2025-08-11 13:54:29
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11. THE SILENT TURN
Ash and smoke still clung to their clothes. The city above buzzed with chaos, emergency lights, collapsing news feeds, encrypted Consortium alerts blinking across every hidden channel.Zane, Elen, and Cain lay low in a decaying observatory on the city’s edge, the old dome cracked and filled with rusted telescopes. No cameras. No drones. Just silence. Elen stared at the static flickering across a handheld monitor. The signal from Myles had gone dark ten hours ago. No confirmation if he escaped the blaze, or if Rae Avenir’s men had silenced him.Cain paced. “He should’ve sent something by now.”Zane sat against the wall, legs stretched, eyes dull. “He was laughing when we ran. That man didn’t expect to live.”“No,” Cain said, stopping. “But he expected to be heard.”Zane's jaw tightened. “And they buried his voice.”Elen turned to face them both. “So we raise it louder.” Zane’s gaze slowly lifted to hers. A spark returned.…That night, a click echoed in the room. One of Cain’s traps h
10. BLEEDING CIRCLE
Rain poured like knives on glass. The city groaned under thunder. Lights flickered. In a dark corner of the Lower Grid, inside a forgotten hotel basement, Zane and Cain stared at a map lit by candlelight.A red circle marked one name. RAE AVENIR, First Circle AnchorCain whispered, "She’s not just any First Circle. She funds the Whisper Halls. She owns the assassins."Elen paced beside the map, rubbing her arms. "She’s holding a gala. One week from now. A mask-only affair. Even board members need codes to enter."Zane’s eyes narrowed. “Then we crash it.” Cain looked at him. “Not just crash. We torch it.”…They needed access. But Rae Avenir's systems were off-grid. Only one man could bypass her firewalls: Dr. Myles Dreeve, a washed-out genius who once built code for the Protocol.They found him in the ruins of Sector 12, drunk, muttering to rats. Zane crouched beside him. “Myles. We need you.”Myles looked up with bloodshot eyes. “You're the heir, huh? The boy who thinks he’s fire. F
9. THE ENEMY THEY NEVER SAW
The air was sharp the next morning. Zane stood at the edge of the Clockspire ruins, watching the city breathe below. Sunlight hit the tallest towers. The elite moved like ants in gold-plated cages. But the people on the streets, the forgotten, the watchers, moved with a different rhythm. They were quiet. Careful. Like they knew something was coming. Behind him, Cain and Elen sat in silence.Cain spoke first. “You dropped the cards. That means war.”Zane didn’t turn. “Then let it come. I won’t play their game.”Cain walked beside him. “Then you better learn a new one. Fast.”…That night, the three of them moved into a safehouse deep in the lower city. It was hidden behind a fake scrapyard. Underground. Dusty. Cold. But safe.Elen worked fast, rerouting comm lines, burning any trace of their location. Cain mapped out what he called the "Shadow Network."A web of secret ties between Consortium board members and something older, deeper than anyone knew.Zane listened. And then, he made
8. THE GAME BENEATH THE GAME
Night covered the city like a heavy coat. Zane sat alone in the backseat of a plain black car. It moved quietly through winding roads, climbing toward the upper districts. His fingers tapped against the red card Cain had returned to him.One week. That was all the Council gave him. Find Cain. Learn the truth. Or die with him.But how do you find the truth when everyone is hiding something?…The car stopped before the dark stone steps of the Consortium’s oldest tower, Stonehall.Two guards opened the doors. Sylra was waiting at the entrance. Her face was unreadable. “They’re expecting you,” she said.Zane followed her inside. The halls were colder now. The air smelled of old paper and iron. Every step felt like walking into a trap. “Why here?” he asked.“Because this is where it all began,” she answered. “The first Protocol. The first betrayal.”They entered a long chamber. It wasn’t the Council’s usual meeting room. This one was smaller, narrower, with only six chairs.Zane frowned.
7. THE PATH BETWEEN FLAMES
The sun rose slowly over the manor’s tall towers. But for Zane, the light did not bring peace.He stood in the garden at dawn, staring at the small tree his mother once planted. Its leaves were brown now. The roots had grown around the stone path like fingers holding on to old memories. Sylra stepped into the garden quietly. “I know where he’s going,” she said.Zane didn’t look at her. “Cain?”She nodded. “There’s a place deep in the Ashmoor District. Off-grid. No cameras. Old base for the Silent Faction. He’ll go there next. He wants you to follow.”Zane ran a hand through his hair. “What if it’s a trap?”Sylra shrugged. “It is. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t walk into it.”…Ashmoor was nothing like the world Zane now lived in. There were no golden gates or polished walls. Just steel, smoke, and silence. Old warehouses leaned against each other like drunks. The air smelled of burnt oil and rust.Zane walked through narrow alleys, dressed in a simple jacket and cap. No guards.
6. THE COUNCIL
The mansion was quiet when Zane returned from the Silent Room. Too quiet.He walked slowly through the long marble hallway, his boots echoing in the dark. He held the red Protocol card Cain had left him. It felt warm in his hand, like it was pulsing. Alive.His twin brother. Real and dangerous. Zane’s mind raced with questions. Why did their mother hide Cain?Why did Cain want to burn the empire? And who were the real enemies Cain spoke about?Zane stopped at the hallway mirror. His reflection stared back, eyes darker now, face older than before. Just a few days ago, he had been cleaning floors. Now, he was holding a card that could change the world. But the world wanted him dead.…When Zane finally reached his room, Sylra was already waiting inside. She stood by the window, arms crossed. “You went alone,” she said. “To the Silent Room.”Zane blinked. “You knew?”She nodded once. “We always know. But we let you go.”He didn’t ask who we were. Not yet. “I met someone,” Zane said. “My
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