Chapter 64: Chapter 64: An Era Ends

Chapter 64:

An Era Ends

Selene walked the halls of St.Claire Industries with confidence. Jeans and a sweater adorning her. Flanked by the Mercer Family agents in full body armor. Head to toe and prepared for battle. There was very little resistance as they made their way through the ground floor.

The front gates opened for them without a problem. Leading into the gardened entryway of the first building. Inside were clean marbled floors and gray walls. Paintings of various designs hung in the lobby. The receptionist's desk was empty. Several ferns in planters lined the corners and at intervals along the hallways they made their way through.

The group of agents began splitting off into different sections of the facility, fanning out like a flood. Selene walked at the head of this flood, making her way towards the central building. What remained of the loyal guards were met with swift death. A single wave of her hand slicing them down as silver blades cut through them.

What she didn't take care of personally, her guards took care of the rest. Gunshots could be heard intermittently throughout the buildings. A windowed hallway looked out into a beautiful garden where employees could go and relax, should they wish. A pond in the center gave it all a tranquil feeling.

That tranquil feeling was destroyed as gunfire broke out between her guards and those that remained loyal to her father. Bodies floated in the pond, and blood soiled its clear waters. Selene paid it no attention, making her way confidently forward.

"We've secured the entry building, Ma'am," Arthur called over the comms, "Teams are splitting up to take the rest of the facilities."

"Capture any who surrender, kill those who don't," Selene ordered, "Make sure your men stay out of my way."

"It will be done," Arthur signed off.

Exiting the entry building, Selene found herself in an open stone plaza. A large, multi-tiered fountain in the center. Its pathways were lined with shrubs and bushes in stone planters to add some greenery to an otherwise dull gray. Benches sat against these planters as a way for employees to sit.

This common area was often teeming with employees, now it was left abandoned. The chill in the air was quite daunting as Selene made her way across to the central building she aimed for. Looking up, she saw the many stories before her. At the top was her father, and finally the end to this war.

"Ma'am!" A voice called out, drawing her attention back to the ground.

The sound of boots stomping on stone and moving into formation was accompanied by the bodies they belonged to. Three rows of guards stood before her. A wall of gun barrels aimed in her direction. She had to guess there were at least sixty of them, three rows of twenty each.

"Move," Selene ordered, her eyes glowing a deep violet.

"I'm afraid we can't do that ma'am," one of them, a female, spoke up, "We have orders to shoot if you take another step. Ma'am, please..."

"...Still trying to capture me alive?" Selene muttered to herself, shaking her head.

She didn't have time for this. It wasn't her fault if they didn't heed her warning. Closing her eyes, she took a deep breath and felt the immeasurable power deep within herself. Opening her eyes, they now glowed a beautiful silver.

"Then, I apologize in advance," Selene raised her hand, and with it came the very ground in front of her.

"Fire!" A rain of bullets cascaded into the stone wall erected before her.

With a flick of her wrist, she sent the stone flying into the wall of guards, killing most, and pinning the rest as it exploded into chunks. With purposeful steps, she made her way through the dust and debris. Groans of pain filling the air. "Did they really expect to face a Paragon?" Selene almost felt sorry for them.

"Next time...heed my warning," She stated, staring down coldly at those guards who were still alive.

The inside of the central building was breathtaking, though for Selene it was as it always had been. A prison with fancy walls. As soon as you walked in, there were aquariums on either side filled with exotic fish and underwater, colorful flora and coral reefs.

Golden gilded dark walls enshrined those aquariums, with dark stone floors. Past the aquariums was a large room filled with benches and waiting stations for guests who came for meetings. A receptionist desk sat on the far opposite wall, which was currently empty.

Off to the side of the room were three elevators, one of them open. "He's expecting me..." Selene sighed, shaking her head. Was he really confident, or did he have something up his sleeve? Chances were, it was the latter. Whatever it was, Selene would break through it.

