Chapter 23: Juliette's Return and the Royal's First Strike
The loft door opened, not with a crash this time, but with a quiet, confident click. A woman stood in the doorway, her presence a quiet storm of power and poise. She was a vision of refined elegance, with a long, dark coat and a graceful bearing that spoke of power and authority. Her eyes, once a worried, kind brown, now held a deep, knowing fire. It was Juliette. And she was a Hexenbiest.
The team, gathered around the coffee table with Chinese takeout containers, froze. Nick, in particular, was a statue of shock, his face a complex mix of hope, confusion, and fear. He hadn't seen her since she was taken over by a dark spirit, and he had no idea what to expect.
"Well, this is just great. It's like a family reunion, but with more magic and less awkward small talk. I wonder if she brought a casserole. You know, a 'Sorry for being a world-ending Hexenbiest' casserole. That would be a nice touch."
Juliette smiled, a genuine, warm smile that immediately put everyone at ease. "Hello, everyone. Nick... I've missed you." She walked over to him, her movements fluid and graceful, and wrapped her arms around him in a tight hug. Nick, still in a state of shock, hugged her back, burying his face in her hair. It was a moment of profound, emotional release, a reunion that had been a long time coming.
After the initial shock wore off, Juliette sat down and explained everything. She had been taken by the Royals, not as a prisoner, but as a potential asset. They had tried to turn her against Nick, to use her powers for their own ends. But she, with a resilience they had underestimated, had feigned loyalty, all the while gathering information. She was a spy, a double agent, working from the inside out.
"They're a lot more organized than you think," she said, her voice low and serious. "The Black Claw was just a military wing. A distraction. The real power is in their political influence. They've been building a global network of Wesen and human pawns for centuries. And now that they know the keys are gone, they're not going to fight you with swords and fireballs. They're going to fight you with paperwork and political smear campaigns."
Just as she said the words, Hank's phone buzzed. He looked at the screen, and his face, already grim, fell even further. "Administrative leave," he said, his voice flat. "Nick, me… they've put us on administrative leave. Something about 'misuse of department funds' and 'unethical police procedures'."
Nick, his face a mask of cold fury, looked at Juliette. "They've already started, haven't they?"
Juliette nodded. "This is their first strike. They're going to try to discredit you, to isolate you, to make you irrelevant. They can't fight you physically, not after what happened to their Black Claw thugs. So, they're going to fight you where they're strongest: in the court of public opinion."
Adam, who had been listening in silence, finally spoke. His voice was a calm, resonant rumble, his silver eyes glowing faintly. "So, they've decided to play a new game. A political game. A media game. Fine. I like this game better. It's got more rules, more variables, more things to manipulate."
Suddenly, his System came to life, a new, complex mission objective appearing on his inner screen.
[Mission Objective: Protect Your Allies] Discredit the Royal's political pawns and clear Nick and Hank's names. Reward: Primordial Rune: Shield of the First Grimm.
Adam's grin was a mixture of a challenge accepted and a sarcastic, knowing amusement. The Royals thought they were so clever. They thought they had found a loophole, a way to fight a Grimm without getting their hands dirty. But they had underestimated Adam. He wasn't just a physical threat anymore. He was a strategist. He was a master of the game. And this time, he wasn't going to play by their rules. He was going to write his own.
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