Level 25,201: Military Airport.

  Headquarters of the System of Intelligence and Exploration of Nullaria (SIEN).

  Dante leaned his hand against the cold glass of the immense window that bordered the SIEN base dining room.

  In front of him stretched an endless green countryside, dotted with thousands of small sunflowers rolling with unsettling precision, sprinkled with gentle hills under a perfect blue sky, without a single cloud.

  There was nothing beyond the horizon. No paths. No structures. No wind.

  Just an idyllic landscape, motionless, as if someone had painted it to disguise the confinement.

  Level Lambda: Sunflowers Field

  — It is beautiful — he murmured, almost to himself —. It looks like an English countryside.

  Bealuna, sitting next to him on a metal bench, tilted her head, observing the sunflowers.

  — Have you ever been to England? Because if not, I'm telling you what you're saying doesn't make sense… I have never seen so many sunflowers together in an English countryside. Perhaps cornfields.

  Dante smiled softly.

  — No. I have never left Argentina, actually.

  — You're Argentine? — her eyes opened slightly, surprised —. I wouldn't have imagined it.

  He looked at her sideways. He noticed that the light from the window made the tone of her eyes even clearer.

  — And you? — he asked with an interest he couldn't disguise —. Where are you from?

  — Grosseto, Italy. And actually, my city is famous for the sunflowers! There is a lot of tourism because of that.

  — Her gaze was lost for an instant in the landscape —. Somehow… this makes me feel close to home.

  — Now I understand why you know so much about sunflowers. So you're from… Italy — he murmured with a hint of sadness.

  Dante let out a sigh he couldn't contain. His eyes returned to the motionless meadow and a slight grimace crossed his face.

  — When we return to Earth… — he said in a low voice — it won't be that easy to find you.

  Bealuna forced a bitter smile, as if that same idea had accompanied her for a long time.

  After an uncomfortable silence, Dante tried to change the subject.

  — And what did you do in Grosseto?

  — English teacher in a primary school. The salary was awful… but it allowed me to escape my reality for a few hours a day.

  Dante made an uncomfortable face, as if he understood too well what she meant. Silence fell between them again.

  Until Kar’Nix broke it in the worst possible way: devouring a Lunar Fruit with a grotesque sound, as if his existence depended on every bite.

  Both looked at him with narrowed eyes.

  — And you, Dante? — Bealuna asked, smiling as she saw Kar’Nix, resuming the conversation —. What did you do?

  Dante froze. His gaze lost, as if touching a memory he would prefer to keep it buried.

  He was a thief. He stole. He lived off that. Off harming others. Off looking the other way.

  An involuntary tension stiffened his jaw.

  He averted his eyes, uncomfortable.

  — I… I don’t remember — he murmured, lying.

  Just then, Virellian and Alan returned from the bathroom. Virellian's gaze fell on Kar’Nix with immediate displeasure.

  — That beast chewing like a pig again?

  — Don't bother me while I'm eating! — the raven growled.

  — Can you stop shouting? — Dante snapped —. They’re going to discover us. Besides, your breath is stinking the whole place out.

  — What are you talking about? — Bealuna intervened —. I love the smell that fruit leaves. Don’t you smell it? It smells like… mandarins.

  — She emphasised the word on purpose, knowing that Dante disliked them.

  — Mandarins? — Virellian wrinkled his nose —. I hadn't noticed.

  — I hate them — Dante said with a grimace —. That must be why I smell that stinky smell more than anyone.

  Alan let out a giggle.

  — I never met anyone who hated mandarins.

  Bealuna took the opportunity to resume the conversation naturally.

  — We were remembering things from Earth. Alan is from Germany, Dante from Argentina, I'm from Italy… and you, Virellian? Which country are you from?

  Virellian stood still. He touched his forehead, as if searching an empty drawer. Several seconds passed.

  — I… I really don't remember…

  Bealuna was not surprised.

  — It is normal in Nullaria. You will remember it sooner or later. Maybe it's because of the dimensional shift. — She smiled with a touch of humour —. Luckily, at least here we can all understand each other, even if we were to spoke different languages.

