Alfred moved with a quiet determination through the night, his footsteps muffled by the dense underbrush. He had been walking for what felt like hours, navigating through the thick foliage. Trees creaked and groaned with the wind. Occasionally, the distant howl of a monster punctuated the eerie silence, serving as a reminder of the world's dangers beyond the well-lit streets and protection of human cities.
Despite this, Alfred's high attributes allowed him to see clearly in the darkness; his senses heightened to detect potential threats lurking in the shadows.
His loss of political power didn't mean anything for his personal might. While he might not have been strong enough to face Madam Helper and win, he was still an A-rank powerhouse. One of humanity's best and brightest.
His time had not come yet.
Finally, he reached a clearing. The moonlight filtered through the canopy above, casting a soft glow over the open space. He stood in the center, waiting patiently for his contacts to arrive.
He didn't have to wait long. Within minutes, two figures materialized from the darkness, confidently stepping into the clearing.
Alfred took his time to study them. The first was unmistakably Poison Snake, a name that had once sent shivers down the spines of many in the Awakener community. She had served as an officer for the Golden Sun Guild before its dissolution, a position that had afforded her connections that spanned the entirety of the United States.
Now, she was technically a fugitive, her former allies either arrested, dead, or scattered to the winds. Yet, here she stood, dressed boldly in yellow and purple, making no effort to conceal her identity. Her appearance was a challenge, a declaration that she was unafraid of whatever fate might befall her.
She's always been the most dangerous of that group. Not really because of personal might but because she was the most well-connected. The others might have enjoyed vast wealth and political power at their height, but she was the only one who cultivated friends with it. That she kept training helped, too.
The other man was the opposite of Poison Snake. Dressed in a nondescript suit, he looked like any other businessman on the streets of New York. However, Alfred's instincts screamed a warning the moment his gaze fell upon the man. There was nothing overtly off about him, yet something in the way he carried himself, the too-calm demeanor and the barely perceptible shift in the air around him hinted at a dangerousness that far exceeded his unassuming appearance.
Alfred's hackles rose, a primal reaction to a threat that his years of experience on the battlefields had honed. He knew better than to judge an opponent by their appearance alone. The man's presence set off alarm bells in Alfred's mind, telling him that this meeting, arranged through Poison Snake's vast network of contacts, would be anything but straightforward.
As the silence stretched between them, Alfred steeled himself for the conversation to come. He had been ousted from his position as the Regional Director of the New York AA branch, a role he had held with a firm hand and a clear vision for the future. His removal had been a blow, not just to his pride, but to his plans for the organization he had dedicated his life to. Yet, he was not a man to be easily deterred. His current allies, though unlikely, represented a new path forward, one that could potentially lead to his reinstatement or, failing that, revenge against those who had orchestrated his downfall.
"Poison Snake," Alfred began, his voice steady despite the undercurrent of tension. "And you, sir," he nodded towards the suited man, "I assume you're the one she mentioned could help me regain what was taken."
The woman greeted him with a sultry smile, "Alfred, it's been a while. And look at you, wandering in the forest like a lost pup. How the mighty have fallen," she chuckled, her tone light but laced with a hint of mockery.
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Alfred bristled at the jibe but maintained his composure. He knew Poison Snake well enough to understand that her barbs were often a tactic to unsettle those she spoke with, a way to gauge their reactions and measure their resolve.
Meanwhile, the man in the suit watched the exchange with an amused expression, his eyes flickering with interest. He extended a hand towards Alfred, not in greeting but in a gesture that invited patience. "Alfred Meyer, it's a pleasure to finally meet you. My name is Hephaestus. A grandiose name, I admit, but it suits my purposes," he said, his voice smooth and confident.
Alfred eyed him warily, sensing that there was far more to the man than his unassuming appearance suggested. "Hephaestus, then. Poison Snake tells me you're interested in my situation."
