Chapter 11: Shadows Beneath Blue Light
Author's Note: This chapter dives into the origins of The Shadow and how Jake, now Mr. Unknown, walks deeper into a world none of them were ready for.
The underground lab beneath Mr. Hollande's mansion wasn't just for drug manufacturing. It was a secret facility for cybernetics and human experimentation—known to no one but Mr. Hollande and his inner circle.
Only two entrances existed.
One was hidden behind a small, panel-like door inside Mr. Hollande's personal room.
The second, far more dangerous, was located on the outskirts of the street—locked behind a restricted, guarded warehouse posing as a waste unit.
This was where The Shadow met.
Drug runners. Enforcers. And now... guardians.
Among them stood Laz, once a student, now a phantom. He hadn't dropped out—he had been taken.
Ordered to cut ties with his family, his only identity now was as one of five protectors handpicked by Mr. Hollande to guard his children.
"This is your new family," Mr. Hollande said. "Forget the old."
The turning point came on December 25th.
A private fight between Mr. Hollande's second son and Aurora, the President's only child, ended in brutal defeat.
The Hollande boy lost—badly.
He was overwhelmed and left with a shattered leg. The humiliation ran deeper than the physical wound.
Back at the lab, a solution was proposed by Reeve, a top-tier genius on Hollande's team.
"We'll build him a new leg," Reeve said. "Linked to his neural pathways. Faster. Stronger."
They did.
It worked.
The boy didn't just walk again—he walked better.
Elsewhere, Jake was living alone.
His dorm was filled with floating holographic screens, digital interfaces, and cold, glowing text written in languages only hackers understood.
He built his own PC—no mouse, no monitor. Everything was airborne.
His AI assistant, Slim, ran it all.
Then, a new job pinged.
Posted on a hacker site hidden in layers of encryption. Only anonymous users could apply. It had been built by one of the original underground coders.
Escort Target: Aurora, President's Son.From Erold to Meloparty.Pay: 7.5 million.Anonymous access only.
Jake took it.
Under one name: Mr. Unknown.
He didn't travel with the guards.
He ran beside the hover car as it soared above ground.
He wore a simple, black, ninja-like suit designed by Slim—efficient, light, silent. Because of its simplicity, the guards underestimated him.
"Is this costume day, Mr. Unknown?" Aurora smirked.
He didn't respond.
The President himself muttered, "Who the hell is this guy?"
Only Mary, watching from the edge, whispered under her breath, "You're all about to find out."
Halfway to Meloparty, it happened.
A team of eight Shadow agents launched an ambush.
They moved fast—dropping from rooftops, sprinting from alleys—attacking the lead and rear hover cars.
Mr. Unknown had been left behind.
But he didn't care.
He only cared about the money.
He ran after the convoy, catching up with shocking speed.
Gunfire. Blades. Screams.
"Blunt it," Jake ordered Slim.
His sword shimmered. Blunt-edged.
He engaged the Shadows—swift, calculated. He didn't make them bleed.
He just beat them.
In under a minute, the Shadow agents lay unconscious.
Aurora, the guards, even Mary were frozen.
"Get in the car! Drive!" he yelled.
They obeyed.
That's how they escaped.
Jake didn't wait for thanks.
He left and returned to his apartment.
It was Monday. School hadn't started yet, but students were pouring in, handling registration and orientation.
Jake stayed quiet.
He went out, bought his sport gear, class uniforms, and two hover bikes—one black, one white.
The black one was for work.
The white one, for school.
He painted them himself.
That evening, Jake returned to the dorm tower.
He took the elevator up.
Not to the third floor—but the fourth. The top floor.
He wore a hooded sweater—just enough to cover his hair and shadow his face. His natural black hair was now dyed deep blue, blending perfectly in low light.
He didn't speak to anyone.
As he stepped out, a girl noticed him.
Elena Hollande.
She stared.
He didn't even glance back. He just walked silently toward Apartment 3 and slipped inside.
Elena stood there, confused.
"The Jake I know had black hair…"
She blinked.
"…but he looked just like him. A version 2.0…"
Her heart skipped.
She didn't understand why.
The next day, Jake went to class. The city was full of chatter, but he paid no mind.
He stayed focused.
Evening came fast.
Students were leaving campus. Jake hopped onto his white hover bike.
"Jake—!" Mary's voice called from behind.
He didn't look back.
He drove off.
"Mary!" her driver called from the car, opening the door.
She stepped in, still looking where Jake had disappeared.
Author's Note: Everyone is now unknowingly living on the fourth floor:
Elena Hollande, her younger brother, and Mr. Hollande's second son occupy one suite.
Aurora and his guards are in another.
The Shadow group fills the third.
Jake, alone, watches from his two-room corner.
They don't know yet.
But this floor?
It's a chessboard.
And soon, someone will make the first move.