Stan pulled the car up to the curb, letting the engine hum for a moment before shifting into park.
The area was quiet, the kind of quiet that existed just outside the city's pulse. Not exactly abandoned, but not bustling either. The buildings here were older, heavier with history, their walls bearing faded murals and the occasional graffiti tag.
Huey didn't move immediately. He just sat there, staring out at the street like it might rearrange itself if he looked long enough.
> Stan (raising a brow): "You getting out or waiting for divine intervention?"
Huey huffed a laugh, popping the door open.
> Huey: "If divine intervention ever shows up, tell it I said 'About time.'"
Stan chuckled, watching as Huey stepped onto the sidewalk, adjusting his blazer.
> Stan: "Thirty minutes, kid."
> Huey: "I know."
> Stan: "No more."
> Huey: "Got it, dad."
Stan snorted.
> Stan: "you just love making me feel old don't you"
He pulled away from the curb, shaking his head as he drove off,
>Stan: damn kid reminds me of me
leaving Huey standing alone in the quiet morning air.
Huey barely had time to check his watch before a gust of wind kicked up dust from the pavement.
Then—
Something small and weightless slammed into his face.
> Huey (muffled): "Wh—mph!"
A **tiny, floating squirrel-like creature clung to his head, soft and partially transparent, its air-formed tail flicking excitedly.
> Wheeler: chitters aggressively, licking Huey's forehead.
Huey just stood there, suffering.
> Huey: "This feels unnecessary."
Wheeler licked him again.
> Willy (walking up, smirking): "He missed you."
> Huey (dryly): "Oh, I can tell."
Willy, wearing his usual gray hoodie over his uniform, stuffed his hands in his pockets as he approached. His black Virelia tie was loosely knotted, and his blazer was nowhere to be found—probably ditched the second he left home.
> Willy: "So. You call me here, ignore every reasonable question, and now my pet is trying to suffocate you with affection. Should I be worried?"
Huey peeled Wheeler off his face, holding the tiny creature at arm's length.
> Huey: "You should always be worried about me."
> Willy: "Tragically true."
Wheeler twisted in Huey's grip, floating back to Willy's shoulder, his airy tail wrapping lazily around Willy's neck.
> Willy: "So, are you finally gonna tell me why we're here, or am I gonna have to guess?"
Huey tilted his head, pretending to think.
> Huey: "Oh, I like that idea. Go ahead. Guess."
> Willy: "Absolutely not."
> Huey: "Coward."
> Willy: "Menace."
They stood there for a moment, Willy squinting at Huey, Huey grinning like an idiot.
Finally—
> Willy (sighing): "You're never gonna make this easy, are you?"
> Huey: "What gave you the impression that I would?"
> Willy: "A stupid, stupid hope."
Willy crossed his arms, letting the last bit of teasing settle before finally asking, a little more seriously—
> Willy: "For real, though. You okay?"
Huey hesitated for half a second.
Then smirked.
> Huey: "Why? You worried about me?"
> Willy: "Yeah, unfortunately."
Huey's smirk dimmed—just a little.
> Huey (lighter, but genuine): "I'm fine, Willy. Really."
> Willy (watching him): "…You suck at lying to me."
> Huey: "Good thing I wasn't trying, then."
> Willy: "Mmhm."
He didn't look convinced.
But he let it go.
For now.
> Willy (rolling his shoulders): "Alright. So what's next?"
Huey grinned, spinning on his heel.
> Huey: "We're going inside."
> Willy (groaning): "Of course we are."
The air outside the abandoned hospital was unnervingly still.
The West District had a reputation—not the kind that got you mugged, but the kind that made you check over your shoulder twice. This was where Virelia's forgotten structures gathered dust. The kind of place people pretended never existed because it was easier than remembering.
Willy stood beside Huey, hands in his hoodie pockets, staring up at the building. The old hospital loomed over them, its exterior weathered by time and neglect. The once-pristine sign had faded into something barely legible, like even the metal wanted to forget what it used to be.
> Willy (grumbling): "You know, when we said we'd check this place out, I thought we meant eventually. Not the second you escape death."
> Huey (deadpan): "Turns out almost dying really clears the schedule."
Willy shot him a look.
> Willy: "You think that's funny?"
> Huey: "I think it's hilarious."
> Willy: "Well, it's not."
> Huey: "Tell that to my coping mechanism."
A Lingering Unease
A breeze swept through the street, rustling loose debris.
Wheeler, still curled lazily around Willy's shoulders, twitched his tiny nose before stretching and floating into the air. The wind-formed creature sniffed at Huey, then promptly landed on his head.
> Willy (deadpan): "He's claiming you again."
> Huey (flatly): "I refuse to acknowledge this."
> Wheeler: chitters smugly.
Huey ignored the air squirrel's smug energy and turned back to the hospital.
