Midnight Order, Androgyny Event: Into The Forbidden Zone (Escape from Club Apophis, 12)

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STORYLINE: The Forbidden Zone began like a bad memory, gray where the world should be colored, silent where life should echo. Kyle crossed the perimeter and felt the city change under his feet, like stepping from a dream into a nightmare.

The air pressed down, thick with the smell of metal and rain on hot stone. Neon bled from somewhere far away, too faint to throw shadows. His footsteps landed too loud, the sound bouncing off skeletal buildings and vanishing mid-echo. He had adjusted to the gray. The Zone was a world drained of everything he hated about life, no bright smiles, no warm colors, just ash, rust, and silence. Even the stray dogs were muted, skulking shadows that at least had the decency to look miserable.

Half a block in, Kyle felt a creeping itch between his shoulder blades. The instinct to turn around, to run. He resisted and kept walking. Something shifted in the corner of his vision, a shadow retreating behind a cracked checkpoint booth. His stomach dropped, his pulse skittering. He blinked, and the figure was gone.

But the feeling lingered. A sense of being watched. A low hum started, a sound like a failing transformer, and a single, flickering streetlight ahead began to pulse, its halo dimming and brightening like a slow, metallic breath. He heard a scrape behind him, the whisper of something on the pavement. He spun around. Nothing. The silence deepened, pressing in.

A voice, low and textured like stone dragged across pavement, cut through the quiet. “Kyle Baek.”

He hadn’t seen anyone step out. He hadn’t heard so much as a footfall, but the figure was just there. It was tall, black-robed, and blurred at the edges, like the night sky had been poured into a human shape. It smelled of wet earth. The face was sharp and pale, the eyes an impossible amber glow.

Kyle froze, every fine hair on his neck rising. “Do I know you?”

“No,” the figure said. “But I know you. You're the one who sent the boy in.”

Kyle stiffened. “What?”

A small, mocking tilt of the head. “The boy you shoved across the line. Don’t pretend it was a dare.”

Kyle’s jaw tightened, his hand gripping the taser in his pocket. “How the hell do you know that? Who are you?”

The figure moved with a heavy, unnerving grace, stepping off the curb to block Kyle's path. His eyes dropped to Kyle’s gripping hand.

"I see. A protector at heart. Like me." He offered a slight, ironic bow. "I am Hwan. Guardian of the Barrier."

“Right, and I’m the Tooth Fairy. Cut the mystic crap. I’m here about....”

"I saw you challenge him," Hwan interrupted, his voice calm but heavy. "You called him a coward when he refused. So you pushed him. Told him to be a man. And yet, when he entered this place... you watched and you did not follow."

Kyle's mouth opened, then closed, the defense dying in his throat.

"Your friend was marked the moment he crossed," Hwan said.

Kyle gave a short, bitter laugh. “Marked by what?”

Hwan's gaze didn't move. "The things that own this cursed place."

He gestured toward the alley, where a weather-faded poster clung to a wall: a black serpent swallowing the sun.

"The government tells you this is a quarantine zone. Radiation. Biohazards. Lies with just enough truth to keep people terrified," Hwan said. "Out there, they see a dead city. In here..."

Hwan traced a clawed finger over a jagged red cross painted over the serpent.

"...In here, it’s their market. Their hunting ground." His amber eyes flicked back to Kyle. "That snake symbol? That marks where their laws reign supreme. But this alley, that red mark? This is my yard, their power holds no domain here."

As he spoke, the gray fog recoiled, revealing a shimmer of impossible, soft color. “Your friend found this place. I can only hold small corners like this, the rest is theirs. Don’t wander thinking you’re safe.” Hwan said. “Your friend was the only one who made it out. But only part of him returned.”

The words hit like a coffin lid slamming shut.

“What the hell does that mean?” Kyle growled.

Hwan finally met his eyes. The amber glow flared, hot and ancient. “It means this place takes pieces."

“So,” Kyle said, voice steadier than he felt, “you got a map of these safe zones? Or you just gonna keep babbling”

Hwan leaned in, his voice crackling like burning paper. “You want him whole again? Maps won’t help you. Guns won’t help you. In here, you don’t survive on grit. Without a tether... without something to love... you will rot in this place forever.”

Kyle’s laugh was bitter, venom on his tongue. “Love? Don’t make me sick.”

Hwan didn’t flinch. “And yet you came. You crossed the Zone for Jihoon. Call it revenge if that helps you sleep, but revenge is only love with teeth.”

Kyle’s breath hitched. He stepped back, the truth simmering in his chest like poison.

