Soft Spot → Sylus

A Missing Piece

Your eyes are fixated on the man floating in midair, glancing down at you with a mix of emotions you can barely fathom with how confused you are currently. "Caleb?" you deliberately call out.

A rattling sound catches your attention. While turning your head, you feel Sylus's firm grip pulling you away alongside him, just as a desk flies past from the other end of the room. Sylus has his left arm around your shoulders in a protective stance, glaring sharply at Caleb with a hatred you've never seen him shown.

With Sylus distracted, the red mist surrounding his body dissipated. Caleb descended carefully from mid air, using his telekinetic ability to support his graceful fall. "It's been awhile," the smile he has on his face reminded you of your last memory with him — the conversation you had before the explosion on Bloomshore happened.

"You're working for Ever Science?" your voice betrays your composed stance as it wavers. "But, the explosion? Does that mean grandma is still alive too?"

Caleb breathed a heavy sigh, "As much as I hate to say it, no," his voice sounds genuinely disappointed. "And, I think it's unnecessary to explain—"

"Unnecessary?!" your voice cracks as you yell back at him. "I had to bear the regret this whole year, and you're telling me its unnecessary?!" your body begins to shake, anger and confusion washing over you like a tidal wave.

"Some things are better left untold," Caleb continues, the disappointment gone from his voice. Instead, he walks towards the desk in which he threw from across the room, leaning against it, as if he's the one that needed most support.

"You owe her an explanation," Sylus speaks up, not even letting his guard down by a second.

All eyes are on Caleb as he toys around with a protocore inside of a transparent vial. He lifts his index finger, letting the vial float in front of his face. "The explosion was intentional," he begins. "Grandma would've been detained and Ever would lose its credibility, Linkon would lose one of its biggest medical corporate," he flicks his finger, the vial floating towards a shelf full of other protocore.

"You talk too much," Sylus flicks his wrist, red mist shooting forward at Caleb. Ducking under the closure of the desk, Caleb simply chuckles.

"And, you know full well that you're not capable of becoming a father, let alone a husband, yet you let your feelings get in the way," Caleb pokes his head out from underneath the table.

Red mist flutters around Caleb, just nearly scratching him as he jumps to the side, evading the attack. "I'm a stranger that became family, not family that became a traitor," his tone is fueled with hatred as his attacks grow sloppy, only ever scratching Caleb. It seems that Sylus is frustrated.

"You and her would've been wanted by Linkon's authorities," Caleb exclaims as he raises his right arm, his Evol pulling at a loose iron sheet from the ceiling, throwing it down at a vertical position to shield himself, obscuring Sylus's vision to aim his attacks.

"You're just another one of Ever's puppets; brainwashed and fucked in the head," Sylus gently pushes you back. The red mist effortlessly tears through the middle of the iron sheet, revealing a strand of Caleb's hair as he rolls away to safety.

Caleb's chuckle resonates through the ruined laboratory. "I'll be the one to object to the priest during your wedding."

"I'd be surprised if you lived to see that day," Sylus snarks.

During their ever so casual banter, you bring Theia to safety, hiding behind a steel counter. You uncover the sheet veil covering the little girl's face, revealing her pale, albeit slightly dirty, face. Her eyes are shut close, but her breath is steady. With a relieved smile, you caress Theia's soft cheek with your index. "Hey, I missed you," but even as you listen to her soft breaths, you feel something is off.