Arcane Keepers Headquarters.
Uma and her two partners entered the building, along with a huge guy who was tied up. The bound figure stumbled between them.
"Leader, we're back," Uma said, her voice echoing slightly in the large space. "Look who we successfully captured." She gave Bog a shove forward.
"Welcome back," Fiona said, looking up from a desk. She offered a small smile.
"As expected of the three of you," Hairo said, crossing his arms. A note of pride was in his voice. "You guys easily captured Bog again!"
"Yeah, easily," Vecro said, snorting.
"Not a word from you!" Uma said, shooting Vecro a sharp look. "Anyway, where's the leader?" She scanned the room.
"He got called by the government," Gloria said, stepping out from behind a stack of files. "He just left a few minutes ago."
"Is that so?" Uma said, disappointed. Her shoulders slumped slightly. "Anyway, so you decided to stick around?" She turned her attention back to Gloria.
Gloria nodded. Her expression was neutral. "At least for now."
"Let me bring this guy to the prison first," T said, his voice calm. He grabbed Bog's arm more firmly. "We don't want him to listen to anything unnecessary." He started pulling Bog towards a side door.
"Good idea," Vecro said, watching them go.
After T and Bog left the room, Uma asked, her brow furrowed, "So why did the leader get called again?"
"We believe it's about our not-so-great performance for the last few weeks," Hairo said, sighing. He rubbed the back of his neck.
"There's a chance that we might be forced to merge with a similar but older organization like us because of that," Fiona said, her tone serious.
She remembered the last time she talked with Jasper about something similar to this. Last time, the government wanted them to join the OWL; in retrospect, it's not that bad an idea compared to this.
This local organization they want them to merge with this time was not a good group, despite being a little older than them.
"Considering the situation, I guess that can't be helped," Uma said, leaning against a nearby table. She crossed her arms.
"You're okay with that?" Fiona asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I mean, what else can be done?" Uma said, shrugging. "And if we can still continue like we always do, I don't think that's too much trouble."
"That's the thing," Fiona said, exchanging a glance with Hairo. "The leader believes that we will be forced to work differently."
"Differently how?" Uma said, straightening up. A hint of concern entered her voice.
"For example, we might be forced to wear uniforms while on duty," Fiona said, gesturing vaguely at her own clothes.
"Alright," Uma said, relaxing a fraction. "That sounds like a bit of a pain but not so bad." She waved a dismissive hand.
"We might need to follow certain hairstyles to match," Gloria said, chiming in quietly. "A certain length for skirts and stuff like that." She tugged at her own hair.
"Wait, like strict school rules?" Uma said, her eyes widening. "That's nonsense!" Her voice rose.
Hairo sighed deeply. He looked weary. "That's the problem; the old organization is being controlled by old people," he said. "They are old-fashioned! For example," Hairo said, his voice gaining an edge, "they will decide our rank based on how long we have served the organization, not based on our merit."
"Hell no," Vecro said, his voice flat and hard. He slammed a fist lightly on a table.
"Jasper better not agree with this stupid merger idea!" Uma said, her fists clenched at her sides.
"That's exactly what the leader wants," Hairo said, nodding firmly. "But we lack bargaining chips."
"So we need an achievement then?" Uma said, a spark of determination lighting her eyes. "Then let's give them that!"
"That's right, it's about time for us to be serious," Vecro said, cracking his knuckles. A fierce grin spread across his face. "We have two more prisoners to capture, Joker Roulette to deal with, and that Noah guy. Not to mention the Big Three." He looked around at the others. "We will be busy. You guys better be prepared!"
---
A few days later, at an unknown place, stood an ominous structure. Its stone walls bore intricate carvings of coiling serpents, their scaled bodies twisting around the building like silent guardians.
From the hard concrete of the wall emerged a guy with shark teeth. He was badly hurt, with one of his hands cut off. Blood stained the bandages wrapped tightly around the stump.
He entered the building with heavy breath. Each step seemed labored.
Inside, several guys were sitting around the table, drinking, smoking, and laughing. The room was hazy.
One guy noticed him, someone with dreadlock hairstyle. He put his drink down slowly.
"Oh, Zack, my friend!" he said, a mocking smile spreading. "You look terrible." He leaned back in his chair.
"Shut it! Don't bother me!" Zack said, holding his wound. His face was pale, etched with pain and anger.
"Oh, come on, I'm just worried for you, friend," he said, smirking. His eyes gleamed with amusement. "What happened to you, man?"
"I said shut up!" Zack said, snarling. He took an unsteady step forward.
The dreadlock guy shrugged, raising his hands palms out. "As you wish, man," he said, his tone light but insincere.
Zack continued walking toward their boss's room, ignoring the stares. He left a faint trail of blood on the dirty floor.
"He still acts arrogant even in that condition," another guy commented, shaking his head. He took a drag from his cigarette.
The dreadlock guy laughed, a harsh sound. "True," he said. His amusement faded, replaced by a cold curiosity. "Anyway, one of you," he gestured lazily at the others, "go find out what happened to him. I want to know who did that."
"You're not planning to make a move on your own, right?" the other guy asked, raising an eyebrow.
He laughed again, a sharp, dangerous sound. "You guys know exactly what I'm going to do." His gaze followed the bloody trail towards the boss's door.
---
Inside the boss's room. The room was dim, dominated by a large desk. The figure behind it was a silhouette against the weak light from a single shaded lamp.
"You're back?" the big figure hidden by shadow said with a heavy voice. It was a low rumble.
"Yes, uncle," Zack said, standing stiffly despite his injuries. His voice was strained.
"I told you already, don't call me that," the boss said, his tone sharpening slightly.
"I'm sorry," Zack said, bowing his head quickly. He winced from the movement.
"Forget it," the boss said, the sharpness fading back into the heavy rumble. "What happened?"
"We encountered a local criminal group called Joker Roulette," Zack said, lifting his head to look towards the shadow. "They were the ones who did this to me and killed Adam." His voice tightened with anger. "They rejected our offer to join us."
"Anyone who hurt us will pay dearly," the boss said, the words cold and final. A heavy fist thumped softly on the desk. "Don't worry, I will send some men to deal with them."
Zack said, his voice urgent now, "No, let me hunt them down myself." He took a half-step forward, ignoring the pain.
"With your current condition?" the boss said, skepticism heavy in his voice. The shadowed figure seemed to lean forward slightly.
"Please let me do that," Zack said, desperation edging his tone. He clutched his stump tighter. "Do the procedure. I want a Second Awakening."
---