The tongues of fire roared,
exhaling fury like an awakened dragon.
Thick smoke wrapped the place,
a silent witness to the catastrophe.
Amid that inferno,
INERTIA—the nanotech shield—
glimmered like a beacon of hope in a night devoured by darkness.
"Damn it! They really got us…"
BELL's voice was strangled by smoke.
"If it weren't for OBASO's quick thinking and that shield,
We'd be ashes right now."
SOLIMON said, wiping blood from his face.
MOHITO stood at the centre,
his eyes scanning the wreckage.
"We need to contact the others…"
OBASO tried repairing the burnt modules.
"The surge fried the circuits… I'll need time."
"We need to get away from here first," SOLIMON said,
His eyes scanned the area around them.
"I know an underground bunker…"
BELL muttered, looking at the ruins.
"Then that's where we're heading,"
MOHITO replied, his calm as cold as ice.
OBASO whispered under his breath,
"They're really calm… as if death is just a detail."
SOLIMON noticed the tremor in OBASO's hands
and placed a hand on his shoulder.
"Don't worry.
As long as these two stay calm,
Everything will be fine.
After all,
They're both members of the elite," he said with quiet confidence.
********
Meanwhile, at the abandoned factory IN BAYADNA
ZAKI lifted MONGIN, his massive hammer gleaming in the dark.
"Get ready! There's movement at the door!"
MESNAS slid into a fighting stance,
eyes burning with caution.
"Wait!" — ADEL raised his hand.
"I think they're allies."
"SHOUTNA sent us,"
One of the newcomers said as he stepped forward.
"SHOUTNA?!"
MESNAS approached with a mix of fear and hope.
ADEL added quickly, confusion all over his face:
"Everyone… this is MAYNO and GHAZLAN,
from the Kingdom's Intelligence."
ZAKI and MASNAS exchanged looks,
still trying to understand the situation.
Suddenly—
A broken, static-laced voice crackled from the radio.
"C… can anyone… hear… us?"
ADEL lunged toward the device.
"Yes! I hear you! Who is this?"
"MOHITO… can you hear me?"
The voice cut through the interference.
"I hear you! Are you safe?"
"Not exactly… the ORGANIZATION ambushed us,"
MOHITO answered—his tone carrying a rare tension.
"That's ZERO's voice!"
GHAZLAN stepped forward, wide-eyed.
"That voice", MOHITO paused for a moment,
then continued.
"What's happening on your side?"
MOHITO asked.
"We walked straight into a trap…
They captured SHOUTNA and the others."
ADEL's voice trembled as he finished his words.
"The JOKER… has returned."
Silence fell for a brief moment—
Then shock spread through everyone,
even across the airwaves.
GHAZLAN noticed that subtle tension
no one even tried to hide,
and it was clear that the name alone
was enough to change everyone's expression.
"How did SHOUTNA manage to contact MAYNO?"
MOHITO tried to make sense of the puzzle.
MAYNO explained,
"It seems he discovered the deception…
He decided to play the prey—
only to strike back at the hunters.
He sent an encrypted message directly to the KING."
GHAZLANE added,
"But we don't know the full details yet…"
"I understand…"
MOHITO's voice carried a spark of realisation.
Then he started talking again
"ADEL—check the BAYADNA PORT."
"The port? Alright…"
ADEL sounded puzzled.
"GHAZLAN, the naval intelligence archive…"
"Yes, we have records of all ships," she replied.
"Search for any suspicious movement within the last month."
MOHITO ordered calmly.
"We'll cut off communication now.
Update me the moment you find anything."
GHAZLAN slowly turned toward ADEL,
as if she feared the answer before even asking.
She swallowed hard,
Then spoke in a faint voice that nearly vanished:
"Who… is the Joker?"
At that moment—
Everyone froze.
No one moved.
No one even dared to breathe.
As if the question…
had awakened something that was never meant to surface.
Then a voice came—
from MESNAS.
Low… fractured…
as if torn from the depths of a painful memory:
"A ghost… from the past…"
He paused for a moment,
as if the words themselves weighed heavily on him.
"He's back… to haunt us."
********
In the tunnels beneath TZARIA
Moisture dripped from the ceiling,
like the place itself was crying.
The group sat in a heavy silence.
"It seems the ORGANIZATION managed to land their blow,"
BELL finally said, breaking the stillness.
"Yes…" MOHITO replied, his eyes closed—
as if he could see something the rest could not.
As if he were preparing to decide with no return.
OBASO whispered to SOLIMON,
"I can't read his thoughts…"
SOLIMON's gaze lingered on MOHITO.
"Sometimes… I wish I couldn't either."
Suddenly—
OBASO's device chimed triumphantly.
"I'm in! I've hacked the camera systems!"
Everyone gathered around the flickering screen.
"Here's the footage of the arrest… they're alive!"
BELL sighed in rare relief.
"We already know where they were taken."
MOHITO said, eyes fixed on the screen.
"Time is running out,"
SOLIMON pointed at his watch.
OBASO looked at MOHITO.
"What's the plan?"
MOHITO turned to BELL.
"The EBB AND FLOW STRATEGY…"
"Oh… this brings back memories,"
BELL grinned with battle-born excitement.
"Alright then—let's prepare,"
SOLIMON stood.
"Wait! What is this plan?!"
OBASO asked, confused.
"No time to explain… just follow my lead,"
BELL said while readying his gear.
SOLIMON pulled out a small rod.
"AKLOGIA… activate!"
It transformed into a triple-bladed scythe that gleamed ominously in the dark.
OBASO tightened his grip around his INERTIA spheres.
MOHITO examined his sword.
"I doubt you'll be enough this time…"
He then turned to BELL—
who wore a bulletproof vest marked with the insignia of a black dog.
"BELL… can I talk to you?"
MOHITO stepped aside.
"Can you give it to me?"
He whispered.
BELL didn't move.
He froze completely.
His hands trembled—beyond his control.
He had promised never to let that thing see daylight again.
"MO… I don't think that's a good idea."
MOHITO stared at the ground, then raised his head slowly.
"Please…"
BELL lifted his head slowly,
his eyes widening with genuine fear.
"You know… what will happen if you use it."
"You know the consequences,"
BELL tried to dissuade him.
"We don't have time to think about consequences,"
MOHITO replied,
sounding like someone who had already stepped back into the abyss.
"The organisation has already won this battle.
And THE JOKER is back."
MOHITO froze.
Not because he remembered—
But because the memories he thought he had buried alive
were now tearing through the grave he made for them,
dragging every scar,
every scream,
every nightmare back into the light.
"If we don't move quickly,
What happened two years ago will happen again.
So please… I can't run from him forever."
The air tightened between them—
The moment weighed like a verdict.
BELL swallowed.
"F… fine."
From afar, SOLIMON watched them—
worry carving deeper lines in his face.
And in the darkness,
MOHITO's eyes gleamed with something no one had seen before—
something between hope and despair,
between strength and fragility.
The enigma remained intact…
But the storm was coming.