"The deep reader has been stolen."
An eerie fog spoke softly in the midst of a gloomy abyss.
Among it were 8 specks of light, each of a different radiant color.
The dark, formless fog spoke once more, "Who amongst you was responsible?" Its question was met with no response, the entire abyss retaining its depressing silence.
"Since no one refuses to confess, let the purgatory begin."
Meanwhile, in the City of Leon, a man with jet-black hair, hellish red eyes, and a worn-out expression on his face sat lazily on a bench in the public park. His entire body screamed of exhaustion, as if he had built a whole mansion single-handedly. Some passersby even worried if he were on the verge of death, but that was just the everyday routine of Cole Raden.
After long days of deadly work, a nice sit in a serene environment would help him cool his nerves.
Then again, it was pleasant watching children and people carry on with happy lives filled with little worries, something he could only dream of.
His days were simple: carrying out dangerous operations for the highest bidder, nearly dying, finding a way to survive, and then resting afterward. As a result, he couldn't afford to start a family or even stay in one home.
Yet deep within, he just wanted to live a peaceful and normal life with a nice girl in a cozy home - just "normie stuff."
Unfortunately, due to the things he'd done, such a life was no longer possible. Cole simply drifted far into an imaginary wonderland as he sat, thinking of things that would never occur. Raising his back slightly, he leaned forward and changed his focus.
Today was a special day after all!
One of his old, wealthy clients had promised to give him a new identity that day. With the wealth the client had in his back pocket, such a task was less than minuscule.
Still, the reason why someone who only interacted through a middle man was so interested in helping was a mystery. Nonetheless, if things went out of hand, he was more than capable of handling it, so why not take the risk?
"If what he said was true, then today I might be able to fulfill my dream," he muttered. "I'll leave the past behind and start afresh!"
He jumped out of the bench in excitement.
Cole stretched his body a bit, his weary pale face lit up with a bright smile firmly stretched across. Joyously, he swung his body through the park, gazing at the happy faces of each citizen. The greenish fields were a delight for his eyes.
Upon exiting through the gate, he met an old woman holding a small jar full of spices. Cole might be a cold mercenary on the clock, but at the moment, he was off duty.
With swift steps, he rushed to her aid, helping her carry the jar and leading her across the busy road. Out of gratitude, the old woman offered him a small red pepper the shape of a pebble.
Cole was hesitant at first but agreed after a while of bickering.
"Good luck, son. I hope this gift helps you today," she spoke with a draggy yet caring voice.
"It will, thanks a lot, ma'am," Cole responded, his eyes twitching from self-containment.
"Well... don't just stand there, eat it!" she requested, a demanding tone lingering within.
Cole intended to protest but held off, knowing it would be pointless. Besides, a bite of a raw pepper wasn't going to kill him; during tough missions, he'd eaten worse.
In less than 3 seconds, he threw the pepper in his mouth, gulping it down with one swallow.
BADUMP!
For a split second, his body felt uncomfortably light, and everything distorted. He began to feel a stinging pain along his chest area, his body felt heavy, not to mention the slamming headache. All the symptoms were similar to a common cold.
Cole turned to the woman and bowed in respect, wasting no time, he turned to the opposite direction and darted to the further end of the street. His movements were restricted, but he still managed to hail a cab.
He had to meet the client at any cost; a random cold wasn't going to stop him!
If it was poison, then his immune system would neutralize it quickly because he had become immune to them.
"Take me to Dalton 2nd center by the port side," he directed the driver with a strained voice.
The driver nodded and drove Cole to the destination. With each building and street they passed, the more Cole's pain subsided.
As Cole arrived at the final stop, his aches vanished. Stepping out from the taxi, he felt nothing but relief.
Cole paid his dues and walked healthily towards a small shack hanging at the edge of the harbor, beside a bunch of broken boats. The shack's aluminum structure suggested it was freshly built.
Cole heightened his senses, tensing his muscles as he masked his readiness with an innocent smile and bright demeanor. Approaching the door, he exhaled sharply and slid the aluminum door.
"Good afternoon, everyone!" Cole shouted positively as he walked casually inside.
The shack's atmosphere was slightly tense; two guards by his left grabbed each other violently, as though he had interrupted their fight. Across them, a man with red hair and a calm, handsome face pleasantly watched.
Turning their attention towards Cole, they froze for a bit, then arranged themselves accordingly.
"Welcome, you must be Cole," the red-haired man asked gently, smirking politely as he sat on a well-furnished chair. Beside him was the middle man Cole was accustomed to, Salone.
"Indeed I am, sir. I see Mr. Salone is here today," he remarked casually.
"Of course, just as a formality," the red-haired man replied cockily.
"And the two men?"
"Just for protection, nothing special."
"Right..."
Between the leaking water from the roof or the suspicious vibe the others released, Cole had a variety of reasons to turn tail while he had the chance. But the chance of a good life was what bound him in place.
Cole gave Salone a stern look, only to be responded with a nervous glare.
"Alright now!" The red-haired man shot up from his seat. "I believe you know why you're here, Mr. Cole."
Cole furrowed his brows intensely as he listened closely.
"Firstly, call me Atasa, no longer Mr. Wind Eagle."
