Chap 162: The Voices

Kie had been stripped of his title as team leader. What did that even leave him with? Since the Tee fiasco and that messy confession session, he could finally speak one-on-one with the Commander once more.

The door sealed shut behind them with a hiss. He sat in the seat before the man in his brightly lit office. 

"I know I messed up," Kie muttered, his tone more hollow than guilty. "I need a way to redeem myself. Anything."

He didn’t pound his chest, didn’t raise his voice. It wasn’t dramatic. It just spilled out of him like the breath he’d been holding for weeks.

The Commander brushed his gloved hand across the desk, summoning a holographic keyboard that flickered to life beneath his fingers. He began typing with practiced precision, then paused to stroke his goatee thoughtfully.

“I figured you’d come looking for redemption,” he said, voice low and measured. “You’ve let your emotions interfere with your duty too many times," the Commander said. “Altering your report in her favor, lying even…That makes you unfit to lead."

Kie looked away, jaw tight. He didn’t deny it.

The Commander leaned back, tone still neutral. "Maybe one of your teammates could do a better job."

Kie's eyes went wide. Was his goal of becoming a great leading figure on Geovalon gone? How could he do that if he wasn't the team leader who brought them to success?

The Commander, "I had high hopes for you. But you’re just like your brother."

Kie couldn’t make sense of the Commander’s last words. Why did he speak as if he knew his brother? That man was dead to him. And even if, by some curse, he was still alive, Kie had no desire to ever see his face again—because if he did, he’d make sure to ruin it beyond recognition.

"A lot of people look like me," Kie said darkly.

The Commander said nothing. Just folded his arms.

"So, tell me the real reason you’re here."

Kie swallowed.

He could’ve told him right away back then. Could’ve said, hey, Tee broke my orders during the mission. But he didn’t. He believed so badly he had found the one girl for him, and didn't want to upset her. But he was wrong. She wasn't only a manipulative liar, she was a Xeno-victim, which meant she would die on him. 

Death. It was the one thing he could never truly shake. The names and faces of the troopers he’d lost in the Mid-Guard haunted him like ghosts that refused to rest. Every time he let someone in, every time he trusted them to fight by his side, he risked losing another piece of himself—pieces he knew he would never get back. With each loss, the emptiness inside him grew, a gnawing reminder that some wounds never healed.

He had no family, and no girlfriend. But being a team leader was something he really wanted to get back. 

His fists clenched. "There has to be a way to earn back your trust. My title."

The Commander considered. "Tee still needs the Balance Seal. Getting her to wear a crest would be a bonus. This isn’t over."

The thought of dealing with that Fein again made Kie’s stomach twist. The Commander really was a spiteful man. But he had no choice. He exhaled sharply, the weight of it all settling in his chest.

"Her secret’s out, yes. But she could mutate into a MegaSapian at any moment," the Commander said. "And when that happens, your team will have no choice but to kill it."

Kie turned his face away. His chest burned.

"Yeah, I get it," he muttered.

He left the room like a ghost.

The air outside the office was cold and dead with quietness. Primus' base hummed around him. Kie walked through the winding halls and past statues, each step dragging. Most of the workers had already finished cleaning up the mess from the fiasco. It had to have been aided by sorcery.

His thoughts spun around one thing.

Where was Tee?

He had to find her.

Not to hurt her.

Not to forgive her.

To get some common sense into her head. 

He could check her room, but he knew she wouldn’t answer. Sooner or later, hunger would force her past the kitchen. Waiting there made sense.

He went—but she wasn’t.

A sudden gut feeling drew him toward the windy fields. There she was, just as he’d sensed. Curled at the base of a beach tree, knees pressed to her chest, arms wrapped tightly around her legs. Her face was hidden in shadow, as if she were trying to disappear from the world.

“Get lost,” she blurted before he could fully come into view.

The wind tossed her white hair across her face, concealing it. She had sensed someone approaching and her foresight had revealed it was him, but she made no move to leave.

He said, "You still need the Balance Seal. And a crest."

She looked up at the air before her. "Still not done, huh? Still got orders to break me?"

She laughed. Loud. Sharp.

"I’m never getting that Seal. And I’ll never wear a crest. I’d rather rot."

"You could kill thousands if you mutate," he said, stepping forward. "And you won’t take the one thing that could stop it?"

"Not my problem," she snapped.

He shook his head slowly. 

"You really have a dead heart. To think I was attracted to you."

That did it.

She stood, letting her arms fall to her sides. The turtleneck she wore hid most of her neck, but he knew the curse mark was there. Why she felt the need to start covering it with clothes was beyond him.

With a sharp breath, she turned and marched away.

He didn’t follow her. 

“We have another strategy session and you need to be there,” he called out. 

“You’re not the team leader anymore. Don’t tell me what to do.”

Kie gasped. 

He wasn’t sure he was ready to experience what it felt like to be led by one of his other teammates. And, deep down, he wasn’t sure he even wanted to be.

Outside the debriefing room, Zod, Saeda, and Miko stood in a loose circle, tense from the weight of recent failures.

Rock, paper, scissors. Best of three. That was how they decided who would test-run being team leader.

Zod won.

Inside the debriefing room, five chairs faced a central hologram board. Zod stood at the head—not leaning coolly like Kie used to, but standing upright, hands behind his back.

