Odyssey Of Survival-Chapter 191 - Queen Of Shadows

The more Nate ate, the more confused he got.

He stared at the food, then glanced at Sera, then back at the food.

"How… are you this good at cooking?" he mumbled with a full mouth.

Sera raised an eyebrow and smirked, "You've got food on your mouth, genius."

"Huh?"

He quickly wiped at it with the back of his hand, but the stain had already marked the corner of his lips. Muttering under his breath, he stood up and went to clean it off properly.

While he was gone, curiosity tugged at Sera. Her gaze drifted to the computer screen.

She stood up and approached it, eyes scanning the blueprint still glowing softly on the monitor. It looked like a sci-fi nightmare—wires, signals, waveform charts, and weird codes blinking across the screen. She had been learning the basics of science and mechanics lately, trying to understand the world Jack and Nate lived in… but this?

This was far beyond her.

She sat on the chair slowly, trying to make sense of a waveform graph displayed in a small window at the bottom corner. It pulsed gently, shifting from blue to faint white.

That's when Nate appeared behind her.

She hadn't even heard him return, but now he was leaning against the chair, his hand resting casually on the backrest beside hers. His face lowered just near her shoulder—so close she could feel the warmth of his breath… and he smelled faintly of spice and mint. His eyes weren't on her, though—they were fixed on the chart on screen.

Sera blinked, her heartbeat oddly loud in her ears.

"What's that thing at the bottom?" she asked, pointing at the small, flickering chart.

Nate exhaled. "It's a detection chart I rigged up. I've been trying to isolate Alice's ice signature."

"Ice signature?"

"Yeah," he nodded, eyes narrowing as he explained. "The crystal was frozen by Alice, remember? Her ice isn't normal. It carries a unique molecular pattern—it leaves behind cold trails, unlike anything on Earth. This chart… it tracks those patterns. If the crystal is removed from her ice, even slightly, this will alert me."

Sera stared at the screen, pretending to follow along, but truthfully… she didn't understand much of it.

She looked up slowly, her gaze drifting to his face, just inches from hers. His brows were slightly furrowed in concentration, the light from the screen reflecting in his tired eyes.

And then… she didn't know what came over her.

Before she could stop herself, she leaned forward and kissed him.

It wasn't long.

It wasn't deep.

Just a soft, warm press of her lips to his.

But it was enough to make Nate freeze, blinking in stunned silence.

Sera's eyes widened a second later, as if her own mind caught up to her body. She pulled away fast, breath shaky.

"I-I'm sorry," she stammered, standing up quickly. "I… I don't know why I did that. That was dumb. I didn't mean to— I'm sorry!"

She turned around and walked away fast, her footsteps sharp and hurried against the metal floor.

Nate just stood there, frozen in place, lips still tingling.

He was still trying to process what just happened when the door opened again.

Alice stepped in, looking behind her as she walked. "Hey, did Sera just run out of here? She looked weird… like—super off."

Nate cleared his throat and sat down slowly. "She's just being… her."

Alice raised a brow, but didn't push. "Okaay…"

She walked toward him, her perfume wrapping around the air as she moved. She sat gently on his lap, her arms wrapping around his neck as she faced him with those cool, observant eyes.

"When was the last time you had good sleep?" she asked, brushing his hair gently away from his face.

Nate blinked, almost forgetting what sleep even felt like. But all he could think of now was… why did Sera kiss him?

And more importantly… why did part of him not want to forget it?

Alice's gentle fingers caressed Nate's hair as she softly whispered, "We'll be alright… they'll be alright." Her voice was barely audible, but it carried enough warmth to calm the storm brewing inside him. She was talking about Madison, Bella, and Jack, and Nate knew it. But his eyes, once calm, narrowed slightly as he murmured back under his breath, "I wish… for the sake of whoever captured them."

Alice didn't reply to that. Instead, she laid her head on his chest, her hair tickling the side of his neck. Her arms never left him, still slowly stroking his back in soothing circles. Nate closed his eyes for a moment, his body sinking slightly as if melting into her warmth. His arms wrapped around her naturally. He hadn't even realized how tense he had been until now. She was the only thing keeping him sane. The only warmth in the middle of all this chaos.

They stayed like that for a long time, not speaking, just existing in that shared silence. Alice eventually drifted off to sleep against him, her breath even and soft. Nate didn't move. He just sat there with her in his arms, staring at the screen glowing in front of him, filled with unfinished ideas and scattered hope.

---

He took Alice advice that day and went home.

He hadn't been home in what felt like forever.

When he reached the door, something felt... off.

A sudden flicker of lightning danced through the window, faint but there. Narrowing his eyes, Nate stepped closer and peeked inside. The sight before him surprised him.

Sera.

She was in his study room, alone, surrounded by stacks of open books. His books. Science notes, journals, diagrams—papers scattered across the desk. She sat at the center of it all, completely immersed, flipping through pages as her eyes scanned the contents with intense focus. Her back was straight, and her brow slightly furrowed in concentration. Her dark, wavy hair was neatly packed behind her ears, revealing the sharp lines of her cheekbones and her striking green eyes, which glowed softly in the lamplight. There was something about her at that moment that made Nate pause.

