Icy winds tugged at the cape of a man who stood in an awkward position, his expression one of shock and fear. He was frozen solid. There were three other figures beside him. One kneeled, her face buried in her hands. She too was dead. The second person lay on the ground, half of his body destroyed beyond recognition by an odd, blue flame that danced happily on his remnants. The last person still lived but these were his last moments. His lungs had been destroyed by an air so cold it froze any matter on contact. His one working eye remained open staring at the hell on Earth. A different kind of hell.

  Cold fires raged around craters that dotted the ground. A forest that once covered the better part of the island, now lay in shattered pieces. The same ground that once hosted exotic flora and fauna, now creaked under frost’s heavy touch, barren.

  The tropical island had been turned into a snowy inferno by two Level 10 ascenders at the peak of their power.

  The man tried to close the eye but it too froze. His spiritual core pulsed one last time as he died in the cold embrace of the winter.

  ***

  “You are going to suppress this, prime minister,” Andre said over the phone. “I expect the news to be completely erased by the evening! No. Don’t talk back to me! The World Government works for us, not the other way around. DO YOU UNDERSTAND?!”

  Andre slammed the phone against the table, smashing it to pieces. He was breathing heavily, his body trembled from anger. The World Government was betting on the news to spiral out of control and undermine the Solar Council’s primacy. Not on my watch.

  A knock sounded.

  “Come in!” Andre shouted.

  His personal assistant entered and bowed.

  “He has been teleported to the Institute.”

  “Finally. Is my teleport prepped?”

  “Yes, chairman.”

  Andre strode toward the teleport, then he stopped next to his personal assistant.

  “Have all executives of the Ascender News arrested. Quietly.”

  A few minutes later, a teleportation formation was activated and Andre appeared in Lisbon, inside the Institute. Without wasting any second, Andre rushed to the operating theatre.

  He could hear Hunter’s screams through the walls.

  “It fucking hurt!”

  Serves you right, Andre thought. He reached the door to the operating theatre but waited. From the other side of the corridor came Pucci in a company of two soldiers whom Andre dismissed.

  Another painful cry put a smile on Andre’s face.

  “Chairman,” Pucci said, looking afraid. “What’s happening?”

  “You will see.”

  Andre flung the door open and immediately was hit by spiritual presence so thick it made him gasp for air. Next to him Pucci fell to the ground, unconscious. Andre’s eyes bulged as his aura was fighting Hunter’s absurdly strong spiritual presence. Even at Level 8, Andre was out of his league.

  “GET… IT… UNDER… CONTROL…” Andre said through his chittering teeth. His frustration was further heightened when he saw Doctor standing beside Hunter, with a nonchalant attitude, seemingly unaffected by the crashing presence.

  “Fucking,” Hunter snapped. “Weaklings.”

  His presence lessened but only to the point that Andre could think. He still actively contested Hunter’s aura. Andre pulled Pucci out of the room. Upon returning, Andre got a better look at Hunter’s state.

  Hunter’s attire, minimum Level 4, was destroyed. With his clothes in pieces, Andre saw Hunter’s skin burned and peeling off in many places. Half of his face was annihilated. But nothing prepared Andre for what he found on Hunter’s right arm. It was aflame but it wasn't a normal fire. There was something mesmerising and enticing in it, something that pulled Andre in…

  “Snap out of it,” Doctor said.

  Andre shook his head, noticing that he made a step forward the flame.

  “That’s a living frost flame,” Doctor said, keeping one hand on Hunter’s left shoulder. “Given your weak spiritual strength and no cold resistance, it would have consumed your body in a matter of seconds. This isn’t a toy to play with.”

  What is this power? A spell this strong shouldn’t exist. How… Andre’s head was filled with questions that returned one answer: rifts. Andre had been aware that the power of Level 10 was immense but this… this was something else.

  Rage started to swirl inside his stomach as he considered everything Hunter put him through. Because of the clash with Esopp Earl, the Solar Council was no longer seen as invincible .

  “You have no idea what you have done,” Andre said, venting his anger. “You single-handedly fucked everything up.”

  “Get him out of here, Doc,” Hunter gritted his teeth, then groaned in pain. “FUCK, this shit is trying to devour me alive!”

  Doctor didn’t look at Andre but something in his unnaturally still posture would have warned Andre if Andre wasn’t consumed by fury.

  “Don’t forget that you are working for me! I won’t allow—”

  Stolen story; please report.

  Suddenly, the air changed. Andre’s spiritual defences popped like a soap bubble. The world went ghastly silent. Andre was no longer aware of his body or his surroundings. His attention was focused on the mountain of a man appearing before him.

  Hunter stood above Andre like an executioner before a condemned prisoner; like an apex predator catching its prey in an inescapable trap. Andre would have screamed, if he could, instead all was still and silent.

  “Stay out of my business, pathetic excuse of a man.” Hunter’s hand squeezed Andre’s throat. “Or I will end you.”

  ***

  Ronald Rugman wore his best official attire made out of Level 2 fabric with several utility enchants. The weather in this part of the world could be merciless due to Untainted Paradise geoengineering. As far as Ronald knew, Untainted Paradise used High Level air and water from rifts, dumping it around their islands. What for? Ronald didn’t know but he knew the company had tremendous expertise when it came to rifts and wouldn’t do it if it didn’t benefit them.

  His musing was interrupted when the wind suddenly stopped tugging at his coat and blonde hair. He frowned as he felt the delicate touch of spiritual energy. Hm. The island was still several miles away. To have any sort of formation or runes that spanned so far was indeed a display of power.

