1 — THE WAKE-UP CALL
6:17 AM. The city's bones shiver in cold rain.
Inside the morgue's break room, Selene tries to keep her eyelids from falling shut over stale coffee. Jess sits across from her, quietly slicing an apple with a plastic knife.
Danny bursts in — fresh as spring rain, a grin plastered on his face. He's clutching a tablet — images open. Crime scene photos — the bodies under the bridge.
Danny (excited, too loud):
"You see this? These two guys they found on the west side? People say the Raven did it. But this—"
He zooms in — massive claw marks, the symbol THE FLOCK FEEDS painted in arterial red.
Danny:
"This is bigger, right? I mean, that's not her style. This is— what— like an animal? Or—"
Selene's fingers tighten around her cup. She forces her voice steady.
Selene:
"Danny. You shouldn't flash crime scene files around here. Put it away."
Danny lowers his voice — but he's buzzing.
Danny:
"I just think it's weird, you know? All these gangs — the Flock, this 'Bull King' thing — then the Raven. Same city. Same bodies. Maybe they're working together. Or maybe—"
Jess clears her throat — sharp.
Jess:
"Enough, Danny. Go finish the paperwork for the late shift. And don't talk about this outside. Understand?"
Danny shrugs, backing out — but his mind's already racing. He's too curious for his own good.
---
2 — RAFI IN THE NET
Meanwhile — an alley lit by flickering neon.
Rafi watches his phone blow up — thousands of shares, comments, pings. His face glows in the screen's cold light.
A voice interrupts — raspy, wet, like gravel dragged through oil.
Voice:
"Nice show, kid."
Rafi spins — a man stands under the broken streetlight. Too thin, too tall, coat too big for his bony frame. A grin full of yellow teeth.
Stranger:
"Crow likes kids with cameras. Makes fear easier to sell. He says hi."
The man steps closer — Rafi backs into a dumpster.
---
3 — THE NEST SEES ALL
At the Nest, Micah curses at three screens at once — news tickers, city schematics, a cracked map with red pins scattered like splinters.
Micah (comms, muttering):
"It's not just the chemical dumps. It's the water plants, Selene. Crow's men keep buying up maintenance crews. They're laying pipes, patching leaks. They're putting something in the reservoirs. If he drops a pathogen here — everyone drinks it. Everyone dies."
He switches to a second feed — a drone's live footage: a cargo truck pulling into a derelict hospital on the east side. Men unload barrels, all marked PANACEA.
Micah flips his headset up, looks at Selene standing behind him, arms crossed.
Micah (soft, worried):
"We're not ready for this. You can't stab a virus. You can't punch a bomb."
Selene's jaw clenches. Her fingers tighten around the wing-shaped blade at her hip.
---
4 — WARD'S PROMISE
A cheap diner, two blocks from the precinct. Detective Ward sits in a cracked booth, nursing a burnt cup of coffee.
Across from him — Councilman Adair's fixer, a slimy suit with a soft grin.
Fixer:
"You find her yet?"
Ward's glare could peel paint.
Ward:
"I'm not your hound, politics boy. I'll find her when the time's right — and I'll drag her in alive."
The Fixer leans closer, voice like poison.
Fixer:
"Not alive, detective. The mayor's race needs a martyr. One good corpse for the camera. Yours or hers. Don't care which."
Ward's hand tightens on his mug — it cracks down the middle. The Fixer leaves without paying.
---
5 — MOLOCH STRIKES
A back alley. Wet pavement.
Danny, stupid, curious Danny — fresh off shift, trailing a rumor he heard about "the Bull King" from an older morgue hand. A lead, he thinks. Maybe he can crack the big case. Get famous. Be more than just the rookie.
He doesn't see the shadow in the dumpster's reflection — massive shoulders, horned silhouette. Steam puffs from flared nostrils.
Danny turns — drops his phone. His whisper dies before it leaves his throat.
Moloch Horn leans forward — breath misting the air. He hums an off-key lullaby — the same tune the Surgeons loved.
His hand snaps out — pulls Danny in. Darkness swallows the scream.
---
6 — THE CALL
Micah's screen pings. A live feed — security cam — broken pixels, flickering light. Danny's face, a flash of horns behind him, then static.
Selene's breath hitches. She looks at Jess — Jess looks back, eyes wide.
Micah taps a key. The feed loops, frozen on Moloch's half-lit grin.
Micah (voice flat, humor gone):
"The Bull King's hunting your shadows, boss. Next is us. Next is you."
Selene's mask lies on the workbench — waiting.
---
7 — A CITY IN THE DARK
Somewhere far above, in his glass cage, King Crow watches the news roll in:
Rafi's clip goes viral — city protests explode.
Two more murders — the Flock's message daubed in blood.
A chemical truck crosses the border under a fake charity banner.
Crow smiles. He whispers to the shadows behind him — maybe a secretary, maybe something worse.
King Crow:
"She thinks she's hunting. Let her. Each body she leaves feeds my storm. The city drinks the fear. The plan is alive now. It breathes."
He raises a toast — to billions who don't know they're already ghosts.
---
8 — THE HUNT BEGINS AGAIN
Selene pulls on her mask. Tightens the gauntlets at her wrists. She feels Jess's hand brush hers — brief, warm, breaking her resolve for half a second.
Jess (soft):
"Bring him back alive. Please."
Selene doesn't answer. She can't promise that. She never does.
Outside, the city groans under cold rain. Somewhere in the dark, the Bull King drags Danny into the shadows — bait on a hook Selene can't ignore.
---
END OF CHAPTER SEVENTEEN