Two people. One truth. And the weight of one imposter watching from behind the walls.
Scene: Sublevel Stairwell – 02:18 a.m.
Tessa had never been in this stairwell before.
It wasn't on the maps. Not part of any emergency exit. The concrete walls were painted an outdated Concord blue, now chipped and flaking like the bones of a forgotten archive.
The door had been left ajar. Just slightly.
She stepped inside.
Her breath echoed.
He was already waiting.
Rook Vale sat on the third step from the bottom, hoodie up, boots untied, elbows on his knees. He didn't move when she entered. Didn't speak. Just raised his eyes to meet hers.
Not cold.
Not warm.
Just watching.
She sat beside him, slowly.
The silence was thick.
When she spoke, her voice wasn't steady — but it wasn't weak, either.
"There's something wrong with her."
Rook didn't ask who.
He waited.
"She knew things," Tessa said. "Small things. Personal things. Stuff I've only said once — or never out loud at all."
"Ava," he said.
She nodded.
Rook didn't react.
"She mimicked me," Tessa whispered. "Not just my words. My rhythm. My memories. I think… I think she's not just spying on me."
"She's replacing you," he said.
The words hit like a slap.
Tessa blinked. "You knew."
"I suspected."
"How long?"
"Since the day she was assigned to you."
Tessa turned toward him, sudden fire in her voice. "And you didn't warn me?"
"I did," he said calmly. "You just didn't know what the warning meant."
She stood abruptly, pacing now, anger surging through the fear.
"Why her? Why me? What the hell is the point of this game? If they wanted me gone, why not just—"
"Because you're valuable," Rook said. "Because you're clean. You still believe in heroes. You believe in me. That makes you dangerous."
Tessa froze.
"Wait. Me?"
He looked at her — really looked at her.
"You've never asked me what I've done," he said. "You've never asked what I'm planning. You let me lie. Over and over. And every time you didn't walk away."
"Because I thought I could reach you."
"I know."
"That's not a weakness."
"No," he said. "It's bait."
Tessa stepped back like he'd struck her.
For a long time, neither of them spoke.
She turned toward the door.
Then stopped.
And said, without turning around, "I don't care what you've done. But I care what you'll become."
He didn't answer.
Then, quietly, "What do you want me to become?"
She closed her eyes.
"Someone who still comes back when I call him."
The silence after that was heavier than steel.
Finally, she stepped outside the stairwell and let the door close softly behind her.
Scene: Corridor – Outside the Training Wing
Ava Spire watched from behind the power panel.
She'd been there for twenty-three minutes. Breathing slow. Watching.
Recording.
She held a slim Concord device in her hand. One designed for behavioral mimicry training.
The audio file was already half-synced.
She tapped it once.
Her own voice responded.
"What do you want me to become?"
Perfect tone. Perfect rhythm.
She smiled.
Scene: Dorm 103 – One hour later
Rook sat at his terminal, looping the sound of Tessa's breathing from the stairwell recording.
He hadn't meant to record her.
But he did.
And he wasn't sure why he kept listening to the sound.
He opened his encrypted kill list.
Then closed it.
Opened a new folder.
Titled it:
"The Sound of Her Breathing"
No files yet.
Just the title.
Just the reminder.
That for all his planning, all his precision, all his blades in the dark…
He was still vulnerable to a voice that didn't flinch when it said his name.