Thunder cracked—not in the sky, but on the ground, as the unmistakable roar of Martial Sky Guard mobilizers tore through the outskirts of Skycloud.
Dark-plated carriages glided like fangs across the terrain, lined with reinforced plates and sigil-bolted tires. They moved in perfect formations, neither chaotic nor hesitant. These were not ordinary enforcement patrols. These were the executors of order—the final say when protocol collapsed.
Within minutes, the perimeter of an abandoned industrial sector outside the city's jurisdiction was surrounded. A lead Guard, helmed in crimson-plated armor that shimmered like dried blood under dusk's fading glow, raised a fist. The convoy halted.
"Confirm target."
A masked scout nodded, voice clipped through his communicator. "Confirmed. One Academy student—Neo. Multiple suspects in black armor with skeletal insignia. All subdued. No resistance."
Silence followed. Then the lead Guard uttered two words.
"Bring them in."
---
Back within the heavily fortified precinct of Skycloud's innermost circle, word reached the upper echelons with terrifying speed.
Neo—captured.
The masked assailants—captured.
No dead. No escapees. No delays.
As Principal Velren read the report delivered directly to his hand by the assistant in silver-threaded robes, his eyes narrowed, and the page crumpled slightly under his grip.
"...Impossible," he muttered.
Ayna and Kael were frozen, the implications settling in like frost.
"This... just two days after the abduction?" Kael asked slowly. "How could they locate both Neo and the criminals so quickly? And retrieve them without a single injury or casualty?"
Ayna's gaze darted toward Velren. "Was it really that efficient—or was it rehearsed?"
Velren didn't speak for a moment.
Then: "No matter how skilled, Martial Sky Guards don't act this swiftly unless ....unless they have colluded with the criminals?"
He turned to his assistant. "Inform the High Council. And tell them to preserve every moment of interrogation footage. No deletions. No omissions. I want to see everything—myself."
Ayna's fists trembled. Kael looked like he wanted to shout but couldn't find the words.
And above it all, an invisible thread of dread weaved its way through the air—a conspiracy far greater than any of them had imagined was taking shape in the shadows of Skycloud.
---
The chandelier above shimmered like captured daylight—warm, artificial, and utterly obedient. Beneath it, Damian Sunblade reclined on a cushioned lounger draped in auric silk, one leg crossed over the other, a crystal decanter of violet nectar swaying gently in his hand.
Around him, the chamber was silent save for the soft hum of ambient resonance woven into the very walls. A palace of opulence—and secrets.
His butler approached silently, as always—a tall, aging man with gloves too clean for a servant and eyes too sharp for a mere attendant. He leaned close, lips brushing Damian's ear with a whisper carried like silk on steel.
"Phase Three… is a resounding success."
Damian didn't blink. His glass swayed once more.
A smirk crept across his face. Not rushed. Not flamboyant. But venomously pleased.
He exhaled. "So... Velren has moved personally now, hasn't he?"
"Yes."
"A pity." Damian closed his eyes for a moment, as though relishing the aftertaste of victory. "His meddling may stabilize the surface… but it only helps shake the foundation underneath. Let him dance in the smoke while we walk through the fire."
He stood, finally, slow and deliberate, letting the folds of his robe fall into place like shadows draped over light.
For a while, he said nothing. Only the quiet glow of the chandelier flickered above, as if waiting for its cue.
Then Damian spoke—his voice calm, commanding, final.
"…Initiate the final phase."
He turned toward the ornate window, where the reflection of Skycloud shimmered like a kingdom carved from glass.
"It's about time," he murmured. "Let the real performance begin."
---
Skycloud Detention Centre .Interrogation Room 3
Neo's thoughts were thick like fog. His body ached. Each breath scraped his lungs like sandpaper.
Then came the cold.
A splash of icy water hit his face like a slap from the void. Neo gasped, lurching upright, chains clinking around his wrists. His vision steadied, though the walls still wobbled like a half-remembered dream.
He blinked hard.
A man sat across from him. Cold gaze. Iron posture. Uniform of a high-ranking Martial Sky Guard—his insignia blazing like a gavel over storm clouds.
Caden Virell.
Neo recognized him immediately.
"You've got some gall," Caden said, voice like tempered steel dragged across ice. "Escaping trial? Fleeing the law? You must think yourself invincible."
Neo coughed, the ache in his ribs pulsing with each breath. "I didn't run."
"Oh?" Caden leaned forward, fingers laced. "Then what? Teleported away by the gods? Perhaps your mysterious 'innocence' levitated the car off-route?"
Neo's mouth twitched. "The route changed. I saw it. There was no human driver—it was a puppet."
"Of course it was," Caden sneered. "And next you'll say masked men abducted you and made the Earth spin the other way."
Neo's fists clenched. "That's exactly what happened."
Caden scoffed and stood up. "Fine. Let's test your version."
He gestured to the door. Two guards dragged in three men, their movements sluggish, beaten, their skull masks now shattered or hanging off like broken ornaments. Blood stained their armor.
Neo's eyes narrowed.
One of the prisoners whimpered, "We… we were hired. Paid well. We were to intercept the prisoner and stage an escape."
"By whom?" Caden asked.
The man hesitated—then broke under a flash of pain delivered by the guards.
"His backer!" the prisoner howled. "The boy! Neo! He promised us a full extraction—told us where the enforcers would take him. Said we'd be rewarded."
Neo's heart thundered in fury. Lies.
It was too perfect. Too clean. An orchestrated betrayal executed with professional precision.
"Liar," Neo said coldly, eyes on the man. "You're acting. That's not pain, it's performance."
But no one heard him.
Or rather—they chose not to.
---
The projection sphere cast the entire scene in ghostly blue. Every word, every tortured scream, every damning 'confession' echoed inside the grand chamber like a cruel opera.
Velren stood with arms behind his back, his silver robe motionless.
Behind him, Kael's fists were clenched so hard his knuckles bled. Ayna trembled, her breath ragged.
"That's not real," Kael growled. "They're puppets. They're planted—!"
"I know," Velren said quietly.
Ayna turned sharply. "Then why—"
"Because it doesn't matter." Velren's voice cracked slightly at the edge. "The trap wasn't for Neo. It was for all of us. For Skycloud. And we walked straight into it."
He turned, the projection dying behind him.
"We've failed," Velren said, more to himself than anyone else. "Not today. Not at court. But from the very beginning."
---