The bell tower of the abandoned cathedral loomed over Zayden like a ghost of forgotten faith. Rain pattered against his hood as he approached, each step echoing on the crumbling stone steps. Midnight had struck. The city slept, but the storm inside him raged.
He stood before the rusted iron gates, his pulse steady but his mind alert. He had come alone, as instructed—but not unarmed.
His father's letter burned in his pocket. The name "Amari" replayed in his head like a broken record.
Could it really be him?
Zayden pushed the door open. The cathedral groaned in protest, dust swirling in the air like secrets long buried.
Candles lined the altar—recently lit.
He wasn't alone.
From the shadows, a figure emerged. Tall. Calm. Familiar.
Amari.
Zayden's breath caught.
"You got the letter," Amari said, as if this was just another family dinner conversation. His voice held no emotion.
Zayden didn't answer. His hand inched toward the gun holstered under his jacket.
"Before you shoot," