[Location: The Brig - Level 9]
They threw me into a cell. It was a glass box, suspended over a pit.
I sat in the corner, clutching my bandaged shoulder. They had taken my Ouroboros arm offline, leaving it dead heavy weight dragging on my spine.
"Psst."
I looked up.
In the cell next to me, sitting perfectly upright on her bunk, was Vesper. She had been stripped of her rank insignia. She looked smaller without them.
"Vesper," I whispered. "You okay?"
"I am currently calculating the length of our imprisonment," she said calmly, though her eyes were red. "Based on military law, the penalty for treason is death. Probability of execution: 85%."
"We aren't gonna die," I said. "I've been in worse spots."
"Caelum," she looked at me through the glass. "Why did you do it? Why did you save me back in the facility? You could have escaped faster if you left me."
"Because," I leaned my head against the glass. "You're part of the team now, Vesper. And in Unit 404, nobody gets left behind."
She stared at me. A faint blush colored her cheeks. She looked away quickly.
"You are illogical," she muttered.
Suddenly, the lights flickered. The door to the brig opened.
A young soldier walked in. He was holding a mop bucket, looking terrified. He couldn't have been more than sixteen.
He stopped in front of my cell. He looked at me with wide, worshipping eyes.
"Are you him?" the kid whispered. "Are you the Blue Demon?"
I looked at him.
"Who's asking?"
"I'm Rook," the kid stammered. "I... I heard stories about you. About Shadow Creek. They say you can see the future."
He looked around to make sure the guards weren't watching. He slid a nutrient bar through the food slot.
"My brother was in Unit 404," Rook whispered. "Jax. He wrote me letters about you. He said you were the best commander he ever had."
My heart stopped.
Jax's brother.
I looked at the kid. He had Jax's nose.
"Jax was a good man," I said, my voice thick. "I'm sorry I couldn't bring him home."
Rook shook his head. "It's war. But... if you ever need anything, sir. I'm on the night shift."
He hurried away before the guards returned.
I took the nutrient bar. I held it in my hand.
I looked at Vesper.
"We're getting out of here," I said, my eyes hardening.
"How?" Vesper asked.
"We have a man on the inside," I smirked. "And I have a date with a mad scientist."