Crunch.

The firewood in the fireplace burst out with a few bright sparks.

The dark brown wooden table was badly worn, and the old armchairs were covered with fur and dimly lit.

The old man leaned back in his chair, like a polar bear dying of old age.

There was only an empty wine bottle on the table, and Vatutin's temple was armed with a Makarov pistol.

Time seemed to stand still at this moment, and music and noise were playing on the radio.

An hour later, blood seeped into the ground

Two hours later, flowers and grass grow here

Three hours later, it was reborn

By a star named Sun

Warm ......."

Boom.

Vatutin did not pull the trigger and slammed the pistol on the wooden table.

"Go on, keep going on the offensive."

The walkie-talkie slammed to the floor and was silent.

The order seemed to drain Vatutin's strength, his back hunched and his body curled up in his chair.

The old man in military uniform grabbed the pistol and put it down again.

Finally, he hung his head as if he was crying, but there was no sound.

The wooden door was pushed open, and the wind and snow accompanied the distant visitors into the hut.

The identity of the guest made Vatujing a little sluggish, and it took a long time to be convinced that this was not an afterlife hallucination.

The honored guest of the Romanov family turned out to be her.

"Her Royal Highness."

Zero sat down by the fireplace, arranging his hair that had been blown by the wind and snow, looking a little tired.

Vatutin's reaction was half a beat slower, and then he hurriedly put away the pistol and threw the empty bottle into the trash.

"It's okay, I drink it sometimes."

Zero took out a bottle of red-label vodka from the wine cabinet and poured half a glass for the old man and for himself.

"You don't need to call me Her Royal Highness."

Because you know, that's just a lie.

Even if Zero is indeed the Grand Duchess of the Romanov family, she comes to visit Vatutin, who lives alone in the middle of nowhere.

Falsifying reality and changing identities is a breeze for the devil, even if it is fabricating the identity of the royal family.

Zero Razumovskaya Romanova, a descendant of Grand Duke Vladimir in exile in Spain, heir to the Romanov family.

As for Renata Evgenia Chicherina, that name has been reduced to ashes with the Black Swan Harbor.

But there are still people in the world who remember Renata instead of Zero, such as Vatutin. If he had committed suicide, there would be one less person who knew about Renata.

(Note: In the original version, there was an error in the Russian name with zero, the middle name was not used in the female patronymic, and the last name was not in the female version).

"Renata?"

Zero does not respond, silence is affirmation.

Vatutin was in a trance.

Twenty years later, the general who had carried out the secret mission had one foot in the coffin. And the girl's appearance has not changed in the slightest.

The first time Vatutin met Renata was on a top-secret file handed to him.

The slender little girl in the photo is crying with red and swollen eyes, clutching a dusty stuffed bear in her hand.

Renata's father was a liar who believed in "genetic theology." Her parents, believing that Renata harbored demons in her body, were almost ecstatic to give the girl to the project leader to receive a grant from the δ program.

Lipstick, cigarettes, alcohol, canned beef, and a few boxes of bread.

Vatutin didn't like the δ program, and the billions of dollars in genetic research would not help the country.

Laid-off workers binge drinking low-quality alcohol, young boys dying in Afghanistan, bewildered and desperate guitars on the streets and in bridges, opportunists and long lines of American fast-food restaurants fill the streets......

Even if δ plan to achieve cross-generational results, it will not help them. War, victory, moon landing, everything is meaningless.

But he doesn't have the power to stop δ plan, he's just an executor.

It wasn't until 1989, when the building was about to collapse, that Vatutin first met the children with "special talents" on file.

He inspected the work of the Black Swan Harbor and met with the children of the orphanage under the guidance of Dr. Herzog.

The Doctor introduced him to Renata, the best boy here. She is like a small white flower that quietly blooms in the North Pole.

On the day he left Black Swan Harbor, the emaciated Renata sat on his shoulder, and the Doctor took a picture of him and the children.

Vatujin gave the girl a hairpin and chocolates, so Renata trusted the man who was as strong as a giant bear.

The picture is still on his bedside table, but it is covered face down.

"In 1991, the δ project was abruptly halted. I was transferred to a position and placed under residential surveillance. ”

All those involved in the δ program are either dead or missing, including the children in the orphanage. Except for a handful of pawns like him, who survived after being deprived of their freedom.

