THE HUNT BEGINS
It's close to midnight. Rain falls like cold needles on the dockside warehouses. The wind rips off the river — sharp enough to sting Selene's stitches as she crouches on a rooftop ledge, black cloak pressed tight to her armor.
Below, Micah's drone whirs in lazy circles, feeding her grainy thermal scans.
Micah (comms, half-muffled by snack crunches):
"Okay, big scary cousin Surgeon is inside. We got three bodies, maybe alive, maybe not. Big surprise: the Butcher picked an old tenement as his stage. Classy."
Selene's eyes narrow behind her cowl. Her breath steams through her mask.
Selene:
"Victims?"
Micah:
"One beat cop. One city building inspector — guess who flagged Crow's fake chemical shipments. And, oh — your favorite pushy reporter's assistant. Kara's gonna love this one. Looks like the freak's making a point."
Selene feels her pulse hammer, but she keeps her voice flat.
Selene:
"Any Flock muscle?"
Micah (wry):
"Negative. Crow probably hates loose cannons like this nut. The Butcher's solo tonight — trying to prove something to big brother's ghost, maybe."
Selene pulls her hood lower. The rain runs off her talon gauntlets.
Selene:
"Keep eyes up. If Moloch shows, you hit every alarm you've got."
Micah:
"You got it, boss. Oh — Ward's parked six blocks down. I guess he wants to personally slap cuffs on you after you gut the Surgeon. Good luck with that."
INSIDE THE SLAUGHTERHOUSE
Inside the tenement, the Surgeon's hum drifts through rotted walls. He's whistling an off-key lullaby, scalpel flicking light off cracked tile. Three hostages kneel on plastic sheeting. Duct tape over their mouths. Plastic zip ties cutting off their circulation.
The Butcher — Lester Kain — cousin to the original Surgeon. His grin is too wide, eyes too glassy. He runs a gloved finger along the exposed scalp of the cop, tracing an invisible cut.
The Surgeon:
"I promised him I'd finish the shape. Big brother left the job half-done, thanks to her. The Raven. The filthy bird."
He clicks a recorder. His voice drops to a soft sermon.
The Surgeon (into recorder):
"Entry log twenty-seven. The city will bleed. The Flock will open the vein. I keep the fear sharp — the plan needs fear. Billions need fear."
He stops. Hears a whisper in the broken stairwell. He smiles.
---
3 — THE GHOST IN THE WALLS
Selene moves silent as a rumor. One floor above. She drops to her belly, crawls across soggy floorboards, peering through a gaping hole to the bloodstained linoleum below.
She watches the Surgeon pace. Watches his blade drift from hostage to hostage.
Micah's voice crackles in her ear — soft now, serious.
Micah (comms):
"Boss. Crow's next cargo drop is twice the size. Fertilizer, bio-agents, old medical waste. None of it adds up to street drugs anymore. We're talking mass-scale bioweapons if you squint at the numbers."
Selene doesn't answer. Her heartbeat is a drum against her ribs.
She watches the Butcher stop pacing — head cocked.
The Surgeon (calling up to the ceiling):
"Come down, birdie. I know you're up there. The last one thought he was so clever too."
Selene's breath freezes. She shifts her weight — floorboard creaks.
---
4 — THE DROP
She drops through the hole like a blade herself — lands in a crouch. The hostages flinch. The Surgeon steps back, scalpel raised.
The Surgeon:
"You came to finish the shape? Or to ruin it again?"
Selene's voice is a hiss through the mask.
Selene:
"Let them go."
The Surgeon:
"No. They squeal too much. They talk about Crow's plan. They ruin the fear. And we need the fear, don't we?"
He flicks his wrist — a scalpel slices through the air. Selene dodges, lunges — her talons rake his coat, snag flesh.
He shrieks, stumbles back — then laughs, high and sharp.
---
5 — THE FIGHT
He lunges — blade flashing. Selene pivots. They circle the hostages. Every move a reflection of the last Surgeon — only worse, faster, angrier.
He slashes — catches her shoulder. She hisses, snaps a boot into his ribs — the crack echoes. But he's too quick — he scrambles behind a pillar, cackling.
The Surgeon:
"You can't kill me, birdie! You need me! He needs me — Crow's plan needs me! Billions, you stupid girl — you think this city is the end?"
Selene's rage flares — she charges, shoulder-first — cracks the pillar. Brick dust blinds them both.
The hostages squirm — the reporter's friend sobs through duct tape.
---
6 — RAFI MAKES A MISTAKE
Outside, on the second floor ledge, Rafi crouches with his phone out. He's streaming the shadows through broken blinds. His voice is a whisper.
Rafi:
"She's fighting him. She's gonna win. You're seeing the real Raven. This is how we do it, Nest. This is—"
A footstep behind him. Rafi flinches — spins — Ward yanks him away from the window, phone crashing to the concrete below.
Ward (low, furious):
"You stupid kid. You want to die tonight?"
Rafi squirms — Ward pins him to the damp wall.
Rafi:
"She's gonna win! She's—"
Ward:
"Go home. Next time you get close, you won't be filming the Raven. You'll be a body bag in her freezer."
---
7 — THE BUTCHER FALLS
Inside, the Surgeon lunges for the bound cop — blade aimed for the throat.
Selene launches — shoulder smashes him sideways. They roll — her talons pin his wrist to the cracked tile. He gasps — tries to twist free.
The Surgeon (spitting blood):
"The city will drown. Crow's wings — they'll cover the sun. Billions will—"
She drives the talon deeper. His words die in a wet gurgle. His scalpel clatters across the floor. His eyes flick to hers — wide, childish. Then they go glassy.
She lets him fall — limp on the stained linoleum.
---
8 — AFTER
Selene cuts the hostages free. The reporter's friend sobs into her shoulder. The cop nods, silent gratitude and horror tangled together.
Outside, Ward drags Rafi by the collar to the street. He throws the boy toward the alley's mouth.
Ward (growling at Selene as she emerges):
"One more body, Arlen. One more — and I don't care what you've buried for this city — I'll bury you instead."
Selene says nothing. Her mask drips rain and blood. Rafi looks at her, lip quivering — like he wants to thank her. She shakes her head.
Selene (low, venom-soft):
"One more video, kid — and you'll be next."
Rafi shivers. He nods, but his eyes burn with more questions than fear.
---
9 — MICAH'S TRUTH
Back at The Nest, Micah spins in his battered chair — screens alive with Crow's shipments, false IDs, blurry drone feeds.
Micah:
"You heard him, right? Billions. Not thousands. Billions. Crow's cooking something biblical. And this freak was just a scarecrow to keep you busy."
Selene pulls off her mask — throws it on the floor. Her shoulder pulses hot under the stitches. Jess watches from the couch — bandaging her own scraped knuckles.
Jess (quietly, staring at the bloodied talons):
"You killed him."
Selene meets her eyes — nothing left to lie about.
Selene:
"I had to."
---
10 — CROW LAUGHS
In a gold-lit suite high above the city, King Crow watches the news flicker on his tablet — BREAKING: THE RAVEN STRIKES AGAIN — VIGILANTE EXECUTES BUTCHER.
His laughter is low. Sick. The glass in his hand trembles with the tremor of it.
King Crow (to himself):
"Good bird. Keep their eyes on the cuts. Not on the plague."
He raises his glass to the city below — an ocean of lights that don't know they're about to drown.
---
END OF CHAPTER FIFTEEN