothing.

My galaxy isn't large compared to other massive ones, so we knew there were a total of 524 planets that resided here, and it was easy to manage it and to keep track of what happened.

I lived in the city Rhnix, located on the planet Olu'x, one of the two most prosperous planets in the galaxy. The other planet was one named, Az'verk. Both our worlds invented evermore innovative devices that expanded our knowledge and capacity ever so often. 

One year, when I was around the age of six, some news was heard that there was a distant planet from another galaxy that thrived on war—a world called Earth. They were yet another planet on our list with inhabitants that looked remarkably similar to us; only five planets occupied that list at the time.

The Olu'xian and Az'verkan high council deemed Earth primitive and inept to universal matters, both mentally and physically. They thrived on war but yet survived, so we decided to observe them simply. The idea of war stuck with me, however, and I pondered on what that was. Of course, I knew there could only either be war or peace, and I was content with peace, but that didn't stop what would be my perpetual obsession that would only grow from there.

I began to form out drawings of war, battles, weapons, and later started writing some short stories dealing with war. By the age of 14, I had decided to put a goal for myself to write an entire book with a story dealing with the genre my mind was so fixated on. I had decided to write a war story about our galaxy. 

Days went by, weeks, months. I wanted to make certain it was the best possible story it could be. I went to the expansive libraries where all of the galactical and even universal information could be found in one place. My dire wish was to develop the plot as if it were an actual war. A design that could have easily been a real account as if taken from another dimension. There was no space for me to err.

On my 17th birthday, that fateful morning, I ultimately completed the book. It was almost noon, and I concluded the book with a cliffhanger because I knew I did not want to stop my whole story there. It was an abrupt ending, but it was exactly what I wanted. From there, I planned to sort what would happen next in the book's sequel. 

When I closed my finished book for the first time, however, it was then I knew a sequel to the book would never come. The minute I closed that book, an explosion shook our city, and as I saw outside my window, part of Rhnix was engulfed in flames. It instantly reminded me of my book; the exact thing happened in my first chapter. Not to Olu'x, but to a nearby planet the protagonist of my book was currently on, and I saw it as an oddly disturbing mere coincidence at the time.

My mother rushed into my room, hurriedly telling me to gather what I could, what was valuable, and to meet her at the back door of our house. I did not need to ask any questions to know what was happening; Rhnix was being attacked, and we were in imminent danger. There was no time to hesitate. I hastily gathered what I could and started to make my way downstairs when another explosion hit the city. It sounded awfully closer than the one prior. 

When I arrived at the door, my mother was already there. That was when I remembered my father wasn't on the planet at the time. He was on a scientific expedition far from Olu'x. I thought we might never see him again. That trip my father went on, that was supposed to last for no more than two years, could just as quickly have become a hell. Who knew when we would see him again if we were lucky. All that time researching, studying war for my book, sadly, also indirectly prepared me for the possibility of something like that. I felt uneasy.

My mother immediately urged me to take our money and get in our bunker; it was virtually built for such an emergency. It cost us quite the money. We had it installed just a few years back. She told me there was one thing she needed to do before she went along with me. With hesitation, I listened and ran to the bunker with our belongings. By the time I was able to get in, I saw my mother running faster then lightning to try to get her way over through the camera. It wasn't fast enough, though, for yet another explosion hit Rhnix. This time our neighborhood was stricken. The explosion and smoke overtook her before she managed to arrive to where I hid. My heart instantly broke. I never saw her again, and to this day, I do not know what it was she deemed she had to do ere.

More blasts hit our city, and I didn't doubt the entire planet also. For the next hour, I sat there while I heard countless bombings and even a few horrible despairing screams. When the terror finally seemed to lessen, I tried to think about what I could do next. I couldn't stay there forever. I had only enough rations for one or two months, not an eternity. I looked around and saw a spacecraft. I had seen one before at an astronomical convention my father brought me to a year back, but I had never known we owned one, or at least had one in our possession.

That was when it hit me. As far as I knew, everything my family owned was now only mine. My family had that spacecraft, but now only I have it. My mother was dead, and my father was gone, and all on my 17th birthday—what a day.

