The room was dark, with the details of the people, furniture, and location obscured, save for a bright light that illuminated the middle of a table. Within the visible ring of light sat four hands in a circle; the details of their owners were shrouded in the darkness.

The first set of hands resting on the table neatly interlocked their fingers like a vault. They were so pale it was as if they’d never seen the light of day. The fingers were slender, elegant, and had long, round nails that were painted in a vivid shade of cardinal red. A large silver signet that had the Roman numeral “II” inscribed in the middle of hellfire adorned the left index finger. Demonic symbols and scrollings engraved the edges of the ring as it gleamed in the light.

The second set of hands, covered in scars, casually spun a Bowie knife. They were tan and weathered, with long and lanky fingers that had touched all sorts of sins. The right hand had the head of Quetzalcōātl tattooed on top as its body slithered back into the darkness. On the left middle finger was another similar silver signet, this time with a Roman numeral “III” inscribed on it.

The third set of hands gently clasped its palms together, facing up, almost like a prayer. The skin tone of the hands was fair, and the fingers were firm but tender. The knuckles, however, had bruises that were still healing. On the left ring finger was a signet that had the Roman numeral “IV” on it.

The last set of hands resting on the table gently splayed their fingers, with only the tips of them touching. The gaps between the fingers seemed to beckon another to slip between them. The hands were small but sensual, with a golden brown complexion that lustered in the ring light. A layer of dark orchid sheathed their rounded fingernails. On the left pinky was a signet that had the Roman numeral “V” inscribed on it.

“Central Dogma intelligence has reported that the Devil’s Tooth Operative, Dr. Katherine Takagi, has failed to eliminate Wu Gaa Lau of the Lau Triad and is suspected to be colluding with them,” came the voice of the Second Finger—calm, clipped, devoid of emotion.

The slender porcelain fingers unlocked themselves, with one hand briefly sliding back into the darkness, before returning with a photograph to place in the middle of the light. The photo captured Kat stitching up a disgruntled Rudy through a window.

“A Takagi that’s failed their mission? Ahora*, that’s a first. I always thought it was strange that our best operating Tooth was a doctor...” theatrically remarked the Third Finger. He picked up the photograph, tracing the details of their faces with the tip of his knife. "Hoh, ain't that the Iron Door? La doctora seems to be getting quite chummy with her."

He returned the photograph to the center of the table before the praying hands unclasped themselves to reach for it. Their fingers held it firm and straight, as if they were preparing to deliver divine judgment.

“If this failure was due to her betrayal of her clan and the Devil’s Hand… then she has committed the gravest sin. Il tradimento più grande*,” pitied the Fourth Finger in an ethereal tone that almost illuminated the darkness of the room.

He passed the photograph to the small pair of hands beside him, which graciously received his offer.

“How can you be sure that Dr. Takagi has betrayed us and gone rogue with the Laus? She's been an exceptional Tooth, albeit she refuses to accept any assignments involving children. Mai pen rai*, I’m sure we can still turn her around,” gently whispered the Fifth Finger in a voice so sultry that it could lower the guards of even the hardiest of men. She gently caressed the figures in the photograph, as if she were seducing them, before returning it to the center.

“What should we do? Send another Tooth after her? We can only deploy one if the majority of us agree,” asked the Fourth Finger.

“No, with Dr. Takagi gone rogue, the integrity of the Takagi clan is now compromised," calmly responded the Second Finger. "Their blood oath to us has been void since Wu Gaa assassinated Mikhail, our chosen representative for the Devil's Handshake. We have only taken the word of the Takagi clan's head for continued loyalty until a new Handshake is performed with her. I suspect Dr. Takagi is taking advantage of the voided Handshake to collude with the Laus."

"What would Dr. Takagi have to gain by working with the Laus?" pondered the Fifth Finger. "The Takagis benefit from our protection and are compensated quite well for their assignments. Why risk that to shift allegiance to an underdog org?"

The Second Finger flatly answered, "The Laus may not be the underdogs for long. With the news of the assassination of Mikhail leaking within the past twenty-four hours, a power vacuum has already emerged, leading to the rise of other factions in the Eurasia region, most notably the Laus. While the Turgenev Twins have inherited their father’s role as the heads of the Rostov Bears, they are no match for Wu Gaa’s craftiness, which earned him the moniker, the Fox of the East."

"Khun* Wu is an ambitious man, with the brains and tongue to match, I'll admit," bitterly conceded the Fifth Finger.

"The Laus have been known to back proxy organizations that disrupt Underworld trade codes," added the Fourth Finger. "We've already deployed several Teeth just to quell these proxies. The Laus dominate the Underworld weapon trade in Asia, and have been spreading their networks to America's East Coast ever since the Iron Door took command of their New York branch five years ago. Their logistics lines to New York City have been impregnable ever since she became their captain. They have access to equipment that rivals that of tier one special operations forces with the skills to match."

