The city never truly slept.
It only pretended.
Neon lights flickered across rain-soaked streets while sirens wailed somewhere in the distance. Above it all, high-rise buildings pierced the night sky like silent witnesses to secrets no one dared to expose.
Ryker Vale stood on the edge of a rooftop, watching.
Black jacket. Hands in pockets. Expression unreadable.
Below him, a convoy of armored SUVs rolled through an underground parking entrance of the Orion Financial Tower.
His target.
His mission.
Simple.
Observe. Confirm. Report.
No emotions.
No interference.
That had always been the rule.
But tonight, something felt off.
His earpiece crackled.
"Visual confirmed?" a calm voice asked.
"Confirmed," Ryker replied quietly. "But security pattern changed."
A pause.
"Explain."
"Additional perimeter units. Unmarked. Not part of regular rotation."
Silence filled his earpiece.
"Abort," the voice ordered suddenly.
Ryker's eyes narrowed slightly.
"Reason?"
"Unexpected variable."
Before he could ask more—
An explosion shattered the night.
Glass rained from the lower floors of the tower. Flames burst outward from the parking entrance. The convoy had been hit.
People screamed below.
Car alarms erupted in chaotic symphony.
Ryker didn't flinch.
He was already moving.
He sprinted across the rooftop and leapt to the adjacent building without hesitation. His boots hit concrete hard as smoke rose into the sky behind him.
This wasn't part of the mission.
Someone else had made a move.
And in Ryker's world—
Unexpected moves meant war.
---
Across the city, Elena Moriyama was running.
Her lungs burned.
Her heartbeat thundered in her ears.
She clutched her backpack tightly as she pushed through a crowded night market, ignoring the angry shouts around her.
She shouldn't have opened that file.
She shouldn't have followed the financial records tied to Orion Tower.
But she had.
And now—
Two men in dark suits were chasing her.
She ducked into an alley, pulling out her phone.
No signal.
Of course.
Her fingers tightened around the small encrypted flash drive hidden inside her jacket lining.
The data she copied wasn't just corruption.
It was something bigger.
Weapons transfers.
Offshore black accounts.
Government signatures.
And one name that made her stomach drop.
OBSIDIAN.
Footsteps echoed closer.
She turned sharply—
And collided with someone solid.
Strong hands grabbed her shoulders to steady her.
"Careful," a calm voice said.
She looked up.
Dark eyes. Cold. Observing.
Ryker.
For a split second, time froze.
"Let go," she whispered urgently.
Two men entered the alley behind her.
"There she is."
Ryker glanced past her toward the approaching figures.
He assessed them instantly.
Professional stance. Concealed weapons. Coordinated movement.
Not random criminals.
"Elena Moriyama?" one of them asked coldly.
Her blood ran cold.
They knew her name.
Ryker's grip didn't loosen.
Instead, his voice dropped slightly.
"Walk away."
The men ignored him.
"This doesn't concern you," one replied.
Ryker's expression didn't change.
"That's where you're wrong."
The first attacker reached inside his jacket.
Ryker moved before the weapon was fully drawn.
He stepped forward, disarmed him in one fluid motion, and drove his elbow into the man's throat. The second lunged.
Ryker sidestepped and slammed him against the brick wall with controlled force.
Three seconds.
Both men were down.
Elena stared at him in shock.
"You just—"
"You're being hunted," he said calmly.
"No kidding."
Sirens echoed in the distance.
Not police.
Different rhythm.
Ryker recognized it instantly.
Private response units.
"More are coming," he said.
She stepped back slightly.
"Why are you helping me?"
He didn't answer immediately.
Instead, his gaze dropped to her jacket — precisely where she had hidden the drive.
"You accessed something you weren't supposed to."
Her eyes widened.
"How do you know that?"
He met her gaze again.
"Because I was watching the same building."
Silence.
Rain began falling lightly.
The city lights reflected in puddles around them.
"We don't have time for explanations," Ryker said. "If they catch you, you won't get one."
She hesitated.
Trusting a stranger wasn't smart.
But neither was standing alone in a city that suddenly wanted her dead.
Footsteps echoed again at the alley entrance.
More shadows.
More men.
Ryker extended his hand slightly.
"Choose."
Elena looked at his hand.
Then at the approaching danger.
Then back at him.
Her heart made the decision before her mind did.
She grabbed his hand.
Gunshots exploded behind them as Ryker pulled her into motion.
They ran deeper into the city's neon maze.
Above them, hidden cameras shifted position.
And somewhere in a dark control room filled with monitors—
A man watched them escape.
"Interesting," he murmured.
On one of the screens, Ryker's face froze in frame.
The man leaned back slowly.
"So the ghost has chosen a side."
He pressed a button.
"Activate Phase One."
Back in the rain-soaked streets, Elena risked a glance at the man pulling her through chaos.
"Who are you?" she demanded.
He didn't slow down.
"Someone who doesn't like unfinished wars."
Behind them, black vehicles flooded the streets.
Ahead of them—
The city stretched endlessly.
And above it all—
The first crack in the system had just appeared.
Because when hearts go to war—
The city bleeds first.