"Oh, Ephyra? Where are you going?" Nurse Rain, the brown-haired Latina holding a file in her hand, stopped walking and grinned at Ephyra, who was wandering through the hospital corridors in search of the stairs.
"To the rooftop," she smiled before looking around and asking, "Do you know where the stairs leading there are?"
Nurse Rain frowned, "Stairs? Why don't you take the elevator? And what are you going to do on the rooftop?"
"I have been lying down for the past three weeks, and I feel the need to stretch my legs a bit. Taking the stairs will help me get some exercise," Ephyra responded, flashing a disarming smile, concealing the fact that she had been jogging around the hospital every midnight, two days after she woke up.
"And I insist. There are about ten more floors before you can get to the rooftop. Why don't you take the elevator and stop at the second-to-last floor, then climb the stairs from there, hmm?"
Ephyra sighed internally but kept her smile intact. "Alright, Nurse Rain. That sounds like a reasonable compromise." She nodded in agreement. "I'll take the elevator most of the way and use the stairs for the last stretch."
Nurse Rain seemed pleased with her response. "Good, and be careful up there. The rooftop can be windy." With a final smile, she walked away, continuing her rounds.
Reaching the elevator, she stopped in front of the gold-colored one and pressed the button for the second-to-last floor, just as Nurse Rain had suggested. The ride was quick, but when the doors slid open, she found two men dressed in black suits and pants with sunglasses and micro-earpieces standing in front of the elevator, their posture rigid and alert. They immediately took notice of her as she stepped out of the elevator.
Ephyra gave them a casual glance before moving to pass by them, but one of the men stepped in front of her.
"Excuse me?"
"Miss, the elevator you just came out of is unauthorized for use by anyone in the hospital. You should not have been able to access it."
"Oh." No wonder it looked better than the other elevators. "I didn't know. I'm sorry for using it without permission." She gave them a polite nod and stepped back, preparing to head toward the stairwell. But as she turned, one of the men spoke again.
"Miss, may I ask your name?" His tone was formal, but there was an underlying suspicion in his words.
Ephyra paused and turned around. "And why would you want to know that?"
"Like we said earlier, you shouldn't have—"
"What's going on here?" Jania's voice interrupted, cutting through the exchange. She stepped forward from behind the two men, her sharp gaze focused on Ephyra.
The two men straightened. "This young lady exited Master's elevator, Miss Jania. We were just questioning how she gained access."
Jania's eyes flicked to Ephyra, sizing her up quickly. Then, she waved a hand dismissively at the men. "It's fine. I'll handle this. You two can return to your posts."
The men hesitated for a split second before nodding. "Yes, ma'am," they chorused, stepping aside and allowing Jania to approach Ephyra.
As the men retreated, Jania stopped just a few feet away, her eyes never leaving Ephyra's face. She scanned the young girl, dressed in a patient uniform consisting of a top and trousers, and asked, "What were you doing there?"
Ephyra met Jania's gaze evenly, unfazed by her scrutinizing look. "It was an honest mistake. I didn't realize that particular elevator was off-limits."
Jania studied her for a long moment, her eyes narrowing slightly as if trying to see through any potential lies. After a beat of silence, she spoke. "Little girl, I'm going to let you go. But don't make this mistake again, got it?"
Eira stared at her for some time before chuckling to herself, "Little girl huh?" She stepped forward, "You listen too, I don't give a rat's ass about this elevator, who its owner is, or who you are. I don't. Also, I made a mistake and apologized for it so you don't get to call me that shit. Do not ever call me that." she glanced at the men before her eyes went back to the woman. "Excuse me."
With that, she walked forward but before she could take a step more, she felt fingers moving to grab her hand and instinctively, she shifted to the side and attacked. But the woman was also highly skilled as she blocked Eira's hand and went for her neck. However, Eira's years of excess training allowed her to easily counter the move. In a split second, Eira shifted her weight, deflecting the woman's hand and grabbing her wrist in one swift easily but before she could twist it, it was already out of her grasp as the woman threw a series of blows at her, all of which she blocked.
The woman was good and she wasn't even serious with the fight. But if it was Eira's real body, the woman would have been seriously injured.
Fucking weak ass body.
[Master, I detect elevated stress and a significant increase in adrenaline levels. I recommend disengaging to prevent further strain on your current body state.]
Eira ignored the voice in her head and took a step back, grabbing the woman's arms and sending her with her back to the floor. But before she could stand up, she felt herself being thrown upside down and tackled onto the floor.
Breathing heavily, she looked at the woman whose only sign of the fight they had was her scattered ponytail.
The fight was intense but brief, both testing each other's abilities. Eira's frustration mounted as she realized how much her body's current limitations were holding her back.
The woman held her by the jaw, a small smirk tugging at her lips. "Not bad for a 'little girl,' but you're still out of your depth."
"You know, I should push this trigger." Eira suddenly stated a devilish smile on her face.
The woman frowned before immediately looking down at her stomach where the muzzle of a small pistol was pressing against her abdomen. Eira had pulled it out so quickly and silently out of her holster during the scuffle that the woman hadn't noticed.
"Go ahead and call me 'little girl' one more time, and I'll show you just how dangerous I can be," Eira threatened, her voice cold and devoid of emotion.
The woman's smirk disappeared, her grip still firm on Eira's jaw. "You're bold, I'll give you that," she said, still seeing Eira as a child but the person in question smiled wider because she was the one with the upper hand.
"I will give you a lesson for free, old woman. In situations like this, strength and skill are not the only things that matter, you have to be smart and fast too. Remember that. Now get the fuck off me."
Slowly, the woman got off her and stood up, followed by Eira who now had two guns pointed at her from the sides.
"Put down the gun," one of the men told Eira.
"I'd advice you to do what he says but it don't seem like you will follow my advice."
"Nor do I like people telling me what to do."
Eira slowly stood, her eyes darting to the two guns now trained on her. She calmly glanced back at the woman in front of her, a sly smile curling her lips.
"Put down the gun," one of the men repeated, his voice steady, though his eyes betrayed a flicker of hesitation.
Eira shrugged, now holding her weapon in front of the woman's head. "You really think I'm just going to listen? Cute. But tell me, who do you think is going to die first if I pull this trigger?"
As soon as she finished talking, Liam's surprised voice rang through the hallway.
"Fuck! Ephyra?"
Eira turned to see the doctor looking at her in disbelief.
"Hey, Doctor Liam," she called out with a wide smile.