  — Because the spiritual language is spoken here! — Kar’Nix interrupted, raising his voice with his mouth full —. Souls don't speak human languages! That's an invention of yours!

  — And talking with your mouth full is also bad manners — Virellian replied with elegance.

  — And that is also another human invention! Another of your mere temporary and irrelevant whims.

  Kar’Nix finished swallowing with a loud gulp and, as if it were the most natural thing in the world, his body began to transform, shrinking and spiralling in on itself until it became a small purple floating orb, a beak and two restless eyes that looked at everything.

  Virellian crossed his arms, uneasy.

  — Where can Stefan be? He said to wait here for a few minutes, but he's still not back.

  Alan adjusted his tactical vest with a sigh.

  — The Commanders probably called him. They must be assigning in what Barracks you are going to stay while you are here. Even if you left and returned to the base at another time, that same Barracks would still be yours… as long as you remain alive. — He shrugged —. Normally it only applies to SIEN members, but I guess you are special guests.

  Bealuna narrowed her eyes. In the distance, an intermittent light drew a blue glow on the metal floor. It seemed to come from a projector in a huge circular hall.

  — What is that? — she murmured, advancing with curiosity.

  The group followed her. Alan explained as they walked:

  — That's Miss Cuni's class. She was a famous surgeon in… some part of Earth. — He scratched his head —. I can't remember where.

  — Does she teach classes here? — Virellian asked.

  — For newcomers and to reinforce veterans' knowledge. She explains important things… and some crazy theories that no one else dares to touch.

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  When they reached the open door, they saw a circular auditorium with stepped seating, like a university hall. In the centre, leaning on the tip of the desk, a young woman in a white coat changed slides with a remote control. She had her hair up and a confident, almost charismatic posture.

  A hand went up among the students.

  — Miss Cuni, there is something I don't understand. According to what you explained, our physical bodies are in a coma on Earth… either in a hospital or being cared for by our families. Does it mean we will still be alive in Nullaria as long as they don't disconnect us there?

  Cuni stopped the presentation.

  — Exactly. Our physical body on Earth remains linked to our soul and consciousness here, by a mechanism that we still do not yet understand. If the body dies or is disconnected… — she pointed to the screen — you die there and you die here. If you die in Nullaria, the connection is also cut and you die on Earth.

  A soldier raised his voice from the upper rows:

  — The most terrifying thing is not knowing how many Earth days we have before that happens.

  Cuni nodded and changed the image. A photograph of a woman in a hospital bed appeared.

  — It is variable for each person. Allow me to show you an interesting case I studied. This is Edwarda O'Bara, who remained in a coma for forty-two years. Her mother, and later her sister, cared for her at home for decades. The emotional and financial cost was enormous. In a hospital it would have been impossible to sustain it.

  Her doctor offered to treat her free of charge, recognising that her maintenance was unsustainable.

  Edwarda died after those forty-two years.

  She moved on to another image.

  — In contrast, the case of Amelia Bannan in Argentina was almost miraculous. She was in a coma for three months after an accident, gave birth while unconscious, and woke up shortly after her daughter's birth, in 2017.

  A student raised his hand.

  — Do you think they… could have fallen into Nullaria?

  Cuni narrowed her eyes.

  — We don't know. The dimensional shift may erase memories. It is possible that someone passes through Nullaria and then remembers nothing upon waking up.

  Alan murmured, with a hint of bitterness:

  — In those cases, their families really cared about them and looked after them while they were in a coma. They mattered to them.

  We, on the other hand… no one is fighting for us on Earth. Not all of us might have that luck.

  — Exactly — Dante whispered, his gaze returning to the static sunflower field —. We were discarded. To Earth, we no longer matter. I don't think those cases are similar to ours.

  The comment left the group in silence.

  From the seats, another student raised his hand.

  — What concrete progress do we have on measuring time in Nullaria?

  In the supposed case that O’Bara had fallen into this world, it would mean that she would have had forty-two Earth years to reach the quantum perception and escape this limbo. But not all of us would have that much time. Some could be disconnected in a week. It is… hopeless…

  Cuni put down the remote control, straightened up and opened her arms towards the screens in the auditorium.