> Huey: "Luan was sure she saw movement here, right?"
Willy rubbed his arms, like just standing here made his skin crawl.
> Willy: "Yeah. Said she was walking back from extra hours, looked up, and saw shadows moving past the windows."
> Huey: "Shadows."
> Willy: "Yeah. Thought it might be security or squatters, but—"
> Huey (cutting in): "There's no registered security detail, and the entrances are welded shut."
> Willy: "Right. She checked."
> Huey: "And homeless people don't usually float."
Silence.
> Willy (gritting his teeth): "I hate when you do that."
> Huey: "What?"
> Willy: "That thing where you predict the next part of the story like you're reading from a script."
Huey smirked.
> Huey: "It's a gift."
---
Kaiser's Shadow
Willy let out a slow, controlled exhale.
> Willy: "Alright, Sherlock. Let's hear it. Why are we actually here?"
Huey's gaze remained locked on the hospital.
> Huey: "Simple. This is Kaiser's new hideout."
Willy blinked.
Then laughed.
> Willy: "Okay. No. You don't just casually drop something like that."
> Willy: "What do you mean Kaiser's hideout? Kaiser got wiped out three years ago."
Huey shook his head.
> Huey: "Most of them got wiped."
Kaiser. A name people didn't say out loud unless they had to.
Three years ago, they had been the largest Rift crime syndicate in Virelia.
Illegal Crest modifications.
Trafficking of rogue Crest Bearers.
Black market Rift weapons.
For a time, they controlled the underground.
Then, one man tore them apart in a single night.
> Willy (arms crossed): "You're talking about Johnny Travers."
> Huey: "Level 5 Aeon Crest Bearer. Independent faction. Gallow Hounds' best operative.* Took down Kaiser's leadership."*
> Willy: "Not just took down. Erased. The guy went through them like a damn horror movie. Even the survivors disappeared."
> Huey: "Exactly. And that's the problem."
Willy narrowed his eyes.
> Huey: "Kaiser didn't disappear. They fractured."
> Huey: "The weaker factions got picked off, but a small, careful piece of them slipped through the cracks."
Willy wasn't convinced.
> Willy: "And you think that small piece ended up here?"
Huey gestured to the hospital.
> Huey: "Think about it. This place used to be a Crest Bearer care facility. Shut down after Rift residue contamination, right?"
> Willy: "Yeah. Reports said the residue made Crest Bearers unstable—hallucinations, power fluctuations, the works."
> Huey: "And yet, the city never demolished it."
> Willy (blinking): "...Huh."
> Huey: "Even weirder? No official ownership records. No corporate bids. No Toppler sweeps in the area for years."
Willy's expression shifted.
> Willy: "Okay. That's weird."
> Huey: "Exactly. Now, add Luan's sighting. Shadows moving through the halls when every entrance is locked. And let's not forget…"
He tapped his gloved hand.
> Huey: "Kaiser was always in the illegal Crest business."
Willy inhaled sharply.
> Willy: "Synthetic Crests."
> Huey (grinning): "Bingo."
---
Willy's Reality Check
Willy let out a long, suffering sigh.
> Willy: "Huey. Do you hear yourself? This isn't some school prank. You're talking about walking into a possible Kaiser base."
> Huey: "Relax. I'm not walking in."
Willy squinted.
> Willy: "Are you sure? Because every fiber of my being is screaming that you're lying."
Huey smirked.
> Huey: "I'm just here to confirm my theory."
> Willy: "Huey—"
> Huey: "I promise."
Willy stared at him.
> Willy: "You have never once kept a promise."
> Huey: "That's not true."
> Willy: "Oh? Name one."
Huey paused.
Then changed the subject.
> Huey: "Look, all I'm saying is—"
> Willy: "No. Don't 'look, all I'm saying' me. You're insane."
> Huey: "And yet, you're still here."
> Willy: "Because someone has to make sure you don't die before you hit twenty!"
A sharp beep made them turn.
Stan's car rolled up across the street, right on schedule.
> Stan (leaning out the window): "Thirty minutes, kid. Let's go."
Willy exhaled, running a hand down his face.
> Willy: "This is stupid. We're literally in uniform. If we get caught snooping here, it's gonna look bad."
> Huey: "Then we won't get caught."
> Willy: "And if we do?"
Huey smirked.
> Huey: "Then I'll blame you."
Willy glared.
> Willy: "I hope you trip."
> Huey: "Already did. Into a pit, remember?"
Willy groaned.
Huey took one last glance at the hospital.
Something was there.
Something big.
But not today. Not yet.
He turned, stepping away from the mystery.
For now.
The car rolled to a smooth stop, the hum of the engine fading as Stan pulled up in front of Virelia's dormitory complex.
Huey didn't move. He sat in the backseat, arms crossed, staring at the towering buildings ahead with thinly veiled distrust.
