His prison cell wasn't dingy or dark, it was sterilized and silver. White fluorescent lights lined the edges of his little box, his own little world where he hung from silver chains. There were no doors, no windows, no openings, no escape. It was agonizing, the way they made him wait here, and he knew exactly what they were doing. He was too risky to let roam freely, and his death would’ve made a martyr of him, so they made him wait here. Left to stare at blankness, to listen to silence, to stay completely still. No food, no drink, no air, no contact besides the silent jailor who popped in from time to time to feed him little drops of blood. They wanted to break him, and it was working.

Ethereal streams of energy seemed to leak out from the space before him, swirling and gathering into a vaguely humanoid figure. He thought it was his jailor, but it was joined by another, and when they truly manifested in the physical world they wore a uniform unfamiliar to him. The usual sleek black armor was white with orange outlines, and the helmets were more like masks, though they lacked any kind of visor or openings to see through. In their place were symbols: one agent had an arrow pointing upward, and the other bore the symbol of the sun, they were male and female respectively.

The Sun approached him first. It was unusual, her voice-unlike the other agents- was undistorted, even through the mask.

”Hey there, Frederick!” She put her hand on her hips.

I grimaced. “Do I know you?”

”Nope, but we sure know you-”

”Then you should know that I’m never going to help you people.”

”You see, that’s the thing-”

”What is this, blackmail? I thought you Organization people knew everything.”

She held her hands out beside her.”We’re not blackmailing you Frederick,” She spoke softly, “you and I, we both want the same thing. Maybe we don't have the same reasons but-”

”-and how am I supposed to trust you?”

She was silent for a bit.

"Come with us, you’ll see." She snapped her hand.

The chains binding his wrists snapped and the lights in the cell went out. He fell to the ground, barely landing on his feet. Facing them, he brushed the chains off his wrists and did his best not to smile or stretch. The Arrow turned around, a rift opening before them and casting the room in a dim violet light. He walked through it, vanishing from sight.

”Go on.”

Frederick didn't follow.

The Sun walked to the edge of the rift before looking back. ”You know, if he wanted to kill you he could’ve done it a while ago.”

”That’s not what I’m afraid of.”

”Suit yourself, but we aren't keeping that rift open forever, and there’s nothing beyond these walls.” She stepped into the rift.

He sighed, following them through the rift. There Frederick found himself in a place he could scarcely comprehend; like all the world’s thoughts and ideas were floating by and drifting through in an endless sea. He lost the feeling in his body, and only the mind was present for this journey. He never did like these little journeys the Psychics took, there was nothing he could do in that place, he could barely even think straight.

He found himself standing next to the others in front of a large metal door. Alarms were blaring in the background. The two nodded at each other. They did Frederick a favor by destroying the lights in the corridor before destroying the door. The Sun raised her hand. The door glowed softly before being violently catapulted forward. It flew outward slamming Agents and shattering the glass. The Arrow vanished while the Sun walked forward into what looked like a control room. She gestured casually with her hand. Violet flashes streaked across the room, followed by a terrible screeching noise. Most of the Agents in the room seemed to just drop dead. Blood poured freely from their necks and heads. The few that moved in time fell over with massive tears in their backs and calves.

Frederick chanced a step out of the shadows to get a better look, ignoring the smell of the blood that called to him. He looked beyond the shattered glass, at the chaos down below. He realized what this was, a prison break, on a major Organization facility no less. Two sets of stairs led downward to the lower platform where all the consoles and seats were located. Many of the Agents had died in their seats. The Sun moved them aside to fiddle with a console before making her way to the next one.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

"What are you doing?"

"Isn't it obvious Fred?"

"I meant why."

"I told you. We want the same thing, sort've. It's a long story, but if you come with us-"

"Wait."

"You have an awfully bad habit of interrupting people when they speak you know that?"

"No, there's someone on their way up. I can hear it."

She sighed. "Yeah, I know you can. I was just hoping they'd try and run while they could. You don't think they're going to do that, do you?"

"You wanted them to escape?"

"Yes, and no. It's-"

"He's almost here."

She sighed again. "I appreciate the heads up."

The grinding of metal began faintly and grew increasingly louder within seconds. An arm reached out over the ledge and gripped it with enough strength to warp the metal it held. The Warden threw himself high into the air with the one arm.

