I Reincarnated to Another World as a Woman-Chapter 262: Uncontained

Ever since Captain Chambers entered the apartment, Theo has been paying close attention to him. There is something about him that unsettles Theo, but he cannot quite identify what it is.

When Chambers first started fighting Arthur, Theo told himself he was overreacting.

You are overthinking, Theo. Chambers might simply have feelings for Alicia and jealousy is making him irrational.

That explanation almost convinces him.

Almost.

But it does not stop him from watching.

When Alicia sits down and begins speaking, Theo returns to the dining table and resumes eating his breakfast. He does not taste a single bite.

Captain Chambers’ facial expressions while listening to Alicia trigger small, sharp warnings in Theo’s mind.

He keeps eating out of habit.

At one point, he even lifts an empty spoon to his mouth.

Nothing.

He blinks.

Embarrassed.

He is grateful no one notices.

That moment happens just before Captain Chambers abruptly rises from his knees.

Theo looks up sharply.

And stares.

That is when he sees it.

The air around Captain Chambers is no longer clear.

It is tinted.

Muted green.

Faint, but undeniable.

As if something is seeping out of him.

Leaking.

Spreading into the surrounding space like invisible vapor.

Then the tug of war begins.

Now Theo is certain.

Captain Chambers is corrupted.

The same muted green mist.

The same taint they fought in the dungeon.

He does not have time to think about how it is possible.

He only has time to shout.

"Careful! Chambers is corrupted!"

------------------------------

Time seems to stop after Theo’s warning.

Then everything moves at once.

Captain Chambers jerks Alicia toward him again. His lips peel back, teeth bared. His face no longer looks human in its expression.

Alicia’s Sentinel training takes over instantly. She plants her feet and pulls back with all her strength.

It does not work.

Captain Chambers’ grip is like iron.

Unyielding.

If she resists completely, her shoulder will dislocate.

If she does not move, her arm might tear.

She is forced to step forward.

Arthur registers the movement in the same split second.

He calculates.

If he releases her, she will be flung.

If he holds and resists, her arm will take the strain.

If he follows the motion, he may reduce the force.

He chooses.

He follows.

So this is what Theo and Maeve see immediately after Theo shouts his warning.

Captain Chambers sneers, teeth exposed, eyes glowing bright neon green.

He steps back.

Hard.

He pulls with a guttural grunt.

Alicia is dragged forward.

Arthur moves with her, maintaining his hold.

The scene twists grotesquely.

Captain Chambers stands at one end.

Arthur at the other.

And Alicia is caught between them.

Like a living whip being cracked through the air.

Arthur uses the momentum to close the distance and drives his foot into Captain Chambers’ abdomen.

The impact lands solid.

Captain Chambers staggers backward, but his hand never releases Alicia’s wrist. The force of his retreat drags her with him.

He crashes into the chair he had been sitting on. It topples with a loud crack as wood splinters under the impact.

Yet he does not react as someone in pain would.

He falls because he loses balance.

Not because he is hurt.

He rises almost immediately and swings at Arthur with his free hand.

Arthur releases Alicia’s right wrist at once, freeing her to move.

Now both of them engage him, their objective clear.

Break his grip.

Free her left wrist.

To their surprise, Captain Chambers moves fast.

Abnormally fast.

He handles both of them with a single arm while maintaining his iron hold on Alicia. He does not appear disadvantaged in the slightest.

The living room deteriorates rapidly.

Sofas tear under force.

The coffee table splinters.

The carpet rips in jagged lines.

This is no longer a place of rest.

Maeve and Theo remain to the side. Neither specializes in close combat.

Theo’s attention never leaves the faint green tint in the air.

It is spreading.

Liam re-enters the living room, assessing in seconds.

He joins the fight immediately, aiming to disarm Captain Chambers.

But all three Sentinels hold back.

They cannot truly harm him.

That hesitation is their weakness.

And Captain Chambers exploits it.

