The journey back to the Serkiuln hideout was silent and heavy. Each of them walked as though carrying their specter of failure. The directions they took through Yorktun's abandoned alleys, hidden tunnels, and shattered streets seemed longer than before, as if the city mourned their fractured unity. The distant hum of Wardens patrolling the skies added to the oppressive atmosphere, their searchlights slicing through the darkness like accusing eyes.
When they finally reached the hideout-a crumbling underground bunker hidden beneath the remnants of an old library-Retsuki paused at the entrance. His glowing eyes surveyed the space as a faint current of electricity danced across his form.
Retsuki: "Place changed a bit."
The room was dimly lit, the once-comforting warmth of the hideout now replaced by an eerie stillness. Dust hung in the air, and the walls seemed more cracked than before, as though even the foundation of their sanctuary had begun to give way under the weight of Yorktun's despair. Mirthless, the seasoned veteran of Serkiuln, who often acted as their tactician, was absent. The emptiness gnawed at them all, leaving the team alone with their wounds and thoughts.
Verena dropped her bag without a word, retreating to a corner where her sketchbook lay untouched. The once-vibrant images she used to draw now seemed lifeless, monochrome sketches of a world drained of hope.
Marten sat at the table, his eyes darting to each of them as though searching for threats among his comrades. His jaw clenched tight, and his hands trembled ever so slightly.
Alitha leaned against the wall, watching Retsuki as he adjusted a flickering light bulb with his electric touch. The faint glow from the bulb illuminated her face, revealing exhaustion and something more profound-an unspoken ache she couldn't quite name.
Verena sat hunched over her sketchbook, her pencil shaking in her hand. She flipped to the page where her profile had been stored-a haunting list of traits and calculations. Each line, a cold, clinical dissection of her mind:
"Creative tendency: 94%
Emotionally volatile: 72%
Compliance likelihood: 31%
Directive: Suppress creativity and increase conformity via targeted psychological stimuli."
The words burned into her mind. The Upbringers hadn't just suppressed her art-they had dissected her soul. She slammed the sketchbook shut and buried her face in her hands, her breaths shallow and ragged.
Alitha: "Verena... talk to me. Please."
Verena didn't respond. Her voice, when it finally emerged, was hoarse and distant.
Verena: "I'm nothing to them. Just a number. Just... a broken thing they thought they could fix."
Retsuki sat down across from Alitha, the faint glow of his form casting soft shadows across her face. They didn't speak at first, and the silence between them was thick with unspoken questions. Finally, Alitha broke the stillness.
Alitha: "What Envy showed us... it's still in their heads. In mine, too."
Retsuki's voice was low, almost hesitant.
Retsuki: "It wasn't real. You know that, right?"
She looked at him, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.
Alitha: "Maybe. But it felt real. Every word. Every doubt. I don't even know what's mine anymore."
He reached out, his glowing hand hovering just over hers. She didn't pull away.
Retsuki: "You know what's yours. You know what's real. And no matter what they did, you're still you."
She laughed bitterly, the sound sharp and broken.
Alitha: "And what about you, Retsuki? What's real for you? Are you even allowed to feel what you feel, or is it just something Paragus programmed into you?"
The question hit him like a blow. He looked away, his jaw tightening.
Retsuki: "I don't know. Maybe it is. But right now, I know that I care about you. And that feels real to me."
Their eyes met, and the world's weight fell away for a brief moment. He leaned closer, their foreheads nearly touching, before they both pulled back, the tension unresolved but undeniable.
The moment shattered as Marten stood abruptly, his chair scraping loudly against the floor.
Marten: "Are you two serious right now? After everything? After Envy almost tore us apart, you think it's a good idea to... what? Get closer? Do you even hear yourselves?"
Alitha: "Marten, calm down-"
Marten: "No, I won't calm down! This isn't about feelings! This is war! Every time we let our emotions get in the way, they win. Don't you see that?"
He turned to Retsuki, his eyes blazing with anger.
Marten: "And you. You think you're some savior, don't you? But you're not. You're a weapon, Retsuki. A tool Paragus made to fix what he couldn't. And now you're going to get us all killed because you can't keep your emotions in check!"
Retsuki stood slowly, the air around him humming with static.
Retsuki: "You think I don't know that? Do you think I don't hear it every time I move or speak? I know what I am, Marten. I'm not human. I'm not Paragus's son. I'm not even real to you, am I?"
His voice cracked, the faintest edge of desperation creeping in.
Retsuki: "But that doesn't mean I don't feel. It doesn't mean I don't care. And if you think that makes me weak, fine. I'll be weak. I'll be human. But I won't let that stop me from fighting for this, for all of you."
The room fell silent. Marten clenched his fists but said nothing, his anger slowly simmering into a heavy, resentful quiet.
