Escaping Evil Through Time

Chapter 33: The Lost History

The archive wasn't marked on any map.

No directory listed it.

No official record acknowledged it existed.

And yet Julien knew exactly where to find it.

The old steel door groaned as it opened.

Dust swirled through the beam of his flashlight.

Cole followed behind him.

"This feels illegal."

Julien didn't look back.

"It probably is."

The room beyond stretched farther than either of them expected.

Rows of ancient shelves disappeared into darkness.

Boxes filled with records sat untouched beneath layers of dust.

Forgotten.

Hidden.

Buried.

Just like the truth.

A voice echoed from somewhere ahead.

"You should have stayed away."

Cole immediately reached for his weapon.

Julien sighed.

"Elias."

A figure stepped out from between the shelves.

Tall.

Dark-haired.

Sharp-eyed.

Definitely not human.

Dr. Elias Varn looked exactly the same as he had ten years ago.

One of the few advantages of being from Zarvis.

Elias folded his arms.

"I told you if you ever came looking for me again, it meant something had gone horribly wrong."

Julien met his gaze.

"It has."

The humor vanished from Elias's face.

"What happened?"

Julien hesitated.

For the first time since arriving, he wasn't sure how to say it.

"There was a birth."

Elias frowned.

"So?"

Julien's jaw tightened.

"A Royal."

Elias nodded.

"Still not seeing the problem."

Julien continued.

"The father was a Guardian."

Silence.

The room seemed to grow colder.

Elias stared.

Then he whispered:

"...No."

Julien didn't respond.

He didn't have to.

Elias already knew.

"The child?"

Julien swallowed.

"He manifested abilities before birth."

The scientist went completely still.

Cole looked between them.

"What?"

Neither man answered.

Instead, Elias moved quickly toward one of the shelves.

He pulled down an ancient leather-bound journal.

The cover cracked as he opened it.

Pages yellowed with age.

Ink faded by centuries.

He turned several pages before stopping.

Then he placed the book on the table.

Cole stepped forward.

A sketch filled the page.

A young boy.

Surrounded by energy.

The world around him appeared fractured.

Like reality itself was struggling to contain him.

"What is that?" Cole asked.

Elias looked at him.

"History."

He tapped the page.

"1734."

Another page.

Another sketch.

Cities damaged.

Entire regions unstable.

Energy storms ripping through the sky.

Julien felt his stomach drop.

"What happened?"

Elias took a breath.

"A Royal woman and a Guardian man had a child."

Cole frowned.

"Okay."

Elias shook his head.

"No. Not okay."

His voice dropped.

"The child inherited too much Guardian energy."

The room fell silent.

"He wasn't evil."

Elias turned another page.

"He wasn't malicious."

Another page.

"He was simply too powerful."

Julien stared at the journal.

The descriptions felt familiar.

Far too familiar.

Elias continued.

"By the time anyone understood what was happening, entire regions were collapsing."

A pause.

"One child nearly destroyed a world."

Nobody spoke.

The weight of those words settled heavily over the room.

Finally Cole asked:

"So what happened?"

Elias closed the journal.

"They stopped him."

A beat.

"Then they buried everything."

Julien frowned.

"The law."

Elias nodded.

"The law."

No Royals.

No Guardians.

No children together.

Not ever.

Over time the records disappeared.

The history became myth.

Then eventually—

Nothing.

Forgotten.

Until now.

Julien looked away.

Thinking about Kali.

Thinking about Malaki.

Thinking about everything they hadn't known.

Finally he asked:

"What happens if history repeats itself?"

Elias didn't answer immediately.

Instead, he walked toward a nearby workbench covered in research.

Equations.

Genetic charts.

Energy readings.

Years of work.

Waiting.

Preparing.

He picked up a small silver vial.

The liquid inside shimmered faintly.

"The Veil Anchor Compound."

Cole raised an eyebrow.

"The potion."

Elias rolled his eyes.

"Yes, Cole. The potion."

Cole looked satisfied.

Elias held the vial up.

"This won't cure him."

Julien's expression darkened.

"What will it do?"

"It slows the growth."

Silence.

"The growth of what?"

Elias met his eyes.

"The Guardian energy."

The room went still.

"He manifested before birth."

Elias continued.

"He teleported from the womb."

Another pause.

"His abilities are developing years ahead of schedule."

Julien felt dread settle into his chest.

"Can it stop him?"

Elias shook his head.

"No."

The answer came too quickly.

Too honestly.

"It can only buy time."

"How much?"

Elias looked down at the vial.

Then back at Julien.

"If we're lucky?"

A pause.

"We get another year."

Nobody spoke.

Because they all understood what that meant.

Every year would become a race.

A race to find answers.

A race to keep Malaki safe.

A race against the very power growing inside him.

Final Beat

Miles away.

Across time.

Across worlds.

Zella sat quietly beside a sleeping Malaki.

The six-month-old boy slept peacefully.

For now.

A faint glow flickered around his tiny hand.

Then vanished.

As if the world itself had blinked.

And somewhere deep within forgotten history—

Something old began to stir.