In Between Realms

Seyfe's eyes narrowed as he watched Aki step into the room. The soft clink of her Veiler's outfit echoing in the otherwise silent space. She was like a shadow, always lurking just outside his view, just out of reach. He couldn't help but feel a mixture of curiosity and frustration bubble up inside him.

And then, as if the question had been gnawing at him ever since their escape, he couldn't hold it back anymore.

"Oh... right, during our escape from the outskirts," Seyfe began, his voice tinged with disbelief. "How the hell did you put an earpiece in my ear when we were getting shot at? There was no time for anything like that. It was chaos."

Aki didn't flinch. She just stood there, her mask reflecting a faint glimmer of the overhead lights as she stared at him. Her face was unreadable, but he could feel the weight of her gaze, the kind that seemed to pierce through all the walls he had built around himself.

For a moment, it felt like the room held its breath, as if the very air around them was waiting for her answer.

Aki took a slow step forward, her voice calm, almost as if she was explaining something trivial. "You're not the only one who can move in chaos, Seyfe. You may think you're the one always dodging bullets, but I've learned to work with far less time than you might imagine."

Her tone was clinical, detached. There was a sharpness in her voice that made it clear she wasn't trying to be coy or evasive. She was simply stating a fact. "As for the earpiece, I made it a point to ensure you were set up. You just didn't realize it."

Seyfe frowned, still unsure how to feel about her nonchalant response. He didn't like being the one in the dark, especially when it involved someone like her. Aki wasn't like the others—she wasn't a government pawn or another faceless Veiler. She was something else entirely. A mystery wrapped in steel and resolve.

He tried to push past his frustration, but the question lingered. "So you had this planned all along, didn't you? You always knew the escape would happen, that I'd be dragged into this mess. And you're just… playing your part, right?"

Aki didn't answer right away. Instead, she simply stood there for a moment, her eyes cold but calculating.

"You could say that," she finally said, her voice softer, though still holding that edge of mystery. "But you, Seyfe, are far more important than you think. The government doesn't see it yet, but I do."

Her words hung in the air, and for the first time, Seyfe wondered if he truly understood the role he was supposed to play in all of this.

Seyfe's words came out sharp, laced with the frustration that had been simmering ever since he'd woken up in the sterile confines of the government hall. He was tired of being treated like a pawn, of being told his worth by people who saw him as nothing more than a cog in their machine.

Aki, however, remained calm. Her posture never shifted, her gaze still locked on him, though the faintest flicker of something—perhaps acknowledgment—passed through her eyes when he spoke.

"Are you going to bombard me with government propaganda about my role as a citizen like you all do?" Seyfe continued, a bitter chuckle escaping his lips. "Because I'm already tired of hearing it. I've had enough of being told what I am or what I should be."

Aki took a moment to absorb his words, the silence between them stretching for a beat. Then, without so much as a flicker of hesitation, she responded, her voice steady and measured.

"You misunderstand," she said, her tone cool, yet there was an undercurrent of something deeper. "I'm not here to push propaganda. I'm here because you're more than just another civilian caught in a web of their making. You're... different."

Seyfe clenched his jaw, his frustration growing with every passing second. He didn't want to hear about how different he was, how important he was, how he was some special piece on their chessboard. He wanted answers. He wanted something real.

"Beside," he added, his voice tinged with impatience, "where's the baby? You took care of it, right? Or is it just another pawn to you, too?"

At the mention of the baby, Aki's expression softened for the briefest of moments. It was so quick that if Seyfe hadn't been watching closely, he might have missed it. But there was something in her eyes then, something that suggested she felt an unspoken responsibility.

"The baby is safe," she said, her voice quieter now, as though the subject held more weight than she was willing to reveal. "It's being cared for, in good hands. But that doesn't matter right now. What matters is you, Seyfe."

He narrowed his eyes, trying to read her. "Don't give me that. I don't care what you think matters. I want to know where it is."

Aki's gaze never wavered as she looked at him, the edge of something unreadable lingering in her eyes. "It's not about the baby. It's about what comes next. What you're going to do now that you've been marked."

Seyfe didn't reply immediately, his mind racing. He wasn't sure what she meant by "marked," but he knew it wasn't a good thing. And as much as he wanted to focus on the baby, on finding some semblance of normalcy in this godforsaken world, he knew Aki had a point. He had no idea what was coming next. He had no control over his fate, no matter how hard he fought to take it.

Still, that nagging feeling at the back of his mind wouldn't let go.

He wouldn't stop until he knew the truth. About the baby, about the government, and about his own damned existence.

Seyfe's words were tinged with a mix of cynicism and exhaustion, his voice carrying the weight of everything he had been through, every choice that had been taken from him, every path that had been closed off. He leaned back slightly, as if the effort of standing—of holding himself together—had worn him down more than he was willing to admit.

He locked eyes with Aki, challenging her to respond, his lips curling into a half-smirk that barely masked the bitterness gnawing at him.

"If you said that the baby is indeed in safe hands, then fine. I'll make my choice." Seyfe's tone was flat, as though the decision was already made for him, as though he was simply playing out a role he had no power to change. "Besides, I already know what you're going to say."

His eyes narrowed as he spoke, the words dripping with mockery.

"Become a Veiler, or I'll just rot away in this chamber, isn't it?"

The silence between them hung heavy, filled with unspoken truths, the air crackling with the tension of everything Seyfe had been forced into. He could almost feel the weight of Aki's gaze, studying him, calculating his every word, every move. The same way the government had been doing all along.

Aki didn't immediately answer. Instead, she took a slow step forward, her presence unyielding, like a storm on the horizon.

"You think you're the only one who's been forced into a corner, Seyfe?" Her voice was low, controlled, but there was an undeniable edge to it now. "You think I have any more choice than you? Do you think I wanted to be a Veiler? Do you think I wanted to become this thing?"

The question wasn't rhetorical, but Seyfe didn't respond immediately. He had never once questioned the Veilers, their strict code, their silence. But now, with Aki standing there—close enough to touch—he felt something different in her, something human, something real.

Aki's voice dropped a fraction as she continued, her words almost soft, but their weight heavy. "The government is already counting on you to break. They want you to crumble. They want you to give in. But you're not just some cog to them, Seyfe. Not anymore."

She stepped closer, her tone quieter now, more direct. "I never said you had to be a Veiler. You don't have to follow their rules. But you do have to choose. If you want to survive, if you want to have any semblance of a life, you're going to need more than just your rage. You're going to need to play the game. And right now, you're stuck in a position where they hold all the cards."

Seyfe looked at her, his mind whirling. There it was again—the push. The ultimatum. He'd known it was coming, had known the moment he woke up from that procedure that he'd be forced into making a choice. But hearing it from Aki—someone who clearly understood the weight of it—was different.

The question still hung in the air, unanswered.

What the hell would he do next?