The steam car pulled up to a rather impressive monolithic structure. It was a stone pillar that stood 30 meters tall, glazed black as if made of polished obsidian.

Markings etched into the material of the monolith, though incomplete in many places, indicated that it may have been part of something much larger in the past, perhaps a key node in some massive enchantment surrounding the area.

Considering the clear records of ruins in the area, this idea took on much more force. Though the meaning of each energy line carved into the monolith was unclear, it was certainly an example of the majesty and skill of the civilization that created it.

"The Black Monolith of Tuskville is truly impressive," Jack said in awe as he gazed at such a work of architecture.

"When the Federation explorers came here, they encountered a tribe of Reptilians who worshipped the monolith as some sort of protector, which could mean it was perhaps part of a formation," Lisa replied, her purple eyes already able to see the people in the city beginning to go about their business.

"It was the ruins here that brought us the concept of a formation, an enchantment that could cover large areas," Jack, the local enchanter, quickly replied to Lisa.

"Whatever it means, whatever drew the Cyber Phantom here, it's not as simple as the normal remains of an already explored ruin," Alexis pointed out, causing silence in the carriage.

"Ruins are dangerous," Irina said with narrowed eyes, she didn't like the direction things could take if they got careless.

"We will not explore ruins, at least not without orders," Laria spoke suddenly, causing her companions to calm down.

No one liked the idea of a simple extermination mission turning into an exploration, not only were the risks beyond what they could take as a team, but it would make their main mission much more complicated.

But if the barracks asked them to explore, it was obvious that they would not be allowed to do it alone, they would probably have to wait until at least two other teams of operators joined them in the task.

"Never mind, let's go to the hotel, the barracks have reserved a couple of rooms for us," Lisa decided to quickly cut off the thoughts of her companions, what they had to do now was to focus 100% on the mission ahead of them, nothing else mattered.

Soon the group entered Tuskville, which looked like a small town at first glance, but the modernity present and even some construction in progress indicated the prominent expansion to a city.

How could they not? Even if you didn't count the ruins that served as a tourist attraction, the simple fact of being in a place with good resources and being part of the Federation's interior guaranteed its gradual population growth.

Seeing the chimneys spewing white steam and black smoke made them feel at home, the distant sound of some large steam engines was like background music in this picturesque city.

During their journey, they passed by the square, it was huge, wide enough to accommodate the city's administrative buildings, they could even see a water fountain where some people seemed to be throwing coins.

"Do you think their wishes will come true?" asked Alexis suddenly, looking at the mentioned fountain with some nostalgia in his eyes.

"I don't know, buddy, but I hope so," knowing the story behind Alexis' question, Jack patted his friend's shoulder to comfort him.

"Remember, this is the town hall, we have to come back here when we have to do our mission," said Irina, who was drawing some lines in her notebook, if you looked closely, they were a rudimentary map of the places they had passed through.

"Got it," said Laria, who was the one driving this time, even though it was her second time.

The cart passed a busy market where there were several stalls selling interesting things as well as food. Jack was particularly interested in the stall of an old man who was selling some objects covered in earth, possibly freshly dug.

He made a note of it and decided to return when the whole group was settled into the town. Soon they arrived at a large building with glass doors revealing a huge, luxurious lobby.

"I never expected the barracks to let us stay here, it looks expensive," Irina rightly mentioned, even a young man approached them intending to keep their vehicle, something that had been seen in the big cities lately.

"They say a rich man from the capital is investing in Tuskville, he has a chain of luxury hotels like this one," Alexis replied after refusing the valet service, there were too many important things in the car to leave it in such an unsafe place like a hotel parking lot.

"Sorry I'm late, I didn't think you'd be here so soon," said a middle-aged man who approached the group that had stopped near the hotel and was waiting.

"You're the operators sent from headquarters?" the man asked after pushing aside his trench coat to reveal the badge hanging from his collar.

The badge was silver, carved with the country's emblem on the left and the symbol of the Libra on the right, the symbol of the right given to those in the organization to carry out their missions.

It showed his name, Tim Newman, and his number, indicating his membership in the organization, although we didn't mention his name, did we? It called itself U.N.M.S.O., which was the same as Un-Nature Management and Stabilization Operations, hence the lion symbol on the badge.

"We are," Alexis said, and as he spoke, they each flashed their respective badges.

