Devi had been keeping a careful eye after the missive he had gotten from the supreme head. The supreme head’s letter was something that he had to share with his fellow disciples, hoping they could avoid the tragedy that had been happening to them. Devi left the cobblestoned streets and entered an alley. Entering a building with two floors, he took off his hat and headed downstairs where the rats and birds would unlikely find them.

He knocked his knuckles on the door three times. The door swung to the side, revealing a group of people in mantles walking around the room and was uneasy about something.

“Brother Devi,” one of the people said. He pointed at the chair. “Sit down; have you gotten the missive from the supreme head?”

“Yes, unfortunately it looks like our fears have merits to them.”

Devi unfolded the letter and read, “My brothers and sisters, there have been movements of those who seek to wipe our cult from the face of the land. I had informed our Enforcers to seek this person. Whoever this murderer is, he had been hunting down our brothers in cold blood. This must not continue. Every brother and sisters of Null shall be wary of this person.”

“Do they intend to seek this person?”

“We know nothing about this killer other than his methods!” One individual said. “We lost four of our own just this week, Devi!”

“I am aware.” Devi placed the letter on the surface of the table. “I buried most of them while you all cowered in the dark.”

Devi pulled the glove off his left hand, presenting ‘the mark’ before them. The mark had allowed them to be more technically insightful. Though they call them as ‘techno-hoarders’ by those who even know of them.

“We must not fight,” Devi said to them. “In these moments we must be firmer than iron chains. I had avoided the enemy through the use of magnetism.”

On his belt was the same marking that he have on the back of his left hand. The mark gives a strange connection to any machine that they embed with the mark. Years of research and tinkering with the mark has given them insight on what they can do with it. Throughout this research, they could control machines by sending the signal emitted by their mark to their equipment.

“So that was how you avoided it.”

“I could do so because of the projectile. I must admit that creating a proximity radius had allowed me to sense where the bullet would come.”

“Hmm, as expected of you, Devi.”

Devi raised a finger, “I must warn you that this is only a measure to protect ourselves barely. It does not act as a true shield, and if this were the past, we would have been deities in the field. However, you know we are not totally safe when faced with the power of firearms. The mark grants us advantages, but a bullet to the head will stop us on our tracks. We learn that well over the years.”

Technology was catching up to the Null. Not even Null’s technological superiority could grant them the domination that they had once enjoyed during the times where the technology was not to the standard of what they have right now. Someone had discovered the technology that the world should not gain this early.

The Vulcan Technology that the Holmians have was a threat to their secrecy and to the world. Their ancestor told them of a dream that they had seen and the possibility of a vision of a future that would turn the world upside down if they do not play their hands.  He recalled the thoughts of his ancestors:

I saw the great cloud rise from above, bringing forth winds of destruction, leaving nothing but sickness. The destructive wind turned the once fertile lands into a barren wasteland, the trees into ashes, and the greens into that of black. The sickening air choked and those who have been exposed to this wind have their lives shorten, skin wrinkled, and they would wither like flowers.

Those were the words of their ancestors as they warned.

Null had been searching and destroying anything that might relate to such destructive green wind. To make sure that the world does not end as their ancestor had warned them. Devi admits that there is merit to what the people call them, but it does not mean that they have abandoned that belief. Especially once they saw the five-year war that brought many lands to waste.

Devi cupped his chin. “I’ve made sure that our presence in the Capital is hidden, yet this perpetrator could find us and target us.”

“Have you checked the Holmians?”

“General Steelheart is a man who prefers to fight in the open. He does not walk the shadows, and that is why it benefits us. The Crown Prince is busy and only a few who know that we walk the Capital.”

They all quieted down.

“We must turn our sight to the King of the ebony market.”

“That might be a good idea,” Devi said. “However, we must make sure that we do not catch the attention of the Constables and the Hounds of the Tomas Family.”

“Do you suspect them?”

“Unlikely, however, they will turn their eyes on us if we choose to interfere with the production of the technology. Our deductions are correct that they intend to use the technology to increase the productivity of their machines. It is good that they do not intend to walk the path that would cause them to produce a demon core.”

“The crystal is not a threat, but the giants that they intend to create are something that we must watch over. I fear that the crystal that they have has an affinity with our marks.”

“You can’t possibly think that is true?”

“We must keep an open mind, brothers and sisters. We must eliminate the impossible, for whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth. I have seen the particular discharge. I regret to inform you it is closer to what we have on the back of our hands.”

The crowd in the room quieted. They visibly composed themselves while caressing the marks on their left hand.

“Do our brothers from the regions intend to help?”

