They had escaped the enemy, but Twilight felt trapped inside her own skin. The scenery outside never seemed to change; it was always fog, always road, always moving with her. Those moments kept playing in her head like a broken record, repeating the same flashes of gunfire, the sounds of injured cries, and the touch of warm blood upon her hands. As the thoughts of the dead and dying lingered in her mind, so did the tears well in her eyes. She was tempted to let them flow, like blood from a gaping wound. But she remembered the face of her guardian, lying in the middle of the road as the light in his determined eyes began to dim. She remembered what he told her. She ignored the knot in her gut, and ceased her tears in a permanent scowl. She said nothing, thought nothing, and kept her focus on the road in front of them. It was Sledge’s last request: she had to be strong.
The GPS lead them deeper into the forest, where the public roads disappeared into a network of lonely paths and tangled dirt trails. The fog had lifted slightly, but only enough to make out the thickets of barren trees and massive boulders on the side of the road. Their path wound through the rising forest and climbed the base of the mountain, steadily ascending across long narrows and jagged switchbacks . The car bucked left and right over uncertain terrain like a rebellious horse, threatening to toss them down the mountain’s jagged slopes. But as they climbed, the road began to relent. The fog began to withdraw as they neared the top, and Twilight could appreciate the breathing room. And as their car crested the summit, the manor’s splendor came into full view.
Surrounded by a forest of desolate trees, Selenic Manor was a bastion of civility. Standing two stories tall, the manor could have been mistaken for an ancient gothic church, were it not for the curious-looking dome-shaped construction that protruded through the manor’s roof. Its walls were made of slate-grey stone, standing flatly upright as if to stand at attention. The corners of the manor’s roof was adorned with gargoyles, whose watchful eyes seemed to keep the haze at bay. The stone ledges were ornately etched with motifs of bats, flowing water, and the various cycles of the moon. A cobblestone court led its guests around a crescent-shaped path, leading from the open gate to the front of the manor.
The lone car pulled in front of the manor’s stone stairway. As the engine was turned off, it seemed to shudder with a sigh of relief; its passengers did the same. Both of them felt utterly languished. Spike sunk back into his seat while Twilight slouched over the steering wheel; her body may have been weeping with exhaustion, but her mind refused to relent. Her eyes scanned the dents from deflected bullets and smears of blood on the windows and hood of the car. Her head sunk lower, but she forced her emotions at bay.
“Sis,” Spike asked from the rear, “Are you alright?”
It was a stupid question. A stupid, stupid question with no right answer. She couldn’t tell him the truth. She had to be strong. Whatever that meant.
A familiar weight tugged at her arm. Twilight looked at the Kevlar handcuffs, and at the mysterious black case still attached to it. With all the time she had spent with it on, she had grown acclimated to its heft; with all that had happened, she had forgotten about its purpose, and hers. But the black-haired student never thought twice about obeying orders. With this case, she would complete her mission. She would get home safely. They would all get home safely.
Twilight wasted no time getting outside. Her hands and feet were still shaking as they climbed up the manor’s stone staircase. As she stepped upon the final stair, the pair of the fine wood doors opened. From the darkness inside, three figures took her by surprise. Standing side by side, three heavy-set men stood guard over the entrance, a permanent grimace hidden behind a pair of tinted sunglasses. The storm grey suit jackets and charcoal undershirts concealed them within the darkened room, but the bulletproof vest and magazine-clad pouches protruding from underneath their uniform announced their true purpose. Their index fingers waited in disciplined anticipation upon the triggers of their FN P90 personal defense weapons. From behind the pairs black narrowed lenses, the human gargoyles looked down upon her.
“Twilight?” the middle man grunted.
Her first reaction was to run, but her feet remained frozen to the ground. The girl sheepishly sank into her shoes. “Yes?”
The man pressed a finger against his throat microphone. Even though his eyes were hidden behind a pair of tinted lenses, Twilight knew the man never broke eye contact, even as he spoke. “She’s here.”
