Chapter 113: Sway Remedial Labs
The moment the reinforced doors sealed shut behind them with a heavy.....
THUNK!
.....the tension that had followed the group through the streets of Playmore seemed to melt away.
Inside Sway Remedial Labs, warmth replaced the city's cold elegance.
Soft amber lights illuminated shelves overflowing with carefully labelled medicine, mechanical components, handwritten research journals and rows of strange crystalline solutions that glowed faintly beneath the laboratory lighting. Sophisticated machines hummed quietly from nearby workstations while automated drones floated overhead, transporting equipment between rooms with practiced precision.
Despite its advanced technology, the laboratory didn't feel sterile.
It felt lived in.
Every workbench carried signs of countless sleepless nights. Coffee mugs sat beside unfinished blueprints. Tools were scattered across desks as though someone had only stepped away for a moment. Family photographs rested between stacks of research papers, reminding everyone that this wasn't merely a laboratory.
It was home.
Leiken wasted no time.
He wheeled a floating medical station towards the centre of the room before pointing firmly at a reclining examination chair.
"Sit."
Nyx folded her arms.
"You always make it sound like an execution."
"And you always arrive looking like you've survived one."
Leiken replied without even looking up.
Gift chuckled quietly while arranging several glass vials on a nearby tray.
"He's not wrong."
Nyx sighed dramatically before dropping into the chair.
"I liked you people more five minutes ago."
"We liked you more when you answered our messages."
Faki answered calmly while adjusting one of the monitoring consoles.
Even Avenor laughed at that as Nyx simply rolled her eyes.
"Traitors."
Leiken ignored the exchange entirely.
He stepped beside the chair and extended an open hand.
"Your arm."
To Aerin's surprise...Nyx obeyed immediately.
No complaints, no sarcastic remarks and no attempts to negotiate. She quietly rolled up her sleeve and rested her arm on the support beside the chair. That simple action told Aerin everything she needed to know.
Nyx trusted this man completely.
Leiken gently placed two fingers against her wrist.
The instant he made contact—
FWWWHHHM...
A soft azure glow spread beneath Nyx's skin.
It travelled through her veins like flowing starlight, illuminating intricate patterns hidden beneath the surface of her body.
Around the laboratory, machines awakened almost instantly.
BEEP...
BEEP...
BEEP...
Holographic displays materialised one after another.
Heart rate, astral pressure, neural activity, and energy circulation. Every reading updated in real time as streams of data raced across translucent monitors.
Leiken silently watched the information scroll past.
The relaxed expression he'd worn since greeting Nyx gradually disappeared.
"...You pushed your Savage Power again."
His voice remained calm.
But everyone in the room heard the disappointment hidden beneath it.
Nyx looked away.
"I didn't have much choice."
"You always have a choice."
"There wasn't one this time."
Leiken's eyes never left the monitor.
"You're getting worse."
Nyx gave a weak shrug.
"I'm still functioning."
He finally looked at her.
"Functioning..."
He paused.
"...is not the same as living."
Silence settled over the room.
Even Avenor, who normally found humour in almost everything, chose not to interrupt.
Trying to ease the growing tension, Aerin turned towards the younger mechanic who had been quietly organising equipment nearby.
"So..."
She smiled politely.
"How do all of you know Nyx?"
The boy's face immediately lit up.
"Oh!"
He practically bounced where he stood.
"We've been looking after Lady Nyx since we were little."
Avenor blinked.
"Looking after her?"
The boy nodded enthusiastically.
"Her father asked us to."
The atmosphere shifted almost imperceptibly.
"...Her father?"
The young mechanic nodded again.
"Mister Beningo Qi."
Even Leiken paused for a fraction of a second, the room suddenly became much quieter.
"He was one of the greatest researchers Playmore had ever produced."
The boy's voice carried unmistakable admiration.
"A genius engineer."
"A brilliant scientist."
"And one of the founders of Sway Remedial Labs."
He spread his arms proudly.
"Most of what you see here..."
"...started with him."
Avenor slowly looked around the laboratory again.
The advanced machinery, the hidden security systems, and the research facilities.
The countless inventions scattered throughout every room.
