CHAPTER 7 — THE NIGHT EVERYTHING CHANGED
1134 Words
“Then listen carefully.”
Ren’s voice was low.
Steady.
But there was something beneath it—
something heavy.
Aiko felt it.
Her heartbeat quickened.
Her fingers curled tightly into her sleeves as she nodded.
“I’m listening.”
The room fell silent.
Even the air seemed to stop moving.
Ren looked at her for a long moment—
as if memorizing her face.
Then—
he began.
---
“That night… wasn’t an attack.”
Aiko’s breath caught.
Her eyes widened slightly.
“…What?”
Ren didn’t look away.
“It was a retrieval.”
The word hit harder than expected.
Cold.
Precise.
Planned.
Aiko shook her head slowly.
“No… no, they said—”
“They lied,” Ren said calmly.
Her chest tightened.
Her mind raced.
Fragments of memory clashed violently inside her.
“Subject confirmed.”
Her mother’s voice.
Fear.
Not fear of wolves—
fear of them.
“…Why?” Aiko whispered.
“Because you weren’t just a child,” Ren replied.
“You were a target.”
Silence.
Aiko’s breath stopped.
Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
“…Target for what?”
Ren’s gaze darkened.
“For something they created.”
Aiko felt the ground beneath her shift.
Everything felt unstable.
Unreal.
“Your mother knew,” he continued. “She knew what you were.”
Aiko’s eyes filled with confusion.
“With what I… am?” she repeated.
Ren didn’t answer immediately.
Instead, he stepped closer—
just enough for his voice to drop lower.
“She was trying to protect you.”
The words hit like a blade.
Aiko’s chest tightened painfully.
Her throat burned.
“…She died protecting me,” Aiko whispered.
Ren’s expression didn’t change.
“Yes.”
The confirmation was quiet.
But it shattered her.
Aiko looked away, her vision blurring.
Her hands trembled.
“…And you?” she asked after a moment. “Where were you in all of this?”
Ren’s jaw tightened.
His eyes flickered—just slightly.
“I wasn’t supposed to be there,” he said.
Aiko frowned.
“Then why were you?”
A pause.
Long.
Heavy.
“…Because I was already one of them.”
The words settled in the room like poison.
Aiko’s breath hitched.
Her gaze snapped back to him.
“You mean…”
Ren nodded once.
“They had already changed me.”
Aiko stared at him.
Trying to imagine it.
Trying to understand.
“You were human…” she whispered.
“And they turned you into… that?”
Ren didn’t react to the word.
Didn’t correct her.
“Yes.”
Silence.
Aiko’s chest rose and fell unevenly.
Her mind struggled to catch up.
“…Then what happened?” she asked quietly.
Ren looked past her.
As if seeing something far away.
Something he couldn’t escape.
“They came for you,” he said. “Your mother fought back.”
Aiko’s fingers tightened.
She remembered that.
The crash.
The shouting.
“…And then?” she pressed.
Ren’s eyes darkened.
“They gave the order to take you alive.”
Aiko’s heart pounded harder.
Alive.
Just like in her memory.
“But something went wrong.”
Aiko leaned forward slightly.
“What do you mean?”
Ren looked at her again.
Directly.
“You changed.”
Her breath stopped.
“What…?”
“That thing inside you,” he continued. “It reacted.”
Aiko’s mind flashed—
Heat.
Burning.
Her senses changing.
Her nails digging into wood.
“…I remember…” she whispered faintly.
Ren nodded.
“They felt it too.”
Aiko swallowed.
“Felt what?”
Ren’s voice dropped.
“Power.”
The word sent a chill down her spine.
Aiko’s chest tightened.
“I didn’t do anything,” she said quickly. “I was just scared—”
“You don’t have to do anything,” Ren interrupted. “That’s the problem.”
Silence.
Heavy.
Unforgiving.
“…Then why didn’t they take me?” Aiko asked.
Ren’s expression shifted.
Something darker surfaced.
“Because I stopped them.”
Aiko froze.
Her eyes widened.
“You… what?”
Ren held her gaze.
“I killed them.”
The words were simple.
But they carried weight.
Blood.
Violence.
Truth.
Aiko’s breath caught in her throat.
Her heart pounded violently.
“You… killed them?” she repeated.
Ren didn’t look away.
“They were going to take you.”
Aiko’s mind spun.
Everything felt unreal.
“You saved me…” she whispered.
Ren said nothing.
Didn’t confirm it.
Didn’t deny it.
The silence itself was the answer.
Aiko’s chest tightened.
“…Then why don’t I remember you?” she asked softly.
Ren’s gaze dropped for the first time.
Just for a second.
But it was enough.
“They made sure you wouldn’t.”
Aiko’s stomach twisted.
“What does that mean?”
Ren looked back at her.
Calm again.
But colder now.
“They erased parts of your memory.”
The words hit like a final blow.
Aiko stepped back slightly.
Her mind refused to accept it.
“No… no, that’s not possible—”
“It is.”
Her breathing became uneven.
Fast.
Shallow.
Everything she knew—
everything she remembered—
wasn’t real.
Or at least—
not complete.
“…Why?” she whispered.
Ren didn’t hesitate this time.
“Because if you remembered the truth…”
He stepped closer.
Close enough that his voice dropped to almost nothing.
“They wouldn’t be able to control you.”
Aiko’s heart slammed against her chest.
Her body went still.
Her thoughts froze.
Control.
That word—
it echoed louder than anything else.
And suddenly—
everything made sense.
The soldiers.
The experiments.
The lies.
She wasn’t just someone who survived.
She was something they lost.
Something they wanted back.
Aiko’s hands slowly clenched into fists.
Her breathing steadied—
just slightly.
“…Then they’re going to come for me again,” she said quietly.
Ren didn’t sugarcoat it.
“Yes.”
Aiko closed her eyes for a second.
Took a breath.
Then opened them again.
And this time—
there was something different in them.
Not fear.
Not confusion.
Something sharper.
Stronger.
“…Then I won’t run,” she said.
Ren watched her carefully.
Measuring.
“You should,” he replied calmly.
Aiko shook her head.
“No.”
Her voice didn’t tremble this time.
“They took everything from me once.”
Her gaze hardened.
“I’m not letting them do it again.”
Silence filled the room.
But it wasn’t weak anymore.
It was building.
Growing.
Becoming something else.
Ren studied her for a long moment.
Then—
very slightly—
he nodded.
“…Good,” he said.
And for the first time—
Aiko realized—
this wasn’t just about surviving anymore.
It was about fighting back.
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