The Silent Code

​"Unlock that digital wallet right now, or I'll break your fingers one by one," Vance whispered coldly behind his tactical mask. ​Arsenio couldn't answer at all. His bruised and crushed throat, smashed by Vance's military boots, felt completely destroyed. Every time he tried to draw a breath, it only tortured him further. Warm blood flowed from his nose and wounds, soaking the cold concrete floor of this old room. ​The floor of Sub-Level 4 of the Old Grid Station felt like ice against his cheek. Around them, giant server racks stood like dead iron giants, collapsed and covered in thick dust. Total darkness enveloped all of Kaelen City tonight due to a complete blackout. There was only the single flashlight on Vance's chest illuminating Arsenio's deathly pale face. ​Vance pulled a thin steel wire wrapped around Arsenio's left index finger. The wire sliced through skin, penetrated flesh, and slowly hit bone. Arsenio screamed loudly, but his voice was choked by the blood clogging his throat. The pain was so agonizing that his vision turned white in an instant. ​"The Company doesn't like to wait, Arsenio," Vance said, increasing the pressure on the wire. A quiet cracking sound echoed from the bone of Arsenio's finger. "You're just a low-class hacker from the slums. What made you think you could steal a ledger containing billions of our transactions?" ​Arsenio clenched his teeth tightly. The pain in his finger radiated all the way to his shoulder, making his entire body tremble violently. He knew very well what was inside the data he had copied a week ago. It wasn't just ordinary transaction records; it was the largest criminal record ever created by the conglomerates of the Kaelen region. ​The data contained the names of bribed officials, underground weapons trade, and even human experimentation in the lower district. Arsenio had copied it because he wanted to buy his freedom from this filthy place. But now, that freedom felt so distant, obscured by the metallic smell of his own blood and the cruelty in Vance's gaze. ​"Please... stop," Arsenio whispered in a broken voice that was barely audible. ​"The passphrase or encryption key, Arsenio," Vance repeated emotionlessly. "I have until midnight. After that, I don't need your brain anymore. I just need your corpse to show up in a sewer." ​The sharp wire was pulled tighter again, slicing through Arsenio's second finger. The sickening, stomach-churning pain nearly made Arsenio pass out. His eyes bulged as he stared up at the dark concrete ceiling. He fumbled at the floor with his other hand, searching for anything he could use to fight back. But there was only dust and thin shards of broken glass. ​Vance knelt down, pressing his heavy knee directly onto Arsenio's chest until the man's ribs groaned. The air was forcibly squeezed out of Arsenio's lungs. He gasped like a fish stranded on dry land. ​"You thought you were so smart?" Vance chuckled softly, a horrific raspy sound inside the empty room. "You're just trash on the floor that forgot how to crawl. My boss gave very clear orders tonight." ​"You won't... get anything if I die," Arsenio said with a weak cough. Fresh blood spluttered from his mouth, lightly speckling Vance's pants. ​Vance spat on the floor right next to Arsenio's ear. He didn't like being talked back to or having his time wasted. His strong, leather-gloved fingers pulled harder on the steel wire. The agonizing crunch of Arsenio's ring finger bone shattering rang out painfully in the silence of the dead server room. ​"You're dead wrong, Arsenio," Vance replied casually. "Our hacking team only needs a few extra hours if you die. This torture is just a quick way for me to go home and sleep early tonight. So don't act important in front of me." ​Arsenio closed his eyes tightly as the unbearable pain slammed into his third finger again. Fresh blood dripped rapidly, soaking the steel wire and Vance's black leather-gloved hand. In his heart, Arsenio screamed, cursing this entire city and the wealthy people living on the top floor. ​The server room felt increasingly cold and suffocating. No police, no heroes, there was only a hitman and a wounded man near death. ​"Tell me your first password now," Vance ordered again, roughly grabbing Arsenio's jaw. ​"That password... is somewhere you can't touch," Arsenio replied weakly. He tried to smile, even though his lips were torn and bloody. ​Vance looked at Arsenio with disgust. He raised his foot and pressed his boot even harder into Arsenio's