[Y/N] - Your Name
[M/N] - Middle Name
[L/N] - Last Name
I
["Talking"]
["SCREAMING"]
["Whispering"]
["Thinking"]

* - Translated directly from Italian.

<<<<<< I >[---]< I >>>>>>

Ashlyn: ["Do you see anything? At all?"]

Y/N hummed, his steps slow and careful with the walkie-talkie strapped to his chest, both hands clutching his signature Brixia 1911 with a flashlight underneath the other hand used for support. He looked around the woods, peeking through the trees and the leaves with an ever-careful step. The walls of the facility were huge, way too big for him to crawl over, and with the barbed wire and electric fence, it did him no favors.

He continued looking around, keeping an eye over his shoulder to watch out for any Phantoms or those giant creatures. Delving so deep into the forest was not something he expected to do again — the last time he was, he did end up with a broken neck — but alas, as he completed a full circle, Y/N let out an annoyed groan. Shaking his head, he kept his weapon up, but now took on a more relaxed posture.

Y/N: ["Nothing. No entrances that I can see... The main one is blocked, one hell of a gate, too, so no way I am breaking that"] He looks up at the walls, tilting his head while still talking ["Maybe I can go up through one of the trees and cut down the barbed wire and electric fence before you all power down the generator, it should be simple enough"]

Ashlyn: ["Considering your injury, I'm not sure if that's the best idea. Sure, you're feeling better, but we better not take chances unless we absolutely need to"] The girl's voice sparked through the device in Y/N's chest, prompting him to hum and lean his back against a tree ["Maybe we can power down the main gate and allow for you to enter?"]

Y/N: ["RIght, you got that card from one of the workers... I don't know, maybe? It seems to be really fucking huge, though, so I doubt I'll be able to lift it"] He tilted his head while glancing at the wall, looking at it up from up to down whilst humming ["Maybe I could try and cut it with something... Or chip away at this wall with a sledgehammer, maybe?"]

Ashlyn: ["It's way too strong, it would take nights, nights that we may not even have. We'll keep it as a potential idea for now, but let's try and do something else"] The girl spoke with her usual tone of leadership, prompting Y/N to hum as he started making his way back from where he came ["Hey, uh-... Y/N? Do you mind if we talk...?"]

Y/N: ["... You sound pretty sad, is everything alright?"]

Y/N came to a halt in his walk the moment that the girl's voice had sparked up with an uncharacteristic-melancholic tone in it. He could hear her breathing softly on the other side of the walkie-talkie, as if gathering her nerves for whatever she was going to talk about. Y/N knew it wasn't, well, that, since the two of them agreed to tackle that after they're out, and, unlike Aiden, Ashlyn was a more reasonable, patient person.

Ashlyn: ["You weren't here so you wouldn't know, but there was a guy who took me in for testing, during that same night where you felt something? When I told you they let me with one of those loose "infected"?"] Y/N hummed softly, now returning to walking, and listening as the girl's voice became rather low, needing him to tilt his head down closer to his chest so he could hear her ["My other caretaker, he-... He told me that he and some others were found in a coma. He said they were fine before they went to sleep-"]

Ashlyn's voice went quiet after that, with clear struggle from the girl trying to get her words out. Y/N nodded calmly, still following the trail even if the girl couldn't see that he had motioned. As he continued walking, Y/N looked up at the red skies and the yellow moon, his eyes narrowing as he listened to the girl collect herself. Before she could speak, however, he was the one who decided to talk first, beating her to it.

Y/N: ["And now you're thinking you're to blame for us being here, is that right?"] Ashlyn remained quiet, prompting Y/N to continue looking up ["I won't tell you to think about that, because I know that you will — But we can't go out on theories. I, too, had an affinity for this place, apparently, but if you were the one who pulled us in, why'd that girl bother taking us to that basement anyways? Why'd a Phantom show up there, for that moment?"]

Ashlyn: ["I know freaking out isn't going to resolve anything, I do. It's a good thing, because now we have a better lead, I'm aware, but... It's what happened after that is making me uneasy"] Y/N hummed, as if motioning for the girl to carry on, which she did after a long inhale to mentally-shield herself ["I thought about pulling, and leaving them here..."]

Y/N: ["And you enjoyed the thought"]

Y/N concluded while still looking up. Ashlyn let out a faint, weak, "yes" from the other side, making his usual expressionless face contort into a bit of sadness and understanding. His eyes softened while he bit his lip softly, trying to think of something to say — who would've thought that comforting people would be so hard? Nonetheless, he decided that at least saying something would be better than nothing.

