4 YEARS AGO…
For a moment, the room was perfectly still. The intercom clicked off, leaving only the hum of the ventilation.
"Vex, Specter, Blitz… Red Veil is now active." For a moment, the room was perfectly still. The intercom clicked off, leaving only the hum of the ventilation.
Xara blinked, then broke into a sudden, bright grin. "…Wait. Blitz? Okay, I love that."Alisa folded her arms, raising a single eyebrow. "Of course, you do. It fits you perfectly. Loud. Fast. Reckless."
"Hey!" Xara nudged her shoulder playfully. "At least mine sounds cool. What about yours? Specter? You sound like a ghost." Alisa's lips curved into a faint, knowing smirk. "Exactly."
Xara paused, turning the word over in her head. "…Okay, that's actually kind of badass." She pivoted, looking toward the center of the room. "…Vex? What kind of name is that?"
Rania stayed silent; her expression unreadable. Alisa glanced at her, her sharp gaze softening just a fraction. "It suits you," she said quietly. "You don't talk much… but when you do, people listen." Xara laughed. "Yeah. You're definitely the scary, quiet type."
Rania let out a light sigh. "You two talk too much." But beneath the reprimand, there was the faintest, warmest hint of a smile.
Grinning, Xara lunged forward and threw her arms around both of their shoulders, pulling them into a tight huddle. "Whatever. As long as we're together, right?" Alisa didn't pull away. "…Yup." Rania didn't respond, but she didn't step away either. She let herself be held.
For a brief, fragile moment, they were just three girls. Laughing. Breathing. Living.
Then, the silence shifted. The gravity of the room seemed to settle heavily on their shoulders.
Xara's smile slowly faded. "…So that's it?" she asked, her voice dropping to a whisper. "We just… become these names?" Alisa's gaze lowered to the floor. "We were never meant to keep our real ones."
Xara's grip on their shoulders loosened. "…Blitz," she murmured, the excitement completely gone. "It sounds like I'm meant to destroy things."
"You are," Alisa replied. No teasing. No smile. Just the cold truth. A heavy pause followed. Xara looked at her, searching her eyes. "And you? Specter… a ghost?"
Alisa's eyes darkened. "A ghost doesn't get caught." This time, Xara didn't laugh. Slowly, almost fearfully, her gaze shifted to the third member of their squad. "…Vex."
Rania finally spoke, her voice eerily level. "If a name can control fear… then it's useful." Xara frowned, stepping back to look at her. "That's not what I meant."
Rania looked at both of them. She was standing right there, but she already felt miles away. Calm. Still. Distant. "We're not here to like it." The air in the room went entirely cold.
Alisa spoke next, her voice barely breaking the silence. "…Then we just follow orders?" Rania didn't hesitate. "Yes."
Xara exhaled quietly, a shaky breath. "…Even if one day..." She stopped. She couldn't bring herself to finish the sentence. But she didn't have to. All three of them felt it.
Even if one day… we're ordered to eliminate each other.
No one said it. No one needed to. But in that exact moment, something invisible between them shifted.
They were still standing side by side. Still breathing the same air. But something fundamental had already begun to crack. None of them realized that one day, that quiet, unspoken terror would become a reality.
Because from that moment on, they were no longer just friends. They were Red Veil.
Rain fell steadily over the city, painting the slick streets in broken reflections of neon and shadow. From the rooftop of an abandoned building, Rania stood alone. At least, that was how it looked.
Her gaze remained fixed on the structure across from her: a high-security facility. The lights were dim. The number of guards was suspiciously minimal, which led Rania to the immediate conclusion that this was either a trap or a deliberate setup.
"VEX, proceed to target." The cold command crackled through her earpiece. Rania didn't respond. She simply adjusted her tactical gloves and took a step forward toward the edge.
Behind her, two shadows moved silently through the rain. Careful. Precise. Xara landed lightly on the gravel of the rooftop, crouching low as she scanned the perimeter. "Tch… she really came alone," she whispered.
"Of course, she did," Alisa replied softly, emerging from the dark alcove behind her. "That's what worries me." Xara smirked, her hand resting on her holster. "Relax. We're here now."
Near the ledge, Rania paused mid-step. A faint, knowing smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. "…You're terrible at hiding," Rania said calmly into the rain. Xara froze. Alisa sighed, shaking her head.
"Well," Xara muttered, standing up and brushing off her knees. "So much for stealth." Rania turned slightly to look over her shoulder, her dark eyes sharp but entirely unsurprised. "You weren't supposed to follow."
