Chapter 43 - Kane
Nora and Charles share an unreadable look.
Titus sneers. “What kind of proof?”
“More hearsay?” Giselle flicks a hand.
Kane doesn’t bother answering. “I’ll let Pixie and Wren explain.”
The pair nod in approval.
“What is this? A Synthaholics Anonymous?” Athena mutters under her breath.
With a frown, Pixie reaches into her jacket as Wren’s fingers dance over her wristlink. Viper tenses at the door but remains rooted as Pixie dumps a leather pouch onto the table.
Three metal necklaces with a crossed-out “O” clatter against the surface.
The enemy lieutenants whisper closer together while Athena leans over, inspecting the pendants.
“Those are our insignias!” Nora gasps.
Charles stiffens. “Only the highest in our Order earn them.”
Giselle swipes the homemade jewelry and gapes at Pixie. “How did you get these?”
“Thieves,” Titus hisses.
Wren huffs. “No one stole anything.” She taps the table’s controls. “We recovered them from your people’s bodies. Two weeks ago.”
A holo video activates above the table—heavily armored Natural Order enforcers breaching a distorted holowall in Shreveport. Unlike their usual gear, they carry grenade launchers, high-caliber rifles, and shining glocks.
Nora mutters a prayer, and Charles gasps. Next to them, Athena studies the footage.
“What the hell?” Titus breathes. “Those weapons…we don’t…”
“Is that standard issue for your crew now?” Pixie challenges.
Athena straightens. “Of course not.” Her gaze cuts to Charles. “Brother Charles oversees equipment allocation. He can confirm these facts.”
Charles points at the projection. “I would never allow such unclean gear.” He whirls to his fellow crewmates. “You all know my record for maintaining purity in the Order.”
“He’s always been true to the Fifteen Tenets.” Nora presses a hand to her chest.
Titus and Giselle utter low hums of agreement.
“That said…” A sigh escapes Charles as he folds his hands. “I can’t be everywhere. Perhaps a few misguided Brothers and Sisters thought improvising with stolen weapons would further the cause…”
With a smirk, Athena faces Pixie and Wren. “See? Nothing I could’ve prevented.”
Her dismissal twists something deep inside Kane. “Three of ours died in that raid, Athena. Four of your own. Don’t you care?”
“Of course I care about the losses!” Athena snaps. “But I have bigger concerns than babysitting every piece of equipment. I’m building an Order while you’re counting bullets. However…” She hangs her head. “Those we lost will be honored. As they deserve. Even if they strayed.”
Titus and Giselle mirror her gesture. Nora bows forward, and Charles closes his eyes, face drawn.
A muscle twitches in Kane’s jaw. “Honor won’t bring back the dead,” he hisses.
Athena’s head lifts slowly. “And what do you want me to do, Kane? Turn back time? I can’t undo what happened.
All we can do is move forward and remind our Brothers and Sisters about our stance on weapons and obedience.
” She exhales and casts a glance around the room.
“Now, are you finished with your little show and tell?”
Kane’s teeth clench together.
This might be their last chance.
He meets Echo’s gaze and gives a subtle nod. She steps forward and clears her throat.
“You’ve probably heard enough about my ‘old grievances.’” Echo swipes her wristlink. “But this? This is fresh news.”
The current projection vanishes, replaced by a stream of encrypted message threads, blurred V-link IDs, and locked file headers beneath scrolling timestamps. Athena’s brow lifts, though she remains quiet.
“What are we looking at?” Nora asks.
Giselle tilts her head. “What is this supposed to prove?”
“These are communications from my contacts across Nova City.” Echo gestures to the display. “Ones who know better than to feed me false intel.” Her smile loses its warmth. “Each one documenting the real relationships Athena’s been forging behind your backs.”
Athena scoffs. “Your audware needs an upgrade, old hag.” She releases a humorless laugh. “I already told you we’re building alliances. The Order has never forbidden strategic partnerships.”
Charles tilts his head thoughtfully. “They’re not enemies, just rivals who’d benefit from structure.”
“Exactly,” Titus adds with a dry chuckle. “Most of them hate the NCPD and corps as much as we do. That makes them useful for now.”
Giselle’s smile sharpens. “Let them believe we’re allies. Eventually, they’ll fall in line and join our Order.”
“Sure.” Echo shrugs. “Teaming up makes sense. Can be a smart move in most cases, and if you play your cards right, you might end up absorbing them.” Her tone shifts, this time more serious. “But what about allying with VitaCorp—or, say, Factura? Would you sign off on that?”
She swipes across the table controls. The display transforms into a wall of V-link profiles. Each a suited corporate executive, their rank and clearance level displayed beneath blurred names and faces.
