Chapter 16: Chapter Ten: …Well, F*** that just happened (Part 1)

The cold metal cuffs around my wrists bit into my skin as I slowly came to. My HUD flickered weakly, edges glitching as faint error messages hovered in my peripheral vision.

[STATUS: RESTRAINED][SYSTEM FUNCTIONS: LIMITED]

The air smelled sterile and metallic, laced with the faint tang of ozone. The room was dim, illuminated by faint neon-blue strips embedded along the walls and ceiling. A mechanical hum vibrated on the floor beneath my boots. The space was clean and deliberate—nothing like the chaotic makeshift outposts in the Rift.

I was seated on a reinforced metal chair bolted to the floor, my arms locked behind me. Shadows flickered faintly at my feet, curling weakly in a way that made my stomach twist. I couldn’t summon them correctly.

Devon… Selene…

My head throbbed faintly, but panic forced me to remain still, to focus. Wherever they were, I had to believe they were still alive.

Suddenly, my HUD flickered, and the faint crackle of static filled my ears—a glitched message appeared in the air before me.

[PRIVATE MESSAGE: UNKNOWN]

UNKNOWN: Don’t speak.

UNKNOWN: Don’t trust them.

UNKNOWN: We’ll get you out. Just stay quiet.

The message vanished as quickly as it came, fragments of code scattering like fireflies. My breath caught in my throat as the weight of the warning settled over me.

A faint hiss echoed from the door at the room's far end, and it slid open with a smooth, mechanical noise. Heavy boots clicked against the polished floor as a figure stepped inside.

He was tall, his lean frame wrapped in sleek, customized black armor glowed faintly with cyan-blue highlights tracing its edges. A matching trench coat hung from his shoulders, its fabric catching the faint light as he walked. His face was sharp and angular, with piercing green eyes that glimmered with faint amusement beneath a tousled fringe of dark hair.

Kaiden.

His smile was thin and predatory. He clasped his gloved hands behind his back and slowly walked in a half-circle around me, his boots clicking rhythmically with every step.

“Finally, some alone time with the little anomaly herself.” His voice was smooth, polished, dripping with casual charm.

I didn’t respond. UNKNOWN’s warning echoed in my mind.

Kaiden chuckled softly, his sharp green eyes narrowing slightly as he leaned against a nearby console. “Silent treatment, huh? That’s cute. But let me tell you something, Kiera—you and I? We’re going to be spending a lot of time together. And I promise you, by the end of this conversation, you will tell me everything.”

He paused as if waiting for me to break the silence. When I didn’t, his smirk twitched.

“Fine. Have it your way.”

He turned and began typing something into the console beside him. Holographic displays flickered to life in the air—maps, corrupted fragments of binary code, and faint traces of my corrupted class data projected in glowing lines of light.

“You know,” he continued conversationally, “you’re a bit of an urban legend in certain circles now. The Demon Lord Anomaly. A walking glitch. People like me—players who know the system, who know how to bend the system—we dream of finding something like this.”

He gestured to the fragmented lines of code projected above the console. “Your character data isn’t just broken—it’s rewritten. Someone, somewhere, went deep into the guts of this game and changed something about that code. And you—poor, innocent little you—just happened to stumble into it.”

His eyes flicked to me, his smirk curling faintly at the edges. “How does it feel to know that the fate of this game—the fate of this world—is embedded in your code, Kiera?”

I swallowed hard, fighting back the sharp retort in my throat. UNKNOWN said not to speak. Don’t trust him.

Kaiden tilted his head, studying me like a predator sizing up injured prey. “You’re smarter than you look; I’ll give you that. Most people would’ve cracked by now—started rambling, or maybe you're just stupid and naive.”

He pushed himself away from the console, closing the distance between us. His green eyes locked onto mine, sharp and unyielding.

“But here’s the thing, Kiera. This isn’t just about you. Your friends—Devon, Selene—they’re both here. Alive. For now.”

My breath hitched, and Kaiden’s smirk widened slightly as he caught the flicker of panic in my eyes.

“So you do care. Cute.”

He crouched in front of me, one hand resting lightly on my knee, his expression softening slightly into something mockingly sympathetic.

“I don’t want to hurt them, Kiera. I really don’t. But if you don’t tell me what I need to know… well, let’s just say their lives might become very inconvenient.”

He leaned closer, his voice dropping to a whisper. “So, let’s start simple, shall we? Where’s the next fragment?”

I clenched my jaw, staring at the faint glow of his green eyes.

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“I… I don’t know.”

Kaiden’s smirk twitched, his patience wearing thin. He stood up slowly, adjusting one of his gloves as he turned his back to me.

“Hmph. So you're that kind of person: righteous, brave. People like you frustrate me. But in the end, those 'qualities' mean nothing when faced with inevitability.”

He turned back to me, his eyes glowing faintly in the dim light. “Let me tell you what happens next. I’m going to keep asking questions. And if you keep lying… or pretending you don’t know… well, I’ll start asking Devon. Or Selene.”

The way he said their names made my stomach churn.

“But you still have a choice, Kiera. You can end this now. Tell me what I need to know, and we all walk away from this relatively unharmed.”