She looked beautiful. Calm. Determined. And for a moment, he just stared, forgetting why he was even at the door.

Shaking his head lightly, he reached for the knob—but it didn't budge.

Locked.

From the inside.

Sera's head jolted up. She wasn't expecting anyone—especially not Nate. She blinked, confused, as she stood and quickly walked over to the door. When she opened it and saw him, her breath caught in her throat. Her face turned a deep shade of red instantly. She remembered the kiss. That kiss. The one she didn't mean to give. Or maybe she did—she wasn't even sure anymore.

"H-Hey," she stammered.

Nate gave her a soft, tired smile. "Hey," he said back, voice low and warm.

He stepped inside without another word, walking past her. The moment his shoulder brushed against hers, Sera's heart skipped a beat. She turned slightly, watching him walk with slow, exhausted steps toward his room.

He didn't say anything else. Just disappeared into his room and gently shut the door.

Sera exhaled, long and slow, and pressed her hand to her chest. Her heart was racing.

She looked around the study one more time and quietly began packing up the books. It was getting late, and though she hadn't learned much from the scientific jargon, she was determined to catch up someday.

She went to her room and changed into her nightwear. She stood by the bed, holding the little earbuds Jack had made for her. But tonight, she hesitated.

Tonight, she wanted to try without them. If she couldn't face her own nightmares, she'd never overcome them. So instead of putting the pods in her ears, she dropped them on the table and climbed into bed.

The moonlight trickled into the room, casting a silver glow across her face. Her smooth, sun-kissed skin caught the light, highlighting her elegant curves beneath the robe. Her dark hair fanned out over the pillow like silk. She looked peaceful—almost ethereal.

But inside, her mind was loud. Thoughts of Nate. Of the kiss and the nightmare she was trying to conquer.

She closed her eyes, whispering to herself, "Just a few hours of sleep... that's all I need."

But even as her body rested, her heart remained wide awake.

---

Sera's eyes flung open.

But she wasn't in her room anymore.

She was back.

Back in the nightmare.

Back in Kemet-Ra.

The skies were painted red, the sand soaked in blood. Smoke curled into the air, thick and choking. Cries of terror echoed from all sides. And in the middle of it all… her shadows.

They slithered through the ground like living serpents, dark tendrils of chaos and death. She watched helplessly as they snatched people from the streets—men, women, children. The shadows pierced hearts, snapped bones, dragged people into the darkness with no mercy.

"No… not again…" she whispered, tears welling up in her eyes. Even though she expected it, she wanted to escape the moment she entered.

But her voice was powerless here.

She was a spectator and the villain at the same time.

The worst part wasn't that her shadows were killing. It was that they did it with precision. As if they enjoyed it. As if they were obeying her commands without her even speaking. She turned and saw an old woman crawling away from one of the tendrils, trying to protect a young boy pressed against her chest.

"Run!" Sera screamed.

But it was too late.

The shadow rose and sliced through the air—then silence. The woman collapsed. Blood stained the sand beneath her. The boy's scream was the last thing Sera heard before she dropped to her knees.

"I didn't want this," she whispered, her voice cracking. "I didn't mean to..."

But the nightmare didn't care what she meant. It showed her everything—everything she feared she would become.

The darkness around her thickened, and then… she saw herself.

Another Sera, standing tall in the center of the chaos. Her eyes were glowing a deep, unnatural black. Her expression was cold. Regal. Powerful. She looked like a queen of shadows—untouchable, ruthless. People bowed before her in fear as the city burned behind her. She raised her hand—and a wave of darkness spread out, swallowing the landscape.

The vision made Sera scream.

She covered her ears, falling backward. "This isn't who I am! I'm not her! I'm not!"

But something deep inside whispered back: What if you are?

Her breath caught in her throat.

She tried to run, to escape the image of herself standing like a god of death… but everywhere she turned, more destruction awaited her.

Children crying.

Families torn apart.

The city she once loved turned to ruins by her hands.

Suddenly the other Sera turned her head and stared directly at her.

"You are me," she said, lips barely moving. "And the sooner you accept that… the safer they'll be."

"No… no!" Sera shouted.

She gripped her head as the scene shattered into shards of darkness and flame.

Then—

She woke up.

---

Sera sat up in bed, drenched in sweat, her chest rising and falling rapidly. Her hands trembled uncontrollably as she stared at the wall in front of her.

It was just a dream.

Just a nightmare.

But it felt so real.

Her fingers curled into fists as she struggled to calm herself. She reached for the pods Jack gave her—but then stopped. No. If she used them now, she'd never grow strong enough to face that darkness.

She pulled her knees to her chest, eyes wide open, afraid to close them again.

"I'm not her," she whispered.

But even she didn't fully believe that right now.

And somewhere deep down… a part of her feared she was lying.

---