I looked inside the spacecraft and contemplated my choices. I either stayed on Olu'x or got out of there. I opted to wait a couple more hours to go outside and see if what was outside was safe before making my decision, if there was anything at all. My camera had been destroyed, so that was no longer an option.

While I waited, I tried to reckon who could have done such a thing to us. What cruel people would want to cause genocide to an entire planet? Olu'x had not done anything to anyone. I then thought again about my book; about war. The very thing that transpired that day was precisely how my story started, and interestingly enough, the protagonist fled the planet on a spacecraft to Earth for help, something I might have had to do as well. Flee and go to Earth. I wondered if then, while I wrote my story if I was unknowingly also writing my inescapable destiny in the process. That brought some sort of ease, but just a quickly induced back the agony and pain I was enduring and would have to face. If my book was a set reality, then not only what would happen in the next few months would rather be in my recollection, but also that the ending is yet an uncertainty. It indicated my father was indeed dead, and the future of Olu'x possibly laid in my hands. I wondered if I could, indeed, be my protagonist. If so, it meant if I wanted to stay alive, at least until for the next several months, I had to play it all out like in the book. Most importantly of all, it signified I now knew who attacked us; Az'verk.

Unfortunately, I had not brought my book while scrambling all my things together before Rhnix was demolished. So all I had to guide me was my memory of what occurred in the book. The realization of that fact led me to sudden dismay. If there was something that I forgot about what happened next, even the slightest detail, my plan could have gone sideways. Any aberrations could have altered what came next. One thing I tried to keep in the back of my mind, though, was that the protagonist in my book never knew what was to come, so me having some of that knowledge should have come to an advantage—at least to evade a quandary, I hoped.

After I could no longer wait and mental desperation was near, I opened the hatch and took a look outside. It was nighttime; the only thing there was to be heard were the vicious winds of sorrow, and all one could see was rubble spread from horizon to horizon. Not only had the sun fallen, but Olu'x with it. I knew I had to get out of there, but I had determined I should get some sleep before I departed and leave the next morning. My protagonist had left in the early morning, so I tried to do the same. But after about 3 hours of insomnia, I concluded I would not be able to sleep. I guessed somethings just had to be different, which would be vital to watch out for. Either way, I was wasting valuable time. 

PART II

I decided to pack my things in the spacecraft, basing what I would need off of what I knew about where I was headed; Earth. Krikyuan currency, gold and silver, was not the favored currency of Earthlings, but it was one. I knew I would have to trade what I had in for the planet's paper money, an absurd thought to have such an undurable form of currency, but there was nothing I could have done about it. I would, nevertheless, have to trade in bits at a time to avoid any skepticism. I had to be cautious.

I also selected a couple of weapons, only the necessary amount, one laser gun, and a nanotechnological-made armament, a W-FiveNiner—a bracelet assembled with nanotechnology, which could transform into the weapon of one's choice with the power of thought. To use a gun, though, it was required to arm it with tungsten bullets, or Ws, an element, hence the "W" in the name. One merely thought of the bracelet transforming into a gun and loaded it with Ws. (Impractical if you asked me. It was because of that that I packed a laser gun.) The "FiveNiner" stood for the compound nanotechnology was principally composed of; boron nitride. The Krikyu Galaxy preferenced peace but was not dumb enough to not prepare for possible conflict.

I knew Earth had no such possession of W-FiveNiners, so I attempted only to use the laser gun, if necessary. The year on Earth was 2027 at the time, and they had been stricken by a treacherous pandemic recently. A virus, which caused a disease known as COVID-19, had appeared in November 2019 in an area they called China. It expanded to a global level in a matter of months and killed a few hundred thousand in the first wave alone. There were a total of three waves—the second hit not much longer after the first and rapidly annihilated a few ten thousand before a vaccine was officially created. After vaccination, the world entered a time of a bit of remorse, but steadfast determination to be progressive and continue life as they knew it.

The third wave was the austerest. In March 2021, the virus appeared once again. It affected everyone, for it had a tenacity even greater than that of its recent attacks. It had mutated in such a way that the vaccine developed to stop it became futile. 

