The Light at the End of the Tunnel

The fog, separating her and the only thing she needs (12)

THAT WAS probably all it took for Aiden, since he collapsed.

"What the fuck?" Aru hissed at him. The door probably had enough of everything too, since it fell down.

The people cocked their guns. 8 or more people, she noticed, weren't there. They too, seemed to be hit by the smell and swayed slightly.

'They're coming at me in waves?' She thought. 'That's stupid. I'd be able to hold them off easier.'

She cocked her gun too. "Ready for Vajra, motherfuckers?"

Apparently they didn't want to show their fear by answering, since they stayed quiet.

'Tough crowd'

She shot her special 'electric bullets' that temporarily disabled the enemy.

They fell to the ground, one by one, like dominoes.

"Don't you guys have anything better to do?" Aru said under her breath as they kept coming. "It ruins my main character moment."

She held them off, struggling to keep her ground. The scent was getting to her.

'Is this...poison? But that doesn't make sense...I shouldn't be able to hold it off for this long'

Heck, even the people who entered two minutes ago were collapsing and she wasn't.

Aru pulled a semi-conscious Aiden up, put his arm over her shoulder, and dragged him out.

'I'll ask Mini about it later.'

————

Mini did not know. Aru's jaw dropped. She had to adjust the phone before it slipped out of her fingers.

"Wait, really? Nothing comes to mind?"

"I would say it's because of your great physique, but then and again, poison isn't some random chemical thing. Plus, Aiden was fainting within 4 minutes, according to you. And the people who ambushed you fell too."

"So?"

"It means that even Aiden has a great physique, and he was collapsing within 4 minutes. And if those were assassins or whatever, they probably had great physique and were also collapsing fast. So I don't know."

"Great," Aru muttered under her breath. Then she changed the topic, "How's Aiden getting along, by the way?"

"He'll be fine," Mini said dismissively. "He'll be up and running in a week."

"Nice," Aru nodded.

"I'm surprised you get along with him," Mini mused. "Didn't you hate his guts a couple weeks ago?"

"Well," Aru leaned back on her chair. "I don't know. He's nice I guess."

"Let's talk about your-"

"Thanks for the help, Min," Aru said quickly, practically jumping out of her seat. "I'll be going now."

'I didn't help though?' Mini texted her after she cut the call.

————

The computer's light shined on her face as she started typing 'abandoned hospitals in New York.' Aru sat in the tech room, all alone in the dark.

She drank a sip of her coffee, even though Mini warned her not to at 2 AM.

"The Shalcore Hospital, rebranded as Umbra Basi. It has not been used for 3 years," She read.

'3 years' she thought. 'Now what's the significance?'

But the fog still lingered, separating her from, possibly considering her luck, the key clue that could lead her to the light at the end of the tunnel. She almost stomped her foot in frustration.

The pictures looked eerily similar, almost like she took them. But of course, she didn't. Or did she?

"I don't fucking know, brain, so stop asking me stupid questions like that," Aru muttered.

'It's time to take a brain break,' She thought. 'That usually helps.'

So she let her mind wander elsewhere. Unfortunately, it wandered to a terrible place.

'Didn't you hate his guts a couple weeks ago?' Mini's voice rang in her brain.

"Didn't you?" Aru repeated. Her eyebrows furrowed at the thought. "What changed, then?"

It was only then she realised how hard she was concentrating. She didn't even know, until she relaxed her fingers, that the coffee was dripping all over them and the cup was all crumpled up.

Then she realised how hot the coffee was.

"Shit!" She hissed. She scrambled to get a tissue to clean it up. Then, at last, something in her mind clicked, like a missing puzzle piece. Aru then knew that the coffee didn't even matter anymore, since her concentration had paid off.

"Shit," Aru repeated, quietly. She repeated again and again,"Shit." But not because of the hot drink all over her fingers this time.

She probably looked stupid standing there, all alone in the dark, with only the light of the computer showing pictures of 'Umbra Basi' lighting up the room, ever so slightly.

She probably looked even stupider, considering she was staring at a tissue on her hand that was slowly absorbing hot coffee that spilled over her fingers. Her fingers had turned red at the burn, but one thought overruled all of it.

"Umbra Basi," Aru said, processing everything. "Meaning 'The Shadow's Base' in Latin. And 'Solis', meaning sun in Latin."

The tissue slipped between her fingers, but she paid it no mind. Her chest was heaving, trying to take quicker breaths.

"3 years," Aru thought. "The significance of 3 years. 3 years ago, I was dispatched on my first mission against The Sleeper."

She suddenly didn't think 'The Syamantaka Gem' wasn't the big deal anymore.

Aru let out a breath. "3 years ago, I was brainwashed."

I WAS FREAKING OUT ABOUT THIS CHAPTER SM YOU DONT UNDERSTAND.

I WISH I COULD JUST LIFT THE FOG AND LET ARU SEE EVERYTHING, BUT IT WOULD BE OVER TOO QUICKLY AND NO ONE LIKES THAT. PEOPLE LIKE SLOWBURN, GUYS.

HOW WAS IT??

-Loife xx