  — And there is the problem: Time. Nullaria is crossed by hundreds, perhaps thousands, of dimensions. Each dimension is a level; each level, a space built by human memories, fears, and vibrations. And in each one… time flows differently.

  In some it moves slower.

  In others faster.

  In others it doesn't exist.

  And in some… it runs in the past or the future. — She observed the class, frustrated —. If we think about it linearly… how the hell do you measure something like that?

  A female student raised her voice:

  — But you discovered that twenty-one days in the SIEN base are equivalent to one hour on Earth.

  Cuni frowned.

  — It is an isolated case. My case. It means nothing in and of itself. If you travel to the Lapis Lazuli Forest, on Level 0, and return, you must add the time spent there, the time of the dimensional jump and the time spent on the SIEN base.

  — She exhaled tiredly observing the class —. I know. It is hopeless.

  The hall fell into a dense silence, full of questions that none of them knew how to formulate.

  Suddenly, Stefan appeared behind Dante, Bealuna, Alan and Virellian, who were spying on the class from the door:

  — Miss Cuni's classes are always this interesting.

  Causing the four of them to jump with surprise at his voice. He smiled, proud of his own scare.

  — Thanks to her we know two things: that we are in a coma… and that twenty-one days here, in SIEN, are approximately equivalent to one Earth hour.

  Bealuna arched an eyebrow.

  — How did you discover that?

  Stefan crossed his hands behind his back as he spoke in a low voice:

  — Miss Cuni suffers from metastasis. She lost the will to live because of it… and an accident left her in a coma, dragging her to Nullaria.

  Her twin brother, Niku — a base engineer — said he fell into depression seeing her deteriorate. He was already like that during her illness, but when she went into a coma… he broke down completely.

  Afterwards, everything became dark for him too.

  The next thing he remembers is… arriving in this world.

  Virellian crossed his arms.

  — But the calculation should not be that precise. Following Miss Cuni’s logic. I highly doubt that Niku remembers the exact moment he fell, chose his rune, was rescued, and arrived at the SIEN base.

  There were too many dimensional jumps in between.

  Alan nodded slowly.

  — That's why we say it is an approximate time. However… it is the closest thing we have. And probably the only reliable data in all of Nullaria.

  Dante looked around, puzzled.

  — And Kar’Nix?

  Stefan pointed towards a large window.

  — If you're referring to the little floating ball… he's sleeping there.

  Dante observed him in disbelief.

  Bealuna smiled.

  — He must have eaten too many Lunar Fruits.

  Virellian made a gesture with his hand and an almost malicious smile.

  — Let's leave him. Let's continue with the tour.

  Stefan continued the tour through the different areas of the SIEN base. As they passed in front of a huge window in one of the main corridors, three ancient aeroplanes caught Virellian's attention.

  — Do you have aeroplanes too? Do they work? — he asked, incredulous.

  — Of course not — Stefan replied with a dry laugh —. I always thought that junk looked like something out of the First World War.

  Alan, observing the planes parked on a dusty runway, added:

  — Those planes, along with much of this base, were already here when the SIEN settled in. Obviously they don't work, but they serve for certain minor investigations… or so they say.

  Stefan took the floor:

  — By the way, never try to go outside without authorization. It is dangerous. There are invisible entities lurking beyond the perimeter. You wouldn't survive five minutes.

  Bealuna looked at him, confused.

  — But… it looks so peaceful.

  Stefan made an ironic face.

  — And it's not. What do you think those perfectly aligned sunflowers are?

  Bealuna froze. The rest of the group held their breath.

  — Yes — Stefan nodded —. They are people. Those invisible creatures turned them into sunflowers… and then they feed on their seeds.

  Everyone swallowed upon hearing that. Kar’Nix floated a little higher, uneasy.

  — That's why you shouldn't go out — Stefan continued —. Besides, that idyllic landscape is part of another level that borders this one. You could say that those aeroplanes are right on the border between Level 25,201 and Level Lambda… a distorted level Class 4.

  They then arrived at an intersection. In the distance they could see an enormous armoured door, thick as a vault, guarded by two armed guards with heavy rifles. Multiple electronic locks sealed the access.