The sound of footsteps began to echo from the hallway inside. As they neared, the guards parted ways, taking their positions with their backs against the wall. Another man, dressed in a similar uniform, removed his pair of sunglasses as he approached. The man was younger than he looked, but the series of thin, deep creases on his face betrayed his age; during his career of sleepless diligence, he wore those wrinkles with pride. His expression was as cold and tempered as the others’, but he seemed to stand a head above his subordinates. Not even sparing a polite smile for the greeting, he outstretched a leathery hand as his voice growled, “Twilight. My name’s Manticore, Midnight’s interim head of security.”
Twilight reached to shake his hand, but was soon overcome with her panicked report. The words just flowed from her mouth. “Manticore, something’s wrong. Our convoy was attacked, and-“
The grizzled man was less than sympathetic. He held up his hand, “We are well aware of the situation, ma’am. Do you or your assistant require medical attention?”
She shook her head, “No, but-“
“I assure you that we are doing everything we can regarding the situation. However, Midnight ordered that you be brought to her immediately upon your arrival.” He moved aside and motioned towards the open darkness. “This way. Follow me.”
Twilight and Spike followed Manticore through the lavish halls of the mansion. Their shoes clacked against the black marble floors as they wandered through the mansion’s main hall. Silver-framed paintings adorned the fine-wooded walls, but the portraits impossible to distinguish due to the imposing darkness. Within each room they crossed, every window had been closed and every curtain drawn shut. The dark-clad guards stood at their post like specters, blending seamlessly into the shadows.
“Question,” Spike announced, “Don’t you think it’s a little dark in here? Is it even safe to be wearing sunglasses in a place like this?”
“My men are as capable with operating in the dark as much as you are in the light. The Umbra guards have always been trained to operate in low-light environments. It’s in our name, and in our nature.“
“Okay. And the sunglasses are for…”
“Optical aids. Just as you require night vision to see in the dark, we require sunglasses to see in the day.” There was a pause as if to question Spike’s motivations for asking. “It is a security measure. I assure you that the darkness is merely a precaution. It is for your own good. “
A wretched feeling began building inside her gut that trickled up her spine and through her body. Twilight understood that the black-suited security was necessarily tight around a meeting of such importance, but the feeling still remained. She felt the urge to stop: stop thinking, stop walking, stop everything. She couldn’t put her finger on what was wrong, or why. Probably just my nerves. I have to get over it.
There was a slight relief at the pleasant sound of classical music, drifting through the air as Manticore led them past the living room. Opening a set of glass double doors, he gestured them inside, “After you.”
Twilight and Spike hesitantly stepped out from the darkened halls, and they soon found themselves embraced by the clouded daylight. The room resembled a garden balcony, perched outside the manor’s confining walls. The walls and ceilings were made of a transparent material, delivering a flawless, panoramic view of the surrounding landscape. Blankets of thick fog rolled below them, flowing endlessly across the horizon. Below the overcast sky, the mountain estate was a lone island stranded by a sea of grey haze. The room was completely insulated by inch-thick panes of reinforced Plexiglas; it would take a devastating amount of force to even scratch it. She pressed her hand against the window to try and reach into the vastness beyond, only to touch an impassable barrier.
She turned away from the windowed walls. A fixture in the center of the room caught her eye, and she began to approach with divine curiosity. It was a beautifully decorated pool of water, shaped as a hemisphere with its curves directed perfectly East. Its border displayed the lunar phases, beginning on and with a new moon and cresting with a full moon. The basin was built into the stone floor and contained no more than an inch depth of water. As shallow as it may have been, the water trapped inside was perfectly serene, a mirror of flawless clarity that had been undisturbed for many years.
As she looked into the reflecting pool, what she found froze her stiff. Staring back at her was a face, marked by fear and hurt. Her hair was a mess, strewn into an errant scattering of pink and black. Skin was scratched and broken, forming fresh scars across the cheeks, nose, and forehead. Despite her best attempts to wipe it all away, small smears of blood still stained her face, neck, and clothes. And, staring back at her were a pair of tired violet eyes, bloodshot by pain and sorrow. Lost in her own image, Twilight couldn’t tear herself away. The black-haired girl gazed deeply into the stricken eyes in front of her; she was reading into her own wounded soul. Ruin flowed through her. Salty tears stung as they trickled through the still-fresh cuts. And as those tears silently dripped down her cheeks and from her face, they rippled across the mirror’s lucid surface.
