Ashes of Our Flame
by RapwizzyDebaron
Episode 22: "The Price of Fire"
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The city didn't sleep.
Not anymore.
Ashes drifted in the air like snow, and the sirens never stopped. Every street corner bore the signs of a revolution that had begun with truth—and now burned with vengeance.
Kara sat alone on the rooftop of the safehouse, her legs dangling over the edge. The wind tousled her hair as she clutched her earpiece, static crackling softly. Below, distant chants echoed through the narrow alleys.
"Justice for Voss!"
"Down with Vale!"
"Expose them all!"
But Kara wasn't comforted. Not yet.
Behind her, the door creaked open. Adrian stepped out, still dressed in his torn tuxedo, now spattered with dust and streaks of dried blood. He approached silently, the weight of their escape still heavy on his shoulders.
"They're calling it a civil uprising," he said quietly, standing beside her. "Some even say it's a rebellion."
Kara didn't look at him. "It's not a rebellion. It's a reckoning."
He nodded, letting the silence speak for him.
"Do you think the footage was enough?" she finally asked.
"It was truth," he replied. "The world saw him. The real him."
"But truth isn't always enough, Adrian," she said, her voice low. "Not when people are afraid to believe it."
He sat beside her, their knees almost touching. "Then we give them more. Proof. Courage. Hope."
She turned her face to him. "And what about us? What are we now?"
Adrian didn't flinch. "We're fire."
She closed her eyes. "Fire burns."
"But it also purifies."
---
Downstairs, Tessa paced in front of a large digital screen, monitoring news reports and social feeds. Ronan lay on the couch, groaning as he stitched a gash on his arm. His sarcasm had taken a back seat to exhaustion.
"They've put a bounty on Adrian's head," Tessa said grimly. "Not small change either—seven figures. That's how scared they are."
"Good," Ronan muttered. "Means they're feeling the heat."
Kara and Adrian came down the stairs, and the room tensed.
"I need a map," Kara said. "And access to the press logistics from ValeCorp's internal systems."
Tessa blinked. "What are you planning?"
"Phase Two," Kara replied. "He hasn't lost yet. We can't stop just because the first blow landed."
Adrian leaned against the wall, arms crossed. "We take down his allies next. Those who helped bury the truth."
"And the ones still helping him stay afloat," Kara added. "We know who they are. We hit them hard, and fast."
Ronan groaned. "So… no sleep again. Got it."
---
That night, the team split up.
Adrian and Kara infiltrated a news studio known to be under Marcus Vale's payroll. Their mission: disable the network's biased coverage and deliver uncensored footage to an independent journalist.
The building was cold and clinical. Cameras tracked every movement. Security guards patrolled like silent shadows.
Adrian took the lead, bypassing security doors with codes memorized from his father's vaults. Kara followed with silent steps, her gaze sharp, her hands ready.
They reached the control room without incident.
Until alarms blared.
"Shit," Adrian hissed. "Someone tipped them off."
Footsteps thundered below.
Kara shoved the drive into the master terminal. "Hold them off. I just need sixty seconds."
He nodded, pulling out his pistol. "Make it thirty."
---
Down the hallway, gunfire erupted.
Adrian took cover behind a metal column, firing back with precision. Every shot echoed like thunder through the sterile walls.
Kara's fingers danced over the keyboard. Footage loaded. Data streamed. One bar after another turned green.
She whispered, "Almost there…"
Then—
A door burst open behind her.
A guard raised his weapon—
Bang!
Kara flinched.
But the shot didn't come from the guard.
Adrian stood behind him, breath heaving, gun smoking.
"You good?" he asked, eyes scanning the hallway.
She nodded, heart racing. "Transfer complete."
"Let's move."
They fled through the back exit, disappearing into the night as sirens closed in.
---
Back at the safehouse, the video aired—unedited, uncensored, raw.
It showed Marcus Vale's confession. His empire of silence. His disregard for life. It showed Kara's parents.
The city cracked.
People no longer whispered their anger—they screamed it.
Workers walked out of ValeCorp factories. Journalists resigned live on-air. Politicians withdrew their endorsements.
And in the center of it all, the man himself—Marcus Vale—remained silent.
Until he didn't.
---
A message arrived.
Not through broadcast. Not through text.
It was a letter.
Hand-delivered.
Addressed to Adrian.
He read it once. Twice. Then passed it to Kara.
It read:
"You have chosen fire. Come see what it costs.
One night. One location.
Come alone. Or more will burn."
There was no signature.
But they knew who sent it.
Marcus Vale had just invited his son into the lion's den.
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To be continued…
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