No one knew what was happening at first, and an immense level of panic soared. It took about a week for scientists to be able to observe the reciprocating virus to examine what was truly going on, but not before four hundred thousand lives had already been lost. Scientists concluded SARS-CoV-2, the virus, had mutated into a certain way that it ordered the host's cell to perform mitosis several times before bursting it with thousands of newly replicated viruses, meaning it spread at least twice the rate through the body. It was essentially a more lethal form of cancer. A viral cancer. 

Seven months later, the despondent people finally received an effective vaccine that had been developed, Earth's society had become peculiar—much changed in the devastated world. After such a significant loss of life, a total of 3.2 billion people, countries inevitably collapsed, and others changed dramatically. All that was left were the ruins of what was once a lively nation seven months prior. Developing countries were mainly affected, but some developed nations, also. The American and Chinese economies had collapsed, thus almost deterring the economy of the world. The Russian Federation, along with Canada and South Korea, however, managed to stay strong and they comparably had not lost so many people. Much of Europe entered an indefinite period of martial law as nations merged in the feeble hope of not utterly declining. Africa, being as underdeveloped as they were, lost three-fourths of its population, and South America nearly one-half.

The virus ceased the strongest communist state, North Korea. COVID-19 reached North Korea, and though the dictator ordered the execution of those infected, they did not manage to rid it entirely before many top generals and the dictator, himself, died. South Korea seized the opportunity and captured them, terminating the decades-long dormant war.

That was the Earth I was headed to, a diminished planet that would help win my galactic war. A galactic war that, with my help, I prayed, would lead to victory. Following the plot of my book, I would need Earth's help to win back what Az'verk believed they had securely achieved. 

Regardless, one thing I did not know was who ruled Az'verk then. In the book, there was a successful coup on the Az'verkan officials, and an ambitious commander established a throne. To win the war against the Az'verkans, I would need to assassinate the new ruler. It was a strange idea to think about, considering I had never killed anyone before; I never had to, and I would have instead liked to steer away from murder if possible. Part of my book's cliffhanger involved the ruler still being alive, so it was still a hopeful possibility to achieve another resolution. Olu’x obligated all children to prudential military training, and it seemed to have become a crucial ally. Either way, Olu'x, apart from teaching all of its citizens to know how to fight and the art of war, also instilled in us much academic and medical knowledge. Though young, I could not be hesitant, not if I wanted the great legacy of Olu'x and its unlimited universal secrets to live on to future generations. 

I finished packing by adding in some extra clothes, which was luckily similar to Earthian attire, and I also brought some food and water for the trip. It was almost dawn, and I figured since there had already been something that had happened that did not correlate with my book, it would be safest to leave before the sun rose to attempt to evade any obstacles, in any form they may be. 

I opened the exit of the bunker and got in the spacecraft. I turned on the self-generated machine and lifted off to Earth, to the future. It was hard leaving Olu'x seeing the state it was in, but I knew I was doing all of that to better it. So, I tried not to look back and only forward, not just literally, but also mentally. 

As I got out of the Olux'ian air space and away from its moons, I prepared to make a hyperjump to Earth's solar system. Then I was struck, just as I was about to push the final button, a massive, menacing Az'verkan spaceship was heading my way and clearly preferred to attack first and talk later. I hurried to see if the hit brought any setbacks to my departure. None. I pushed the final button just as I heard them shoot anew. 

I managed to get out safely, but if these aberrations continued, I was almost certainly doomed. Since I made the hyperjump, though, I had gotten to be at only an hour-away flight distance from Earth in a matter of seconds. 

I remembered that my protagonist had landed in Eastern Europe, in what was a former northern Polish voivodeship, where he encountered a hunter that guided him to a nuclear physicist in the Russian Kaliningrad Oblast, due north of where he landed. In the book, it was vital for him to meet the hunter because had he not, he would never have met the physicist. But I knew the physicist existed, and where to find him if no aberrations were to have altered my information. So I decided to go straight to Kaliningrad and on I went, to save time.

After my landing and encounter, I had to make the nuclear physicist, Mikhail Ivanov, practically the most knowledgeable person on Earth since I would need his expertise to build the retaliation against Az'verk. I told him about all that had happened, all except the strange correlation between what was happening and my book. I had the knowledge, but I lacked the resources, and a nuclear physicist was about as high as I could go to help me with building new weaponry. He seemed almost identical to how I had described him in my book, physically and personality-wise. He was subtle and a hopeful man, with a keen ability for his work, in his 50s with an eagerness to know more. I promised him he would no doubt know more if he helped me. He, fortunately, accepted; no aberration there.

