The hospital room was quiet except for the steady beep of monitors and the soft whisper of the ventilation system. Ghassan lay in his bed, his face pale against the white pillow, his eyes fixed on Ali with an intensity that belied his weakened state.Ali had come alone this time. He pulled the chair close to the bed and sat down heavily, the weight of the past few days evident in every line of his face."I talked to someone," Ali began quietly. "Someone who knows things about Ghouls. About what might be happening to you."Ghassan's eyes widened slightly, but he said nothing."His name is Abu Jumana. He's... he's not well. He's in prison. But he knows more about Ghouls than almost anyone alive." Ali chose his words carefully. "He read ancient texts. Ghoul texts. And he said something important.""What?" Ghassan's voice was a whisper."He said the Ghouls don't transform humans. They don't want to. They think we're beneath them." Ali leaned forward, holding the boy's gaze. "The voice you

The secure conference room in the Knights' headquarters was dimly lit, the only illumination coming from a large holographic display showing a topographical map of the region. Hazem stood at the head of the table, his arms crossed, his face carved from stone. Around him sat the senior Knights—Marwan, Haitham, Hadi, and Ali. The air was thick with tension, the kind that preceded something irreversible.Hazem had called the meeting urgently. No explanations, just a single message: Come now.They had come."Thank you for gathering so quickly," Hazem began, his voice low and grave. "I'll get straight to the point. The UFN is moving on Al-Qasr. Not planning. Not preparing. Moving."Marwan leaned forward, his massive frame casting a shadow across the table. "How do you know?""My contacts inside the UFN's economic bloc confirmed it an hour ago." Hazem tapped the holographic display, and the map zoomed in on Al-Qasr's ancient district. "Construction crews arrived at the site three days ago.

The underground headquarters of the Askalan Knights was unusually quiet. The adrenaline of the Ariha operation had faded, replaced by the hollow exhaustion that followed any successful mission. Hazem sat at the head of the conference table, his fingers steepled before him, his dark eyes fixed on nothing. Across from him, Hadi scrolled through intelligence reports on his tablet, while Haitham stared at a map of the region, his mind clearly working through contingencies.The door opened, and Marwan entered, his massive frame filling the doorway. He had been overseeing the secure disposal of the team's disguises and equipment—every scrap of fabric, every tool, every piece of evidence that could tie them to the Ariha attack."All traces are gone," Marwan said, taking his seat. "The fire destroyed everything else. As far as anyone can prove, the UFN's command center suffered a catastrophic systems failure that triggered a series of explosions.""A systems failure," Hadi repeated dryly. "Th

The UFN Security Council chamber was a monument to power. Carved from black marble and polished obsidian, its walls seemed to absorb light rather than reflect it. The long table at its center could seat forty, but tonight only a dozen chairs were occupied—the most powerful figures in the Northern Federation, summoned at a moment's notice by President Bin Zahid himself.Bin Zahid sat at the head of the table, his thin fingers drumming against the polished surface. He was not a large man, nor an imposing one. His face was narrow, his eyes hooded, his beard trimmed with meticulous care. But those who knew him understood that his appearance was deceiving. Bin Zahid had risen to power through a combination of ruthless intelligence, strategic patience, and a willingness to do things that others would not.The Ariha attack had shaken him. Not because of the damage—though that was significant, but because of the implications. Someone had penetrated one of their most secure facilities. Someone

The fluorescent lights of Ali's workshop hummed softly, casting a sterile glow over the chaos of half-assembled components and scattered schematics. Ali sat at his workbench, a magnifying visor pushed up on his forehead, his fingers carefully threading a fiber-optic cable through a prototype gauntlet. The new armor for Hazem was taking shape—lighter than the previous design, with enhanced neural interfaces and a redundant power system that would keep the Commander operational even in the most extreme conditions.His phone buzzed. Ali glanced at the screen. Hadi."Ali. Come see me. Immediately." The words were clipped, urgent, stripped of Hadi's usual measured calm."What's wrong?""Not over the phone. Just come."The line went dead.Ali stared at the phone for a moment, his mind racing through possibilities. Another attack? A government raid? Had the UFN found something? He set down the gauntlet, removed his visor, and stood. Whatever it was, Hadi wouldn't call him like this unless it