Floor 499 — Luminor — Forest
The air in the forest was thick with the metallic scent of blood. Jace loomed over the ringmaster, The ringmaster lay broken, his limbs twisted and reattached multiple times, his voice reduced to a hoarse whisper.
"P-Please... stop," the ringmaster begged, his voice barely audible. His body trembled, his strength long since drained.
Jace tilted his head slightly, his cold eyes reflecting no mercy. "250 to go," he murmured, twirling the ice shard before raising it high.
Just as he was about to strike, a hand shot out from behind him, gripping his wrist with surprising strength.
"That's enough, Jace," said a firm, feminine voice.
Jace didn't need to turn around to know who it was. He sighed, shaking off her grip with a sharp flick of his wrist. "What are you doing here, Will?"
Will stepped into view, her green eyes blazing with irritation. She was a striking figure—short hair, vibrant green hair framing a face set in a scowl, her toned physique accentuated by her fitted black leather jacket and cropped vest showing her midriff adorned with gold military detailing. Her black pants tucked neatly into heeled ankle boots, completing the look of someone who meant business.
"Knock it off!" she snapped, crossing her arms. "You're going to break him before we get anything useful out of him!"
Jace scoffed. "Don't worry. If he breaks, we can just heal him." His voice was calm, but the edge in it was unmistakable.
Will's jaw tightened. "Yeah, he's a sicko, but we need him to talk. Stabbing him senseless won't tell us where the others are hiding. Use your brain for once!"
Jace turned his back to her, his tone dripping with disdain. "My methods are persuasive. Unlike your yapping."
"Yapping?!" Will's face flushed red, steam practically shooting from her ears. "Oh, that's rich coming from Mr. I-Glare-At-Everything! Maybe if you listened to a girl for five seconds, you wouldn't be single and brooding in a tent like some old man!"
Jace's eye twitched—just once—the only sign her words had struck a nerve. He remained silent for a beat, his mask of indifference firmly in place. When he finally spoke, his voice was eerily calm.
"And maybe if you didn't nag like a drill sergeant, you wouldn't scare off every guy in a ten-mile radius."
Will's face turned even redder. "Excuse me?! I'm not naggy—I'm assertive! And I don't act like a man, I act like someone who's not a walking brick wall! Unlike somepeople who think torture is a personality trait!"
Jace shrugged. "Assertive. Naggy. Same thing."
"You're impossible!" Will threw her hands up in frustration. "No wonder you're alone—you'd probably try to interrogate a date before dessert!"
"Better than scaring them off by bench-pressing the table to prove a point," Jace shot back.
Will sputtered, pointing an accusing finger at him. "You—! Ugh! Fine, torture him! But you know what the captain said—if you don't hurry up, he's deducting money from your paycheck."
At the mention of his paycheck, the ice shard in Jace's hand dissolved into mist. His expression darkened, but he relented, yanking the ringmaster up by his collar.
"Well, well, well. You're a lucky man," Jace muttered, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
The ringmaster's lips parted, a shaky "Thank y—" escaping before a sudden crack echoed through the forest. A bullet tore through his skull, splattering blood and brain matter across the ground. His body crumpled lifelessly to the forest floor.
Jace and Will froze, the shock of the moment rendering them silent.
Will's eyes darted to the trees, her senses sharp. She caught a flicker of movement in the distance—a sniper. Without hesitation, she launched herself forward, wind swirling around her as she propelled herself toward the assailant's perch with incredible speed. But when she reached the tree, there was no one there. It was as if the shooter had vanished into thin air.
---
Floor ??? — Hall
A portal shimmered into existence in the dimly lit hall, and from it stepped a man clad in a white mask, his black hair tousled. He wore a beige long-sleeved shirt tucked neatly into blue jeans, a dark tie hanging loosely around his neck. A brown utility belt held two pistols at his hips, and his black tactical boots clicked softly against the stone floor as he adjusted the sniper rifle slung over his shoulder.
"It is done," he announced, his voice calm and measured.
Before him stood a lich, and three other silhouettes, their features obscured by shadow.
"Excellent work, Joel," the lich rasped, its hollow eyes glowing faintly.
Joel tilted his head. "What about the other two? I could just kill them now—save us trouble in the future."
The lich waved a bony hand dismissively. "They are insignificant."
Joel sighed, rolling his shoulders. "Fine. Whatever." He strode past the lich and took his seat among the three shadowed figures.
The hall fell silent once more.