"Alright, Mr. Atasa, I'm here for what you promised. Can you make it possible?" Cole's voice reverberated through the shed.
"Of course.... You've done me well; there isn't a single mission I've assigned to you that failed. For that, I'm highly grateful, so grateful I decided to grant that request of yours."
"Are you really going to follow through with it, sir?"
"Yes, but there's something I have to tell you....."
Atasa snapped his fingers, and immediately, both men pounced towards Cole.
'It's as I expected, unfortunately.'
Cole stepped to the side, swinging a sturdy kick at one of their torsos. In one strike, he went flying through the aluminum wall and into the ocean.
The second goon was more tactical, bouncing around to confuse Cole. Hopping to the side, he fired a heavy blow, the first was a direct hit, and he so leaped back to strike a fatal one at Cole's chest.
Receiving the first blow, Cole stretched a maniacal smile and stood in place.
Immediately, the goon went for his chest, and Cole intercepted it midway.
CRACK!
The sound of breaking bones, along with the goon's pained scream, haunted the room.
Cole took his time twisting the goon's arm all the way back until he was in too much pain to attack.
Then, Cole grabbed him with monstrous strength and tossed him to the ocean to join his companion. With the two small fries out of the way, the only thing remaining was the final boss.
Salone was definitely not going to interfere.
Strangely enough, Atasa was abnormally calm to the extent it was frightening. His unperturbed demeanor sent a weird chill down Cole's spine.
"What do you hope to achieve from this.... I've been loyal, so why would you do this?"
Atasa leaned by Salone and responded in a smooth yet mocking tone, "It's nothing personal; however, in order to obtain power in this life, you need to make many sacrifices, and in order to attain even higher power, you need to sacrifice others. That's the rule of life."
Cole sprang forward in a moment of seething rage, nimbly dashing to Atasa's blind spot before swinging a deadly kick, aimed at his head.
SWOOSH!
'He vanished?!'
Cole was stunned for a brief second.
Immediately, Atasa casually touched his shoulder from behind, stretching a playful but malicious smile at Cole.
"I got you," Atasa spoke in a low, cold tone.
Cole swung his hand reflexively, applying a frightening amount of force. Atasa caught it mid-attack with a simplistic grip; he was barely applying any force, yet Cole couldn't break free.
Salone stood at a safe distance, spectating in silence.
"As I said before, Cole, in order to reach higher levels of power...one must be ready to sacrifice others," Atasa spoke once more, this time his voice was ominously thick.
A large rod-like object pierced through Atasa's temples, slipping out his skin. Instead of blood, a strange, colorful liquid ran down from the affected area. His teeth turned into fangs, and his eyes turned into a lightless black.
'What the hell is this?' Cole was stupefied, for some unknown reason, he was unable to move his limbs nor speak.
Once the rod stopped coming out....
BANG!
Something like a bullet pierced through Cole's skull. Instantly, his body went numb, his vision a dark haze, and only a high-pitched ringing kept nagging his ears.
'Did I just get killed? But how? And what was that!'
Cole wondered, his physical body a mere corpse being placed in a body bag by Salone.
As Atasa instructed, Salone dragged the bag to the dock in the midst of the abandoned ships. Disposing of a corpse was nothing new; Salone nonchalantly threw the bag into the waters, gazing at it until it sank with lowered brows and a pained frown.
"I'm sorry, Cole. We've been friends for a while, so I know you won't forgive me. Still, I had no choice; it was nothing personal."
He remarked, his eyes following the bag as the vast waters swallowed it whole. Salone paid his final respects with a bow, sighed heavily, and then went in the opposite direction.
Cole was practically dead at that point, oddly enough, he could still access his thoughts.
'Is this what it means to be dead? I can't move, I can't feel anything, I can't say anything, nor see anything...worst of all, I didn't even get my wish, though I'm not really surprised. With the life I lived, I was bound to die with regre.....'
Loud screeching flooded his ears unexpectedly. Cole was still in a state of paralysis, so he couldn't move, but the torturous noise was unbearable.
'Just what in the hell is going on.'
The darkness he saw swirled like a wormhole, deep within it was a bright beam of white light.
'Is that the afterlife?'
With no resistance, Cole was sucked in! His body stretched like noodles the further deep he went.
Few minutes passed, though he couldn't discern how much exactly. The loud screeching died, and silence was the only aftermath; his body felt weightless, but at least he could feel it.
Cole heard some noises,or rather some muffled speaking. He couldn't react nor respond, heck, he couldn't even see who or what was speaking, all he was sure of... is that he was alive.
Using all the little strength he could muster, Cole struggled to open his eyes.
As they slowly widened, the depiction of long strands of hair hovered over his head and a human face. The rest was very blurry and vague, but it was a good start.
The voice began to stabilize, the words merging into something he could understand. From what he heard, Cole concluded it was a woman speaking.
'But what would a woman be doing with a corpse?' He wondered. 'Did she happen to witness the crime? She might be targeted as a result!'
Cole's lips shivered ferociously as he forced himself to utter a few words.
"Th....ank y...ou, I'll prote....ct you fr....om the...m. I....pro....mise."
"Don't worry about me, the one who really needs protection is YOU."