Lexicon I

Dark Revelation

The fluorescent lights of the hospital flickered faintly overhead, casting a pale, sterile glow over the room. Kinan stood by the window, her arms crossed tightly over her chest, her mind racing as she stared out into the darkened parking lot below. She hadn't slept. Neither had Olav. The weight of what had happened at that abandoned building hung heavy in the air between them.

Sasha was still unconscious, lying on the bed in the corner of the room, her face pale and expressionless. Her body showed no signs of injury—no wounds, no bruises—despite the blood-drenched scene they had found her in. But something had happened to her. Something Kinan couldn't explain.

Olav sat in the chair by the door, his sniper's eyes trained on Sasha, as if waiting for something—anything—to happen. His fingers drummed lightly on the armrest, his jaw tight with tension.

"She should be dead," Olav said quietly, breaking the silence that had settled between them.

Kinan nodded, her brow furrowed in thought. "I know. There was too much blood. But it wasn't hers."

Olav glanced at her, his expression unreadable. "So whose was it?"

Kinan had no answer. The memory of the blood-soaked room played over and over in her mind, the thick, dark pools that had surrounded Sasha like a macabre ritual. There had been no bodies. No signs of a struggle. Just blood. It didn't make sense.

She turned back to look at Sasha, her eyes narrowing. "We need to figure out what happened to her."

As if on cue, a soft, almost imperceptible movement came from the bed. Kinan's heart skipped a beat as she saw Sasha's fingers twitch, her eyes slowly fluttering open. For a moment, there was nothing but silence—an unsettling, suffocating silence.

Then, in an instant, Sasha's eyes snapped open, wide and bloodshot, her body jerking upright as if pulled by invisible strings. The sudden movement sent a jolt of alarm through Kinan, but before she could react, Sasha's hand shot out, grabbing Olav by the throat.

Olav's eyes widened in shock as Sasha's grip tightened, her slender fingers digging into his skin with unnatural strength. He tried to pry her hand away, but it was no use—she was stronger than she should have been, far stronger.

"Sasha, stop!" Kinan shouted, rushing forward.

But Sasha didn't stop. Her red eyes locked onto Olav, and for a moment, Kinan saw something in them that sent a chill down her spine. It wasn't anger, or fear, or even pain. It was... emptiness.

"Kinan..." Olav gasped, his voice strained.

Kinan's heart pounded in her chest as she grabbed Sasha's arm, trying to pull her off Olav. "Sasha, stop!"

For a moment, it felt like nothing would work—that Sasha was completely beyond reach. But then, as suddenly as it had started, Sasha's grip loosened. She blinked, her expression shifting from cold detachment to confusion, and finally, to something resembling recognition.

Her hand dropped away from Olav's throat, and she stared at him, wide-eyed, as if realizing for the first time what she had done.

"I..." Sasha's voice was a hoarse whisper, her breathing shallow. "I didn't mean to..."

Olav slumped back into the chair, coughing, his hand rubbing his bruised neck. Kinan stood between them, her body tense, every instinct on high alert.

"What the hell is going on?" Kinan demanded, her voice sharp. "Sasha, what happened back there? What did you do?"

Sasha's eyes darted between Kinan and Olav, her hands trembling as she looked down at them. Her voice was barely audible when she finally spoke. "I... don't know. I don't remember."

Kinan's anger flared. "That's not good enough. We found you tied to a chair in a room full of blood, and now you're acting like this? You need to tell us what's going on."

Sasha shook her head, her eyes wide with fear. "I swear, I don't remember. I don't know how I got there. I don't know whose blood that was."

Kinan exchanged a glance with Olav. She could tell that he didn't trust Sasha's explanation any more than she did. Something was wrong—terribly wrong—and Sasha was at the center of it.

Before Kinan could press further, the room was suddenly plunged into chaos. The window behind her shattered as a bullet whizzed through the air, embedding itself in the wall inches from Olav's head.

"Down!" Kinan shouted, diving to the floor, her instincts kicking in. She rolled to her side, her hand instinctively reaching for her sidearm, but it wasn't there. They were in a hospital, unarmed, vulnerable.

Olav moved quickly, flipping the chair for cover and grabbing the bedside table, his body pressing against it as another shot rang out, this one missing Kinan by mere inches.

Sasha remained eerily still, sitting upright on the bed, her expression blank.

Kinan's heart raced as she scrambled for cover, her mind working furiously to calculate their next move. Someone had found them—someone dangerous—and they were pinned down.

"Who the hell is shooting at us?" Olav growled, his voice barely audible over the sound of shattering glass.

Kinan didn't have time to answer. She scanned the room, looking for a way out. The hospital door was the only exit, but it was a straight shot to the hallway—too exposed. The windows were no longer an option, and their assailant had a clear line of fire.

"We need to get out of here," Kinan said, her mind racing.

Before she could move, the door burst open, and a small, sleek military robot rolled into the room, its mechanical arms unfolding as it fired a rapid barrage of bullets. Kinan's heart leapt into her throat as she dove for cover, feeling the sharp bite of bullets ricocheting off the walls around her.

Olav reacted instantly, his sniper reflexes taking over as he grabbed a nearby IV stand and hurled it toward the robot, knocking it off balance. The machine tumbled to the floor, its wheels spinning uselessly as it tried to right itself.

Kinan didn't waste a second. She leapt to her feet, grabbed the chair, and smashed it down onto the robot, silencing it for good.

Panting, she looked back at Olav, who was already pulling Sasha off the bed. "We need to move, now!"

Kinan helped Sasha to her feet, her mind spinning with questions. Who was attacking them? How had they been found so quickly?

They bolted for the door, racing down the hospital hallway as more bullets tore through the walls around them. The sound of sirens and shouts filled the air as the hospital staff and patients scrambled for safety.

They burst through the emergency exit, running into the cold night air. The parking lot was empty, save for a few abandoned cars. Kinan could hear the distant sound of helicopters in the distance—backup was coming, but they wouldn't make it in time.

Kinan glanced around, her mind working furiously. "We need to get to the safehouse."

Olav nodded, his face set in grim determination. Sasha, still weak and confused, stumbled slightly but kept pace with them as they ran across the parking lot.

As they reached the far side of the lot, Kinan heard the unmistakable sound of an engine roaring to life. A sleek black SUV sped toward them, its headlights blinding in the darkness. Kinan's heart pounded as she grabbed Sasha and pulled her to the ground, just as the SUV came screeching to a halt in front of them.

The door swung open, and Kinan's hand instinctively moved to her side, but before she could react, a familiar voice called out.

"Get in!"

Kinan's heart skipped a beat as she recognized the voice. Captain Price.

She didn't hesitate. They piled into the SUV, and Price hit the gas, the tires screeching as they sped away from the hospital.

In the back seat, Kinan looked at Sasha, her mind still reeling from what had just happened. Something was deeply wrong with her. The blood, the attack—none of it made sense. But Kinan knew one thing for sure: this was only the beginning.