After Kaito disappeared for a while, №18 finally turned around and entered the house.
But the moment she stepped inside, she felt that something was off.
She had clearly seen Lapis's bike parked outside earlier—meaning he must've already returned home—yet every light in the house was off.
That didn't make sense. Lapis hated the dark. As soon as the sky dimmed, he always turned on the lights.
Cautiously, 18 called out his name twice. But no one answered.
"Could he have fallen asleep?"
She turned on the light in the entryway, switching shoes as she called out,
"Lapis! Wake up already! It's almost time for dinner!"
Still no response.
18 sighed, shaking her head helplessly. She went upstairs to Lapis's room and noticed his door was slightly ajar.
When she stepped inside, the first thing she saw was Lapis lying face-down on the bed.
Hands on her hips, 18 walked up to him and smacked him on the back with annoyance.
"Hey! How long do you plan to sleep? Get up already!"
No matter how much she shook or slapped him, Lapis didn't react at all. That was when 18 realized something was terribly wrong.
Panicking, she quickly lifted him up. Lapis's head lolled forward lifelessly—it was nothing like someone peacefully sleeping.
18's heart raced in alarm. She shook him hard and shouted,
"Lapis! What's wrong with you?!"
At her frantic shaking, Lapis's eyes fluttered open at last. His voice came out weak and hoarse.
"Sis… run…"
18 froze.
"Run? What are you talking about?"
Bang!
A heavy thud echoed as 18 collapsed forward onto the bed.
Behind her stood a short-haired woman with violet hair, clad in a dark military uniform.
On the left side of her chest gleamed a crimson ribbon insignia embroidered with two white letters—"R".
Lapis struggled to his feet, trying to protect his sister, but the violet-haired woman only scoffed coldly. With a single knife-hand strike, she knocked him unconscious again.
Seeing the two siblings completely motionless, she stepped forward, tucked one under each arm, then kicked through the window and leapt into the night. In just a few blinks, her figure vanished into the darkness.
...
No one knew how much time had passed before 18 groggily came to.
She tried to move, but quickly realized that her limbs were tightly restrained by several thick leather straps, pinning her to a cold, metal laboratory table.
Beside her lay Lapis, still unconscious.
Standing before them was the violet-haired woman who had knocked them out earlier. Opposite her stood an elderly man in a white lab coat, his face twisted with malice.
That man was none other than Dr. Gero.
A sinister grin spread across his face as he said to the woman,
"Well done, Colonel Violet. You've truly outdone yourself this time!"
"Heh, it was my duty. If anything, I should be thanking you, Dr. Gero, for granting me this incredible power."
She was one of the surviving members of the Red Ribbon Army, found and modified by Dr. Gero himself.
Of course, her model couldn't compare to any of the later androids Gero would create, but she was far superior to his earlier prototypes.
Dr. Gero's eyes gleamed with deranged excitement.
"Now that I have you two," he said, "I will grant you eternal life and unimaginable power. You should be honored."
"What do you mean? What are you trying to do to us?!"
Dr. Gero chuckled darkly, glancing at her. She nodded and pressed a button, activating a nearby console.
"This," Gero said proudly, "is my latest creation—the pinnacle of human evolution! The greatest invention in the world: Androids!"
"You're going to turn us into those things?! No! I don't want to become some… android!"
Dr. Gero smirked, ignoring her panic.
"This is my design for the eternal energy reactors. Look at them—aren't they beautiful? You should be grateful. Soon, these will be implanted into your bodies!"
"No!!"
18 struggled wildly, shaking her head again and again.
Though still young, barely an adult, fear consumed her. Beside her, Lapis had begun to grasp what was happening as well.
They'd been kidnapped by a deranged scientist—dragged here to be used as his test subjects.
But Lapis was defiant even in terror.
"You disgusting old man!" he shouted. "Let go of me and my sister, or else—"
Dr. Gero raised an eyebrow.
"Or else what?"
"..."
Lapis hesitated for a long moment before blurting out,
"Or else the police won't let you get away with this!"
"Bwahahaha!"
Dr. Gero threw his head back, laughing hysterically.
"The police? That's the funniest thing I've heard all day! For a second there, I thought you were going to say Uchiha Kaito!"
Lapis froze.
"Kaito? My sister's… boyfriend?"
At that moment, 18's eyes widened. She remembered the golden Flying Thunder God kunai pendant she wore hidden on a chain around her neck.
She bit her lip hard, heart pounding, and silently began calling out Kaito's name again and again in her mind.