Here we go 🔥
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Chapter 5 – The Betrayal Signal
Rain poured endlessly. The streets were empty, drowned in silver reflections. Kairo and Mira ran through the alleys, following the strange pulse in the air. It wasn't sound. It wasn't light. It was a vibration deep inside their bones.
"This way!" Mira shouted, pointing to an abandoned subway station.
The gate was half-broken. Rust covered the rails. Darkness waited below. Kairo felt the pulse grow sharper as they entered.
Inside, strange symbols glowed faintly on the walls. Not paint. Not light. More like the walls themselves were alive.
"What is this place?" Mira whispered.
Kairo reached out. The symbol burned under his touch. Suddenly, a deep voice echoed in his mind.
"Betrayal is the key."
He froze. "Did you hear that?"
Mira shook her head. "No. What did it say?"
Before he could answer, footsteps echoed from deeper inside the tunnels. They hid behind a cracked pillar. A group of shadow-like figures walked by, their bodies flickering as if not fully real.
Kairo's breath caught. They looked human… but not. Their faces kept shifting, like masks melting away.
At the front was someone familiar. His heartbeat stopped when he saw the glowing red eyes.
"Wait… no way…"
It was Aiden, Kairo's closest friend from before the fractures.
Mira saw his shock. "You know him?"
Kairo nodded slowly. "He… he was like a brother to me. But he disappeared the night everything changed."
Aiden stopped suddenly. He turned his head, as if sensing them. His red eyes locked on Kairo's hiding place.
"Kairo," Aiden said, voice calm but cold. "You weren't supposed to survive."
Kairo stepped out, anger rising. "Aiden… why? Why are you with them?"
Aiden smiled, but it was empty. "Because the shadows showed me the truth. The world we lived in was already broken. You're still chasing lies."
Mira drew her dagger. "He's one of them."
Aiden raised his hand. A symbol formed in the air, glowing blood-red. The tunnel shook violently. The walls began to crack, as if the entire subway was about to collapse.
"You'll understand soon, Kairo," Aiden said. "But first, I'll break you."
The shadow-figures rushed forward. Their forms twisted, becoming monstrous.
Kairo gritted his teeth, summoning the white flame from within. But his hands shook. The betrayal cut deeper than any wound.
His best friend had become his enemy.
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⚡ End of Chapter 5 ⚡
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Want me to make Chapter 6