A cold wind howled over the empty square.
A hissing sound came from under the elegant podium, sharp like the grinding of teeth.
The voice was not human.
And a human would hardly talk to themselves in such a manner.
“I’ll keep trying; you stay out of the way,” said the creature hiding under the podium.
“This is my task.” And fell silent.
A few seconds later, a figure in black skin crawled out from under the podium — the Shadow.
It was impossible to tell from the build whether it was a man or a woman.
Its movements betrayed an unnatural, mechanical stiffness.
The Shadow bent down and pulled out from under the podium a huge, coal-black, and menacing weapon.
It didn’t resemble either the cheap junk of the gangs or expensive automatic rifles — its very look screamed lethality.
Just like its owner.
The Shadow swung the weapon onto its back.
A quiet click sounded, and it locked onto the perfectly smooth surface.
It looked eerie and yet natural, as if the Shadow had done this thousands of times.
And then it ran.
Incredibly fast.
Cutting through the air, the next moment it was already on the opposite side of the square.
Its figure didn’t look athletic; the tight skin revealed every curve of the body.
From a biological standpoint, such a build couldn’t provide that kind of speed.
But this was Nostramo.
“Looks like augmetics,” a voice came from one of the spires surrounding the square.
Kariel, who had returned who knows when, shook his head with a smile, watching the proceedings.
“Still the same old tricks.
So many years have passed, and they’re still in fashion?” “Kariel, he seems to be moving in our direction,” Ghost said quietly.
“I know.” “I can kill him.” “Yes, you can.” “Let me?” There was a plea in Ghost’s voice, obvious to Kariel.
“No, Ghost.
This is my job.
Division of labor is the best approach, isn’t it?
You’d better take care of the lookouts in the houses.
It seems they’ve decided to lie low and wait for us to show ourselves again.” Kariel turned and winked at Ghost with a smile.
“Let’s give them a surprise?” “But you…” “I’ll be fine,” Kariel narrowed his eyes.
“Go.” Ghost was silent for a few seconds, then finally left.
He was only eighteen months old, but he already vaguely understood what today’s ambush meant.
So he wouldn’t refuse the cleanup.
And Kariel knew that perfectly well.
“The time has come, the time has come…” He exhaled quietly.
“I wanted to burn this world to the ground when the day came, Ghost.
But your appearance showed me another hope.
A way to incinerate the darkness without burning the whole world.
And I will personally ignite that precious flame.” Kariel’s eyes flared with blue fire.
For the first time, he accepted this power completely.
It flowed through his veins, and from beyond the Veil, that same voice came again — as always, paternal and gentle.
Kariel paid it no attention.
He only smiled coldly, allowing Him to knock on the doors of his mind, allowing Him to whisper in his ear.
Nothing could influence him anymore.
Kariel spread his arms and stepped down.
The headwind beat against his face, the free fall threatened to tear his body apart, but with unprecedented resolve, he threw aside all the rules he had once set for himself and broke all bonds of caution.
The time had come.
He no longer needed to endure the pain.
…
The Shadow silently climbed the wall of a building.
Its hands moved with unwavering confidence, its fingers digging into the gaps between stones with terrifying precision, eliminating any chance of error during the ascent.
Soon it reached the spot where the stone gargoyle had been, now shattered to pieces.
The Shadow paused, examining the debris.
Its face was completely hidden by black skin, with no eye slits, but it was definitely watching.
And that was, without a doubt, strange.
But then again, this was Nostramo.
Anything could happen here, and nothing seemed strange.
Including a spirit falling from the sky.
“Crash!” A devastating blow, splinters of stone.
The Shadow was forcefully slammed inside the building.
The pre-emptied corridor was empty, making the sound of the impact against the wall particularly hollow.
“What’s happening?” The sudden attack caught the Shadow off guard.
It couldn’t have imagined that anyone could attack from such a height and with such speed.
The blow was terrible — it was sent flying from the very first strike.
And the attacker was already there.
He clearly wasn’t going to give it a chance to fight back.
The moment it got to its feet, a new attack followed.
Two blue points flared and faded in the darkness, and behind them — a furious gleam of silver.
The blades pierced the skin and scraped against flesh, making a sound like metal grinding against metal.
The Shadow growled dully.
Gears inside its arms screeched as they turned.
It sharply thrust its hands forward and managed to stop both blades.
“Ha,” the attacker sneered from the darkness.
“Whoever modified you certainly didn’t skimp.
Replacing the skin with adamantium…
But doesn’t it hurt?
Your body is trying to heal, isn’t it?
The metal fused into the flesh must cause pain with every movement, right?” “You know a lot,” the Shadow replied impassively.
“But it’s useless.