What happened next, however, took me by surprise. He suggested we take it to the Russian President. I had not written that to occur anywhere in my book, not even the thought. It did make sense to do such a thing, in any case. Many more resources and people to build an army would be much more at my disposal. The downside was that I would have had to reveal myself, and if I did that too early, the Az'verkans could have found out about me sooner than we could have been prepared. It was something I considered all night, a risky play about what was to come next, while I lay on a bed the physicist let me use for the night.

The following morning, I settled it was a necessary risk and asked the physicist to do what he must to get a meeting with the President. Hours later, Ivanov informed me we had to meet him in Moscow in two days, and we had to get going now by train if we wanted to reach our appointment on time. However, leaving the spacecraft there in Kaliningrad wasn't an option for me, so I told him we could travel by my mode of transportation. He was undeniably intrigued by the machine. Maybe too much, but I stuck it with it.

The day came, and we traveled to Moscow by flight with the cloaking device running. We met with the President, and he looked bewildered when he saw me but quickly shook it off. I supposed it was because of my age. We shook hands and he led us into a room. 

At that point, I knew everything that happened from then on had to be as quick as possible, not neglecting to be careful, of course. For the meeting, I didn't bring any weapons, well apart from the W-FiveNiner I wear at all times. I did luckily, however, have the spacecraft as evidence as a precautionary action to prove I wasn't some lunatic; apparently those were common on Earth.

After some chatter and, indeed, having to show proof of my sanity, he respectfully agreed to assist. He also seemed interested in what there was beyond their planet and thankfully did not think I was some sort of danger to them, at least not entirely.

In the following years, I met with many of the best nuclear physicists and engineers the world had to offer, as far as Russia, South Korea, and Canada went anyhow. I introduced them to Olu'xian technology and the science behind it, mainly the how-to behind spacecrafts, laser guns, and W-FiveNiners. I tried to be as cautious as possible with sharing the technology since I did not know if I could trust their true intentions. So far, all of what had happened in Moscow had been an ample aberration.

When we managed to develop and advance technology to an extraordinary extent, building a profusion of spaceships, laser guns, and W-FiveNiners, only one thing was left to do before heading back to my home planet, recruiting people to fight the battle with me. Of course, everyone knew it would all lead up to that moment, but when the time came, no one wanted to go, reasonably. Fighting against countless legions by myself was simply not an option, though. If only everyone wished to sign up, then we would have a great chance. I tried to recollect how my protagonist had managed such a feat, but I did not quite remember, apart from much time passing from having seen the book last, the circumstances were different. I was uncertain about what I should do next. 

PART III

One night as I slept, I had a catastrophic dream. It was brief, but in it, Earth was being attacked by the Az'verkan forces, and everyone attempted to flee before the assault got to them. I woke up and got up from bed instantly. It reminded me of what had happened to Olu'x. Az'verk never figured out the protagonist had gone to Earth, and I doubted they had detected me. But then I remembered that on the day I left the Krikyu Galaxy, an Az'verkan spaceship had spotted me and attacked me, indicating they had known there had been a survivor and had been looking for him. Me.

I deduced the dream was a vision of what was going to be happening next if we did not leave Earth. I really did not want Earth to become a battleground, and much less a desolate planet. But I also could not just tell them I had a dream and deemed to know what was going to happen; they would not believe me despite being an alien to them myself and it being entirely plausible. If the cruel new ruler of Az’verk wanted to get rid of Olu'x, and did, he would not show mercy to who they thought was inept for anything more but themselves. It wasn't all true I had learned. There was some notable essence among Earthlings one would not find without social interaction.

That was when I remembered the state Earth was in. I could not believe how oblivious I was to the answer I looked for. Earth as humans knew it was changing for the worse; my answer was climate change. They attempted to look for a means to improve it but yet had not found one. I concocted I would promise them a new world to live on if they came and fought.

