The night sky had fully claimed the horizon, and the stillness of the evening was shattered by the guttural, rhythmic roar of high-performance engines echoing through the city streets. One after another, citizens peered cautiously from behind their curtains to see a massive convoy of bikers cutting through the dark. They were a sight to behold, all of them draped in heavy, professional-grade overcoats, each featuring a meticulously embroidered rose, the mark of their allegiance, prominently on their backs.
There wasn’t a soul in the public sphere who didn’t recognize that symbol. This was the Fallen Rose, a syndicate-level biker gang whose infamy stretched far beyond the city limits and across the entire country. They were a tactical anomaly in the underworld; unlike other syndicates that entrenched themselves in a single territory to bleed it dry, the Fallen Rose was nomadic. They moved from area to area, location to location, taking on high-stakes contracts that required their specific brand of mobile, overwhelming force.
Currently, the convoy was snaking its way up a steep mountain pass. Eventually, the lead bikes slowed, signaling a break at a scenic lookout point. The riders stepped over the safety barriers and climbed a short distance up the rocky incline to a plateau, where they finally allowed themselves to unwind.
The atmosphere was a strange mix of relaxation and lethal readiness. In one area, bikers were cracking open drinks and sharing laughs; in another, a pair of riders were engaged in a friendly but intense sparring match to keep their reflexes sharp. However, slightly removed from the main group, three women sat on a picnic blanket, the weight of their conversation standing in stark contrast to the revelry around them.
"Another mission officially completed," Sarah said, leaning back and exhaling a breath of cold mountain air. "Now that we’ve had our short celebration, should we start the trek back to the dojo?"
From what Abby had gathered during her time in this body, the "dojo" was the syndicate’s primary base of operations, a massive facility that had originally belonged to Vera’s family. Vera, the woman whose body Abby now inhabited, came from a lineage that was no longer among the living. In fact, many members of the Fallen Rose shared a similar, tragic background. They were the lost and the abandoned, people with no families to rely on, or those who had been forced to break away from their past lives for one reason or another.
Abby still didn’t know the full story of Vera. She didn’t know the specific catalyst that had started the Fallen Rose or why such a diverse group of killers and outcasts had gathered so fanatically around her. All she knew was that every person on this mountain felt a deep, unpayable debt to the woman she was pretending to be. This realization only served to increase her anxiety; she constantly worried about what would happen if these loyal warriors discovered that a total stranger had taken up residence in their leader’s mind.
"I don’t think we should head back to the dojo just yet," Shoting interrupted, her expression uncharacteristically grave. "A new request came in through the encrypted channels. Someone is offering us a staggering amount of money for a hit."
Sarah raised an eyebrow, her interest piqued. The Fallen Rose were experts at disruption; fighting, dismantling businesses, and sabotaging construction sites were their bread and butter. In many ways, they operated like high-level street gangs, but they were the ones called in when the stakes were so high that failure wasn’t an option. Abby had been present for a few of these jobs, though she had managed to stay on the sidelines since the previous tasks hadn’t required her direct intervention.
"Go on then," Sarah prompted. "Is it someone we know? You look more than a little worried."
"Not exactly a name from the old guard," Shoting answered, looking down at her handheld device. "But they are a group that’s been making a tremendous amount of noise lately. They call themselves the Billion Bloodline group."
Abby felt her heart give a violent, heavy thump against her ribs. That name echoed through her mind like a thunderclap. When she had recently rescued her old friends, she had seen the Billion Bloodline in action and had learned why they had come to such a volatile place. From what she could piece together, the group was inextricably linked to Max. If he wasn’t the leader, he was certainly the heart of it.
’If the Fallen Rose decides to target them, they’ll be wiped off the map,’ Abby thought, her stomach twisting into a knot. ’Max and the others don’t stand a chance against a syndicate of this caliber.’
"Oh, now that is interesting," Sarah said, a cold smile touching her lips. "The new group that’s suddenly rocketed through the ranks? They’re the talk of every backroom in the underworld. And wasn’t that the same area where you traveled recently, Vera? Did you run into them at all? I wonder why a client would want them gone so badly."
"I’m not entirely sure of the motive," Shoting replied. "But one thing is clear: the client is a big player. The task is massive. The Billion Bloodline isn’t just another upstart gang; they’re being treated as a legitimate syndicate because of their explosive growth and raw strength. They’ve clearly stepped on a very powerful set of toes, because the money being offered is exactly the right amount to justify a total extermination."
"Which also means there’s a lot for us to lose if we take the contract and it turns into a quagmire," Sarah added thoughtfully. "I’m not entirely convinced that taking this job is the right move for our long-term interests."
"I agree, which is why I brought it up here," Shoting said, turning her gaze toward Abby. "We’re already quite close to Notting Hill. It might be more efficient to pivot there instead of heading all the way back to the dojo. I suppose the final decision rests with the boss."
Both Sarah and Shoting fell silent, their eyes fixed on Abby, waiting for the order that would decide the fate of the Billion Bloodline. Abby took a slow, measured breath, trying to keep her voice from trembling.
"I think we should check out the Billion Bloodline group," she finally answered, her mind racing to find a way to protect Max. "But maybe we shouldn’t approach them as enemies just yet. Perhaps they are someone we can actually work with."