Her footsteps echoed in the empty room, making her way towards the open elevator door. The inside was large and even had seats for people to sit on, should the ride get uncomfortable, or be a bit long. Selene chose to stand as the doors closed, and it began to ascend.

3rd floor. 7th floor. 10th floor. 20th floor. 25th floor. 40th floor. The elevator kept rising until it finally reached the 70th floor, upon which the elevator stopped, and over the intercoms she heard him. Her father, Kenneth.

"Ah, my dear daughter...come to visit her father?" He sounded slightly unhinged, "Did you like my welcoming gift? No? I heard you broke them...don't worry, Papa shall clean up your mess."

Selene cringed at his words as a screen appeared on one of the many panels of the elevator. It showed the ground floor where the wall of guards used to be. Now just a bunch of rubble and guards attempting to free themselves from it.

She watched as the entire scene became a cascade of crimson. Their heads exploding in a gruesome fashion. "Disgusting...So that's why they pleaded with me." Selene knew she had to end her father now. There was no more time to waste.

"Now then, that's cleaned up..." Kenneth spoke proudly, "What useless toys. Honestly. That just leaves you..."

Selene felt the elevator shake, and then...fall. The cables of the elevator had suddenly snapped, and she could feel it. Being lifted up into the air as it fell, she was undisturbed. He had rigged this from the start. As she expected, he had tricks up his sleeve, but he forgot one thing. She was a Paragon.

"Honestly, father..." Selene spoke in near sympathy, pity in her voice, "This is just childish."

Her eyes glowed silver as an energy field erupted out from her, enveloping the entire elevator. Immediately, the entire thing was suspended, and she slowly floated back to the floor. Landing delicately, she held out a hand.

Mana coursed through her body, collecting before her hand. A ball of silver energy spun around in a ball before being sent forward, blasting a hole in the door, creating an opening from which she stepped out from. Releasing the energy field as she did so, the elevator continued its descent all the way down.

Looking around, she found that she was on the 43rd floor. It would be a long way up, taking the stairs, but she would make it. Even if he used explosives to destroy them. This floor was nothing but offices with clear glass walls. The entire place was deserted.

It seemed that all the guards he had left, were those he sent on a suicide mission to capture her. Her father had fallen extremely low, and this was going to be the end. Turning towards the stairs, she began her ascent.

It was slow, methodical. Her father couldn't escape. Explosion after explosion cut off her route. The entire building shook each time. He was trying to tear apart the building to stop her. It was a child throwing a tantrum.

You are reading story Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story at novel35.com

"Arthur," Selene called him up after reaching the 60th floor, "Have you experienced explosions?"

"A few, My Lady," Arthur answered, "We have been careful after the first."

"Please do," Selene ordered, sighing in frustration, "It seems my father would rather lose these facilities than admit defeat...It will be over soon."

"...Facilities can be rebuilt, you cannot, Ma'am," Arthur's tone was worried, "Do be careful."

"I will," Selene spoke with confidence, "I couldn't face Jace otherwise."

Cutting off communication, Selene continued on her way. 63rd floor. 68th floor. 74th floor. 82nd floor. Slowly and steadily, she grew closer to the top floor. Finally, the 97th floor.

Stepping into this floor was different from the offices and server rooms below. The walls were paneled with dark wood. Black stone planters lined the hallways with stunning exotic ferns. It all gave off a decadence of splendor, or at least it should have.

The hallways were riddled with marks of magic that tore across in jagged edges. Bodies long deceased lay in her path. No one was spared. His paranoia had gotten the best of him. He had purged this entire floor.

The trail of bodies and destruction led to a large double door with the St.Claire Family Crest upon it. A crescent moon with a lotus flower within it. Even that, however, was barely holding together. Half of it hung from its bearings, though still blocked the room beyond.

Within that room was her father, or should be. If he wasn't there, then he would be in the three floors above, which were private living quarters. Quarters that she lived in for a long time when not at their family home.

