Chapter 14: The Cage of Blood
1205 Words
Darkness came first.
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Not the kind you see.
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The kind you feel.
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Heavy.
Endless.
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Elian’s mind floated in it—
Drifting between fragments.
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Mike’s face.
Marcus falling.
Vesper’s hand.
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Then—
Pain.
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It hit all at once.
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His body snapped awake with a sharp breath.
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Cold air burned his lungs.
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Elian coughed, his body jerking as sensation flooded back.
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Everything hurt.
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Slowly—
He opened his eyes.
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Stone.
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Dark.
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A chamber.
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No windows.
No doors he could see.
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Just walls—
Covered in faint, shifting symbols.
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The Architect.
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He tried to move—
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Chains tightened instantly.
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Not metal.
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Something else.
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Alive.
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They wrapped around his wrists, his chest, his legs—
Restricting not just movement—
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But power.
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Elian’s jaw clenched.
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“…Figures,” he muttered.
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“Awake already?”
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The voice slid through the room like silk.
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Elian didn’t look surprised.
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He turned his head slightly.
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Vesper stood at the edge of the chamber.
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Perfect.
Untouched.
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Like none of it had cost her anything.
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“You hit hard,” Elian said.
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Vesper smiled faintly.
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“You’re still alive,” she replied.
“That should tell you something.”
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Elian tested the chains again.
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Nothing.
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“Yeah,” he said.
“You didn’t want me dead.”
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Vesper stepped closer.
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“Not yet.”
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Silence settled.
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Heavy.
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Elian’s eyes hardened.
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“Where’s Mike?”
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Vesper tilted her head.
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“Interesting,” she said. “That’s your first question?”
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“He’s not your experiment,” Elian snapped.
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Vesper’s smile didn’t fade.
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“No,” she said softly.
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“He’s your future.”
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That landed.
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Elian went still.
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“You’re lying.”
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“Am I?”
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Vesper stepped closer.
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The symbols on the walls reacted.
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Pulsing.
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“You saw him,” she continued. “You felt it.”
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A pause.
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“The power.”
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Elian’s voice dropped.
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“That wasn’t power.”
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“That was control.”
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Vesper’s eyes gleamed.
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“Exactly.”
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Silence.
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“Elian…” she said quietly.
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“You think what you have is special because it’s rare.”
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She circled him slowly.
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“But rarity doesn’t mean perfection.”
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Elian tracked her movement.
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“It means unstable,” she continued.
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“Unpredictable.”
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“Dangerous.”
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She stopped in front of him.
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“And I don’t build unstable things.”
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Elian smirked faintly.
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“You’re building monsters.”
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Vesper didn’t deny it.
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“I’m building evolution.”
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The word echoed.
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Cold.
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Calculated.
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“Elian, your mother was the last success,” Vesper said.
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That froze him.
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“She wasn’t supposed to exist,” Vesper continued. “A vampire… capable of carrying life.”
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His heart pounded.
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“You killed her.”
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Vesper’s expression didn’t change.
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“She betrayed the Order.”
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“She fell in love with a human,” Elian said through clenched teeth.
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“And she had me.”
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Silence.
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Vesper studied him.
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“Do you know what that made you?” she asked.
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Elian didn’t answer.
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“A variable,” she said.
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“Something we couldn’t predict.”
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Her voice lowered.
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“So we corrected the mistake.”
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Elian’s entire body tensed.
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“You mean you hunted her.”
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“Yes.”
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The word was calm.
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Too calm.
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“She hid you,” Vesper continued. “And the book.”
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“The Codex,” Elian said.
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Vesper nodded.
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“For years.”
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A pause.
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“But nothing stays hidden forever.”
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Elian’s eyes burned.
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“You failed.”
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Vesper smiled again.
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“No,” she said.
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“I adapted.”
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The walls pulsed brighter.
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“The Architect,” she said, almost reverently.
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“It learns.”
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“It evolves.”
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“It fixes what nature gets wrong.”
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Elian’s voice hardened.
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“And Mike is your next ‘fix’?”
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Vesper turned slightly.
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As if on cue—
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A section of the wall shifted.
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Opening.
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And he saw him.
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Mike.
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Standing.
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Barely human.
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His skin pale—veins dark and spreading.
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Eyes hollow.
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His body held upright by thin, pulsing threads connected to his spine.
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Like a puppet.
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Elian’s breath caught.
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“…Mike.”
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No response.
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Vesper stepped beside him.
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“He’s closer than any subject before him,” she said.
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“Stronger than you were at this stage.”
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Elian’s fists clenched against the chains.
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“He’s dying.”
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Vesper shook her head.
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“He’s becoming.”
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Mike twitched.
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His head turned slightly.
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Just enough—
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For his eyes to meet Elian’s.
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Nothing there.
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Empty.
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Broken.
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Controlled.
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Elian’s voice dropped.
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“I’m going to kill you.”
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Vesper didn’t react.
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“Not yet,” she said.
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She turned back to him.
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“But you will try.”
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A pause.
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“And when you fail…”
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Her voice softened.
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“You’ll understand.”
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Elian laughed bitterly.
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“You think I’m going to become like him?”
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Vesper leaned closer.
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“I think,” she whispered—
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“You already are.”
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Silence.
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Heavy.
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Then—
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She stepped back.
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The wall closed.
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Mike disappeared.
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“You’ll stay here,” Vesper said.
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“Until the Architect finishes learning from you.”
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Elian’s eyes narrowed.
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“I’m not helping you.”
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Vesper smiled.
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“You don’t have a choice.”
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She turned to leave.
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Then paused.
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“Oh,” she added.
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“Your friends are still alive.”
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That hit.
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Hard.
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“For now.”
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And then—
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She was gone.
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The chamber sealed.
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Darkness crept back in.
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The symbols pulsed.
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Watching.
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Learning.
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Elian exhaled slowly.
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Pain.
Loss.
Rage.
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All still there.
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But something else too.
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Control.
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He closed his eyes.
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Centered himself.
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*Think.*
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He wasn’t breaking.
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Not here.
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Not like this.
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His fingers curled slightly against the restraints.
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Testing.
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Learning.
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Adapting.
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Just like the Architect.
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But different.
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Because he still had something it didn’t.
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A reason.
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“…I’m coming back for you,” he whispered.
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Whether to Mike—
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Or himself—
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Even he didn’t know.
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End of Chapter 14
- Writer
