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Seeing her wavering, Kaiden looked both triumphant—and nervous. It was the latter that sealed Alex’s decision, her curiosity winning out over her trepidation. Kaiden had always come across as confident from the very first moment she’d laid eyes on him. Not arrogant, never that. But self-assured, knowing exactly who he was along with what strength and skills were at his disposal. The nervousness, however, was something new. And it was enough to intrigue Alex into banishing the doorway she’d summoned, tentatively nodding her agreement.

“Not that it would work in here, but I don’t have an authorised Bubbler vial with me, so…” Kaiden raised his voice and said, “Library, just this once, would you mind—”

Before he could finish his request, another door appeared in front of them.

“Never be afraid to ask, Kaiden James,” came the Library’s rumbling voice.

Unable to help herself, Alex smirked and said, “Now who’s the Chosen One?”

Kaiden laughed, his nervousness dissolving. “Don’t worry—you’ll have your title back by the time we return.”

And with that, he reached for her hand and led her through the doorway.

Twenty-Six

Unlike the night-time they’d left behind atAkarnae, it was barely sunset at their new location, so Alex had no trouble taking in the scenery before her. But she still struggled to understandwhatshe was seeing. Or rather,how.

“I’ve been here before,” she said, before amending, “… sort of.”

“In the Rec Room, right?” Kaiden asked. “Virtual reality?”

Alex could only nod as she stared at the abandoned castle in front of them. In the time since she’d first ‘visited’, the forest had swallowed even more of the crumbling stone ruins, with vines and moss now dominating the once strong foundation. Ice crackled under her feet, but otherwise their location seemed to be enduring a mild winter with little snow.

“How…?” she trailed off as she looked around, not even sure what to ask.

“The VR programs often use real locations as backdrops, adding in their own special effects,” Kaiden explained, leading Alex closer to the castle. “And characters.”

“So we don’t have to keep an eye out for horse-sized wolves?” Alex checked. “Or screaming, bloodied brides?”

Kaiden’s features showed his curiosity, but all he said was, “It’s just us here.”

She wanted to know how he could be so sure, but something about the way he said it made her believe him. “What is this place? And why did you bring me here?”

She glanced around, half wondering if his parents were about to pop out and yell ‘SURPRISE!’

“About fifteen years ago, this used to be a hospital,” Kaiden said.

Alex looked at the crippled architecture and simply said, “No, it didn’t.”

He vaulted over a crumbled archway, reaching back to help her. “Why do you say that?”

“Fifteen years isn’t long enough for this kind of… degradation. There’s no way—”

“Biochemical acceleration after the hospital was abandoned,” Kaiden explained. “Trust me, fifteen years was more than enough to allow for such disrepair.”

Given everything else Alex had experienced in Medora, she shouldn’t have been surprised to discover there was some kind of technology to speed up the decaying process.

“Okay, so that’s where we are,” she said, even if she was definitely getting ancient castle vibes rather than modern hospital ones. “But why?”

Kaiden halted as they stepped into a cobblestoned courtyard surrounded by pillars and more crumbling arches. A murky pond sat in the middle of the space, with the marble tiers of a fountain lying sideways in the stagnant water. The sight tugged at Alex’s heart—as did everything else around her. The scenery emanated feelings of misery, like the stones themselves were leaking melancholy.

“Kaiden?” Alex prompted when he didn’t answer. “Why are we here?”

He caught her eyes as he said, “It occurred to me tonight that we’ve spent a lot of time together, but we don’t really know each other.”

Alex fought against asking if he was feeling okay, since of all the things for him to say, that wasn’t what she’d expected.

“It makes sense that you have trouble trusting me. But I’m hoping…” He ducked his head slightly, his usual confidence wavering. “I’m hoping that getting to know me better may… help.” He looked back up, his features paler than normal but also resolute. “Very few people know about my past. I want you to be one of them.”