Adrian woke to the sound of his own breathing.
Sharp. Uneven. Too loud in the silence.
For a few seconds, he didn't move. His eyes stayed fixed on the ceiling, trying to make sense of what felt wrong before he even understood where he was.
Then it hit him.
The air.
It felt… heavier. Thicker. Like every breath carried something extra inside it.
He sat up abruptly.
The room was the same security office. Same desk. Same monitors. Same flickering screen in the corner.
But it didn't feel the same.
Adrian pressed a hand against his chest.
No pain.
No wound.
No blood.
"…I died," he said quietly.
The memory came back all at once. The hallway. The women. The voice behind him. The pain tearing through his chest.
And then—
Nothing.
A faint sound broke the silence.
"You're adjusting faster than expected."
Adrian's head snapped toward the corner of the room.
She was there.
The woman with crimson eyes.
Leaning casually against the wall like she had always been there.
His body tensed immediately. "You—"
"Yes," she said calmly. "Me."
Adrian swung his legs off the chair and stood up, though his balance felt slightly off, like his body hadn't fully caught up with him yet.
"What did you do to me?"
Her gaze stayed steady on him. Unbothered.
"We kept you alive."
"That's not what I asked."
A small pause.
Then she straightened slightly and stepped closer.
"We bound you to us," she said. "That's the only reason you're standing."
Adrian frowned. "Bound? What does that even mean?"
"It means your life is no longer entirely yours."
"…That's not comforting."
"It isn't meant to be."
Before he could respond, the lights flickered again.
A shadow shifted near the doorway.
Adrian's eyes moved instinctively.
The second woman stepped into view.
Silent. Controlled. Like she had been there the entire time and simply chose to be seen now.
Adrian let out a slow breath. "Right. Of course there are two of you."
"Three," a soft voice corrected.
He didn't even turn this time.
"Let me guess," he said, rubbing his temple, "you've been here the whole time too?"
A quiet laugh answered him.
"Watching," the third woman said.
Adrian finally looked over.
She sat on the desk, one leg crossed over the other, like she owned the room.
Which, at this point, she probably did.
Adrian exhaled slowly. "Okay. Good. Great. I'm surrounded."
"You're protected," the red-eyed woman corrected.
"That's one way to say it."
He glanced between them, his thoughts racing.
"This is insane."
"It's reality," the shadowed woman said.
"No," Adrian shook his head, "reality doesn't include… whatever this is."
"Your reality was small," the third woman said lightly. "Now it isn't."
Adrian opened his mouth to argue—
Then stopped.
Something felt off again.
Not in the room.
Inside him.
He froze.
"…What is that?"
The feeling was subtle, but unmistakable. Like something moving beneath the surface of his skin. Not pain. Not exactly.
More like… awareness.
His senses sharpened.
He could hear the faint buzz of electricity in the walls more clearly.
The distant hum of a generator outside.
Even the quiet rhythm of three separate heartbeats in the room.
Not his.
Never his.
His breathing slowed.
"…I can hear you," he said quietly.
The red-eyed woman's lips curved slightly. "Of course you can."
Adrian looked at her. "That's not normal."
"You're not normal anymore."
The words settled heavier than they should have.
Adrian ran a hand through his hair, trying to ground himself. "Alright. Fine. Let's say I believe you. Let's say I accept that I died and you brought me back."
He looked directly at her.
"Why?"
Silence lingered for a moment.
Then the shadowed woman spoke.
"You were marked."
Adrian's expression tightened. "You said that before. Marked by what?"
This time, it was the third woman who answered.
"Something that noticed you," she said. "Something that doesn't usually make mistakes."
Adrian felt a chill crawl up his spine. "That doesn't explain why I'm still here."
"It does," the red-eyed woman said.
She stepped closer, stopping just in front of him.
"Because we intervened."
"And why would you do that?" Adrian pressed.
Her gaze didn't waver.
"Because letting it take you would have been… inconvenient."
Adrian blinked. "…Inconvenient?"
"Yes."
He stared at her for a second, then let out a short, disbelieving laugh. "So I didn't die because it would've been annoying for you?"
"That's one way to interpret it."
"That's a terrible way to interpret it."
The third woman smiled faintly. "You're alive. That's what matters."
Adrian shook his head. "No, what matters is what happens next."
He pointed at himself. "You said I'm bound to you. That my life isn't mine anymore. So what does that actually mean?"
The shadowed woman stepped forward slightly.
"It means you're part of something bigger now."
"That's vague."
"It means," the red-eyed woman said, her voice calm but firm, "you don't get to walk away."
Adrian held her gaze.
"…And if I try?"
For the first time, the room felt colder.
Not dramatically. Just enough to notice.
"You won't," she said.
Not a threat.
A certainty.
Adrian didn't like that.
"…You're very confident."
"We don't rely on confidence."
He let out a slow breath.
"Alright," he said finally. "Then let's try something simple."
He walked toward the door.
No one stopped him.
That made it worse.
His hand closed around the handle.
He hesitated for a split second—
Then pulled it open.
The hallway looked normal.
Empty.
Quiet.
Adrian stepped out.
Nothing happened.
He took another step.
Still nothing.
"…See?" he said over his shoulder. "I can leave."
"Keep walking," the third woman's voice called from inside.
There was something in her tone.
Amusement.
Adrian frowned but kept moving.
One step.
Two.
Three—
Pain hit.
Not sharp like before.
Not sudden.
But deep.
Like something inside him had been pulled too tight.
Adrian stopped immediately, his breath catching.
"…What was that?"
"Distance," the shadowed woman said from behind him.
He turned slightly. They were standing in the doorway now, watching him.
"You're tethered," she added.
Adrian swallowed. "Tethered… how far?"
"Far enough," the red-eyed woman replied. "Not far enough to escape."
Adrian stared at them, the realization settling in.
He looked down at his hand.
At himself.
At the world that suddenly felt different in ways he couldn't fully explain.
"…So this is it," he said quietly. "I died, got brought back, and now I'm stuck with you."
The third woman tilted her head slightly, smiling.
"Stuck is such a negative word."
"What would you call it?"
She held his gaze.
"Chosen."
Adrian let out a breath, half laugh, half disbelief.
"…Yeah," he said. "That's definitely worse."
For a moment, no one spoke.
Then—
Something shifted.
Adrian felt it before he understood it.
A pressure.
Faint.
But growing.
The red-eyed woman's expression changed slightly.
The shadowed woman went still.
The third woman's smile faded.
"…What is that?" Adrian asked.
No one answered immediately.
Then the shadowed woman spoke, her voice lower than before.
"It found you."
Adrian's stomach dropped. "What found me?"
The red-eyed woman stepped forward, her gaze locking onto the darkness at the far end of the hallway.
"The thing that killed you."
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Waiting.
And from the shadows—
Something moved.