Metamorphosis

Chapter 25: The Gala Part 2 - The Reveal

Adam's POV

The night was cool, but not unpleasant as Phoenix and I walked silently down a peaceful pathway into the garden. Though the evening was young, the sun had already gone down and the garden was shrouded in darkness. The lights from the mansion did little to light our path. Glancing over to her cautiously, I contemplated using my other power to light the way. 

My fingers twitched with the temptation, but I clenched my fist and my desire. 

A breeze blew through the plants and foliage, and I saw her shiver in the corner of my eye. 

Feeling an urge of protectiveness, I shrugged my suit jacket off of my shoulders and placed it onto hers. She grasped the jacket and held it tightly around herself.

Her warm brown eyes met mine and she blushed, looking at her feet. "Thanks."

"Of course," I said honestly. 

I wanted to ask her what she had been so upset about inside the mansion, but at the same time, I didn't want to be insensitive. I knew what it was like to keep and hold secrets to yourself. 

Sometimes, though I never showed it, I wished that Adala had never even created me. I wished that I hadn't caused all of the issues that had occurred when Phoenix was still Kat.

But at the same time, I was grateful that I had the opportunity to know and experience life with the rest of the agents. It felt like home to me.

I wondered about Phoenix's old life before the metamorphosis. I hadn't known much, but I had known that due to extreme mistreatment from her parents, she had run away to New York, where she had lived for years on her own.

I wondered what life was actually like for her. Did she have friends in Viper? Did she have enemies? Did she have anything to live for?

"Um, I guess you're wondering what all that was in there," Phoenix began quietly.

I was rocked from my thoughts as she sat down on a stone bench in the corner of the garden where I only then realized we had wandered into. "I mean, only if you want to talk about it," I said carefully, mindful of her feelings.

She hesitated, but eventually nodded. "I... I can talk about it. After all, I can trust you, right?" The look in her eyes as she stared up at me made my stomach flutter. 

"Of course you can trust me," I said, impulsively grabbing her hand. "You can always trust me. I'll always be here for you."

Phoenix bit her lip, as though she were thinking long and hard about what she was going to say next, and then she turned to me. "Okay. Okay, okay. But first, you have to take out your earpiece."

"My ear-- why?" I frowned. "They can only hear us if we turn on the microphone."

"I don't want to take any chances. What I'm about to tell you is extremely important to me and extremely private."

"Alright. Fine. I'll take it out."

Phoenix let out a sigh. "Thank you. This means a lot to me."

I nodded. "Clearly. Now, what is it you wanted to tell me?" I asked, taking out the earpiece. 

She took a deep breath. "I... I..." She closed her eyes tightly and I could almost see her closing herself up too.

Quickly, I reached over and touched her shoulder lightly. "It's okay. I won't judge you."

Nodding, she paused for another few moments before taking a breath. "I'm not who you think I am," she said finally.

I froze. "What do you mean?"

"I mean... I... I just mean that not everything you think you know about me is true."

Stealthily, I pressed the microphone icon on the earpiece; Nova and the rest of everyone probably needed to hear this. "I don't understand. Phoenix. Have you... Have you been lying to us?"

"Only a little!" she said quickly, rushing out the words. "Okay, so, the thing is that I'm not actually the metamorphosed version of Kat, I'm really just a replacement. My mother is a doctor who made the mist in the Monestone that turned Kat into that weird thing that metamorphosed and then once she was asleep, my mom used this new teleportation technology to help me change places with Kat, so my mom has Kat and I'm here and I'm supposed to just make sure that you guys don't find her, but then I actually really liked you guys so I decided to actually help, but the thing is if my mother finds out she'll kill me and if you guys found out you would also probably kill me or make me help you find the real Kat and if I did that, my mother would still kill me but now I think that I can trust you guys and I know you'll help me and make sure that my mother doesn't hurt me, right?" She was beginning to hyperventilate as she finished. 

My mouth dropped open, all of the information suddenly flooding into my brain and suddenly I was more glad than ever that I had pressed that tiny little microphone button. 

There was a moment of silence before Phoenix gulped. "You... I... You will help me, right?"

I shot up to my feet. "Oh my-- Good God, Phoenix. Or is that even your real name?" I said quietly, anger seeping into my words. "How could you? You lied to us about everything. I trusted you!"

"Wait, no. No, Adam, no, I'm still me! It's still Phoenix," she cried, her face twisted with fear and realization that she had just exposed herself for nothing.. "Please, you have to understand! Please! Let me explain!"

"You've said plenty enough." I could still hear her screaming after me as I stalked away with the earpiece in my hand.

My hands twitched as I thought about how I had been so... So what? It's not like I had any other choice but to believe her. She fooled us all. She and her mother both.

With shaking hands, I placed the earpiece back in my ear as I walked around a bush, Phoenix finally out of sight.

"ADAM!" Leroy screamed. "ADAM, WHERE ARE YOU?"

"God, Leroy," I growled, wincing. "I'm right here."

Leroy sighed in relief. "You scared all of us there. I thought for sure that traitor had killed you!"

"Leroy, back up," Dian's voice said. "Okay, where is she?"

"I dunno. I left her in the garden." I turned down a pathway and saw the lights from the house come into view.

"You what?"

"She's not going anywhere," I said, emotionless. "I'm pretty sure she's nursing her wounds. If you send in the backup, we can get her out of here."

I entered the mansion again and saw that there was still an hour and a half until the auction. "Nyle, Mira, where are you?"

"Still in our positions," Mira replied. "Over by the Eastern exit."

"I'm coming your way."

"See you in a sec."

I was only a little bit surprised that no one was shocked and startled by the sudden revelation Phoenix--if that was her real name--had rained down upon us. After all, all of us had been betrayed by someone at some point. We were, I believed, all used to it. Hurt, but used to it.

Seeing the couple over by a pair of doors, I slid around the perimeter of the room and ended up next to Nyle. 

They nodded to me silently, already aware of what had happened due to the earpieces. 

"What's the situation?" I asked casually.

"No suspects yet," Nyle said, surveying the area. "But we're staying on watch."

"Good."

Only, I wasn't good. 

Not at all.

________________________

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