  — This is the entrance to the laboratories — explained Stefan —. No one enters without permission. Extremely delicate investigations are carried out in here.

  — Or at least that's what they tell us — Alan clarified, as Kar’Nix floated forward to observe the door better, letting out a dry laugh.

  — Investigate what, exactly? — the little being asked —. It is a waste of time. All humans here are in a deep coma on Earth. Their time is running out, and every second in Nullaria brings them closer to their end. You should focus on reaching the quantum perception before your bodies collapse. Not on these human trivialities. All of this will only alter the balance of this world… and could cause major disasters.

  It was then that an imposing voice emerged from one of the side corridors.

  — Thank you for your wise opinion, Great Mystic Beast! — she proclaimed with exaggerated irony.

  Commander Nastacia appeared, walking with determination, looking at the raven with annoyance and a touch of contempt.

  — Those “trivialities” — she continued — are precisely what have allowed us to survive and understand this place. Much more than you could imagine. All that vital information is shared with all survivors so we can escape this hell together.

  Kar’Nix floated rolling his eyes, narrowing them.

  — All of that sounds very nice but... Is that really your only motive… Commander?

  Nastacia's gaze turned sharp as a razor. The atmosphere instantly tensed.

  — The fact that we let you stay, because of your special condition as Dante's servant, does not give you the right to criticise the work of those of us who have bled to keep this base standing. I have not forgotten what you did to our soldiers' minds — she added, without breathing —. The damage you caused is irreparable.

  Alan intervened, raising his hands.

  — Please, stop it. We are allies. The last thing we need is to fight among ourselves.

  The Commander gave him a furious look that almost made him step back.

  — Stefan, take them to their pavilions when you finish — she ordered, without taking her eyes off Kar’Nix —. I don't want them poking… their beaks where they shouldn't.

  — Yes, Commander — Stefan replied, resuming the march.

  The group walked away. When their footsteps were lost in the corridor, Nastacia turned to the guards.

  — Have you seen Commander Volkov? — she asked with some uneasiness.

  — He is in a private meeting with Captain Ronko, inside the laboratory — one of the guards replied, firmly.

  — A private meeting? — she repeated, suspicious.

  Something in her expression hardened.

  — Good. Thank you — she finally said, walking away with firm steps.

  Behind the thick armoured doors, the laboratory unfolded like an overstuffed scientific cathedral: tables cluttered with pipettes and empty jars, cages that still dripped remains of dissected specimens, doctors running with luminous tablets, and dozens of cryogenic capsules lined in endless rows, breathing a bluish vapour.

  Commander Volkov spoke in a low voice, almost as if he feared the walls would listen.

  — I'm sorry, Captain Ronko… we still haven't been able to speak with Dante Montenegro. If we pressure him directly, we may not get anything.

  Ronko, a corpulent man of around thirty-eight years old, with a blonde beard and green eyes, did not take his gaze off the capsule in front of him.

  — The important thing — he said with unsettling calm — is that he is already on the base. And that he possesses two of the Seven Divine Stones. We need a way to seize them from him. One way or another.

  Commander Volkov looked at him, disconcerted.

  — Do you really believe that by inserting one of those stones… her power will increase even more? — he asked, observing the capsule.

  Ronko placed his palm on the icy glass of the capsule as a slow smile spread across his face.

  — I don't merely think it, Volkov… I am certain of it. It will be the biggest advance for Project Lilith since its creation.

  The camera fogged up slightly with the bluish light. Inside, completely submerged in a azure liquid, a young woman with short white hair floated naked and unconscious.

  — When Lilith wakes up — Ronko said with a smile that had nothing human about it — this world will never be the same again. We will rewrite the destiny of Nullaria forever.

  End of Chapter Eighteen.

  Nullaria offers moments that look calm, even beautiful, but they are never what they seem. The sunflower valley exists to remind us that horror doesn’t always scream; sometimes it stands still, smiling, waiting to be accepted.

  SIEN. In the laboratories, purpose replaces doubt, and ambition begins to wear the mask of progress. Project Lilith is only a name for now, but it raises a troubling question:

  Nullaria, or from the people who believe they know how to control it?

  — Alberto Báez