“Your skill for understatement is impressive,” Rafael said. “It’s an unmitigated disaster. He’s a madman and will destroy everything the Order has created. There’s only one blade that can stand against him now.”
“I thought the Nameless was the most powerful blade?”
“It is.”
“I don’t understand,” Pira answered. “What blade are you referring to, then?”
“The Jade Demon.”
“That’s not a blade, but rather an entity. One that is currently retired—or has that changed as well?”
“I have a feeling we’ll be seeing a new one…soon.”
“Are you referring to a new Jade Demon?”
“Yes, I am.”
“Did you happen to receive a head injury while you were out, sir?” Pira motioned to one of the nurses. “You’re not making any sense. The Jade Demon was killed by the Unholy decades ago.”
“I’m fine, Pira. I’ll explain once we secure Ganriel.”
“Of course, sir.” Pira glanced at the nurse, stopping her in her approach. “Just trying to make sure you are operationally sound.”
“That’s almost touching, coming from you,” Rafael replied. “I am in possession of my full mental faculties. Do not question me again.”
“Understood, sir.”
“Once Velos finds out about her, he’ll want to eliminate the only threat to his power,” Rafael answered. “Inform Regional I will oversee all Hand activities from this moment forward.”
“Her, sir?”
“The Jade Demon—or at least her daughter, Sepia Blue.”
“Who is currently in possession of a dark blade and the Unholy artifact?” Pira asked. “She is—was—a class-two Hunter. Are you now saying she is the Jade Demon?”
“The One and the same,” Rafael answered. “Inform Regional that all communications will now be handled by you and my office. We need to prevent any interference.”
“They won’t appreciate your interference,” Pira answered, touching her tablet. “This will appear like a dereliction of your other duties. Are you certain?”
“The Nameless is in play, and if I’m right, Fuma has unleashed the Jade Demon,” Rafael answered as they walked down a corridor. “There is nothing that is a higher priority right now. Besides, when have I worried about appearances?”
“Is that a rhetorical question?”
“Yes,” Rafael said, following the nurses who were pushing the gurney carrying Gan. “We’ll need a team. A hand.”
“Should I prep for the field?” she asked. “Or will we employ outside parties?”
“We’re going to need to get our hands dirty on this one. We can’t use any Regional assets. This one is Dark Protocol—no ties to the Order whatsoever.”
“That limits our options, sir.”
“I know, but we have options. The Sisters were recently attacked by Black Hunters. Their numbers were decimated from a recent attack. Contact Anna.”
“If they suffered an attack, will they be in any condition to assist us in this mission?”
“I know Anna,” Rafael said. “She’ll want to rebuild her Sisters after this. For her it will be a matter of pride…and revenge.”
“Revenge? Against whom?”
“Who else? The Order branch who issued her termination—Downtown. Specifically Overseer Marks, who has gone missing.”
“Right,” Pira said. “We want to employ a highly trained assassin bent on vengeance against the Order. Did you happen to forget that Regional is part of the Order?”
“Not at all,” Rafael said. “Like I said earlier, I know Anna. The Order needs the Sisters, even if they will never admit it. For her, this is personal.”
“Well, the Sisters are about as far from Regional as you can get. Will she agree?”
“I’ll leave her no choice. If Velos is wielding the Nameless, Anna and the remaining Sisters are a target. He will see them as an imminent threat to be eliminated.”
“I will contact her immediately. The other members of this hand are…?”
“We’ll need to play this one close. You, me, Gan, Anna and one more.”
A small smile crossed Pira’s lips.
“Yes, sir,” Pira answered. “Who is the remaining member of the hand?”
“If we’re going to stand against the Nameless—”
“The most powerful blade the Order has created,” Pira broke in. “Just a reminder.”
“I’m aware, thank you. We’re going to need overwhelming force if we are to stand a chance. The fifth member will have to be Sepia.”
“The Jade Demon?”
“Yes. The Jade Demon was created as a counter to the Nameless—the only counter to the Nameless, actually. Fuma was right. We should have destroyed the Nameless when we had the chance.”
“Why didn’t you?”
“It wasn’t entirely my call. That, and hubris. We thought we could control the power it contained…We were wrong.”
“Just to be clear, sir,” Pira said, raising a finger and looking down at her tablet. “This group—the hand—will be comprised of you, me, and Anna—who is the current leader of the Sisters—an organization the Order openly disavows and recently tried to terminate. Then we have; Ganriel, the Director of the Gray, who is currently lying in a gurney and will shortly undergo a dangerous procedure that will most likely leave him in a vegetative state, if not dead. Finally we have Sepia Blue, a renegade ex-Hunter who may or may not have been transformed into some kind of a hybrid Unholy.”
“You never cease to impress, Pira. That is the hand we need, yes. It’s the perfect group to face Velos and the Nameless.”
Pira stared at him for a few seconds before slightly shaking her head.
“If you say so, sir,” Pira answered. “You do realize we have no information as to Sepia’s whereabouts?”
Rafael looked at Pira and nodded.
“She is the lynchpin,” Rafael said. “This all falls apart without the Jade Demon. We’re going to have to locate Sepia sooner rather than later. I’d start in the Park.”
