The tension in the room was thick. Damon's smirk widened as he sensed our feelings—my doubt, Alex's hesitation. His voice was confident as he continued "Oh, I see it now. You're wondering, aren't you? Did your husband,your Hyperion, really fall so low?"
I could feel my chest tighten. I looked at the two men—Damon,my ex who was now a villian and Alex, the man I thought I knew, was a criminal. For the first time in my life, I didn't know what to do or who to believe.
But Damon wasn't done. "I'll give you one chance, Hyperion," he said. "Walk away. Save yourself. Because I promise, if you fight me, if you try to rescue her, I will release this footage. I will ruin you before her eyes, and the world will know that Hyperion is nothing more than a hypocrite—a liar."
Alex's looked at me but he didn't move. His silence felt like a betrayal.
"Alex," I whispered, my voice trembling. "Tell me the truth. Did you... did you really do those things?"
His jaw clenched, and for a moment, he was about to speak . But then his eyes dropped again, unable to meet mine. My heart sank, and the hope I'd clung to started to dim.The man I loved—the man who had sworn to protect me—didnt seem to think i was important as the world.
"I'll give you ten seconds to decide," Damon said. "Ten seconds to walk away, or everything you've worked for will come crumbling down."
The room fell into silence, only the battle of the prime order could be heard.The Prime Order fought on, battling Damon's shadow puppets unaware of the personal hell I was experiencing in front of me.
"Ten..." Damon began.
I watched Alex, waiting for him to make a move, to say something, to fight. But he just stood there. And with every second that passed, my faith in him crumbled a little more.
"Nine..."
My panic rose as Damon's countdown continued. He wouldn't let this happen, I told myself. He wouldn't just leave me here.
"Eight..."
Damon's smirk grew as he saw my fear. "I thought heroes were supposed to be perfect" he sneered. "But maybe you're just not the man she thought you were. You don't deserve her"
"Seven..."
My voice barely above a whisper. "Alex, please. Don't let him do this. Don't let him take everything from us."
But he didn't respond. He just stood there, staring at the ground, as if Damon's words had chained him in place.
"Six..." Damon's countdown continued, and my desperation grew. I could feel the air thick with my fear, every heartbeat echoing my growing panic.
I glanced at Alex, searching for any sign that he would act, any indication that the man I loved would fight for me. But his silence was sad, crushing whatever hope I had left.
" Five..." Damon's voice was laced with amusement. He was enjoying this, watching me break, watching Alex falter.
Then, out of nowhere, a figure crashed into Damon, sending him across the floor. It was Phantom, the final member of the Prime Order. Damon hit the ground hard, clearly caught off guard. Phantom's entrance was so sudden that even the shadows Damon controlled flickered for a moment, losing their form.
"Couldn't let you have all the fun without me," Phantom said.
For a moment, the tension in the room shifted. Phantom had brought with him a glimmer of hope, and I was desperate for anything to stop this nightmare. But it wasn't over—not yet.
Damon quickly recovered, a snarl escaping his lips as he stood, summoning his shadows once again. The room grew darker and his energy surged.
Without warning, the doors behind us burst open, and soldiers from the G.H.C. They were heavily armed in their robots suits as they took positions beside the Prime Order. I realized then that this had been the plan all along—an effort between the Prime Order and the G.H.C soldiers to take down Blackthorn.
The battle that followed was chaotic. Shadows clashed with energy blasts, fists met steel, and the sound of fights filled the room. Phantom was everywhere at once, dodging Damon's attacks.The rest of the Prime Order were engaged in their own fights, holding back Damon's shadow creatures.
I saw Alex finally spring into action. He cut my ropes and launched himself at Damon. The force of his punch sent Damon flying into a wall, but even then, Alex hesitated. His movements were slower than usual, as if he was still battling his own doubts.
Damon laughed, even as he wiped blood from his mouth. "Is that all you've got, Hyperion? You're going to have to do better than that if you want to save her."
Alex didn't respond. The G.H.C. soldiers joined the fight, their weapons firing off blasts of energy, pushing back Damon's shadow puppets. The entire room had become a war zone.
I tried to move, but the chaos around me made it impossible to find any sense of safety. Everywhere I turned, there was fighting—Prime Order members, G.H.C. soldiers, and Damon's shadowy creatures locked in a fight .My heart raced as I ran to avoid the debris that flew in every direction.
The battle seemed to last forever, the sounds of clashing powers and weapons ringing in my ears. But eventually, Damon began to lose ground. The Prime Order and the G.H.C. soldiers were overpowering his shadow creatures.
"You're finished,"Alex said coldly as he delivered a powerful blow to Damon's side, knocking him to the ground.
For a moment, I thought it was over. Damon was on his knees, panting, his shadows shrinking as he struggled to maintain control. But then, out of nowhere, one of the G.H.C. soldiers came in my direction. He swung his arm and before I could react, his elbow connected with the side of my head.
Everything faded to black and the last thing I saw was Alex looking at me with a blank face.