—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riley woke to a now familiar silence.
He stared up at the pastel ceiling panel, trying to piece together how long he'd been out. His mind still carried the echoes of the labyrinth—the warped corridors, the whispers bleeding through the walls.
For a moment, he thought Leilani was still there—curled up on the cot across the room like some kind of silent guardian. But when he turned his head, the blankets were neatly folded.
She was gone.
How long ago?
He pushed himself up slowly, every muscle aching. There hadn't been an alarm. No PA announcement. The absence gnawed at him more than any trial could.
They were always watching. Always waiting.
He dressed in the standard issue black fatigues and stepped into the corridor. The lights were brighter than usual. A trick of the system or another layer of manipulation. He couldn't tell anymore. The few Vectors moving through the halls walked quietly, heads low, exchanging only fleeting glances.
Riley's footsteps echoed as he made his way toward the breakfast hall, the weight in his chest tightening with every step.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The cafe was half-empty when he entered. The low hum of machinery filled the space, but the usual chatter was muted—drowned beneath a palpable tension that clung to the walls like static. Trays clattered against metal counters. Forks scraped quietly against ceramic plates.
The PA remained dead. No orders. No structure. Just silence.
Riley looked around the room, heart ticking faster. They want us to sit with it. A type of manipulation that was subtle, calculated. Without structure, the mind starts filling in the blanks on its own.
He spotted Jade near the back, hunched over a half-eaten breakfast. For once, he wasn't talking. Just staring down at his tray, picking at the cold food like he was trying to convince himself he was hungry.
Riley crossed the room and slid into the seat across from him. The plastic chair scraped against the floor—too loud in the hush.
Jade glanced up. His grin flicked on automatically, like a switch.
"Look who finally decided to join the living. Thought they offed you in your sleep."
Riley smirked—out of habit more than anything. The sarcasm was familiar. Comfortable, even. But there was something off in Jade's eyes—something he was trying to bury beneath the jokes.
Riley could see it now—the flicker of doubt tucked behind the easy grin. The same fear he felt gnawing at his own mind.
They all felt it.
"If they were gonna get rid of me," Riley murmured, forcing his voice low, "they wouldn't leave a body."
Jade snorted, but the sound barely carried. He poked at a strip of rehydrated protein with his fork. "Guess we should be grateful, huh? Another beautiful day in paradise."
Riley's gaze drifted across the room.
Leilani sat alone at the edge of the hall, posture perfect, her hands wrapped around a steaming mug. When she caught him looking, she gave him the briefest smile—quick, precise. Like she knew exactly how long to hold eye contact before breaking it. He returned the gesture without thinking, but the warmth barely cut through the cold pressing behind his ribs.
Further down the row, Luna sat with a tray in front of her—untouched. Her dark eyes flicked toward the mirrored windows every few seconds, lips pressed into a thin line. Whatever the labyrinth had done to her... it hadn't let go.
Kai was nowhere to be seen.
Riley leaned in slightly. "You see Kai this morning?"
Jade's fork paused mid-slice. He didn't look up. "Nah. Figured he was sleeping in."
A beat of silence stretched between them.
Neither of them believed that.
The absence of routine gnawed at them as the minutes bled on. The PA system remained silent. No trial. No instructions.
Just waiting.
Riley could feel the questions clawing at the edges of his mind—too many to pin down at once.
Why suspend the schedule now?
Why give them space to think?
Was this part of the trial... or something else entirely?
Jade shifted in his seat, eyes flicking toward the mirrored window along the far wall.
"What if..." he started, voice low, "what if they're just... seeing who asks questions first?"
Riley's stomach clenched. The thought had been circling him since he'd woken up.
Tenzashi didn't need to build walls or set timers to push them toward the edge. They could just leave them here—untethered—and let the paranoia do the work for them.
He glanced back at Leilani. Her gaze flicked toward the mirrored glass—just for a second—then back down to her mug.
She knew.
They all knew.
The silence stretched thicker. Every scrape of cutlery. Every whispered conversation. It was all being cataloged. Measured.
How long before someone snapped?
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The PA finally crackled to life just a single burst of static then died again.
No words.
Just the reminder that someone was listening.
Always.
—----------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Riley pushed his tray away, appetite long gone.
"Come on," he muttered, rising to his feet.
Jade blinked up at him. "Where?"
Riley's gaze swept the hall, lingering on the mirrored windows.
"Let's see what happens... when they don't get what they want."
"About time someone said that," Luna smirked, sliding out of her seat.
Jade hesitated, then pushed back his chair with a low scrape, following without another word.
They stopped by Leilani's table on the way out. She didn't ask questions—just stood silently and fell into step beside them. Luna joined too, eyes flicking between the mirrored glass and the exit.
Kai's absence still loomed, unspoken.
They made their way through the corridors, past empty lounges, sealed doors, until they reached the stairwell that led up to the upper dorm floors. The Proxies were already there.
Two of them. Black-clad, motionless. Their visors swallowed all light, faces obscured behind smooth masks. The kind of presence that could hollow out a room without saying a word.
"Turn around," one of them said—voice filtered through layers of distortion.
Riley's heart slammed against his ribs.
He didn't move.
"We're looking for someone," he said carefully.
"Turn around."
Jade tensed beside him. He wasn't the type to back down from a fight but even he could feel it. The air had shifted.
It was the first time they'd ever been barred from a part of the facility.
Something was happening.
Riley opened his mouth to press the issue—
Then the PA system flickered to life.
All Vectors report to the White Room. Immediately.
The voice was cold. Mechanized.
The Proxies stepped aside as one.
No further explanation.
No choice.
Riley's blood ran cold as they turned back toward the assembly hall.
The walls felt closer now.
And behind the mirrored glass... the game was just beginning.