Chapter 1 - Purple

((Naara's POV))

I had been the Elite Advisor, aka the Tallest's personal assistant, for six months. That's how long it had been since the Tallest's former personal Advisor, Rarl Kove, had met his unfortunate end beneath a large crate of snacks in an unforeseen loading bay accident.

I was slowly settling into my new lifestyle. I spent a small portion of my time running errands and checking up on various operations around the Massive, but the vast majority of my time was spent directly with the Tallest. I went almost everywhere they went. The bridge, the cafeteria, the lounge – and my personal quarters were right next to theirs too, in a private part of the Massive that only the three of us could access.

I had spent time with them privately on a number of occasions over the previous six months. Red had always been charismatic and energetic, whereas Purple was surprisingly silent and reserved. At first I thought perhaps he was bored or annoyed by me, but the more I observed his interactions with Red and the rest of the crew, the more I began to think that maybe there was something going on between them that I was unaware of.

Of course I initially dismissed that idea – everyone knew they were good friends. Yet I couldn't shake the feeling that something just wasn't right between the two of them. I really didn't know what to make of it. I spent practically every minute with them. Aside from when I was running errands or when they were in their private quarters for a few hours each night, I was always with them – surely I would know if something were going on, right?

I did my best to forget the ridiculous thought. They would tell me if something wasn't right. At any rate, I figured there wasn't anything I could do unless one of them came to me. It seemed out of line to ask intrusive questions about their personal relationship.

It turned out I was right though. One night when we were all in our quarters, or so I thought, I stepped out briefly because I had left my tablet on the bridge earlier that day and wished to retrieve it. When I came back, I was unwillingly thrust right into the middle of Purple's nightmare world and Red's sick little game…

In the private corridor leading to our living spaces, Red and Purple's rooms were across from each other, and my room which was a little bit smaller than theirs, was at the end of the hallway, essentially between theirs. I had just passed through the private elevator and was moving towards my doorway at the end of the hallway.

I was just about to pass Red's doorway when it opened suddenly and Purple was flung violently onto the floor in the corridor. Red's door hissed shut as swiftly as it had opened, without so much as word from Red. It seemed he was unaware of my presence, and he probably assumed I was in my quarters where I belonged.

Needless to say, I was shocked and confused at the sight of one of my leaders sprawled on the floor before my feet. Purple hadn't noticed me yet. He was still lying where he had fallen, eyes pinched shut as though flinching. Slowly, perhaps painfully, he began to pick himself up. He pushed himself up on his arms, and that's as far as he got before he noticed me standing a mere few feet away, staring at him.

His eyes went wide and a look of absolute horror crossed his face as he made eye contact with me. And then we froze. We both just froze, staring at each other in horrified silence for probably a full minute. I was the first to break the silence.

"My Tallest, what happened?" I asked quietly. My head was swimming.

Purple didn't answer. He was still staring back at me, frozen. I wanted to escape as badly as he did. It was so incredibly awkward and nerve-wracking. How was I supposed to know what to do?

"Are you ok, my Tallest?" I knelt down in front of him so we were on the same level. When I got closer to him, I noticed that his arms were covered in bruises as well as painful looking claw marks.

Once he realized I was observing his wounds, and scurried away from me until he bumped into the far wall – the one where my doorway was. He stumbled to his feet and began moving very unsteadily along the wall until he reached his doorway.

I had stood up again, but otherwise hadn't moved. He paused outside his door, then quite abruptly grabbed my wrist and dragged me inside his quarters. It hurt a little and frightened me. It was clear by the way he positioned himself between me and the rest of his quarters that he had no intention of letting me out of the entryway.

"You didn't see anything!" he said, pointing a finger at me. He was trying to convey anger, I think, to intimidate me, but his eyes betrayed him. They were still wide with the fear that someone knew his secret and they darted about the way they do when a person is nervous.

Nonetheless, I did feel intimidated. I knew he was capable of hurting me if he wanted to. I was also aware that it was Purple, not Red, who had the reputation for violence towards subordinates on the Massive.

"You didn't see anything!" he repeated, voice shaking, "Understand? You don't speak to anyone about this! You saw nothing!"

"O-Ok," I stuttered.

"Say it!" he demanded. "Say you didn't see anything!"

"I didn't see anything," I repeated quietly, shrinking back a little.

"Good." Purple stepped back. His expression looked pained. He was trying to figure out what to do with me.

"Are you ok?" I asked again, my voice barely above a whisper.

Purple looked at me briefly, pain flashing behind his violet eyes. He quickly masked the pain behind a look of annoyance.

"I'm fine," he said, "Because nothing happened. Now go back to your quarters and stay there until morning."

He turned his back to me. I silently exited, heart pounding, and went back to my own rooms as instructed. What had just happened? What did I just witness? What did Red do to him?

Apparently whatever was going on between the two of them was much worse than I could have expected.

I felt sick to my stomach. I felt afraid. I had been getting along so well with both of my leaders, then that happened. I had become afraid of both of them. What was I supposed to do? How could I just go on as if nothing had happened?

I rubbed my wrist again where Purple had grabbed me. There were still two marks on my wrist from his claws wrapping so tightly around it. I dreaded the morning. If Purple could hurt me just because I had been in the wrong the place at the wrong time, what might Red do if he found out I had seen him fling his co-ruler into the hallway?