Chapter 162: Echoes in the Supermarket Aisle
The return journey from Mountbatten Bank was steeped in a heavy, contemplative silence. The hoverbike hummed beneath them, cutting through the meticulously clean air of Elora City, a stark contrast to the grimy moral ambiguity of the jobs they had just accepted. The gleaming spires and orderly traffic felt less like a utopia and more like a gilded cage, its bars forged from their own desperation.
It was Kai who finally broke the silence, his voice cutting through the low thrum of the engine. His words were practical, mundane, a desperate anchor to the present. "The groceries at home are finished. Let's get some."
The statement was simple, but it hung in the air between them. For days, Kai had been a ghost in their apartment, leaving Moon to handle everything—the cooking, the cleaning, the simple act of sustaining their lives. This was the first time Kai had actively acknowledged a need, a shared responsibility for their day-to-day existence. It was a small, almost imperceptible shift, but for Moon, who had been bearing the weight alone, it felt significant.
Moon didn't reply, but he gave a slight, almost imperceptible nod, his grip on the handlebars adjusting. He guided the hoverbike away from the direct route home, veering towards a large, mid-tier commercial sector. As the bike smoothly changed lanes, Kai stared out at the passing cityscape, the neon signs blurring into streaks of light. A quiet realization settled over him, cold and clear. What's done is done. You can't change the past. Rivan held their strings. But here, in this sterile city, they were still breathing. And to keep breathing, they had to move, even if the path was paved with compromises.
They parked the hoverbike in a multi-level bay adjacent to a sprawling marketplace called "Starlight Provisions." The air here was different from the bank's atrium—filled with the low hum of shoppers, the scent of freshly baked synth-bread, and the earthy smell of produce from agri-domes.
For the next hour, they fell into a familiar, wordless rhythm. It was a dance they hadn't performed in weeks. Moon, with his innate practicality, handled the meat and spices, his keen eyes assessing the quality of lab-grown beef and the pungency of Martian saffron. Kai, his analytical mind shifting from cosmic despair to the simple logic of a shopping list, focused on vegetables and fruits, picking out firm, genetically perfect tomatoes and bundles of leafy greens. They moved through the aisles not as the broken sons of a fallen mentor, nor as the newest recruits to a corrupt bank, but simply as two brothers stocking their kitchen. It was a painful, necessary semblance of normalcy.
Meanwhile, in a tastefully minimalist cafe overlooking the marketplace, a different kind of meeting was about to take place.
Laura sat with her boyfriend, Antoine. She looked elegant and slightly anxious, her fingers tracing the rim of her coffee cup. Antoine, handsome and dressed in the latest corporate-casual fashion, checked his chrono for the third time in a minute. "He said he'd be here. Are you sure this is the right place, Laura?"
"Positive," she replied, her voice low. "He was very specific. 'The Glass Bean,' next to Starlight Provisions." Her mind was still reeling from the encrypted message and the sheer amount of credits that had appeared in her account. This meeting felt dangerous, thrilling, and utterly necessary for the future she and Antoine dreamed of.
It was then that a man entered the cafe. He didn't stride in with purpose, nor did he slink in with suspicion. He simply… appeared, as if he had always been there. He was of average height, with a lean build, dressed in simple, dark, functional clothes. His most striking feature was his calmness; his eyes held a placid, almost unnerving stillness as they scanned the room.
His gaze swept past the couple, then returned, locking onto them. He moved towards their table with a fluid, silent grace.
He stopped before them, a faint, polite smile touching his lips. It didn't reach his eyes.
"Hello, Mrs. Laura, and Mr. Antoine," he said, his voice even and melodious, yet carrying an undercurrent of absolute authority.
He extended his hand, not in a rushed gesture, but as a formal, deliberate act.
Laura took it, her hand feeling small and fragile in his calm, firm grip. "Hello, Mr. Neel Awasthi."
Antoine followed suit, a nervous energy in his movement. "Hello, Mr. Neel Awasthi."
That Person is Neel Alhuwalia [Monkey] disguising himself as Awasthi.
Seeing their guest had not ordered anything, Laura politely inquired, "Would you like to order anything?"
Neel offered a small, dismissive wave. "I don't focus much on food. Let's concentrate on the work first." Laura simply nodded in agreement, her expression serious.
Antoine, however, had been studying "Neel" intently. His tone was low and direct, cutting to the heart of the matter. "How do you know Abhishek, the Rejected Winter? And on the call, you said you were his enemy. How?"
Neel met Antoine's gaze with an equally measured intensity. "He encroached on my business."
Antoine's eyes narrowed. "What business?"
A dry, humorless laugh escaped Neel's lips. "I used to run illegal mining operations in shifting space . I'd extract precious stones and shards and sell them on the black market." He let the statement hang in the air, watching their reactions. "And as you well know, it was the Rejected Winter who cause the fall of my business . Because of him, my entire operation was destroyed." He leaned forward slightly, his voice dropping. "By that logic, I could even hold the two of you indirectly responsible. But I won't do that."
A flicker of fear crossed Antoine's face. "So... that was your business?"
"Not directly, no. I had a significant share," Neel clarified, leaning back as if to dispel the tension. "But forget it. I have a similar grudge against that guy, Drew, as well. But his family is far too powerful. I can't afford to take that risk."
Laura and Antoine exchanged a glance. They didn't know the full story behind this they only know the story from their side , and they had no idea who Drew was or what his connection was, so they wisely chose not to probe further.
Antoine's tone was less confrontational when he spoke again. "So, what is it you want from us?"
Neel maintained his act perfectly. "I simply want to help you both. Think of it as me making an investment in you. When I am one hundred percent certain of the plan, I will contact you."
"What kind of investment?" Laura asked.
Neel gave a sly smile. "You already know how obsessed Abhishek is with killing you two. And I am just as desperate to see Abhishek dead. But he's become more powerful now, a known figure in his generation. We can't just eliminate him so simply anymore."
"That's why I have a plan," he continued. "Of course, I won't reveal the entire thing to you all at once. For now, you two just focus on getting stronger. Focus less on... sex." He said the last word with a hint of distaste. "Once Abhishek is dead, you can have sex all day long. For now, become more powerful. And yes, take these." He slid two data-chips across the table. "Your new identities. Use them to join either the Astral Sage guild or the Eclipse Fang guild."
This only deepened their confusion.
"But," Laura protested, "Astral Sage is Sam Lee's faction, and Eclipse Fang belongs to Thomas Grey. Both of them have been close friends of Abhishek since their school days! What if we encounter the Rejected Winter directly?"
Neel offered that same, unnerving smile. "You just do what you've been told to do."
To be continued…