Behind the Red Door

# **Chapter 10: The Missing Piece**

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### **Westminster, Federation Headquarters – Director Graves' Office**

The office was **quiet**, but the tension **hummed** beneath the surface like an electrical wire ready to snap.

Director **Harrison Graves** leaned back in his chair, his fingers **steepled beneath his chin**, eyes narrowed in thought. The dim light from the **overhead lamp** cast shadows across his face, deepening the lines of **worry and frustration**.

Before him, **Agent Rowe** and **Agent Liu** stood stiffly, waiting for his response. The air in the room was **heavy**, the unspoken weight of **anomalies, missing men, and unknown dangers** pressing down on all of them.

**"The tenth body is missing,"** Harrison murmured.

It wasn't a question.

It was **a problem.**

Rowe cleared his throat. **"We've triple-checked the remains at King's Cross, sir. Nine confirmed. No sign of the tenth operative."**

Liu shifted uneasily. **"Commander Thorne's report was clear—ten Dream Walkers went in. We should have found ten bodies. And yet…"**

Harrison inhaled sharply through his nose. **"Tell me about the missing one."**

Rowe pulled out his datapad, scrolling through **encrypted personnel files.** **"Kael Mercer. Age twenty. F-rank Dream Walker. First field mission. No significant background. Barely passed qualification trials."****

He hesitated before adding, **"Marked as a 'low potential risk.'"**

Harrison's blue eyes **hardened.**

**"And yet he's the only one unaccounted for."**

Silence.

The implications **settled between them** like a slow-moving storm.

**An F-rank mission gone horribly wrong.**

**An entire squad wiped out.**

**A missing operative who wasn't supposed to matter.**

And yet, **he did.**

Liu hesitated. **"Sir… if Kael Mercer isn't dead, then where is he?"**

Harrison's jaw clenched. **"That's what we're going to find out."**

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### **London – Special Investigation Division**

The **Special Investigation Division (SID)** was an **elite subunit** of the Federation's Dream Walker Enforcement Agency.

It handled **cases that didn't make sense.**

Cases like **this one.**

**Agent Alina Voss** sat in her cramped office, sipping **black coffee gone cold.** Her desk was **a mess of files, holographic screens, and caffeine-stained reports.**

She was a woman in her **early thirties**, with sharp **green eyes** and a reputation for **being relentless**.

And right now, she was staring at the **King's Cross Incident file** with growing unease.

Her screen flashed as a **new case directive** came in.

**[PRIORITY: HIGH]**

**[SUBJECT: KAEL MERCER – MISSING OPERATIVE]**

**[INVESTIGATE LAST KNOWN LOCATION]**

**[FIND THE TRUTH]**

Alina exhaled slowly, rubbing her temples.

*"Kael Mercer… What the hell happened to you?"*

She didn't believe in **coincidences.**

Nine bodies found. **One missing.**

And a **mission** that was supposed to be **simple.**

Something **had gone horribly wrong** that night.

And Alina **intended to find out why.**

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### **Unknown Location – Arena's infirmary

Darkness wrapped around Kael, thick and suffocating.

His body throbbed, pain pulsing in waves through his limbs. His ribs burned, his muscles ached, and his skin felt too tight, like his very existence was straining under unseen pressure.

His mind drifted—half-lost in the abyss.

Then, the darkness cracked.

Voices. Muffled at first, then sharpening.

Kael's instincts screamed at him to stay still.

And so, he did.

Eyes closed. Breath shallow.

He listened.That boy…"

The voice was smooth, cultured—Valerius.

Kael's pulse quickened.

"You've seen it yourself, haven't you?" Valerius continued, his tone laced with intrigue. "He's not normal."

A second voice responded, deep and steady. Unfamiliar.

"I saw." A pause. "And I don't like it."

The stranger's tone carried authority, but not deference. Whoever this was, they spoke to Valerius as an equal.

Kael kept still.

"No ordinary slave should have survived Butcher," the stranger continued. "Not even with that… rage."

A slow chuckle from Valerius. "That 'rage' was fascinating, wasn't it?"

Silence.

Then, the stranger spoke again.

"He reminds me of him."

Kael's breath caught.

Him?

Valerius clicked his tongue. "Now, now. That's a dangerous comparison to make."

The stranger didn't back down. "The resemblance is undeniable. His fighting style, his instinctual reactions—it's as if he has returned."

Valerius was quiet for a moment.

Then, his voice dropped into something colder.

"That's impossible. He is dead."

The words sent a shiver down Kael's spine.

He didn't understand who they were talking about. But he knew this much—whoever this person was, he had left a mark on Valerius.

And now, Kael was reminding them of him.

Who did this body belong to before me?

The thought was unsettling.

The conversation continued.

"Dead or not, you saw what happened," the stranger said. "The moment that boy snapped, he moved like him. Like a predator. Like a weapon. Tell me that doesn't concern you."

Valerius hummed, thoughtful.

"Concern? No. Interest? Absolutely."

Kael could practically hear the smirk in his voice.

"If he truly is a fragment of what he once was," Valerius murmured, "then we have an opportunity, don't we?"

The stranger exhaled sharply.

"This is dangerous. If the wrong people find out—"

"Then we make sure they don't," Valerius interrupted smoothly. "For now, he stays alive. I want to see what he becomes next."

The stranger was silent.

Then—footsteps.

Kael's heart pounded.

The voices were getting closer.

He forced his breathing to slow, keeping his body completely still.

A shadow fell over him.

Even with his eyes closed, he could feel Valerius staring down at him.

Then—a soft chuckle.

"Sleep well, little monster."

Just as Kael thought the conversation was over, the door creaked open again.

A third voice—one Kael hadn't heard before—joined the conversation.

"Valerius, I expected more from you."

Kael could hear the smirk in Valerius' tone. "Ah. I was wondering when you'd show up."

The new arrival's footsteps were measured, calculated. A man accustomed to power.

"I came when I heard the impossible had happened," the third man said smoothly. "You let Butcher fall. To a slave, no less."

A pause. Then Valerius replied, voice calm. "I let nothing happen. It was Butcher who failed."

The new voice gave a low chuckle. "That's not the story the investors are hearing."

Kael felt a sudden shift in the air—Valerius was displeased.

"Are you here to scold me, Magister?" Valerius asked, amusement tinged with irritation.

The third man—Magister—sighed. "I'm here to determine if the rumors are true. That you've found… something unusual."

Valerius exhaled through his nose. "'Unusual' is an understatement."

Kael could almost hear the Magister's interest deepen. "Is he really that impressive?"

A pause.

Then Valerius spoke, voice softer, as if contemplating.

"He was broken. Beaten. His body should have given out. But then… something snapped. It wasn't just rage."

The Magister's footsteps stopped near Kael's bed.

"Then what was it?"

Valerius let the silence stretch before answering.

"It was… instinct. Not survival, but something older. Something buried. The moment he entered that state, he moved like a trained killer. Not like a desperate animal."

A pause.

Then Valerius added, "It was controlled chaos. And that… is what makes him interesting."

The Magister hummed. "Controlled? Or programmed?"

Kael's breath hitched.

What did that mean?

Footsteps. A door opening. Closing.

Kael slowly, carefully, opened his eyes.

Valerius was gone.

But the **warning lingered in the air.**

Kael's hands curled into **weak fists.**

*"What am I?"*

He didn't know.

But he was going to find out.

And when he did…

**The ones who feared him would have every reason to.**

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