Cloak and Dagger

CHAPTER 14: LES JOUEURS

"Wake up."

The words cut through the darkness, sharp and urgent, yanking Kia from the depths of her restless dreams. Her eyes fluttered open, and for a moment, all she saw was a blur of dim light and shadows. Her breath came in ragged gasps, her chest tightening as she struggled to catch her breath as if the room itself pressed down on her. She blinked rapidly, her surroundings sharpening into focus—a large, cold room with walls as bleak and unyielding as stone.

Around her lay the other participants. All thirty of them. Each person was in various stages of awakening, some stirring groggily, others sitting upright, their faces filled with confusion and fear. The murmur of voices, low and anxious, filled the air, blending with the ominous silence that clung to the room. Kia's gaze darted across the sea of faces, a flicker of recognition here and there. But then it hit her—she didn't know these people. Not really. She barely knew why she was here.

Her heart pounded as fragments of memory began to slip back. She'd been brought here... but how? And why? She couldn't remember signing up for anything like this. Slowly, as her mind cleared, a realization slithered into her consciousness, icy and unrelenting. This was no ordinary room, no ordinary gathering. She was in the game. The game had already begun.

Kia's breath hitched, and she could feel her pulse racing. She took a shaky step backward, her mind reeling. The uneasy quiet around her only deepened the sense of dread that crept into her veins, filling her with fear so profound it stole the air from her lungs. She was trapped here, in a room full of strangers, each of them caught in this twisted game where survival was not guaranteed.

"Are you alright?" Ebony's voice was soft, yet laced with unmistakable concern as she looked down at Kia, worry etched into every line of her face. Her brows knitted together as she placed a gentle hand on Kia's shoulder, steadying her.

Kia didn't respond immediately. Instead, she wrapped her arms tightly around Ebony, as if grounding herself in the familiar warmth of her friend. She buried her face into Ebony's shoulder, letting the tension in her body dissolve for just a second. Her thoughts whirled chaotically, trying to piece together the fragments of confusion and dread in her mind. The game had started, she knew that much. But something was wrong.

As she took a deep breath, she lifted her head to look around the room again, her gaze scanning the others—thirty strangers, all of them supposedly players like herself. Yet, there was something off. These people didn't have the look of contestants in a mere game; their faces held something darker, and heavier. A grim determination, or perhaps a concealed fear, unlike anything she'd expected. Some wore expressions of steely resolve, others shifted uneasily, casting wary glances around the room, sizing each other up.

"They're... different," Kia whispered, almost to herself, the words slipping out as her mind churned. "They're not... they're not like us."

Ebony looked down at her, puzzled, but Kia couldn't explain. How could she put into words the feeling that gnawed at her? Despite them all being participants, some of them felt like they were here for something else, something more sinister. It was like a game, yes, but a game where the stakes were beyond anything she could understand.

And as she held onto Ebony, Kia felt a tremor of fear ripple through her.

"What the fuck, man?!" a man's furious shout pierced the tense silence, drawing every eye in the room. Kia's attention snapped to him, her heartbeat quickening as she took in the scene. The man stood rigid, fists clenched at his sides, his gaze locked on another participant—an unshaven, green-haired guy smirking lazily, flanked by two other men who saw this as their chance to stir up trouble.

"The fuck you gonna do?" the green-haired guy sneered, his voice dripping with mockery. "Cry to your mom?"

His taunt drew laughter from his allies, their smirks only fueling the man's anger. The air around them seemed to vibrate with tension as the group watched, some with apprehension, others with dark fascination, no doubt wondering if this was mere bravado or if it was about to get worse.