Where am I?
Ash still drifted over the dead battlefield, the sky above painted in red and grey. Smoke curled from craters like whispers of the dead. Amid the shattered remains of war machines and broken dreams, a group in sleek black-and-purple robe moved swiftly through the wreckage.
The Jokers had arrived.
Their leader, Alex, knelt beside the barely breathing body of Zafer. Blood stained the ground beneath him. Sparks hissed from his shattered cybernetic arm.
Just then, a rumble echoed across the broken plains. From opposite ends, two powerful figures approached — the commander Zodi and Magi .
Alex stood up slowly, eyes narrowing beneath his dark visor.
"No time," he muttered. "They're here."
He turned to his squad.
"Take Zafer. Get him to the closest hideout. I'll deal with these two myself."
"Alone?" Eden asked flatly.
Alex didn't answer. He only cracked his knuckles and stepped forward.
"Make sure no one follows you. That's an order." Without hesitation, the Jokers lifted Zafer's unconscious body and started running towards the nearest hideout, leaving their leader behind
Underground Hideout
Beneath the ruins of an abandoned city, hidden beneath layers of twisted steel and ancient subway lines, the Joker's hideout stood buried — a secret fortress of survival. The metallic corridors pulsed faintly with low blue lights. Walls hummed with old tech, patched wires, and quiet alarms. The air was cold, dry, and thick with tension.
Three floors down, in a sterile white medical bay, Dr. Tina Amah was in emergency surgery. Bright lights flickered above. Zafer lay motionless, pale and broken, surrounded by machines humming with life.
Tina's hands moved quickly. Sweat beaded on her forehead.
"He's losing too much blood… Come on... hold on," she whispered, her voice trembling but focused.
Tina had always been kind — some said too kind. Innocent, warm-hearted, and a chronic overthinker. But in this moment, her heart beat only for her patient's survival.
Two hours passed.
Finally, the door hissed open, and she stepped out, removing her gloves. Her hair clung to her face.
"He's out of danger," she announced, exhaling deeply. "But he's in critical condition. He'll need a month of rest — minimum. And… his cybernetic arm is gone. Completely destroyed."
"Let him rest now. Please."
But the others didn't respond with concern.
Instead, Vice Captain Eden Mark crossed his arms, coldly
"Take him to Floor B5. Lock him up in the deepest prison cell."
"What!?" Tina gasped. "He's a patient, not some criminal!"
Eden's expression didn't change. His voice was as cold as the steel walls around them.
"And that patient nearly burned the battlefield down. I'm doing what's best for everyone."
Eden wasn't cruel — just mercilessly logical. He made decisions based on strategy, not sympathy. Feelings were irrelevant in his calculations.
"Understood, sir," another member said, wheeling Zafer's bed away toward the descending lift.
B5 – Prison Level
Far beneath the surface, the prison floor was nothing like the clean upper levels. The air was damp and heavy with rust. Faint drips echoed in the silence. Old cells lined the corridor, lit by flickering red emergency lights.
Zafer's bed was placed inside a sealed chamber reinforced with carbon alloy bars. He didn't stir. But his breathing was steady.
Later – Joker's Meeting Room
Moments later, when alex arrived at the base, the emergency alarm chimed across the base. All Joker personnel gathered in the meeting chamber — a high-ceilinged war room lit with a massive holo-table in the center, glowing blue with live maps and data streams. The metal walls were etched with old scars from past battles.
Six Jokers were physically present. Three more joined via glowing projection screens on the far wall.
Alex stepped in, He was confuse and puzzled.
Everyone stared in silence.
Eden broke it, tone dry.
"You look like someone just told you the Verse(Universe) is ending."
Alex didn't respond at first. He stepped up to the table, looking at the others one by one.
"Something's gonna happen," he said, voice steady but grave. "Something bigger than any of us have ever expected.
"What happened" said Eden
"The Second Awakened has appeared." said Alex
Gasps broke the silence.
"That's… impossible," someone whispered.
Alex nodded grimly. "I saw it my own eyes on the battlefield. Power like that shouldn't exist." He looked around. "Where's Zafer?"
Tina folded her arms, eyes flashing.
"Ask the genius who threw a half-dead man into a prison cell."
Alex turned sharply. "Eden?"
Eden didn't flinch.
