Suddenly, the void was filled with light, so blinding that the people surrounding the Core Seven shielded their eyes. The endless blackness was replaced by a shimmering, ethereal glow. Above the heads of the entire world population, a massive circle of light appeared. Slowly, it began to shift, like the lens of a camera coming into focus.
The crowd gasped as the scene above them became clear. It was a pristine office, sleek and modern, with large glass windows overlooking a sprawling city. But the people in the office were not warriors, not protectors in armor. No, they were dressed in tailored business suits, their faces youthful, without the weight of the burdens they now carried. It was the Core Seven—but not as they were now.
No. This was before.
Before the apocalypse. Before Corintopia. Before they became the so-called saviors of humanity.
Delson Sr. felt his heart sink as he saw his younger self standing at the head of the boardroom table, flanked by the other six members of the Core Seven. Their eyes were sharp, focused, but they weren't discussing battle strategies or defenses. No. The scene was clear: they were deep in conversation about a new energy source.
Gaia.
Projected in front of them was a sleek presentation, filled with graphs, data, and test results. A man—one of their lead scientists—stood at the head of the room, pointing to the holographic slides, explaining the discovery of the Gaia Energy Source located near the Earth's core.
"This," the scientist said, his voice echoing through the void, "is the future. Gaia has the potential to provide limitless energy. If we can harness it, we will be able to power not only our corporation but the entire world. Imagine—an energy source that never runs out."
The Core Seven nodded, impressed, their expressions serious. The presentation continued, detailing how the energy source could be extracted and used to create unprecedented advancements in technology and infrastructure.
But Delson Sr., standing in the void, watching the scene unfold, could barely focus on the words. His stomach twisted into knots. He knew this was the truth. He had always known it. They still had that energy source. It powered the bunker they had survived in during the apocalypse. It shielded them. Protected them.
This was how it all started.
The people surrounding the Core Seven stared up at the vision, their confusion turning to shock as the truth of the past slowly revealed itself. This wasn't a conversation about protecting humanity. This was corporate greed on full display.
Then, the door to the boardroom opened.
A man walked in, disheveled, his hair wild, his clothes untidy. His name echoed in Delson Sr.'s mind as he appeared in the light. Edgar Anderson. A name he hadn't thought about in years. The man who had warned them.
In the vision, Edgar Anderson marched toward the table, his face twisted in anger and fear. He pointed an accusing finger at the Core Seven—or, as they were then known, Elite One Corporation.
"You have to stop this!" Edgar shouted, his voice frantic. "You have no idea what you're doing! That energy doesn't belong to us. It belongs to the planet. If you take it, if you disrupt the core, the Earth won't survive. You're playing with forces you don't understand!"
The Core Seven—now the faces of Delson Sr., Junna, Cusi, Kira, Cormac, Dmitri, and Eshe—looked at one another. Then, they laughed. It was a cold, dismissive laugh.
"Put the spirit of Gaia back?" Delson Sr.'s younger self sneered. "You've been watching too many documentaries, Edgar. This is progress. This is the future. We are on the verge of something great."
"Great?" Edgar retorted, his voice breaking. "You're going to destroy everything! The Earth can't survive without Gaia near the core. It's the life force of the planet. If you take it away, the consequences will be catastrophic. You'll destroy the balance of the Earth's systems!"
His words echoed with a haunting urgency, but the Core Seven paid no attention. They chuckled, exchanging glances as if Edgar were nothing more than a crazed conspiracy theorist.
Then came the final blow.
Someone from the table—a younger Kira—picked up a stapler from the desk and hurled it at Edgar in jest. It struck him hard across the temple. Edgar stumbled backward, clutching his head, and as he lost his balance, he fell toward the corner of the room, his skull colliding with the edge of a filing cabinet.
The sound of his head striking metal was deafening. His body crumpled to the floor in an unnatural position. His neck had snapped. His wide eyes stared vacantly at the ceiling, lifeless.
The void was silent.
The people of the world watched in horror as Edgar Anderson, the only man who had tried to stop the Core Seven, lay dead before them.
The young Delson Sr., in the vision, remained unfazed. He calmly pulled out his phone, dialing a number. Moments later, the door opened, and the Elite One Corporation's private security detail walked in. They moved with cold efficiency, lifting Edgar's lifeless body from the floor as if it were nothing more than a piece of trash. In minutes, the room was clean, the scene erased, as if nothing had ever happened.
But the people in the void had seen it all.
Around the Core Seven, the citizens of Corintopia, the soldiers, and warriors who had fought in their name stared in disbelief, their faces a mixture of shock, disgust, and betrayal. The murmurs began again, spreading like wildfire through the crowd.
"You... you killed him," someone whispered.
"Is this real?" another voice asked, trembling.
"All of this... because of them?" a woman shouted.
The Core Seven stood frozen, their bodies rigid as the reality of their past actions finally came crashing down around them. There was no denying it anymore. The truth had been revealed, and the world had seen it all.
"It's nearly time for your trial," Tel-Nu's voice echoed once more through the void. This time, his words were laced with the weight of undeniable judgment. "You are not saviors. You are not protectors. You are murderers. And the world will know the price you must pay."