The sun was already sinking when Ariana and her father returned to the Eclipse Nexus Agency.
The moment they stepped out of the car, Ethan Lockhart's communicator vibrated.
Bzzzt—
He glanced at the screen.
Amelia Voss. His assistant.
His expression changed instantly.
The warmth drained from his eyes, replaced by sharp focus. He turned slightly away, answering the call in a low voice. Ariana didn't need to hear the words.
She already knew.
Something... was wrong.
Ethan ended the call, exhaled once, then met Ariana's gaze.
Without a word, he lifted two fingers and gestured.
"I have to go." He whispered.
Ariana nodded.
"I already figured it out," she said calmly.
Ethan hesitated for half a second, then gave her a small, reassuring smile. "I'll handle it. Don't worry."
"I know you will," Ariana replied.
The engine roared.
Vroooom—
The car disappeared down the road, leaving Ariana standing at the agency entrance, the wind brushing past her hair. Ariana smiled... gently.
She watched until the tail lights vanished.
Then she turned.
Inside the agency, familiar voices greeted her.
"Oh! Ariana, you're back?" Selene said, adjusting her gloves. "Perfect timing. We just received a—"
"A mission," Lyra cut in, eyes sparkling. "A real one."
"But the ones we received before were also real." Ariana was confused.
"Bu—."
"We don't have a minute to waste so let us be hurry!." Ariana commanded leaving Lyra unspoken.
Evelyn nodded eagerly. Kiera cracked her knuckles.
Kiera lifted two fingers and pointed toward the locker hall. A gesture for Ariana to change into her suit and get ready to depart.
Suit on.
Ariana's lips curved slightly. "Alright."
She smiled so brightly as it was like the sun rays were falling on her.
Now it was time to SHINE!.
THE SLOW MOTION WALK...
The agency doors slid open.
Sunlight poured in.
Selene and Kiera stepped forward first, one on the left, the other on the right. Their movements were steady, confident, every trace of exhaustion left behind. Tactical suits hugged their forms as their weapons clicked into place.
Their footsteps were slow.
Still measured.
Tap… tap…
Behind them, Evelyn and Lyra followed ahead, their presence lighter but no less dangerous. Silver threads of magic shimmered faintly along Evelyn's bow. Lyra's whip-sword rested calmly at her side, coiled like a sleeping serpent.
The wind caught their hair.
The sun reflected off enchanted gear.
Then came Ariana.
She walked at the center. Still equal as others.
Calm. Composed. Unshaken.
Her black combat suit shimmered with runes that pulsed faintly beneath the fabric. Her sword rested against her back, silent but awake. Her hair were tied but still flowed above.
They didn't rush.
They didn't need to.
They were the SHADEHUNTERS.
Vehicles,
Engines ignited almost in harmony.
Vrrrm— Vrrrm—
Two bikes roared to life, Ariana and Lyra mounting them with practiced ease. Selene slid into the driver's seat of the tactical vehicle, Kiera and Evelyn secured herself in the back, already scanning the route.
Dust lifted.
Tires screeched.
They vanished down the road, shadows stretching long behind them.
Enemy Headquarters...
The abandoned compound loomed ahead, concrete walls scarred with time and secrecy.
Thud… thud…
Boots touched the ground.
Ariana raised her hand instantly.
"Shush," she whispered. "One sound, and we're exposed before we begin."
"Got it, bro," Evelyn murmured. "What's the first step?"
Ariana didn't turn. "Selene. Roles."
Selene nodded. "Same plan we discussed earlier."
She spoke quickly and quietly, assigning positions, escape routes, timing. Every word was precise.
Ariana listened. Then nodded once.
"Everyone, DEPART!."
"YES!," they breathed together.
Infiltration...
Selene and Lyra slipped ahead like ghosts.
Two guards fell silently, unconscious before they even realized danger was near. Keycards were lifted. Doors unlocked.
Inside, Ariana moved with Evelyn and Kiera, slipping through narrow corridors toward the private chamber.
