2025-05-06 17:28:14Ali’s blade came down in a silver arc, striking the detective square in the back and sending him sprawling across the floor. The force of the blow knocked the plasma sword from his grip, sending it skittering into the shadows.
"I Got him!"Ali thought, adrenaline surging. But before he could press his advantage, the detective rolled onto his knees, and caught Ali’s next strike with his hand. The blade screeched against the armored gauntlet, sparks flying as the detective stopped the sword dead in its path. Ali’s breath hitched. "No way." He’d put everything into that swing, yet the detective hadn’t even flinched. Worse, he was now "pushing back" forcing Ali’s own weapon toward him with terrifying ease. "Surprised, much, kid?" The detective’s voice was a mocking growl. "What did you expect? That just because you got your hands on some fancy armor and a sword, you’d suddenly become a knight?" Ali’s arms trembled under the pressure. Panic clawed at his chest—his Stealth Move had failed. His strongest attack had been brushed aside. And now, unarmed or not, the detective was winning. With a desperate heave, Ali disengaged, leaping back just as the detective’s free hand shot toward him. "Shadow Fog, activate!" The command tore through the air like a curse. Darkness erupted, a living, suffocating void that swallowed the room whole. Ali staggered, his visor struggling to adjust, but the blackness was absolute. His heart hammered against his ribs. " This is bad! I can’t see. I can’t" "Do you know what this is?" The detective’s voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere, dripping with amusement. Ali spun, slashing blindly. His sword met only air. "This," the voice whispered, now behind him, "is the difference between your strength and mine. You’re a hundred years too early to challenge me." A presence, close. Ali reacted on instinct, swinging with everything he had. Steel met plasma in a deafening crash. The force of the counterblow sent shockwaves up Ali’s arms. His knees buckled. For the first time, he realized the truth: the detective had been holding back. This strike was the first real strike,a monstrous, bone-jarring impact that lifted Ali off his feet and hurled him across the room. He hit the wall with a sickening crunch. White spots exploded across his vision as his armor flickered, then deactivated, the plates dissolving into motes of light. Dazed, Ali slumped to the floor. The last thing he saw before darkness took him was the detective’s face the wide, predatory grin of a hunter who’d never once doubted his victory. ______ Ali groaned as consciousness returned to him in waves, each pulse sending sharp jolts of pain through his body. His muscles ached as if they had been torn apart and stitched back together, and his head throbbed with a dull, persistent ache. Blinking against the sterile white light above him, he slowly registered his surroundings, a clean, quiet hospital room, the hum of medical equipment the only sound breaking the silence. "How…?" The last thing he remembered was the crushing impact of the detective’s blow, the way his armor had shattered under the force before darkness swallowed him whole. And yet, here he was alive, in what looked like an ordinary hospital. Gritting his teeth, he tried to push himself up, but a fresh wave of pain lanced through his shoulder, forcing him back down with a hiss. The door creaked open, and a nurse stepped inside, her expression softening when she saw him struggling. "Easy there," she said, her voice gentle but firm as she moved to his side. "You’re in no condition to be moving around just yet." She adjusted the pillows behind him, helping him sit up with careful hands. Ali winced but managed a nod of thanks. "Where…?" His voice came out hoarse, his throat dry. "You’re safe," the nurse assured him, though her eyes flickered with something he couldn’t quite place, hesitation? Pity? "I’ll get the doctor for you. Just stay put, alright?" Before he could ask anything else, she slipped back out the door, leaving him alone with his thoughts. "This doesn’t make sense." He thought to himself. He remembered the detective’s merciless grin, the way the fight had been completely one-sided. Was this some kind of trick? Were they toying with him, lulling him into a false sense of security before throwing him back into interrogation? The door opened again, and this time, the nurse returned with a man Ali assumed was the doctor. Tall, with sharp green eyes partially hidden behind sleek sunglasses and neatly styled brown hair, the man carried himself with an air of effortless authority. He offered Ali a small, professional smile as he approached. "Good, you’re awake," he said, his voice smooth and measured. "I’m Doctor Zain. And you must be Ali." Ali studied him warily. "Yeah. What happened to me?" Doctor Zain pulled up a chair beside the bed, flipping through a chart with practiced ease. "Dislocated shoulder, extensive bruising, and a mild concussion. Nothing life-threatening, but you’ll need time to recover." He glanced up, his gaze piercing even behind the sunglasses. "You’re lucky, you know. Another hit like that could’ve shattered bones." Ali’s jaw tightened. "Lucky isn’t the word I’d use." The doctor chuckled, though there was no real warmth in it. "Fair enough. Still, you’re in the best place for it. This is the Knights Association’s private infirmary, we treat our own here." Our own. The words stuck in Ali’s mind. Did that mean they didn’t see him as an enemy anymore? Or was this just another layer of the game? "So I’m still a prisoner," Ali muttered. Doctor Zain’s smile didn’t waver. "Let’s just say you’re… under observation. For now, focus on healing." He stood, tucking the chart under his arm. "Rest up. Someone will come by to check on you soon." With that, he left, the nurse lingering behind to set a tray of food on Ali’s bedside table. "Eat something," she urged. "You’ll need your strength. After, I’ll bring your medication." Ali stared at the meal, simple but hearty, before looking back at her. "Why are you helping me?" The nurse hesitated, then sighed. "Because it’s my job. And because… not everyone here agrees with how you were treated." Before he could press further, she turned and left, leaving him alone with more questions than answers.
