The Thirteenth Sign

Celeste had expected many things when Kieran dragged her away from the Grand Conflux.

A secluded alley, maybe. Some dark corner of the city where he could interrogate her without an audience. But as they moved swiftly through the winding corridors of Libra's neutral zone, she realized that Kieran had something else in mind.

Something much worse.

A vehicle awaited them at the edge of the district—a sleek, midnight-black transport with no visible wheels, hovering effortlessly above the polished metal roads. Its curved structure was unmistakable: a Scorpio-class Phantom Cruiser.

Celeste's stomach twisted.

This wasn't just any vehicle. This was military-grade, and it was untraceable and silent. It was built for pursuit, extraction, and, if necessary—elimination.

Kieran tapped the side panel, and with a quiet hiss, the gull-wing doors lifted open.

Celeste hesitated.

"I'm not getting in that," she said flatly.

Kieran tilted his head, amused. "You'd rather walk?"

"I'd rather not get into a death trap with a professional killer."

He sighed as if she was exhausting him. "If I wanted you dead, Cel, I wouldn't need a vehicle to make it happen."

She scowled. "Comforting."

Without another word, he placed a firm hand on her lower back and nudged her inside.

Celeste stiffened but didn't resist. She told herself it was because she had no other choice, not because the brief contact sent an unsteady flicker through her spine.

She slid into the passenger seat as Kieran entered behind her, the doors sealing shut with a seamless hiss. The moment he activated the controls, the cruiser's interface flickered to life—a sleek display of dark blue holo-screens glowing against the dimly lit interior.

The engine didn't hum or roar like other vehicles.

It just purred, smooth and lethal like the man sitting beside her.

...

The cruiser lifted into motion without a sound, slipping into the designated lanes that wove through Aetherion's undercity. The view outside was nothing like the Air Dominion's floating towers—down here, the streets were lined with neon-lit corridors, shadowed walkways, and security drones silently watching from above.

Celeste forced herself to focus on the moment, to push away the realization that she was alone in a high-security vehicle with a man who had once been ordered to kill her.

She folded her arms and glanced at him. "So... Are you planning on telling me why you gave me that keycard, or should I start guessing?"

Kieran kept his gaze on the road, one hand resting on the control panel, the other draped lazily against the armrest. "Guessing might be fun."

Celeste rolled her eyes. "Fine. You wanted to test me. See what I'd do with it."

Kieran hummed. "Not bad."

"So I was right?"

"Not entirely."

She exhaled sharply. "Then what's the real reason?"

His fingers tapped against the wheel. "I want to see how far you're willing to go."

The answer sent a shiver down her spine.

Celeste turned toward him fully, expression sharp. "You think this is a game?"

He smirked slightly and replied, "Not a game. A lesson."

"You don't get to decide what I learn, Kieran."

"Don't I?" he mused, his tone infuriatingly unreadable. "You're the one in my vehicle, aren't you?"

Celeste scowled. "Only because you dragged me here."

"Well, you didn't resist."

She clenched her fists and rolled her eyes before answering, "You didn't give me a choice, did you, mister assassin?"

Kieran finally turned his head, eyes locking onto hers.

"You always have a choice, Celeste," he said quietly. "You just have to be willing to live with the consequences."

Something about the way he said it made her stomach tighten because she knew he was speaking from experience.

Silence settled between them for a moment, the only sound being the soft pulse of the cruiser's interface.

Then, Celeste exhaled slowly.

"Raenys was terrified of you," she muttered.

Kieran's mouth quirked. "Good."

Celeste glared at him. "Why do people react like that when they hear your name?"

He tilted his head slightly, considering her. "Do you really want to know?"

She hesitated, but then nodded.

Kieran's gaze darkened slightly.

"Because when someone hears my name, it usually means they don't have much time left."

Celeste felt a cold chill run through her veins but she refused to look away.

Instead, she leaned forward slightly, her voice dropping. "And yet, I'm still here."

A flicker of something unreadable passed through his expression, gone as quickly as it came.

He stared at her eyes, and his gaze slowly shifted down to her lips. His Adam's apple bobbed a little before he murmured, "Yes, you are."

******

The cruiser suddenly shifted direction, descending into a restricted zone beneath Scorpio's district.

Celeste's breath caught as she realized where they were going.

"You're taking me to your headquarters?"

Kieran smirked. "Something like that."

The vehicle slowed as they entered a heavily secured access tunnel, the walls lined with motion-sensor turrets and biometric scanners. The security systems barely even registered the cruiser's presence—it was coded into the system, accepted without question.

Kieran tapped a sequence into the interface, and the vehicle finally came to a halt inside a dimly lit underground station.

Celeste tensed.

The doors then hissed open.

Kieran turned to her. "End of the ride, Aqua girl."

She narrowed her eyes. "I don't like it when you call me that."

"That's why I do it."

She huffed but stepped out, her boots hitting the smooth metallic floor of the station. The air here was cooler, heavier, the scent of sharpened steel and low-burning energy coils filling the space.

Kieran moved past her, walking toward an entrance lined with intricate Scorpio insignias carved into dark stone.

He didn't turn when he spoke.

"Come on, Cel." His voice was smooth, amused. "I told you, we have a lot to talk about."

Celeste exhaled sharply, her heart still pounding from the ride.

Then, without another word, she followed him inside.