Y/N: ["I thought about that, too, when it came down to Florentino. It was our usual stuff, him teaching me about the... "Family business". All I wanted to do was see him on the receiving end of the equation"] Y/N's voice, too, was rather soft, as he kicked the ground under his feet, kicking up some dust and pebbles while looking around, unsure of what to say ["It may have something to do with us slowly becoming those things, too, but just know that, especially after everything we have been though-... Don't be so harsh on yourself"]

Ashlyn: ["I know, I know... It's just... So much has been going on, and we have always added questions rather than answers, and that took me by surprise, is all"] She said after a tired groan, prompting Y/N to smile softly on his end, returning to his walk as he did so ["At least the headache is gone now. Sleeping in the Phantom World really does help..."]

Y/N: ["Can't believe that y'all are doing cuddle piles without me. I would've let myself be taken, too, if I knew what I'd be missing out on"] He said with a joking tone, unaware that, on her room, Ashlyn also opened a smile ["But I'm glad that all of you are resting well"]

Aiden: ["I can now stand fast without passing out!"]

The excited voice of a known-blonde spoke up suddenly, causing an audible yelp from Ashlyn and the confusion of Y/N, who now found himself sauntering closer back to the streets. He turned down the sound of the walkie-talkie, still hearing only Ashlyn and Aiden and their back and forth while he rapidly walked through the streets as silently as he could, looking around for any Phantoms before he walked to his hotel.

He climbed up the staircase quickly and sauntered over into his room, his walking coming to a grinding halt as he stared at that figure. It kept smiling at him, standing in the middle of the room, unmoving. The distorted figure of himself with white eyes and the ever-present ear-to-ear smirk that showed off all its teeth. Y/N snarled and closed the door before wandering into the room in front of him, also locking it on his way in.

Y/N: ["We also have something else to talk about"] He said out of the blue, looking out the window from his room with a serious gaze, turning up the volume again ["Those things that are following me and Aiden ever since we died — What the hell are they?"]

Aiden looked up from the bed where he and Ashlyn sat on, also staring at the figure of himself staring directly at him over the bathroom door. It peeked its sneering head out, looking at Aiden with a huge grin plastered on its lips. All the blonde did was look away, keeping the same smile on his face, even if he was shocked underneath. Ashlyn also looked at where Aiden's eyes were, but, unlike him, she couldn't see anything.

Aiden: ["Don't even remind me, it's getting harder by the day to ignore this thing... But I guess it's some sort of copy, maybe?"] On his end of the line, Y/N hummed. Leaning against the door, he could hear the breathing of his other self outside ["They don't really do anything other than just stay here staring at us. It's... Really hard to ignore"]

Ashlyn: ["Maybe when both of you "died", since unlike the rest, apparently, we can come and go, this means that you both are not truly dead?"] Aiden and Y/N hummed at the theory, it would kinda of make sense — After all, they apparently could also make the Phantoms manifest outside ["And as opposed to turning into Phantoms, these things are just the in-between of what a Phantom and a human are, since you're both still around?"]

Aiden: ["I guess that makes sense... But ugh, thinking about these things just give me suuuuuuch a headache"] He flopped back on the bed with a groan, covering his face with one of his forearms ["YYYYY///NNNNN... Come on and break us out already!!"]

Y/N: ["I'm half-tempted into leaving you in there, dumbass..."]

Y/N said with a smile as he sat with his back to the door, a smile on his face as he did so. Aiden also smiled, moving his arm a bit up to look up at Ashlyn, who looked down at him. The girl jumped a little when Aiden's other hand softly clutched at hers, but she eventually relaxed in his grip. As if reading each other's mind, they looked at the walkie-talkie in the bed, silently wishing that the distance would be closed already.

Y/N looked down at himself and at his hands, softly running a palm through his neck. The feeling was still lingering, a phantom sensation of sorts that brought him back to that moment every-so-often. It was something he didn't know if he'd ever live down or not, but, to him, right now it didn't quite matter at all. Because, even if it was just their breathing, the sounds of Ashlyn and Aiden on the other end of the line soothed him.

Y/N: ["... We'll make it out of this place, all of us"]

Ashlyn: ["Awfully optimistic... But you're right, we will"]

Aiden: ["Ain't no way I'm being stuck here with these freaky things"]

Y/N: ["And once we're out, I'm definitely spending the next few weeks at home, even if it's a month, because I'll have zero energy to do jackshit..."] He said, slumping against the door still, with his eyes closing, and a yawn escaping his lips at the same time ["I never thought I'd missing living my old life quite as much as when I'm stuck in this Hell..."]

