Chapter Text
Elliot began investigating a certain code entity because of 007n7's disappearance.
Of course, he hated the hacker who had ruined everything, but his vanishing was too abrupt. 007n7 had been utterly despondent ever since the red child went missing, never again visiting the pizzeria, lingering by the counter and murmuring about how much he needed Elliot to make him pizza.
Elliot was a kind, forgiving person, willing to lend a hand to the former hacker.
He brushed aside his slightly overgrown bangs. Ever since he started looking into the reasons behind it all, he hadn't been able to stop; this was far deeper than he could have imagined—like something done by a higher-dimensional being.
Elliot hadn't slept well for several nights. During the day he still had to work, and his already frail body was taking an even greater toll.
He looked down and tidied his desk, where the materials he had gathered had piled up into small mountains. The deeper Elliot delved, the more he knew he should stop, pull back.
But besides the sense of duty to help others, what drove Elliot on was an inescapable curiosity—he wanted to know the truth.
Unfortunately, Elliot should have known when to quit. In the end, he would be punished for crossing the line.
As dawn approached, Elliot had lain down just a few hours earlier, tossing and turning unable to sleep. A tense feeling of being watched enveloped his whole body.
"It must be stress... I should take a day off," he murmured, rubbing one eye.
Elliot squeezed his eyes shut, forcing himself into sleep. A thin layer of sweat broke out on his forehead. His own breathing and heartbeat disturbed his nerves, and he felt a splitting headache.
Nervously, Elliot rolled over, but no position was comfortable. A wave of dizziness washed over him. He vaguely heard rustling sounds, soon drowned out by tinnitus.
Elliot felt unwell and wondered if he should get up for water or use the bathroom. But his limbs were numb, only his chest heaving violently. An intense unease instantly flooded every nerve. He tried to control his muscles, to move, but it was as if something higher was suppressing him.
His head grew dizzier. How strange—he hadn't been able to fall asleep just moments ago. Elliot was genuinely afraid he might never wake up again. It was just paranoia playing tricks, right?
In the end, he let himself sink into slumber.
When Elliot woke up, his head was pounding, his body unexpectedly heavy and exhausted. He coughed twice and reached out as usual for the light switch. His hand groped around but only found unusually cold walls.
"What the..."
He murmured in confusion. With his other hand he touched his sore neck—and instead felt cold, heavy metal.
"...?"
It looked like a collar.
Tension made his breathing uncontrollably rapid. The surroundings were still pitch black. Elliot began to realize that this was not his home.
He had been kidnapped. But who would do this? He was kind-hearted, overly good to everyone, and had never made any enemies.
Elliot racked his brain and finally arrived at one conclusion: Elliot was the heir to a famous pizza chain brand, a star mascot. The kidnapper must want to extract some benefit from him.
"What do you want? Please—please let's talk calmly, okay...?" Elliot whispered into the air. He didn't know if it would help, but now he absolutely must not anger the kidnapper—who knew what the person might do next?
Just as Elliot thought he wouldn't get an answer, he heard a sound from above.
First a faint electric hum, then a voice—pixelated, as if processed—spoke its first words.
"Elliot, what a good name."
Elliot's heart raced.
"Hey... we can talk, right?" He swallowed nervously. "Buddy, this joke isn't funny. Let me go home safely, and I'll give you anything you want... so please, don't hurt me!"
"My little victim, I've never needed you to give me anything." The voice let out a strange laugh made of a few clipped syllables, as if it had heard something amusing. "I'll come and take what I want myself. Don't worry."
Elliot's soul felt uneasy; without realizing it, he began to tremble. "Oh... haha, then could you at least turn on the lights? Please?"
After two seconds of silence from the figure, Elliot heard a snap of fingers. Though the room was still dim, he could finally make out his surroundings.
"Thank you... thank you..."
Elliot instinctively looked toward where the kidnapper was standing. But in that instant, he froze, as if his blood had turned to ice.
That creature wasn't even a proper Roblox character. Its entire body was composed of black and red code, with several restless tentacles writhing behind it, just barely allowing one to discern its shape.
"Spectre."
That was the object of his months-long investigation, the secret he had been digging into.
This wasn't extortion. It was Spectre's deliberate retaliation for Elliot crossing the line.
Elliot's eyes widened, cold sweat beading on his forehead. His lips trembled slightly, unable to form a single syllable. Elliot didn't know what Spectre would do to him, but based on the results of his months of investigation, it would not end well.
The code entity naturally noticed his reaction. Its eerie eyes stared unblinkingly at every one of Elliot's responses, piercing into his soul. A tentacle approached from behind and effortlessly grabbed him by the collar, lifting him into the air.
"I could have been a little more merciful and let you live the same life as the others. But you just never learn to stay quiet."
Elliot struggled frantically, unable to predict what would happen to him next.