The officer who requested backup withdrew a flashlight from his pocket and lit it up.

  The entire hallway brightened, revealing the unseen rubble of the collapsed walls laced with claw marks and bullet holes.

  “Follow him and stay close,” the gray-haired man said after patting Hezekiah on the shoulder.

  “R-right.”

  Despite the military flashlight providing sufficient vision, Hezekiah couldn’t shake the oddness of the situation.

  He had the page show multiple angles of his position as he followed the officer in front of him.

  There was also a screen of the officers, who still had their eyes locked on him.

  Hezekiah’s eyes widened when he saw the gray-haired officer unholster his gun and aim it at them.

  “Shit!”

  He threw himself against the wall as a bullet whizzed past his ear, piercing the officer straight through the skull. His body collapsed to the ground like a puppet cut from its strings.

  The flashlight rolled across the blood-stained floor until it collided with the opposite wall.

  Without wasting any time, Hezekiah shifted the pen’s state and summoned a wall of black flames, disintegrating any bullets that got too close.

  “He saw me?” the gray-haired officer whispered. He didn’t show any surprise at the flames, but when he saw the bullets unable to breach them, his brows twisted.

  “As expected of our master. So this is what he’s capable of,” the other officer responded, sharing the same look.

  Hezekiah observed their interaction with his screen—not a single word was left out.

  “Master?”

  Of f*cking course, the rules created them. They tricked me into thinking they were real police officers to lower my guard. I should’ve expected this.

  The walls were vaporizing at a rapid rate as the tile floor scorched beneath him. The ceiling began caving in, causing debris to fall overhead.

  Screams of people and creatures fell through but ceased moments afterward.

  Without sparing a moment, Hezekiah directed the flames toward the remaining officers.

  They remained still, with no meaningful expression, as they let the heat incinerate them to nothingness.

  Hezekiah recalled the flames.

  The crackling of the air vanished as the light from the other floors shone from above like a spotlight.

  The smoky scent lingered. The taste of ash tickled his tongue as he coughed, despite the lack of black smoke.

  If I wasn’t using this live feed tool, I wouldn’t have known how I died.

  Hezekiah breathed deeply, letting his nerves calm. Being brushed by death wasn’t what frightened him—it was how the beings created by the Rules were capable of such cunningness. Even if they were fully aware of who he was, they might still use that to their advantage.

  But based on their short conversation, they themselves didn’t seem to understand what he was capable of.

  He resumed his path down the hospital hallway. Most of the ceiling lights were shattered or not working, so he had to rely on the screen displayed on the paper.

  Some of the exit signs were cracked or broken into pieces, but finding the exit was still manageable.

  False police officers... how many could there be? And what rule was violated to cause that effect?

  Mentally going through each rule, one stuck out to him.

  Somebody could’ve dialed emergency services. It would be a fitting punishment.

  Without any way of confirming it, he prioritized escaping for now.

  On his screen camera, more figures appeared around the corner—all wearing hospital gowns.

  A man was holding a woman up while they both tried to navigate through the darkness. The last individual was a little girl with short brown hair, who held the hand of the tall man.

  More tricks?

  Hezekiah kept his distance and moved the camera scene closer to them.

  “I swear I saw police officers earlier, Elaine. You have to trust me.”

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  “Honey, please turn back. What if there are monsters still around?”

  “We’re not waiting for the aftershocks of that earthquake. We’re leaving now!” he loudly whispered.

  Hezekiah wished he could move past them, but they were blocking the only way forward. It was doubtful they wouldn’t notice him, even in the darkness.

  “Daddy, are we going to be okay?” the girl asked, meeting her father’s gaze for answers.

  “Yes, sweetie. Just don’t let go of my hand,” he smiled, reassuring his daughter.

  Rays of light came into their view, accompanied by individuals in military uniforms. Their flashlights swallowed the darkness surrounding them.

  “Survivors! Survivors have been located!” one of them shouted, beckoning the others to his position.

  The father’s lips trembled at those words. A comforting surge of relief flowed through him.

  “Thank goodness,” Elaine breathed. She met her husband’s gaze and gripped his hand tightly.

  The military shouldn’t even be aware of this incident yet—and even if they were, there’s no way to mobilize this quickly.

  Hezekiah pondered his next action. He knew if left alone, the family would most likely die. But even if he did help, the flames would disintegrate anyone too close.

  It’s a pity, but life doesn’t deal everyone’s hand fairly.

  “Are any of you injured?” one of the military soldiers asked. He pulled an infrared thermometer from his mini bag.

  “We’re still recovering from a car accident, and my wife is pregnant.”