“Beautiful, is it not?” The baritone voice reverberated the air, catching both Spike and Twilight offguard.
Twilight turned around and wiped her eyes as a figure emerged from the darkness behind her. The slender woman stepped into the grey sunlit room with Manticore and an entourage of guards behind her. The middle-aged woman looked exactly like the pictures from the briefing. The color of her dress matched that of her pitch black hair, and the two entities waved from her body by a divine wind. The heels of her shoes clacked against the stone floors in confident stride as she approached.
“The guards stationed here created a legend, that Luna filled it with water using nothing more than her own regrets. Every night, she would gaze into the pool, reflect upon the sins she had committed, and fill the pool once more. Ever since the first day of her imprisonment, this room had become something of a home for her- an obsession, if you wish. She would spend entire nights here, staring up towards the moon-lit sky and down into the pool before you. She never said what she was looking for. No one knows what she saw. But she never spoke, and she never stopped. I choose to think that she was merely waiting for the day when her sins could be forgiven, and she could be free once again.”
Both Twilight and Spike bowed reverently in the woman’s presence. They greeted her in unison, as dictated by tradition, “Greetings, Director Midnight.”
The shadowy director did not return the gesture. “Twilight, Spike, our guests of honor. I’ve been eagerly expecting you both.”
Twilight raised her head and immediately stepped forward, “Ma’am, there is an urgent matter at hand. Our convoy was attacked by an unknown enemy. Cell has-”
She shrugged off Twilight’s concern with an indifferent wave of her hand, “Yes, I am very well aware of the situation, and I hope you can illuminate the matter further. However, there is something I must ask first.” Midnight turned to Spike, standing idly beside his sister, “Spike, our communications system with the Institute appears to have been severed. We believe it to be a technical fault. You were trained as a technical specialist, were you not?”
“Top of my class in technical and communications operations, and it’s my final year of intelligence analysis,” he confidently replied.
“Very good. I will have you escorted to our communications room. Do whatever you must to reconnect us with the Institute’s network.”
Spike was honored to put his skills to use on something so crucial; he already felt like a part of the rescue effort. With a weary grin, he nodded obediently before the Umbra guards escorted him outside. Midnight and Manticore shared a subtle nod before the latter left the room as well.
Midnight motioned towards a set of tables and two chairs on the side of the room. Her voice was like a strict mother’s: polite, pleasant, and authoritative, “My dear Twilight, you must be exhausted. Please, have a seat.”
Twilight’s body was still reeling from exhaustion. She graciously accepted the offer. As she reached to pull her chair out, she recognized the ornate ironwork on the back and arms. The table and chairs were identical to the ones within the Institute’s Palace garden. She remembered the lush beds of flowers, the many cultivations of rare plants, and the maze of manicured hedges. It was there, under a beautiful sky and the beaming sun, she received her first lessons as Cell’s protégé. And the first lesson was proper etiquette.
Despite her fatigue, Twilight stood up a little straighter. “I… I feel fine standing, thank you.”
“But you’ve had such a long journey. There’s no reason to stay standing. Please, sit.”
“I don’t wish to be rude, but I must decline. Cell would disapprove of such disregard of formality. She would never allow her subordinates to sit during a meeting whilst she wasn’t present. I must wait until she is here.”
“But Cell isn’t here, is she? You should not worry about anyone else other than yourself, Twilight. Take a seat. Everything that will happen shall happen in due time.”
“I’m sorry, ma’am, but it would not be appropriate for me to-“
The pleasant politeness of Midnight’s voice vanished, replaced by the venom of impatience, “I said sit!”
Twilight, shocked by the sudden change of heart, immediately complied.
With a content grin, Midnight began to circle the table like a hawk, her heels still clacking against the stone floors. “I’m glad you came, my dear. It is a pity that neither Cell nor Luna could attend today’s meeting. As you know, something… unexpected came up for them both. But you musn’t worry, Twilight. You must not worry about your betters.”
With a wave of her hand, the last of the guards exited the room. The sound of the glass doors slamming shut echoed through the chamber. Twilight could feel her gut filling with dread as Midnight continued to speak in her falsely-sweet tone, “In spite of- or perhaps because of- our current circumstances, I do believe we have much to discuss. I have been dying to see you ever since I first learned of you.”
