Chapter 16: A Disposable pawn
"Villains who talk too much always lose."
—Unknown
---
Tilana stood over Lily, watching her with something between amusement and triumph.
"You should have seen this coming," she mused, pacing in slow, measured steps. "But you didn't, did you?"
Lily said nothing.
Not because she didn't have words.
But because words didn't matter here.
Not now.
Not after everything.
---
"You thought I was your friend," Tilana continued, her voice smooth, almost gentle. "But what were you really to me?"
She stopped walking.
Leaning down, she whispered—
"A project. A stray. A thing."
Lily didn't react.
But deep, deep inside—
Something twisted.
---
Tilana straightened, clasping her hands behind her back.
"You should be honored, really." She gestured to the shadowed figures watching from the edges of the room. "You'll be the first of your kind to be studied properly. The first Eridian to be—"
She paused, smirking.
"—understood."
Lily remained silent.
But she was listening.
Listening, and learning.
Because Tilana had just confirmed it.
The higher-ups had known.
Not suspected. Known.
Known what she was.
Known what Eridians were.
Known enough to fear them.
And that meant—
They had done this before.
---
"You probably don't understand yet," Tilana continued, voice dripping with false sympathy. "After all, you don't feel things the way we do, right?"
She knelt in front of Lily, tilting her head.
"But you'll learn."
Her smile widened.
"You'll learn what it means to be powerless."
Lily stared at her.
And for the first time—Tilana hesitated.
Because something in Lily's gaze had changed.
It wasn't anger.
It wasn't fear.
It wasn't even recognition.
It was something deeper.
Something Tilana didn't understand.
---
Then, before she could react—
A voice cut through the room.
"That's enough."
Tilana turned.
One of the higher-ups stepped forward.
And suddenly—
the entire atmosphere shifted.
---
The power dynamics in the room flipped instantly.
The smugness in Tilana's face faltered, just for a second.
"Is there a problem?" she asked, masking the sudden edge in her voice.
The higher-up tilted his head.
"You've done well," he said smoothly. "Better than expected."
Tilana straightened.
"Then my deal—"
"Your deal?" The man let out a soft chuckle. "You misunderstood, girl."
The amusement dropped.
"You were never part of this."
---
Silence.
Thick. Cold. Wrong.
Tilana's heart slammed against her ribs.
"Wait—"
The air shifted.
And suddenly, she couldn't move.
---
"You were useful," the man continued, stepping closer. "But we don't need you anymore."
"You—" Tilana's voice broke. "You promised—"
"We promised nothing."
And then—
pain.
A sharp, searing pressure at the base of her skull.
Tilana gasped, body locking up.
Her mind felt like it was tearing apart.
---
"We knew you'd bring her to us and you did , so thanks for that but now you are useless"
Her vision blurred.
Something inside her cracked.
She tried to fight it, but it was too late.
Her knees buckled.
Her strength vanished.
And the last thing she saw—
was Lily watching her.
Not with triumph.
Not with pity.
Not even with anger.
Just watching.
And surprisingly
Surprisingly that hurt the most.
---
The world faded to black.
And Tilana—
The girl who had thought she could control everything—
Realized, too late, that she had been nothing more than a pawn.
A disposable piece in a much larger game.
And now—
She was being removed from the board.