“It’s too late to deny it. You’ve already chosen." Hwan stepped aside. "Now... be guided.”

"Wait..." Kyle stammered, reaching out as Hwan began to fade, panic cracking his voice. “He had to toughen up! You don’t get it, ...he freezes at everything! I was trying to help him.”

The gray mist parted like stage curtains opening. Color bled in like an open wound. Pinks and golds bloomed where no light belonged, smelling of crushed flowers. From it stepped Romance, the Saja of Love, radiant and unbearable.

Kyle’s face twisted in immediate, primal horror. “No. No, no, no. Not this. Anyone but this.”

Romance spread his arms wide, a slow, sickening smile on his face, his billion-dollar idol grin glittering like a weapon. He beckoned Kyle in for a hug.

Kyle screamed and ran.

Kpop Demon Hunters was a fun movie, I just had to take a stab at doing one of the Saja Boys.  Over at Midnight Order, you can get your fix of Saja with the Dope+Mercy Hanbok, trousers and gift Gat hat. The Hanbok you get in white, Saja, or black, and the fatpack has cool detailed textures. The Gat hat is unrigged and mod, with sheer and solid options so you get whatever works best for you. The pants also have a texture options. There Fatpack is where you get the Abby style leather. The boots that work with the pants can be found at the main store.   ...From HISS is the corrupted Patterns tattoos. This set is really nicely made, with many options like opacity, fade, and tint. And even cooler, each of the Saja Boys have thier own face patterns too! Nice sweet detail. Also from HISS is the Jinu makeup set with eye makeup and lip tints.  ...From RavenBell is the well timed Starlit Earrings. This are super cool! They swing and are animated! And look very Saja Romance too. So of course I had to use them. If they hud you switch the colors, turn on and off animations. Plus several different styles of earrings too. Brilliant.   ...Over at Androgyny Event, the Saja madness goes on. The Usagi Society Jin hair with the heart Bangs, was just too Saja Romance. lol I had to use that too.  I love the all the color options.   ...And to add a little more glamour to Romance, I used the Diamond Glitz Shine on thee EvoX head by !Body Expression.   ... Subject 13 has another set of fun claws, prefect fashion for the Saja! These are tintable.   ...And the only blip in my Saja Romance parade is the Baby Collar by Minuit. (I hope Romance isn't mad at me for that, lol) I wanted to emphasize the Heart on the collar for Romance, and deemphasize the lettering Baby so I made it darker. The collar itself very well made and lots of color option too!  ...Thanks for Akira and Lin for help on the setting. They let me break apart settings by ZEROICHI and K&S and recombine to create the look of the Forbidden Zone - Safe Areas.

I hope you are enjoying the continuing story... Escape from Club Apophis. The Character of Kyle is inspired by the first person I met in SL, a griefer. He was quite a character. 

On him, Saja Romance:

Coat: Dope+Mercy Saja Hanbok, LegacyM, Saja [mesh](Midnight Order)(350L)
Pants: Dope+Mercy Saja Trousers, LegacyM, Black[mesh](Midnight Order)(250L)

Hat: Dope+Mercy Saja Gat, Sheer [mesh](Midnight Order)(Gift)

Earrings: RavenBell Starlit Earrings, Moonlit [mesh](Midnight Order)(350L)
Makeup: HISS JINU MAKE EYE [BOM](Midnight Order)(200L)
Tattoos: HISS PATTERNS FACE ROMANCE - 100[BOM](Midnight Order)(250L)
Hair: Usagi Society Jin Hair, Male [mesh](Androgyny Event)(350L)
Claws: Subject 13 Plague Claws x Solstice Set, LegacyM [mesh](Androgyny Event)(275L)

Collar: {minuit} Baby Choker [Rigged M] [mesh](Androgyny Event)(499L)

Shine: !Body Expression Diamond Glitz, Legacy, EvoX  [applier](Androgyny Event)(200L)
Skin: MUDSKIN Hajimu, C, Brow, WINTER (gacha)(The Arcade)(75L)
Boots: L&B Swear Havoc Ops Boots, LegacyM, Black [mesh](499L)
Eyes: {Rue} Eyes/Grimalkin: Saffron

Head: LeLUTKA CAMDEN 4.0 [mesh](3990L)

Body: TheShops [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.7.1) [mesh](5000L)

Pose: Del May DM Treasure (slight pose edit)

Location:
Set 1: ZEROICHI  SHINOBI STREET [mesh]
Set 2: K&S Back alley. Backdrop [mesh]
Set 3: K&S No way out. Backdrop [mesh]

BONUS IMAGES: inworld raw shots, hi-res, midday sky :