As the lights went down, I couldn't help but sigh.
So, they were waiting for me to turn on the laptop.
"Who found us?" asked Michelle.
"I don't know… yet. But they're probably coming for us. My best guess is that the council is tracking us."
"What… what do we do?" asked Carly.
I'll have to use my powers again.
[Don't, little Noah!]
Sis?
[In your current condition, using Chain will kill you!]
I don't have another choice. It's that or we die.
I tried to stand, but my legs didn't respond.
"Damn!"
"Mr. Ivan!"
"You two, run away with my si— with my cat. Go to where you found me—"
"No!" shouted Carly.
"Do as I say!"
"I won't leave you—"
THUMP
In a second, Carly's eyes turned white as she collapsed to the ground.Shocked, I turned to face the person behind her.
"I am sorry, my lady," said a small girl with blonde hair and green eyes.
"How long will it take you to regain control of the power system?" she asked.Her voice was cold, her eyes sharp.
"Who are you?" I asked.
"How long?"
"… One hour…" I replied.
"Good. I'll deal with the men at the front. You have one hour."
The maid turned and drew two blades hidden inside her legs.
"And one more thing."
She turned back and looked at me.
"If something happens to my lady… I'll make sure you regret being born," she said, leaving the room.
..........................
Outside Carly's residence, a group of soldiers had gathered.
"Okay, everyone, remember your positions. We must secure the target—alive. Those were Lady Luisa's orders. Don't fuck it up. Got it?" said the squad leader.
"Yes sir!"
"Good. Lady Maria has already disabled all external communications, so we don't need to worry about outside interference. Inside the mansion, there's only a maid, a student, and our target. Do not—I repeat—do not hurt the student."
"Yes sir!"
"Let's move. Alpha team, with me to the back door. Beta team, go to the front. Delta, take the left side. Go!"
Everyone dispersed. Beta team, consisting of three members, entered through the front door.
"This is Beta 1. Can everyone hear me?"
"Beta 2 here. Loud and clear."
"Beta 3. Everything's good."
"Switch to night vision."
"Keep it quiet. We don't want to alert the targets," added Beta 1.
"Roger."
The three advanced through the living room until they reached a split staircase.
"One goes left, one goes right."
"Beta 3, go with 2 to the left. I'll take the right," said Beta 1.
"Got it."
Beta 1 climbed the stairs and entered a dark hallway. At the end, he found a large rectangular table.
"This looks like the dining room. Beta 2, Beta 3, report your status."
No answer.
"Beta 2? Beta 3? Everything okay?"
Again, silence.
"What the hell…?"
"They won't answer."
Beta 1 spun around, startled by the sudden voice.
"WHO'S THERE!?"
Something hit the floor and rolled toward him. He pointed his flashlight at it.
It was a round object.
"AHH!" he screamed.
It was Beta 2's head—eyes wide open, frozen in terror.Beta 1 immediately drew his gun and fired into the darkness.
*BAM* *BAM*
Through the green hue of his night vision, he couldn't see anything.
He looked around desperately and grabbed his radio.
"Everyone! This is Beta 1—we have an emergency!"
"Delta 1 here."
"Alpha 1 here. What the hell is going on, Beta 1?"
"We have an intruder! I repeat, we have an—"
"AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
Beta 1's scream echoed through the transmission.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*
The sound of gunfire echoed on the other end.
"HELP! HELPPPP! UGHAAHHHHHHH!"
Then, silence.
Everyone stood frozen, waiting for a response.
Haaaaa...
A slow, eerie breathing could be heard through the radio.
"Who are you?" Alpha 1 finally asked.
Heh... heh... heh...
A chilling laugh came through—then, a crunch.
The radio went silent, crushed.The spine of every soldier went cold.