UNKNOWN APARTMENT

VIRTUM, GRATA - 8:46 AM

Zack arrives at an apartment complex. He brings the box containing the rifle and walks up four steps, and knocks on the door six times, each knock getting progressively louder. Clicking sounds from inside can be heard, one akin to unlocking a door. After a few seconds, the door is opened and Zack is greeted by a tall male individual with dark skin and long white hair, with a braid reaching to his lower back. On the left side of his head which is partially shaved lies a cartoonish tattoo of a white beluga whale. The man stares at Zack with deep blue eyes.

“May I see it?” the man asks. His voice is oddly similar to the man in the hacked broadcast from earlier. Zack whips out the box and opens it halfway, revealing the gun and ammunition. The man nods and jerks his head inside, signaling Zack to come in.

Inside the apartment is a fairly normal room, save for the extremely buff, bald dark-skinned individual sitting on the couch watching Assault On Giants play on the television, an animated series about humans slaying gargantuan creatures. He and Zack exchange looks before Zack sits down on the couch as well, resting the metallic box upon a table. The bald man opens the box and stares at the man with white hair. The two shift their eyes towards Zack as the bald man stands up. He reaches behind the cupboard, revealing hidden stacks of money. Before he can hand it to Zack, the man with white hair holds him back.

“We need to see if it works first,” says the man with white hair.

“We’ve done business for so long and you still don’t trust me,” replies Zack.

“My apologies for being cautious. But please, tell me. What’s stopping you from working with Eternal Drive again?”

Zack stands up aggressively, triggering the bald man. The man with white hair however, still holds him back with one hand.

“...Did you hit your head while I was away? Or are you just the biggest dumbass on the planet?” Zack says, insulting him. He stares directly into the man’s blue eyes before letting it all out.

“Have you forgotten what they put me through? What they did to the people I love? I went through HELL in Evernight!”

Zack calms down and starts to ease himself as the white-haired man glares back at him.

“It’s the only reason I’m working with you. So I can pay back the years of anguish they gave me. But if you still don’t trust me, then I’ll be happy to leave as you find yourselves new suppliers. Oh… that’s right… I’m the only one left.”

The white-haired man stops holding back his buff cohort. The bald man hands Zack the money. Zack stuffs it in his pocket, separating the stack in two to fit.

“This… this is good. Collect that energy… Remember the pain, that hatred… Remember the rage that you’re feeling right now, and hold on to it,” says the white-haired man.

Zack pulls out a cigarette, and forms a prismatic flame from his finger. Before he can light it, the white-haired man grabs his wrist and points to the ceiling, where a smoke detector awaits.

The three men step outside with Zack finally smoking his cigarette. He breaks the silence after two puffs.

“I told you that broadcast was a bad idea. No one’s taking it seriously.”

“Initially, perhaps. But those very same people making light of it know deep inside that they agree with our message. And when they wake up from being sheep… That’ll be the day,” the white-haired man replies. Zack looks at him confusedly.

“That’ll be the day?”

“That Eternal Drive falls. The moment they lose the one thing they have: control over the masses.”

“Entro… do you really believe the people will join our cause?” asks the bald man.

“I believe in the judgement of the citizens of Lavia,” replies Entro.

“Heh… Spoken like a true patriot,” Zack remarks sarcastically.

“I beg your pardon?” asks Entro, aware of Zack’s sarcastic tone.

“I’ve lived long enough to know that the people of Lavia ain’t shit. If they really wanted to overthrow Eternal Drive, they would have done so a long time ago,” Zack replies.

“How do you suggest we make our next move, then? Do we just barge in at their front door guns ablaze? It’s suicide! That’s why we’ll be the ones to start the revolution. If enough people are adequately equipped, then we might actually stand a chance,” states the bald man, disapproving of Zack's statement.

“You misunderstand me. What I meant to say was to win the people over, it would take a lot more than a message on TV.”

“That message… Do you not see the amount of publicity it is generating? It is making people aware of our cause. It’s a start for something much, much bigger. Sooner or later they’ll come crawling to our doors, begging to be taken in.”

