Genesis

Chapter 47

Okay, it has been ages since I've posted here. But, never fear! Genesis is still an ongoing work and I plan to keep writing it, no matter how long the gaps are between updates.

I hope you enjoy this chapter! It kinda has a massive cliffhanger at the end, so sorry (not sorry) about that... :)

________________________________________________________________________________

"I'm not afraid of you."

These are the first words that exit my mouth. I have to say them, because I'm still trying to convince myself that it's true.

"Isn't that right? Oh, Kaze, you always have been one for valiant words," says the One emotionlessly. He doesn't smirk, sneer, or otherwise show any kind of satisfaction. Something is off.

As my vision gets clearer, I drink in my surroundings. I'm in a solid concrete room, most likely underground. There are bright lights on the ceiling. The whole room smells awful, like a mixture of urine and sweat. Behind the One is an area of the room that is shrouded in darkness. The One himself is pacing directly in front of me.

"Where are my friends?" I ask boldly, cutting to the chase. I don't want to play games with the One. Knowing the snake he is, I'll end up getting his fangs in my neck.

The One gives a whispering, mirthless laugh.

"They're alive," he says, baring a venomous grin . "But, we're not here to discuss them. We're here to discuss you."

"And what about me is so interesting that you've gone through this whole pathetic rigmarole to bring me here?" I say, injecting as much fire into my words as I possibly can. The One's smile remains unchanging.

"Let's see," says the One mockingly. "Getting locked out of the dome was entertaining. Oh, and when you met those old saps from the rebellion? Classic. Then, there was the time when you set up your scheme to go visit your mother, who is very much alive, in the forest. And when your idiotic friend accepted the earpieces from one of my agents? Absolutely priceless. Need I continue?"

I freeze, carefully recounting all of my past conversations with the One. There's no way he could know about my meeting with the rebellion. There's no way he could know about my meeting with my mother.

The One senses my shock, his eyes shining like a cobra's. He knows exactly what he's doing to me. I can't let my emotions show. I can't play this game with him, because he is its grandmaster, and I will most certainly lose.

"Interesting," I say, articulating the syllables. "Now, all this talk about my accomplishments is boring me. Let's discuss the matter of my friends. Or has your minuscule brain already forgotten that?"

I internally wince as soon as the aggressive words slip off my tongue. Come on, Kaze! Be cold and indifferent. Be cold and indifferent.

The One narrows his eyes slightly, but is otherwise unaffected.

"A childish remark," he says, "will do you nothing but harm, Kaze Alio. I advise you think again before spitting your insults in my direction."

His simmering gaze rests on me for another second before he abruptly turns and walks straight into the darkness behind him. Lights click on above him as he steps, illuminating the scene before my eyes.

First, on the right side of the room, a steel table comes into view. A tray of operating tools resides beside it, and a harsh chill runs up my spine. Something gives me the feeling that those tools aren't going to be used for your run-of-the-mill operation.

A cramped-looking prison cell resides on the other side of the room. Steel bars with serrated edges rigidly mark the edge of the cell, the floor is covered in some sort of bodily fluid and, slumped against each other in the center of it all, are Drayk and Ximon.

Both of them look horrible. Ximon is sporting a black, swollen-shut eye, Drayk's braids are caked in sweat and blood, and the two of them are both seeping with the red abomination. Their eyes are closed, and they look absolutely defeated.

I stare at my brother and my mentor in their cell, emotions rushing through me like a torrent. Surprise, anger, helplessness, and the urge to be sick mingle together inside of me, and I fight to keep my face as expressionless as possible. I must betray something, however, as I can see the One smirking in triumph out of the corner of my eye.

"That's right, Kaze. This is what has become of your friends," says the One maliciously. He's relishing seeing me like this. He's basking in the atrocity of what he's done to Drayk and Ximon. He's going to lazily stand there and talk to me while they might be dying in their cell.

This man truly is a monster.

"And do you know who has done this to them?" the One continues. I open my mouth to answer, but the One swiftly cuts me off.

"You. You did this to them, Kaze," he says.

Anger explodes inside of me, turning my vision red. I clench my teeth so hard that they might break and gouge my palms with my nails because of how tightly I ball my fists. I start to visibly shake; the chair I'm sitting in rattles as I vibrate, rage thrumming through my veins. The skin on my ankle becomes hyper-aware of the X-acto knife still residing in my sock.

"How," I state, my voice dangerously quiet. The single word seems to hang in the air like a firecracker. All it will take is one match, and the whole room will go down in flames.

"You're always meddling, do you know that? Always stretching the rules, testing the limits, seeing if you'll get caught. I've had my eye on you ever since you spent the night outside, and I should've been watching you sooner, considering I had to throw your vile mother out of my dome. Every move you took, I saw. Every secret you breathed to your friends, I knew. And, eventually, you got too comfortable and you've ended up here," says the One, his eyes glinting in manic satisfaction.

He saw my every move? He knew my every secret? How?

My brain rushes through all of the past conversations, all the past plan-making, all the past illegal discussions that my friends and I have had. I recount the places, the people, and the objects involved. Slowly, a pattern emerges, and it dawns on me.

Where had I always been when we'd been making our most confidential plans? What had always been there that the One himself had given to me?

Harvel's living room. The One's achievement poster. It was bugged.