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Chapter 412 The Hunters Become the Hunted
Laith noticed him at the bus station. A man in a grey jacket, standing too still, reading a newspaper that never turned a page. Ordinary, maybe, to anyone else. But Laith had been trained to see what others missed.He boarded the bus heading north, taking a seat near the back. The man in grey followed, sitting three rows ahead, his back to Laith. Too close to be coincidence. Too deliberate to be random.Laith's mind raced through his options. He had no armor—his bag contained the pieces, but he couldn't assemble them here, on a crowded bus, without causing panic. He had no backup—his team was scattered, and Hazem was in hiding, and Ali was with Haneen and the baby, and Hadi would just yell at him again.He could lead the tail away from the city. Somewhere quiet. Somewhere he could fight.The bus rumbled through the outskirts of Askalan, past the last clusters of buildings, into the open countryside. Laith watched the landscape through the window—hills, olive groves, the occasional far
Chapter 411 Shadows in the Rearview
The streets of Askalan were crowded with evening traffic, but Laith noticed the black sedan three turns ago. It stayed back, kept its distance, never got close enough to be obvious. But it was there. Always there.He accelerated slightly, weaving through traffic, taking a sudden right turn that wasn't on his usual route. The sedan followed. He took another turn, then another, circling through a residential neighborhood, watching his rearview mirror.The sedan was still there.Laith's jaw tightened. He had been careful. He thought he had been careful. But somehow, somewhere, they had picked up his trail.He pulled into a crowded market street, the kind of place where cars could barely fit, where pedestrians spilled into the road and drivers leaned on their horns. The sedan hesitated at the entrance, then tried to follow.Laith didn't give them the chance. He cut through an alley too narrow for the sedan, emerged on a parallel street, and disappeared into the flow of traffic. When he ch
Chapter 410 The Football Pitch
The afternoon sun blazed down on the dusty football pitch on the outskirts of Askalan. To anyone passing by, it looked like an ordinary training session—a group of young men in mismatched sports jerseys, running drills, practicing passes, scrimmaging under the watchful eye of their coach.But the coach was Marwan. And nothing about this was ordinary."Zayd, you're drifting too far left on the press," Marwan called out, his voice carrying across the pitch. "Remember what I told you about maintaining your shape. The opening will come. You just have to be patient."Zayd, a lanky seventeen-year-old with quick feet and quicker hands, nodded and adjusted his position. What the casual observer would interpret as football instruction was actually something else entirely—a lesson in tactical positioning during a Ghoul hunt. "Maintaining shape" meant not breaking formation. "The opening will come" meant waiting for the enemy to expose itself."Coach, the pitch is too dry," another young man cal
Chapter 409 The Pyramids of Shadows
The safe house was a small, nondescript apartment on the outskirts of Cairo, hidden among a warren of identical buildings that all seemed to blur together. Hazem had been here for three days, living on stale bread and instant coffee, waiting for his contact to deliver the credentials he needed.The walls were thin. He could hear his neighbors arguing in Arabic, a television blaring Egyptian soap operas, children laughing somewhere in the courtyard below. Ordinary life, unfolding around him, oblivious to the danger that lurked in the shadows.His phone buzzed—a secure line, encrypted, routed through three different servers before it reached him. Only one person had this number."Hadi," Hazem said by way of greeting."Commander." Hadi's voice was tired but steady. "I have news. Laith and his team took down a Ghoul at the Askalan Zoo. A big one. It had been feeding for weeks, growing stronger. They handled it."Hazem closed his eyes, a mix of emotions washing over him. Pride, certainly.
Chapter 408 The Beast of Askalan Zoo
The headquarters was eerily quiet. Most of the senior Knights were scattered—Hazem in hiding, Hadi handling legal firestorms, Ali at the hospital with Haneen and the newborn, Marwan working double shifts at the bakery to make ends meet. The underground command center, once alive with the hum of activity, now felt like a tomb.Laith sat alone at the communications desk, his feet propped up on the console, a cup of cold coffee at his elbow. He had been here for hours, waiting for something to happen, anything to break the monotony. His team was on standby, scattered across the city, ready to move at a moment's notice. But the moment hadn't come.Until now.The emergency line buzzed—a priority channel, one reserved for civilians who had been vetted by the Knights. Laith snatched the receiver."Help me, please! It killed him! It killed Youssef!" The voice was a man's, high with terror, barely coherent."Slow down," Laith said, his voice calm but firm. "Who is this? Where are you?""My nam
Chapter 407 New Beginnings
The month that followed the government's inspection was, by any measure, a disaster.Ali had spent countless hours on the phone with lawyers, accountants, and government bureaucrats, trying to keep Askalan Technologies afloat. Every week brought a new crisis—a frozen bank account, a cancelled contract, a supplier who had suddenly decided they could no longer do business with him. The government wasn't arresting him. They weren't raiding his offices again. They were doing something far more insidious: they were strangling him financially."Mr. Ali, your operating license is under review.""Mr. Ali, we need you to provide additional documentation for the past five years of transactions.""Mr. Ali, one of your overseas partners has been flagged for potential connections to unauthorized organizations. We recommend you sever ties immediately."Each notification was a fresh wound. Each requirement was designed to be impossible to meet. They weren't trying to prove he had done something wron
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