Alexander remained completely still.
Aiona looked at him.
"Alexander?"
He did not answer.
The voice inside his head had disappeared.
But he could still feel something.
Something old.
Something powerful.
Something that felt like it had been sleeping for a very long time.
The politicians watched him carefully.
The old politician slowly asked,
"Are you alright?"
Alexander finally looked up.
"I'm fine."
But Aiona knew he was lying.
She had spent enough time with him to know when something was wrong.
She quietly reached for his hand.
Alexander looked at her.
"I'm here," she whispered.
He gave her a small nod.
The old politician placed the photograph back on the table.
"We don't want to hurt you."
"We only want answers."
Alexander looked at the picture again.
"I don't have them."
"Do you remember this place?"
"No."
"Do you remember the people around you?"
"No."
"Do you remember anything from that time?"
Alexander slowly shook his head.
"Nothing."
The scientists looked at one another.
One of them spoke.
"Then perhaps we should show him the other records."
The old politician nodded.
A large screen came on.
One picture appeared.
Then another.
Then another.
Alexander appeared in every one.
Different cities.
Different clothes.
Different periods.
But always the same young face.
Aiona stared at the screen.
She had seen many strange things since arriving in the future.
But this was different.
She looked at Alexander.
"How old are you?"
Alexander looked at her.
"I don't know."
Aiona smiled slightly.
"That's not a very good answer."
"I know."
For some reason, she found his answer funny.
She laughed softly.
Even in the middle of such a strange situation...
She still wanted to make him smile.
Alexander looked at her.
A small smile appeared on his face.
The politicians watched them.
They could not understand how Aiona remained so calm.
The old politician finally spoke.
"We have one final question."
Alexander looked at him.
"Go ahead."
"Why are you hiding?"
Alexander frowned.
"I am not hiding."
The man pointed toward the photographs.
"You have lived for thousands of years without leaving a proper record."
"You have no known family."
"No known history."
"And somehow, nobody has been able to find you until now."
Alexander remained quiet.
Then he said,
"I wasn't hiding."
"I was simply living."
The politician stared at him.
"Living?"
Alexander nodded.
"I never wanted anything from this world."
"I don't want power."
"I don't want money."
"I don't want to rule anyone."
"I just want a quiet life."
Aiona smiled.
"That's exactly what he wants."
The old politician leaned back.
For a long moment, he said nothing.
Finally, he nodded.
"Then we will respect that."
Some of the other politicians looked surprised.
"But sir—"
The old man raised his hand.
"Enough."
He looked at Alexander.
"You are free to go."
Alexander stood.
Aiona stood beside him.
They began walking toward the door.
Then...
Alexander stopped.
His eyes moved toward the ancient photograph.
For a moment...
He felt something.
A memory.
A small image flashed through his mind.
A huge forest.
A mountain above the clouds.
A strange golden light.
Then...
A voice.
"You were not created to destroy."
Alexander suddenly grabbed his head.
Aiona rushed toward him.
"Alexander!"
The vision disappeared.
He breathed heavily.
Aiona held his arm.
"What did you see?"
Alexander looked at her.
"A mountain."
"What mountain?"
"I don't know."
"Anything else?"
He closed his eyes.
"A voice."
Aiona became serious.
"What did it say?"
Alexander slowly opened his eyes.
"It said..."
He paused.
Then whispered,
"You were not created to destroy."
Aiona froze.
Created?
The word stayed in her mind.
Alexander had always been strange.
But now...
She had another question.
Who created him?
Before either of them could say anything...
Every light in the building suddenly went out.
Darkness covered the room.
People screamed.
Emergency lights came on.
The scientists rushed toward their computers.
"What happened?"
"I don't know!"
"Check the cameras!"
"They're all offline!"
Then a deep sound came from somewhere outside.
BOOM!
The entire building shook.
Aiona immediately stood in front of Alexander.
"Stay behind me."
Alexander looked at her.
"You don't have to protect me."
"I know."
She smiled.
"But I want to."
Another BOOM shook the building.
The windows began to crack.
The old politician looked terrified.
"What is happening?"
Nobody answered.
Then...
A strange shadow appeared across the giant window.
It was huge.
Much larger than a human.
The shadow slowly moved closer.
Everyone in the room froze.
Alexander stared at it.
For some reason...
It felt familiar.
The shadow stopped outside.
Then a voice came from beyond the building.
"Alexander..."
His eyes widened.
Aiona looked at him.
"You know that voice?"
Alexander slowly shook his head.
"No."
The voice came again.
This time louder.
"Alexander..."
The building trembled.
"I've finally found you."
Alexander's face became cold.
For the first time...
The peaceful life he had built with Aiona was beginning to disappear.
And whatever was outside...
Had not come to make friends.
To be continued...