"They bombed Black Swan Harbor."

Zero did not continue to explain. There is no need to let Vatutin know of the existence of another survivor, "Zero".

The alcohol made her relax a little, the trip had been arranged too hastily.

She had to come to visit Vatutin, before he died. Luo Yin could cause turmoil in the Evolution faction at any time, and it is unknown whether there will be a chance to meet with Vatujing in the future.

The boss is out of touch. Mai's recent form has worried her a little. They are going through difficult times.

"That man is your companion? Are you here for him? ”

Zero shook his head firmly.

"Quite the opposite."

If Vatutin's men can take out Luo Zayu, then France can fight Berlin.

The Evolutionary Sect was probably just testing Luo Yin, trying to force out his true posture that resembled the White King.

In less than two minutes, a third of the soldiers he had arranged had inexplicably disappeared, but Vatutin had to order the rest to continue the attack.

Even though they were equipped with more heavy firepower, their intuition told Vatutins that they were just going to die, to face an invincible enemy.

"You can speak with confidence, there are no listening devices here. Probably soon. ”

The old man realized that he had zero concerns.

"I'm looking for the location of Black Swan Harbor."

Zero pulls out a detailed map of Siberia, marked with more than twenty red dots, all of which are still in use or abandoned.

From City 1 to City 23, the kingdom created by the Evolutionaries in the wasteland.

"You want to go back to Black Swan Harbor?"

"Someday. I will send someone back to Black Swan Harbor on the right date. ”

Vatujin subconsciously wanted to dissuade Zero. If you have escaped from hell, why do you want to return to the arms of the devil?

"I have to find it."

The girl's voice was unequivocal.

"None of these are in the right places, but they all have a connection to Black Swan Harbor."

There is not much information about the exact location of Black Swan Harbor.

It is located in the north of Siberia, there is no direct railway connection, and the port can dock large icebreakers.

When she tried to return along the trail she had fled, everything about it had been erased.

"Even though the sanctuaries have different tasks, their styles are always similar in detail, aren't they?"

Zero nodded. She had entered an abandoned shelter, and the architectural details of the interior reminded her of the time she spent in Black Swan Harbor.

"But Black Swan Harbor is not underground, and the energy supply system used for the shelter is a heavy water reactor, not diesel and coal."

"That's right. You didn't miss a single location, but none of them were Black Swan Harbor or rebuilt on the original site. ”

Vatutin, who is under house arrest, knows a lot of secrets.

Many people want to find Black Swan Harbor, and they all have their own reasons.

Zero, Herzog, Roin.

So is Vatutin. But he was only looking for the little hope that remained, in order to find a chance to atone for his sins.

And now, he finally learned the end of Black Swan Harbor.

"It's time for you to leave. Thank you for your interest in retired officers and soldiers. ”

If they visit for a longer period of time, they will judge it as an anomaly, and Renata will be in danger.

But Zero just clinked glasses with him, took a sip of the spirits, and stared at the old man with those ice crystal eyes.

Vatutin realized that his impression of the girl was still that of the thin and crying Renata. But now sitting in front of him was a completely different person.

A human being who is eternally young. Her new name, Zero, is quirky yet alluded to a certain divinity.

"Zero is a special number, especially for dragons."

Zero had some surprises.

"I've seen that dragon, the race of the Fourth Realm.

City 1, City 2...... City 23. One is missing. ”

"City 0."

Zero suddenly understood the crux of the matter.

"All these shelters, they all have an archetype, the origin and beginning of everything."

Everything is not from the beginning, but zero.

City 0, Number Zero, and her name.

She should have thought that Black Swan Harbor was a Nibelungen. That's why she could see the black serpent at night, the silver moonlight flowing on its pure black scales.

However, the Black Snake is the only dragon species in Black Swan Harbor. And maybe the Zero.

The former sleeps under the ice, and the latter is bound as a psychopath. They had absolutely no ability to sustain the giant Nibelungen at the time.

So, who is the owner of Black Swan Harbor?

Although Black Swan Harbor is off the beaten track, every year icebreakers bring in supplies, and occasionally visitors like Vatutin and Bondarev.

