Awakening

Darkness. Cold. The sensation of sinking deeper into nothingness. And then, suddenly, light. A sharp, blinding white that made my head throb as consciousness surged back, ripping me from the silence of death.

I gasped, my lungs burning as if starved of air for an eternity. The pain in my chest was overwhelming. The bullet—that cold, searing pain—was gone. Instead, an icy numbness spread through my body. I blinked, disoriented, and my vision slowly cleared.

I was lying on a steel table in a dimly lit room. The sterile smell of disinfectant filled my nostrils. My heart pounded in confusion. I should be dead. I was dead. I could still feel the weight of Corella's gun aimed at my chest, hear the echo of the shot that ended it all.

A cold voice snapped me back to the present.

"Welcome back."

I turned my head slowly, wincing at the stiffness in my neck. Standing in the corner, bathed in the cold light of a monitor, was a man I'd never seen before. He was tall and impeccably dressed, his dark suit crisp, his hands clasped behind his back in a calm, almost disconcerting manner. His eyes—calculating, detached—watched me with clinical interest.

"Who... who are you?" My voice was weak, barely a rasp. I tried to sit up, but my body felt heavy, unresponsive.

The man stepped closer, his leather shoes clicking on the floor. He smiled, but there was no warmth in it. "You can call me Dr. Royce. But I think the real question you should be asking is, why are you still alive?"

My mind raced. Alive? How could I be alive? Corella shot me point-blank, the bullet piercing my heart, and I welcomed it. Yet, here I was, not dead, not even dying, but... revived.

Dr. Royce continued, sensing my confusion. "We've been tracking you for a long time. You, and CAT. You didn't think you could stay off the grid forever, did you? The World Intelligence Authority knows more than you think. And Corella? She's a valuable asset. But I'm the one in charge now."

My chest tightened with rage. Corella. The image of her standing over me with that smug smile, her gun raised, flashed in my mind. I wanted to scream, to fight, to demand answers, but my body wouldn't cooperate.

"What... did you do to me?" I managed to croak, my voice tinged with anger.

Dr. Royce tilted his head, as if amused by my resistance. "You're a part of something bigger now. Consider yourself... repurposed. CAT may be in ruins, but you still have value. To us, at least."

He turned toward a series of monitors lining the walls. Images of cities, data streams, and surveillance footage flickered across the screens. One of the screens displayed Corella, walking through a dark hallway, her face cold and determined.

"You were right about one thing," Royce said, his back to me. "Corella didn't know who you really were. But now she does. You see, we allowed her to believe you were dead. That way, she'll lead us straight to the remaining pieces of CAT. It's easier to dismantle an organization when its leader is already gone."

Anger surged through me, the helplessness I had felt moments before morphing into rage. They were using me—using my death as a tool to manipulate Corella and finish what they started. I was nothing but a pawn in their game.

"You won't get away with this," I spat, though my voice trembled.

Dr. Royce turned to face me, his expression unreadable. "Get away with what? We've already won. CAT is falling apart, and soon, Corella will play her final role. And you? You'll be whatever we need you to be."

My vision blurred again, this time from the fury coursing through my veins. I couldn't die. Not yet. I wouldn't let them use me like this. I had to fight back, to escape, to stop them.

But then Royce leaned in closer, his voice dropping to a chilling whisper. "You might want to save your strength, though. You're going to need it."

Without another word, he turned and left the room, leaving me alone with the hum of the machines. Alone with the terrifying realization that my death hadn't been the end. It was only the beginning of a new nightmare.

I stared at the ceiling, my chest rising and falling in shallow breaths. They had taken everything from me—my freedom, my power, my very life. But there was one thing they hadn't taken yet.

My will to survive.

And if I had to claw my way out of this hell, piece by piece, I would.

I closed my eyes and felt the cold steel beneath me, steadying my mind. This wasn't the end. It was a rebirth.

I would rise again.

And this time, I would be the one pulling the strings.