“The Park, sir? Are you serious?”
“If she were out on the streets, with that kind of power, we would’ve heard about it by now, or Velos would have tried to eliminate her. Since neither of those events have occurred, it means she’s in hiding. Where would you hide an immense source of Unholy energy?”
“In plain sight,” Pira said with a small nod. “The Park.”
“Precisely,” Rafael said. “Handle this personally and report back to me.”
“The Park, sir, really? Do you have any required parameters? Limitations?”
“None. You have complete and total operational freedom. Try not to eliminate everything in the Park while you search. Remember, we’re trying to keep a low profile on this. I don’t want Velos or the faction inside Regional that unleashed him to know what we’re doing.”
“If I’m entering the Park, I will need my second, sir,” Pira said. “Someone to recon while we approach and to deal with any…stragglers.”
“Are you certain?” Rafael asked. “You two are not exactly known for being subtle.”
“We can be, when needed.”
“This time it’s needed. I don’t need more reports of unsanctioned activity by the Shadow Reaper. Is he up to the task?”
“Destin is the only one I would trust to watch my back, besides you.”
“I’m flattered,” Rafael told her and then paused, giving the suggestion thought. “Destin will have to be folded into the hand.”
“He usually works alone or in a two-person team, but I’m sure he can be persuaded,” Pira said. “He’s not much of a team player.”
“Can he handle it?”
“A six-fingered hand?” Pira asked. “Has that been done?”
“I think that, for this, we must do the unexpected,” Rafael answered. “Destin is ideal. Take him and get the information we need.”
“Do you really think it was someone in Regional
that unleashed Velos?”
“Yes,” Rafael answered. “Someone equipped him with a dark blade—a dark, named blade—and unleashed him on Sepia. That would require access. High-level Regional access, at the Director level.”
“This is why you want to convene the Directive,” Pira mused. “You have an idea of who it is.”
“I do, but I can’t take action until Velos is neutralized.”
“Understood, sir.”
“The last thing I need is a civil war inside the Order. That can wait. Let’s resolve this Nameless situation first.”
“What if the Jade Demon has been unleashed?”
“I have a feeling that dealing with the Nameless will put us on the path to deal with the Jade Demon as well. Everything is connected.”
“So you keep telling me.”
“And each time I’m proven correct,” Rafael reminded her. “I’m going with Gan. I’d suggest you prep Destin and deploy immediately. My intuition tells me we are short on time, and my intuition is rarely wrong.”
“It’s nearly nightfall, sir,” Pira said. “There will be heightened Unholy activity at this time.”
“I’m aware. That only means you will need to take extra precautions,” Rafael said. “Time is not our ally on this. The sooner you can locate Sepia, the better. If I didn’t think you were up to the task, we wouldn’t be having this conversation.”
“Thank you, sir,” Pira said with another short nod. “I’ll contact you after my initial reconnaissance.”
“Send me Anna’s information,” Rafael said. “I’ll reach out to her personally.”
Pira raised an eyebrow in surprise and tapped her tablet.
“Sent, sir.”
“Good,” Rafael said with a nod, dispelling the sphere of silence with a wave. “Once Gan’s procedure is finished, I’ll inform you of the outcome. Be careful out there. The Park is still lethal even for someone with your skills. Once the Unholy get wind of your presence, they won’t be kind.”
“I truly hope not,” Pira said as she turned to walk away. “It’s been some time since I’ve had a proper fight.”
Rafael paused and shook his head before following Gan and the nurses again.
THREE
“This blade, designed to control all the others, will be their undoing,” Velos said, hefting the scabbard holding the Nameless. “I will use this to take my rightful place. But first, all who oppose me must perish. You tell your lord I will see him when I’m ready, not before.”
“That blade is not yours,” the Unholy said. “It belongs to my lord.”
“Your lord should have facilitated its liberation, then.”
The Unholy stared at Velos for a few seconds with its dead eyes. A raspy breath escaped its lips as it shuffled closer and pointed to the scabbard.
“He did. This is why you hold it now, but it is not yours to wield. That blade belongs to Chimera. You dare disobey him?”
“I dare,” Velos said. “It is useful to me.”
“To defy Chimera is to beckon death.”
“I think I’ll hold on to it for a few moments longer,” Velos said looking at the scabbard. “It can provide me a certain…leverage.”
“You play a dangerous game, human.”
“What’s the sense in playing without risk?” Velos asked. “The higher the risk, the better the game.”
“In this game, you risk your life.”
“Which makes it all the more worthwhile,” Velos replied. “Tell him he will get his blade, once I have secured my vengeance.”
“He will not be pleased with your insolence,” the creature at Velos’ feet answered. “No one refuses our lord.”
For a brief moment Velos contemplated destroying the Unholy that groveled before him, but that wasn’t the message he wanted to send…not yet. The misshapen Unholy shambled back and forth in an aimless shuffle, all the while keeping its eyes on him.
It was unnerving.