"If he wakes up and goes berserk again, we all die. I did what needed to be done."
Alex smirked bitterly.
"My brilliant vice captain… You really think those prison bars can stop him?"
Eden paused, uncertain. "…They should."
Alex raised an eyebrow.
"'Should'? What a brilliant kind of idiot your Eden."
He turned to Jacob, the Joker's tech expert.
"Prepare the portal. We're moving to the fourth hideout — on the human planet, Earth. We go after Zafer wakes up."
Jacob nodded and got to work.
The others dispersed, preparations already begins.
An hour later…
A piercing alarm echoed through the lower levels of the hideout, red lights pulsing against cold steel walls.
Tina's heart skipped a beat.
"The awakening signal…" she whispered. "He's awake." She ran toward the lift, lab coat fluttering behind her, her boots pounding against the grated floors. With her was Ema, another Joker — a shadow among killers. Known as the "Ghostblade," Ema could assassinate a high-value target inside an S-Rank facility and vanish without leaving so much as a footprint.
Ema walked silently beside Tina, her sharp eyes scanning every hallway they passed. She wasn't here for Zafer's comfort — she was here in case he woke up... wrong.
Together, they descended to B5, the prison floor. The air was heavier down here — colder, damp, with the faint scent of oil and rust. The corridor lights buzzed faintly overhead, flickering like dying stars.
Tina stepped toward the sealed chamber, heart racing.
"Let me talk to him first," she said softly.
The steel door hissed open. Inside, Zafer sat upright on the metal bed, dazed and breathing hard. His body trembled. Bandages wrapped around his torso, and where his cybernetic arm once was, only wires and scars remained.
His eyes narrowed the moment Tina entered.
"You should be resting," Tina said gently, stepping closer.
Zafer's voice cracked, filled with confusion and anger.
"Who… who are you people? Where am I? What happened to me? I was on the battlefield—how did I get here?!"
He stood up abruptly, wobbling from the pain.
Tina raised her hands slowly.
"Please, calm down. You're safe now. We found you, brought you here, and treated your injuries."
Zafer laughed bitterly, his voice rising.
"Safe? You call this safe?! Locked in a cage like some kind of animal?"
He moved toward her. Instantly, a cold flash shimmered through the air — Ema had drawn her knife and pressed it lightly to Zafer's throat. "One more step," she warned, her voice like ice, "and I make sure you rest... permanently."
Zafer glared, eyes burning with defiance, but didn't move. His chest rose and fell with sharp breaths.
Tina stepped between them.
"Ema, stand down. He's just confused."
Ema didn't lower her blade. "Confused or not, he's dangerous. You didn't saw what he did on the battlefield."
Tina nodded slightly, then looked back at Zafer.
"We'll explain everything. But first... we need to move. This place isn't safe anymore."
Zafer looked between them. Then, finally, he nodded.
Portal Room — Moments Later
All remaining members of the Jokers had gathered in the portal chamber, a large room humming with high-tech energy. The walls were curved, lined with glowing conduits and energy stabilizers. A large platform stood in the center, pulsing with a soft blue glow — the portal gate.
Zafer sat in a wheelchair, bandaged and silent. Ema stood behind him. Tina beside him. Alex paced near the console, eyes on the monitors. The three off-base members appeared on the side screens, ready to synchronize.
Alex turned to them all.
"Next stop — Earth. Fourth hideout. Jacob, activate the gate."
Jacob's fingers danced across the interface.
"Portal will stay open for sixty seconds. Everyone move on my signal."
With a roar of energy, the air above the gate twisted, crackled — then tore open, revealing a swirling vortex of light and distortion.
"Now!" Jacob shouted.
The team rushed through.
Earth – Remote Region, Ruins of Civilization
The moment their feet hit solid ground, the portal sealed behind them with a thunderous hum. Dust swirled around their boots.
They stood in the middle of a vast wasteland — once a bustling human city, now a graveyard of silence and ash.
Everyone stood in stunned silence.
"...What the hell happened here?" muttered one of the Jokers.
Everyones looking at Zafer. Zafer's hands gripped the wheelchair arms tightly. His jaw clenched. His eyes, wide and filled with tears. Its all becouse of those bastards. They ruined everything.
I will kill them all. Every last one of them.
To be continued....