That new hardly voice that just rang inside my head suddenly dissipated as if it didn't exist, as though it had been my imagination. Anyways, I don't care about any of that. Like they said, don't get swept up in it, or else something bad might happen. Whoever it was, it might be someone who can help me since they gave me advice, right? That's what my head is telling me.
My head just tilted, as if thinking about what my next step would be. Though my breath is unstable and my heart is pounding like crazy, I need to stay calm and think about how I want to survive this disaster. If not, then it's better to accept death.
My head just spun over and over. I tried to take a look around the lab. Who knows, an idea might pop up in my head like in a cartoon. The more I took a peek, the more terrified I became. I don't know, but these experiments seem to be something about mutants. I don't know what Radiance Lab is planning, but one thing is for sure: this is not some sort of technology.
Just from the appearance, you will automatically know that they're dangerous. Even a deer that has its head cut off can still move. That's absurd. Just what is the government trying to create? Weapons? That is just my assumption, but it still looks dangerous.
Suddenly, I heard something—a sweeping sound above my head. And it's not a soft sweeping sound; it feels like it's someone's shoes. I looked up and kept my mouth shut for a moment so that I could hear where that mysterious sound came from. From my eyes, I might not suspect anything, but my ears could hear it very clearly. That sound came from the air duct placed exactly right above my head.
And as I thought, there's a person in it after that person started to open the access panel of that air duct. I just cannot stop thinking that this person might want to save me from this problem. I hope that's the case. If it's not, I will beg that person with all my heart poured onto the floor until that person agrees.
As that person got out from the air duct, I couldn't believe what I'd witnessed in front of me. Why is Eva here? Does she want to save me? My mind turned crazier with all the possibilities swirling inside my head. Maybe the most dangerous is, she is part of Radiance Lab and involved in these kinds of experiments. If so, I can't believe it, since rumors say she's such a pure soul.
"Louis…" Her voice cracked. She whispered to me from afar—not from fear, but from holding back something. Guilt? Rage? I couldn't tell. Though it was so soft, since there was no noise around me I could still hear her, even if it was a bit faint.
I took a step back, my shoulders pressing against the cold wall. "Why are you here, Eva?" My eyes still couldn't believe that she had easily infiltrated this deep into the lab. Not just that—her movements seemed practiced, like this wasn't her first time. She moved like a dancer, every step smooth and graceful, untouched by any wasted motion.
She pressed her lips together and moved busy as a bee. She walked closer to the table beside me and grabbed an advanced tablet from it. At that time, I just wondered if she really was Eva, because somehow her face looked strangely different to me. Not long after, the threads that had bound me for so long loosened. I don't know how she can infiltrate this secret lab and know how to save me. But I was relieved that she had come all this way just to save me.
"Eva, please answer. Why are you here, and how can you easily infiltrate this room without even being noticed?" I asked, not even realizing I had grabbed her wrist without thinking. She glared at me with her sharp eyes, telling me it's better for me to release her hand. Afraid of those terrifying eyes, I let her hand slip from my grip.
She didn't answer right away. Her eyes scanned the room like a cornered animal, measuring shadows, counting exits. Then she crouched, pulling a small metal case from her jacket. "We don't have time. They're already moving."
"They?" My heartbeat, already a storm, spiked even higher. "You mean Radiance Lab?" My mind started to go blank. I didn't know what to do, not after finding out that this company was about to create something peculiar yet dangerous. If I made any mistakes, I would die for sure. And even then—would I be safe?
Her hands froze for just a second. Not long enough for anyone else to notice… but I saw it. That pause. That tiny slip in her mask. Eva snapped the case open. Inside, a syringe glinted under the flickering light. The liquid inside shimmered faintly — almost alive. "Take this, and you might survive what's coming."
I stared at it, the faint hum of the ventilation above mixing with the echo of that strange voice in my head.
Prepare… for the fate.
My fingers twitched toward the syringe… but I couldn't shake the feeling that once I touched it, my life would split in two — before, and after.
My fingers hovered just an inch from the syringe. "What is this?" I asked.
Eva's eyes locked onto mine, unblinking. "Insurance. And a curse. Both."
"Not exactly a comforting sales pitch," I muttered, but my voice felt weaker than I wanted.
She leaned closer, her breath quick against my ear. "Louis, they've tagged you. You think the serum they gave you was for enhancement? No… it was to make sure they can find you." she said, her expression deadly serious, so close I could feel each word on my skin. I couldn't believe she could wear such a face.
The room seemed to tilt. My throat felt tight, the earlier shortness of breath returning like a vice around my lungs. "And this?" I nodded at the syringe.
She looked at the syringe with her stormy eyes.">stormy eyes. "It'll scramble the signal. For a while." She hesitated, her gaze flicking to the shadows behind her. "But it'll also change you."
Something shifted in the air. The sound from the air duct above returned — not the soft sweep of her entry, but a heavier, deliberate thud, metal bending under weight.
Eva's head jerked upward. "Too late," she whispered.
I glanced at the syringe again. My choice was suddenly cruelly simple: inject myself and risk whatever "change" she meant… or face whoever — whatever — was crawling toward us through the vents.