Questions
673 Words
Aldric placed a call to an unknown number before speeding away with the unconscious Keira.
“Please forgive me,” he murmured as he gripped the steering wheel. “But I won’t let you destroy yourself.”
The vehicle tore through the deserted streets, taking countless sharp turns and winding routes until even the familiar landscape disappeared. Several times during the journey, Keira began to stir. Each time, Aldric injected another dose of the mysterious substance into her bloodstream, forcing her back into unconsciousness.
Eventually, they arrived at a narrow alley hidden between abandoned buildings—an alley so well concealed that no ordinary person would believe it existed.
Carrying Keira over his shoulder, Aldric walked into a dilapidated building that looked ready to collapse at any moment.
Suddenly, an unfamiliar energy erupted from his body. The air distorted as a shimmering portal tore open before him. Without hesitation, he stepped through with Keira. The portal sealed itself the instant they entered, leaving no trace that it had ever existed.
Inside, the surroundings shifted constantly, as though reality itself refused to remain still.
A man approached them.
“So, Brother, you’re finally here.”
Aldric sighed as he gently laid Keira on a nearby couch.
“I had to increase the dosage. She kept waking up. You know, Second Brother, next time don’t send me on a mission like this. She’s far too troublesome.”
The man chuckled.
“Give her a little time. She’ll wake up soon.”
Aldric walked to the corner of the room and leaned silently against the wall.
After some time, Keira’s eyelids fluttered open.
She slowly sat up, scanning the unfamiliar room before her gaze landed on Aldric.
A laugh escaped her lips.
“Really, Aldric?” she said mockingly. “Of all the people I expected to interfere in my business, you were the last.”
She stretched lazily before looking around again.
“So… where exactly is this place?”
Before Aldric could answer, another voice spoke.
“Second brother discovered an unstable spatial node, so we used it as a temporary refuge,” Aldric explained as he stepped forward. “It will remain stable only as long as we don’t fight. If a battle breaks out, the entire space could collapse, leaving us seriously injured… or dead.”
Keira rose to her feet without the slightest concern.
“And what makes you think I care whether I live or die?”
“You should hear us out before deciding to fight.”
She turned toward the speaker.
“Oh… Second Brother is here too.”
Her sharp eyes swept across the room.
“And if anyone else is hiding, you’d better show yourself now.”
“No one is hiding,” Second Brother replied with a faint smile. “Sit down.”
“And why should I listen to you?”
“Because what we’re about to tell you is important.”
Keira folded her arms but remained standing.
Second Brother continued.
“I want to know why you keep trying to meet him after we’ve repeatedly warned you that everything is part of a carefully planned scheme.”
Keira let out another cold laugh.
“What makes you think I care about a family that never realized they had lost their daughter? A family that abandoned me to hell while someone else picked me up and gave me a reason to survive?”
The room fell silent.
Second Brother’s expression hardened.
“What if I told you…” he said quietly, “that the man who rescued you was also the one who put you through that hell?”
Keira’s smile faded ever so slightly.
He took another step forward.
“What if I told you that the girl you killed was never the real Keira Moss… but your replacement?”
Another heavy silence settled over the room.
“And what if I told you,” he finished, “that your parents never knew their real daughter had been taken from them?”
- Writer
