In the Organization's vast hall that resembled a false sky, Cain stood observing Orion as he trained. The dim lights played on both their faces, casting moving shadows on the high walls. Orion moved with astonishing speed, his right hand drawing fiery circles in the air while sparks flew from his fingertips.
"Why sacrifice the Phoenix Squad?" Orion asked as he rested for a moment, his voice betraying a subtle tremor. "They were among your best fighters."
"In chess…" Cain answered with the calm of a professional killer, "sometimes we sacrifice a rook to kill the king. And Phoenix…" he paused, slowly turning a chair, "was beginning to question. Doubt is like a disease; left untreated, it spreads."
Orion felt a coldness pierce his bones, but anger was warm in his chest. "And my brother? Is he next? Will you sacrifice me when I no longer fit your plans?"
Cain smiled a smile that didn't reach his eyes: "The difference between you, your brother, and me is that I know I'm a piece in a larger game… while you believe you are the player. And Tiflos… your brother… still believes he can save you. But the truth is, no one can save anyone. We are all drowning in this world's swamp; the difference is that some of us have learned to swim, while others sink."
Orion looked at Cain in silence, wondering to himself, What is this man's perspective on life? Is what he says truly real? Are we in a larger game, or is he trying to deceive me?
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In the ruins area on the city's outskirts, where buildings had turned into skeletons of concrete and iron, Phoenix knelt among the bodies of his men. His hands were stained with the blood of his brothers—blood still warm, as if holding their last breaths. His silver eyes were red from crying and rage. He stared at the corpse of one of his squad members before him—a girl no older than eighteen. It was Selena, who had always accompanied Phoenix, talking to him about her dreams of becoming a doctor. But Cain had taken her as a child and made her work for the Organization.
"Traitor…" Phoenix whispered, but his voice turned into a maddened howl. "Cain… I swear I will make you pay for every tear, for every shattered dream."
He began to remember the joy with Selena and the rest of the squad members who would never return. All these sacrifices for Cain's merciless game. He suddenly stood up, his hand pressing against the wound in his side. The pain was sharp, but not as sharp as the pain in his heart. He looked toward the distant city, where the government palace lights shone like a demon's eyes.
"I will burn everything…" he whispered as he walked, leaning on the debris, "I will burn this world to ash."
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In the secret room where enemies met, beneath an old building that was once a public library, Tiflos stood before Arcanus like a wall of will. The atmosphere was charged with old hatred and deep suspicion. Candlelight played with shadows on tense faces.
"Our terms are clear…" said Tiflos, his voice echoing a fateful decision, "We coordinate the attack, but we are not part of your army. We fight for our own goals, in our own way."
Arcanus laughed a hollow laugh that filled the small room: "Either we are one army, or we are nothing. There is no middle ground in a battle for survival."
"Then we are nothing…" answered Tiflos, his voice like a knife in the night, "We will watch as you and Cain slaughter each other, and we will fight in our own way when the time comes."
The advisors behind Arcanus exchanged worried glances, but one of them—a man with Golden Eyes—was smiling faintly. This man, Zephus, the Minister of Defense for the state of Akkad, was looking at Tiflos with a very complex gaze.
Tiflos noticed his look but ignored it. He turned to Liam behind him and found him also looking at Arcanus with a complicated gaze, emanating waves of sadness mixed with longing.
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When Tiflos and Noor left the building, the city was preparing for war. Tanks rumbled through the streets, aircraft flew in the sky, and men in uniform spread everywhere. But beneath these visible preparations, there were hidden currents of betrayal and scheming.
On the roof of the abandoned building, where city lights shone like earthly stars, Tiflos and Noor stood as guardians of shattered dreams. The wind carried with it the city's whispers—faint screams, suppressed tears, and desperate prayers.
"Orion thinks he controls his destiny…" said Tiflos, "but he's a puppet in a sorcerer's hands. And I… I know I may have to face him, and I may have to choose between him and…" He stopped, looked at Noor, his eyes holding all the pain in the world.
Noor held his hand, the warmth of her fingers like a candle in a storm. "We will save him… just as you saved me from my solitude. And we won't have to choose between anything. We'll find a way."
"But at what cost?" Tiflos whispered, "How many innocent souls will we sacrifice to save one oppressed soul? How much blood will flow just to bring Cain down?"
Below them, the vanguard of the forces began to move like cancer cells in the city's body.
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And in the highest tower of the Organization's branch, Cain smiled, his eyes gleaming with the fires of the future. He watched everything through multiple screens, each showing a different angle of the city.
"Let the play begin…" he whispered, "Orion thinks he's the protagonist, that he can use me." Cain smiled lightly, "But he's just a supporting character in my epic."
In the adjacent room, Orion trained with greater intensity, each of his movements carrying accumulated rage. He felt that something wasn't right, but the anger from his father's murder and the desire for revenge blurred any doubts. In his eyes was a glimmer of hope to become strong enough to face any danger, but he didn't know that the real danger—his enemy—was standing directly behind him.
And in the poor neighborhoods at the city's edges, where the marginalized and forgotten lived, people gathered around small screens, their eyes filled with fear. They knew the coming war would be the bloodiest in history, and that they would be its fuel.
The flame had been lit, and the fire was about to consume everything. And in everyone's hearts, there was one question: who would remain when the flames finally died?