  “Think you can keep moving?” He scanned Elaine’s forehead first, then the husband’s.

  “What’s that?” the little girl questioned while pointing at the thermometer, eyeing it with curiosity. She reached to grab it, but was caught by her father’s hand.

  The military soldier before them smiled. “It’s for your protection, little one.” He then held the scanner toward her head.

  A high-pitched beeping rang from the device, causing a slight frown from Elaine.

  The girl’s legs began wavering as her eyes slowly closed, until she lost her balance—falling into the soldier’s arms.

  “Sally!” the father reached out to her but was pushed back by the soldier. Caught off guard by the sudden shove, he tripped, falling backwards and skidding across the floor.

  “Reed! How dare you! What’s the meaning of this?!” Elaine demanded. But anyone could hear the fear in her voice.

  “Meaning?” The soldier tilted his head, rubbing his chin. “Does there really have to be one?”

  Elaine’s eyes widened at his response. She looked between the other soldiers in bewilderment, as they only stood like statues—watching the scene unfold with no concern whatsoever.

  “Elaine! Get back!” Reed was already on his feet, charging toward the man who held his unconscious daughter—but suddenly halted when the soldiers behind him immediately aimed their guns.

  The man grinned. “Wise choice. But what will you do now?” He then unholstered his pistol and placed the muzzle on Sally’s temple.

  So this is what they’re going for. An unnerving thought surfaced as Hezekiah predicted what would happen next.

  Elaine gasped and covered her mouth.

  “Wait! Please, please don’t! Whatever you do—don’t kill her! Please!”

  The woman was on her knees begging, while the husband remained on his feet with a defeated look.

  “Aren’t you worrying too much? Reed, didn’t you promise your daughter that everything would be okay? If there was any conviction in those words, surely you’d have nothing to worry about.”

  Reed was still trying to process the bizarre sudden events. He couldn’t wrap his mind around why the military was assaulting them instead of the creatures roaming around.

  “Yeah... but—”

  “Then it’s settled.” The soldier turned around. “Bring it out.”

  Another military soldier approached the one holding Sally with a box in hand and kicked it toward Reed’s feet.

  It was about a foot in length, and a golden glowing light shined forth through the cracks.

  “Is what you want from us something to do with that box?” Elaine carefully asked, closely monitoring the soldier’s finger on the trigger.

  “You could say that. You could also say it holds what you want as well.”

  That’s doubtful. But what other choice do they have?Hezekiah changed the screen to its writing format and added another rule.

  It was erased. Hezekiah knitted his brows and read the note for the reason:

  –Due to not fulfilling your task, you’re restricted from writing Positive Rules.

  A tinge of uneasiness surfaced within him. He thought back on his hesitation and wondered if it was a mistake. He seems certain now.

  Nevertheless, he wrote two additional rules, then switched to the live feed format again.

  Reed gently lifted the lid of the box. A syringe with a golden fluid rested inside. Confusion was written on his face. He looked between the syringe and his daughter, unable to connect the dots.

  “Reed, answer this. How much do you really love this child of yours?”

  Reed didn’t answer immediately but glanced at his wife. Rivulets of tears dripped from her chin.

  “I would be willing to do anything for her.”

  “Is that so? Even willing to die for her?”

  “If that’s what it takes,” he declared firmly.

  “Reed...” Elaine faintly spoke. A multitude of words bore at the end of her tongue, but none managed to take form.

  Sally’s eyes dimly opened. Her vision was watery, as the blurry image of her parents bled through.

  “Mommy? Daddy?”

  “Sally!” Elaine instinctively lifted her head, desperately hoping she wasn’t hearing things.

  Reed remained silently observing the man as his skin grew cold, fearing what he was going to ask him.

  “Whatever it takes, you say? Does that mean you would even kill for her?”

  Reed gently opened his lips, but no words came out. His daughter’s eyes met his as he contemplated the man’s words.

  “Why don’t you tell me what you’re actually asking for?”

  The soldier lightly smiled.

  “That syringe—I shouldn’t have to explain what it does. I’m sure you can guess.”

  Reed gently picked up the syringe. The bubbly liquid swirled within its plastic confines.

  “Isn’t it just going to kill me?” Reed placed the needle on his arm, causing Elaine to spring herself upward.

  “Reed!? Stop!” She looked back and forth between her daughter and her husband, the former still looking puzzled at the scene before her.

  “I don’t know if this is some sick government cover-up or whatever this is, but do you promise to let them go after this?”

  “I’m afraid I can't, if you inject yourself that is. However, their fates lie within you. So I must ask: your precious daughter or your beloved pregnant wife—which of these two do you value more, I wonder?”