The Spare's Second Chance in Apocalypse-Chapter 270: Ch 269: Back to the Cage - Part 3

Selene moved through the castle’s dim halls like a shadow, her steps soundless, her breathing shallow.

The voice guided her in a steady, confident tone, but she had no idea where it was taking her.

’Great. I wish this voice would stop controlling my life. Then again, I am alive because of it. So do I have any right to complain here?’

Everything around her felt too quiet—too still.

She wanted to turn back and find the others, especially Ethan, but the voice was insistent.

[Keep going. You’re almost there.]

She paused for a second, uncertainty gnawing at her gut.

’I really should stop and think for a moment about what I am doing. I wish I had some way to be able to tell where I am.’

Her mind felt like mush and Selene could only follow that voice for now. She tried her hardest not to think about something else.

That was when she heard it—someone calling her name.

"Selene!"

Her heart jumped. Ethan.

She turned slightly, just enough to catch the direction of his voice. Her instinct was to run back to him, but the voice in her head hissed.

[Ignore him. He’ll only hold you back. You don’t need the help of someone who will hold you back.]

Selene clenched her fists. She didn’t know what she was chasing or why, but every step forward made her feel less like herself.

Then she turned a corner—and froze.

Three guards stood ahead of her, mid-conversation, laughing over some private joke.

They stopped, shocked. One of them blinked rapidly, then pointed at her.

"That’s her!"

"The runaway!"

"She’s worth a damn fortune if we bring her in—alive or half-dead!"

Selene stepped back. Her chest tightened with panic. She didn’t have her system. No stats, no weapons, no backup.

"I don’t have anything—"

She muttered.

[You have me]

The voice answered.

Before she could protest, her body reacted on its own.

Her hands lifted, and in the next moment, energy surged through her. Her eyes widened as tendrils of invisible force wrapped around the guards’ throats.

They gasped and clawed at their necks, eyes bulging in panic.

Selene staggered, horrified.

"Stop it—this is too much."

[They were going to hurt you. End it.]

"I said that’s enough!"

The pressure didn’t ease. In fact, it tightened. The guards dropped to their knees, their faces turning pale.

Selene was about to scream when she felt someone grab her from behind.

"That’s enough!"

Ethan. freёweɓnovel.com

His voice was sharp, and his hand on her arm was firm, grounding her in reality.

Selene let out a choked gasp, pain and confusion flashing across her face as her powers finally relented.

The energy slipped from her fingertips, and the guards collapsed unconscious, wheezing for air.

Selene’s knees gave out, and she braced herself against the wall, breath coming out in shallow gasps.

Her head felt like it was splitting in half. Nothing made sense. She hadn’t even meant to do that.

The voice returned, but now it was cold—disappointed.

[He interfered. You should make him pay.]

"No, I won’t."

Selene whispered out loud.

Ethan flinched slightly at her voice.

Selene met his eyes.

"Knock me out."

Ethan blinked.

"What?"

"Please. I don’t know if I can keep control of it anymore."

He frowned, frustrated.

"You’re not doing this again."

Selene stared at him.

"I’m serious."

"I know you are. And it’s exactly why I won’t do it. You’re not thinking clearly. You’re scared, and that thing inside your head is using that fear."

He said, voice rising.

"I’m not scared."

She snapped.

"Yes, you are. And that’s okay. But asking me to knock you out? That’s running away."

He said, softer now.

Selene opened her mouth to argue, but no words came.

The voice in her head had gone quiet again, but the silence it left behind was worse. Cold, hollow, dangerous.

"I’m not running," she finally muttered, her voice cracking.

"I just... I don’t know what else to do."

Ethan stepped closer, gently placing his hand on her shoulder again.

"Then let’s figure it out together."

Selene shook her head, trying to make her point clear.

"It’s not because I want to run away, Ethan. It’s because I genuinely don’t know what’s happening to me anymore."

But just as the words left her mouth, the pressure inside her mind lifted.

The voice—so constant, so suffocating—vanished. It left her head as suddenly as it had arrived.

Selene exhaled, a shaky breath that felt like the first full breath she’d taken in hours. Her body sagged slightly in relief.

Ethan, however, didn’t relax. His body tensed. His gaze locked on something over her shoulder.

Selene noticed it too late. His hand shot out and gently pushed her behind him.

"What—"

She started, but Ethan cut her off.

"Stay back."

Selene turned slowly, eyes widening as she saw the figure standing just a few feet away.

Shrouded in thick, curling smoke, the entity didn’t speak at first. Its very presence distorted the air.

It was the same being that had appeared before—calm, silent, eerie.

Selene took a cautious step forward.

"You... helped me before, didn’t you?"

The figure didn’t reply. Instead, it raised one hand, reaching slowly toward them. Ethan’s stance tightened.

"Don’t come closer."

Ethan said, his voice low and cold.

The smoke figure paused. Then it tilted its head.

"And who are you to command me?"

It asked, voice calm and deep.

Ethan’s jaw clenched. He didn’t answer.

Selene’s eyes were locked on the smoke. Just for a second, the shifting darkness parted—and her breath caught. She saw a face.

It was Ethan’s face. Or... something like it.

The resemblance was unmistakable. Same eyes. Same jawline. But colder. Harsher. Gone the warmth. Just a mirror warped by something darker.

Then the smoke closed over it again.

Selene staggered, her heart racing.

"What... what is that?"

But somehow, she didn’t scream. She didn’t run. She just held her ground, even as the world around her started to feel like it was slipping sideways.