MY RIDER SYSTEM

04. A Prayer in the Dark

Kael blinked, trying to make sense of the words.

“Kamen… Riders? Wait—you mean like the armored hero who saved me?”

"Hero?" Tucker echoed.

“Saved you?” Selena’s voice went sharp. “Now that’s quite the assumption.”

Kael frowned. “What do you mean?”

Tucker set his beer down with a dull thud. The bottle rattled against the wooden table. “Thing is, there are a lot more of them in this game,” he said. “Each one with their own goals, their own unique way of going about things. But in the end, the end goal stays the same—” he paused, his voice taking on a more serious tone—“be the last Rider standing. By any means fucking necessary.”

The room seemed to shrink around Kael. And for a boy his age, he didn't know what to think.

“Riders? Games?” He stared at them, almost laughing from disbelief. Then a small, nervous chuckle slipped out as he rose unsteadily to his feet.

“I see,” he said quietly. “This is all starting to make sense now.”

He started pacing toward the door, running a shaky hand through his hair. “I’ve gone crazy,” he said under his breath. “I’ve completely lost it. This is all just a dream—or a hallucination. Yeah, that must be it. And this—” he gestured around the dim room, “this is probably some kind of group hypnosis.”

Tucker let out a dry laugh and took another sip from his bottle. “The brain does come up with ideas to explain the unimaginable.”

Kael kept backing away. “Maybe we’re all seeing the same thing. Maybe it’s some weird experiment, or some kind of test. I don’t know. But… my sister was taken.” His voice cracked at her mention. “No… I can’t be dead.”

He turned sharply toward the exit.

“And where do you think you’re going?” Selena called after him. Her chair screeched as she stood.

Kael stopped, letting out a soft sigh before turning back to face her. He met her stare without flinching. Once Kael made up his mind, nothing could shake him. If he had to, he’d push through walls to see it through.

“I have to find her,” he said. “Whatever it takes.”

Selena could see he meant it. When Kael set his mind on something, he didn’t stop until it was done.

“Like hell you are,” Tucker barked, dismissing Kael’s newfound determination or more accurately, what he saw as pure foolishness. He stepped forward and shoved Kael in the chest.

The boy hit the floor with a grunt, his palms scraping the rough wood beneath him.

“What the hell’s your problem, anyway?” Kael shouted, scrambling to his feet and shoving Tucker right back.

Selena moved fast, stepping between them before things could get any worse.

“Enough. Both of you, stop it,” she snapped, before addressing Tucker. “What’s your deal?”

Tucker didn’t flinch. His face stayed cold. “You know how things work around here. You know the risks.”

And that made her pause. They’d both seen too much over the past month that no normal person could explain. They’d learned to survive, no matter how cruel the choices had to be. The anger in her eyes faded, replaced by something other—worry.

Kael caught the look on her face and stepped forward, desperate. “I have to find my sister! Why won’t you let me find my sister?”

All she could do was shake her head. “Stop. Just stop,” she said, her voice breaking slightly. She looked him straight in the eyes, almost on the verge of tears herself. “Don’t you get it already? You’re dead. You both are. You die here, you die for real this time. Do you understand now? There are no second chances.”

Kael clenched his fists regardless. “So what, we just sit on our asses with our dick in our hands and do nothing?”

Tucker snorted, grabbing his beer again. “Sometimes between a rock and a hard place, sitting on your ass with your dick in your hand is the better option. That’s how I plan to stay alive.”

The boy shook his head in disapproval. “Then we’re already as good as dead.”

Selena groaned and rubbed her temples. The whole thing felt entirely ridiculous now. Usually, she hated arguments and did her best to shut them down before they started, but this didn’t even feel worth getting worked up over anymore.

“How did we even get here?” she muttered. “Arguing about survival… and somehow ending up talking about dicks.”

Tucker’s glare returned to Kael. “You think you’ll make it out there?”

“I plan to,” Kael replied firmly.

“With your survival skills?” The man let out a harsh laugh that didn't seem funny at all, before proceeding to flash him a long scar that ran down his cheek. “You see this? You think a fall did that? Or some animal? No. Something out there did, and it wasn't human!”

Kael’s mouth went dry. He couldn’t find the words to answer.

“Face it, kid,” Tucker said quietly. “No one ever comes back. That’s how it’s always been.”

He straightened up and lifted his bottle again, “So here’s what’s gonna happen. Lesson one: you never go anywhere alone—unless you’ve got no choice. Lesson two: travel only in daylight—unless you’ve got no choice.” He took another drink, the liquid burning down his throat.

Then he set the bottle down with finality. “We’ll take you out tomorrow,” Tucker said. “Then you can go die somewhere earning your point.”

He walked off, leaving Kael and Selena in silence.

That night, Kael couldn’t sleep. His head was full of noise, particularly of his sister’s face, Tucker’s harsh words, and the memory of everything he had lost. Every time he closed his eyes, he saw the chaos, the screams, and the moment she was taken from him. His heart ached too much for sleep.

He sat up slowly, glancing around the room. Tucker was snoring quietly in a corner, holding half a bottle to his chest like a lifeline he couldn’t live without. Selena was asleep on a makeshift bed of coats and rags. Everyone else looked worn out, just trying to make it through the day.

Kael didn’t blame them. Drinking was Tucker’s way of dealing with everything. In a world this crazy, maybe being a little crazy yourself helped. The alcohol just made it easier.

Kael stood up carefully, trying not to wake anyone. He needed some air, anything to calm the thoughts in his head. In short, he needed to breathe something other than despair. He found a metal door at the back of the room and climbed up the small ladder behind it.

The rooftop was cold and quiet. The wind brushed against his face, and the city below was dark and lifeless.

Kael sat on the hard floor, wrapping his arms around his knees. His eyes fell on the armband once more. It was old and worn, but it meant everything to him. It was his sister’s favorite color. The last thing he had that reminded him of her.

Her smile… her laughter… her voice. It was all gone now.

With vacant eyes, he turned to the night sky and whispered a prayer he had long since memorized.

“O Holy Mother, please save us from our tainted souls. Our smiles are the light of hope. When we smile, the Holy Mother will appear… O Holy Mother… O Holy Mother…”

His lips shook as he repeated the words. Tears started rolling down his face before he even realized it. He pressed a shaking hand to his chest, trying desperately to calm his racing heart. The world had taken everything from him: his family, his peace, his hope and left him standing in the wreckage of what used to be a life.

'Why does the world keep taking from me when I have nothing left to give?'

'Why don't the stars ever align when it comes to things my heart believes are mine?'

“Please, God,” he whispered. His voice cracked as he spoke. “If you’re really watching… please give me strength. I need it now more than ever.”

Then…

He heard a voice not too far from him.

“Couldn’t sleep, huh?”