Aiden: ["At least we got each other, and the rest of the group. But mainly each other! No disrespect to them, of course..."] He said with a small chuckle, turning to face the wall in a bit of embarrassment, avoiding Ashlyn's eyes ["But the two of you make me feel like everything is going to be alright — Even if we are in a situation as weird as this one"]

Ashlyn: ["I guess... I just honestly wished there was an easier way out. But daydreaming won't lead us nowhere"] The girl sighs in exhaustion before gaining a more serious attitude, nodding her head as if in affirmation to herself ["At the end of the day, we made it this far. And if just a group of teenagers did all this, who's to say we won't find a way out?"]

Y/N: ["... Thanks, the two of you..."]

Aiden: ["Say that to Ashlyn. She sure knows how to rile up people's spirits..."]

Ashlyn: ["Shut up... ... Being the leader of you two, especially you, Aiden, ain't easy"]

Y/N: ["You know, I'm glad that If I'm going to be stuck, it's with you bunch of idiots, at least"]

◁━━━━━━━━◈━━━━━━━━▷

Ashlyn: ["Turns out Y/N was right... Sleeping in the Phantom world does help-"]

Y/N was about to say something, only for him to silence himself when Ashlyn let out a loud gasp. The girl rapidly kicked up, shoving her dagger-boot into the jaw of a Phantom that swung at her from behind a corner. With her leg raised, she saw another one running at her at full-sprint, only for a pair of garden shears to fly directly at its face, barely missing on the girl's face, leaving only a small cut across her chek.

Looking at him over her shoulder, Ben rapidly apologized, with a fist to his chest, forming a circle. Behind him, Taylor stuck her pickaxe into the head of another Phantom, while the rest of the group were dropping some more of the horde with their respective guns. It took a while before every single one of them had been cleared off, and outside the place, Y/N continued to walk while keeping his eyes and ears sharp.

He could hear very loose sounds of footsteps and silenced gunshots in a few areas, but nothing too precise. He himself was having to drop Phantoms left and right with his gun across the massive forest that surrounded the facility the others were stuck in, so he also didn't have much time for chatter. Deciding that a grind battle isn't something a single person should partake one, he looked up, over his shoulder.

He didn't hesitate to start climbing a tree, putting the flashlight on his mouth and the gun down into its holster. He grunted with the strain on his neck proving itself to make the situation difficult — no wonder Ashlyn told him not to do this — but nothing he couldn't handle. Having climbed into one of the tree's thick branches, he put his foot in there first, testing its weight before he decided to step into it completely.

Y/N: ["How's the situation in there?"]

Ashlyn: ["All clear. We're just about to reach the armory. On your end?"]

Y/N: ["I'll keep hidden on top of a tree for now. I don't need to fight a battle of attrition when I'm all alone"] He said while resting his back against the tree, sighing and glancing down at the branch ["Let's just hope that it doesn't end up like last time I was on a tree..."]

Ashlyn: ["Never thought I'd live to see the day to hear you make a joke"]

Y/N: ["I can be funny, too. I was just too edgy to do that... Keyword being "was"]

Ashlyn: ["Just don't do anything reckless..."]

Y/N: ["You know, I bet I can jump over from this position"]

Ashlyn: ["Do. Not."]

Y/N chuckled while resting his back against the tree and extending his legs, one of them hanging by the side and softly swaying side-by-side. Maybe Aiden was starting to have too much of an influence on him? Although, looking from this distance, with his eyes narrowed, Y/N really saw that he could make the jump, the problem would be the landing. Maybe he could use some rope next night in order to land properly?

Just as he was about to continue thinking, a loud cough from Ashlyn caught his attention. Not one of worry or concern, but a more stern, serious one, as if warning him about something. Rolling his eyes, Y/N laid back down with his eyes closing, and a hand behind his head, the gun still in the holster. He looked down with a single eye open, seeing the Phantoms walking around, as if searching for him all around.

There was a moment of silence on Y/N's side before he shut off the walkie-talkie strapped to his chest to keep everything quiet as he hid himself in the leaves a bit more. He kept looking down with his eyes narrowed, crouching, trying to appear as small as possible so that the Phantoms would not catch a single glimpse of him. Looking down at the ground, his body subconsciously trembled from last time.

The memories were a bit harsh when it came flooding down all of a sudden, making Y/N stumble a bit before he found his footing, clutching the tree tightly. Sweat dropped from his face, his breathing became erratic, and his vision was starting to shake, too. He clenched his teeth, trying as best as he could to calm down, at one point, shutting his eyes and focusing solemnly on his breathing as he did so.

