Chapter 17: Alien Echoes
The hum of the transport pod was the only sound that filled the cabin, heavy with the silence of shared tension. The artifact—now locked in a reinforced containment unit—sat between Victor and Aria, its faint pulses of light casting strange, rhythmic patterns on the walls. Each pulse seemed to resonate with an unspoken energy, as if the artifact itself were alive and aware of its surroundings.
Kaito stared at it, his hands clenched tightly in his lap. He couldn't shake the image that had burned itself into his mind: an alien world, shattered and broken, with strange symbols etched in glowing blue light that seemed to whisper secrets he couldn't comprehend. He shivered, the memory sending chills down his spine.
"You okay, glitch boy?" Yuki's voice broke the silence, her tone light but not entirely devoid of concern.
"Fine," Kaito muttered, though his voice cracked slightly. He could feel the weight of her gaze, a mixture of teasing and genuine worry.
Yuki nudged him with her elbow, a playful gesture meant to lighten the mood. "If you're gonna pass out, try not to land on me. I've had enough weird energy for one day."
Victor chuckled softly, the sound a brief respite in the tension-filled air, but Celeste shot them both a sharp look from her seat. "Focus," she snapped, her voice carrying authority. "This isn't a game. We just came out of a Class-6 anomaly with something no one's ever seen before. Treat it like the crisis it is."
Yuki rolled her eyes but didn't respond, sensing the gravity of the situation.
Aria's quiet voice broke in, her fingers gliding across her portable console. "The artifact's energy levels are stabilizing," she reported, her brow furrowing in concentration. "But it's… strange. The output doesn't match anything in our database."
Celeste leaned forward, her gaze locked on the glowing containment unit. "Strange how?"
Aria hesitated, her brow furrowing deeper. "It's almost like it's… responding to something. It's not just a random emission. It's deliberate."
Kaito's stomach twisted at her words. He could feel it, too—that subtle pull, like the artifact was calling to him, beckoning him to come closer. It was a sensation he couldn't shake, a whisper in the back of his mind that urged him to understand.
---
The pod arrived at the HQ's subterranean docking bay, and the team was quickly ushered into a debriefing chamber. A team of researchers in sterile suits took the artifact away, their movements careful and precise. Kaito's eyes lingered on it as it disappeared down a corridor, its pulsing light still visible through the thick containment case. It felt like a piece of his soul was being taken along with it.
"Sit," Celeste ordered as they entered the room, her tone brooking no argument.
The team complied, and the tension in the air seemed to thicken, wrapping around them like a shroud. Celeste paced at the front, her sharp eyes scanning each of them, assessing their reactions.
"Let's be clear," she began, her voice steady but laced with urgency. "What happened out there was unprecedented. That artifact is potentially the most significant discovery we've made, but it's also the most dangerous." Her gaze landed on Kaito, piercing through him like a laser. "And let's not ignore the fact that it only reacted after *your* little 'incident.'"
Kaito's face burned with shame and anger. "I didn't mean to—"
"Intent doesn't matter," Celeste cut him off, her tone unyielding. "What matters is that your glitches are a liability. We can't afford that kind of instability."
"That's enough, Celeste," Victor said, his deep voice calm but firm, a steady anchor amidst the storm. "Kaito didn't choose his condition, and we wouldn't have recovered the artifact without him. Give the kid some credit."
Yuki leaned back in her chair, smirking. "Yeah, he's like our wild card. Unpredictable, sure, but sometimes you need a little chaos to shake things up."
Celeste glared at them both, but before she could retort, Aria spoke up, her voice soft yet resolute. "It's not just about the glitches," she said, her eyes earnest. "That artifact… it's not normal. It's reacting to Kaito in ways we don't understand yet. Maybe instead of blaming him, we should figure out why."
The room fell silent, the weight of her words hanging in the air like a thick fog.
---
Later that night, Kaito found himself wandering the labyrinthine halls of the HQ, unable to sleep. His mind replayed the events of the day over and over—the anomaly, the vision of destruction, the artifact's inexplicable pull. Each thought was a jagged shard, cutting deeper into his consciousness.
His feet led him, almost unconsciously, to the research lab. The door hissed open, and he stepped inside, his eyes immediately drawn to the containment unit in the center of the room. The artifact's glow was softer now, almost soothing, as if it sensed his presence and sought to calm his racing heart.
He approached cautiously, his heart pounding in his chest. The air around it felt different—charged, yet oddly inviting. It was as if the very atmosphere vibrated with potential, a silent promise of secrets waiting to be uncovered.
Before he could stop himself, he reached out. His fingers hovered just above the containment field, and the artifact pulsed in response, the light shifting in a mesmerizing dance.
[SYSTEM WARNING: UNKNOWN INTERACTION DETECTED.]
The interface appeared in his vision, but he barely registered it. The pull was stronger now, almost impossible to resist, wrapping around him like a warm embrace.
"Touching that would be a bad idea," a voice said behind him, slicing through his trance.
Kaito jumped, spinning around to see Yuki leaning casually against the doorway, her arms crossed and a bemused expression on her face. Her presence felt grounding, yet her keen interest in the artifact was palpable.
"I wasn't—" he started, but she cut him off with a wave of her hand, her demeanor surprisingly relaxed.
"Relax. I'm not here to lecture you." She stepped closer, her gaze fixed on the artifact, a mixture of curiosity and caution in her eyes. "I get it, you know. That thing's… weird. Like it's alive or something."
Kaito nodded slowly, feeling a sense of camaraderie in their shared confusion. "Do you… feel it, too?"
Yuki shook her head, a thoughtful frown creasing her brow. "Not the way you do. But I can tell it's connected to you somehow." She glanced at him, her expression softening, revealing a trace of empathy. "You're not crazy, Kaito. Whatever this is, it's important."
Her words eased some of the tension in his chest, but the pull of the artifact remained, a magnetic force drawing him closer. It was both exhilarating and terrifying, a tantalizing glimpse into the unknown.
As they stood there, the artifact pulsed again, and this time, Kaito saw it—not just light, but symbols, faint and flickering, dancing across its surface like ethereal fireflies. They swirled and twisted, forming patterns that ignited something deep within him, a longing to understand.
"What is that?" Yuki whispered, her eyes widening in awe and fear.
Kaito didn't answer. He didn't know. But one thing was certain: whatever this artifact was, it had only just begun to reveal its secrets. And as he stood on the precipice of discovery, he felt a surge of determination. He would uncover the truth, even if it meant confronting the darkness that lay ahead. Together, they would unravel the mystery of the alien echoes, no matter the cost.