Chapter 68: Invisible friend.

Suddenly, he burst into a loud, barking laugh, shaking his head. "An invisible friend! Right! Wow, you really had me going for a second. Good one, Boss. Now seriously, tell me the real truth...." He trailed off because Zyra was not laughing with him. Instead, she slowly folded her arms across her chest, tilting her head with a look that clearly said, Do I look like I’m joking?

Hunter’s laughter died instantly in his throat. He looked at her unblinking eyes, then down at her folded arms, and felt a cold sweat break out on his neck. Invisible friend could mean ghost! Surely, it couldn’t be that. Right? But even if you pointed ten guns at his head, he couldn’t begin to guess how this shelter had come into being. So, when all logical possibilities were erased, only the illogical ones remained.

"Wait a damn minute..." Hunter whispered, his eyes widening all over again as the sheer absurdity of the situation hit him. "You... you are actually serious? Your invisible friend did all this?"

Zyra gave him a single, firm nod.

Before he could unleash the massive flood of questions bubbling up in his chest, she reached past him and casually pressed the button again. The elevator dinged cheerfully, the doors remained locked, and they began smoothly gliding upward once more, leaving Hunter standing still in silence and wide-eyed shock.

A lot was running through his mind. An invisible friend? Was that who she was always talking to when she talked to the air? Had Zyra even ever been insane like he thought? As they stepped off the elevator his thoughts continued to wonder. He was trying to imagine what this invisible friend looked like.

His mind was heavily occupied as the tour reached the bedrooms of the main house. The one they were standing in had walls layered with polished stone, sleek enough to gleam under the sunlight. The ceiling panel shimmered faintly, mimicking starlight, while the floor was cushioned with woven thermal fibers that adjusted to their heat.

The bed itself was oversized, framed in dark steel, with sheets spun from rare silk. He knew many rich people that would kill to sleep in such a room.

At the far corner, a console pulsed with a faint blue ring. From it came the voice, calm and precise, filling the silence like a guardian’s whisper.

"Temperature: twenty-two degrees Celsius. Air quality: stable. Filtration efficiency at ninety-eight percent. Radiation levels: negligible. Humidity" forty-five percent. Sleep cycled support: not engaged."

Hunter gasped. Zyra wasn’t insane! They were literally standing inside a house that defied every law of architecture he knew. She had another secret, one related to those voices in her head she told them about!

Even if time was turned back, he would not believe her. Which sane person would? Without this evidence, he would still be thinking of her as insane.

So, who was behind this technology? Who was this friend? Could he meet them? He had a million questions bubbling up his throat, but they all died as the tour continued and she led him to the security room.

Hunter let out a sharp, choked sound. He rushed over to the central console, his fingers nervously adjusting the holographic camera feeds. "You can see anything approaching from miles away," he breathed, staring at the view of the surrounding wild lands. "What kind of cameras are these? What are the security measures around here? You know that a lot of clans and factions will be looking to kick us out, right?"

Zyra nodded, leaning against a sleek metal railing. "We are very secure. The house is completely indestructible. And if the absolute worst comes to worst, it has a self-destruct sequence."

Hunter scoffed, turning to his wife. He narrowed his eyes, his voice dropping to a serious whisper. "Is this alien tech?"

Zyra winced, shifting her weight from foot to foot. She didn’t give a straight answer, but she nodded slowly. "Sort of."

Honestly, alien tech wasn’t a total myth to earth anymore. Plenty of high-level hunters who ventured beyond the Veil came back hauling bizarre Somnivore technology. Hell, the Somnivores were aliens!

"So it is alien," Hunter muttered, pinching his lower lip. "Is it Somnivore tech?"

"No," Zyra said quickly. But deep down, a knot of uncertainty twisted in her gut. She didn’t actually know. She had no idea where or how she had contracted this beast bonding system. It had just appeared.

Hunter took a step closer, his eyes scanning her face for any sign of deception. "Can you actually trust this friend? The Somnivores came as friends and then they ruined earth. You cannot be too trusting Zyra."

She couldn’t help but smile lightly. This system only cared about beasts. Humans and their earth came second to the animals. "I trust her."

"I’m only asking because you know how the Somnivores are," Hunter warned, his tone laced with genuine worry. "They love putting trackers on their devices. They leave them behind as bait to lure humanity into a trap."

"I trust Beauty," Zyra repeated, her voice firm.

Hunter hummed, clearly not entirely convinced but willing to drop it for her sake. He raised his brows. "Beauty...I have heard you say that a few times and I didn’t understand it. Is that your friend’s name? Can I speak to her?"

Before Zyra could even open her mouth to reply, the screen on the wall flickered. The virtual snake avatar slithered into view.

"Hello, Hunter Magnus," the snake hissed from the speakers. "I am Beauty. It’s a pleasure to meet you."

Hunter froze. He stared at the screen, his jaw practically dropping to the floor. He looked like a man who had just seen a ghost do a flip. "You know who I am?"

Zyra immediately snapped, glaring at the monitor. "Beauty! You don’t just jump out like that! And since when do you engage with other people?

[Oh come off it host. Since when did I need your permission to engage with beasts? I feel elevated to meet you, Hunter Magnus.]

"Come out of that screen!" Zyra shouted. "We should talk face to face about how to keep secrets."

Hunter blinked, his eyes darting between his furious wife and the digital reptile. He pointed a trembling finger at the screen. "Is... is that Spice? They have the same features if you ask me."

Right at that exact, high-tension moment, a loud, thunderous rumble echoed through the command room.

It came from Zyra’s stomach.

She paused, completely losing her fierce momentum, and patted her belly with a pout. "I’m hungry. Actually, scratch that. I’m angry-hungry."

Hunter looked at her, the tension breaking instantly. A soft, amused smile tugged at his lips. He nodded, giving one last, bewildered look at the snake avatar on the screen. To his absolute horror, the digital snake winked and blew him a physical, pixelated kiss.

Hunter scoffed lightly, rubbing the back of his neck to hide a sudden blush, and quickly turned to follow his wife out of the security room.

"Alright, alright," Hunter said, catching up to her side as they headed toward the kitchen area. "I’ll roast the meat. But while I’m cooking, you are going to tell me everything about Beauty. If I am going to protect you...and I am, because this shelter will be the envy of every human, I am going to need as much information as I can get." He narrowed his eyes. "Also, why did Beauty call me a beast? Have you been bad mouthing me to your friend?"