Virelia's signature blue and red banners draped elegantly from the upper floors, fluttering slightly in the morning breeze. Holo-displays projected event schedules, their neon glow casting a shifting light over the stone pathways. **Students moved in waves—**some hauling luggage, some lounging against the pillars, others deep in conversation. The air was filled with the buzz of excitement, the kind that came with a fresh start.
Huey, however, wasn't feeling it.
> Huey (flatly): "I don't remember agreeing to this."
Stan, still gripping the wheel with one hand, turned toward him with a grin far too smug for Huey's liking.
> Stan: "You didn't."
And then, he popped the trunk.
---
Before Huey could process it, Stan was already outside, hauling his bags from the trunk with an efficiency that was deeply unsettling.
Huey leaned out of the car window, squinting.
> Huey: "You're moving way too fast for someone your age."
> Stan (grinning): "Muscle memory. Used to do this with your older siblings. Hailee fought harder than you."
Huey swung open the car door, stepping out onto the pavement. He barely had time to register the sheer size of the dormitory buildings before Stan dropped a suitcase at his feet with an unnecessary thud.
> Huey (blinking down at the luggage): "Right. So, funny story—I actually live at home."
> Stan: "Not anymore."
> Huey (suspicious): "This is my dad's fault, isn't it?"
Stan slapped a firm hand on Huey's shoulder, grinning like he was proud of a terrible decision.
> Stan: "The whole family, actually. Consensus was that it'd be 'good for your growth.'"
Huey could already see it—his dad, looking unbearably smug, probably enjoying the newfound peace at home. His mom, not entirely against the idea but not fighting it either. His siblings, probably betting on how long he'd last before trying to move back.
> Huey (deadpan): "I'm being exiled."
> Stan (cheerfully): "Think of it as… forcible encouragement."
Huey opened his mouth to argue, but before he could string together a valid protest, the backseat door swung open.
Willy stumbled out, rubbing his eyes, still half-asleep from the drive. His hoodie was slightly askew, and Wheeler, still curled around his shoulders, let out a lazy chitter.
> Willy (blinking at the luggage pile): "Huh. So this is happening."
> Huey: "This is a violation of my civil rights."
> Willy: "Bold of you to assume you had any."
Stan patted Huey's shoulder again—this time with something almost fatherly.
> Stan: "C'mon, kid. Unpack. Start your new independent life. Make mistakes. Get into trouble. You're good at that."
Huey stared at him, unimpressed.
> Huey: "That sounded supportive, but it really wasn't."
> Stan: "I like to keep things balanced."
Before Huey could form a solid escape plan, Stan stepped back into the car, already shutting the door.
> Huey (eyes narrowing): "Wait—"
The engine revved.
Stan flashed a two-fingered salute, grinning.
> Stan: "Thirty minutes, kid. Make 'em count."
And with that, he drove off.
Huey stood there, watching the car disappear down the road, his suitcase still at his feet.
> Huey (flatly): "That man just abandoned me in broad daylight."
Willy yawned, stretching.
> Willy: "Poetic justice."
> Huey: "I don't even know what that means, and I refuse to ask."
With no other options, Huey grabbed his suitcase and followed Willy toward the dormitory entrance.
The Virelia dorms were designed like a hybrid of old-world architecture and cutting-edge technology. Sleek glass-paneled buildings stood tall, reinforced with Rift-resistant materials. The main entrance had a security scanner, glowing faintly as students walked through.
Inside, the lobby stretched wide, with polished floors reflecting the red and blue banners that draped from the ceiling. A holo-display hovered in the center, spinning with bright announcements:
"Freshman Week Events!"
"Friday: Crest Showcase & Short Tournament!"
"Saturday: The Freshman Ball!"
> Huey (glancing at the schedule, unimpressed): "Did I just get dropped into a dystopian high school drama?"
> Willy (grinning): "Welcome to Virelia, where your suffering is our entertainment."
They made their way toward the dormitory assignment board, scanning the list of names.
Willy: Room 405.
Huey: Room 407.
Huey sighed, adjusting his bag as he dragged himself toward his new place of imprisonment—only to stop dead in his tracks the second he stepped inside.
The room itself was fine—spacious, clean, minimally furnished.
But the walls.
They were covered in motivational posters.
> "WAKE UP. TRAIN. REPEAT."
"SUCCESS IS THE ONLY OPTION."
"EVEN PAIN HAS A PURPOSE."
> Huey (staring at the walls, horrified): "No. Absolutely not."
He turned immediately, fully prepared to demand a room chang
But Willy shoved him inside before he could escape.
> Willy: "Nope. You're stuck now, buddy."
The door shut behind him.
> Huey (muttering to himself): "This has to be a hate crime."
With a sigh of defeat, he dropped his bags and collapsed onto the bed, staring at the ceiling.
Forcibly encouraged, huh?
Yeah. Sure.