"Don't be afraid," Kenneths voice rang out from beyond the broken door, "My daughter has come to visit...please, come in."

Selene stood before the doors, she knew her father. He would attack the moment she got close, but she didn't hesitate. Making her way forward, she sensed the attack before it got to her. It was weak and easily dispersed without much effort, she didn't even have to move.

"Honestly...You've fallen so low," Selene pushed the door aside and entered.

Inside, the lights flickered menacingly. The place was a warzone. Completely destroyed. It was a surprise it still held together. The furniture was in pieces and strewn across the room. Wires hung from the ceiling haphazardly, buzzing whenever a current went through it.

The floors and walls cracked, torn apart in a similar fashion as the hallways outside, though to a more extreme extent. Books were torn and pages littered the floor. Her father sat upon a crumbled chair behind a battered desk. His suit was a complete mess, and his hair frayed.

"Welcome, daughter..." He smiled deviously, opening his arms wide, "Make yourself at home..."

"...Father," Selene shook her head, "This has never been a home."

His devilish smile deepened, his eyes glowing violet. His arms shot forward, sending a powerful blast of energy careening towards her. A violet blade crackling with energy. It broke against Selene's shield that appeared before her.

She stood with her thumbs hung from her jeans pocket. She thought she would be angry. She thought she'd feel hatred when she confronted her father but seeing him in this state...she only felt disappointed. Was this all he amounted to? Was this the man she feared all these years?

She felt saddened by this revelation. Not for him, but for herself. She let such a pathetic man control her life for so long. Now that she was finally before him, she simply felt...nothing. There was no love for this man. No hatred. Just disgust that also faded away.

"Death...is too easy for you," Selene stated, taking a step forward as another blade of energy broke itself upon her shield, "I wanted to break you, for you to realize just how I felt, but this...Do you even recognize yourself?"

"What is the point of that?" Kenneth spouted, cackling, "Am I even real? Are you? This entire world...it's nothing but fake if I cannot control it!"

"...Perhaps I was too effective," Selene mused to herself, though it changed nothing.

She had planned to imprison him after injuring him enough that he couldn't use magic. Make him suffer longer, but now she was just tired. Exhausted. Keeping this man alive would be a burden.

No, it was better to end them now. Raising her hand towards the man she once knew as a father, her eyes glowed silver. "This is the power of a Paragon..." Her father froze in place as silver energy bindings enveloped him. There was a madness in his eyes as he made one last, final struggle.

His eyes glowed bright violet as a shockwave coursed through the room. Purple lightning crackled, tearing through the walls and flooring even more. The bolts bounced off of her shield, careening off and causing further destruction.

She didn't expect it to be this easy, but truly a Paragons strength was unrivaled by normal Ascended. Slowly, she began to close her hand, the bindings closing in tighter against Kenneth's body. The light in his eyes fading, no more power to be had.

"S-Selene..." He pleaded, though her heart was closed to him, "Please...don't do this. I've worked so hard. We've worked so hard..."

"No, father," Selene shook her head, "You've only destroyed. It's time...to rebuild."

With the final push, she closed her hand. The bindings crushing him like a grape. His mutilated, broken body falling limp to the floor. Blood splattering the walls and began pooling underneath him.

Lifting her hand up, his body came with it. She stared at it with unfeeling, uncaring eyes. "Was this really the only course of action, Father?" Though she felt no sadness at his death, she couldn't help but wonder how things could have been. Now, that was over.

Snapping her fingers, a white flame began to burn away at his body. She watched, the light flickering in her eyes until there was nothing left. Only then did she turn from this office, stepping from the room and the shackles of her past.

"Arthur...it's done," Selene informed him as he answered her call, "Prepare the reconstruction. I have somewhere to be..."

She ended the call immediately after he confirmed her orders.

-----

You can find story with these keywords: Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story, Read Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story, Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story novel, Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story book, Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story story, Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story full, Love & Obsession: A Neo City Story Latest Chapter