"Yeah?" Xara crossed her arms defiantly. "And let you walk into a possible death trap alone? No thanks." Alisa stepped forward to stand beside Xara, her voice quieter but absolute. "We're Red Veil. We don't split."
A brief silence settled over them, broken only by the steady drum of rain hitting the concrete. Rania looked at both of them, seeing the unwavering loyalty they refused to bury. She turned back toward the dark facility. "…Do what you want."
Xara blinked, surprised. "…That's it?" Alisa narrowed her eyes, studying her friend's posture. "You knew we'd come." Rania didn't deny it. "Just don't slow me down."
Xara grinned, the thrill of the hunt returning. "That's more like it." Slipping off the roof, the three of them moved as one. Just like before.
Inside the facility, the air was stale and heavy. It was too quiet. No alarms. No resistance. No signs of life. Xara frowned, her grip tightening on her weapon. "Okay… I don't like this."
"Stay sharp," Alisa whispered, her eyes darting to the shadowed catwalks above. Rania walked ahead, taking point. Her steps were steady. Unshaken.
Then... a sound. A slow, deliberate clap echoed through the empty industrial hall. "Well…" A voice drifted down from the catwalk. Low. Familiar. Dangerous.
A figure stepped out of the shadows, entirely untouched by the tension in the room. He leaned over the railing, unbothered by the three highly trained operatives below him. "So, they sent Red Veil after me."
Xara raised her weapon instantly, locking onto the movement. Alisa's breath caught in her throat. Rania simply froze.
The man hopped over the railing, landing softly on the main floor. He stepped into the dim overhead light, finally revealing his face. Calm. Cold. Alive. Aiden. A faint smirk played on his lips. "Guess the Obsidian is getting desperate."
The air in the room tightened. Time seemed to grind to a halt. Xara was the first to break the silence. "Target locked."
"Don't." Rania's voice cut through the cavernous room; sharp, immediate, and panicked. Xara shot her a bewildered look. "What?!" Alisa's eyes snapped toward Rania, catching the raw hesitation in her leader's stance.
Aiden chuckled softly, the sound dry and hollow. "There it is." His gaze shifted, locking intensely onto her. "…Rania." Absolute silence. Xara stiffened. Alisa's expression darkened into a fierce scowl.
Aiden took another step closer. He wasn't afraid. He wasn't cautious. He walked toward them like a ghost with nothing left to lose. "Still going by Vex, huh?" His voice dropped slightly, the mocking edge giving way to something dangerously personal.
Alisa shifted her weight, gripping her rifle tighter. "Don't…"
"And you," Aiden interrupted, glancing briefly at her. "Spectrum of lies. Always watching."
"…It's Specter," Alisa corrected, her tone like ice. He smirked. "Of course, it is."
His dark eyes moved again, finally landing on the barrel of Xara's gun. He paused, a flicker of dark amusement in his tone. "And you… still reckless."
Xara scoffed, her finger resting dangerously close to the trigger. "Say one more word and I'll…"
"Shoot me?" Aiden tilted his head, spreading his arms open in an invitation. "Go ahead." Heavy, suffocating silence pressed down on them. Because despite the threat, despite the orders... none of them pulled the trigger.
Aiden's gaze returned to Rania. This time, the amusement was entirely gone. "…You hesitated." Rania's jaw clenched. Her hands gripped her weapon tightly, but her finger refused to move. "…You shouldn't be here," she managed to say.
A soft, humorless laugh escaped him. He stepped even closer. Too close. "Funny. Because I was about to say the exact same thing."
Alisa's sharp eyes caught a flicker of movement in the dark rafters above. She took a step back, calculating angles. Something was wrong. Very, very wrong.
Then, she saw it. Her heart dropped. "Vex..." Too late. A tiny, bright red dot appeared on Rania's chest. Then another painted Xara's shoulder. Then Alisa's forehead. Five. Ten. Two dozen.
Snipers. Hidden in the rafters, the darkened windows, the scaffolding. Everywhere. Aiden exhaled slowly, his eyes reflecting the crimson lasers. He looked almost disappointed. "You walked right into it."
Xara cursed violently. "Damn it!" Alisa's mind raced, searching for cover that didn't exist. "There's no exit... this whole place..."
"...was never the mission," Aiden finished quietly. The horrible truth finally snapped into place for Rania. This wasn't an assassination. It was an execution.
"If Red Veil is assigned…" Rania whispered, staring at the man who used to be their teammate, "…the mission is already over."
Aiden looked at them, a storm of unreadable emotions swirling in his eyes. "…Yeah," he murmured. "Just not the way you thought."
The deafening crack of gunshots echoed through the warehouse. And then, everything went dark.
TBC