Neo-Tokyo's elite glittered like stars beneath chandeliers that hung from the arched ceilings of the Shizuma estate. In a grand ballroom shaped like a crescent moon, music swirled through the air like perfume, and every laugh and toast sounded rehearsed. Glasses clinked. Secrets festered.
Lin stood among the serving staff, dressed in a crisp black vest and white-collared shirt. His hair was tied neatly, his steps measured. A silver tray balanced effortlessly in his left hand, and his right tucked behind his back with the grace of someone trained in patience—and killing. No one looked twice at a waiter. Especially not here.
The party was hosted by Rika Shizuma, the daughter of Late Taro Shizuma, whose body now rotted six feet beneath a synthetic marble grave. The young heiress wore a midnight blue gown that flowed like water, her back bare, diamond earrings glittering like tiny stars. She mingled effortlessly with politicians, biotech moguls, and underground dealers disguised in the robes of wealth.
At her side stood Yumi Kisaragi, whose sharp eyes took in everything behind delicate lashes. She wore a sleek, black suit that made her look more agent than guest. Because she was. A Taskforce Aegis officer on a quiet mission with loud implications.
And behind them both was Shinji, Rika's personal butler. Young. Composed. With long, tied hair that shimmered like ink under the ballroom lights. He moved like a shadow trained to smile—courteous, charming, and deadly if necessary.
Lin maneuvered through the crowd, eyes scanning the upper balcony where several high-profile members of the Upper Sector Council sipped rare spirits and ignored the lesser attendees below.
"Champagne?" Lin offered softly to a couple of corpulent officials laughing about the price of virtual real estate in Sapporo's orbital colonies.
He kept his ears open. Whispers. Deals. Names. All being traded between forks of caviar and bitter wine.
Across the ballroom, Yumi whispered something into a small communicator sewn into her collar. Her eyes swept the crowd. She was looking for signs of Contractors, and more specifically: any trail that led to Ryunnosuke Shizuma, Rika's uncle, and rumored to have vanished after attempting to perfect a synthetic drug that made average humans temporary vessels for Contract-level power—an atrocity if true.
"Still no signs of the Project Helix carriers," she whispered.
Then—the fire alarm screamed.
The chandeliers flickered once, then all the lights died.
Panic spread like fire. Screams rang out. A crash of glass. Some ran. Others froze. In the dark, only red emergency strobes lit the room like a crime scene.
Then—a new sound.
Gunfire. Suppressed. Quick. Controlled.
From the balcony above, bodies dropped like fruit rotting from a branch. Half a dozen high-profile Council members slumped forward, holes through their skulls. Their drinks spilled over marble and velvet.
Someone was executing the elite. One by one.
Security quickly stormed the scene, ushering the panicked masses toward the stairwell that led beneath the estate into the reinforced shelter level.
Lin didn't panic. He vanished.
Yumi followed the current like a shark in a school of fish. She kept close to Rika, who was trembling but holding together. Shinji moved with them, shielding her with his tall frame. But his eyes—they weren't frightened. They were calculating.
The crowd was corralled through narrow staircases, descending like rats fleeing a sinking ship. Lin peeled off quietly and entered a side corridor, slipping into the restroom—a calm haven amid chaos.
He exhaled, checking his watch. The hit was too clean. Not a terrorist act. Not rebellion. It was a cleansing.
Then—the door creaked open.
Lin turned sharply.
Yumi stepped in, locking the door behind her. Her gun was already half-drawn beneath her jacket.
"You're the waiter ," she said coolly. "Café Amoura ."
Lin's expression didn't shift. "You're a guest at the party."
She stepped forward. "I'm also an officer of Taskforce Aegis."
That caught him.
"I don't want to hurt you," she added. "But I need to know something. Right now. Who are you working for?"
Lin's body tensed. He didn't answer. But he didn't attack either.
Yumi took a chance. "This wasn't just a fire alarm. It was a purge. Someone wanted the Upper Council silenced. Quietly. No spectacle. That's not how rebellion works. That's how conspiracies work."
He stared at her, studying the details—calm under pressure, control in her tone. She wasn't bluffing.
"I'm not your enemy," she said. "But you might be mine."
He finally spoke. "You should call your team."
"I already did."
From outside, the muffled sound of a heavy metallic door echoed.
"Code 06 breach confirmed," a filtered voice crackled through Yumi's earpiece. "All surviving personnel are being scanned. We found something in the ballroom. You'll want to see this."
---
Shelter Level – Emergency Operations Room
The guests were separated, scanned, questioned.
Lin moved like mist, avoiding facial recognition checkpoints by slipping into air ducts and back routes. Yumi walked ahead, guided by the earpiece.
She entered a sealed room where three corpses were laid out on surgical steel tables. Each belonged to a Council member. Each had a small, black crystalline implant behind their right ear—buried beneath skin, too perfect to detect without autopsy.
The forensics lead spoke softly. "These aren't just biochips. They're modified Contract Nodes. Someone had these men seeded."
"Which means...?" Yumi asked.
"Which means," the forensic lead said grimly, "they were being turned into long-term synthetic Contractors. Modified. Controlled. And if the tech came from Shizuma Medical..."
She didn't finish the sentence.
Yumi clenched her fists. The implications were staggering.
Suddenly—her comm sparked again. "We've lost signal from the upper level. Security feeds just went dark. Movement in the greenhouse. Unknown heat signatures."
Yumi turned. "Where's Rika?"
---
Greenhouse Terrace – Shizuma Estate Upper Level
Rika stood trembling in the moonlight, surrounded by shattered glass and broken flower pots. Her dress was torn. Her heel snapped. Her eyes locked with someone behind her.
Shinji.
He stepped forward, removing his gloves.
"I'm sorry," he said. "But Ryunnosuke's plans must proceed. The synthetic gate is opening, Rika. Your father died in vain trying to stop it. But I will finish what he couldn't."
She backed away. "Shinji... you were always loyal—"
"To the family, yes. Not to the corrupt hierarchy your father became a part of. The drug... Project Helix... will give us a new dawn."
He lifted his palm.
There was a faint glow beneath the skin. A vein pulsing red. A sign of early Spiriter fusion.
He was a prototype.
Rika screamed—
—but a shot echoed, and Shinji's shoulder burst in a spray of red.
Lin emerged from the shadows, gun in hand.
"No," he said calmly. "You're not the dawn. You're a mistake."
Shinji laughed through the pain. "Then you're just a ghost, barista. Do you even know who you are?"
Another shot. This one to the leg.
Shinji dropped. Lin advanced—but Shinji bit down on something metal in his mouth. A detonator?
Too late.
---
A controlled explosion shook the estate.
But not enough to kill.
Enough to cover a disappearance.
Smoke bled from the greenhouse walls as Lin pulled Rika to safety.
Yumi met them at the foot of the stairs, gun drawn, flanked by Aegis agents.
"What the hell happened?" she barked.
Lin set Rika down gently. "Your butler isn't who he says he is."
Yumi looked at Lin, realization dawning. "Neither are you."
He didn't argue. He looked toward the burning greenhouse, expression flat.
"Project Helix isn't just real," Lin said. "It's already begun."
---
To be continued