“You have? But… I’m no one important, ma’am. I’m just a stu-“
“’-Just a student’, surely. Believe me, were you just another sniveling student in Cell’s mouthful of an Institute, she wouldn’t have gone through such extensive measures to hide your existence from the others, and from me. Of all of the records on each of the Institute’s students, only yours is filed directly through Cell’s personal office. As the rules would have it, merely viewing the file would have to be personally authorized by the woman herself. Yet despite her best bureaucratic attempts, my sources were able to uncover quite a bit of information on you.” Midnight’s confident fingers interlaced as they rested on the table. “You’ve always been a curious student. Would you like to hear what I know?”
As a grin creased her thin, aged lips, Midnight rested her chin on her fingers, leaning forward onto the cool, cast iron table in anticipation. Her dark turquoise eyes flickered with enjoyment as they scanned over her guest of honor. The two halves of Twilight’s mouth were shut like a safe, unwilling to utter even the smallest breath. Something was clearly amiss.
“I can tell you’re afraid, Twilight. I am too, my dear. And I can also guarantee Cell is feeling fear for the first time… in a long time. But you should not avoid it: you should embrace it. Fear is natural, merely uncertainty in the face of the unknown. And these are exciting times for us all, are they not?”
Twilight avoided looking at the woman’s piercing eyes, “Ma’am, with all due respect, we should discuss about the situation at hand. Someone attacked us. People died back there. What are we doing about it?”
“Nothing,” she answered with despicable disdain, “they were necessary casualties. To be expected.”
Twilight’s jaw fell agape at Midnight’s callous answer, “Necessary? Necessary for what?”
“Necessary for a change in leadership.”
The knot in her gut was twisting tighter and tighter as blood flushed from her face. Baffled, she stammered to ask, “W-w-What? I don’t understand…”
“You’re simpler than you sound. Do you not see? Cell betrayed us.”
Such an impossible accusation stung as it fell upon her ears. Twilight immediately replied with an accusation of her own, “You’re lying!”
“Am I now? I have lied to you no more than Cell has. The fact of the matter is that she betrayed us with her weakness. Her incompetence put the entire organization, and the entire integrity of the world, at stake. You’re merely just blinded by loyalty to see that. I can fix that.”
The blood in her veins began to heat as the truth dawned upon her. “So you… you planned this. You did this?”
“I know your experience with the outside world is limited at best, so let me be clear: power has always been the only thing that matters. One woman can rule the world as she sees fit if she can overpower anyone who dares oppose her. The world will not yield to bouquets of roses, but wills of iron. Wills… like mine.”
“And you planned to betray her?”
“’Betray her?’ Twilight, you’re sadly misguided. She betrayed us. Her incompetence put the entire organization, very integrity of the world, at stake. There was a time when she and I ruled as commanders of the globe, practically raising the sun and the moon for the pitiful souls of this world. Our orders were revered and never questioned; it was beautiful. But I see now that she has grown soft, weak, and withdrawn from reality. As a result, the Network has become stagnant, and now it festers from within. I intend to save the Network from itself, and Cell is the woman who stands in my way.”
Twilight got to her feet, aiming a finger towards Midnight’s insolent smile, “You bitch! You shameless traitor! You’ll never get away with this!”
Midnight’s hand shot forward. Suddenly, a glow of cerulean light emanated from the tips of her fingers, before engulfing her entire hand. Twilight felt herself being pinned down against the unforgiving iron. She looked down, and found the same cerulean glow wrapped tightly around her wrists like coiled snakes. Midnight enjoyed watching the girl helplessly squirm in confusion and terror. “Watch your tongue, girl. I’m likely to have it removed.”
Twilight’s heart began to race with fluttering fury. Try as she might, her hands could not move. A force of great weight and power was pressing against her wrists. Trapped by the shackles of light, she could only shudder in futility as she continued to struggle. Reason itself seemed to fail her as Twilight’s mind was wracked with confusion. It made no sense. This unnatural force defied all reason. And it was being used against her.
