Forgotten tears
The work continued and the emotion grew, until in a moment the inevitable happened, what she could never control in her whole life, what she so wanted to avoid; her eyes filled with tears, those inexplicable tears that began to run down her face once again without being able to be contained. Immutable by this and accepting them once again, she continued to play the melody with a sublime beauty.
—The projected age is compatible with an immediate return, her talent is evident and the rest of her personal characteristics are adequate; she has an approximation of 90 percent and, as far as we know, no one else in the world has those characteristics at this moment. It has to be her, yes or yes! In addition, we have almost no other viable options —sentenced Steven.go back
Loneliness
—It fascinates me, Armony; in fact, the whole story fascinates me, and not only that of the great nations, but also the little stories, those that belong to not so well-known characters and objects that historically do not seem to have great importance. It's incredible but many times, throughout history, things that have apparently been inconsequential have taken on a superlative importance and that has gone unnoticed even for the main protagonists...
—We are all in this world for some reason, Armony, and our stay in this life is always for some valid reason that we usually ignore. Everything that happens has implications and consequences, both in our lives and in the lives of others; sometimes immediately and at other times in the very long term. There are many small events that go unnoticed in our day to day, but that cause chain reactions, which can grow in intensity and end up triggering much larger events; they are authentic nexuses in which history can change course, for better or for worse...go back
The awakening
—How sad —said Armony changing her face—. Whenever an artist dies, something unique is lost. Like snowflakes, there are never two artists alike; that is why the art of each one is truly irreplaceable.
—I know you're still confused, you'll remember everything over time, I'll just help you. What you have just experienced is known as the awakening, that's what we say to the moment when someone remembers a life previous to the one they are currently living...go back
Ocean of clouds
Excited, she got up from the bed. She was still half asleep and stumbled into the private bathroom in her bedroom to wet her face and wake up better. After rinsing her face and drying herself with a towel she looked at herself in the mirror and for the first time in her life she had a hard time recognizing herself; she looked carefully at her face, it was Armony whom she saw but it was also Melody, though with a different face; she felt the same as always, but different at the same time. With very intense lived experiences and painful traumas, she saw a woman who has been a wife and mother, she no longer felt the fragility with which she had become accustomed to live, her concept of herself was drastically changed and for good, because she had added new experiences... The line that separated her from her other life was so thin that it almost did not exist.
—The trackers have many resources, especially nowadays with the computer networks, the publications in newspapers and magazines, and the databases that proliferate all over the world; there is more and more information about people going around in many more places. Everything has been simplified to a large extent since the twentieth century and much more since a few years ago; however, even intuition and instinct are still fundamental to effectively track someone... And if all else fails, we always have the oracles left —Michael said with a smile.go back
Daphne
Daphne is very reserved and very lonely, like her mother —he added looking at Armony of the corner of his eye— and, although she does not have many friends and prefers to live apart from the big cities, she has a big flaw...: she is very confident and she is easy to cheat, especially by anyone with bad intentions... Definitely needs someone to protect her.
—That's a picture of my mother, she was a renowned pianist about thirty years ago, that photo is one of my favorites because it was never published in any media and it's just for me... Unfortunately my parents died when I was very young; my father died when I was only one year old and three years later my mother also died and I was left alone, an orphan.go back
The oracle of the forest
—We will have to resort to the oracle of the forest to find out more. I have guides in the afterlife, who have helped me on difficult occasions before. Although I'm afraid we're not going to get much information this time, but given this point we're in, whatever it is will serve us.
The water swirled at her feet and a gentle breeze of unknown origin moved her long black hair upwards, gliding smoothly in the air and, at the same time, making all the sequins that adorned her clothing sound... The current of air was so dense that, at times, it even lifted her colorful skirt lightly and gently, causing everything to float in a supernatural way around her.go back
Kidnapping
—My name is Sylvia and so it seems you've awakened, Melody. Let's finish with this soon, no need to complicate things... I'll be direct, we have your daughter and I just want to chat with you. Come with us and we will release her without hurting her, it is a simple exchange, we do not want anything from her, we only want you —said a female voice, which spoke calmly and slowly, but which in its tone denoted malice and sadism. All were paralyzed.
As soon as they saw us, one of them let go of the young man and without hesitation for a second, he shot us a burst of bullets with a machine gun, which hit almost completely in the cockpit... For the speed he had and the precision, I immediately assumed that he had some sort of military training, the front windshield and the right side window splintered, but no one was hurt. I made an evasive maneuver, turning sharply and looked for a place to go down quickly; in the air we were a very easy target for such a weapon.go back
The summit of the deer
—Here are these, they are the ones used by the army's assault teams; they have a fuze with a delay of three seconds, they are very good, I assure you —the owner said, pointing to one of the showcases.