“We’ll move at a snail’s pace if we keep it up, and E-Drive will eventually come crawling to our doors, too. It's the whole reason we left, remember?”

“Then what do you suggest?”

Zack tosses his cigarette to the ground and steps on it, getting rid of the fire. He looks at the two men with a fierce determination in his eyes.

“I know something that’ll ruin Estreval. His legacy, his position… It’ll all crumble when the people find out.”

The two men look at each other, aware of what Zack is referring to.

15 YEARS AGO

ETERNAL TOWER - 38TH FLOOR

EVERNIGHT, NAZENDEL - 6:23 PM

Blood drips on the facility floor as a patient is held upward lifelessly by a soldier.

“Project Naiyo is unresponsive, sir!” says the soldier.

“Hmm… Another failure. It can’t be because of the experimentation… Otherwise these two would have passed long ago,” replies a tall, lean man with long, blue hair parted in two sides. He wears a lab coat attached with several vials containing demon blood. He looks towards two caged individuals, Zack Evergreen and a blonde man.

“Bring them out, would you?” the blue-haired man asks. The soldier complies and unlocks the cages, dragging the two men towards the scientist. They are both gagged and cuffed, with scars in several parts of their body.

The scientist pulls out a metal rod and points it under Zack’s chin. He raises Zack’s head, as Zack stares back with pure hatred in his eyes. He lowers the rod and redirects it to the blonde man. The blonde man however, has an expression of pure fear, contradictory to Zack. The scientist removes Zack and the blonde man’s gags. The two prisoners breathe heavily, as if they were fatigued.

“Tell me, Evergreen. Why did half of my experiments fail, yet half survived?” the scientist asks. Zack smirks back at him.

“Because you’re a no-good, incompetent fuck-up who will never be able to recreate my genius,” growls Zack. The scientist sighs and smacks him in the face with the rod.

“It’s a shame, it truly is. All you had to do was sit back and do your job, and you would have ended up in my position right now…” the scientist replies, backing away from Zack.

“Maybe she would still be alive if-”

Before the scientist can finish his sentence, Zack lunges at him but is held back by the soldier just before he can reach the scientist.

“Ooh, touched a nerve now, did I?”

The scientist lowers his rod and orders the soldier to take the two prisoners away. He receives a call however, halting the soldier. He answers it, unaware that the phone is in speaker mode.

“Did you do it?” asks the scientist on the phone.

“It’s done. I killed Rivers,” replies a voice.

The scientist pauses for a moment, taken aback by the news. He gulps and struggles to find a reply to the voice, but he is too shaken to think of anything to say. Before he can say anything, the voice speaks once more.

“I advise you to get out of there, Trent. Nazendel is going to be put on lockdown when they discover his body. I’ve erased all traces and you will be my alibi. Remember, feign all involvement in this.”

The soldier, Zack and the blonde man all look shocked at the news that they just heard. Damon Estreval, the CEO of Eternal Drive, had murdered the President of South Lavia, Baron Rivers. Trent turns around and pulls out a revolver, shooting the soldier in the face to prevent the news from spreading. As he lowers his gun, the blonde man tackles him, throwing Trent off and making him shoot the blonde man in the stomach. Zack uses the distraction to quickly forage the soldier’s body and manages to free himself after finding a key. As the blonde man and Trent get up, Zack kicks Trent once more and stomps on him several times, busting his nose and knocking him out. He uses the key on the blonde man, and frees him as well. The two men nod at each other and start running for their lives, with Zack snatching a bag in the corner of the room as they make their way out. Several guards try to intercept them, but Zack runs through them with his prismatic lasers. As they continue treading through the facilities, the blond man collapses to his knees, pinching the wound in his stomach.

"Fuck...! Agh..."

"What's the matter? Why aren't you healing up?" Zack asks him.

"This... bullet... it's... a suppressant..." the blonde man replies as Zack leans over, dragging the man's arm over his shoulder as they continue their escape.

The two eventually arrive at a control room with a black button on one of the panels. Zack reaches out to push the button, but the blonde man grabs his arm.

“Are you really sure… You want to do this?” the blonde man asks, clutching his stomach in pain.

“This is the best chance we’ve got, Jason. Do you really wanna go through that again?” Zack replies.