“As team leader,” Zod began in a bold voice, “I’ll be chairing this meeting. Basic rules. If you want to speak, you say ‘through the chair’ and wait to be acknowledged. Got it?”

Blank stares. Miko blinked at him. Saeda raised an eyebrow.

Zod pressed on, undeterred.

“All motions require a roll-call vote. Majority rules, meaning at least three votes to pass. Miko, you’ll be part-secretary for this meeting.”

Miko gave a playful salute and opened their shared hologram notelog.

“Now that we’re all here, this meeting will commence.” Zod launched into his report. “To start—last mission? A complete failure. No Harbingers taken down.”

That set the mood. Cold, heavy.

“Also,” he added, “we didn’t see the bird.”

“I had blasted it,” Saeda said flatly.

Zod frowned. “Please—follow the rules. Wait to be acknowledged.”

Tee rolled her eyes. 

Kie slouched in his chair, feet casually propped on the table.

Saeda, annoyed, muttered, “Through the chair.”

Zod gave her a nod.

“Hopefully, it’s dead,” Saeda said. “That’s two down. Three more to go.” She hesitated, then glanced sideways. “…Unless there are more Harbingers than we know.”

A chill passed through them.

Tee leaned forward. “What about Lilith?” she asked. Silence followed. “I’ll kill her.”

Zod stifled a laugh but cleared his throat. “Through the chair, please.”

Saeda scoffed. “Yeah, since you're really good at killing things.” Her voice was icy. “Through the chair.”

The jab was clear. Tee flinched, jaw tight. “Lilith doesn’t want to kill me,” Tee said. “She thinks I’m part of some bigger plan. I could use that—I could be bait.”

“Of course she does,” Saeda sneered. “You’re just like them.”

Tee inhaled sharply.

Kie finally spoke, voice calm but firm. “Tee has a good idea.”

Everyone looked over.

Tee didn't look at him. She couldn’t. Did he just agree with her?

Zod gave another reminder. “Let’s keep it structured.”

Kie leaned forward, serious. “Through the chair. I’ll go with her. Tee distracts Lilith. I’ll finish it—with my Ultramana blade. She’s already damaged. But strong Ultramana is the only way to take her out.”

Everyone went quiet.

Zod studied him, then glanced around the room.

“All in favor of Tee and Kie’s plan—focus on eliminating Lilith in the next mission—say ‘aye.’”

Silence.

“Any opposed?”

Still nothing.

Zod sighed. “Fine. Roll-call vote.”

Miko called out each name. All agreed.

The motion passed.

The meeting continued and was eventually adjourned. Tee sat still, hoping she wouldn’t come to regret her decision—but a part of her couldn’t stop thinking about working with Kie to take down Lilith. It didn’t make sense why he would be so quick to work with her. Legion was also damaged—slimmer. Why didn’t he agree to take him out rather than go along with her plan?

She frowned, thinking it was his plan to get her to get the Seal. He was softening her up. 

Tee sat in her room later than evening, gripping the edges of her sink. Water dripped from the tap, steady, rhythmic, like a clock ticking louder with every second.

Though her concealer was no longer of use, and she needed to wear turtlenecks or go bare from then on. But it wasn’t what she focused on in the mirror. 

It was the voices.

She heard them. Whispering. Familiar tones, warped and venomous.

Her teammates.

Liar. Monster. Traitor. Selfish. No broughtupsy. Dead heart.

That last one was Kie’s. It still stung.

She heard the Commander. The Lieutenant. Even the Elders. All bad-mouthing her.

She covered her ears. It didn’t help.

She could feel the weight of their eyes even when no one was there. She was unraveling. Her secret was out. 

But the Commander still insisted she wear a crest. Maybe it would be enough to prove to the others she was a Xeno-victim… not a Harbinger. The thought made her sick. 

She raised her head and looked in the mirror. There she was. The other her.

Black eyes. A cold, haunting stare. Standing just behind her.

Tee spun around. Nothing. Empty.

Heart pounding, she turned back to the mirror.

Her reflection had returned to normal but she could still feel it behind her. Still hear the shallow breathing.

“Why are you here?” Tee whispered. “To tell me I can’t win?”

The figure said nothing—just like always.

“Why am I even talking to a figment of my imagination?”

Then it spoke.

Something that sounded more like a sound rather than a word. 

But it made Tee jump back, breath hitching in her throat.

She turned—again, nothing.

But the whisper still echoed in her head.

Five days passed. During that time, Saeda further confirmed what everyone feared—her aura-sensing didn’t work around Tee. Meanwhile, Tee took pleasure in outing herself first from group combat training. She used every time she had to think about the plan to defeat Lilith with Kie. 

But even that hope was drowned out by the constant whispering—harsh voices speaking cruel things about her. Whether they were real or just echoes of her own subconscious, they tore her apart all the same.

Whenever she could, she stayed in her room. The beach, the windy field, the pool... none of it called to her anymore. Nowhere on Primus felt like escape. 

Sade's unsettling words—“I adore you”—echoed in her mind like a curse. Then came the memory of the man who called himself Severin, speaking to her as if she were some chosen savior.

She wasn’t a Harbinger... but it was clear the Harbingers had other plans. They wanted her. They believed in her—more than her own team did.

She no longer washed dishes with Kie. Alone in the empty kitchen, scrubbing what would be her last plate of the night, a holoscreen flared to life and alarms tore through the air.

MISSION ALERT.

Engage Immediately.