“I’m not refusing him,” Velos said. “I’m merely postponing the inevitable. Tell him I’m honored to receive his invitation. I just have to cleanse the streets of some Hunter vermin first. This serves our mutual goals.”
“I shall inform him. He will not be pleased.”
“Perhaps, next time, he can come get it himself,” Velos replied, looking over the edge of the roof and into the night. “That is, if he can.”
“You tread upon dangerous ground,” the Unholy rasped as it cocked its head to one side. “Do not mistake his absence for weakness. The strongest of us will roam these streets soon. I will deliver your message.”
“See that you do,” Velos said with a short nod. “I look forward to meeting him.”
The Unholy bowed and shuffled to the edge of the roof, stepping off and disappearing. Velos pulled out his phone and dialed. After a few seconds, the call connected. Velos pressed the speakerphone function as he gazed over the edge of the roof where the Unholy disappeared. Night was approaching and he would soon be on the hunt again.
“Status,” a voice said over the speaker. “Do you have it?”
“I have it,” Velos said. “My team didn’t make it. They ran into a gunman named Cade. I underestimated him.”
“Cade is a formidable threat; I’d advise caution confronting him.”
“I’m going to kill him.”
“Stay on mission. Cade is not the mission. We need the Jade Demon dead.”
“I’m still going to kill him. Consider it a gift.”
“Maintain focus. Cade is a distraction at best.”
“He killed my team…my entire team.”
“Irrelevant. The Nameless is the priority. Stay on task.”
“Of course,” Velos said dryly. “I just received a visit from one of Chimera’s errand things.”
“What did it want?”
“What else? The Nameless.”
“Chimera must not obtain that blade. Under no circumstances are the Unholy to get the Nameless. Is that understood?”
“I imagined that would be your position.”
“Are you still in possession of the blade?”
“Yes, I am,” Velos said. “I’m not giving this sword to the Unholy. Not until I’ve had my vengeance.”
“Do not allow emotion to cloud your judgment. Cade can wait until after the Jade Demon is dealt with. After, not before. Is this understood?”
“Completely.”
“Good. Once the objective is achieved, you can eliminate whomever you want,” the voice said. “Don’t forget who extended the hand of vengeance to you. I gave you Retribution.”
“I haven’t forgotten. I won’t forget. Thank you.”
“Once this matter is settled and the Jade Demon is eliminated, Retribution is yours.”
“What if I want the Nameless?” Velos asked.
“That belongs to another. Someone you do not want to cross—trust me.”
“So, that would be a no.”
“You cannot bond with it and Retribution,” the masked voice said. “To do so would end you.”
“Can I unbind from Retribution?” Velos asked, holding the scabbard of the Nameless in front of him. “Then I can claim the Nameless.”
“Unbinding from a dark named blade will most likely kill you,” the voice said. “Go see the Smith. He is waiting for the delivery of the Nameless. Also, give him the named swords you have claimed.”
“What will he do with them?”
“That doesn’t concern you. How many have you claimed?”
“Two, so far,” Velos answered. “I will hunt tonight. One escaped me.”
“Delivery of the Nameless takes precedence. Then you can hunt.”
“Understood.”
“Is there anything else?”
“Yes, I need a new team,” Velos answered. “One that won’t get shredded by one old gunman.”
“That one old gunman was at one time one of the best Regional agents,” the voice answered after a pause. “Do not underestimate him again.”
“See that you do. The team will meet you at the Smith…tonight.”
“Good.”
“Again, maintain operational focus. Do not get distracted. The person waiting for the Nameless is not known for his patience.”
“Is that a threat?” Velos asked irritated. “Are you trying to scare me?”
“Have I ever resorted to threats in the past?”
“No, never.”
“And I refuse to do so now,” the voice said. “I am merely stating the facts. Deliver the Nameless tonight, if you wish to see the sun rise in the morning.”
The call ended.
Velos held up the scabbard holding the Nameless again. He didn’t feel fear. He rarely did these days. What he did feel was curiosity. Who could instill such respect in his contact? Enough to promise his death if he failed to deliver the sword?
He would need to uncover who the sword was for. His thoughts flashed back to the Unholy that had just vanished into the night. The last thing he would be was a clueless errand boy. Walking into these kinds of situations with little-to-no information had a tendency to get the errand boy killed.
It was always a good idea to know who you were delivering power and death to. He looked over to the other side of the roof. The Smith was south of his location. He would have to avoid Hunters to get to him. With Retribution it would be easy; he could slip into the darkness and avoid detection.
First things first—there was a gunman that needed killing.
FOUR
Cade kept to the shadows.
Taking out Velos’ team had been a close call. They had been sloppy, and he had been lucky. They were more interested in talking than killing.
I’m getting too old for this.
Not that he would ever admit it out loud. Another team, a sharper team, would have dispatched him without so much as a word. It’s what he would’ve done—what he used to do.
Velos seemed different. His team was bluster and bravado; Velos was focus and determination. He would have to plan for their confrontation or he would wind up like Jen, another victim of that dark blade of his.
What the hell is Regional thinking, giving him a dark blade?
Sepia Blue- Nameless: A Sepia Blue Novel- Book 4 Page 2
