Something In The Way-SYLUS X MC X ZAYNE

Chapter 34 "The Awakening"

The walls of the corridor trembled as I staggered forward, Lina's flames licking at the edges of the walls behind me. Smoke and heat filled the air, making it harder to breathe with every second. My body ached from the relentless battle, my power surging and waning like a volatile tide. I could hear Lina's labored breaths somewhere behind me, the sound of her pursuit relentless.

A sharp blast erupted, and I twisted just in time to see Lina's fiery fist aimed for my chest. I barely managed to deflect it, the flames curling harmlessly around me as I summoned ice from the tips of my fingers. The clash of fire and ice sent steam billowing into the air, obscuring us both.

Lina emerged through the haze, her face streaked with ash and blood, but her eyes still burned with fury. "You don't understand what you are! What you're capable of!" she shouted, flames roaring to life around her.

"And whose fault is that?" I spat back, lunging toward her. My fist connected with her stomach, sending her flying backward through a metal doorway. The frame crumpled with a metallic groan, and I stalked toward her, ready to end this.

Before I could strike again, a powerful force slammed into me, sending me hurtling against the wall. The impact jarred every bone in my body, the world spinning as I slumped to the ground. I looked up, dazed, to see him—Caleb—standing over me, his hand outstretched, his telekinetic power radiating off him like a storm.

"This is why I must stop you!" Caleb bellowed, his voice filled with a strange mixture of anger and desperation. "You're too dangerous, too unstable! You don't even realize the destruction you're capable of!"

I forced myself to my feet, blood pounding in my ears as I glared at him. "You think I've scratched the surface of what I'm capable of?" My voice was venomous, shaking with rage as I raised my hand. "Let me show you what dangerous looks like."

With a flick of my wrist, I sent a surge of raw power hurtling toward him, ice and fire entwined in a chaotic spiral. Caleb deflected it with a telekinetic barrier, but the force of the attack sent him stumbling back, his smirk faltering for the first time.

"You're the CEO of Ever, aren't you?" I demanded, taking a step closer, my voice cutting through the chaos. "Since when, Caleb? Since when have you been a part of this?"

He straightened, his expression hardening as if he had been waiting for this moment. "Since I came of age," he said simply, his voice flat.

The weight of his words struck me like a blow. I knew what he meant. His parents—the founders. One of the casualties of the Catastrophe.

"You've known this whole time," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Your parents... they started this. And you continued it."

His silence was damning.

I took another step forward, the rage boiling inside me, threatening to spill over. "I loved you like a brother. Like family. How could you do this to me? To her?"

Caleb's expression flickered, but he quickly masked it with cold resolve. "It wasn't an easy choice," he admitted, his voice quieter now. "But my duty to the world is more important than you."

The words felt like a knife to the chest, twisting deep. I couldn't breathe. I couldn't think. All I could feel was the raw, unrelenting pain of his betrayal. My vision blurred, and before I knew it, I was moving.

"You chose wrong," I hissed, pouring every ounce of my power into my attack. Fire erupted from my hands, ice and telekinesis following in chaotic harmony as I hurled it all toward him. Caleb tried to defend himself, but my rage was unrelenting, overwhelming. The final blow struck him square in the chest, and he crumpled to the ground, unconscious.