They wore them as they saw fit, but the badge never left their bodies for any reason, not only was it part of their identity, but without it, they could not perform their duties or even enforce their privileges as part of the organization.

"Uh, well, I thought they were having a hard time getting here, you know? There have been reports of that damn ghost wreaking havoc on the roads outside of town, though no injuries have been reported," Tim's words caused Irina to quickly approach him.

Though shorter than the man, the woman had a strange urge that made Tim swallow audibly, afraid of what might happen. He didn't know what he had done wrong, even though he was just an ordinary logistics agent, he thought it would be good to show a little concern for his fellow members of the same organization.

"Why didn't you bring the corresponding case report?" asked Irina hesitantly, she even had her hand ready, as if she wanted to hold something.

"Sorry, sorry, the rush made my head spin," Tim quickly handed over the folder in his hand.

The team had noticed him earlier, but they kept their guard up and didn't mind that it was Irina who was leading the interrogation. Yes, interrogation, there was something wrong with Tim, something that didn't quite add up.

Especially Jack felt that something was on him, figuratively speaking of course, like a light veil over his eyes. He didn't know why, but without hesitation, he brought his hand to the revolver on his body and pointed it at Tim.

"Wait! Why are you pointing it at me?" the worried man asked, holding his hands up, and although he showed obvious submission, the team tensed all over.

"Reports do not come in binders, much less on blank sheets of paper, Tim," Irina said in a sweet voice, but her black eyes stared at the worried Tim, who did not seem to understand the meaning of the woman's words.

"How did you get that badge, Tim?" asked Lisa, pointing a rather delicate black one-handed gun at Tim.

"I don't understand what you're trying to accomplish. I am a U.N.M.S.O.. logistician and I have come to pick you up to take care of your vehicle and provide you with the necessary amenities in the city," Tim's words sounded as if he was actually uncomfortable with the situation, also explaining his own purpose in approaching them, something standard in this type of task.

"Do you remember our motto?" asked Laria, who held a scalpel in her hand, if you looked closely you could see the slight distortion in the air caused by the supply of pneuma to the object.

"We face the hidden, we defend the known," as if in response to Tim's motto, the plate on his body began to glow with a strong golden light, causing the man to scream in pain.

"Damn it!" black smoke poured out of his body, well, if it was a body.

His skin turned abnormally white, balls appeared at his joints, his eyes turned red and lifeless, his movement stiffened and sparks jumped from his body. His voice became an unpleasant sound to hear, a screech that shattered glass 50 meters around.

If you spot this narrative on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

His flesh was pierced by pieces of metal jumping from his body, black blood gushing from the gaping holes. A bunch of copper wires, gray muscles, and steel bones visible through his wounds further showed his inhuman, mechanical nature.

But Jack swears he could feel all the signs of a living being in that thing's body, indicating something very dangerous. The Cyber Phantom had taken over a colleague's body and somehow transformed it.

As if given an order, Tim stopped screaming and began to contort himself in strange ways to the sound of clearly mechanical noises, his head turning several times in ways impossible for a human to do, before focusing directly on Jack.

"I can see you," a mechanical voice came from the mouth of what was Tim, now a cyborg controlled by what seemed to be a slightly different Cyber Ghost than usual.

"I can see you too, you damn ghost," Jack showed his anger, tightening his grip on the axe in his right hand and his revolver in his left, threatening to charge straight at the damn thing in front of him.

"Have I offended you in any way, UNMSO Operator?" the voice asked with a strange sense of pride in its mechanical voice, as if it enjoyed Jack's emotional reaction.

"You killed a colleague," Jack said, his eyes red with anger.

"No, no, what do you take me for, UNMSO Operator? I'm a technology researcher, and making toys like this is my passion. You see, I didn't take his life, on the contrary, I gave him a new one.

He no longer has to eat, he no longer has to sleep, he no longer suffers emotionally because his wife is secretly unfaithful, none of that, my angry Operator. I gave him peace, I gave him a connection to who I am," the voice narrated its atrocities with a mechanical aria that gave its words an eerie tinge.

"Why didn't you make those little toys the bastards of your kind love to make?" instead of further discussing the unfortunate Tim, the angry Jack asked what was more important.

"I don't need to turn valuable technology into my servants, you humans, you're interesting and much easier to get, even if difficult to transform, but..."

