Chapter 15 - "Rats, Awakened and the Grand Game Begins"

Location: Abandoned Warehouse District, Zyphorion

Crisp night air clung to Ashok's skin, rich with the smell of damp concrete and rusty metal. The coordinates marked on the bullet guided Ashok to a deserted warehouse on the outskirts of the city's trading perimeter.

Zyphorion had no criminal underworld network. At least, not out in the open.

But the rats always found places to gather.

Inside, the dark room stretched out—an incomplete fortress, abuzz with activity. Crates of weapons, chemicals, and Order symbols littered the floor. Men moved in synchronized patterns, some loading gear, others debating hierarchy assignments.

This wasn't another gang.

They were getting ready for induction.

A legitimate branch of ORDER.

Ashok let out a breath, cracking his neck. "Of course it's Order. It's always Order."

Glitch flickered next to Ashok, his blue flames thrumming with irritation. "Tch. Just when I thought this place was boring."

Time for the shift.

Phantom took control.

Phantom walked idly forward, his boots thudding on the broken concrete. The closest grunt turned—eyes pinching—

Too late.

A flash of movement.

A whirlkick cracked his jaw to the side and sent him stumbling into a stack of crates.

The room became still.

Then—

Chaos broke out.

The battle had started.

Two men charged.

Phantom dodged the first blow, elbowing one in the ribs as he twisted in mid-air to catch the other's wrist. With a sharp tug, he flipped the man over his head, slamming him into the ground.

Another attacker swung a reinforced baton. Phantom ducked his head just enough for it to go by, then caught his wrist, twisting it until bone cracked.

"AAARGH!"

Phantom intercepted the baton from the air, spun it in his hand, and slammed it across his assailant's head.

THUD.

The body collapsed.

Another man—a giant oaf—appeared with a spiked gauntlet. He launched a crushing haymaker—

Phantom didn't dodge.

He sidestepped at the last moment, deftly shunting the punch away from his face. By the time the brute realized what was happening, Phantom's fist had driven deep into his liver. 

The blow sent the man stumbling forward, his breath stolen.

Then—an uppercut to the jaw.

Followed by a kick to the face.

Followed by a roundhouse kick that knocked him across the room into the wall.

Ashok easily dodged another swing, twisting the arm of his attacker and driving his knee into their ribs.

He side-kicked a guy through the room, then glanced upward as if addressing the audience who are reading the book.

"Hey, Creator. If you're reading this, I'm just saying—can you put in some worldbuilding sometime? Constant fighting is a little one-dimensional, don't you think?"

Glitch blinked. "The hell are you even talking about?"

Ashok smirked, juggling a combat knife in his hand.

"Don't mind that."

And with that, he hurled the blade—it flew through a distant soldier's shoulder, jamming him into the crate.

The other men waited. Ashok cracked his joints.

"Now then," he muttered, "who's next?"

The last body feel on ground.

As the final body fell, Glitch's flames danced rhythmically, his arms crossed as he watched. Out Cold men, shattered guns, and a battlefield cleared in the span of seconds.

He whistled a slow one. "Huh… so this is how you fight."

Phantom adjusted his coat, stepping around a body of a thug. "Expected something different?"

Glitch stood nearer, taking in the results. "Nah. I thought you were tough. But this?" He waved a hand at the dead bodies littering the floor. "This is efficiency."

Phantom smiled. "You're not as shocked as you could be."

Glitch shrugged. "Been around long enough to recognize skill when I see it." His fire flared momentarily. "Got to say, though—you're slick. Every movement, every blow... no excess motion."

Phantom stretched his shoulders. "I said so. This wasn't serious."

Glitch chuckled. "Yeah, yeah. 'Holding back.' Classic protagonist move."

He flicked a tiny flame toward Phantom playfully. "Still, not bad. Not bad at all."

Phantom shot a look at him. "Only 'not bad'?"

Glitch smiled. "Gotta keep you humble."

Phantom let out a low laugh, shooting a wandering bullet casing off a crate.

"Duly noted."

Phantom smiled. "Told you. These guys weren't worth a whole chapter."

Glitch's fire flickered. "You're speaking as though you know when the chapter finishes—"

He was interrupted before he could conclude. Phantom's communicator buzzed..

[New Message: Sorin Veltre]

—You've got two minutes.

—Tipped off the government.

—Two Awakeners inbound.

—Erase your tracks. Or don't. Up to you.

Phantom smirked.

Glitch floated nearer, reading the message. "...Wait. What?"

"Yeah." Phantom stuck his communicator in his pocket. "He's a real piece of work."

"He ratted you out?!"

"Not exactly," Phantom grumbled, already moving. 

He knelt next to the closest body, searching for anything useful before quickly disarming a couple of unconscious ones. "It's just the way he operates. I do the job, and he takes care of loose ends. Including me, if I mess up."

Glitch frowned. "And you're fine with that?"

Phantom stood, adjusting his coat. "Not like it's personal. It just plays like that."

He walked over a bloodied corpse, his voice steady.

"And I play mine."

Glitch was still irritable, but he did not protest.

He concentrated instead on the part that truly counted.