“These are the contracts I mentioned—corpo spies and insiders. And all of them say the same thing.” Echo leans forward. “They met with Athena. Talked territory, trade routes, insider leaks. Not to support your cause, but to secure her future.”
A wave of mutters breaks from Athena’s team. She stares at the projection. Her biometrics only stutter for a second in Kane’s HUD before returning to normal.
“That’s your smoking gun?” Athena snorts. “A few shady suits with doctored logs and deals even the worst AI could fake?” She laughs, a little too hard.
Echo’s boots slide off the surface. “Why would they fake it? They’ve got everything to lose and nothing to gain.”
Charles clears his throat. “Athena…some of these clearance levels…they’re legitimate. High-ranking.”
“Yes,” Nora whispers. “If this were to leak…our members…”
“They’ll never trust us again,” Charles finishes.
Athena pivots to face them, and for the first time, her voice falters. “I haven’t met with them. Not Premiere, Factura. No suits. That’s not who we are.” She lifts her chin. “We’re pure. Clean.”
“Are you really buying this story, Nora?” Giselle leans past Athena’s shoulder.
“True. Why would Athena deal with the same scum we’re trying to purge?” Titus questions. Except even he doesn’t sound convinced.
A sharp thud cuts through the room as Athena’s palm strikes the table.
Her followers fall silent.
In Kane’s overlay, a flicker of static blooms around her eyes. The same glitch.
It looks like—
No, that tech doesn’t work on people.
Kane arches a brow and shifts his attention to Coda at his side. The techie glances up then focuses on his wristlink.
So he’s seeing it too.
Athena cuts in louder. “Think for yourselves. This is what they want! Doubt and division. You know I wouldn’t sabotage everything we’ve built. Not after what I’ve risked, everything I’ve led you through. For what? False promises from a couple of dirty suits?”
Titus and Giselle murmur agreement, eyes fixed on the floor. Charles and Nora offer no response.
Athena lowers into her seat, fingers twitching at her collar. “And even if these suits claim they met with me, where are they now? Huh? Why aren’t they—”
She barrels on, but Kane’s attention is on his vibrating wristlink.
[GHOST: BACKUP PREPARED. AWAITING SIGNAL.]
Dread curls in Kane’s stomach. Natural Order still has bodies waiting in the lobby—unarmed.
This isn’t what he wanted. Only a last resort.
Across the room, Athena’s people sit straighter, still grinning.
On his side, Wren’s posture falters. Pixie frowns.
His fingers hover over his wristlink when a message flashes.
[ECHO: DON’T CALL BACKUP YET.]
He looks up to meet Echo’s crinkled eyes. Beside her, Coda reaches into his jacket.
“Trust us,” she mouths silently.
Kane takes a breath and sends a single line to Echo.
[MAKE IT COUNT.]
Echo swivels in her chair. “Hey Athena…if you’re finished monologuing, can Coda borrow you real quick?”
Athena heaves a long sigh. “Look—I was trying to be generous here, give you a chance to end this without risking more lives. But this is getting old.” She crosses her arms, glare swinging to Kane. “You didn’t come here to negotiate. You came here to play games. Just like I thought.”
She stands slowly, her lieutenants rising with her. “So here’s what’s going to happen. You’re walking out of here empty-handed while our order prepares for what comes next. And when Shreveport burns…remember that you chose this. You chose to end Duke’s legacy with more bloodshed.”
The name sends a pang through Kane. He pivots to Coda and Echo. “This is your chance.”
“What chance?” Athena scoffs, moving for the exit. “We’re leaving, Kane. There is—”
Coda rises from her chair.
Near the door, Viper breaks for them. The techie is faster. He withdraws a sleek, rounded device in a chrome casing with coils of pulsing wires curled around the edges.
Every head turns as Coda steps toward Athena.
“What is that?! We said no weapons!” she cries.
Titus and Giselle step in front of her, blocking the path.
Kane stirs in his seat—until Coda pivots on his heels.
He holds out the device in his palm to Viper. “It’s a holoscrambler, designed to strip away any cloaking,” Coda says evenly.
Athena sucks in a breath.
There it is. The glitch. Not a fluke or interference.
But is it enough? Kane’s not sure.
But Coda wouldn’t risk this blind.
“Cloaking?” Charles repeats. “That’s not possible, is it?”
Nora scratches her chin. “I’ve never seen anything like it.”
“R…right!” Athena points at the scrambler. “That thing’s probably a weapon.”
Before doubt can spread, Kane fixes on his former lieutenant. “Viper. You spent five years running high-risk contracts. Lead enforcer with us for five. Ever seen anything like this?”
Viper’s forehead creases. “No.”
“Allow me to demonstrate,” Coda offers, aiming the scrambler at the hologram projected from the table. He taps the surface. The machine emits a low hum.