Bang! A shot rang out into the street, where a few people had already gathered to watch the spectacle. A bullet struck directly into the head of the semi-mechanical, semi-biological monster, shooting sparks from the new hole in its forehead.

"Thank you for being so cooperative," the anger on Jack's face disappeared just like that, it had all been a very simple trick to induce arrogance in this Cyber Ghost.

"And thank you for staying close to me, dummy," Irina's hand waved quickly horizontally, holding something invisible.

Her pneuma was of the projection type, referred to as an oriental sword or saber, where her ancestors came from. The invisible weapon made a hissing sound as it waved, its flawless edge decapitating Tim and spraying more black blood like a fountain.

There were many things that were not shown in the books and had to be experienced in the field. Although Cyber Phantoms were generally cunning, they were very proud and haughty, with a strange sense of mission or devotion, although you could tell it was an obsession.

The conversation against what Tim was Tim proved two things, this Cyber Ghost was just taking a detour to its ultimate goal of creating minions out of technology. Only now its threat was much more direct. Second, it was obsessed with "changing" humans to what it considered optimal, or so it implied with its words.

"Clear the area, UNMSO will take care of everything!" shouted Alexis, flashing his badge with a raised hand so that the curious and frightened onlookers could see what had happened.

Though reluctantly, many understood that there was nothing good about being in a place where government officials were fighting dangerous things, though there were always a few hardheads who wanted to take a look, there weren't that many due to the constant teachings and warnings given to the populace.

"There are more transformed people," said Laria, curiously examining the fallen body of the murdered madman, using her scalpel to cut open his skin, which looked more like a piece of silicone than anything real.

"But not that many," Lisa said as she walked over to the steam wagon and pulled out her sniper rifle, luckily it was already armed and she only had to load the appropriate ammunition.

"But I'll probably start making regular henchmen," Jack said, looking at Tim's head, or what the man used to be. A mechanical skull with fake skin, pieces of metal mixed with blood and flesh, a gruesome sight, but a reminder to Jack.

Jack bent down to take a closer look at the head, putting his axe aside and carefully picking up the severed limb, noting the mechanical eyes. Maybe he could do something interesting with those eyes, but first, he had to get permission from the barracks.

He didn't know if they would grant it, but he knew how the organization would react when they found out what had happened here. Although the headquarters and most of the members were in the capital, there were many smaller headquarters full of people who belonged to the logistics.

They not only obtain resources for the organization, but also manage businesses, gather news and information, and even serve as recruiters. They are a vital part of UNMSO scattered across the country, and one of them had died at the hands of a madman.

"I don't know why, but I feel like I'd be better off making normal henchmen," Alexis said, before using the radio on the steam wagon to notify headquarters of what had happened, and the UNMSO members in the city to come over.

"Guys, the policemen are here," Irina pointed to the distance where a horse-drawn carriage was approaching.

Steam carriages were especially expensive, and they were lucky to be able to use one because they had gotten it from the front, so it was normal to see carriages in many places, especially those used by the police.

Three people in black uniforms stepped out of the carriage, wearing their police badges, one of which was similar to UNMSO's, only instead of a lira, it had a closed fist with an open eye on the back.

One of them, a blonde woman, looked at the remains of Tim and the group, her hard expression changing a bit as she paused for a moment at Alexis before moving directly to Laria, who had sliced the weirdo open without caring that she was in the middle of the street.

"You UNMSO guys are perverts," the woman said with a grimace of discomfort on her face.

One of the policemen following her looked particularly young, with red hair, though not as deep as Alexis', and he was already vomiting from the horrible image it was to see a foreign body treated like that, especially because of the unnatural parts of it.

"Sorry, but we need answers, a colleague was affected by this particular oddity," Lisa apologized instead of Laria, who had completely ignored the policewoman while doing her duty.

"We understand," the other man said in front of the woman, with a conciliatory smile on his face, as if to avoid possible rudeness from his colleague.

"We're detectives with the Tuskville Police, I'm Sophia Tanner and the puking boy is Ronald Sanders," the woman pointed out to her colleague, but the boy's situation caught Irina's attention.

"Why is he puking if he's a detective?" the woman asked, causing Sophia to show a hint of annoyance in her eyes.

"The boy is a pneuma user and that's why the sheriff decided, he hasn't even served his rookie period, but due to a certain situation in the past where an operator was needed, he earned the position," Sophia replied bluntly, showing her discomfort with the situation.