"Even the Takagis like their toys. Jumping ship is only natural when the old captain’s overboard," drawled the Third Finger.

"Who will be chosen to replace Khun Mikhail as the First Finger? Could it be one of the Twins?" asked the Fifth Finger. "The Takagis have also historically requested that the Devil's Handshake be done with the First Finger, who holds the strongest enforcer power in the Underworld, something that the Takagis deeply respect. They have no trust in the scheming of the other Fingers. Their clan head refuses to renew the Handshake until the new First Finger is elected."

"The Twins are no match to replace Mikhail as the First Finger. Too young, too brash, they inherited little of their father's cold pragmatism, nor have the reputation to match. I doubt enough Knuckles would vote one of them in as the new First Finger," sternly noted the Fourth Finger.

"Would the Knuckles vote Khun Wu as the new First Finger?" suggested the Fifth Finger. "His diplomacy has been quite far-reaching as of late."

"Oh Dio mio*! Voting in a new Finger who assassinated the last one? I refuse to sit next to someone who murdered one of our own!" blasted the Fourth Finger, slamming a curled fist onto the table.

"You forget who we are, Cardenal," chimed the Third Finger, balancing the handle of his knife on his finger. "By the Devil's Codex, Fingers can't kill Fingers, and Wu Gaa is but a Knuckle. He's free to come after our necks, with the only deterrent being us biting back with our Teeth."

The Third Finger then gripped his knife and pointed it at the praying set of hands.

"Only the strongest can hold our positions, el Zorro engañó al Oso*, and now Wu Gaa is the only man to have ever survived being bitten by a Tooth. The other Knuckles will cheer for such a feat, jaja," the Third Finger rattled.

"I still don't think Khun Wu killed the First Finger," interjected the Fifth Finger. "The Twins could be crying wolf to have the Laus eliminated by us. The Rostov Bears and the Laus have a long grudge, but it isn't like Khun Wu to do something so bold and risky. He's much more... insidious than that."

The Fifth Finger's fingers curled inwards like claws at her last remark.

"Let me remind you that the Twins reported their father's assassin left a note, 'A father for a mother,' written in blood over Mikhail's desk with his severed thumb, ring included, while the rest of his remains were missing," recounted the Second Finger. "When I had Central Dogma investigate, my agents reported that Mikhail's remains were last spotted in Hong Kong, stuffed into a crate of ammunition bound for New York City. Analysis of blood samples on the docks confirmed it was him."

"Mikhail killed Wu Gaa's sister-in-law, Friedegard Lau, mother to his niece, Rudina Lau, the Iron Door," recalled the Fourth Finger. "Wu Gaa must've sent Mikhail's remains there to let his niece know her mother was avenged. At this point, the Twins have more than enough evidence to accuse Wu Gaa of the assassination, and the Underworld believes them. Even if this wasn't the Fox's work, the longer he remains alive, the more faith the Underworld loses in the power of the Devil's Hand, and the more they are charmed by the Fox's boldness."

The Fourth Finger held up his left hand and tucked his thumb in before continuing.

"Mikhail was the Grip that locked down the Underworld and the Devil's Teeth. The Rostov Bears were the strongest Underworld paramilitary force under his command. The Devil's Hand won't last long without his strength."

"The other Fingers must simply grip harder. One of our own must reestablish the pecking order. Who here has what it takes to hunt down a Takagi and finish off Wu Gaa Lau?” challenged the Second Finger.

“Hunting down a Takagi and personally taking out the head of the Laus? Now that sounds like fun, jajaja,” cackled the Third Finger. “Count me in.”

“Fernando, this is no game. Suspending the operations of the Devil’s Teeth has lost us our strongest hand. And don't forget, Dr. Takagi, one of our best operatives, is working with the Laus, who have the Wolves, former elite counter terrorism operatives, headed by the Iron Door," sternly reminded the Second Finger. "The Knuckles vote in the new First Finger in two weeks. We cannot let it be Wu Gaa, lest the Hand renews as the Fox's Paw. Failure is not tolerated.”

“Don’t worry, señora, I will show them why they call me, La Cuchilla*," hissed Fernando, suddenly stabbing his knife through the photograph, right between Kat's and Rudy's faces.

The other hands reactively twitched at his display, but the Second Finger's hands remained unfazed. The Third Finger leaned his face into the light. His face was long and tan, with dark shadows under his wild eyes. The gauntness of his skin mixed with the energy of his expression made him out to be in his mid-30s. His hair was dark and slicked back, and his goatee was sharp, angular, with a scar running up from the bottom of his chin up to his slender, pointed nose. He bore a feverish smile, revealing two gold teeth in the middle. A split tongue slithered out between his teeth to lick them. His breathing was heavy, almost like he was aroused by the task. His knife ominously vibrated from the stab's impact as he drew his face back into the shadow.

End of Act I

To be Continued in Act II: The Second Circle, Lust