I can't breathe properly.
Not from the strangling anymore — my lungs are working — but from something far worse.
Serafin is standing.
Serafin — who could barely sit up seconds ago — is standing like gravity suddenly decided he was exempt from its rules.
The monitors glitch violently — BZZZT! BEEP! BZZZT!
The lights flicker overhead — FLICK—FLICK—FLICK!
My voice comes out as a broken whisper.
"…Serafin?"
He doesn't answer.
His back is to me.
But I can see his shoulders rising and falling, slow, controlled, deliberate.
Nothing like the ragged breathing from before.
The intruder steps back again — STEP.
That single movement echoes louder than the alarms.
"…What the hell are you?" the intruder demands.
Serafin tilts his head slightly.
The motion is unnervingly calm.
"You came here," he says quietly.
The voice—
Jesus.
It's Serafin's voice, but layered with something deeper, heavier, vibrating through the room itself.
"You should have stayed away."
The air pulses — HHHMMMMMMM…
The Doctor stares, frozen. "This… this isn't medically possible…"
Medic 2 trembles near the wall. "Is this some kind of experiment?!"
The Tactical Officer struggles upright — GRUNT. "Weapons ready—"
Serafin moves.
No warning.
No buildup.
WHOOSH.
He's suddenly in front of the intruder.
The sheer speed makes my brain lag.
The intruder barely raises an arm before—
CRACK.
Serafin slams them into the wall.
Concrete fractures — KRRRSH!
Medic 2 screams. "OH FUCK!"
The Tactical Officer shouts. "STOP!"
Serafin's hand pins the intruder's throat.
Mirroring what they did to me.
Poetic.
Terrifying.
The intruder struggles — GASP! — boots scraping wildly against the floor.
Serafin leans closer.
"You threatened," he murmurs, voice vibrating. "What is mine."
My stomach drops.
Mine?
My throat tightens again — this time from something emotional, not physical.
"Serafin—" I force out, voice shaking. "Stop."
He freezes.
The entire room freezes with him.
Even the vibration falters — HHHMM…
Slowly…
He turns his head.
Those eyes.
God.
They're glowing.
Not bright.
Not dramatic.
But wrong.
Unnaturally luminous.
Locked on me.
"…Caoimhe."
My heart stutters.
That voice again — softer now — but still carrying that impossible weight.
I push myself to my feet, legs weak.
"Serafin," I whisper. "You're hurting him."
The intruder chokes under Serafin's grip.
The Tactical Officer steps forward cautiously. "Caoimhe, stay back—"
"I swear to God," I snap, not even looking at him. "Shut up."
My gaze stays on Serafin.
Only Serafin.
"You're not like this," I say, voice trembling. "This isn't you."
His expression shifts.
Barely.
But I see it.
Conflict.
Pain.
Something human fighting beneath whatever the hell this is.
"They tried to kill you," he says.
"I'm still alive."
"They touched you."
My chest tightens violently.
"Serafin…"
The intruder wheezes desperately. "You… don't understand…"
Serafin's grip tightens — CRACKLE.
"Then explain," he growls.
The intruder laughs weakly — distorted, breathless.
"You think this is about her?"
My blood runs cold.
Serafin stills.
"…What?"
The intruder's masked face tilts slightly toward him.
"It was never about Caoimhe."
The room feels like it just dropped ten degrees.
Serafin's voice lowers dangerously.
"Talk."
The intruder's breathing is ragged.
"You were the target."
Everything stops.
Even my thoughts.
Serafin's glowing eyes narrow.
"…Explain."
"You're unstable," the intruder rasps. "Unpredictable. Dangerous."
Serafin's voice vibrates violently.
"And you thought attacking her was wise?"
"We needed a reaction."
The words slam into me harder than the breach ever did.
Serafin goes completely still.
Deadly still.
"…A reaction."
"Yes."
The intruder's voice steadies slightly.
"And you delivered beautifully."
My pulse spikes.
"What the fuck are you talking about?!" I snap.
The intruder turns their masked face toward me.
"You really don't know, do you?"
Serafin's voice drops into something lethal.
"Choose your next words carefully."
A pause.
Then—
"He was never meant to survive."
My stomach plummets.
Serafin's hand trembles.
Just slightly.
The glow in his eyes flickers — SHHHT.
The Doctor whispers. "Survive… what?"
The intruder laughs weakly again.
"The procedure."
Every nerve in my body ignites.
Procedure?
I stare at Serafin.
"…What procedure?"
Serafin doesn't answer.
Doesn't move.
Doesn't even breathe.
The Tactical Officer stiffens.
"…Serafin."
The intruder continues.
"He wasn't enhanced."
My heartbeat thunders.
"He was modified."
The vibration in the air surges violently — HHHHMMMMMMMM!!
Machines rattle.
Glass trembles.
Serafin's voice emerges low, fractured.
"…Stop talking."
"You were never supposed to wake up," the intruder says coldly.
Serafin's glow destabilizes — flickering erratically.
"You were never supposed to remember."
My world tilts sideways.
Remember?
Serafin staggers slightly — STEP.
I rush forward instinctively.
"Serafin!"
He grips his head — GRASP.
A raw, tortured sound rips from his throat.
"AAAAAAGH!"
The lights explode into violent flickers — FLICK-FLICK-FLICK-FLICK!!
The Doctor shouts. "His vitals are spiking again!"
"What's happening to him?!" I yell.
The intruder whispers:
"Memory breach."
Serafin's scream deepens — unnatural, agonizing.
The air convulses — HHHHMMMMMMMMMMMM!!!
And then—
He looks at me.
But those glowing eyes…
Are filled with something I've never seen before.
Recognition.
Not of me.
Of something else.
Something terrible.
"…Caoimhe…"
His voice trembles.
"…Run."
To be continued...