The penthouse was absurdly spacious, all glass walls and velvet couches, a sweeping view of the Lawless City sprawling like a wound beneath the night. Kai and Matt didn't move much after reaching it. They had fought too many battles, burned too much of themselves to climb those fifty cursed floors. The adrenaline was leaking out of them in slow drips, leaving behind only silence and a strange weight in their limbs. For once, neither of them had a plan. They just sat there, letting the lights from the skyscraper forest smear across the windows like bruises.
Kai leaned back in a chair, flicking his Azura card between his fingers, half expecting it to bite him. Matt sat near the balcony doors, his shadow stretching unnaturally across the floor, reminding them both that even here, high above the pit, burdens never really left.
They didn't know what to do next, and maybe that was why they stayed. There was a strange comfort in the emptiness of the room, in the idea that no one was pushing them toward another fight. For the first time in weeks, no chains rattled. No announcer barked their names. Just the hum of the city and the faint ache of survival.
The door clicked open.
Drake stepped inside with his usual swagger, though his expression cracked when he saw them still sitting there like bored tenants instead of slaves who had earned their release.
"You guys are still here?" His voice carried surprise, then a grin tugged across his face. "Damn. I thought you'd be halfway gone by now."
Kai didn't answer. He was tired of being measured.
Matt raised an eyebrow. "Nowhere else to be."
Drake snapped his fingers as if he'd just had an idea. "Well, if you're not sprinting for the exit, then maybe I've got something better for you. How does fifty blood coins a day sound? Each. To work for me." He leaned against the doorframe, eyes glittering with calculation. "You'd be my enforcers. A little protection, a little reputation. Easy money compared to the Tower."
Kai tilted his head, studying him. "And if that doesn't suit us?"
"Then I can point you toward other work. Omen Transport Company's always looking for enforcers. They've got convoys running in and out of the city. Pay's steady, jobs are rough but survivable if you know what you're doing." He paused, then his tone dropped a little lower, more serious. "Just… don't go sniffing around the Red Circle faction. They're lunatics. Word is they're planning a dirty bomb in Zone Alpha. You don't want that smoke."
The words hung in the air like ash. Zone Alpha—the closest thing Kai still had to home.
Matt's jaw tightened. "You're sure about that?"
"As sure as anyone can be in this city. Red Circle's been stockpiling scrap nuclear material, smuggling it through the docks. They don't care about casualties. They want to stain the Zone so no one ever forgets them."
Kai exhaled slowly. "So our options are to chain ourselves to you, to ride shotgun for Omen, or to roll dice with maniacs who want to poison half a city."
"Pretty much." Drake shrugged, like he was offering dinner menus instead of lifelines. "But hey, that's the Lawless City. No saints here, only players."
Matt leaned back, eyes narrowing. "Fifty coins a day, huh? That's generous for someone who usually treats people like disposable bets."
Drake laughed at that, unoffended. "You've got me there. But you two are different. You made it to fifty floors. You're alive. That alone means you're valuable. The city pays attention to survivors, and survivors who can kill? They're currency themselves."
The weight of that truth pressed down harder than any debt. Kai felt it coil around his ribs. He hated the idea of being valuable to anyone but himself. Still, he had to admit—fifty blood coins a day could buy time. And time was a luxury he rarely had.
He glanced at Matt. The shadowborn didn't look thrilled. His burden always made him appear slightly apart, slightly elsewhere, as if the world couldn't hold him fully. "What do you think?" Kai asked.
Matt smirked faintly, but it didn't reach his eyes. "I think every choice here is a collar. Some are velvet, some are iron. Up to us which one we wear."
Drake clapped his hands together, ignoring the tension. "Exactly! At least I'm giving you options. This city doesn't hand out many of those."
For a while, no one spoke. The hum of neon below filled the silence. Kai closed his eyes, picturing Zone Alpha. The alleys, the voices, the memories stitched together with hunger and loss. If Red Circle really planned to dirty-bomb it… well, that wasn't something he could ignore forever.
Matt finally broke the quiet. "If we take your deal, Drake, what's the catch? Because there's always one."
Drake grinned wider. "Smart man. The catch is loyalty. You work for me, you represent me. I'll pay, I'll protect, but you'll be my name on the street. That's it."
"Not much of a catch," Kai muttered.
"That's because I'm not screwing you. I know better than to chain down wolves that bite. I'd rather walk beside them."
Kai opened his eyes again, meeting Drake's. For the first time, the offer didn't sound like a trick. Maybe it was, but maybe not.
Matt rose from his seat, stretching like a cat that had been caged too long. "We'll think about it."
"Of course you will," Drake said, backing toward the door with a satisfied nod. "Penthouse is yours tonight. Enjoy it while you can. This city doesn't give many free nights."
The door shut behind him.
Kai let out a sharp laugh, bitter and tired. "Fifty coins a day. Almost sounds normal."
Matt's shadow curled around his feet. "Normal doesn't live here."
"Agreed. Say, Drake… what does your spirit guardian do? I'm curious." Kai tilted his head, watching him closely.
Matt blinked, surprised. He hadn't seen anything from Drake this entire time, no aura, no pressure. His eyes narrowed, and for the first time he layered his gaze with resonance, letting it sharpen his perception. The room wavered, light bending around the edges of Drake's form.
His breath caught. "Wait… you have a guardian?!"
Drake raised a brow, genuinely puzzled. "I have a what?"
"Yes," Kai said calmly, pointing as if it were obvious. "You do."
"I never knew…" Drake muttered, his usual cheer slipping for once.
Kai and Matt let out identical, weary sighs.
"You're telling me you've had a guardian this whole time and didn't notice?" Matt asked, Brushing the back of his hair.
Drake shrugged, awkward grin creeping back. "Guess I'm not very observant. Huh. That explains a lot, doesn't it?"
Kai leaned back, expression unreadable. "Or it explains nothing. Either way… you'll need to figure it out. A hidden guardian is still a dangerous one."
Matt and Kai walks away and looks at the view
They stood together in the silence, staring out over the Lawless City. Neon lights flickered like promises, each one as dangerous as the last. Whatever choice they made, it would tie them deeper into the city's veins. And the city never let go.