The blueprint vault.
Lasers crisscrossed the room like glowing spider silk.
"Careful," Kiera whispered. "One wrong move and the alarm sings."
"Scan everything," Ariana said. "Anything tied to black markets. Anything related to the Mare's blueprints."
They split.
Minutes stretched thin.
Then—
"I've got it," Kiera breathed. "The files."
"Good," Ariana replied. "We're leaving now."
They turned—
Kzzzt—
Kiera's elbow brushed a beam.
BEEP...
BEEP...
BEEP...
The silence shattered.
Doors slammed open.
Footsteps thundered toward them.
"Contact!" Ariana snapped.
The Fight finally began!.
The first enemy rushed in.
Ariana moved.
Steel flashed.
Her sword hummed once, knocking the attacker unconscious before he hit the floor.
Kiera's shurikens flew, slicing through the air and returning to her hands in perfect arcs.
Evelyn's arrows curved mid-flight, disabling enemies without killing a single one.
Later Lyra and Selene joined them.
Lyra's whip-sword cracked like lightning, binding limbs, slamming bodies into walls.
Selene fired from above, enchanted bullets pinning enemies in place with precise shots.
The hall became chaos.
Then silence.
Bodies lay scattered.
Breathing slowed.
"Area cleared," Selene confirmed.
Lyra exhaled. "Now we hand them over to the authorities."
"Yeah," Ariana said, sheathing her blade. "Good work, team."
"My treat!" Evelyn cheered. "For this victory!"
"No take-backs," Lyra teased.
Kiera smirked. "Noted."
"Ya...ya, I get it. No take backs, really..."Evelyn accepted.
The defeated men lay scattered across the compound floor, eyes wide, breaths uneven. Some stared at the ceiling, others at the team, still unable to accept how quickly everything had turned against them.
Shock clung to their faces like a second skin.
Luck had abandoned them completely.
By the final verdict of the Court, every last one of them was sentenced to twenty-five years of imprisonment, their operations dismantled, their names erased from the underground.
Justice was sealed.
Night had already claimed the sky by the time the team regrouped.
Streetlights flickered on one by one as engines roared to life. With the case resolved, a quiet sense of relief settled over them, heavy but comforting.
Vroooom—
Ariana and Lyra rode side by side, bikes slicing through the cool night air, the city lights streaking past like broken stars.
Ariana tilted her head slightly, smirking. "You really shouldn't do stunts like that, you know."
Lyra chuckled, easing her grip on the handle.
Vrrr— click—
"You should also give a try!."
"Cool though," she replied. "But not today." Ariana straightened her posture, her tone shifting. "I've got something urgent. Private work. Let the others know I'll be home late."
Lyra's shoulders dropped dramatically.
"Man… that's not cool."
Then she sighed, nodding. "Fine. We'll catch up tomorrow. Just don't disappear."
"I won't," Ariana said.
Skrrrt—
Lyra signaled, veering off to rejoin the others. Within moments, their figures faded into the distance, engines humming away into the night.
Ariana turned in the opposite direction.
Later that night.
Vroooom…
Ariana's bike slowed as she entered the private parking area of her residence. The engine cut off.
Click.
Silence.
She swung her leg off the bike and reached up, fingers moving to unclip her helmet.
That was when she noticed it.
Something near her boots.
Her movements stilled.
She stepped back cautiously, eyes narrowing. Slowly, she crouched and picked it up.
A pink elastic thread.
Her brows furrowed. She examined it closely, turning it between her fingers.
Then—
It vanished.
Not fell.
Not snapped.
Just gone.
Ariana froze for a moment, but handled herself.
Her fingers curled instinctively where it had been, her breath hitching just once. The parking lights hummed softly above her, casting long shadows across the concrete.
Only then did she speak, her voice low, almost swallowed by the dark.
"…So he was indeed one step ahead of us."
The night offered no answer.
Only... silence.
Somewhere in the dark, the silence smiled...