NOVPUB
Chapter 174: Chapter 174 Exogens II
Liam walked toward Lilith slowly, the weight of everything that had just happened sinking heavily into his chest. Each step echoed in the quiet underground space. His eyes were locked on her hands—still swirling gently with frost, icy mist dancing in the air around her fingers like silent whispers. It was surreal.
When he finally reached her, he paused in front of her, eyes wide with awe and disbelief. Slowly, cautiously, he reached out, his fingers trembling slightly. The moment his skin brushed hers, he expected the sharp bite of cold, the sting of ice—but it never came. Instead, it felt oddly... familiar. Like he was touching her, only her, stripped of all the walls and layers. The frost obeyed her completely, molding itself around his touch. It was as though her power recognized him, accepted him.
Lilith smiled faintly, her breathing still a little uneven from what had just occurred. "You might wanna look back," she said softly, her voice laced with both wonder and warning.
Liam turned slowly, and his jaw almost dropped.
Lana stood across the room, a look of stunned fascination on her face as flames coiled lazily around her palms. The fire wasn’t raging. It was beautiful—steady, warm, alive. Her hands were lit like twin torches, bathing her face in a soft orange glow that danced in her wide eyes. She stared at her hands in disbelief, then slowly smiled.
"It’s so freaking cool," she whispered, laughing breathlessly as she twisted her wrists, the flames responding to her movement like loyal pets.
But Liam and Lilith didn’t laugh. They exchanged a glance, one that held weight. Fear. Lana noticed.
Her smile faded as the fire extinguished from her hands. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
Lilith answered first, her voice serious. "Because your life just changed, Lana. And not in a good way."
Liam nodded, running a hand through his tousled hair, his eyes now fixed on the machine that had caused all of this. "You heard what my father said. They were killing him. His whole team. People who tried to own whatever this thing was meant to do."
Lilith stepped forward. "Now think... how do you think those same people would react if they knew you just gained powers from the same device they were trying to own?"
Lana’s brows furrowed. She shook her head slightly. Reality was sinking in, cold and fast. Her lips parted, but no words came. The gravity of it all hit her at once, washing away the thrill that had danced in her veins seconds ago.
"This is trouble," she murmured.
Liam didn’t respond right away. Instead, he turned back toward the massive device at the center of the room, now dormant once more. The black liquid was gone, absorbed, fused into them. Whatever it was, it had chosen them. Or maybe it had cursed them.
He walked to the dusty cloth and covered the machine back up. They had to hide this. For now. His father’s secrets had already started pulling at threads far too dangerous to tug on without a plan.
Then, with a low mechanical stutter, the backup generator finally sputtered and died. The entire underground space plunged into pitch black.
But only for a moment.
With an instinctual spark, a soft golden-orange glow bloomed from Lana’s palm, casting the shadows back. She looked down at it, surprised herself.
"I guess... I can do that now," she muttered.
Liam stepped toward her, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder. "Let’s go upstairs. We need to get both of you checked up properly. See if anything else... changed."
They began walking toward the spiral staircase.
Liam wouldn’t let Lana go until he was absolutely sure she was alright. The memory of that black explosion, the unnatural surge of power, and the way she stood frozen right before it all erupted—it haunted him. As they stood near the quiet entrance of her apartment, he held her shoulders gently, looking into her eyes with a steady seriousness.
"Just remember," he said softly, "don’t use your powers outside. No matter how tempting it is."
"I know, Liam," Lana replied, nodding quickly, her fiery eyes meeting his. "If anything weird happens... I’ll call. I promise."
He hesitated, not because he didn’t trust her, but because he feared what might come after. But eventually, he let out a slow breath and stepped back, letting her go. She turned, offering him a small, uncertain smile before walking into her house and closing the door behind her.
With that done, Liam and Lilith made their way back to her place. The ride there was silent, but it wasn’t an awkward silence—it was the kind that came after something heavy, something earth-shaking. They didn’t need to speak. Everything had changed in a single night.
When they arrived, Lilith pushed open the door and stepped inside first. She didn’t say a word as she dropped the keys carelessly onto the chair by the hallway table. Liam raised an eyebrow at the gesture. She never did that—Lilith was the kind of person who always kept things tidy, always in place.
"I need some time to myself," she said abruptly.
He blinked. "You okay?"
She didn’t answer that directly. Instead, she turned, walked down the hall, and disappeared into her room. The door clicked shut a second later, and then the sound of the lock turning echoed lightly in the hallway.
Liam stood there for a moment before letting out a slow breath. He didn’t follow her.
Not tonight.
He moved to the couch and dropped onto it with a tired sigh, slouching back as he stared at the ceiling. His muscles ached. His mind was a blur. He had gone from training to a gang meeting, then straight into a nightmarish lab where a mysterious device had changed everything. It was too much.
Still, sleep wouldn’t come.
So instead, he pulled out his phone and found Ann’s contact. He stared at it for a few seconds before tapping the call icon.
The line rang once.
Twice.
"Liam?" came her voice at last—soft, familiar, and tinged with fatigue.
"Hey, Ann," he said, a smile finding its way onto his lips. "Just checking on you."
They talked for a while—longer than he expected. She still wouldn’t tell him exactly where she was or what she was doing, dodging every attempt with vague jokes or subtle deflections. But her voice had that slight edge in it, a tension she tried to hide but couldn’t quite mask. She was worried.
He knew it.
By the time they ended the call, nearly an hour had passed. Liam sighed and lowered the phone to his chest, staring at the ceiling once more. He didn’t know what was going on with her, but he made a quiet promise to himself.
He’d find out.
Tomorrow.
He set his phone on the coffee table and was just about to finally close his eyes when he heard the faint creak of a door opening. His eyes opened, and he turned his head toward the hallway.
Lilith stepped out of her room, barefoot, wearing a pair of dark, silky pajama pants and a simple loose shirt that hung off one shoulder. Her long golden hair was slightly tousled, and there was a soft, unreadable expression on her face as she padded slowly toward him.
Liam sat up a little straighter, leaning back against the armrest of the couch. "Hey... you okay?"
She didn’t answer his question. Instead, she stopped in front of him, arms folded lightly across her chest.
"Can I sleep with you tonight?"
Liam blinked once. Then twice. "Uh... here? On the couch?"
Lilith narrowed her eyes and gave him a deadpan look. "In my room, asshole."
He chuckled, running a hand through his hair. "Right. That makes more sense."
She rolled her eyes but her lips twitched slightly, a soft smile threatening to appear. Without waiting for a response, she turned and walked toward her room, pausing briefly at the door to look over her shoulder. Her eyes lingered on his for a second longer than necessary.