No matter how much he was trying, to shake off the feelings and the thoughts of what had happened, his body was still keen on reminding him. The aching sensation on his neck, the figure staring at him wherever he went — Even now, that fucker was staring at him from down there. Glaring up with his ever-wide smile. Before Y/N could even register what happened, tears had began to form in the corner of his eyes as well.

He continued to clutch the tree with his nails digging into the bark, his feet still shaking and his legs quaking. He reached ahead for the walkie-talkie, it stumbling around in his hand as he did so. Y/N leaned against the tree more, using his legs as a way to keep himself tightly and standing up-right, and his other hand to turn the device back on, where it sprung to life with a small and short, but audible "Bzzzt!".

Ashlyn: ["Y/N?"]

The voice soothed him like his muscles were sore from a long day of work, and he could finally take a warm bath. He exhaled, leaning his back against the trunk of the tree with sweat still dripping down his face while resting an arm on his face. Breathing heavily and finally being able to calm down, he swallowed away the fear and the trembling sensation he was feeling, wiping his forehead clean with a nod.

Y/N: ["Yeah, yeah. I'm... I'm here"]

Ashlyn: ["Your voice sounds sick... Are you alright?"]

Y/N: ["Just had to run to another place, is all, I'm good'] He cleared his throat, his sharp eyes narrowing forward ["What's up? Did you and the rest make it to the armory?"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah, but... We ran into our parents..."]

Y/N could not see Ashlyn turning around and facing the adults, all of which were clad in pure white, much like the kids when they were nabbed. Everyone of them appeared surprised at hearing the voice of Y/N from the other side, especially with how tired he had sounded, but Ashlyn, calmly breaking off the hug from her father and mother, picked up the walkie-talkie and brought it to her mouth, keeping her eyes narrowed.

Ashlyn: ["Y/N, you were gone for thirty minutes, is everything really alright?"]

Y/N: ["... ... We'll talk about that later, for the time being, I'm safe and sound"] He said, his voice sounding a bit more serious, prompting Ashlyn to let out a sigh ["But like, all of them? Not just yours and Aiden's, but everyone else's parents have been taken as well?"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah, we were just about to talk what happened, but when I called to you, you didn't answer"] Ashlyn heard the boy sigh on the other end of the line, so she just carried on ["If you're doing alright, we can talk about what has been going on, then?"]

Y/N: ["Yeah, let's. I'll... Keep quiet, but I'm here, don't worry"]

Ashlyn didn't like the sound of that, but instead of confronting him here and now, she looked at her father, seeing the man nod. As they listened to his story about having been attacked and put to sleep just like the rest of them, there was a growing concern in Ashlyn's chest. Both because the red-eyed blonde passed out on sleep in his wheelchair, and the heavy breathing that had been coming from Y/N's end, too.

Not only that, but, as they gathered and sat around to rest, there was also visible anger building on her, which she managed to keep under control, at her father's story, especially at the mention of how her mother had been injured. His mention of having met another man in the cells downstairs was something interesting for sure, and something the girl made sure to keep in mind, along with what she wanted to say.

Y/N: ["I call bullshit. They don't think we are mentally ill at all... Didn't they give you an excuse of a zombie fungus or whatever?"] Ashlyn, even if the question wasn't exactly asked at her outloud, nodded ["They would've taken me, too, if I didn't fight back..."]

Mike: ["Speaking of, how did you manage to avoid being grabbed?"] The man spoke, which made Y/N's and Ashlyn's eyes widen a tiny bit ["I managed to knock down a few of them before they put me down for good and injected me with that serum, but even then-"]

Y/N: ["My butler, Elio, was with me. He's from the military, too, remember? We managed to notice them before they could get the drop on us"] Y/N said, and, behind her father, Ashlyn let out a relaxed — That, and Y/N wasn't exactly lying either ["There is more that needs to be said, but I think that should wait until I manage to find my way inside"]

Mike: ["Found your way inside?"]

Y/N: ["My brother booked me a room in the nearest hotel possible. I also found a way to sneak around in the forest surrounding this place... It's heavily-secured, I'll tell you that much"] They heard a bit of leaves rustling and footsteps, as well as the creaking of what sounded like wood ["Right now on top of a tree outside, overlooking a possible way in — I could easily make the jump, but the landing... And there is your daughter, too"]

Ashlyn: ["You are in no condition to be trying to jump over barbed wire, Y/N..."]

Y/N: ["Case in point. Anyways, right now I'm trying to find a way inside... We thought about deactivating the lights so that I could cut the electric fence and barbed wire to climb in"] Y/N chimed up, the sounds still echoing from his end, before they stopped with a loud creaking ["So right now I'm just kinda on lookout, keeping an eye outside and all..."]

