Captain Sharlok left the base without looking back.
The great imperial gate closed behind him with a metallic clang—sharp, final.
Beyond the bars, the city opened before him.
A lit cigar rested between his lips.
The ember burned slowly, a red dot in the gray morning air.
A thin spiral of smoke rose toward the sky as a gust of wind crossed the courtyard.
Above the walls, the banner of the Empire snapped violently in the wind, the twelve golden stars flashing for a moment in the light.
His military coat moved slightly with every step, precise and controlled.
There was no hurry.
No hesitation.
Yet the air around him seemed to vibrate, like the sky before a storm splits it apart.
The tram station stood a few hundred meters from the base.
He did not accelerate.
He did not need to.
He activated the communicator.
“Commander.
Do you read me?”
“Yes, sir.”
Sharlok did not waste a second.
“The soldiers in the lower city.
Did you find anything?”
On the other end of the line there was a brief held breath.
Surez spoke in a tone that tried to remain professional, though a hint of satisfaction slipped through.
“I’d say yes, sir.
I had some luck.
Two soldiers encountered them in Grey Wall.”
Sharlok remained silent.
“They were hungry.
They tried to get food immediately.
Our men stopped them, suspicious about recruits wandering around the city.”
The captain’s voice grew colder.
“Continue.”
“Shark improvised.
He said they were on a secret mission.
And he used your name, Captain… to give himself credibility.”
A muscle tightened along Sharlok’s jaw.
“The soldiers, seeing their condition, brought them to the imperial mess hall.
Sky seemed… enthusiastic.
He emptied half the buffet by himself.”
His heart skipped a beat.
“When they escaped, he was still holding chicken legs.
And had more food stuffed in his pockets.”
Sharlok’s pace did not slow.
But the air around him grew heavier.
“Bastards.
Not only did they steal an imperial vehicle.”
His voice was low.
Controlled.
Too controlled.
“They used my name as if I were their accomplice.
They ate at the Empire’s expense.
Without the slightest restraint.”
A tense silence crossed the communication.
“Animals.”
The communicator crackled slightly under the pressure of his grip.
“I swear when I have them in front of me…”
Surez intervened carefully.
“Unfortunately I have nothing else, Captain.”
The wind swept across Gold Street, the beating heart of Up Town, lifting dust between neon signs and bright shop windows while cars and pedestrians moved without pause.
Sharlok spoke again.
“Continue the search.
Every soldier in Grey Wall is another pair of eyes.
And do not underestimate those two.”
“Yes, Captain.”
The communication ended.
Sharlok resumed walking toward the station.
In his mind, the plan was already taking shape.
The trap would close.
And this time, no one would laugh in front of an imperial buffet.
Improvised markets filled every corner.
The smell of fried food mixed with sweat and dust, and the noise of the narrow alleys bounced between the walls like a constant echo.
Sky and Shark walked through the crowd with an almost irritating calm.
As if they were not being hunted.
As if the world was not tightening a noose around them.
Sky observed the stalls with curiosity.
Shark, on the other hand, watched every shadow, every suspicious movement.
“Oh, look… fried chicken.”
Sky leaned toward a stall, stretching his neck like a child in front of treasure.
Shark clenched his fists.
“Stop thinking about food.
Stay focused.”
Sky was about to reply.
But he never got the chance.
An unpleasant laugh cut through the air.
Then a figure stepped out from a side alley.
Jolly Back.
His presence arrived even before his face, carried by that irritating laugh that seemed to crawl along the walls.
One step.
Then another.
Within seconds, a dozen soldiers and recruits emerged from the surrounding streets, sealing every escape route.
In front.
Behind.
On both sides.
The trap closed.
Jolly Back walked forward, chest puffed out, an arrogant smile stretched across his face.
“Well, well.
There you are.”
He slowly let his gaze travel over them, savoring the moment.
“You’ve got quite the nerve walking around in broad daylight…”
His smile widened.
“…as if you were ordinary citizens.”
Sky and Shark exchanged a glance.
No fear.
Just boredom.
Shark tilted his head slightly.
“You’re that idiot who kept laughing while they had us hanging upside down.”