“...Fine. But don’t let me regret not stopping you,” Jason says, coughing up some blood.

Zack pushes the button, opening several prison cells and rooms within the facility. As soon as the two leave the control room, chaos erupts in the facility. All of the glass windows break, the ground shakes with a mighty force that catches the two off-balance, explosions, gunfire and screaming can be heard in the background, and an alarm sounds all throughout the facility. Several CCTVs within the control room reveal three other demedioms killing their guards, including the individual who killed Raymond and Candace Altair. The two continue their escape until they arrive at a barricaded area…

15 YEARS LATER - PRESENT DAY

ENTRO’S APARTMENT

VIRTUM, GRATA - 9:19 AM

“Again with this shit…”

“We’ve discussed this before. There’s two reasons that won’t work,” states Entro.

“Exactly. No proof, and the people hated Rivers anyway,” elaborates the bald man.

“I am living, breathing, proof. Everybody knows about the head scientist of E-Drive that died 15 years ago in the demediom breakout. But only a handful know he’s still alive and in hiding,” Zack replies.

“Bullshit. The head scientist was Raymond Altair.”

“And he resigned months before my captivity. Do you know who took over in those months?” replies Zack as the bald man is silenced.

“Do you wanna make actual progress, or not?” Zack asks, as the bald man approaches Zack and stares through him.

“Like Rivers’ death means anything to the people! Maybe if you hadn’t fucked up and lost those documents, Palladium might actually-” the man says before Zack throws a right hook that catches him off-balance. Entro steps in between the two, separating them before things escalate any further.

“Enough, you two. We still have Estreval’s address to take place this Saturday. No matter what happens, they will track us down,”

“Entro… I thought that’d be our last resort. It’ll never have to come to that… Will it?” says the bald man, wiping blood off his lower lip.

“If it means bringing down Eternal Drive with us, then so be it. I’ll gladly be a martyr for the people to finally take action,” Entro says as he turns his head towards Zack.

“What-what about the M82? Is it finished?” the bald man suddenly asks in distress.

“It’s still in progress. But you both know that the M82 I built is just a prototype? There won’t be any room for testing,” Zack replies.

“Then hurry up! It’s our best chance to kill Estreval without any of us dying.”

“Killing Estreval will not stop Eternal Drive; you and I both know that. Omega and Mathers… they must all answer for their crimes,” replies Zack as he faces Entro, who flinches at the names.

“Don’t you have a group of demedioms with you? They could be real useful don’t ‘cha think?” asks the bald man.

“There is no way I’m dragging them into this. And they’re still kids. They’ll just mess things up.”

“Yet you trust them enough to do illegal transactions with Palladium right under Estreval’s nose. In doing so, are they not already risking their lives?” replies Entro.

“What would you know about protecting your comrades? Whatever “sacrifice” you plan to make… It isn’t for our protection. You know damn well it’s to cement your legacy as Estreval’s murderer!” says Zack as he walks towards Entro before shoving him.

“My death will be the catalyst for the beginning of a new future.”

“You’ve insisted on this suicide mission for months, now. I’ve never met anyone so obsessed with dying in a blaze of glory like you. Let me give you a reminder. Martyrdom isn’t actively finding ways to die. It’s fighting for what you believe in, and dying for it!” says Zack, heated at Entro’s mentality.

“Is this because you fear the serum I was given will come to waste?” Entro asks Zack.

“Maybe I’m just not a psycho who wishes for everyone but me to die.”

“...You’ve grown soft, Evergreen,” Entro replies, commenting on Zack’s demeanor.

“It’s called empathy. You should try it sometime,” Zack sarcastically remarks.

“Entro, please. I’ve always disliked Evergreen, but for once in his life he is making sense. Think about everything we’ve been through, man! This isn’t worth losing you,” says the bald man, his voice shaking at the thought of losing his brother.

“Fine. Let us weigh our options… Then we decide. The three of us, together. For now, let us wait for Zack to finish the sniper rifle. I trust you’ll have it ready by the 28th.”

“No promises,” says Zack. The two return to the apartment as Zack returns to his car, driving off to his home.

To Be Continued…