Red Button Game Novels & Stories

"Compare her height, her shoulder-to-hip ratio, and her exact stride length against every file we have on Aria. I don't care if the voice doesn't match. I want to know if the bones do." Marcus looked startled, but he bowed his head instantly. "Right away, boss." The elevator doors slid shut, and as the machine carried me up to my empty, haunted palace, I gripped the obsidian mask until my knuckles turned white. If you are playing a game with me behind that carbon fiber, little bird, I thought, a dark, possessive fire igniting in my chest, you better pray I don't catch you. Because the moment I rip that mask off and find your eyes behind it, I am never letting you go again.

The third floor her floor unchanged. And yet, every time I looked away, the image distorted for half a second. Like static. Like something breathing where there shouldn’t be air. I rewound the feed. Frame by frame. Nothing. Just her. Sitting on the bed. Eyes open. Looking directly into the camera. No movement. No sound. Just that unblinking stare as if she knew where the lens was. The feed crackled. For a heartbeat, her pupils went completely black. Then the static vanished.

He just smiled like the troublemaker he was. After our moment together, he slipped a card into my hand. Card 30—done. I looked down at the design. Lined up the pieces, matched the patterns— The full image snapped into place. A pitch-black door slowly took shape. Right then, that voice rang out: [Congrats, Yaya. You've collected all visit cards from Dark Citadel. The gate to the real world is now active.] [At 11 PM, the interworld gate will appear. Surviving players, bring your family to the first floor to exit. Miss the window, and you're stuck here for good.]

I turned around, grabbed his collar, and dragged him over. When the others saw that, they immediately came forward to stop me. However, this was just a feint. Before he wrapped his head fully around what was going on, I let go. Since he did not have a stable footing, he staggered and fell. At that moment, he was almost unable to hide the hate on his face. “Isn’t this what you want? Enjoy it, then.” I glared at him. Suddenly, Naomi rushed over and shouted, “Claude, you piece of trash! Leave!”

"I will personally oversee the server security and the firewall setups. Nobody is hacking into this database while I am running the back end." "What about the user interface?" Chloe asked, raising her hand slightly. "Doctors are busy. If the software is confusing or requires too many clicks, they will simply refuse to use it in the clinic." "You are absolutely right, Chloe," I agreed, turning to face the designer. "The dashboard needs to be incredibly simple. When a doctor inputs a patient's ID number, the software should generate a simple green, yellow, or red risk score. Green means the patient is healthy. Yellow means the system detected minor anomalies and requires monitoring. Red means

Aidan smirked arrogantly, but he had underestimated the determination of a trapped bird seeking freedom. "Fine, I'll just play the video. I'm afraid that if I play the recording, you'll argue that it's not you in it." Scarlett held up her phone. As the screen flashed, my chest tightened. I covered her phone, stopping her from continuing. Scarlett struggled, wanting to keep playing it, but I was stronger than her, and she couldn't resist.

Calling me. The game is on.

Malik raised an eyebrow at me, then he hesitated before he took the chair in front of me, picked up a game piece and examined it. "And which are you, Red? Opponent or ally?" His gaze lifted to mine, piercing and intense that had initially made me feel as if trying to unravel the very fabric of my being. This time, I wasn't going to let him win in this mind game of ours. I was here to dissect his defences, not to submit to his. So, I started the game, making my first move. "That’s what we’re here to find out, isn’t it?"

"Why don't you join Conrad and me? We were about to play a little game." Liam and I exchanged glances. "What game?" he asked. "It's just a harmless little game. It'll be fun," Toralei reassured. "We already have plans," I countered. Toralei frowned. "It's just a game, Jenna. It'll be over soon, and then you can continue with your plans. Besides, it's just the four of us. Unless you're scared, Jenna." "No, I'm not." "Then let's do it."

He yanked his hand away and tried to turn. I said lazily, with a cold edge, “If you try to run, don’t ever think about walking out this door again.” He hesitated. I stepped behind him and wrapped my arms around him. My fingertips traced his chest and felt the muscles tighten, like touching a sword ready to be drawn. “Leon, let’s play a game.” He closed his eyes hard. When he opened them, they were darker and dangerous. “Play what?” I tilted my head and smiled, a vicious light in my eyes.