  The air, while still, seemed perfect as if the sun above his head in the cloudless sky lost its power. Ronald could only whistle at the absurd level of engineering. No surprise that the World Government and the Solar Council weren’t waging an open war against Untainted Paradise.

  “What happened?” Daiyu Fen appeared on the main deck. Ronald didn’t hear or sense her. She just appeared. The girl had terrifying Phasing Talent classified it in the old Talent Evaluation system as level 10, the highest one. There was one exception to that rule with Keynes Kid’s Talent being outside the scale. “Spiritual energy prickled me.”

  “Defensive measures,” Ronald replied. “Not sure what kind but strong to have a physical effect on the surroundings.”

  Daiyu Fen frowned as she glanced around.

  “There is no wind. Why?”

  “Not sure.”

  “To keep the weather from spiralling out of control,” came the reply from behind.

  Both Daiyu Fen and Ronald spun around, Daiyu Fen whipped a short sword that stopped a centimetre from Columbus Curt’s face.

  Columbus Curt looked as unbothered as he looked pristine in a white uniform, long black hair with envious lustre and composed demeanour. He stood a tall man, reaching nearly two metres.

  Ronald wasn’t a scientist but his mind was sharp and he immediately saw a problem with Curt’s statement. He just admitted a major weakness of Untainted Paradise. A person of Curt’s calibre would have never made such an error, which meant it was deliberate. Not a good sign.

  “How—” Daiyu Fen said but was immediately interrupted.

  “Columbus Curt,” Ronald said, hoping that the girl would understand the gravity of their situation.

  “Ronald Rugman,” Columbus acknowledged him.

  “Did something happen? Your organisation agreed to this meeting.”

  Unsure how to react, Daiyu Fen hid the weapon and stepped back. Columbus didn’t pay her any heed.

  “Nothing has changed but this is as far as you will get. Emerald City is off limits for you. So, speak now, make Freeman’s case.”

  Ronald nodded. Making a deal on a large, luxurious yacht didn’t sound bad at all. He grunted and two servants emerged from the inside.

  “Bring drinks,” Ronald said. The servers left without waiting for Columbus or Daiyu Fen, which she made known.

  “They don’t know what I like.”

  “Let’s sit,” Ronald said, ignoring the girl. He pointed at the set of chairs.

  The three sat down, then Columbus nodded askance at the girl.

  “Windsor trusts her.”

  Drinks arrived a moment later. Ronald decided to go with a new exotic rift drink that was making a splash among elite gatherings. Its main benefit was taste adaptability. Its taste would change based on a person’s preferences. The drink smelled of monopoly but you could never go wrong with it.

  Almost.

  Columbus didn’t touch it.

  “This isn't a social meeting, Rugman,” Columbus said. “Don’t waste our time.”

  Ronald snorted. The military loved nothing more but wasting time. But antagonising a man who could crush you like a bug wasn’t a smart idea.

  “Windsor Freeman would like to propose an alliance.”

  Columbus didn’t react in any noticeable way, which meant that he expected this.

  “No,” he replied a few seconds later and proceeded to stand up.

  “Wait, wait, wait.” Ronald raised his hands. Columbus returned to his seat. “He knew you would say that. He knows he fucked up with his promise to Keynes Kid so he wants to make amends.” That was a lie. Freeman was too proud to admit his failings. “Here.” A folder appeared in Ronald’s hand, coming from a spatial pouch.

  “A full documentation about the Human Project.”

  Columbus took the folder, opened it up, his eyes skimmed the front page then it vanished his spatial space. Columbus’s face didn’t change, staying impassive but Ronald knew what was coming. He could sense greed from afar.

  “We already know about the Human Project. If he is serious about the alliance with us, then I expect documents about all Shaper’s ancient projects, delivered by Freeman personally. Now, turn around before the King of Winters takes notice…”

  A crack sounded in the air and the yacht jolted. Ronald jumped to his feet, finding the water around them frozen. At the edge of the ice stood a man in a long blue and white coat.

  Esopp Earl arrived.

  ***

  Shaper pushed and pulled, forming and reforming one of his attribute cores. The task was daunting for him and impossible for anyone below the Grand spiritual stage. But it helped that he was outside of time and space, imprisoned in his own mind. It allowed him to get a better understanding of himself and the nature of spiritual energy.

  Something shifted in the Mind core. It was not yet aligned properly but an improvement was made. Shaper was close to achieving something groundbreaking.

  So close…

  ***

  Tom Ventura looked at the wanted posters issued by the Vanguard, the military arm of the World Government. Bounty hunting was a lucrative but risky business. The Vanguard paid handsomely, and often by offering access to their own rifts but Tom wasn’t interested in rifts or newly opened dungeons.

  ‘Oxford Sioux’

  The name on the wanted poster intrigued him. The boy had been on his radar for a while and so far proved elusive. Even for me.

  “You are becoming obsessed with the boy,” Aurora said from the bar, where she tested all kinds of strange drinks made out of rift materials. Some even got her drunk. “Shouldn't you remain focused on Harter Kid in case his brother made contact?”

  Tom turned to his sister. Her financial help had been fundamental to his effort of finding Keynes Kid but he no longer believed it would happen. Keynes Kid and some others had vanished at the end of the second global dominion. From what he had learned was that Vivena Sael, now called the Queen of Poisons, had fought Keynes.

  Since then Keynes did not appear. And no outbreaks or global dominions…

  “We need to recruit him. He will help us find Keynes.”

  “Hmm,” Aurora sighed. “That sounds like pain but it’s your call. Now, it’s time for my call. Here.” She pushed a sheet of paper. “Are targets for you to eliminate. Make sure no one remembers you.”

  “Pff,” Tom snorted as he snatched the sheet from the bar.