All the people who live and work there, visitors from the outside world, feel that Black Swan Harbor is the real world. That's impossible.

When she fled from Black Swan Harbor, she was also unaware of the existence of the "door".

"Before the 17th century, it was thought that all swans were pure white until the black swans were seen in Australia.

But no matter how abnormal the black swan is, when you see it, you can only acknowledge its existence. A black swan that changed everything. ”

Maybe it's the effect of alcohol, Vatutin casually said an unrelated association.

"Black SWAswa, unexpected anomalies that are difficult to predict and often have far-reaching effects on a large scale, such as 911."

Zero knows this special meaning about black swans.

A long-term Nibelungen in which people come and go, never aware of the boundaries between it and reality.

It sounds like a well-managed garden. It's like a man-made product.

The thought literally halted her heart for a moment.

"And what about this coordinates?"

Latitude 77 degrees 36 minutes 40.4 seconds north latitude and 104 degrees 14 minutes 6.8 seconds east longitude, which is a coordinate found by zero through classified archives, located in the northernmost part of the Temyer Peninsula. It is an abandoned base for a top-secret project.

"Bait. There are only enemies there. ”

Zero nodded. Just killing a few people and stealing a few old files, this coordinate was too easy to obtain, and she didn't go there.

Renata...... Always remember that they are bigger than you think. ”

After a moment of silence, Vatujing said slowly, his voice full of powerlessness.

"I'm imprisoned here, forced to die for them. But until now, I still don't know who 'they' are.

All these shelters, mountains of munitions, riches that rival the riches, are still not all.

Always be careful, Renata. ”

Zero picked up the glass and drank it all.

"The dragon was transported to City 23.

I'm sorry, I can't help you on this road.

I'm just an old man waiting to die. ”

Zero put on his coat, and the wind and snow outside seemed to be bigger.

Vatutin: "There are snipers outside. ”

"I can handle it."

She stood in front of the door, hesitating, not pushing the door.

"You come with me."

"I'm too old for long journeys for me."

"Hmm."

Silence returned to the cabin. A gunshot rang out outside.

"Ceasefire. Otherwise, I'll shoot myself in the temple. ”

This is the last value of Vatutin. They still need his identity as a cover for the operation.

He leaned back in a wooden chair, holding a bottle in his left hand and a gun in his right.

Glass after glass until the bottle bottoms out.

She should have gone far.

Vatutin put away his pistol and drunkenly walked to the wine cabinet.

"It's winter, is the road home covered with snow?

With the dawn and dawn, shooting stars pierced the Kandahar sky......"

He took three bottles of vodka into his arms, but his body shook and he accidentally broke the bottles.

A drunken Vatutin suddenly grabbed the tongs and threw the firewood from the fireplace to the floor. The charcoal fell on the spirits, and the blue flames engulfed half of the wooden house in an instant.

Two bullets pierced his knee and calf, and the fallen Vatuin struggled to hide by the fireplace, and another bullet passed through his abdomen.

"Fucking shit! Stop him, put out the fire! ”

The flames would burn his corpse to the ground.

Vatutin did not want to be replaced by a new Vatutin after his death. Although the clone's memories are full of holes, it will inevitably be revealed, but that would be too disgusting for him.

They're almost there.

The old man clenched his beloved Makarov pistol, tears welling up in his cloudy eyes.

There is also a surviving child in Black Swan Harbor, Renata, and that is enough.

"If my family asks me...... What was written to you, don't tell the truth

You must ...... Don't tell Mom, I served in Afghanistan ......"

The sound of the radio was choppy and the flames burned everything.

Vatujin quietly watched as the cage that had trapped him for more than a decade turned to ashes.

The photo on the bedside table, the only photo of him and the girl, had been taken away at some point.

Little Renata is amazing.

He looked at the ceiling and remembered the day he enlisted, the orders he carried out in the δ plan, and the people who died because of him.

"Извиниться, mать I'm sorry, Mom."

Boom.

On the hillside in the distance, Zero looked back at the burning wooden house.

Goodbye, my friend.

------Off topic------

Кино, "Звездапоиmени Солнце The Star Called the Sun"

"Hello, sister"

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