The room fell into a tense silence. Kyle could feel his pulse in his ears, his blood boiling with irritation.
Felix was still smirking, like all of this was a game to him. Like this wasn't a matter of survival.
Kyle didn't trust him.
Didn't like the way he looked at Gia.
Didn't like the way he talked about fighting The Order like it was some grand adventure instead of a suicidal mission.
But the worst part?
Felix wasn't wrong.
Running wouldn't keep them safe forever. The Order would never stop hunting him. They had Gia marked too. Sooner or later, they'd be caught again.
And Kyle refused to let that happen.
He leaned against the table, arms crossed. "Alright. Let's hear it. What's your plan?"
Felix grinned. "Knew you'd come around."
Kyle resisted the urge to deck him in the face.
Gia stirred slightly on the mattress, her eyes fluttering open.
"Kyle…?" Her voice was weak.
He was beside her in an instant. "I'm here."
Her fingers curled slightly against the sheets. "Where…?"
"Safe for now," Kyle muttered. "We had to run. You passed out after opening the portal."
Gia blinked slowly, her golden-brown eyes still hazy. "Oh… right."
Felix stepped closer, and Kyle immediately tensed.
"Good to see you awake, sweetheart," Felix said smoothly.
Gia looked at him, confused. "…Who are you?"
Kyle almost smiled.
Felix's grin faltered for a fraction of a second before he shrugged. "Felix. Your new best friend."
Gia's brow furrowed slightly. "I don't… remember agreeing to that."
Kyle actually did smirk this time. "She's got good instincts."
Felix rolled his eyes. "Cute. But let's get back to the important part."
Kyle's jaw clenched. "Which is?"
Felix's expression turned serious. "The Order's main lab. The place where they experiment on people like you."
Gia stiffened. Kyle felt his stomach drop.
"Where is it?" he asked, his voice low.
Felix exhaled. "Hidden. Underground. But I know someone who can help us get in."
Kyle didn't like that. "Who?"
Felix hesitated for a moment. "An ex-scientist. Someone who worked on The Order's experiments but went rogue."
Kyle narrowed his eyes. "And why the hell would they help us?"
Felix smirked again. "Because they hate The Order even more than you do."
Kyle glanced at Gia. She still looked exhausted, but there was a fire in her gaze.
"You're saying we go to them?" Gia asked, voice soft but sharp.
Felix nodded. "Yeah. If we want to end this, we need information. We need to know how they're making their experiments stronger. And most importantly…"
His golden eyes flickered toward Kyle.
"We need to know if they've found a way to extract abilities permanently."
The air turned ice-cold.
Kyle's hands clenched into fists. He didn't need a reminder of what The Order wanted to do to him.
What they almost did do.
Gia sat up slowly, wincing. Kyle instinctively reached out, steadying her.
She glanced at him, then back at Felix. "…Where do we find this scientist?"
Felix grinned. "Now that's the fun part."
Kyle sighed. He already hated this.
_______