Victor Raines was already halfway drunk when Jack found him.
The outpost stank of cheap whiskey, sweat, and Authority uniforms worn one too many nights without sleep. The overhead lights flickered—too white, too sterile—and Victor sat slouched behind the security desk like a soldier exiled from war.
Jack didn't knock. He walked in like he owned the place, door swinging shut behind him without a sound.
Victor's hand hovered over the sidearm on his thigh, instinct sharp despite the haze in his bloodshot eyes.
"You're not supposed to be here," Victor rasped, voice gravel.
Jack smirked, leaning against the desk. "Neither are you. But here we are."
The System purred:
[Contest Active: Victor Raines]
Condition: Loyalty Up For Grabs]
Current Allegiance: None | Corruption Potential: High]
Victor's eyes narrowed. "Jack King."
Jack tilted his head. "Name travels fast."
Victor barked a humorless laugh. "Marcus talks about you like you're Satan. The Authority talks about you like you're a virus. And the girls? They talk about you like you're… salvation."
Jack's smile sharpened. "Which one do you believe?"
Victor swigged from his bottle, gaze steady. "Doesn't matter. You're both poison. One wears a crown. One wears chains."
Jack leaned in close, his presence filling the small room like smoke. "And you, Victor? What do you wear?"
Victor's jaw ticked. The silence was answer enough.
Marcus's Shadow
The flicker in the lights sharpened. Jack's vision glitched for a second, Marcus's aura bleeding through the wires.
The System hissed:
[Revenant Interference Detected]
[Marcus Haunting Attempt: Victor Raines]
Corruption Surge: 7%]
Victor winced, rubbing his temple like a migraine was drilling through his skull.
Marcus's voice slithered through the static of the comms unit. "Victor. Don't listen to him. He'll use you, throw you away. I'll give you purpose. I'll give you power."
Victor flinched. "He's… in my head."
Jack chuckled low, leaning on the desk until Victor had no choice but to meet his eyes. "Of course he is. He's a ghost. That's all he has left. Whispers in the dark."
Victor's breath hitched.
Jack's grin curved sharp. "You want freedom? You want to walk out of here and never answer to anyone again? Then kneel for me. I'll make him vanish."
Victor's chair creaked as he leaned back, jaw clenching. "I don't kneel."
Jack's aura surged, heavy enough to make the whiskey glass rattle.
[Dominance Aura Activated]
[Target Willpower Test: Victor Raines]
Victor's breath grew ragged, but his eyes didn't drop. Not yet.
Jack smirked. "Good. I don't need another slave. I need a wolf. The question is—are you hungry enough to bite the hand that feeds you?"
Victor's Past
The System pulled up his file unbidden, text scrolling across Jack's HUD like a dossier ripped from a classified vault:
[Victor Raines — Ex-Special Forces. Discharged after refusing orders during a civilian sweep. Killed three superior officers. Record sealed. Debt acquired from black-market deals gone bad. Authority leveraged his skills into permanent servitude.]
Jack's voice softened, calculated. "You killed for principle. You went into debt because you wanted out. Now they keep you in a cage, drunk and rotting. You think Marcus can free you? He doesn't free people, Victor. He hollows them."
Victor's hand shook around his glass. "You don't know what I've seen."
Jack leaned closer, whispering like a knife. "You don't know what I'll make you see."
A Test of Loyalty
Jack straightened, towering over him. "Prove you're not another hollow man. Prove you're worth something."
He tossed a phone onto the desk. A video flickered to life—a feed from Marcus's corrupted officers, dragging another Authority agent into a van.
Victor's jaw clenched. "That's Kane. He's a kid."
Jack's smirk curved dark. "Marcus is going to turn him. I'll let you stop it. Or you can sit here and drink while Marcus builds an army out of ghosts."
Victor stood so fast the chair toppled. "Where?"
Jack's smile was slow. "Good answer."
Marcus Watches
In the shadows of the precinct basement, Marcus's screens flared with static. He watched Victor leave with Jack, expression unreadable.
The System whispered to him:
[Lieutenant Contest Status: Victor Raines — 50% Neutral | Loyalty Undecided]
Marcus's grin was sharp. "Good. Make him feel like a man again, Jack. I'll make him a monster."
He pressed his palm to the glass screen, Victor's face glowing faintly under his hand. "You'll be mine one way or another."
The Rescue
The van was parked in an alley lit by a single flickering lamp. Marcus's hollow officers circled it like statues, faces blank, eyes glowing red.
Victor froze at the sight. "What the hell—"
Jack pulled a blade from his jacket, smile wicked. "Puppets. Marcus doesn't need loyalty anymore; he just drains people dry and strings them up."
Victor swallowed hard. "And you?"
Jack flicked the blade in his hand. "I don't need puppets. I need killers."
Victor hesitated, breath fogging in the cold air. Jack stepped into the light, aura flaring like a storm.
[Dominance Aura: Suppress Hollow Servants]
The officers staggered like glitching machines. Jack slit the first one's throat before he could react.
Victor blinked. "You just—"
"Kill or kneel, Victor." Jack's voice was ice. "Which is it?"
Victor's gun was in his hand before he realized it. The shot was clean, the second hollow dropping in silence.
By the time Kane was pulled from the van, trembling and alive, Victor's face was pale with adrenaline but his eyes were clear.
Jack clapped him on the shoulder. "Not bad."
Victor's jaw tightened. "I'm not yours."
Jack grinned. "Not yet."
Hook for the Future
Back at the penthouse, Helena and Carla waited with wide eyes as Victor stepped into the room, Kane leaning against him for support.
Jack poured himself a drink, calm as a storm in chains. "Meet Victor. He doesn't kneel yet. That's why I like him."
The System whispered:
[Lieutenant Contest Update: Victor Raines Loyalty — 70% Neutral | Seeds of Loyalty Planted]
[Major Quest Progress: Revenant's Return 85%]
Jack leaned against the balcony, drink in hand, city lights blazing white around him. "Marcus thinks ghosts will win him this war. I'll show him what wolves can do."
📊 Bond Tracker — End of Chapter 18
Helena: 99.5% (stable, haunted but anchored)
Carla: 100% (locked asset)
Victor Raines: 70% Neutral → seeds of loyalty planted
Marcus: Revenant class in full effect, Hollow Servants spreading