Midnight to continue circling her baffled victim, chuckling in amusement over her victim’s awestruck terror, “Oh, there’s so much that Cell never taught you, things you couldn’t even imagine.” As she walked to Twilight’s side, Midnight’s flowing black figure seemed to tower over the young woman. “But I can see your potential, Twilight. I can feel the very essence that flows through your veins, lying dormant, waiting for someone to unlock its true potential. For this reason, I will make you a most generous offer; depending on how you choose, your future will be very bright, or very dark indeed. You may remain loyal to your lying teacher, and stand beside her in front of a firing squad. Or you can join me, and help restore the Network together. I will take you as my student, and I will offer you more than just this meager taste of my power.”
Twilight averted her gaze, resisting the presence by staring straight forward.
The piercing sound of Midnight’s footsteps stopped only inches away. “So, what will it be?” she asked in her falsely sweet voice.
Twilight averted her gaze, resisting the presence by staring straight forward. Midnight’s flowing black figure towered over the young woman. She leaned closer in anticipation of an answer. But the girl refused to budge. The Kevlar handcuffs felt like they were strangling her wrist. Cell’s instructions echoed in her head, “The contents inside are of the utmost importance, Twilight…. You must keep it out of the wrong hands…. Never let go of it.”
Anger seeped into Midnight’s intimidating tone, “Mercy is a privilege I give to few people, and your chances for it grow slim. Do you accept, or not?”
Twilight turned away, shuddering as her captor’s looming face drew nearer.
Midnight refocused her attention. She placed her finger underneath Twilight’s chin, letting the sharp nail dig into the soft skin. She dragged Twilight’s face towards her own, “Even my patience has its limit, girl. You will submit to me.” Midnight leaned close to Twilight’s face. Twilight, frozen in fear, couldn’t escape the turquoise gaze of the director’s narrow, cat-like pupils. “You will surrender. Or you will die.”
Time stopped as Twilight stared into the woman’s face, a frozen expression of anger, impatience, and conceit. Tense silence came between them. For the longest time, neither of them moved. But a lone beam of sunlight broke from the overcast sky, shining through the glass ceiling. As its warmth thawed her senses, the young woman glared into the woman’s eyes. Twilight spit in the face of subjection, and barked the only phrase that came to her mind, “Go to hell.”
Midnight’s entire face was engulfed in a devilish scowl. She ripped her long fingernail across the bottom of Twilight’s chin. Her victim winced at the pain as a stream of warm liquid began to trickle down her chin and neck. “You stupid girl,” she said, wiping the spit from her face. “I had hoped that you would convert to the side of the reason, yet you persist on being a pest. Your stubborn dedication could have been useful to us. It’s such a shame that such positive qualities will go to waste.”
Midnight stood back up, her devilish form once again towering over her, “Very well. If you won’t give me what I want, then I will take it from you.” With a snap of her fingers, she ordered, “Manticore, get it.”
A sudden force took Twilight by surprise. Shoving Twilight to top of the table, Manticore had arrested her arm, twisting it painfully behind her back and immobilizing it with his body. Pressure pushed down upon Twilight’s neck, pinning her head against the table’s cold grating. Despite the girl’s feeble resistance, his left hand snaked towards the briefcase. And as he tossed the black case onto the table, Twilight’s handcuffed wrist smashed against the corner. Pinned by her oppressor, Twilight could only scream, her body now ringing with pain. Over the sound of her shouts and screams, Midnight could only smile. She gingerly ran her softly-glowing fingers over the case’s surface before grasping a finger on Twilight’s handcuffed hand. She fought against Midnight’s influence, but she succumbed to the woman’s chilling touch. The finger was pressed against the biometric scanner on the case, and a blue light began diligently scanning the appendage. Before she managed to tear it away from the screen. The blue light disappeared. The case chirped compliantly.
“Do you see how pointless your struggle is?” Midnight berated as she turned the case towards herself, “how do you expect Cell to fight back and win against me, when her own protégé can’t even protect herself?”
Through the muffled sound of unseen mechanisms, the locks came undone.
“You see, I’ve been preparing for this day for a long time. Luna’s underlings have been unified under my vision far better than they ever were with hers. Yet as weak and inept as Cell truly is, she still wields considerable power and resources over me. Case and point, Project Harmony.”
The lids hesitantly began to open.