He paused, giving me one last chance.

I stared back at him, my shadows flickering faintly at my feet, responding to the anger building in my chest.

“I. Don’t. Know.”

Kaiden released a sharp sigh, running a hand through his hair before offering me one last, sharp smile.

“Very well. We’ll do this the hard way.”

He turned and strolled toward the door, pausing briefly as it hissed open.

“Oh, and Kiera? Don’t go anywhere.”

The door sealed behind him with a sharp hiss, leaving me alone in the sterile room once more.

My HUD flickered faintly as another private message popped up.

I exhaled shakily, my shadows curling faintly at my feet.

The weight of Kaiden’s words lingered in the cold air around me, heavy with the promise of something far worse to come.

The faint hum of the interrogation chamber lingered in the silence Kaiden left behind.

I clenched my fists, my shadows flickering faintly at my feet, barely strong enough to respond. My mind raced with thoughts of Devon and Selene. Were they okay? Were they still alive?

The faint, distant sound of a muffled boom reverberated through the metal floor beneath me. My HUD flickered violently before a new warning flashed.

[ALERT: SECURITY BREACH DETECTED][ZONE LOCKDOWN INITIATED]

The lights in the room flickered as alarms began to wail, their shrill tones cutting through the oppressive silence. My chest tightened as I strained against my cuffs, desperate to catch any sign, any noise from beyond the walls.

Devon… Selene… Please let this be you.

⋅•⋅⊰∙∘☽༓☾∘∙⊱⋅•⋅

Elsewhere in the stronghold, a sharp clang echoed through a cramped holding cell as glowing restraints shattered against the stone wall. Devon flexed his wrists, the faint red burns left behind already fading as he gripped his greatsword tightly.

“See? Told you that would work,” he said, flashing Selene a smirk.

Selene stood nearby, holding a sharp, makeshift lockpick she had crafted from her surroundings. Her amber eyes glimmered faintly in the low light, sharp and calculating.

“I didn’t doubt you,” she said flatly, sliding the shard into her belt. “But we’ve got minutes, maybe seconds before they notice we’re loose.”

Devon adjusted his grip on his greatsword, his broad shoulders taut with tension. “Then let’s make them count.”

They moved quickly and efficiently, slipping through the stronghold's narrow corridors. The alarms blared overhead, casting rhythmic red flashes along the metallic walls. They worked in sync—Devon clearing larger obstacles with raw force, Selene darting ahead to disable cameras and take out lone operatives with surgical precision.

Devon glanced at Selene every so often, his voice low and urgent. “We have to get to Kiera. He’s going to hurt her. Whatever that alert is, hopefully, that will be a distraction long enough for us to high-tail it out of here.”

Selene didn’t respond with words, but her amber eyes' brief flicker of determination spoke volumes.

They reached a security terminal embedded in the wall. Selene knelt, her fingers flying across the flickering controls as Devon stood guard, his greatsword gleaming faintly in the red warning light.

“Can you find her?” Devon asked his voice tight with worry.

Selene’s brows furrowed, her focus razor-sharp. “I’ve got her location. East wing. Interrogation chamber. But…” She hesitated, her eyes narrowing. “Kaiden’s already there.”

Devon’s knuckles whitened around the hilt of his weapon. “Then we’ll have to go through him.”

Selene’s voice softened slightly. “You don’t have to—”

“I do.” Devon’s voice was low, steady, and final. “You get to Kiera. I’ll handle Kaiden.”

Selene hesitated for only a heartbeat before nodding. “Don’t die, Devon.”

Devon smirked faintly. “Wouldn’t dream of it.”

The interrogation chamber’s corridor was eerily quiet despite the alarms blaring in the distance. Devon’s boots struck the metallic floor with heavy determination as he approached the central room. The door slid open with a hiss, and there he was—Kaiden.

The rogue guild leader stood casually at the far end of the chamber, one hand tucked into his coat pocket while the other rested casually on the hilt of an ornate short sword at his waist. His green eyes glimmered faintly in the cold light, and a sly smile curved his sharp face.

“Well, well… if it isn’t Overlord Ren.”

Devon stepped forward, his greatsword dragging along the floor with a faint screech of steel on metal. His sharp brown eyes locked onto Kaiden’s with pure, unfiltered hatred.

“Where is she?” Devon’s voice was low and dangerous.

Kaiden’s smirk widened. “She’s fine. For now. But tell me, Devon—why do you always come running to save someone? Isn’t that exhausting? Playing the hero?”

Devon took another step forward, his massive frame blocking out the flickering light from behind him. “Last chance, Kaiden. Move, or I’ll move you.”

Kaiden chuckled softly, shaking his head. “Ah, Devon. Always so direct. So predictable.”

His hand slid from his coat pocket, fingers twitching faintly as neon-blue lines flared across his glove. The faint hum of energy crackled in the air between them.

“But that’s what makes you so fun to fight.”

With a flick of his wrist, Kaiden lunged forward, his short sword flickering with neon energy as it collided with Devon’s greatsword in a burst of sparks.

The room shook with the force of their clash.