Hephaestus nodded, a small smile playing on his lips. "Indeed. I heard about your unfortunate ousting from the Association. A terrible pity, really. A man of your expertise and knowledge, sidelined in such a crude manner. Many would pay a lot to have you on board."
As the conversation unfolded, Alfred's suspicions grew. Hephaestus's words indicated that he had come to recruit Alfred rather than aid in his reinstatement. Alfred's instinct screamed caution, his years of navigating the treacherous waters of AA politics and the underworld making him all too aware of the subtleties in Hephaestus's approach.
"I'm not particularly interested in aligning myself with shadowy organizations," Alfred stated firmly, cutting through the niceties. "If you want me to join your cause, you'll have to be more explicit about what you're offering and what you expect in return."
Hephaestus chuckled, "Straight to the point. Poison Snake was right; you are as prickly as they come. Very well, let me be clear. My organization is dedicated to exploring the System's limits and what humanity can do with it. We believe the current institutions, the Awakener Association included, are too restrictive and afraid to push the boundaries of what's possible. We are the only ones who can save humanity from stagnation and, ultimately, extinction. I want you, Alfred Meyer, to join us. To use your knowledge and experience to help us reach places we couldn't before."
Alfred listened silently, a pit growing in his stomach. He had, of course, encountered several organizations such as this during his career. Made of people who believed they had an absolute mandate that absolved them from any fault, no matter their crime. They generally ended up doing terrible experiments on innocents and kept spiraling downward until someone discovered them and purged the whole thing with fire.
The latest was the one discovered by Team 0 during a seemingly routine mission months ago. The AA was still in the middle of pulling out of the operations abroad, so he decided not to dedicate many resources to the search. Now, however, he was wondering if he had made a fatal mistake.
"The world didn't end with the Apocalypse, but it might end soon," Hephaestus continued, his eyes glinting in the moonlight, "The people might content themselves with the projections that mana levels will level out in the near future. But we know the truth. We know that Shards of the Abyss appear more frequently as time passes and that it's only a matter of time before some creature we cannot contain is spawned from them. We must seize their power and use it for the benefit of all!"
Alfred's blood ran cold. Information about the Shards was closely guarded, known only to a select few within the AA's upper echelons. The fact that Hephaestus was aware of them and spoke of exploiting them set off alarm bells in his head.
His mind was made up in that instant. While he might have lost his official title and the authority that came with it, he was still an AA agent at heart, sworn to protect humanity from threats both within and without. The man before him represented a clear and present danger to that mission.
People might have believed him to be corrupt and power-hungry, but Alfred Meyer always put the benefit of all before himself.
Poison Snake seemed to sense the shift in his demeanor, her playful attitude giving way to caution. She subtly gestured to Hephaestus, a silent warning that the conversation had taken a dangerous turn.
Without another word, Alfred acted. He lunged at Hephaestus, intending to subdue and take him back for questioning. The man might hold the key to understanding a new threat that could potentially overshadow anything the AA had faced before. If he could make him talk, he might even earn some clout back.
But before Alfred could lay a hand on him, the world shifted.
One moment, he was in motion; the next, he was staring up at the sky, his back against the cold ground, his body paralyzed. His mana was unresponsive. No matter what he tried, the grip that kept him there didn't budge. Confusion and disbelief flooded his mind, trying to piece together what had happened. How had he been so easily countered? What sort of power did Hephaestus possess that could fell an A-rank Awakener in a single blow?
Hephaestus smiled, unfazed by Alfred's attack. "I thought you might reject me. It's a pity, really. I had hoped you, of all people, would see the potential for what it is. But if you're unwilling to join us, I suppose we have nothing further to discuss. It’s not all a loss, however. Your body will help us whether you want to or not.”
Alfred's last thoughts were of confusion and regret, the realization that he had underestimated his opponent settling in as darkness encroached on the edges of his vision. Hephaestus and the organization he represented were far more dangerous than Alfred had anticipated. And now, it was too late for him to do anything about it.