neck. The pressure shut off Arsenio's airway completely. Arsenio's vision began to darken at the edges, black spots dancing in his eyes. ​Vance's subordinate standing near the broken wooden door finally spoke up. "Captain, the city blackout ends in ten minutes. We have to wrap this up before the station's automated security system turns back on." ​"I know!" Vance snapped without looking back. "This little rat is just trying to buy time. He thinks someone is coming to save him in this remote place." ​Vance leaned down again, bringing his masked face within inches of Arsenio's. The smell of cheap tobacco and sweat was distinct on Vance's breath. Arsenio felt like his chest was about to explode from lack of oxygen. ​"This is your last chance, Arsenio," Vance threatened in a low but piercing voice. "Give me the first eight characters of the ledger's encryption key. Or I'll skin your fingers all the way to your elbow." ​Arsenio writhed faintly on the floor, trying to give the impression that he had completely surrendered. His body trembled violently, not just from the pain but also from the coldness of the concrete floor seeping deep into his bone marrow. He knew he couldn't give these people anything. ​"The first... two numbers... are nine and zero," Arsenio said in a feigned tone of defeat. ​Vance smirked behind his mask. "Now that's more like it. No need to play the hero when your own bones are already crushed like that. Continue with the rest!" ​"But... my neck... I can't breathe," Arsenio said, touching Vance's leg that was pressing on his throat. ​Vance released a bit of the pressure on Arsenio's neck, giving Arsenio a small amount of space to draw in fresh air. Arsenio coughed violently, dragging ragged gulps of oxygen into his burning lungs. With every breath in, a sharp pain stabbed at his bruised chest. ​"Spit out the rest quickly before I lose my patience!" Vance barked. ​"Type... 'KAELEN_CRASH'..." Arsenio murmured softly, closing his eyes as if resigning to his fate. ​Vance's subordinate holding the tactical laptop immediately typed in the phrase. A few seconds later, a sharp red beep sounded loudly in the quiet room. The computer screen displayed an error message in glowing red. ​"He lied, Captain! The key is wrong and it temporarily locked access for fifteen minutes!" his subordinate shouted in panic. ​Vance's face turned beet red behind his mask. His eyes flashed with surging rage. He felt played by a helpless, broken man beneath his feet. ​"You really are asking to die right now, aren't you?" Vance spat, stomping on Arsenio's neck harder than before. ​Arsenio winced softly, but there was a small sense of satisfaction in his heart. He had succeeded in making Vance angry and lose control. The steel wire on his finger was yanked back by Vance in full fury, snapping Arsenio's pinky finger bone until it bent in the wrong direction. ​"Aghhh!" Arsenio's scream broke out. ​Thick blood squirted from his new wound, running down his dirty sleeve. Vance no longer held back. He took the wire and wrapped it around Arsenio's entire left palm, ruthlessly crushing what remained of his bone structure. ​"You thought you were so brave, Arsenio?" Vance said while continuously pulling the wire until it cut through Arsenio's dirty glove. ​Arsenio could only hear the sound of his own bones shattering. The pain was so intense that his whole body instantly went numb. It was as if his nervous system gave up on sending pain signals altogether. The world around him seemed to slow down, there was only darkness, the smell of blood, and the clanking of iron. ​"Enough, Vance. Let's just shoot his head and take his hard drive back to headquarters," Vance's subordinate called out from behind the door. "Our time is up." ​Vance let out a harsh sigh, throwing the end of the steel wire, now coated in thick blood, onto the floor. He stood up straight, looking down at Arsenio's body lying helpless like a pile of dirty clothes dumped in the corner of the room. ​"You're right," Vance said coldly to his subordinate. "This torture is useless on a fool who wants to die." ​Vance drew a suppressed pistol from his waist. The sound of the gun being c****d rang out clearly in the quiet room. The cold metal of the weapon's muzzle was now pressed directly against Arsenio's forehead, which was drenched in cold sweat and blood. Arsenio could feel the chill from the tip of the gun. ​"Say your last words before leaving this world, Arsenio," Vance said coldly, resting his index finger on the trigger.