“They are in a quagmire of their own as well. We’re already spread so thin because of the war.”

“This is troublesome. We mustn’t let more of our people die because of this, Devi.”

“I know. I do not intend to lose another disciple. However, this vile person is, this perpetrator intends to hunt us down. Do you not know of anyone who might share such sentiment against us?”

“We had made sure that the rats and birds did not reach us. Our communications have been encrypted with the old imperial script. Forgive me for this, my fellow brothers, but I have screened everyone here.”

There was a clear change in the expression of everyone present. Lugi had been one of the most eager of the enforcers working for Null. His eyes traveled on the people inside.

“I am pleased that you’ve all passed my screening, but we must make sure that no rats have sneaked in our homes. I hope that you understand my intentions.”

Everyone nodded curtly. Devi lowered his head. He thought that ever since the arrival of the Holmians to the Capital, their recent move to secure the technology had led to this accident.

“Lugi, have you gathered the manner in which our enemy has been moving?”

“Yes, we do know that however is targeting us. This person can target anyone with extreme precision,” Lugi placed four photos and four documents on the table.

The four files compared the death of their brothers and sister. Among the murders that had happened. The three of them were killed by a precise shot in the chest. One of their friends was murdered with two stab wounds on the neck and the chest.

It was hard for Devi to look at the photograph of their friends. They had been fighting together to keep the technology out of the hands of tyrants. Death wasn’t new to their circle, and there will be a day where even he would succumb to the hazards of his duty. Nonetheless, losing a friend bothered him. To serve the light, they had to be in the dark and yet it didn’t mean that their hearts needed to be dark as well.

Lugi groaned. “We gathered evidence that three of our friends were killed with a 7.70mm bullet. The location, the trajectory, the drag of the bullet implies that however fired that rifle has quite the ability.”

Devi tapped a photo on the table with his finger, “What about him?”

Lugi looked down. “He’s been stabbed with a knife. The bullets were cleaned, we didn’t find anything. Not even a fingerprint that might help us. However, we can narrow it down to those who have the ability to shoot from afar. I have a list here that might help us.”

Devi took one of the documents inside the file. Scanning the files, he came upon a document that made him groan.

“Sir Mavin Tomas,” Devi growled.

“You know what they call him. We’ve seen sightings of him in the Academy, but there are times where not even our rats and birds can find where he was.”

“Are you implying this?”

“I am. We must know if he’s one of them. Tomas or not, we must have the truth.”

Devi folded his arms. He examined the documents again and came to a conclusion. “Have someone watch his movements. I’ll allow the use of our marks if it is necessary.”

They nodded. Lugi took the document from Devi. “I’ve some of our men following him. We’ll have to be careful.”

“Obviously, once the hounds of Tomas find us. Then we’ll have to face the Emperor on our knees. That is if he doesn’t find us first.”

Lugi shuddered at the thought of being found by the son of the Strongarm Clan. The Tomas, no, the Strongarm Clan had always been a people who were told to be foreigners from a distant land. Who then became one of the foundations of an Empire.

They say that there was another continent that had sunk and they were the last ones. Even their grand archives did not have any records of the Strongarm Clan other than their first appearance when the Empire marched into their mountains. Battle-weary warriors who had come to the Magnar-Azia to find peace, and yet were unable to find it when faced with the demifiends and a war that intends to unite.

Harsh times create strong men, but the Strongarm’s relish and thrive on harshness. Even as years passed they still have that blood on them that keeps them strong.

“Be careful, Lugi,” Devi warned. “Mavin Tomas is called the Ghost of Dinia for a good reason.”

Those who have birds everywhere knew what the man could do with a rifle. They wouldn’t have known that he was the Ghost of Dinia if they had not been listening to Old Sable before he got shot dead.

“I do not intend to wrestle with that cold-hearted man if I must. We all know what he did to the ebony market and to the Falcone. The systematic killing of the demifiends in the south of Lazon. I rather wish that he’s not on our case, but we already suspected that he was eager to get rid of Null in the Greater Lazon Region.”

“If he’s really doing this, then he must have changed his mind about kicking us out to killing us.”

“That’s why I find it odd that he’d change his mind. I heard that he’s less cold now. Then again, you can never trust that person. Not when he has the Strongarm Clan’s blood flowing in him.”

“Fighting the Son of the Strongarm Clan again. I don’t like this,” one of the people in the room said.

“We’re not fighting him. We’ll keep our distance and if there is a reason he’s targeting us. Then we’ll find a way.”

Someone had to pay for the lives of the four.

Devi was going to find the bastard that had done it.