"...That explains a lot."
The mechanic grinned proudly.
"Mister Beningo could build almost anything."
"He always said medicine and engineering were just two different ways of saving lives."
Aerin quietly memorised every word.
She had heard Nyx mention her father before...But never like this.
Never with such reverence.
"...He sounds remarkable."
"He was."
The reply came from Faki.
Unlike the cheerful mechanic, his voice carried a quiet sadness.
"He wasn't respected only because he was intelligent."
Faki carefully arranged several medicine bottles before continuing.
"He was respected because everyone trusted him."
"The Royal Family trusted him."
"The military trusted him."
"The research council trusted him."
He paused.
"...Back then."
Aerin immediately noticed the change.
"Back then?"
Faki's movements slowed.
The laboratory seemed noticeably colder.
"There was..."
He searched for the right words.
"...an incident."
Avenor folded his arms.
"What kind of incident?"
Faki remained silent for several moments before answering.
"...Not the kind people are allowed to discuss."
Nobody interrupted.
"The Royal Palace changed after that."
His voice had grown quieter.
"People disappeared."
"Old alliances collapsed."
"Entire families vanished from public records."
He tightened his grip around one of the medicine bottles.
"And those who asked too many questions..."
His sentence trailed off.
"...stopped asking them."
Nyx slowly lowered her gaze, her expression had become unreadable.
Faki continued.
"Then Mister Beningo died."
"...And everything became worse."
Before anyone could ask another question—
"That's enough."
Leiken's voice cut cleanly through the conversation. He never looked up from Nyx's medical readings.
Instead, he calmly adjusted one of the monitoring devices while speaking.
"Gift."
"Prepare the next stabiliser."
"Faki."
"Help her."
Faki understood immediately.
"...Right."
Whatever memories had surfaced were quietly buried once more.
The atmosphere gradually returned to normal.
But Aerin wasn't fooled, there were too many unanswered questions, too many careful silences, and too many names that everyone seemed afraid to say aloud.
Somewhere inside the Royal Palace...something had happened. Something capable of terrifying even the people who knew the truth.
While Leiken continued monitoring Nyx's condition, Avenor wandered deeper into the laboratory. His curiosity led him from one workstation to another as he admired the strange inventions surrounding him.
Suspended mechanical arms assembled tiny medical devices with flawless precision. Miniature drones sorted thousands of capsules into labelled containers.
Several experimental weapons rested inside reinforced display cabinets beside surgical equipment.
"...This place is incredible."
Gift laughed proudly as she effortlessly lifted a steel container that easily weighed more than most grown men.
"Obviously."
She set it onto a workbench with a heavy—
THUD!
"Big Brother Sway built most of it."
Avenor glanced towards her.
"Are all of you Savages?"
Gift shook her head.
"Only Brother Sway and I."
She pointed towards Faki before gesturing to the young mechanic.
"They're ordinary humans."
Avenor blinked.
"...Humans?"
She exchanged a brief glance with Aerin. Neither of them spoke, as neither of them needed to. The same thought crossed both their minds.
Humans like Daito.
The mechanic looked between them in confusion.
"...Why are you both staring at us like that?"
Gift burst into laughter.
"We're serious."
She pointed at herself.
"I'm a Savage."
Then at Leiken.
"So is he."
Finally, she pointed towards the other two.
"They're just regular people."
Faki adjusted his glasses.
"Very regular."
Avenor looked around the fortified laboratory one more time before raising an eyebrow.
"No offence..."
"...but regular people usually don't live inside hidden fortresses while protecting internationally famous Savages."
For a brief moment...everyone froze.
Then—
"PFFFT!"
"Hahaha!"
The entire laboratory erupted with laughter. Even Leiken chuckled without looking away from the medical monitor. Nyx covered her mouth to hide a smile. Gift pointed directly at Avenor.
"I like this one."
Avenor placed a hand against his chest proudly.
"I have that effect on people."
The young mechanic immediately shook his head.
"No..."
He grinned mischievously.
"...You're just funny."
The room filled with laughter once more.
For the first time that evening...it genuinely felt like a family.
To be continued.....