His voice was low, filled with contempt.
“You walked past us just to insult us.”
A savage grin crossed his face.
“I didn’t forget you.”
Sky clapped his hands together, lighting up.
“Ah, now I remember… your laugh.
Sounds like a chicken.”
Jolly Back’s face turned crimson.
“Bastards!
How dare you insult your superior?!”
Shark stepped forward.
His shadow stretched along the ground like a beast set free, fiercer than the look in his eyes.
“Superior?
You couldn’t even be the master of a dog.”
One of the soldiers behind Jolly Back swallowed.
“Sir… maybe we should inform Captain Sharlok.”
Jolly Back spun toward him.
“Are you kidding?!
I’ll deal with these two idiots myself.
When I capture them, my career will skyrocket.
I’ll become comm—”
He never finished.
A burst of wind exploded through the street.
Dust and debris rose in a sudden vortex.
Jolly Back’s hair lifted.
Sky vanished.
He saw him again only when it was too late.
He was already crouched beneath him.
Fist charged with energy.
The punch detonated like thunder, striking him full in the face.
Jolly Back was launched like a projectile and slammed into the wall of a building.
The surface exploded, vomiting debris and plaster in every direction.
His body remained embedded in the façade.
Silence fell.
Then metal snapped in unison.
The other soldiers raised their rifles, pointing them at Sky and Shark.
The barrels trembled slightly, caught between discipline and fear.
“You are under arrest!” one of them shouted, his voice cracking.
Shark smiled.
It was not a friendly smile.
He slipped a hand into his pocket.
A small metallic click broke the noise of the street.
The lighter ignited.
A thin flame danced for an instant.
Then Shark let it fall.
The fire never touched the ground.
It exploded.
Flames wrapped around his right arm like a mad serpent, fed by the air and by his rage.
“I’m under fire!
Fire!” a soldier shouted.
The shots exploded almost at the same instant.
Sky barely moved his hand.
A gust of wind burst in front of him like an invisible shield.
The bullets changed direction instantly, whistling above the market stalls and smashing into the walls behind them.
People screamed and scattered.
The other three soldiers did not hesitate.
They threw their rifles aside and charged.
Eolite handcuffs already in their hands.
“Take him alive!”
Sky saw them coming.
He didn’t run.
The first soldier tried to snap the cuffs around his wrists.
Sky twisted his torso at the last moment, letting the metal close on empty air.
He struck.
A sharp punch to the stomach.
The man folded in half, the air bursting from his lungs in a wheeze.
The second tried to grab him from behind.
Sky caught his arm, used the momentum, and slammed him onto the pavement.
A heavy thud.
The third almost managed to lock the cuffs around Sky’s wrist.
For an instant, the cold eolite brushed his skin.
Sky’s eyes hardened.
“Those…” he said, twisting his wrist with a sudden snap.
The soldier lost his balance.
Sky lifted him and hurled him through a shop window, sending the glass exploding into fragments.
“…you won’t put them on me again.”
Around them, Shark unleashed hell.
With a wide swing of his arm, fire poured toward the remaining soldiers.
The asphalt cracked.
Uniforms ignited.
Screams mixed with the crackle of flames.
The crowd erupted into panic.
Men and women collided trying to flee.
Merchants desperately tried to save their goods while signs swung dangerously above their heads.
Smoke filled the street.
Sirens began to wail in the distance.
Sky grabbed Shark by the arm.
“Let’s go.
Before half the city shows up.”
Shark gritted his teeth, flames still dancing around his fingers.
“Tsk… I wasn’t finished.”
But he let himself be dragged away.
The two disappeared into the alleys, swift as shadows.
When the next patrols arrived, they found only wreckage, wounded soldiers, and the entire commercial district paralyzed with fear.
Smoke still rose among the broken signs of the market.
One soldier picked up one of the eolite cuffs lying on the ground.
It was still warm.
“What the hell happened here…?” he muttered.
No one answered.
In the distance, the sirens continued to echo.
And somewhere in the city, someone was already reporting what had happened.
Sky and Shark had vanished once again.
But this time, Hellington had seen them.
Next Episode — Inside or Out?