"Awn.Awn—"

He said it reluctantly, as if uttering an ill word.

"I don't like that word."

Phantom popped his knuckles. "Then you're really gonna hate what comes next."

Two minutes.

He had to cover his tracks. He had to get away.

And above all—

He had to get it done before the real monsters came.

The air reeked of burnt metal and blood.

Phantom worked fast, leaving no trace—setting files ablaze, destroying surveillance systems, ensuring not a single hint of his presence lingered.

Footsteps in the distance. The Awakeners were approaching.

Glitch, floating alongside him, was still fixated on one thing.

"...Awakeners," he said. "I really don't like that word."

Phantom didn't stop moving. "You wouldn't. You don't know what they are."

Glitch laughed. "Then teach me, professor."

Phantom smirked. "Awakeners—"

A small explosion in the distance. The government forces were breaching the perimeter.

"—are people who got lucky."

Glitch blinked. "That's it?"

Phantom didn't answer. He threw a small device into a pile of bodies—BOOM. A controlled detonation. Their bodies burned to unrecognizable husks. No traces left.

Glitch frowned. "Okay. You're just ignoring me now."

Phantom breathed out. "Luck. Instinct. Survival. Nobody knows why it happens, but one day, a person just… changes. Maybe it's little—better memory, quicker reflexes. Maybe it's strange—someone can suddenly hold their breath for hours. And sometimes…"

He stopped. His scarlet eyes flashed under the faint city lights.

"Sometimes, they become monsters."

A howl of wind swept through the ruins, causing the broken windows to shudder.

Glitch floated a little higher. "...Define monsters."

Phantom adjusted his gloves. "You know what happened to the world, right? Animals evolved. The weak got wiped out. But humans?" He scoffed. "We adapted. The strongest ones, the ones backed into a corner—"

He snapped his fingers. "Something clicks. Their body rewires itself. And suddenly, they've got abilities that shouldn't exist."

Glitch's flames flickered. "...Like magic?"

Phantom shook his head. "Not magic. Not science either. Just... something else."

Glitch was silent. Processing.

Phantom checked his communicator. Less than two minutes before the Awakeners arrived.

Glitch clenched his fists. "So you're telling me any random civilian could suddenly gain some broken ability?"

"Yep."

"And they don't even have to work for it?"

"Yep."

Glitch grumbled, visibly irritated. "That's stupid."

Phantom smirked. "Told you you'd hate it."

Glitch floated beside him, deep in thought. "And these two coming here now—what rank are they?"

Phantom exhaled. "Unknown. But if the government sent them, they're good."

Glitch's flames dimmed. "...And Order?"

Phantom's smirk softened a little.

"They want to force people to awaken."

Glitch's flames roared savagely. "...Force?"

Phantom nodded. "They experiment. Try to trigger awakenings. Some succeed. Most?" He didn't finish speaking.

Glitch already knew.

"...They die," the spirit muttered.

"Or worse."

A thick silence.

Then—BOOM.

The government troops had arrived.

Phantom didn't bat an eye. In one sweeping motion, he threw off his coat, dissolved into the night, and dodged out into the side alley before they had even noticed his existence.

Glitch followed, watching in awe. "Hah… You're fast."

"Wouldn't be alive if I wasn't."

Minutes later—

Phantom stood on a distant rooftop, hands in his pockets, watching the government forces move in.

Two figures walked through the flames, completely unfazed.

The Awakeners.

Glitch floated beside him. His flames, which usually flickered erratically, steadied into something sharp and focused.

Then—he muttered, almost to himself.

"Time to use that."

A message notification popped up on his communicator.

[Sorin Veltre: Hope you didn't throw the bullet. Your next mission coordinates are on it.]

Phantom paused. Then sighed.

Glitch hovered closer. "...Wait. What?"

Phantom held up the bullet, flicking it between his fingers. He looked at it again—really looked at it.

Fine engravings. Too precise to be normal.

A hidden code.

Glitch frowned. "You're telling me… you've been carrying mission coordinates in your hand this whole time?"

Phantom smirked. "Looks that way."

Glitch's flames crackled in disbelief. "Why the hell does that guy put mission info on bullets?!"

Phantom shrugged. "Keeps things interesting."

Glitch groaned. "What if you actually got shot that time?"

"Then I'd have to dig it out and read it."

Glitch looked personally offended. "...You're insane."

Phantom chuckled, then turned his gaze back toward the city.

The distant glow of Zyphorion's skyline shimmered in the night, an ocean of golden lights stretching endlessly.

He rolled the bullet one last time before slipping it back into his pocket.

Glitch folded his arms. "Alright. So what's the mission this time?"

Phantom's smirk widened. "The reason we came here in the first place."

He turned to Glitch, his crimson eyes gleaming.

"It's time for the Grand Auction."

"...Sounds expensive," the spirit muttered.

"Oh, it is," Phantom replied. "And deadly."

A brief silence. Then, he glanced at Glitch again.

"Well…" His voice took on a teasing edge.

"Let's use that one useful ability of yours and then get there."

Glitch twitched. "One?!"

Ashok grinned.