Ashlyn: ["Back on topic, everyone upstairs was either staff, infected, or in a coma, us six being the exception... And down here the only ones we know for sure were you all and that Charlie guy"] The girl carried on, her green eyes focusing on the ground with a contemplating look ["So I assume those they brought from downstairs... They did something to cause them to fall unconscious until they turned into those infected"]

Logan: ["Wait... So how did the rest of them get in this dimension?"]

Emma: ["We don't know. We were downstairs for a couple of weeks and weren't able to come up with a solid way to escape"] Leaning against the wall with her arms crossed, the woman comments with a serious, focused gaze ["But last night, everything was eerily quiet, and Charlie wasn't in his cell. We called out to the guards, but there was no answer... So after an entire day, and some suspicious lock-picking skills"] Everyone's gaze followed hers, leading to the old gentleman in the room, Logan's eyes in particular widening a bit ["We were able to get out of the cell. Laying at the entrance of the stairs were the guard's guns and supplies, so we took some of those and found a utility closet to arm ourselves"] Ashlyn listened on, nodding with her gaze set ["MIke went ahead to scout, we got surrounded by those creatures, and then you kids jumped in from nowhere"]

Mike: ["Hey... When did this happen?"]

After a moment of silence from his wife's retelling of the events that led to all of this, he reached ahead. He gently took Ashlyn's arm in his hand, staring at the cuts present in her forearm, those from months ago when she was first grabbed, from the first Phantom, something which brought back to her a variety of memories. None of which were particularly good. Still, she remained with the same calm gaze she had.

Ashlyn: ["Months ago, when this all started. It's not a big deal..."] She said, her father still holding her arm in her hand while at it ["The others have scars from these nights, too... They said they came here last night, and Alex said three others have fallen into a comas well"] The girl fell in her thoughts, eyes narrowing as she stared at her hands with her emerald eyes softly dropping ["If it was similar to when I got this scar at the Sorrel House... Aiden took a picture of the map from the laptop on the phone we found, yeah?"]

Ashlyn stood up, calmly and gently hushing off her father's grip from her arm as she did so. Standing up and walking towards the blonde in the wheelchair, she crouched in front of him, her hand, adorned by the bracelet that Taylor had so lovingly made last night, reached ahead. As she did so, about to dig into his pocket, however, Aiden rapidly jumped up, awakening and snatching the girl's wrist with his palm.

Aiden: ["HELLO??? What's going on? Where we at?!"]

Ashlyn: ["I'm looking at the map you took a picture of..."]

Y/N: ["Welcome back to the land of the living! Would you like anything?"] Y/N said, his voice coming from Ashlyn's walkie-talkie ["Something to eat? Maybe a massage?"]

Ashlyn / Mike: ["Stop with the jokes at this hour. It's annoying"]

Aiden stifled a laugh at Y/N's audible surprise at how quickly he had been shut down. With a hand covering his mouth, Aiden tried to hold back his laughter as much as he could, to no avail. There was a quick remark from Y/N's end — likely insulting Aiden in a few different Italian words — that they could not understand, as Ashlyn held onto the phone. She looked at the map, zooming it in with her eyes still serious and cold.

Ashlyn: ["Their cell was right below where I was attacked in that room, so it was me"] The girl rationalized outloud after a moment of thinking, still crouching in front of Aiden ["... I was the one who pulled you guys in. First it was the others... It was my fault"]

Taylor: ["It's not-"]

Aiden: ["... You-"]

Y/N: ["Ashlyn. We talked about this, didn't we? Don't be so harsh on yourself when you don't even know for certainty what you did, or what's going on"] Y/N said, cutting in front of everyone as his voice spoke up, his eyes narrowing behind the line, looking at the facility in front of him with an intense gaze ["We will find our way out, trust that"]

Tyler: ["What he said. If you did pull us in, then there's gonna be a way for you to pull us out"] He comments up as well, arms crossing in front of his chest as he leans back against a wall ["Alongside our parents, and whoever else you decide to drag in here"]

Ashlyn: ["I DIDN'T decide to bring anyone here"]

Tyler: ["Then stop acting like you did, carrot-for-brains"]

Aiden: ["Ash doesn't even like carrots, half-wit"]

Y/N: ["Who does? Those things taste disgusting!"]

Logan: ["We're getting side-tracked..."]

Lily: ["I thought you guys would be cooler!"]

Taylor: ["Sorry to disappoint..."]

Ashlyn let out a sigh when she rested up against the wall, feeling her muscles unclench and finally, properly chill out. She could hear the soft whistling of the wind and the sound of leaves coming from Y/N's side, prompting her eyes to focus on the device strapped to her chest. There was the sound of wood and something stabbing on it, and then the sound of someone landing, rather roughly, against leaves.

