A sleek, underground chamber. Giant digital screens glow with maps and intercepted data. Men in sharp suits and colder eyes gather around an obsidian table.
Underboss 1:
"Boss, confirmation: Black Bear is targeting that small city."
Underboss 2:
"We got the info from a gang down there—small-time, recently disbanded. They're trying to bargain for protection."
Boss: "Why would they give us anything? Aren't they under Black Bear?"
Underboss 1:
"That's the thing—they aren't anymore. Their group crumbled, and now they're shopping intel to the highest bidder."
Underboss 3:
"And what's the intel?"
Underboss 1:
"Something called... 'White Rat.'"
The room stills.
Boss:
"What the hell is White Rat?"
Underboss 1:
"They won't say unless we let them join our syndicate."
The room erupts.
Underboss 2:
"Audacity!"
Underboss 3:
"They're trying to blackmail us into promotion?!"
The Boss finally speaks, voice like quiet thunder.
"If Black Bear is making a move... it's serious. Give them what they want. Bring them in. Find out what the hell White Rat is. Before anyone else does."
"Yes, boss!"
Suddenly, the doors burst open.
Panicked Runner:
"B-Boss! Urgent news!"
Boss:
"Calm down. Breathe. Now speak."
"The Black Bunny gang—dead. Found dumped in the old district. All of them."
A thick silence falls like a guillotine.
Underboss 3:
"Did... Black Bear clean them up?"
Underboss 1:
"Or did the government find out?"
Underboss 2:
"Wait—if they're involved… is this a military-grade mineral? Some weapon? A leak?"
Boss:
"Everyone wants White Rat now... and nobody even knows what it is."
---
Ren's Apartment
Ren drops his bag, groans, and flops back on the couch. He grabs chips in one hand and remote in the other.
The news channel flashes:
"...BREAKING: Unconfirmed reports of syndicate violence—police say it's connected to new code phrase, 'White Rat.'"
Ren squints.
"...Weird."
Click.
Cartoons resume.
He crunches into his chips, totally unaware he's the butterfly flapping chaos into a hurricane.
---
Location: Government Intelligence Conference Room
A long, steel-grey table. LED screens glow across the walls. Officials murmur as the Minister of Internal Security walks in and sits down, rubbing his temples.
Minister:
"Alright. What the hell is going on now?"
Chief of Intelligence:
"Sir, these are consolidated reports from local police and national intelligence."
He taps the screen. The phrase lights up on the wall:
'Black Bunny will eat White Rat because Lion King is fake'
Minister:
"This is what's causing underworld syndicates to move like sharks in bloody water?"
Officer 1:
"Yes, sir. The chaos traces back to a low-level gangster named Robert. He was on the wanted list... until a few days ago. That night, local police pursued him, and he was last spotted talking to a civilian at a bar. Ten minutes later—dead. Hit by a truck."
Minister:
"And?"
Officer 2 (flipping files):
"And... according to our intel division—Robert wasn't just a gangster. He was a deep-cover operative. A spy embedded in the gang ecosystem. That night... he was attempting to deliver sensitive information."
Minister (stunned):
"...and the local cops were chasing him like a stray dog?"
Officer 2 (grimly):
"They had no idea. Wrong department."
A beat.
Chief of Intelligence:
"Robert died before he could pass on the intel—except for one thing. He whispered a code phrase to a random bar patron. A civilian named... Ren."
The minister blinks.
Minister:
"Who the hell is Ren?"
Officer 1:
"That's the thing, sir. We did a full background check. He's... aggressively average. Unemployed, meme page admin, watches cartoons, eats chips. No criminal record, no affiliations. He's so boring it's suspicious."
Minister:
"And yet half the underworld is decoding his sentence like it's prophecy."
Officer 2:
"Yes, sir. Syndicates are interpreting the phrase differently. Some think 'White Rat' is a high-value mineral. Some believe 'Lion King' refers to our government or military. And since the phrase says it's fake... no one knows who holds power anymore."
Minister (rubbing his forehead):
"So no one's moved yet?"
Chief of Intelligence:
"That's the only silver lining. Since the city is unaffiliated—no gang control, no syndicate turf—everyone's hesitant to move first. They're watching... waiting for confirmation. Especially about this 'Lion King' piece. No one wants to act if that part turns out real."
Minister:
"Brilliant. An entire city turned into a gangland powder keg over a sentence spoken by a guy who runs a failed meme page."
Officer 1 (muttering):
"His memes are... genuinely terrible, sir. They read like haiku generated by AI having a stroke."
Minister:
"Great. A joke nobody understands is now national security. What are we doing about it?"
Chief of Intelligence:
"We're increasing support to the local police. Surveillance is already on Ren. We've also deployed two field agents to monitor gang activity directly. We recommend intelligence units prioritize decoding any significance around the phrase."
A pause. Everyone looks to the Minister.
Minister (quietly):
"I was supposed to retire next year... now I'm playing mind games with invisible syndicates and metaphorical rodents."
He exhales slowly.
"Alright. No sudden moves. Keep me briefed. And someone figure out what the hell 'Lion King is fake' means. Before we all find out the hard way."