A faint knock at the door broke the tension. A courier from another Serkiuln cell entered, his face pale but his voice steady.
Courier: "The sabotage worked. The Unitary Code... it's unstable. People are starting to wake up. We need to act now if we want to rally them."
The team exchanged glances, the weight of their internal struggles momentarily set aside.
Retsuki: "Then we act. No more doubts. No more second-guessing. Yorktun needs us, and we're all it has left."
Retsuki stood in the center of the crumbling hideout, his body casting an otherworldly glow in the dim light. The faint hum of his energy filled the air as he turned to face the others, his expression resolute despite the fractures in their trust. He took a deep breath, his voice cutting through the heavy silence.
Retsuki: "Everyone gathers up! EVERYONE HERE! We're going to rally in the streets of Yorktun."
The command hung in the air, carrying both determination and exhaustion. Slowly, Verena, Alitha, and Marten moved closer, their faces lined with doubt, pain, and lingering resentment.
Marten: "Rally the streets? You're insane. Do you even know what that'll cost? The Wardens will be on us in minutes, and the citizens are too terrified to move!"
Verena: "And after everything we've been through, do you think they'll follow us? They'll see us as suicides, not saviors."
Retsuki met their gazes, his eyes sparking faintly with flickers of lightning.
Retsuki: "Maybe they will. Maybe they won't. But we can't sit here, hiding while Yorktun's people suffocate under fear. What's the point of all this-of Serkiuln, of our sacrifices-if we don't give them a reason to fight?"
Alitha, standing slightly apart, spoke softly.
Alitha: "Retsuki... they've lived their whole lives being told they're powerless. How do we convince them that they're not?"
Retsuki's voice was steady, filled with a quiet, unshakable conviction.
Retsuki: "We show them. We don't just fight for them; we fight with them. We remind them of the strength they've always had, the strength the Upbringers tried to erase."
He stepped closer to the group, his form radiant, the faint blue glow almost halo-like in the dimness of the hideout. The cracks in the walls seemed to deepen as shadows stretched, the flickering light casting an eerie, practically divine atmosphere.
Retsuki: "Do you think I don't understand fear? I don't know what it's like to carry doubt at every step. Look at me. I wasn't born. I wasn't raised. I was made-pieced together like a weapon, not a person. I wasn't given faith or hope or a soul to guide me. But I found it anyway. In you. In all of you."
His voice grew louder, each word resonating like thunder.
Retsuki: "The Upbringers have spent decades telling Yorktun's people that they're weak, that they're broken, that their only salvation is obedience. But they've forgotten something. They've forgotten what it means to be human. To love. To grieve. To rise. They've forgotten that hope doesn't die, even when the world tells you it should. And tonight, we remind them."
He raised a hand, electricity sparking between his fingers like a crackling whip of judgment.
Retsuki: "They want us to kneel. But we don't kneel. They want us to stay silent. But we don't stay silent. And when we march into Yorktun's streets tonight, we're not just fighting for the present-we're fighting for every soul who ever dared to dream of a better tomorrow."
The air seemed to grow heavier, charged with divine purpose as Retsuki continued. He raised his arms, and the light from his body cast a shadow behind him on the cracked wall-a figure that looked disturbingly like a crucifix.
Retsuki: "I don't know if a God is watching over us. But if there is, if there's any truth to the faith they tried to erase from this city, then let this be the moment we act as His hands. Let this be the moment we break their chains on our brothers and sisters. Not because we're perfect. Not because we're chosen. But because we are human, and that alone makes us worthy."
Verena clutched her sketchbook tighter, her knuckles white. Tears welled in her eyes as she looked at him, feeling inspired and unnerved by his words. His arms crossed tightly, Marten avoided meeting Retsuki's gaze, though the weight of the speech gnawed at his doubts. Alitha stood frozen; her lips parted as though she were seeing Retsuki not as a being of energy but as something far more significant-or terrifying.
Retsuki lowered his arms, the glow dimming slightly as he approached the group. His voice softened but didn't lose its edge.
Retsuki: "I'm not asking you to follow me. I'm asking you to stand with me. Not because I'm a leader, savior, or messiah. But because we've seen the worst the Upbringers can do. And we're still here. We're still breathing. That's all we need to take the first step."
Alitha nodded, her expression resolute.
Alitha: "I'm with you."
Verena hesitated, her fingers trembling against her sketchbook. Finally, she met Retsuki's glowing eyes.
Verena: "Me too. If we don't fight, who will?"
Marten exhaled sharply, shaking his head.
Marten: "This is insane. But... damn it. You're right."
Retsuki turned toward the door, the faint hum of his energy growing louder.
Retsuki: "Then let's go. Tonight, we remind Yorktun what it means to be free."
The team moved out, their steps heavy with purpose. Behind them, the shadow of Retsuki's crucifix-like form lingered on the wall, a haunting reminder of their burden.