Steven took off his gloves and took a small bottle of water from a table, opened it and helped her to drink. He felt the urge to touch her hair secretly and with her bare hands while he helped her... He saw her drink in slow motion, so in need of his help, so helpless and so innocent of the danger that haunted her.go back
Crystal wind
A fraction of a second later, the three stun grenades exploded practically in unison, generating a wave of sound that made everything vibrate in the station. The shockwave was so powerful that several of the building's windows, especially those closest to the epicenter, were broken.
Both were strong and with all the adrenaline circulating in their veins, the impact barely made a dent. Quickly and almost automatically, both stood up and without hesitation pointed their weapons a few centimeters from their faces; they were both right- handed so they were very close to each other, putting each other in check.go back
Fragile ice
The return on the cracked road was already very dangerous and the brave animal had noticed this, instead of being frightened by the fragile ice it began to run even more strongly than before, knowing instinctively that the life of both was now in play; Armony, however, did not understand why her horse was running more and more desperately, she still did not know that she only had all the speed that the lipizzan could give her so as not to die right there.
The silver glint of the steel blade gleamed in Armony's retina that caught it out of the corner of her eye, turned her gaze away and saw clearly the sharp and jagged edge of the lethal weapon. She immediately knew what the hunter intended to do; a single cut in the haunch of her horse would suffice to slow him down or knock him down completely and an accurate stab in his body would surely kill him; Michael had already alerted her to the cruelty and brutality these relentless men were capable of.go back
The moon of the wolf
When I saw it I was amazed by the perfection and beauty of its elaboration and the sensation that radiated, it had a special aura. The details of the decorations made it clear that they had been made by an artisan who was not only an expert, but who had also put his soul into the realization of that work of art. I took a magnifying glass that was on the counter and examined everything very closely: the great and waving mane of the four horses of pure gold, the carriage made of deep blue sapphires and the complementary ornaments, like small lanterns that simulated their red flames with rubies... Everything, absolutely everything, was perfect; the time that its creator had dedicated to that work was of months without doubt and, perhaps, even of years...
—In these areas, the indian tribes of the region have named the different full moons of the year since ancient times. Tonight the full moon of January takes place and at midnight it will be in its zenith. At that time, this train passes every year through a bridge that divides the middle a huge lake surrounded by large forests, in these forests live wolves, the train will get their attention and hopefully we will hear them howl at the big full moon.go back
Endless abyss
—Break the glasses, we have to enter! —Sylvia's order was obeyed immediately; two of the hunters fired a couple of bursts of bullets on the glass panels of the roof, which were destroyed in a thousand pieces and leaving a huge hole where the wind began to enter with force, flying splinters of glass everywhere.
A short burst of bullets with no control or specific direction came out of the machine gun hitting the stove and oven of the wagon's kitchen; several of the projectiles penetrated the propane tanks, some cut the hoses that led the fluid and others destroyed the high pressure regulators.go back
With the integrity of their containers destroyed, the gases came out with power through the weakened tanks and immediately one of them found the spark that set it on fire.
The etheric library
When she turned back she saw her body, lying there, as if she were asleep, but still alive. She looked at the machine connected to the index finger of her left hand, which served to record some of her vital parameters, including her heartbeat, which was extremely slow; then looked at the bag of serum channeled into her right arm that kept her hydrated.
«I'm outside of myself, by God. What happened to me? This is like one of those "astral trips" of those I've read in which the soul leaves the body», she thought.
On her body, she saw how Wendy, with her hands outstretched and a few inches from her chest, seemed to be making a superhuman effort; from her hands emanated a brilliant energy that connected her with her own body, her face was tense, her eyes closed and tight, the perspiration that fell from her forehead was running all her ornate make-up of the face giving it a gloomy appearance...go back
The Rottweiler corporation
On one side of the room, in a sector separated by thick crystals and isolated from the rest of the environment, were several state-of-the-art computer servers where Pandora operated, the artificial intelligence system of the Rottweiler corporation that administered its exclusive databases. The whole sector was in a separate area, closed and refrigerated, not only for its protection, but also to increase the performance of powerful computers.
Almost without being able to guide her movements Sylvia recoiled awkwardly and staggered, was with her eyes open, almost exorbitant and her breathing ragged..., until she finally fell sitting on the floor while all the memories of her past life came to her like a fierce out of control flow.go back
Ties of fate
When I entered adolescence, I was convinced that they wanted an athlete daughter as many other parents pretend, but I was very wrong; their true intention was not that: beyond my physical training they were forging my character and giving me the necessary skills for my future... A future that they had already projected for me, they were preparing me to be a hunter of the Corporation and a leader.
