Once leaving the Sanctum, Ethan had planned to go to the cafeteria and grab some food. But instead, once he got in the elevator, he found himself choosing a different floor. Heading back to the detention level. The doors opened and he proceeded down the corridor, toward the only cell with an occupant.

A translucent energy field provided the only barrier for the cell. Sylva remained in the exact same position as before—sitting upright on the cot with her legs folded under her, eyes closed in apparent meditation. She hadn’t moved a single inch. Once Ethan stopped and looked into her cell, she opened her onyx eyes and locked her gaze with his.

“I wondered how long it would take for one of you to come,” she said. “You can torture me all you like, I won’t tell you anything.”

Ethan scoffed. “Who said anything about torture?”

“That is the way of the Quantum Group.”

“You’re lying,” said Ethan.

“Am I?” Sylva cocked her head to the side. “You’re the emerald one, are you not?”

Ethan’s eyes widened. “How’d you—” He stopped himself, realizing he just gave away his identity. “I mean, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

“Don’t try to lie to me. You have the same posture and proportions as the emerald one.”

Ethan sighed. He imagined that wouldn’t play well with Marcus or the Tribunal. But denying it clearly wouldn’t work.

“Okay, you got me. Yeah, I’m the green one. Why?”

“It’s a fitting color for you, given your inexperience.”

“What makes you think I’m inexperienced?”

“The battle. You have training, but not with the Quantum abilities or equipment. This much was made clear to me.”

“Yeah, well, joke’s on you, lady,” said Ethan. “I know exactly what I’m doing here.”

Sylva gave a laugh. It had an almost otherworldly tone to it, something that made Ethan’s skin crawl. And yet, it also possessed another quality. One that Ethan couldn’t explain, but found intriguing. She stood and slowly approached the barrier. Ethan instinctively took a step back.

“You fear me?”

“We kicked your ass, what have I got to fear?”

“I had you at my mercy. Your allies cowardly attacking me from behind is what won that battle. Or have you forgotten?” she asked.

Ethan clenched his hand, starting to feel anger rise up in him. But he held back. Drew in a long breath through his nostrils. He fell back on his martial arts training and remembered what his mentors had taught him—stay centered, don’t allow the enemy to cloud your focus with rage.

“If you aren’t here for torture, then why have you come?” she asked. “Do you enjoy being mocked? Perhaps it’s a fetish of some kind?”

“More curiosity than anything else,” said Ethan. “How do you even know about the Quantum Group?”

“Because they told us when they came to my world.”

“We don’t go to other worlds, we just protect ours from breaches.”

“Is that what your new masters have told you?” asked Sylva.

“I’ve seen it myself. First with some sort of bee monsters, and then you,” said Ethan. “You wouldn’t know anything about that, would you?”

“There are many worlds in the Spire, worlds that have evolved in ways quite different from yours. The creatures we’ve seen on our travels are as varied as their number.”

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

“So you did send the bees? You triggered that breach?” asked Ethan.

“What do you know of the history of the Group, emerald one?”

“Just—” Ethan stopped. He realized he was about to say ‘just what I’ve been told,’ and he knew that would play right into Sylva’s narrative. “I know enough.”

She scoffed. “Clearly not. I can sense you’ve a warrior’s spirit, but your inexperience and your ignorance are overriding whatever honor you might have possessed.”

“Then how about enlightening me?” asked Ethan. “If I’m so ignorant, then tell me what it is I don’t know, but should.”

Sylva pulled off the mask that covered the lower half of her face. Ethan couldn’t help but be surprised by how stunning her features were. The paleness of her skin contrasted perfectly with her ebony hair and predatory eyes. Her prominent cheekbones provided the perfect frame for her features, but her lips remained firm in a stoic expression. Definitely a far cry from the monstrous creatures the Group had convinced him constituted all the breaches.

“I was but a child when Quantum came to my world,” she said. “I watched as their mechanical beasts leveled my city and their soldiers murdered my family.”

Ethan’s own memories came to the fore. Once more, he saw that shadowy beast with red eyes towering over him, as he stood in the wreckage of his family home.

“I recall waking in a pool of blood, the bodies of my friends and family surrounding me,” she continued. “But that was just the beginning. What came next was even worse.”

“What happened next?” asked Ethan.

“The Overseers were brought in. They claimed they were there to rebuild our society. We were told that what happened to us was in response to a breach. That the destruction of my home was done to eliminate the despotic forces that threatened their world.

“Of course, it was all a lie. And the Overseers were not as interested in rebuilding our society as they were in exploiting our resources. We were forced into hard labor, and the Overseers and their machinery stripped our world of valuable materials. Eventually, our water became polluted and our air almost unbreathable.”

“Oh, bullshit,” said Ethan. “You really expect me to believe all that?”

Sylva cast her eyes around her cell. “I’ve seen your technology. I look at this prison cell. Just how big is the scale of this organization? How do they find the resources to sustain it?”

Ethan hadn’t considered that aspect of it. He’d been so wowed by technology and the features of the Quantum Group that he’d never stopped to consider the mechanics of how it operated. And it had been in existence for centuries. Sylva raised a very interesting point—just how did the Quantum Group fund its activities? A global organization with their own private island, staff all over the world, and technology that—to Ethan, at least—came right out of science fiction.

“So how’d you become the Shadowblade? How’d you learn to fight like that?” he asked.

“My experiences drove me to seek vengeance. Eventually, I was found by a group that offered such a chance. A great warrior brought us together from disparate worlds all harmed by the Quantum Group. Most of us are refugees, but some were offered the chance to become warriors. I trained relentlessly, determined to be one of the leaders of this movement. And eventually, I earned the title of Shadowblade and the power and prestige that came with it.”

“What warrior?” asked Ethan.

“You shall see, soon enough,” said Sylva. “He is coming…they all are. What you’ve experienced so far is just a small taste of the horrors we shall inflict on the Quantum Group in retribution for their own barbarous actions.”

Ethan took a few steps back from the cell.

“You doubt my words?” asked Sylva.

“Anyone can spin a yarn,” said Ethan. “Until you show me some proof, why should I believe anything you say?”

“There’s not much I can do from inside this cell. But perhaps if you were to release me…?”

Ethan chuckled. “Yeah, nice try. I wasn’t born yesterday, Sylva. I’m not about to trust you just based on some sob story.”

“Suit yourself, emerald one.” Sylva returned to her cot and sat on it. “I have told you my tale. Seek out the information for yourself, and see whether or not what I’ve told you rings true. I care not what you believe—the end will be the same, regardless.”

She folded her legs under her and resumed her meditation. Ethan moved away from the cell and went back to the elevator. He couldn’t help but dwell on Sylva’s story. She came off as sincere in her telling, so he couldn’t dismiss it out of hand. And now, he did have questions about the Quantum Group. Ethan felt certain that he couldn’t trust Sylva without question, but he’d also felt disturbed by the Quantum Group’s secrecy regarding many aspects of this operation. Hell, he didn’t even really know who it was he’d agreed to work for. The Tribunal was just three shadowy, nameless figures. He didn’t know where they came from, what they did, or what their interest was in overseeing this organization. Ethan didn’t even know if they truly were the ultimate authority of the Quantum Group, or if they were just figureheads answering to someone else.

And if other worlds in the Spire had people like Sylva, it raised another prospect—maybe the Tribunal wasn’t even human? How else would they have access to something like the Omega Force?

Ethan entered the elevator and pushed the button for the living quarters. Only one certainty existed in his mind—he had questions, and he’d find the answers to them. Didn’t matter what rocks he had to kick over to do it.