Suddenly, he opens his mouth.

Green mist pours out.

Thick.

Concentrated.

Everyone freezes for a fraction of a second.

Theo reacts.

He knows three Sentinels cannot win this.

Not like this.

His hand moves.

A strand of golden light shoots forward.

It slices through the air and wraps around the advancing green mist, pulling it inward. The golden light compresses the mist into a swirling orb before it can reach Arthur, who stands closest. 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Arthur steps back instantly.

White fire ignites in his right palm.

He sweeps it forward, burning away the remaining mist escaping from Captain Chambers’ mouth.

Liam uses that opening to disengage and pull away from both Chambers and Alicia.

"What the hell?" he mutters.

"Move back," Theo commands as he steps forward.

Arthur and Liam obey immediately.

They retreat.

Leaving Alicia standing before Captain Chambers.

Alone.

Something shifts in her expression.

Theo’s golden light intensifies.

It surges forward and enters Captain Chambers’ open mouth like a thin golden serpent.

Captain Chambers chokes.

His grip finally loosens.

He releases Alicia’s wrist and clutches at his throat as if trying to tear the light out of himself.

Captain Chambers can no longer stand.

He collapses.

Writhing.

Hands clawing at his throat as if something is lodged inside.

Theo does not stop.

He tightens his control over the golden light and continues pulling.

Drawing the green mist out.

Purifying it.

At last, Captain Chambers convulses and vomits.

A small object drops from his mouth.

A marble.

No larger than a thumb.

Dark green.

The same shade as the thick dungeon fog Theo once fought.

It hovers in the center of the wrecked living room.

Theo’s golden light coils around it tightly.

The glow intensifies.

Brighter.

Brighter.

Until it flashes like a miniature sun, forcing everyone to squeeze their eyes shut.

The light vanishes as suddenly as it appears.

The marble drops.

Clank.

Silence.

"That’s it?" Liam asks cautiously.

The whole thing feels unreal.

"Captain!" Maeve rushes forward and kneels beside Captain Chambers, who lies unconscious on the floor.

"Is everyone alright?" Arthur asks, scanning the room.

He looks to Theo. "Thea. You good?"

Theo nods and bends to pick up the now-clear marble.

"Careful," Liam warns.

Theo shakes his head. "It’s fine. It’s purified." He holds it up for Liam to see.

The marble is transparent now.

Empty.

"What is that?" Liam asks.

"I don’t know," Theo replies. "I don’t understand how something like that could exist outside a dungeon. Or how it corrupted Captain Chambers."

He suddenly turns back to Maeve. "How is he?"

Maeve checks Captain Chambers’ vitals using the healing magic Theo taught her.

She frowns slightly. "He’s unconscious. Exhausted. Other than that..." She shakes her head. "I can’t tell."

"Alright. We need to move him to the guest room. We can’t leave him here," Arthur says.

He glances around. "Where’s Julian? I can’t believe he’s not here after all that noise."

"He’s probably asleep in his lab again," Maeve answers.

Arthur exhales sharply. "I swear."

The group begins moving with practiced efficiency.

Maeve and Theo start clearing broken furniture.

Arthur and Liam prepare to carry Captain Chambers to the guest room.

Everything flows naturally.

Almost routinely.

As if corruption and purification are minor inconveniences.

Alicia stands apart.

Still.

Too still.

Behind her eyes, images erupt.

Theo lying face down.

Theo stabbed.

The images shift.

Alex pierced by the giant spider.

Theo stabbed by the same creature.

Theo fighting in ways no human should be capable of.

Theo floating in midair.

Alicia laughing beside Captain Chambers.

Alicia in her DEU uniform, standing before a mirror.

Memories crash over her.

Relentless.

Fragment after fragment.

Eight months compressed into seconds.

She is forced to watch.

All of it.

She can’t breathe.

She can’t process.

She can’t stop it.

"Argh!"

Her scream cuts through the room.

Everyone turns.

And Alicia collapses.