The clock on the wall ticked in an almost mocking rhythm.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTM47WL86eE
It was past midnight in COMA’s north wing, and the mission room’s dim light cast Luce’s face in half-shadow.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡF6RC86v67y
His phone sat on the table, screen glowing faintly — Call Ended. No Response.
For the sixth time that day, he had tried Gianluca’s number.
He leaned back in his chair, rubbing his face with both hands, his mind turning over memories like jagged stones.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0U7f0JwqY
The old man’s voice, gruff but familiar. The occasional half-smiles. The few rare moments of warmth buried under years of harsh training.
And now — silence.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡPoo4wqgOH3
A silence that felt heavier than any insult he’d ever been given.
“Still nothing?”
Sayaka’s voice was soft, like she knew pressing too hard would make him shut down.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhTT3l6SlYy
She stood in the doorway with a steaming mug in hand, her hair loose around her shoulders. She didn’t look like the tactical genius Ravenfall knew her as right now — more like the girl who stayed up late worrying.
Luce shook his head without looking up. “He’s ignoring me. Or… something happened.”
She crossed the room and placed the mug in front of him.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTBM6rBkL4M
“Then we find out what. That’s what we do, remember?”
Luce finally glanced at her. The corners of his mouth twitched, almost a smile, before he muttered, “Yeah. That’s what we do.”
The next morning, COMA’s south training yard buzzed with an uneasy energy.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoVhM7zpamz
Elda Korugane’s orders from the day before were still sinking in — one month, no excuses.
Ravenfall assembled first. Ishaan and Veer, naturally, arrived arguing about whose turn it was to make breakfast for the team.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKcc2ObVnkn
“It’s not about turns, Veer,” Ishaan declared, hands waving dramatically, “it’s about skill. And your eggs taste like regret.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡV8HVoXimCF
Veer shot back without missing a beat. “At least I don’t burn water.”
Avni rolled her eyes so hard it was a miracle they didn’t fall out.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡILpmgKBM8C
Lev smirked but kept quiet — picking sides in an Ishaan–Veer argument was suicide.
The Valgrave twins arrived next.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡyDsBIh4os4
The first seconds were… tense.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbruB1i9IuX
Damien’s gaze lingered on Luce a moment too long, and Luce met it with the same cool, unreadable stare.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbSJ9B2cZC2
Sayaka stepped half a pace closer to him without even thinking.
“All right,” Ishaan finally broke the silence. “This is awkward, so… introductions?”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡocwmMIgHcR
Raiden sighed. “They already know who we are. We already know who they are.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJgPSNdsls
“Yeah, but they don’t know us as Ravenfall,” Ishaan said, patting his own chest.
Damien’s eyebrow twitched — hard to tell if it was amusement or annoyance.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFPkbj7amae
Isolde’s lips curled into the faintest smirk.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡcBQl1PJMLI
The ice cracked, just a little.
They started the day with weapons calibration.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡClL8pXKXiP
Elda’s orders had come with unlimited equipment access — a rare gift that Ravenfall took full advantage of.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ8tS49XTyI4
Lev tested a modified rail pistol; Avni fine-tuned drone optics.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1HRw1Eb1Yt
Sayaka stood with Luce, adjusting the grip on his sidearm, her fingers brushing his.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡpOOZIE6Z4f
“You’re holding it too tight,” she murmured.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHNjZBGWrJh
Luce didn’t move, just gave a short nod, but his eyes flicked toward her for a second longer than necessary.
During a short break, Luce stepped aside to call Gianluca again.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡHU56BVuJPO
No answer. Not even the ring this time — just straight to voicemail.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡTWdBc7B21I
His grip on the phone tightened.
“Still nothing?” Damien’s voice came from behind.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡAB11d0PBWT
Luce turned slowly. “You know something?”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ1UTgUApLZA
Damien shrugged, looking far too casual. “I know Gianluca isn’t worth wasting breath over.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSoVgKaR1tT
Luce’s jaw tightened. “That’s not an answer.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jn0joev3r
Isolde, nearby, shot her brother a sharp look. “Damien.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiyVJXyNseN
He didn’t reply — just walked away.
By midday, training bled into mission briefings. ARGUS, COMA’s AI network, flickered to life on the central holoscreen.
ARGUS: “Primary mission: Locate connections between the deaths of Elior, Kaia, and the Valgrave professor and especially the Heads. Additional objective: Track all known bio-weapon projects active in the last decade.”
Maps lit up in front of them — red pins scattered across cities, laboratories, and abandoned military facilities.
ARGUS: “Initial point of interest: Codename Sleeping Gate.”
The name lingered in the air like smoke.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC0nVFnWVia
Lev leaned forward. “What is it?”
ARGUS: “Classified. Origin: Laboratory complex under Yuriko Hanabira, with oversight by Rokuro.”
Sayaka exchanged a look with Luce. This wasn’t just another target — the name already carried weight neither of them could place.
As the day wound down, Ravenfall gathered in COMA’s mess hall.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhfLFN89cKw
Isolde sat a little apart, nursing a coffee, while Damien paced near the wall like he couldn’t sit still.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNFbvRKP7mY
Ishaan slid into the seat beside her. “You know, for someone with resting murder face, you don’t seem half bad.”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡBAoNBJ0nqq
Isolde raised an eyebrow. “That’s your idea of small talk?”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqIoFZLYpgx
“Yep,” Ishaan grinned. “And it’s working, because you didn’t stab me.”
Even Isolde couldn’t hide the ghost of a laugh.
Luce excused himself early. Outside, the air was sharp and cool.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnJ2HupbvJd
He tried Gianluca’s number one last time.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVOvZukJm5d
Voicemail. Again.
The city lights stretched far into the distance, but his focus was elsewhere — on the questions stacking higher in his mind.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN6b1VVzz91
Gianluca’s silence. The Valgrave's new Head. Elda’s urgency. And now, Sleeping Gate.
Sayaka’s voice broke the stillness. “You’re going to keep calling, aren’t you?”97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡKlKEjxoa4Y
He didn’t answer.
She stepped beside him, close enough that their shoulders almost touched. “We’ll find him. Or we’ll find the truth. Either way… you won’t be alone when it happens.”
For a moment, he looked at her — really looked — before turning back to the skyline.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡl9EpjvvGMM
“Yeah,” he said quietly. “We’ll see.”
The night settled around COMA.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡjKjw8pZuHW
Somewhere far from the city, a man named Gianluca Moretti sat in a locked, windowless room, shivering under a flickering light.97Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc0x96BBS1h
Adrian Valgrave’s voice was the last thing he heard before the door slammed shut again.
and then Add to home screen.