But the most horrifying sight was the body of a woman; her reproductive organs had been cut off, and her eyes were missing, as though they had been violently gouged out. Every corner of the apartment bore the marks of absolute torture as if the very demons of hell had passed through.

Detective Thompson stood in the middle of this bloody hell and said in a trembling voice: "What in God's name happened here? Did a pack of leopards attack them? Or what?"

One of the officers standing next to him replied in a tense voice: "Sir, this brutality can only come from a human... no beast could do this."

Outside, Gabriel stood close to the crowd, shocked by what he saw. He couldn't understand what was going on, but he couldn't stop himself from wondering: "Who is the human monster that could do this?"

His thoughts were interrupted by two old women talking nearby: The first one: "Could it be the Soul Reaper again?" The second one: "Damn him! Wherever he is, let him ride straight to hell!"

As the second woman finished her words, Gabriel decided to leave the scene. He didn't want to stay there and risk being seen by the police. Gabriel returned to his home home,

Gabriele couldn't sleep that night. He felt as if the very heavens were declaring war on the earth. The rain poured down in torrents, relentless and unending, as if the clouds were unleashing their fury. Lightning cleaved the sky, splitting it with blinding white light, followed by thunder that roared like an angry beast, shaking the entire neighborhood and rattling the windows as though they might shatter. Yet, despite all this, the storm was not what troubled him most.

Gabriele sat in the corner of the room, pressing his head against the cold wall. His body shivered, as though the chill had seeped into his bones. He began to whisper to himself, his voice laden with distress and fear:

"What is happening to me? Have I gone mad? How am I seeing all these hallucinations? Or were they truly hallucinations?!"

He raised his trembling hands to his head and pressed them hard as if trying to stop the flood of thoughts that were drowning him. He muttered in a hoarse voice:

"What about that demon pirate? And those horrifying corpses walking in that cursed alley? What... is happening to me?!"

Gabriele's voice grew louder as if his screams were a reflection of his inner turmoil. He began gasping for breath, his eyes scanning the room as if searching for some explanation or way out. He spoke in a voice barely above a whisper, almost choking:

"What happened to me?! How did I wake up in that alley where that massacre took place? And why was my clothing covered in blood when I wasn't even wounded? This... this is impossible... impossible!"

He repeated the word as if trying to convince himself he wasn't losing his mind, but the echo of his words in the empty room only heightened his tension. Sweat began to pour from his forehead, and his entire body trembled as if stricken by a fierce fever. It felt as though he had wandered for days in a valley of death, surrounded by darkness and fear.

After long, agonizing moments of silence, Gabriele stumbled to his feet and then collapsed onto his bed. His body felt as though it were carrying the weight of the entire world. He closed his eyes, trying to summon the image of his devout Catholic mother. She had always been his refuge in moments like this. Slowly, he began to recite the prayers she had taught him as a child, murmuring them slowly as though pleading for peace and tranquillity.

With each prayer he uttered, his heart calmed a little until, at last, exhaustion claimed him, even though his dreams were far from peaceful.

When the sun rose, it marked the day of the great operation. Gabriele awoke with a heavy heart, determined to go forward despite everything he had endured. He set off towards the headquarters where the team awaited him.

Everyone piled into darkened cars equipped with advanced camouflage systems as if part of some grand secret conspiracy. Inside the cars, the atmosphere was charged with tension and anticipation. As the vehicles made their way through the streets, Gabriele couldn't help but wonder to himself:

"Who's funding this organization? Who has these resources that seem endless?"

They finally arrived at the designated location. The air was thick with anticipation, and each member of the team readied themselves for the next step.

On the seventh floor of the unfinished concrete building, Gabriele and Rose took their positions, while Eva was positioned above. The building seemed like an empty shell, filled only with shadows that danced with the wind.

In the garden, the president and the minister sat comfortably, sipping coffee, completely unaware of the disaster that was drawing near.

Eva signaled the beginning. Rose immediately began hacking into the phones of the New Zealand soldiers. Her fingers moved swiftly and precisely across the keypad, as though playing a complex technological symphony. After a few minutes, Rose succeeded in disabling their systems, forcing them to stay inside.

Meanwhile, Gabriele was suffering from a severe headache. He felt pulsations of pain, as though a hammer was repeatedly striking his skull. He tried to focus on the hack, but the pain clouded his thoughts. Nevertheless, thanks to his sharp intellect, he eventually managed to breach the American guards' systems.

The operation began as planned. Explosions began to ring out, one after another, each explosion sending shockwaves through the air. The deafening hum filled the atmosphere, and thick smoke clouded the area.

Amidst the chaos, Eva fired a single shot. It was a perfect hit, piercing the minister's skull, causing him to collapse, lifeless.

As for Gabriele, the dizziness intensified with every passing moment. Suddenly, he felt something tightening around his neck. He turned to find a little girl, her features grotesquely disfigured and her head shattered completely, blood pouring from her body.

The girl effortlessly lifted his body as though he were a mere doll, then slammed him to the ground with brutal force. Gabriele felt excruciating pain as it tore through every bone in his body. As he struggled to gather himself, the ghost of Mason appeared. Mason was surrounded by an aura of dense shadows, his eyes glowing like hellfire.

The ghost approached him and spoke in a chilling voice as if the words were echoing from the very depths of hell:

"με ἐγκατέλιπες"

The ghost vanished suddenly, leaving Gabriele sprawled on the ground, unconscious.

When Rose found Gabriele, he was lying unconscious. The team had decided to flee, leaving him behind, but Rose refused to leave without him. She shouted angrily:

"I will not leave him here, Eva!"

But Eva responded sharply:

"Come on, Rose, we must leave now!"

Rose refused to comply, lifting Gabriele onto her back, despite his heavy weight. She rushed through the hallways, searching for an escape route, until she stumbled upon an abandoned motorcycle.

She jumped onto the bike, placed Gabriele behind her, and sped away at full throttle, leaving the site of the disaster behind, the smoke from the explosions and the sounds of chaos echoing in the distance.

End of Chapter