The shipwreck had occurred in 1991 and the operator found in a few moments the information of all the passengers on the ship. Among them were three with the name of Peter and one of them was definitely Steven's older brother, who had died along with his parents in a tragic traffic accident two years after the wreck incident. Fate brought him clearly closer to what he had been looking for for years.go back
The Pandora's amphora
The whole room was a protected area against any kind of known espionage: device detectors in the entrance alerted of any electronic device carried by those who entered it, an armor provided by a Faraday box, built inside its walls, they made it completely immune to electromagnetic signals from and to the outside and, finally, it was completely soundproof, isolating it from external eavesdropping.
—The punishment will be that if I kill her now, Michael, she will lose everything she has, all her affections, all that she has achieved and all that she has tried in this life... That is the same as she has done to others. She has to die dozens of times and lose everything in each of those lives to compensate for the damage she has caused to the lives she has blinded! Fate is giving me the opportunity to be his executor arm and to make her pay, even if only a little, for everything she has done.go back
Separate paths
—This is the head of security, Steven Wolf. The prisoner will be transferred in the helicopter to a secure location under my authorization; is escorted by an agent, I do not want them arrested or delayed for any reason. We also need all the personnel available to control the fire on the 75th floor. Come immediately!
—Our relationship was also from the beginning like a game of your favorite game, chess. A game that ends today... Here I say goodbye and sincerely hope I never see you again —Steven sentenced as he left the room.go back
Fire rings
As if that were not enough, the last blocking measure is the main gate of the parking lot, covers the exit in its entirety and is very different from these metal networks. That fence is very strong, is made of steel and reinforced iron bars, has been designed to be like a mobile wall... When it was installed, its manufacturers said that once closed it is absolutely impossible for a civilian vehicle to escape simply by ramming it.
I'm going to try to reach it and hit it head-on at full speed, Daphne...
All the guards retreated several steps before the imminence of something unknown. The ghostly engine roared loudly and it did it a total of three times, almost like a final warning...go back
—Be careful, get out of the doors! —one of the men shouted at his companions, suspecting what was coming.
Drops in the wind
The first shots hit the front windshield of the helicopter, completely crossing it; Armony, in a reflex act, threw herself with her back to the ground, protecting her head with her arms, very frightened...
For a brief moment, in which time seemed to stop for both, the raindrops were suspended in the air, the helicopter's propellers were frozen and an absolute silence was established, the look of Armony crossed with Michael's in a goodbye, the images of their faces were reflected in the thousands of drops that surrounded them, and their tears mixed with the rain.go back
In spite of the fear that she had, with her gaze she said to him without speaking «let me go Michael, soon everything will end for me... You did the possible thing, you continue alone and avoid a bigger disaster».
Orient sun
Moments later the ship had already anchored, stopping with its anchor firmly fixed to the bottom of the seabed; they had reached Phang Nga bay and the panorama was absolutely paradisiacal: the beautiful rock formations, which stood majestic and surreal; the vegetation, which had grown since time immemorial among the volcanic rocks and from which, in turn, large cascades fell; the crystalline waters, which reflected the landscape with turquoise tones; and the animals of the region, which were seen at times and filled the air with their sounds... The tropical scenery that surrounded them was something simply magical.
—Could be, but I do not think so. These last days I was investigating the technology of this type of special chip cards; the Corporation has always kept the information referring to them quite restricted to all, however I found the answer to something that Sylvia told me when she was wounded on the ground and that from that day I was intrigued.go back
If Sylvia still lives this card will surely remain valid and operational, because it is actually a double-edged sword: as soon as someone enters the databases of the Corporation with a card like this, from the Central, not only can they track all his activity within the databases and thus know exactly what he is looking for, but also, the card also automatically informs everything related to the equipment in which it is placed, including its precise geographic location...
I am sure that Sylvia would not waste an opportunity like this to know what information I require and where I am; she made it very clear with the last words we crossed.
Dreams and nightmares
I had not felt that happy for many years, my life has changed and I have changed with it... Until recently, I was a famous violinist and my schedule of presentations was full all year long; now I must be much more discreet, I do not know, not even when I can play something in public again with my violin...
Just a few days ago I woke up in the middle of the night, shaking, agitated and totally bathed in sweat, it was after having had a horrible nightmare, a nightmare of which I almost do not remember anything, I've only had a few loose flashes in my mind, images that are becoming more diffuse and vanish from my memory.go back
