The paper bag was on the verge of rupturing.

I had overestimated how many groceries I could carry in one trip, and the universe — sadistic bastard that it was — decided to test my limits and my patience on a flight of stairs.

A carton of eggs shifted dangerously. The bag groaned. I swore.

“Need a hand, darling?”

The voice purred from above, velvet-wrapped and honey-slick. I looked up —

Ah. H...

This pestilence is the enabler. The beginning. The corruption from which the Seven are born.

A silent scourge rots in the hearts of mankind. A coldness that smothers the gentle warmth of emotion and leave emptiness and inhumanity.

It appears as indifference in the face of suffering. Numbness in the face of passion. Blindness in the face of injustice.

An endless void that even Sloth fears.

Apa...

The loud explosion shook the aircraft.

James Smith’s hands gripped the yoke, to stop the plane from diving down as soon as the autopilot disengaged. His eyes rapidly scanned the displays to determine the cause.

Errors and warnings lit up and blinked rapidly: drops in oil pressure, the engine’s revolutions per minute plummeting to zero with alarming speed, side-pull to the right-side.

Turbine f...