The next day I brought the idea up to the President, who seemed intrigued with the thought. He accepted, probably because he knew action had to be taken quickly if the human race were to continue. He began to let me know he would discuss it with other world leaders, but I abruptly interrupted him. I told him I wished to go along with him and address it to them myself; he warily agreed.

The next few weeks were prompt. I met with a few world leaders and proposed and exhorted them of their one way out of their grave planetary problem, national calls for recruits were made, soldieries from around the world were flown to Moscow and were trained for what was to come. It would take a global effort. 

At this point, the large aberration had become more of a blessing than a curse. Its ubiquity seemed to be getting it all in order quite nicely, and the chances of it all working out appeared to brighten.

But that, too, was brief, for one night I dreamt Az'verk had officially pinned my location and were headed in our direction. The last time I had dreamt of a conditional situation like that, the Az'verkans had already reached Earth. Then I knew the first dream was, indeed, a vision of what could have happened, and still could, and the dream I had dreamt the second night was an affirmation they were aimed towards Earth. Time was running out. It was time to leave before it was too late, before unrelenting havoc reached Earth. We had to leave that very same day.

I could not fall back asleep that night, knowing what I knew. I became anxious. It was 4 in the morning, and dawn was yet two hours away. If I waited until the sun rose to start our going, the Az'verkan forces could hyperjump to Earth and find us in our tracks, something I could not gamble. I decided to call the President and apprise him of my intention and also warned him of what I feared would follow if we waited any longer.

Moscow awakened earlier that morning and prepared for the new period of their lives. Of our lives. Nothing would be the same after lifting off from the terrestrial planet, and we all knew it.

One part of the book was yet to pass; what we did once we got to the Krikyu Galaxy. In the book, the protagonist did not have the army I had at my disposal. He brought a legion, yes, but hid them on a nearby planet, as a plan B, and disguised himself as an Az'verkan to break the despotism from within. I decided to follow the same design. 

After approximately an hour, with the moon still at an all-time high, we were ready—years of preparation ultimately found its end. Through the voice microphone, installed into a total of 394 spaceships, I ordered them to wait for my call. At that moment, I took a deep breath and commanded them to lift off. All of the spaceships flew up and, in order, followed us up into space. The nuclear physicist whom I had met upon my arrival, Ivanov, was in the ship behind me, and there were about six thousand people aboard each ship.

After entering the exosphere, we all prepared to make the hyperjump. All of the spaceship pilots had already been taught and even test-experienced. Since the universal coordinates for our haven planet nearby Az'verk had already been installed, I ordered them to turn on their cloaking devices and to make the jump first to ensure all went well. One by one, each ship camouflaged into the dark space that surrounded us. My ship was the only one left to turn the cloak on. But before we turned ours on and anyone made the jump, an unprecedented thing occurred. Three Az'verkan people, in technologically-advanced, for Earth, spacesuits, appeared at our side of the universe, right in front of our ship. I could not recognize who they were. 

I quickly ordered my counterparts to hold any fire. I was curious to know what was happening. I did not even know a hyperjump was even possible to survive without a ship to protect oneself. But I inferred technology could have simply advanced enough for that, a negligent thought that I had not considered could have happened until that very moment, something that could have cost us everything.

One of the Az'verkans transmitted a broadcast to my ship. Someone's face appeared on our screen. He gave me an offer, not even introducing himself, proposing everyone would be left unharmed if I surrendered myself to them, and the Earthlings stayed on Earth without the Olu'xian technology I had acquainted them to. I was reluctant, for everything I had done in the past few years was to get justice, justice for Olu'x, Rhnix, my mother, my father, the victims of the dictator's, and his follower's, brutality. Giving myself away would have been throwing away what I have worked for up until that day.

He seemed to notice my wary, for he suddenly then proposed to tell me what he claimed was the 'truth,' what I apparently did not know about the depraved situation. I quickly queried him what he was referring to, something he simply replied to by mentioning my father's name. It would have been extraordinarily surreal had my father still been alive, but his stern voice prompted me to think there was a likelihood I was wrong. I asked the cryptic man if what he implied was genuine; he simply replied by promising me I would find it all out if I agreed to his proposal.

