Apocalypse: becoming the hidden Ruler

He pulled out a photo. The image showed a gaunt old man with gray hair, round glasses, and a sharp hooked nose. In the photo, he stared at the camera with a weird smile.

"This is Dr. Crowe, the maker of Exotic Beast Pill."

"Twenty years ago," Wesley began, "he was a researcher at Stormwatch Academy. Awakened with a Mechanical Modification ability. Brilliant mind."

"But then?" He let out a slow exhale. "He started building illegal weapons. Experimenting with drugs. Using his own students as test subjects."

"He killed a lot of people. Krythos put a bounty on his head, but he vanished."

"And now? He's here. And Crowe has his own organization now. Calls it the Crowe Society."

"Our mission is simple." Wesley's gaze swept across the room. "Find him. Capture him alive. And shut this shit down."

"Wait," someone muttered. "He's only Level 4, right? We've got two Level 5s. Can't we just take him by force? Two captains hold him down, the rest of us control the scene, and we haul his ass out."

"Crowe isn't your average Level 4." Wesley shook his head immediately. "He's converted most of his body into a machine. He fights differently. You're not gonna knock him out in one hit."

"And if we make too much noise, we risk drawing Morris's attention."

His meaning was clear. If Morris got involved, none of them were leaving.

"Poisoning him," another voice offered.

"Yeah?" Wesley let out a dry laugh. "We're gonna outplay Crowe at his own game?"

No one had an answer to that. Everyone was at a loss.

If this were Krythos, the problem would be a hell of a lot easier to solve. But here? Here, they had to be constantly looking over their shoulders—always wary of Morris.

Jade bit her lip. Of course, she knew that. But still… "Their lives are on the line." Her voice was quieter now.

Wesley sighed again.If anyone else had said this, he would've told them to pack their bags and leave. But Jade? She was young. He spoiled her. "Alright, here's the deal," he said finally.

"Go to Vince. Tell him exactly what you told me."

Jade's face lit up. But then— "Wait. Hold up. Vince?"

Wesley smirked. "Yeah. Vince." He leaned back. "I might be the commander of this operation, but he's still a captain. If you can convince him, then I won't stop you."

Jade froze. "No way. That's not fair!" She knew damn well what Wesley was doing. Vince was the most easygoing guy in Obsidian. But when it came to his principles? That man was stubborn as a damn rock.

She still remembered the time he stood up to their superiors because an order didn't align with his morals. The argument had gotten so heated** that it escalated all the way to Xander—the Whisper Syndicate's commander-in-chief.

The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

Since then? Everyone in the Syndicate knew better than to argue with Vince when it came to his beliefs.

Jade gritted her teeth. With a frustrated huff, she turned on her heel and stormed out.

A while later, a soft, gentle voice spoke from outside Wesley's door. "Mr. Wesley… you can't keep using me as a shield."

Wesley didn't even look up. "Because you're effective."

Vince sighed. Scratching the back of his head, he gave an awkward chuckle—like the friendly older brother. "If she warns them, and they choose to back out themselves, then I won't stop it," Vince admitted. "That doesn't break any rules."

Wesley let out a low chuckle. "If that, Jade's the one calling the shots on this one. Axel performed so well, Jade can let Rosaline suppress her?"

Vince sighed again. Seeing him turn to leave, Wesley called out. "Hey, you can't do anything about this, but don't forget my..."

Vince paused.

"Give me more chances to be alone with Rosaline." Wesley's grin was pure mischief. "I'll buy you a drink after I lock it down."

Vince didn't even turn around. "...You're on your own."

.......

"Another damn windfall." Axel stared at the two crystals in front of him—one red, one green—grinning like a man who just hit the jackpot.

It wasn't just about the loot. The last battle had finally pushed him past his bottleneck. At long last, he'd fully completed his second Force Fusion.

"Using life crystals speeds up Force improvement like crazy."

"But a real breakthrough? That still takes a fight."

After the fusion, he'd spent the night absorbing energy, and now, his stats had jumped again.

Physique: 501/503
Force: 499/500
Spirit: 493/501

Inside his mind, Axel could see the massive tree growing within him—its roots fully healed, now pushing ever upwards.

The branches bearing "Healing" and "Recharge" had changed, too. When he first awakened, he'd upgraded Healing to the intermediate level, which had supercharged his recovery speed.

And now? "Recharge" was flickering with a faint red glow. Axel didn't hesitate. He upgraded it.

[Recharge (Intermediate)] Burns part of the Original Force.
- Greatly enhances speed and strength for a short time.
- Ignores some pain and fatigue.
- Restores a large amount of physical stamina.

In its primary form, Recharge was just a stamina recovery skill—useful, but nothing special. Now? Now it was turning into a combat enhancer.

That was a huge relief. But what Axel was really looking forward to was the red crystal from Harrison.

Beast Transformation might be ugly, but damn, it's effective. Harrison's beast form had been a monster—faster, stronger, and nastier than his human state.

"It's okay if it's ugly." Axel chose to absorb the red crystal slowly with excitement. Yet, the moment he did— The skill that popped up on his tree left him completely speechless.

[Turtle Body (Primary)]
- Permanently increases physical durability.
- Can actively enter a suspended animation state.
- Generates a protective shield around vital organs.
- Restores vitality when activated.
…Locked.

"What the actual fuck is this?" Axel had expected Beast Transformation. He had every reason to! After all, this crystal came from Harrison. It should have contained his awakening ability.

"Wrong?" Axel frowned. The first two red crystals he absorbed hadn't belonged to anyone he personally saw in action, so he'd just assumed the awakening skill would transfer over. Apparently, that assumption was bullshit.

"Remember, we've got one shot at this." Wesley's voice cut through the tension in the room. "Keep gathering intel. Watch his movements. Best-case scenario, we catch Crowe leaving Sin City—or at least stepping out of Saka."

His gaze swept across the room. "Don't fuck it up."

Unlike Axel, they couldn't move quietly. They were too strong, too well-known. If they made a wrong move, the entire city would know about it.

The meeting wrapped up, and people started to leave. Except for Jade.

She lingered, waiting for the others to clear out. Then, without hesitation, she walked up to Wesley and tugged at his sleeve like a bratty kid. "Captain…" she drawled, pouting on purpose.

Wesley gave her a flat look. "Jade, I already know what you're about to say. Save it."

Jade's expression darkened. "But he's my brother." Her voice was firm. "He's the strongest one here. If it weren't for this joint mission, he'd be on the team already."

Wesley sighed, rubbing his temple. "I know that. We all know that. But the whole damn point of this setup is to keep eyes off of us." His tone sharpened. "If you tip them off, the entire operation is compromised."

He gave her a pointed look. "You ready to take responsibility for that?"