Y/N: ["I'll make my way back to the apartment. I'll cut off communications to be sure no Phantoms hear me"] He said while the sound of footsteps came in following his voice, prompting Ashlyn to sit up ["Call me back in, give or take, 30 minutes. I should be fine"]

Aiden: ["... Have some faith on him, he's done this so many days by now, it's gonna be fine"] Aiden said while looking at Ashlyn and noticing the girl's worried gaze, which made her exhale out in exhaustion ["I think we should focus on resting right now..."]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah... ... Y/N got this..."]

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Y/N: ["I got scared from last time, that's all..."]

Y/N set down his gun and the walkie-talkie by the side of the bathroom's sink, turning on the water and splashing some on his face in order to wash away the dirt and dust from having climbed the tree. That, and dried tears that had been wiped away onto his skin from the moment he found himself nearly falling from how scared he was. He stared at himself in the mirror, seeing his serious gaze softly softening at himself.

Ashlyn: ["You should have told me..."]

Y/N: ["I know, but things were dire, and the situation with having found y'all's parents wasn't exactly suited for it. I'm sorry"] He said, picking up his phone and walking back to his bedroom, falling back-first against it while doing so, closing his eyes ["I just thought I could handle it, I was just fine when talking to you, but when I got all alone, I freaked out"]

Ashlyn: ["I see. No more climbing trees from now on, then, got it?"] Y/N was ready to argue, but the girl beat him to it before he even opened his mouth ["The last thing we need is you getting hurt again, and without us being able to help from the inside, alright?"]

Y/N: ["... Sure..."]

Ashlyn: ["Y/N. I need you to tell me- PROMISE me, you won't try anything reckless, please"] Her voice was seriou, but its undertone of concern was more than palpable ["We can't afford to have anything happen again. And I-... I don't want to lose you..."]

Y/N: ["If it makes you feel better, alright. I promise I won't try anything reckless. It's just-... I must admit, that I kind of feel useless as of late"] Ashlyn let out a surprised "huh?" on her end, prompting Y/N to sit up, sigh, and pinch the bridge of his nose ["I know it's stupid, I know, but I wish I could help out more — Blowing it up is too dangerous, and I can't find a way in. But I still wanted to see if there was anything I could do help you all get out!"]

Ashlyn: ["Y/N... You are helping us, you idiot..."] The girl's voice was like a slap in the face, but not one that hurt, instead, it comforted ["Honestly, if it weren't for you, things would be going much harder, and thanks to you being out there, we can at least plan out a proper escape route, right? And... I also appreciate these one-on-one moments. A lot..."]

Y/N: ["Yeah, I-... I like them, too... I found something. A route and a way we can escape, if things get dire"] Y/N said while he stood up, walking towards the window and looking over into the horizon ["Should it hit the fan, we'll need to bolt as fast as we can. Elio can give us a ride up to a certain point — There is a train line nearby, we can hop onto it"]

Ashlyn: ["You don't mean jump in a moving train, do you?"]

Y/N: ["If the situation calls for it, we might just need to do. Don't worry, there's a guy on YouTube who does it all the time"] His words were not one bit comforting for poor Ashlyn yet again ["But if we somehow manage to sneak away in the middle of the night quietly, we can drive until we are far enough for our bodies to reset their position"]

Ashlyn: ["That's gonna be tricky, going as far as the school wasn't enough, and when you moved on so far away it wasn't, right?"] Y/N hummed in approval and nodded, prompting Ashlyn, on her end, to also sigh ["We might need a few good hours of travel on a car, then — We could borrow Elio's, but it would still be kinda risky with those things"]

Y/N: ["I managed to take down one of those huge monsters, but I had planned beforehand. Now... Not so much. Honestly, I just want to break you all out of there as quickly as I can"] Y/N sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose again as he fell to his knees, resting his face against the bed with a tired groan ["... This whole thing is way too much for me..."]

Ashlyn: ["Don't be such a crybaby. We made it this far, so we are definitely making our way out, sooner or later, just hang on a bit more"] As deadpan as her gaze was, she did have a smirk on her face, one that she was glad Y/N couldn't see ["Go and try to get some rest, alright? We'll plan out some more tomorrow, but you should try to get some sleep"]

Y/N: ["Ugh, whatever you say, MOM..."]

Ashlyn: ["If you don't want me to worry, don't fall in love with me, jackass!"]

Y/N: ["Way-too-late, dumbass!"]