"I'm doing my best!" the boy shouted before throwing up again, apparently he really was a rookie.

"Well, let me introduce myself, I'm Joseph Sanchez, Forensics. Though I see you don't need me much," the last man said, pointing at Laria, who was pulling a shrunken heart out of Tim's body and looking at it with fascination.

"Is it too much to ask that you keep the place locked down while we wait for the UNMSO agents in town?" asked Jack, who had stood up with his axe resting on his shoulder.

"No problem, we were nearby when we heard the shots and signaled our partners, they'll be here soon," said Sophia, who quickly got to work alongside Joseph.

Ronald, who had finally stopped vomiting, approached Jack with a little curiosity in his eyes. He hadn't seen any operators at the police station except for a retired UNMSO member, but the old man didn't bother to answer his questions.

"Hi, excuse me, can I ask you a question?" Ronald said to Jack, who was staring at him.

"You already asked it," Lisa said with cold humor.

"No, no, another one besides the one I already asked, can I?" said Ronald again with some shyness.

"You did it again," this time it was Irina who answered with the joke, making poor Ronald's face red.

"You know, another aside, I really have a good doubt," Ronald said tiredly, this time he organized his language correctly before he spoke.

"Speak," Jack said with a smile on his face, he had also been amused by the previous jokes.

"I'm a beginner, I know, but I'm doing my best to learn and improve, even if it's hard in this city. But there's something I don't quite understand, what exactly do the terms oddities, anomaly, and contamination zone mean?" the question made the group stop and look at him, even Laria stopped checking a piece of necrotic kidney to cast a quick glance at him.

"If you're going to answer me, why didn't anyone decide to tell you something so basic," Jack finally said.

He wanted to know why the hell no one informed this rookie of something so simple that is taught in law enforcement and the military, although it could be the young man's problem, Jack didn't care any more than he had to.

"It's okay, no problem," Ronald nodded quickly, like a small child, which made Jack want to ask more, but he held back his curiosity and spoke.

"Weirdness is a term for unnatural creatures, such as the unfortunate lying on the ground, mutants, viruses, and any entity that appears to be alive, mobile, sentient, or intelligent," Jack explained, and Ronald quickly pulled a notepad out of his pocket, apparently to write down his words.

"An anomaly is a special event or situation, such as meme propagation, Cognito hazards, curses, and any occurrence that is not something natural, with emphasis on natural.

A comet is rare but still natural, a city sky painted in fuchsia and everyone who sees it starts dancing is not. A pollution zone is a space in the world that defies all normality, and if you notice, each term is associated, as if they were connected.

But a contamination zone is very different, there are flaws in the fabric of the world, distortions of space-time, and every physical law. It can be as small as a well or as large as a city.

Anything and everything can come out of a contamination zone, including pieces of the past, present, or future. What's more, some folk tales are said to be things seen by someone in an anomaly and then told.

So there might be an anomaly out there where rats talk and are heroes against the evil tyranny of an apple pie. There's no logic to it, it doesn't make sense, and as the name implies, they pollute.

You don't want to be polluted by those things, your existence will be unbearable for the world and you will become a 100% rarity, but you can get some special resources from those places, that's why there are always scouts going to those areas" Jack's explanation made Ronald feel like asking more questions, but he stopped when a couple of cars arrived, but with different logos.

One with the police logo and one with the UNMSO logo.

The situation seemed to have especially alarmed the local UNMSO, because Jack saw a dark-skinned man walking quickly toward him, looking at Tim's severed head on the ground.

"What an unfortunate guy..." the man said before shaking Jack's hand.

"Chris Harrison, UNMSO's supervisor in Tuskville," the man introduced himself as Jack held up his hand.

"Jack Araziel," the mention of his name made Chris stare at him for a moment before asking.

"Araziel as..." without finishing, Jack nodded and then shook his head, sending a clear message that he didn't want his background discussed.

Just as they let go of each other's hands, an older man with white hair dressed as a police officer approached them, shaking hands with Chris and then Jack before introducing himself.

"Leonidas Castillo, Sheriff of Tuskville," the older man said as Jack shook his hand, then introduced himself again.

Chris recognized his last name as well but decided to keep quiet, he was an old man, but he wasn't blind, it was obvious that he saw Jack's gesture of denial to Chris just now.

"Well, let the mambo begin," Leonidas said as he saw the entire area finally secured.

Let the hunt begin.