I drifted in the liminal space between a half-remembered nightmare and the cold, relentless bite of reality. The first thing to slice through the fog was the chill, a bone-deep cold that seeped into my skin, reminding me I was still alive, still tethered to this grim existence.
My head throbbed, a dull, persistent ache that felt like a hangover from whatever hell had just passed. I forced my eyes open, the dim, flickering light above stabbing into my skull.
It took a moment for the world to stabilize, for the scattered fragments of memory to start piecing themselves back together. The blinding flash, the searing pain, Larek’s gasp—all of it came rushing back, fragmented and distorted, slipping through my mental fingers like quicksilver.
I pushed myself into a sitting position, wincing as the world tilted dangerously. The floor beneath me was uneven, a patchwork of cold metal and grime, and the air stank of oil, rust, and something metallic that set my teeth on edge. Larek was slumped across from me, his breathing rough, eyes barely open.
Arvie’s presence was a comforting feeling that reminded me I wasn’t entirely alone in this twisted nightmare. But even Arvie was quieter than usual, as if the gravity of our situation had muted her typical snark. I reached out, my thoughts sluggish, tangled in the leftover fog of unconsciousness.
“Arvie?” My mind fumbled for her, thoughts slow, stuck in the fog.
“Took you long enough,” she shot back, voice sharp, though I caught the worry underneath. “We need to get a grip before they come back.”
I scanned the cramped cell—a simple metal box, no windows, no tech. Nothing but a grimy door, and Larek’s shallow breaths filling the space. The memory of our capture crawled back into focus, piece by piece.
Larek stirred. His eyes found mine, some recognition flickering behind the pain.
“You’re here,” he rasped, glancing at the door like it might explode any second. He looked ready to say more, but before he could, the door slammed open, a jarring clang that echoed through the cell.
Two figures entered, hulking and deliberate. Shadows hid their faces, but their movements were sharp, efficient. The first one growled something guttural. “Up. Now.”
They didn’t bother with me—just yanked Larek to his feet. He winced, but didn’t fight. His eyes caught mine again, something passing between us. A plea, maybe.
Then they dragged him out. The door slammed shut behind them, cutting off the sound of their boots on the metal. The silence that followed was thick and oppressive, broken only by the faint drip of water.
“Well, that was unpleasant,” Arvie quipped, cutting the tension with her usual mix of sarcasm and concern.
“What now?” I asked, trying to ignore the knot tightening in my gut.
A pause. “We wait. Not much else to do.”
I leaned back against the cold wall, closing my eyes. "If they come back."
“They will.” Her voice dropped, a seriousness that made my stomach twist. “You’re too interesting to ignore.”
Time dragged on, a slow, torturous crawl. I tried to piece together the shattered fragments of memory, but every path led back to the same question: Who am I?
When the door creaked open again, I almost welcomed it. Two more figures, faceless in the flickering light, pulled me to my feet and dragged me into a narrow hallway. The walls were streaked with rust, the air heavy with decay. Every instinct screamed at me to fight, but I didn’t have the strength.
They shoved me into a dimly lit chamber. A table sat at the center, covered in tools that looked more like torture devices than anything else. My heart hammered in my chest, but I forced myself to stay still as they strapped me into a cold, metal chair.
One of them leaned in, breath hot and metallic against my face. “Who are you?” The words dripped with suspicion.
The question hit like a sucker punch. Who was I? The memories flashed—fragments of a shattered past. Waking in the wreckage, breathing the toxin, finding the relic and weapon, meeting Jaraek and Reya, busted Neurolink, being dragged to Larek, and then the attack, but before all that… nothing. Just a void where my identity should’ve been.
“I… I don’t know,” I muttered, each word scratching at my throat. “I don’t remember.”
Silence. They stepped back, exchanging glances with someone lurking just out of sight. Their murmurs blurred, drowned out by the throb in my head.
“Don’t remember, huh?” The lead one said, voice cold as steel grinding on stone. “We’ll see about that.” They paused, then leveled a fresh question at me, sharper now. “Why were you with Larek?”
I swallowed, feeling the walls close in. “My NeuroLink’s busted,” I said. “Droids got suspicious, so they dragged me to Larek for an interrogation. Guess they thought he could untangle the mess.”
The figure nodded, confirming they’d heard something about that.
“Is it true, then?” The figure’s voice had an edge now. “You can breathe the miasma?”
“Yeah,” I said, keeping my voice flat. “Lucky me.”
They didn’t respond to that. Just gave a nod to the other figure, who stepped forward, holding a sleek, humming device. Its surface glowed with faint symbols, pulsing like a heartbeat. Without warning, they slammed it against my neck.
Lightning arced through me, white-hot, searing every nerve. My thoughts fractured, shards of memory slicing through the unrelenting maelstrom of pain. Colors bled out, shapes collapsing into a chaotic mess as the device hunted for something I didn’t have, tearing through the wreckage of my brain like they’d find some hidden truth.
My jaw locked, muscles straining as I fought to stay conscious. And then, abruptly, it was over. They pulled the device away, leaving me gasping, heart pounding. The figure stared at me, frustration twisting their face.
“No data. No identity. Just a blank slate,” they muttered, passing the device back like it was useless. “Throw him back in the cell.”
They dragged me down the hall, rough hands bruising my arms, and dumped me back in the cold darkness of the cell. Larek was gone. The silence was worse this time, the emptiness gnawing at me.
“Well, that was intense. They didn’t seem too happy with your readings, did they?” Arvie whispered in my mind, her mischievous voice cutting through the haze of pain. “Looks like I’ve been having a little fun with their probe.”
“Did you mess with them?”
“Of course. Couldn’t let them poke around in your head, now, could I?”
I could almost see her grin, the way she turned the situation on its head with a few well-placed words. A weak smile tugged at my lips, but it faded fast. “What do they want with Larek?”
Arvie’s tone darkened. “Whatever it is, it’s bad. We’ll face it together.”
I closed my eyes, her words a small comfort in the cold. The world was crumbling, but with Arvie, I had something—someone—to hold onto.
Yet even that small comfort struggled to pierce the oppressive weight tightening around me, as my mind wrestled against the ever-present shackles of doubt.70Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNrdK8cRzcv
