One week later,

The night air of Emerald City was sharp, carrying the distant, muffled sounds of sirens and the low hum of hovercars passing ahead.

High above the concrete labyrinth, Jayden stood perched on the edge of a rooftop. He was clad in combat gear, wearing his matte-black tactical suit beneath a dark jacket. But the most striking addition was a mask. It was the Mask of Anansi, an item he had purchased from the System a few days ago.

The mask completely encased his head in a pitch-black, metallic material, etched with intricate silver linings that resembled a geometric web. Where his eyes should be, two narrow slits glowed with a cold, piercing white light. The mask granted a minor boost to his stamina and charm, but its real value was absolute anonymity.

Directly across the street sat a dilapidated warehouse, its corrugated metal walls rusting at the seams.

Jayden focused on the structure, activating Dragon Eye’s heat vision.

The world washed out into a spectrum of blues and purples, pierced by the bright, blooming reds of thermal imaging. Inside the warehouse, seven bright red heat signatures moved about, hauling heavy rectangular objects.

Jayden deactivated the vision, the world snapping back to its natural, shadowed state. Then he stepped off the ledge, plummeting toward the alley below. He landed with a graceful, silent crouch and straightened.

Immediately, he activated his invisibility, melting into the shadows, and slipped through a rusted side door into the warehouse.

Inside, seven men were loading crates into the back of an armored truck. As they moved, the sleeves of their shirts rode up, revealing the identical tattoos burned into their skin: a coiled black serpent.

Black Cobra.

"I’m telling you, it’s bad," the burliest of the men—clearly the leader—grunted as he shoved a crate into the truck. "Scorched got taken down a week ago by the EVA. The syndicate is scrambling for a replacement, and the other Pioneers are on edge."

Another thug wiped sweat from his brow. "Doesn’t the syndicate have the EVA military police on their payroll? Why the hell would they bust the facility?"

The leader shrugged, his face grim in the harsh overhead light. "Who knows. Maybe there’s a conflict between the higher-ups. Or maybe it was something else entirely. Perhaps someone who doesn’t care about kicking the syndicate’s hornet nest."

A younger thug snickered, leaning casually against a stack of pallets. "Who would be foolish enough to infuriate the syndicate?" He chuckled. But then, out of nowhere...

Wham!

Something hit him hard in the gut.

The sound of his laughter was cut violently short. His eyes bulged as he violently expelled all the air from his lungs, groaning as he collapsed to his knees.

The other men froze. Shock and confusion washed over their faces.

"What the...?" One murmured.

"Hey, what happened?!" Another yelled, stepping forward.

Before the young thug could even gasp out an answer, his head snapped violently to the side. An invisible fist connected with his jaw, sending him sprawling to the concrete floor, completely unconscious.

Panic erupted. The remaining thugs drew their weapons, their eyes darting wildly around the empty space. They were being hunted by a ghost.

Panic erupted. The remaining thugs drew their weapons, realizing they were under attack by something they couldn’t see.

"Show yourself!" one screamed, firing blindly into the dark corners of the warehouse. 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

Jayden moved like a phantom. He swept the legs out from under the closest shooter, grabbing the man’s rifle by the barrel and using it to smash the butt of the gun into his face. Another thug turned toward the sound, but Jayden was already behind him, delivering a brutal chop to the back of the neck that dropped him instantly.

Two more rushed forward. Jayden ducked a wild punch, drove his knee into the first man’s ribs, and used the momentum to hurl him into the second. He followed up with a sweeping roundhouse kick that laid them both out flat. In less than fifteen seconds, six men were unconscious on the floor.

Only the leader was left. He was shaking, backing away until his spine hit the cold steel of the truck. His hands were raised, palms glowing with a volatile, concentrated red energy—a laser ability charging up.

"Who are you?!" he shouted, his voice cracking. "Show yourself!"

Suddenly, Jayden materialized directly in front of him, the white eyes of the Anansi mask glaring through the gloom.

"Hello."

The leader flinched, startled by the sudden eerie appearance, but his survival instincts kicked in. He thrust his glowing palms forward to fire. But Jayden was faster. He shot his hand out, caught the man’s wrist, and twisted violently. The man’s bone snapped with a loud crack.

As the man screamed, Jayden drove a knee upward into his gut, folding him in half. The leader collapsed to his knees, gasping for air. Jayden stepped forward, grabbed him by the throat, and slammed him hard against the side of the truck.

The leader’s eyes went wide, staring at the black tactical suit and the mask. Recognition dawned on his terrified face. "It’s... it’s you."

"Yes. It is," Jayden replied, his voice distorted into a deep, mechanical rumble by the mask. Then with a metallic snikt, his knuckle claws extended from his right glove. He pressed the cold, razor-sharp steel against the side of the man’s skull.

"Where can I find Duke?" he asked sharply.

Terror washed over the man. "I... I don’t know who you’re talking about!" He said.

Jayden tilted his masked head slightly, staring into the man’s soul. Then he shrugged. "Okay."

He released the man’s throat, letting him slump to the floor. The leader let out a sob of relief, thinking he had managed to lie his way out. But before he could even stand, Jayden swung his claws at his leg, slashing deeply into the man’s calf.

"AAAAAAHH!" The leader shrieked in agony, clutching his bleeding leg.

Before he could recover, Jayden grabbed him by the neck again, this time lifting him entirely off the ground. He squeezed, cutting off the man’s air supply. The leader clawed desperately at Jayden’s arm, his face turning purple.

"I’ll ask again," Jayden growled. "Where can I find Duke?"

This time, the man frantically tapped Jayden’s arm, struggling to mouth the words that he would talk. Jayden considered him for a long, agonizing moment before dropping him in a heap.

The leader gasped greedily for air, coughing up saliva.

"Speak," Jayden commanded.

"I... I don’t know much about the Pioneers," the man wheezed, clutching his throat. "But I have a friend... he works directly under Duke’s crew. They usually hang out in a club called The Neon Serpent. Every Saturday."

"Where is it?" Jayden asked.

"Ruby City!" the man cried. "It’s in Ruby City."