Ketrah's POV:

The eerie cries from the room opposite mine pierced the air, making my skin prickle. The voice sounded like it belonged to another kid around my age, its desperation echoing off the tiled walls. I knew I was next, but a numbness had settled over me, like a shroud of ice.

Even when the man in the lab coat, his face twisted into a disturbing grin, looked at me like I was a prize and announced that I would be next, I didn't beg, cry, or say a word.

It had been a day now, if I didn’t count the day I was taken. I remembered being taken on Saturday, so it must be Monday by now. The fluorescent lights above flickered, casting eerie shadows on the walls as I sat on the cold tiles in the middle of my cell.

Alone. Silent. The only sound was the soft hum of the cameras mounted in the crevices of the walls, watching my every move. Though 'cell' sounded bleak, this place was a vast improvement over the dumpster Rinala and I used to call home. The memory of its stench and darkness made my stomach churn.

Under different circumstances, I might have even appreciated the luxury of this place—the clean bed, the toilet that flushed, the food that arrived at regular intervals. But not then. Not when I was trapped.

The walls were covered in white tiles, and the floor was laid with white floral tiles. It wasn't a large room, but to me, it was the biggest space I'd ever been in. The room was essentially a large square, furnished with only a bed covered in blue sheets pushed against one wall and a toilet on the opposite side, concealed by a matching blue curtain.

A TV high on the wall had remained off since my arrival, its blank screen a constant reminder of the world outside these walls. Honestly, I couldn't have cared less. My world had shrunk to the size of this room.

I’d tried talking to the camera twice, asking about my best friend and the reason for my confinement. On my second attempt, a soothing female voice had responded, saying my friend would join me soon and I would learn why I was here later. Since two days had passed and Rinala still hadn’t arrived, I took it as a sign she was okay.

I’d also tried gathering as much information as possible in case someone came to rescue me. Lol—who was I kidding? No one was coming. I didn’t have any family, except for Rinala, and she was too timid to rescue me on her own.

The screams started up again, and I raised my hands to cover my ears. They were becoming increasingly annoying. The only time a scream had been welcome was on the first day. The man who had knocked me out and brought me here was taken to the room opposite mine just as they locked me in this cell. A few minutes later, his scream had echoed, and I had seen green eyes peering through the slit in my door—eyes that betrayed something terribly wrong.

"That will be you soon, my darling," the person had said just before I could concentrate enough to charm him.

The next day, I discovered those eyes belonged to the deranged man in the lab coat.

So, as I was saying, gathering information had been to no avail. The only person who came near my cell was that deranged doctor. They must have known it was harder for me to charm someone who was acting irrationally and couldn't listen. Sigh.

As for my ability, I'd been practicing. I attempted to charm someone once without seeing them. I didn't bother trying it on the cameras—I figured they were too far away, and my captors already knew about my power and had taken precautions against it. Instead, I listened carefully for voices in the room next to mine, straining to catch the muffled sounds and mutterings. Focusing all my effort and magic into my voice, I spoke to the person on the other side of the wall.

"Hey, I know we've been a little rough with you, but you can trust me. I'm one of the workers here, and if you answer my questions correctly, I promise to let you go." All I got in response was more muffled sounds, but I pressed on. "Do you remember anything that's been done to you here? If you do, please tell me."

The only reply was more muffled sounds. "The quicker you talk, the quicker you get to leave here," I said, drifting further from the wall as the sounds intensified. It sounded as if the person was pressed against the wall, desperately trying to reach me and communicate something. I couldn't take it anymore.

"Shut it!" I ordered, and immediately, the sounds stopped. That's how it had been for the past two days, except for the occasional screams.

I pulled my legs closer to my chest as I heard the door opposite my cell open, followed by the sound of keys unlocking my own. I scrambled to my feet just as the deranged doctor stepped inside, a wild expression twisting his features.

"What do you want?" I asked defiantly.

A wide grin spread across his face while he tilted his head. "My precious little one, are you scared?"

I didn't respond. Instead, I took a step back, and he matched it with one forward.

"Good. I like it better when you're scared," he said, taking another step toward me.

I tried my best not to look intimidated, fighting the urge to fall to my knees and cower.

"Those screams..." I began, my voice shaking, but I continued. "...what are you doing to them?"

The doctor lifted a hand to his ear, pretending to listen. "Screams? What screams?" He shrugged. "I don't hear a thing."

I froze. He was right. The screams had stopped, which meant it was probably my turn now.

Panic flooded through me, and I stretched out a hand, trying to put as much distance between us as possible. "Stay away from me! What the hell do you want?"

"Hmm, let's see. I've heard you're special," he said, smirking. "And you see, I have a thing for special people." He stepped closer.

I moved back, my breath catching as I hit the tiled wall. "Who are you? You're not the boss. You weren't the one I sold the ring to," I said, realizing my ability had no effect on him.

Seeing the baffled look on my face, he threw his head back and laughed. When he sobered, his face hardened, revealing a man in his thirties. His blond, curly hair was a tangled mess, as if untouched by a comb for years.

The most unsettling thing about him was the way his green pupils constantly shifted, unable to focus, giving him a perpetual dazed look.

This was the first time I'd seen his eyes lock onto something. He was staring right at me, and I tried not to flinch. Instead, I held his gaze, determined not to show fear. Wanting to try my luck again, I attempted to charm him a second time with my words.

