Ashton's return to the base was met with a chilling sight. The dimly lit chamber was empty except for one figure seated in the centre, bathed in shadows.
It was the leader of the Conundrum, the man behind all their schemes. His hands were bound with handcuffs, which Ricochet placed on him before leaving.
The leader's dishevelled appearance bore witness to the recent battle. However, even in defeat, he wore a twisted grin, his eyes gleaming with madness as he stared at Ashton.
"You may think you've won, Ashton," the Conundrum leader spat out, his voice dripping with deranged amusement. "But there's no victory for you here."
Ashton's gaze narrowed at the leader's taunting words. He had dealt with many foes and had grown accustomed to their threats and boasts, but something about this man's demeanour was different. At that moment, Ashton knew the fucker meant every word that left his mouth.
"Why are you so confident, even when you're on your knees?" Ashton asked; after all, he was genuinely curious how a third-grade being like him got so much confidence.
"Because I know something you don't. I know what's coming, Ashton," The leader chuckled, the sound sending chills through the room. "Your triumph here is a minor setback in the grand scheme. A plan where you'll be too helpless to do anything."
Ashton's patience was wearing thin. He had little tolerance for mind games, especially from someone who had caused much pain and suffering.
"Enough of your cryptic nonsense," he growled. "Tell me what you know, and maybe I'll go easy on you."
The leader's laughter grew louder, bordering on hysteria. "Oh, Ashton, you're in for a surprise. The real power... the real threat, is yet to reveal itself. You may have defeated me, but like me, you're a pawn in a much larger game."
Ashton clenched his fists, his frustration boiling over. He had come here seeking answers and probably gaining some intel, but the leader's cryptic ramblings only fueled his anger.
"You're not making any sense," Ashton retorted. "If you have something to say, say it clearly."
The Conundrum leader's laughter abruptly ceased, replaced by a cold, calculating expression.
"Very well, Ashton. I'll tell you this much since you're so eager to know. The Conundrum was just a facade, a front for a much more sinister organisation. They've been watching you, studying you, and they're slowly getting ready to make their move."
Ashton's brain turned into overdrive at the revelation. If he were to believe him, the Conundrum had merely been a pawn in a larger game, a means to an end.
The true enemy had been lurking in the shadows, waiting for the right moment to strike. Although it sounded like he was talking about the Cult, for some reason, Ashton believed there was someone other than the Cult after him.
The Conundrum leader's demeanour changed again before he could press for more information. His eyes bore into Ashton's with a newfound intensity.
"But you see, Ashton," the leader hissed, "they have something you'll never have—true power. And they're coming for you, for all of you. Everyone who had ever maintained contact with you is in grave danger."
Ashton had heard enough. His patience had run its course. He couldn't allow this madman to continue spewing threats and cryptic warnings. With a swift, decisive motion, he drew Balmond from his side and moved closer to the leader.
The room filled with tension as Ashton's blade hovered just inches from the Conundrum leader's throat. The leader's laughter had been silenced, replaced by a look of fear as he realised the gravity of his situation.
Ashton's voice was cold and unwavering as he spoke his final words to the leader. "You should have kept your mouth shut."
In one swift motion, Ashton brought the blade down, severing the leader's miserable existence. The room fell into a heavy silence, the air thick with the weight of the leader's ominous warnings.
Ashton stood there for a moment, his thoughts racing. What had the leader meant by 'true power'? What was this mysterious organisation lurking in the shadows, watching his every move?
"Well, there's a way to uncover the truth, isn't there?"
[Of course, there is.]
Ashton stood over the lifeless body of the Conundrum leader, his emotions a tangled web of frustration and determination. He knew he needed answers, and he had a unique ability at his disposal to extract them.
Drawing upon his vampire genes, Ashton felt the transformation sweep over him. His fangs elongated, his senses sharpened, and a newfound hunger stirred within him.
He bent down, lowered his head toward the leader's pale neck, and dug his fangs into the corpse without hesitation.
But as his mind delved into the leader's supposed memories, something was terribly amiss.
Unlike the usual clarity and coherence of a person's memories, what Ashton encountered was a hazy, fragmented mess. It was as if someone had intentionally erased or clouded the leader's recollections.
Frustration gnawed at Ashton as he struggled to make sense of the disjointed images and sensations that flickered in his mind. He had expected to find answers, to unravel the mystery that had been taunting him, but instead, he found chaos.
The leader's entire memory appeared to be a jumbled puzzle, with missing pieces and blurred lines. Ashton tried to focus, to piece together any fragments that might lead him to the truth, but it was like trying to grasp smoke.
"What have you done to yourself?" Ashton muttered under his breath, his fangs retracting as he withdrew from the leader's lifeless body.
[You wanna do this?]
'I don't have any other choice, do I?'
His thoughts raced as he considered his next move. Resurrecting the leader using necromancy had crossed his mind, a desperate attempt to extract answers directly from the source.
But a strange sensation overcame him before he could even begin the process. The leader's corpse began to disintegrate before his eyes, turning into a fine, grey dust that scattered like ashes in the wind.
Astonishment gripped Ashton as he realised that someone, or something, was intentionally erasing any trace of the leader's existence... just like the first Deacon Ashton faced.
"No..." Ashton whispered, his voice tinged with disbelief. "This can't be happening."
The remnants of the leader's body disappeared completely, leaving no evidence behind. It was as if the fabric of reality had conspired to ensure that Ashton couldn't uncover the truth.
Ashton clenched his fists, his frustration boiling over. He had been so close to answers, so close to understanding the looming threat that had been lurking in the shadows. But it had slipped through his fingers, like sand through an open hand.
The room seemed to close around him, the walls echoing his growing anger. He knew he couldn't allow this setback to deter him. But he couldn't help but feel that way.
[You can always try and torture the living crap out of those your summons are hunting.]
"Damn it... I don't think anyone else knows anything about the organisation Rose's brother talked about."
[I don't think there's any harm in trying.]
'Fine.'
As he exited the chamber, leaving behind the remnants of the leader, Ashton's thoughts were consumed by a singular purpose—to unravel the secrets concealing the true enemy and protect those he cared about, no matter the cost.
But as he stepped back into the dimly lit corridors of the base, he couldn't shake the feeling that the shadows were closing in around him, and the battle ahead would be unlike any he had faced before.