Eclipse Protocol

Chapter One: The Shadow Falls

She flicked a Neurotoxin Kunai toward a guard rounding the corner-silent, precise. The man crumpled, unconscious before his body hit the ground.

Sliding down the fire escape, she landed with barely a sound behind a security console. Fingers flew over the keys, hacking deep into Solaris Corp's encrypted systems with practiced ease.

Her comm device hummed softly, linking her to a web of contacts and encrypted channels only she could access. With a few swift commands, she sent a coded message to both Nyctarion and The Azure Revenant.

"You boys keep trying to out-brood each other. Meanwhile, I already stole the prize."

In the shadows, Selina's smile was a razor.

She knew the Wardens' secrets inside and out. She knew the meteor tech was the key-and that both men needed her more than they realized.
Tonight, the game was shifting. The pieces were moving. And the Crimson Wraith was ready to pull every string.

Far from the neon-lit chaos of Noxhaven, Lucien Caelum Vire sat alone in a dimly lit chamber beneath the shattered cityscape-surrounded by remnants of broken tech and the faint pulse of his Azure Core glowing through his chest.

The air around him shimmered as his Eos Mantle flickered, catching faint traces of dimensional energy.
His fingers traced the twin Energy Blades resting on the table before him, restless like the storm inside.

Then, his comm buzzed-a sharp intrusion in the stillness. The message was encrypted, unmistakable.

"You boys keep trying to out-brood each other. Meanwhile, I already stole the prize."

Lucien's cold, calculating eyes narrowed.

Selina.

The one constant wildcard threading their fates together.

He rose slowly, voice a low rumble as the Chrono-Bracers activated, creating flickering after-images that rippled like ghosts.

"Funny... She always knows exactly when to remind us we're dancing on the same knife's edge."

A bitter smile cracked his stoic facade.
Tonight, the game had truly begun.

The city's heartbeat pulsed like a warning siren as Nyctarion slipped through the maze of alleyways, shadows folding around him like a second skin.

His visor caught a flicker-an encrypted comm pulse crackling through the net.

"You boys keep trying to out-brood each other. Meanwhile, I already stole the prize."

Selina's words echoed inside the helmet, sharp as a blade.

Nyctarion's grip tightened on his Stealth Gauntlets. The Crimson Wraith was always one step ahead, always pulling strings in the dark.
But she wasn't the only player tonight.

His earpiece buzzed again-this time with Lucien's voice, low and gravelly.

"Funny... She always knows exactly when to remind us we're dancing on the same knife's edge."

A bitter smile crossed Kalen's lips. He hated relying on anyone, especially someone as unpredictable as the Azure Revenant.

Yet, Selina was the thread tying them together - and the spark that could set this fractured war ablaze.

"Looks like the Eclipse Protocol just got personal," Nyctarion muttered.

Above them all, somewhere beyond the city's flickering lights, the pale moon hung heavy - a silent witness to the coming storm.

The flickering glow of their encrypted comm channels was the only light as the trio faced each other, each in their own corner of the city-but connected by invisible threads of trust, betrayal, and necessity.

Nyctarion's voice cut through the static, low and cold.

"Selina, why now? Why drag me back into this? I thought you wanted out."
A breathy, sardonic laugh was her reply.

"You know me better than that. I don't want anything. I need it. The Wardens' secrets aren't just secrets anymore-they're ticking time bombs. You and Lucien are too blind or too stubborn to see it."

Azure's voice came next, razor-sharp and dripping with sarcasm.

"Blind? Stubborn? Please. At least I'm not wearing a suit made of shadows and regrets. Kalen, you're a ghost chasing a past that won't let go."

Nyctarion's eyes flashed beneath the helmet.

"And you're just a walking disaster who can't decide if he wants to save or destroy the world."

Selina's voice dropped, ice-cold and deadly.

"Both of you need me. And I need that meteor tech. Without it, none of us survive the coming purge."

A tense silence settled. Then Nyctarion's final words cracked the night like thunder.

"Then stop playing with fire, Selina. Because the Eclipse Protocol isn't just a plan-it's a warning. And it's about to burn everything down."
Before anyone could respond, the city trembled.

A pulse of raw, unnatural energy ripped through the skyline, shattering windows and setting alarms screaming in unison.

From the horizon, a towering figure emerged-The Eternal Warden, High Inquisitor Voryx, clad in his indestructible armor, eyes glowing with cold, merciless judgment.

His voice boomed across every frequency, every corner of the net.
"I am the correction. You are the error."
The war had begun.