Chapter 14: The Iron Gambit
The morning sun over Oakhaven was a cold, pale disc, offering no warmth to the glass towers below. I stood on the balcony of the Sterling penthouse, watching the city breathe. The "Aura Perception" was now fully integrated into my vision. The world was no longer just shapes and colors; it was a sea of colored mists. Most civilians were a dull grey, but occasionally, a spark of red or gold would flicker in the streets below—hidden threats or untapped potential.
[System Status: Aura Perception Active]
[Target Detected: General Drax (2 miles away)]
[Threat Level: Orange (Moderate/High)]
Elena approached me from behind, draped in a silk robe. She didn't say anything, but I could feel her anxiety through our synchronization. "You're going to see him, aren't you? The General isn't like the board members, Fang. He's a man who has ordered thousands to their deaths."
"That's exactly why I need him," I said, turning to face her. I adjusted the lapels of my coat. "The Triad is a swarm of locusts. To kill them, you don't need a lawyer or a CEO. You need a hammer. And Drax is the heaviest hammer in this city."
I left the plaza in a nondescript SUV, heading toward the industrial docks—not the ones where I fought the Butcher, but a high-security private compound owned by Drax's logistics firm.
The compound was a fortress. Men in desert-tan fatigues stood behind sandbags, their fingers twitching near the triggers of high-end assault rifles. As I pulled up, I felt the "Authority Presence" radiating from me like a physical wave. The guards didn't check my car; they simply felt an instinctual urge to let me pass.
General Drax was waiting in a hangar filled with humming machinery and crates of experimental hardware. He stood with his back to me, staring at a massive, armored vehicle draped in a black tarp.
"You have ten minutes, boy," Drax said, his voice like grinding stones. "My investigators confirmed what you said about the traitor in Dubai. But knowing a location and reaching it are two different things. Why should I help you instead of just taking the information and burying you in the harbor?"
I walked into the center of the hangar, the blue glow of the System flaring in my eyes. "Because taking it by force would only give you a fraction of what I offer. You want revenge, General. But you also want a legacy. You're tired of being the 'hired gun' for the Five Families."
I pointed at the tarp-covered machine. "You have the iron. I have the soul. The System can synchronize your tech with a level of precision your engineers can't even dream of."
[Ding! Initiating Tech-Synchronization...]
[Scanning Experimental Prototype: XM-9 'Vanguard'...]
[Compatibility: 94%]
"Prove it," Drax challenged, turning around. He held a remote detonator. "This hangar is rigged. One wrong word, and we both turn into stardust."
I didn't blink. I focused my mental energy, reaching out through the [Mental Network] to the mainframe of the hangar. In seconds, the lights flickered, and the black tarp began to slide off the vehicle as if pulled by invisible hands.
The 'Vanguard' was a beast of steel and carbon fiber—an autonomous urban combat drone, sleek and lethal.
"Awaken."
I unleashed a [Mental Flare] directly into the vehicle's AI core. The machine didn't just turn on; its red optical sensors pulsed in rhythm with my heartbeat. The turret tracked my movements with a speed that defied physics.
Drax gasped, his thumb slipping off the detonator button. "Impossible... the neuro-link hasn't even been calibrated yet."
"I am the calibration," I said, walking toward him. "Give me your best unit. Twelve men. I will link them to my network. They will become the 'Sovereign Guard.' In return, I will give you the head of your traitor and a seat at the table of the new world."
[Ding! Connection with General Drax: 65% (Loyalty/Professional Respect)]
[New Asset Acquired: The Vanguard Prototype]
[New Unit Formed: The Sovereign Guard (12 Elite Soldiers)]
As Drax stared at the drone—now a puppet of my will—his expression shifted from skepticism to a dark, hungry ambition. "The Triad is moving their main shipment through the North Tunnel tonight. They have three 'Enforcers' guarding it. If your 'Sovereign Guard' can take them down... I'm yours."
I smiled. The trap was set. "Tonight, Oakhaven learns that the shadows have a master."
I left the hangar, but as I reached my car, the air grew cold. The purple mist of Isabella Vane's aura appeared beside my window.
"Careful, little lion," she whispered, though she was nowhere to be seen. "The Triad's leader, Grandmaster Zhao, has noticed you. He's not sending butchers anymore. He's sending the 'Silent Sisters.' And they don't have desire... they only have silence."
[Warning! High-Level Threat Detected!]
[Identity: The Silent Sisters (Assassins)]
[Threat Level: RED]
I sat in the car, my grip tightening on the steering wheel. The war was no longer just about business or politics. It was about to become a slaughter.