"I won't let you!"

At this rate he was going to impact the ceiling, but rather than let that stop him he rotated in the air. He landed on the ceiling with a heavy thud and pushed off with his feet. As he rocketed toward the platform he was surrounded by energy that trailed behind him like a comet. The Sun jumped to the higher platform in a single bound. She spun and raised an ephemeral shield. Frederick stepped into the shadows. The Warden's impact left a warped crater on the floor. Debris assaulted her shield, shards of metal left hairline fractures and thick cables slammed against it. Frederick couldn't do anything but cover his eyes and pick out the shrapnel later. The bodies were sent flying too, and they littered the floor.

He fixed the Sun with a glare. "You! Do you have any idea what you're doing?!"

She was silent.

"Answer me damn it!" He leaped at the Sun, again surrounded with energy, and his right arm wrapped in spectral chains.

The Sun leaned in, dodging the open hand by a hair's breadth. From her palm came a shimmering orb the size of a basket ball. It flew into his torso, driving him back several feet. It hardly even scratched the aura around him before disappearing. As the Warden was driven back he swung his arm. The chains extended from his arm. The Sun ducked down, pushing it aside slightly with her shield. She let loose another, larger orb.

"You can't run!" He drew back his arm and moved forward.

The chain drew back and she had to dodge it again. The chain nearly struck the orb and destroyed it, but it split. Before impact one became four and they moved out of the way. They surrounded him as they flew. The Warden thrust his left hand forward as he stepped. At that moment an orb struck his leg, and another struck his arm. They were both harmless, but they threw his aim off. The lance of energy that followed cut through the walls and roof, missing her head by inches.

She fired more volleys that surrounded the Warden. He dashed into close range, ignoring the harmless orbs. His every strike was fast and brutal. The surrounding orbs interfered in the nick of time. She circled him, always throwing out new orbs, careful to never be cornered. He approached methodically, always trying to trick her up, never letting her get too far. He swept the ground with his feet and swung the chain behind his back. She rolled over the sweep and backed up, finally escaping from close quarters. He spun, brining the chain in from an unexpected direction. She blocked it with her shield. The chain wrapped around her shield and he pulled on it. She stumbled forward. Before he could do anything his leg was sliced by a mass of orbs that merged to form a cutting edge. The Warden fell to one knee and the Sun rolled aside. He grabbed the floor and threw himself forward, turning in time to see the masses of orbs turn into cutting blades. He held his wound closed telekinetically and pressed onward.

The blades approached and surrounded him, each time he'd try and deflect they'd split into their orbs and reform somewhere else. He wasn't nearly as agile she was, scratches turned into cuts, cuts turned into slashes, slashes became lacerations. The Warden screamed, lashing out with the chain. Several blades split into orbs. The Warden's aura disappeared.

And he threw himself at the Sun.

He grabbed onto the floor and threw himself forward. Where the orbs might've stopped him before they simply tore through his body. He held his wounds closed as he rocketed forward and drew his arm back to throw a final punch. The orbs couldn't catch up. She dropped the offense, the orbs disappeared in exchange for a stronger shield. The Warden struck the shield at full force. There was moment where Frederick thought the shield might've held, but it was torn asunder. The Sun was open to attack, and the Warden's aura flared for just a moment. Before he collapsed on the floor.

A rift opened beside them. The Arrow stepped out ready for a fight. Then he observed the Warden, then the control room.

"You're late."

The Arrow shrugged.

Then the Warden stirred. He dragged himself forward, then he stood up. He fell to his knees again. The Arrow raised a hand to finish the Warden.

"Nah, I'll do it."

The Warden turned his head to look her in the eye. "They'll get you in the end."

"I know they do." She blasted a hole in chest.

Frederick stepped out from the shadows. "Sorry I couldn't help you there. I'm not exactly at my peak."

"No, it's fine I-"

"You can however, count on my help in the future."

She chuckled a little. It was a bit empty. "Fine, fine, just keep interrupting me, who cares what I think anyways."

"What is it you need me to do?"

The Arrow spoke this time. "The Fates will select a Chosen One soon."

"So... what, you want me to kill her?"

"No. The Chosen One won't die until the Prophecy is fulfilled."

"Okay, then what're we supposed to do? It's fate."

"There are many ways to fulfill a prophecy, Mr. Lionel."