“Cell, in her typical lack of foresight, thought she would grant such a powerful weapon to Luna, the very enemy she had sought to defeat only years ago. Together, they would jointly control the force that has kept the world intact for years. Or so she dreamed…”
An intense light flickered to life inside the case, casting a blue glow outwards.
Midnight’s face was lit with anticipation. “But now, with this in my possession, there is nothing left to stop me. Cell has lost every bargaining chip she could have ever hoped to play: her protégé, Luna, and now her access to Project Harmony. Every piece has finally fallen into place.”
Dread filled the room. The beam of sunlight that had illuminated the room was snuffled out by the graying skies. The fine stream of classical music was killed mid-song. And every emotion in Twilight’s defeated body shifted to a singular feeling of despair. In a single solemn moment, the world had fallen silent.
Manticore observed the handcuff that connected Twilight and the console’s case. “Ma’am, do you want me to dispose of her?”
Midnight was unimpressed by Manticore’s suggestion, “Don’t be foolish. Our guest may still be of use to us. She may be stubborn, but she can be broken.” The case was shut with a firm delicacy. “Has the boy accessed the Institute’s communications network?”
The side of his jacket slipped loose as Manticore nodded in confirmation. “Our techs are proceeding with phase two as we speak. The assault units are beginning their assembly at OP Obsidian.”
The holster of his FN Five-seveN pistol revealed itself from behind the man’s jacket, just within reach. Twilight’s full attention fell upon this gun. But while her heart began to race, her mind tried to remain inconspicuous. She remained weak, frozen, and defeated while Midnight continued speaking. “You and your men have performed your duties well thus far, Manticore. But we are on a tight schedule.” Her dress swished confidently as she turned around, looking out into the grey sea of clouds. “Have your men-“
Twilight found her opening. Her hand lurched backwards, grabbing onto the pistol and pulling it out in a flash. With one free hand, she aimed in Midnight’s direction. Manticore reached to wrestle the gun from her, but he was too late. Twilight’s finger jammed on the trigger once, twice, three times in rapid succession.
The first two rounds missed, embedding themselves into the thick Plexiglass window, but the last round hit its mark. Midnight staggered forward as the round struck her high in the neck. A splash of blood painted the wall, and a chunk of flesh was evidently torn away. With slow, deliberate movements, she reached for her wound and looked at the red that stained her fingers.
But instead of a hearing a cry of agony, Twilight heard an evil cackle that chilled her bones. Her gut sunk into her shoes as Midnight, seemingly unphased from her mortal wound, turned back to face her. She lifted her hand over the gruesome section of exposed meat and tissue, and the lights once again began spiraling around her fingers. And as she slid her fingers across the gaping wound, the missing flesh reformed instantly. Only a deep scar remained.
Twilight’s eyes were wide with wordless terror. “What… are you?”
Midnight glared back at her with a mixture of seething rage and sadistic pleasure. Suddenly, Midnight’s fingers flashed with light again, rejuvenated with renewed vigor. A misty circle of light formed around Twilight’s neck. And as the woman began to clench her fingers together, the unseen force strangled Twilight’s throat like a noose. Her terrified heartbeat pounded in her temples. Her fingers grasped around her throat for a set of hands that weren’t really there. She choked and sputtered as she fought to breathe. Midnight raised her hands, and the grip on Twilight’s reddening throat was brought higher, pulling her off her feet. She panicked, kicking the air fruitlessly like a macabre puppet. And as she pulled Twilight forward, closer and closer until they were standing face to face, Midnight’s voice was disturbingly serene, “I am the end of Cell’s reign. I am the one she once dreamed of, a nightmare from her past. The lackey you called Midnight is dead. But in her place rises a woman who has rebuilt the Umbra, and will now lead the Network to its rightful glory.”
With a flick of her wrist, Midnight threw the girl aside like a ragdoll. Twilight didn’t have a chance to react or save herself. She struck the wall with enough force to crack the Plexiglas pane. Her brain smashed against the inside of her skull like a bullet train meeting a concrete wall. Her mind was shot. All sensation in her body was lost. Her vision began to fade. But as she shut her eyes, Twilight listened to Midnight’s final words to her.
“Remember this day, little Twilight, for it was your last. From this moment forth, the night will last forever.”
And everything faded into darkness.