If my father was alive, the past few years could have been a torturous hell. I had to know what he meant. Earth greatly advanced in technology; they could have simply taken what they had learned and applied it for their use; to find another habitable planet. But I simultaneously thought of what would happen to me next. If I gave myself in, they would eventually murder me no matter what. It would be foolish to fall into a trap so simple to avoid. I could do more for him with the fleet I had created than as a prisoner. I deferentially declined the offer. 

He snickered and told me I was no danger to them, and if we planned to attack them, it would be an ill-attempt. He began to tell me something else, but I had become fretful, so I cut him off. I didn't have time for banter. In a poised voice, I apprised him that if his job was to come and tell me that, in the hope of frightening me, he had utterly failed. If anything, it had jolted me with purpose. I demanded him to warn the others of their doom, though that would be an ill-attempt for we were going to demolish their fleet and power. That quickly changed the expression on the face of the man on the other side of the line. 

He terminated the call, and the three Az'verkans promptly vanished back to their planet. I told my crew not to worry, it was just a minor setback and to get ready to meet their future. Citius, Altius, Fortius. A Latin expression; faster, higher, stronger. Afterward, I directed the crafts to make the jump, and my ship followed.

Upon making the jump, the sight of Olu'x perplexed me. It had been untouched since the attack. It looked precisely the same as when I left, deserted. I thought for sure Az'verk would have taken it and made it some sort of territory or an arbitrary state, they had in my book. But apparently not. At that point, I thought my book was, in fact, what I first thought, a mere piece of writing that, in some way, coincidentally correlated to the future.

Looking back, thinking it did have anything to do with the book now seemed childish. Optimistically, at least it allotted me the idea of leaving Olu'x and being able to achieve what I had by myself. 

PART IV

At the haven planet, we all prepared for a battle we now knew was sure to come. Through the voice microphone, I told everyone to remember their duty and to remark the distinguished domain later. Instantly as I concluded my message, the planet, our so-called haven, exploded. 

The debris sundered our ships, and we strived to grab on to something. After a moment, we were able to get back on our feet, and the rampage truly began. Both sides clashed in a blood-war. As we fought, I could see my fleet's, along with the opposition's number of ships wither and wither. We were strong, but not strong enough.

"Now, we are here today. My fleet is all dead, obliterated to ash, and left to wander the expansive depths of the universe for all eternity, and I on my knees, tied as a captive in front of the tyrant as he sits on his absolute little throne," I recount. "That is my story from the beginning to today."

The dictator stands up in silence and stays there, and it irritates me. "Won’t you say anything? Did you not want to tell me something about my father? Now that you have me here," I ask vexed. Quietude appears to be more of his liking, for he remains silent. I grunt.

Magically, the ruler speaks, "Erton." I look up, surprised.

"How do you know my name? I never mentioned it," I inquired. Then, he signaled one of the guards to let someone in, someone that I thought had been killed in the fight

"Mikhail? What, how? I questioned. 

The dictator replied, "Mr. Ivanov here is someone I have been acquainted with for several years now. I met him during my brief time on Earth, after the planet I was temporarily on, here in this galaxy, had been attacked. A certain fellow from where my spacecraft had crashed, in what was former Poland, directed me to him. He assisted me in coming back to the Krikyu Galaxy to bring justice for the transgression of the Az'verkans." 

The book, I epiphanically and frustratingly thought. It was real. Not for me, but I wrote the story of someone else's future. The tyrant’s.

"Open the pit of fire!" he ordered. "Throw him in." Taken by surprise, I plead for mercy, but the guards follow his command and prepare to thrust me into my death. 

Just before I am thrown in, the dictator tells his guards to wait for a second, declaring, "I want to show him something first." I pant for I have been granted a few more seconds to live. 

But the relief is gone when I see what he wanted to show me, the thing that would result in those last seconds being the most degraded in my life. The zealous man took off a fraudulent mask, and under it was the face of my father. “You were right,” he said. It all made perfect sense then, the uncertain ending of my book, it was what my journey had been, what was to happen, and for the protagonist to rule absolutely himself.

It turns out books can become a reality. No matter if they are poignant or sinister, they can still be an actuality. Evermore, justice was only an illusion, and a good one, too.

“Throw him in.”