Romane von Trigger Roses

A loud crash echoed down the dark hallway as my elbow caught the edge of a steel filing cabinet. Three thick binders hit the floor. The emergency backup lights flickered overhead, casting weak yellow shadows across the walls. The air inside the building was ninety-five degrees and thick enough to choke on.I crouched to gather the binders.“Need a hand with that?”A deep voice came from the shadows near the glass exit doors.I stood quickly, laptop bag pressed against my chest. “Who’s there?”A tall man stepped into the dim light. Dark utility uniform. Silver emblem of the National Bio-Defense Task Force on his chest. Broad shoulders, steady posture, dark eyes that narrowed the moment they landed on me.Recognition hit both of us at the same time.“Gabriel?” The name left my mouth before I could stop it.“Young.” His voice was quieter than I remembered. A small, genuine smile touched his mouth, but it didn’t last long. “It’s been forever since we last saw each other. What are you doin

By four o’clock the temperature had climbed to 102 degrees Fahrenheit—an unprecedented spike for mid-July.Emergency sirens wailed faintly in the distance as power substations struggled under the load of thousands of air conditioners running at full capacity. News alerts flashed across every phone screen:[WEATHER ALERT: UNUSUAL HEAT DOME CAUSES RECORD-BREAKING TEMPERATURES. CITIZENS ADVISED TO CONSERVE ELECTRICITY. SEVERAL NEIGHBORHOODS EXPERIENCING ROLLING BROWN-OUTS.]I took a taxi to the industrial district on the east side of the city. Even with the windows cracked, the air inside the cab felt thick and stale. The driver kept muttering under his breath about the weather and the traffic lights that had started flickering.Apex Medical & Wholesale Supplies occupied a large warehouse that supplied regional clinics and private emergency units. The parking lot was half-empty. Inside, the air-conditioning labored loudly, and the lights overhead flickered twice while I waited at the cou

By 11:45 a.m., the summer sun outside the university felt unnaturally heavy. The air rising from the pavement radiated a stagnant, suffocating dryness that made pedestrians pause and wipe their brows with confused frowns.“It’s only July,” a student muttered as he passed the library doors. “Why does it feel like standing in front of an open oven?”I stood near the entrance, a leather tote bag pressed against my side. I already knew why. The heat wave had not yet broken any official records, but the upper atmosphere was beginning to warp. In three months the heat would no longer cause mere discomfort. It would collapse power grids and turn rivers into cracked beds of mud.[SYSTEM NOTIFICATION] [DAILY QUEST ISSUED: FOUNDATION OF THE OASIS][TASK 1: SECURE 100% LEGAL OWNERSHIP OF A PERMANENT BASE LOCATION][TASK 2: STOCKPILE 5 TONS OF MEDICAL SUPPLIES & HIGH-PROTEIN PRESERVES][TIME LIMIT: 48 HOURS][COMPLETION REWARD: SPATIAL UPGRADE — LEVEL 2 + 500 LITRES OF SPIRITUAL SPRING WATER][F

“Youngie?” Mom’s warm voice came through the speaker. “Is everything alright, sweetie? You sound out of breath.”Tears filled my eyes. “Mom… I’m okay. I just missed your voice.”“What’s wrong, honey? Did Arthur’s family say something unkind again?” Her concern was instant. “You know you can always come home. The old farmhouse is still here for you.”In my first life I had drifted away from her because Arthur had quietly convinced me that staying close to an aging foster mother in the countryside made me look unrefined in front of his family. I had abandoned the only woman who ever truly loved me for a nest of vipers.“Mom,” I said, wiping my cheek, “I’m coming home tonight. I’m moving my research equipment to the valley.”“Tonight? Youngie, what about your husband?”“I’ll explain everything when I get there.” My voice was firm. “I love you. Please make sure the old barn is cleared out.”“Of course, sweetie. I’ll make your favorite soup.”I hung up and drew a slow breath.[DIMENSIONAL

Young’s POV°“Let go of me! Please, Arthur—look at me!”I choked on the dust as my knees slammed into the sun-baked, cracked earth. The heat struck my bare shoulders like an open furnace—well over a hundred and sixty degrees—but the ice spreading through my blood was colder.Arthur did not look at me. He stood beside my assistant, Chloe, one hand resting easily on her waist. She no longer wore her lab coat. A light cold vest clung to her body, a wide-brimmed sun hat shaded her face, and a soft, satisfied smile curved her lips.Behind them stood Arthur’s mother, Beatrice, along with his younger brother Elijah and his sister Clara. None of them met my eyes. Beatrice only sneered and fanned herself with a thick piece of cardboard.“Arthur, please!” My voice cracked as I yanked against the heavy steel chains binding my wrists to the sacrificial pillar. “I gave you everything. My research. My life. My love. I built the drought-resistant seed strain. I saved us. Why are you doing this?”“Yo