The night was far from over.
After the fight on the rooftop, Elias and Lena had managed to escape through the narrow alleys of the old city district. Their breaths were heavy, feet pounding against the cracked pavement, the sounds of distant sirens wailing behind them. Lena led the way with the confidence of someone who had been in far worse situations.
They finally ducked into an abandoned warehouse, the steel door screeching shut behind them. Dust and the faint smell of rust filled the air. Elias slumped against a support beam, his heart still racing, the weight of everything crushing down on him.
Lena leaned against the opposite wall, wiping blood — not hers — off the blade she had retrieved.
"We're safe for now," she said, glancing at him with a wry smile. "Not bad for someone who's apparently forgotten how to survive."
Elias couldn't help but chuckle dryly, his nerves too frayed for anything more. "Some things you don't forget. They just get buried."
For a moment, they were silent, the tension between them thick but not hostile. It was the kind of silence between people who had once trusted each other but weren't sure if they still could.
Lena broke it first. "So... you gonna tell me about that flashy watch of yours?"
Elias shifted uncomfortably, glancing down at the device. The Watch gleamed under the broken skylight, looking almost innocent. Deceptively so.
"It gives me tasks," he said slowly. "When I complete them, I get rewards — skills, abilities, money, even... physical changes." He remembered the times it had helped: healing his injuries, increasing his strength, sharpening his mind. Without it, he would have been dead a dozen times over.
Lena raised an eyebrow. "Sounds like you made a deal with the devil."
"Feels like it too," Elias muttered.
She pushed away from the wall and crossed the space between them. Up close, he could see the faint scar above her left eyebrow — a reminder of a mission they had both almost not walked away from years ago.
"Listen," she said, voice low and serious. "Whatever this thing is... it's not just about helping you. It's changing you."
Elias stiffened. He knew it. Deep down, he had felt it every time he accepted a task without question. Every time he felt a little less afraid... and a little less himself.
"But that's not necessarily bad," Lena added with a smirk. "You always were a little too soft."
He laughed, a real one this time, shaking his head. "Yeah? Guess I needed a wake-up call."
Their brief moment of ease was shattered when the Watch suddenly vibrated against his wrist. A new task.
> Task: "Infiltrate the Silver Lotus Club and retrieve the black dossier. Deadline: 4 hours." Reward: Advanced negotiation skills + $50,000 cash.
Elias clenched his jaw. The Silver Lotus Club — he had heard of it. A luxurious underground place where the city's elites and criminals blurred into one. Getting in wouldn't be easy, and getting out would be even harder.
"You're not going alone," Lena said firmly, reading the look on his face.
He opened his mouth to protest, but she cut him off with a glare. "You'll need someone who knows how those places work. And besides..." Her expression softened. "You're not the only one who's changed."
For the first time in a long while, Elias felt something stir inside him — trust. Maybe not full, blind trust, but enough. Enough to take a step forward without looking back.
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Lena Monroe
Age: 28
Profession: Former hacker, now mercenary-for-hire
Attitude: Witty, calculating, occasionally sarcastic
Flaws: Struggles with trust, morally flexible
Physical Appearance: Tall, athletic build; pale skin; dark brown hair; piercing gray eyes; faint scar above left eyebrow
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Elias and Lena prepare to infiltrate the Silver Lotus Club — a place where money, secrets, and danger collide — as Elias continues to wrestle with who he's becoming… and who he might have to leave behind.
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