Chapter 4 To Freedom
My Ability was stolen, and now my credit had been taken as well. Joshua was also on Irene’s side. I had nothing left.
A moment of hesitation later, Irene spoke up. “I saw her going into the lab before I got here. Can’t be sure what she did there.”
“Irene! I had done nothing wrong to you! Why would you do this to me?” I couldn’t believe Irene would twist the story, but before I could explain myself, Team Zephyr’s members
backed Irene up.
“I did see Sera go into the lab, but I have no idea how.”
“I saw that too.”
“Me too.”
I was trembling with rage, and my hands were balled into fists. My nails were digging into my flesh, yet I felt no pain. Without thinking, I tried to step back. I wanted to leave this place. This vile base had nothing but treachery within, but I felt a lump forming in my throat, and I couldn’t make a sound.
The flames of fury drowned me. The betrayal of these people choked me. I almost lost the strength to even stand up. ‘And to think we used to be comrades. I saved the lives of some of these people,‘ I thought.
“The proof is undeniable. Do your job, guard captain. She is no longer part of our rescue team.” Joshua looked at me coldly, as if I were dead to him.
I bit my lip as hard as I could, and the guards surrounded me with their Abilities. If I weren’t careful, I could be severely injured. Fortunately, I had a trump card hidden up my
sleeve.
Once more, I was taken into detention. I wasn’t tied up, but the walls and doors had electric fences installed. Guess they really were wary of a regular person like me.
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The door swung open, and in came Joshua. “Did you think it was fun, embarrassing me in front of everyone like that?” The look in his eyes was filled with freezing apathy. “That uptight attitude of yours needs to be corrected. You should be a gentler woman, like Irene.”
‘Is he seriously comparing me to Irene?‘ I scoffed quietly.
I sneered. “I wasn’t being uptight; I was just telling the truth. If you think I was
embarrassing you, that just means your achievements aren’t your own.”
“You…” Joshua’s face kept changing color–from pale to green. He wanted to leave, but he knew I had my uses.
I saw right through him. After all, we’d dated for a couple of years. I knew he was an
ambitious man. He wanted to gain power, but I couldn’t believe he would go so far for that,
especially after the apocalypse.
“You know Irene was just a regular human, so I had to pay more attention to her. Can you stop being mad at me already?”
“You paid so much attention to her, you slept with her,” I mocked.
“You’re still mad at me,” commented Joshua, this time gentler. “Can’t the three of us just get along? It’s a post–apocalyptic world. This isn’t the same civilization you know any
more, Sera. A powerful man can have more than one partner. You and Irene are best friends, so you two can get along better, I’m sure.”
‘He wants to have a threesome?‘ The thought made me reel. I felt my stomach stir, and the
bile was moving up quickly. The nausea was taking over my body, and if I wasn’t careful, I
might puke all over the place. God, it was hell. I bit my tongue as hard as I could, hiding my
true feelings.
Joshua took my silence as acceptance, and he nodded happily. “I’ve told the leaders that this is just a misunderstanding. You can leave this place tomorrow. Why don’t we go out for a bit?”
That was my chance. I knew Team Zephyr needed me. Without me, they couldn’t get as
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Chapter 4 To Freedom
many resources as they could. They would lose their place as the number one base.
I looked at the ground, hiding my emotions. “Really? Can I return to the team?”
“Of course.” Joshua patted my head. “You’re always part of the team.”
Disgusting, but I had a goal to accomplish, so I played along.
…
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He came to pick me up personally the next day. He and his team were fully geared in warm attire, but I was still wearing the same rags. It was fine in the base, but outside it? Not even metahumans could handle the cold. They’d have to expend their Abilities just to stay warm.
However, Joshua seemed to be blind to that fact, and we set off the moment he picked me up. I was furious, but I had to leave this place the moment I could, so I held it in.
Irene was unusually quiet that day.
The moment we left the base, a wave of freezing winds assailed me. I shivered violently in an attempt to stay warm, but the cold nearly froze me in my steps. It was nothing, however, compared to freedom. It was nothing compared to the betrayal I suffered at the hands of my boyfriend, best friend, and teammates.
“Where are we going today, Sera?”
“Ten o’clock, northeast,” I replied with determination. The team was delighted.
We had a smooth ride. Everyone was sure they would get a great haul this time. I touched the dragon pendant hanging around my necklace as I led them to our destination.
After trekking over a gigantic frozen mountain, I instructed the other members to pry back
a layer of ice to reveal the dark entrance underneath.
“There are supplies here!” Delighted, the team’s members crawled into it.
I kicked the pieces of ice lying around the entrance, acting like I was bored.
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“Captain, there’s enough supplies here to fill up a soccer field!” The members‘ happy voices came out of the hole.
Joshua and Irene went ahead. “You’re just a regular human, Sera. You don’t have to go in.”
The Ability I awakened after the apocalypse hit made me a Healer. I’d never have failed in that mission if not because I wanted to save Irene. He’d also have never gotten the chance to strip me of my Ability.
Then, Irene looked at me. I saw a lot of things in her eyes, and it stunned me. She told me silently,
“Run!”
