Lana stood just outside the prison cell, speaking quietly with the Major. After a brief exchange, the officer nodded and gestured to a nearby soldier. The metallic clatter of keys echoed as the cell door creaked open.
"Thank you," Lana said softly. The soldiers gave a respectful bow before exiting.
Kus Og: "Mother! I swear this isn't my fault!"
Lana crossed her arms, one brow raised: "Really? Because everyone in the military seems to think otherwise."
Kus Og's face twisted with frustration.
Kus Og: "Lupig set me up! He told everyone some stupid lie. That's why they're treating me like I've gone rogue!"
Lana smiled, amused. Kus Og's frown deepened.
Lana: "It's like you two never grew up,"
Kus Og: "Tell that to Lupig!" Kus Og snapped. "He framed me—for a disk! A stupid disk! And now he's saying he'll run for Mayor."
Lana: "So, he told you that too. I hoped he was just being theatrical."
Kus Og: "If there's anyone who needs a lesson, it's him! Not me!"
Lana: "Your brother is a menace," Lana admitted gently. "But he has a pure heart. You know that."
Kus Og: "Pure heart? You're joking, right? He spiked everyone's drinks in the army with laxatives just to win a card game! He blew up a research lab trying to make candy! Candy, Mom! That's not a pure heart—that's chaos with dimples!"
Lana chuckled under her breath.
Kus Og: "You always take it easy on him, I'm your son too. A real one, for that. Yet…"
Lana stepped closer, reaching out: "Kus Og, I love you the same as your brother."
He didn't answer. He just walked past her, out of the cell.
---
Back at the Mayor's mansion, Adlaw had just arrived.
Lupig sat on the couch, legs crossed, spinning the disk on his hands. As his father entered, Lupig stood, and offered a sly smile. He handed Adlaw the disk.
Adlaw: "Thank you for your effort, son,"
Adlaw slipping the disk into his coat pocket.
Lupig: "Can you at least tell me what's in it?"
Adlaw: "I could. But not now, It's... dangerous."
Lupig: "Oh, that's intriguing."
Adlaw pulled a sealed envelope from his inner jacket and handed it to him.
Adllaw: "Besides, you already have your payment."
Lupig opened the envelope, scanned the documents inside, and grinned.
"I always expected you'd grow into a cunning man," Adlaw said. "I just didn't think I'd see him before his eighteenth birthday."
Lupig tucked the envelope away.
Lupig: "Save your praise, Father. What's in that disk will end your era—not honor it."
Adlaw gave a dry laugh.
Adlaw: "Then I raised you well."
With a final smirk, Lupig turned and strolled out of the room like a satisfied villain exiting stage left.
---
Somewhere on the outskirts of Maharlika, in a rundown building covered in vines and rust, an old man scribbled formulas onto yellowed paper. Blueprints of gene modifications and sketches of monstrous humanoid creatures littered the table. The air reeked of chemicals and dust.
He hummed a sea shanty as he worked, but the tune was broken by loud, rhythmic knocks.
He opened the door slowly. On the other side stood three men—one of them clad in a military uniform, and another with a jagged scar running across his left eye.
The scarred man wrinkled his nose.
Scarred Man: "This place is still a dump,"
Old Man: "Perfect disguise for an old man with no family,"
The scarred man walked over to the desk, eyeing the blueprints and equipment.
Scarred Man: "Is it ready?"
Old Man. "See for yourself."
He retrieved a caged rat, its blood altered to mimic that of a lower-class Maharlikan. He took a vial of serum from a fridge and injected it into the creature.
The rat let out a shriek. Its body swelled to twice its size, veins bulging and pulsing. It slammed into the steel bars of its cage—bending them like rubber.
"This isn't just strength," the old man said proudly. "This is evolution. The serum doesn't only grant upper-class abilities. It makes you nearly unkillable."
He placed the cage on a burner set to over 1500 degrees Celsius. The metal began to melt. The rat did not.
With a sudden hiss, the rat lunged at him. Calmly, the old man injected it with another vial—an antidote. The creature collapsed instantly.
He turned back to his guests.
Old Man: "It is... my masterpiece."
The scarred man stepped forward, picking up the vial and inspecting it.
Scarred Man: "Great job old man," he said, a dark gleam in his eye, "This cruel city and wretched people will soon meet its Avengers."
He grinned.