I write obituaries for the gods

It was like a scaly hand gripping her heart tightly.

"cough..."

tide Lena coughed softly. The intensity of her recent vocal training had been so high that she barely had time to let her mind wander.

But the rainy night was too quiet, so quiet that the secrets that had sunk to the bottom of the sea once again surfaced.

......

Interlude: Past Events, Continuous Rain (Part 1) (Third and Fourth Updates)

2010, Xiwang District, Yudu.

"Brother Jiang, you're here."

In the office of the Rapid Response Division, Wu Hao looked at Jiang Zhengge as he walked in, his expression complicated.

Jiang Zhengge's face had been expressionless for a week; he looked like a weathered stone sculpture, having lost the ability to express himself.

Wu Hao understood Jiang Zhengge, after all, his parents had been missing for a week.

For the past week, an unknown and anomalous entity has repeatedly invaded the real world, abducting victims from various parts of the city.

According to official statistics from the Bureau of Investigation, people who have been missing for more than three days during unusual events often find it difficult to return to a normal life, even if they do.

Jiang Zhengge was well aware of this.

"Xiao Fang, are there any signs?" Jiang Zhengge asked in a hoarse voice.

As soon as he asked the question, the analyst sitting at the desk turned around:

"It has now been confirmed that all Delta-level events were caused by the same anomalous entity, which is likely due to some ruins being close to the real world."

She was a beautiful girl with smooth black hair and exceptionally gentle features.

“We are tracing the source and should be able to find the entrance to the ruins soon.”

"Okay, let me know immediately if anything happens."

Jiang Zhengge sat down at the table, rubbing the bridge of his nose with his hand, looking exhausted.

A can of cola was placed in front of him. Jiang Zhengge looked up and met Wu Hao's concerned gaze.

“We will find your uncle and aunt,” Wu Hao said. “Brother Jiang, everyone is here.”

"Ah."

Jiang Zhengge smiled, casually pulled out a dagger, pried open the Coke bottle, and drank it all in one gulp.

Just then, an alarm suddenly sounded on the large screen in the room. Jiang Zhengge looked up and saw Xiao Fang running towards him in a panic.

"Brother Jiang, we've traced the source!" Xiao Fang shouted, "Gamma level!"

"We've found the entity!"

......

Liberty District, Rom Hunter Headquarters.

In the smoke-filled room, Xileina moved a candle behind the crystal ball, and the brilliant flame illuminated the inside of the crystal.

She gently spun the crystal ball, observing the patterns inside and searching for any discernible rules.

Gang leaders from the Liberty district huddled together around the fortune-telling table.

In the past, their men would shoot each other in the streets every day, which adds a touch of irony to the current scene.

"..."

Xileina stared at the impurities in the crystal ball, and gradually, her vision became cloudy.

As she looked at the continuous, fluffy material, her vision began to flicker.

飓风。

She saw the hurricane wash over the sky and the sea.

Screams.

Someone died, and she heard herself crying out...

"High Tower, child, a catastrophe is about to strike, and everything you possess will be overturned..."

Mother's prophecy traveled through time and space, lingering in Xileina's ears along with the smoke.

"...ha!"

tide Lena snapped back to reality, her vision filled with double images.

She glanced at the gang leaders, relaxed, and slumped into her chair.

“I’ve found it,” Xileina said softly. “According to RBAI classification, it’s gamma-level.”

“Miss Xilena, how much does the Rom hunter need?” the Red Gang leader said softly. “We’re willing to provide the funds, as long as it stops hunting our children…”

“We’re the same.” The White Gang leader stroked his beard gently.

“We will not charge any extra commission. Liberty is a community we all maintain together,” Xilena said softly. “There is only one request: after this is over, you must cease fire for at least three months and appease those poor souls.”

She was clearly a beautiful young woman, yet her eyes held a dazzling sadness.

The gang leaders looked at each other, and then nodded almost simultaneously:

"it is good."

"..."

After they left, the older brother finally emerged from the shadows in the corner.

"tide Lena, you saw it, didn't you?"

"Ah."

Xileina closed her eyes, and once again the magnificent shadow behind the hurricane image flashed through her mind.

“Katrina,” Xilena said softly, “that entity, it’s related to it.”

......

Since leaving New Orleans, Shireina has been searching for information about Katrina.

Whether from the public or the government, she tried many channels, but the intelligence she found could only be pieced together into fragments.

That entity has had many identities throughout history: in Greece, it was called Poseidon; in Northern Europe, it was Niord; and in China, it was the Dragon King Ao Guang.

Xilena doesn't know why it has so many identities and has been witnessed at different times in history, but based on the characteristics, these ancient gods do indeed point to the same entity.