You have disgraced House Skraivok.
I will take you, and you will face Justice.” “Justice…” the attacker sighed.
“Justice,” he laughed, and his laughter, growing louder, echoed through the corridor.
“House Skraivok wants to judge me?” The Shadow took a sharp step forward.
The screech of gears from the rapid movement became even louder.
It swung for a strike, intending to push the opponent back in close combat.
And then…
“Bam!” A powerful kick — and the Shadow flew backward again.
Breaking through three walls, it froze in astonishment, unable to understand what had happened.
It didn’t need to understand.
The attacker approached slowly.
His footsteps echoed dully in the silence and darkness, accompanied by a mocking question: “Don’t you think this is simply ridiculous?” The Shadow rose again.
It pulled the hood from its face, revealing a metal mask.
The rough outlines of facial features coexisted with an elegant engraving along the edges of the metal, creating an absurd contrast.
In the center of its forehead, the coat of arms of House Skraivok glinted dully.
Where its eyes should have been, two black holes gaped, in the depths of which rage now churned.
“Wretched mortal,” it said coldly.
“No matter who stands behind you, you are dead, and your house is doomed.
House Skraivok has completely subjugated Quintus, and from here we will rule all of Nostramo!” “Interesting,” the attacker nodded thoughtfully.
“For a hired killer of aristocrats, you seem to know too much.” “I am the Shadow of House Skraivok, you ignorant bastard!” With a furious roar, it charged at him.
The roar and screech of gears in its body were so loud they drowned out even the sound of its footsteps.
“On your knees!
That way you’ll avoid unnecessary pain!
I know your body is modified, but flesh cannot withstand steel!” “Kneel before a puppet?
No, I think I’ll pass.” The attacker smirked and suddenly vanished.
He moved so fast that the Shadow couldn’t even catch a trace of his movement.
It warily raised its hands, ready for the blade attack that could come at any second.
If it gave him a chance, this bastard would regret going against House Skraivok!
How dare some augmetic even try to damage the skin that had sworn to protect House Skraivok?
How dare the attacker, who didn’t even know the name of the Shadow of House Skraivok, be so arrogant?
Didn’t his family understand what it meant to feud with the Skraivoks at such a moment?!
But…
Nothing.
No attack, no blades cutting through the air, no crushing blows.
The Shadow slowly moved forward, unwilling to wait for something that might never come.
It would find him itself.
The weapon on its back swayed in time with its steps, the gears in its body screeched deafeningly.
It strained all its attention, searching, waiting, craving…
and lost sight of one thing.
Something it should have noticed long ago, but which was now drowned out by the roar of its gears, fueled by its rage.
The temperature.
It was getting colder.
The damp air began to crystallize, turning to frost.
The floor was covered with an icy crust.
The Shadow walked on it, a quiet crunch audible, but it noticed nothing.
And then a voice rang out and echoed in the room: “Nostramo has no clear change of seasons, but I’m used to dividing the year into four.
It’s winter now, Shadow of House Skraivok.
And winter…
is very cold, Shadow.” “Where is he?!” The Shadow paid no attention to the words, only scanning the dark corners with its gaze, trying to find the enemy in the empty building.
The temperature continued to drop.
Finally, reaching a critical point, the Shadow froze abruptly.
The clang of gears fell silent for a moment, and a strange clicking sound came from inside its body.
At that very moment, the attacker emerged from the darkness.
His eyes burned with a furious blue flame that radiated an icy cold.
“You!” the Shadow spat with hatred, its right hand twitching in an attempt to grab him.
“Yes, me,” Kariel looked at it calmly.
“Save your strength.
It’ll be better for both of us.” “Don’t count on it!
Even if I can’t deliver you to the trial, I will kill you in the name of the House!” “Calm down, alright?
I’ll visit your family myself,” Kariel said softly.
“Tonight.
So you’d better be quiet.
Metal at low temperatures enters into a curious reaction with your tormented flesh, Shadow.
In other words, even if I do nothing, you’ll die soon.” “I will kill you!” “Uh-huh,” Kariel shook his head with a smile.
He walked up to the Shadow and placed his hand on its forehead.
The next second, a strange sound was heard.
The Shadow’s body jerked sharply, and it screamed.
After ten seconds, the scream stopped.
With a dull thud, the metal-clad body collapsed to the floor and lay still.
Kariel stood motionless, swallowing.
After a moment, he exhaled slowly.
“So that’s another way to use you,” he muttered under his breath.
“Extracting memories…
how creepy.” “And how disgusting.” “What have I done?” The Vengeful Spirit lowered his head, closed his eyes, and delved into the Shadow’s memory.
As he had told it — the night was still long, and he was going to pay a visit to House Skraivok.