"What happens behind that closed door?"

"Experiments. My precious experiments," he answered, his eyes still fixated on me but with a distant, dreamy expression.

"Wha-what are you going to do to me?" I asked, trying not to imagine the horrors.

"I'm-I'm-" He burst into another fit of laughter, his head lowered.

I took a tentative step forward. "What's so funny?" I asked, bending slightly to try and see his face. Suddenly, he lunged, grabbing me by the neck and pinning me to the wall. My feet dangled as I kicked and clawed at his hands, desperate for air.

He loosened his grip slightly—still holding me aloft—and leaned in close. "Isn't that what you want? For me to act dazed, obeying your every word? I would have kept up the theatrics but, it wasn't worth losing my job over."

I stopped struggling, more stunned than scared. His voice sounded so normal and so sane. I felt a wet, tingly sensation on my neck and closed my eyes in disgust.

"Mmm, tastes like filth. I like filth."

"You-you-you sound...sane," I managed to say, my throat aching.

"Shhh, ears have walls," he replied, glancing at the camera before returning his gaze back to me.

So he had been acting deranged all this while. But I sensed he was teetering on the edge of sanity, barely aware of it.

I snapped back to reality as he kissed my cheek. I flinched.

"I like your eyes," he said, his voice soft and unsettling. "Blue, just like the sea." He lowered me gently until my feet touched the floor. "I'm going to have a lot of fun with you."

He turned and I sighed in relief as he exited, closing the door behind him. But my relief was short-lived. Just as I was about to sink to the ground, the door swung open again, and he stepped back in, his gaze fixed intently on a watch on his wrist.

A wave of confusion hit me. Why was he back so soon?

He looked up, a smug smile spreading across his face. "I've executed a rather clever ruse," he announced, his tone dripping with self-satisfaction. "I recorded a video of myself leaving the room and loaded it onto my watch. I've already projected this pre-recorded footage onto the monitors, creating a temporary blind spot. Also, to ensure our privacy..." He dipped his hand into his coat pocket and pulled out a small device. "This is an RF jammer. It's currently emitting a high-frequency signal, undetectable to the human ear, which will overload the microphones and render them useless."

I frowned, trying to process his words. "What do you mean?"

He grinned wider, his eyes darkening with a more sinister gleam. "Let me dumb it down for you. By creating a delay between what was actually happening and what was being shown, I had opened a window of opportunity..." He paused, his gaze sharpening. "...to indulge in some unobserved pleasures."

A chill crept down my spine as his true intentions became clear. "What are you planning to do?" I asked, my voice trembling despite my effort to stay composed.

He chuckled, his eyes never leaving mine. "Let's just say I have been eagerly awaiting this moment, and I will not be interrupted." He glanced at his watch, walking toward me as he lifted his hand and showed it to me.

"In about one, two..." while he spoke, the video feed on his watch flickered to life, showing him walking out of the room. He stopped mere feet away from me, dropped his hand, and smirked. "We are now officially off the grid," he said, his look filled with twisted desire.

I straightened and met his gaze with a determined smirk of my own. "My years of street fighting are finally going to pay off," I said, interlocking my fingers and stretching out my hands. My grin widened as the satisfying crack of my knuckles echoed through the room.

"Oh, I see you are a feisty one. Let's see how long you last." He shrugged off his coat and stepped forward.

I lunged for his left arm, but he deftly dodged, sidestepping to his right. I smirked, too late. I jabbed my elbow into his stomach, and as he doubled over, I raised my elbows and struck him again on the spine. He stumbled forward, barely catching himself before he crashed into the wall.

Without wasting a second, I grabbed his arm and flipped him over my shoulder, sending him crashing onto his back. I smiled as he groaned out in pain. Before he could recover, I was on top of him, delivering heavy blows to his face.

Blood started to ooze from my knuckles, and I stopped. Panting, I drew back my hand, poised for another punch.

"Who are you, and what is this place?" I demanded, my fist still raised.

"Ughhh..." he groaned, his eyes rolling back.

I unclenched my fist and slapped him across the face. "Stay with me! Who are you?!" I shouted.

"Paragons... They- they called us Paragons," he mumbled, his voice fading.

"Paragons?" I furrowed my brow in confusion. "The screams... what were you doing to them?"

He stared at me in silence, his expression unreadable. Then I felt an abrupt vibration through his body, followed by a strained, pained sound that echoed like laughter. Blood stained his teeth as his body convulsed. Just when I was about to strike him again, he seized my wrists and flipped me over, pinning me to the floor.

"I'll make you pay, bitch," he snarled, spitting on the tiles beside me. I quickly averted my gaze, and he smirked.

"Try hitting me now and see what I do."

"Die!" I screamed, the word escaping before I could think.

He scrambled off me, his eyes widening in horror as he clutched his throat and began to choke.

It took a moment for me to process what was happening. I scrambled to my feet, watching as he collapsed to his knees, his face turning blue. His eyes were pleading with me.

"Pl-please..." he gasped.

"I... I don't know how," I stammered, taking a few steps back.

This was all new to me. It was the first time I had given a single-word command and watched it take effect.

Not wanting to waste any more time, I grabbed his coat from the floor and quickly slipped it on. Giving his lifeless body one last glance, I made my way toward the door. My heart raced as I stepped out into the corridor and made a run for it.