He spat back with his eyes narrowing and his face being removed from the bed. Both fell in silence, the weight of their words starting to sink in — Was it embarrassment? Shame? Perhaps all of that mixed with a bit of exhaustion and anger. Nonetheless, the first one to break was Y/N, who let out a small chuckle as he properly laid down on hte bed, keeping his eyes looking outside, with the walkie-talkie next to him still.

Y/N: ["Sorry... Forgot we'll talk about this later..."]

Ashlyn: ["It's alright. I forgot for a bit there, too. Seriously, though, go rest, tomorrow we talk more about our planning, alright?"] Y/N hummed with a nod as he laid down properly, letting out a yawn when he did so, only proving that Ashlyn was right ["And, when we get out of here, we'll properly discuss that — Until then, let's focus. Good night, Y/N"]

Y/N: ["Night... Thanks, for everything"]

Ashlyn: ["Right back at you..."]

◁━━━━━━━━◈━━━━━━━━▷

Y/N: ["A letter? From your caretaker?"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah, Alex... ... All of you, go sit down. Now."] Even Y/N couldn't help but shiver slightly at how serious the tone of the girl was, imagine the rest of the group that was around her ["I hadn't mentioned it to you, but we came up with a method of communication since they keep us under heavy surveillance. He puts his notes in the clean laundry, and I read them at night. Then I put my notes in the dirty laundry during the day-"]

Y/N: ["And he reads them when he has the time, got it... Smart!"] Y/N got himself comfortable in his bed, nodding along while humming ["So, what does that one say?"]

Ashlyn: ["He asys they found our parents in a coma in their cells. We assumed that was the case when they say they didn't wake up after seven hours..."] Everyone sat around, and Y/N listened attentively, humming as Ashlyn's eyes looked up ["Ah, right, Y/N, you weren't here, so you wouldn't know, but they have been going through whatever they can find about files and information, all while we map out and memorize the layout of this place"]

Y/N: ["And I have been trying to find any weak spots in their defenses. Also finished mapping out two escape routes — One in case we get out loud, and one in case we get out loudly"] He said while going over a map on top of the bed which he had massively drawn out, dragging around the tip of his pencil on the lines he made, not even if anyone would see it ["I also saw the lights at night. You all turned on the generator?"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah, but we also learned something else which I wanted to tell you about"] Y/N hummed for the girl to carry on as her eyes inspected the letter with careful eyes ["Things don't move around in the Phantom dimension when we wake up in the human realm and time resumes, instead, they stay the same until 12 AM"] Y/N, looking up at the ceiling, nodded and hummed along to let the girl know he was following along to what she was saying ["And once 12 AM hits, objects that were in one place before will shift to another if it had been moved in this 24 hours period — But, as we had figured out, if we messed with them in the Phantom dimension, then it doesn't move around in your word"]

Y/N: ["Riiiiight... Well, I suppose that would prove itself useful somehow, but I can't think of anything from the top of my head"] Y/N said while tapping his chin with his index finger, still looking up, deep in thought ["Well, anything else being said on that letter?"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah. Something reaaaaaal great... So this is why we haven't been able to access the higher-level information anymore. Turns out that with the previous head in a coma now, that Maverick dude is the one taking over"] Ashlyn continued to scan the letter for a few more moments before directing her eyes to the rest of the group, putting the letter down ["So all access to the information is now under his card instead, so we would need to nab it. And now only is he a "secret revolutionist", but, to top it all off, he's also a cult leader"]

Tyler: ["Can't say I didn't see that one coming. He looks like a cult leader"]

Logan: ["Why kind of cult is that?"]

Aiden: ["Probably something about birds. They all have that crane thing going on"]

Ashlyn: ["Huh- Maverick is... Mr. Thomas?"]

Amidst the silence of people trying to process the information on how such a sweet teacher could be such a massive edgelord, a whistle rang by. Y/N nearly jumped from his bed thanks to the sudden sound coming from the walkie-talkie loud enough to jumpscare him, courtesy of Ben going crazy and flailing his arms around. As Ashlyn directed her attention to the mute boy, raising an eyebrow for him to continue.

Ben (through TTS): ["He knew about Logan and I in detail, and when I said we accepted his arrangement, he said something that Mr. Thomas used to say a lot"] Y/N had to really listen since the device couldn't really pick the voice from Ben's phone ["I'd been so distracted by him saying he knew we could talk, and it didn't click when he said "alrighty"]

Logan: ["That-... Was an habit of his, yeah"]

Taylor: ["We should go ahead and tell Mike and the others to see what they think"]

Ashlyn: ["I almost forgot... Y/N, any new developments on your end of things?"]