Katrina is its modern name.

As time went by, Xileina gathered less and less information.

Gradually, she began to forget the past.

She thought she had escaped the hurricane, but it found her again.

"..."

When Xilena entered the training room, the fully armed Rom hunters had been waiting for a long time.

“Miss Xileina,” the warrior named Chaiko stood up and came forward, “that thing is not easy to deal with, is it? Tell me the truth.”

"Have you looked at the tarot cards?" Xileina asked.

“The Tower of Ascension,” Chaco nodded, “is about to be struck by the lightning of fate.”

The tower... Xileina sighed softly.

She drove the chariot of destiny, leading her family through the world, carving out a place for herself in the cracks of prejudice and reality.

But the towering structure, a symbol of misfortune, continued to haunt her like a ghost.

“It’s Katrina,” Xilena said softly, “or its offspring. Either way, it’s not easy to deal with.”

Xilena glanced around the room at the Rom hunters, most of whom were seasoned veterans who had maintained the security of the Liberty district for years.

This region is on the edge of civilization, chaos permeates every inch of land, the Bureau of Anomalies finds it difficult to move an inch here, and the emotional buildup caused by suffering makes the erosion of anomalies here a common occurrence.

Without the protection of these Rom hunters, many more innocent people would die from the rampage of anomalous entities.

And that's why...

tide Lena didn't want them to have sacrificed themselves in vain.

“I am a descendant of the Boswell family,” Xilena’s gaze swept over the hunters. “Over the years, we have gathered on our journeys, moving forward together and making a living together.”

"We have always faced difficulties together, whether it was foreigners who didn't like us or natural disasters from the Warp, we have always survived."

“But this time, I’m not asking you to step up,” Xileina said, looking at Chaiko. “Hurricane Katrina destroyed my home, and I will eventually settle things with it, but that’s none of your business.”

"This is not your war."

After tide Lena finished speaking, Chai Ke shook his head almost immediately.

“Liberty has become our new home,” Chaco said. “Those who invade our home are our enemies.”

“You are like a mother to us, Miss Xilena,” a young hunter said sincerely. “Your war is our war.”

“I will follow you.” A strong Roma bowed slightly.

In an instant, the hunters rushed to pledge their loyalty to Xileina. They had already foreseen the lightning that was destined to strike the tower, yet they resolutely chose to defend their homeland.

tide Lena felt that she should perhaps feel joy.

But whenever she held onto a sliver of hope, the August thunder of New Orleans would echo in her ears like a persistent tinnitus.

My mother's tarot cards are always accurate.

The omens in the crystal ball are never wrong.

Xilena had once despised the traditions of the Rom, but the hurricane had washed away her doubts.

She understood that when people try to escape prophecy, prophecy will find them before fate does.

Just as Xilena once refused to believe that lightning was destined to strike the tower, she somehow climbed up the church and faced the hurricane.

......

The action plan has been finalized: tonight, under the spiritually rich moonlight, the Rom hunters will head to the ruins to hunt down the anomalous entity.

As she walked out of the training room, Xileina bumped into her brother.

"Should we contact Jiang Zhengge?" her brother asked tide Leina. "He's a friend; he'll help you."

“You told me before that men are all animals.” tide Leina stuck out her tongue.

“He’s different,” the older brother said earnestly. “He’s a good person.”

"How did you determine that?" tide Leina asked curiously.

“He and I get along very well,” the older brother said shyly, scratching his head. “Most people would think I’m too boring and wouldn’t want to talk to me, but he can take care of my feelings, so he should be able to take care of yours too.”

tide Leina chuckled, her tension dissipating considerably.

My brother is always like this. He usually appears as a quiet and tough guy, but he's always clumsy in expressing himself, like a child.

After laughing for a while, Xileina gently shook her head and said:

"Let's not call him. What if he gets caught in the lightning strikes the tower?"

“Perhaps he’s willing to share the burden with you,” the older brother said earnestly.

“But I don’t want him to suffer this,” Xileina shook her head. “He’s a good man, and good men shouldn’t be dragged into our fate.”

"Do you love him, Xileina?" her brother asked.

"...Huh?"

tide Lena paused, staring directly into her brother's blue eyes, and remained silent for a long time.

Love? tide Lena had never considered such a thing.

Whether she made a living by music in the Lower Ninth District or by containing anomalous entities in the Liberty District, Xileina always had good luck with men.

She is like a beautiful piece of Gypsy jazz, leaving a deep impression on people without them even realizing it.

But from beginning to end, Xileina never felt any passion for anyone.

After her mother died, her heart hadn't beaten for a long time.