Oops! This image does not follow our content guidelines. To continue publishing, please remove it or upload a different image.
━━━━┅━━━┅━━━━
➤ 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐐𝐔𝐈𝐄𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐃 𝐃𝐀𝐑𝐊 𝐀𝐓𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐇𝐄𝐑𝐄 𝐖𝐀𝐒 𝐁𝐎𝐓𝐇 𝐀 familiar comfort and a persistent dread for Kara. It was always there, lurking behind her eyelids every time she closed them, the weight of it pressing down like a memory she could never quite escape.
She had been exposed to this place, to these situations, for so long now that it no longer shocked her—but that didn't mean it didn't haunt her.
She took a slow, measured breath, trying to keep her emotions in check as they welled up inside her. Calm.
She had to remain calm, even though her heart raced.
"Again!" Doctor Moore's voice rang out from behind the reinforced glass, her tone sharp and commanding.
Kara looked over her shoulder at the woman, who stood with a clipboard in hand, her posture rigid, her eyes critical.
Moore's fiery red hair, perfectly styled, seemed at odds with the coldness in her expression.
Kara clenched her fists, returning her gaze to the charred wooden target. She needed to focus, to push the thought of those piercing eyes on the other side of the glass away.
Don't think about them. Don't think about the guards.
She inhaled deeply, exhaled slowly, and closed her eyes, willing the tension to drain from her body.
When she opened them again, her irises were glowing a fierce, unnatural red. She felt the familiar surge of energy rise within her, and then—two beams of concentrated heat shot out, the intensity fogging up the glass walls of the room.
She focused the beams on the already scorched wood, and it sizzled under the onslaught, smoke curling into the air.
The acrid smell of burning filled the small chamber, clawing at her throat and stinging her nostrils, but Kara barely flinched.
She had gotten used to it, or at least told herself she had.
The physical discomfort didn't bother her as much anymore, though it still lingered like an old wound. But even as she practiced, pushing herself day after day, there was always a price. Her face began to feel the strain—the searing heat from her own power building up, burning her eyes and her skin with every second that passed.
Her body screamed for her to stop. She knew she was pushing herself too far, her energy reserves dwindling rapidly. Her vision blurred for a moment, her eyes stinging painfully. But stopping wasn't an option—not here, not under Doctor Moore's watchful gaze. She couldn't afford to be seen as defiant.