Y/N: ["Yeah, some. I found a proper track that we can run, and memorized the fastest routes to a bunch of different spots, too"] He looked around his room for a moment, everyone could hear the sound of him rummaging through something ["I talked with Florentino and, on the big day, he'll have something and someone waiting. Whatever that means"]

Tyler: ["I still don't think we should thrust that psycho"]

Y/N: ["And I agree wholeheartedly, but we aren't trusting him, we are using him. He'll give us what we want, and we'll bolt before he can do anything, simple as that"] Y/N replied, and they finally heard the sounds stop, only hearing Y/N flop down on his bed again ["And I doubt he would really bother. If he wanted us dead for whatever reason, he would send someone — He is the type who hates getting his own hands dirty unless necessary"]

Aiden: ["Wasn't exactly against it the day we met..."]

Y/N: ["Because he didn't know what we had gone through, nor that I was changing so fast from who I used to be. He wanted to humiliate us, make himself feel better. To have us dead, he doesn't need that"] Y/N let out a tired sigh at the thought of that day. Rubbing his temple before looking out the window one more time ["And I also memorized the times of the trains, which, since we'll be fugitives from the government, it'll be our best bet"]

Ashlyn: ["Jumping on a train with yours and Aiden's injuries sound like a terrible idea"] The girl replied with a murmur, throwing a glance at Aiden who put an offended hand in his chest ["... One thing that's been itching me, though, why would he go undercover?"]

Y/N: ["Maybe he was targeting us specifically?"]

Logan: ["We know he's against this facility... Maybe he'd been trying to work discretely"] Sitting on the bed with his legs crossed and hands put together, Logan chirped up ["Separate from the facility, and needed a disguise since he's a known-face here?"]

Taylor: ["Yeah, but he'd used the government guys to kidnap us, so I don't see the point"] Sitting on the ground by his side, back to the wall with her head tilted, Taylor added in ["If they were willing to help him, then they already knew he was in disguise"]

Tyler: ["Maybe they didn't? The facility could've sent the men first, and asked Mr. Thomas to cooperate"] Also against the wall, and with his arms crossed, Tyler spoke ["You know, "this is the government" and whatnot? Doing it without knowing Maverick was Mr. Thomas?"]

Aiden: ["Well, if we were gonna just end up here anyways, why would he go through all the trouble?"] Now it was the turn of the injured blonde to add to the conversation with a shrug of his shoulders ["There has to be an ulterior motive for him to have done all that"]

Ashlyn: ["Oh... OH..."]

Tyler: ["If you aren't gonna share, just hand it over"]

Y/N: ["Hate to agree, but don't end on cliffhangers like that..."]

Tyler: ["... The apocalypse? The cult guys want to start the apocalypse?!"]

Y/N: ["Alright, you are not making it any better, Tyler. Just read the paper, man!"]

Tyler: ["The facility is trying to create the infected as means of using them as super soldiers. Maverick is pretending to work for them with his own motives in mind"] His eyes scanned the paper with attention and surprise, only adding more fuel to the fire ["He has the goal of destroying not only this facility, but also the entire world along with it. You kids play a substantial part on this — particularly Lorenzo's kid — and they plan to use you for it..."]

Aiden: ["... ... ... Who the fuck is Lorenzo?"]

Y/N: ["My dad. The same man who, apparently, also has access to the Phantom World. Just like his father, and the father before him"] Y/N's voice rang, and it sounded a lot more serious and focused than before. They could hear the resentment and the hatred clear in his tone ["If they know about my father, then they sure as hell will want me in particular"]

Taylor: ["Right. Your brother did say that your family seemed to have an ever-weakening link to the Phantom dimension..."] The girl said, still leaning against the wall while trying to collect her thoughts ["I... I really don't know what to make of this, but one thing's clear-"]

Ashlyn: ["Yeah..."]

Even without words, Y/N, too, had already realized. Everyone glanced around each other in the room with serious gazes, they appeared to be a mixture of sadness with determination, focus and commitment layering upon tragedy. Ashlyn, in particular, bounced her leg in anxiety while biting her lower lip, clenching her fists at the thought that crossed her mind — With clear strain present in her voice, the leader spoke up.

Ashlyn: ["We can't escape with our parents..."]

<<<<<< I >[---]< I >>>>>>

[Published in - 04/16/2025]
[Word Count - 7.615]

Hey besties!
Again, sorry for the time that is taking to update this story. I sometimes feel like, even today where I locked in and wrote about 5K words in a single day, sometimes I'm not doing enough, for whatever reason. Still, now that I'm going to take a break with gathering chapters of my future My Hero Academia fic behind the scenes, this story should see more updates more frequently, alongside my new Cyberpunk fic, too!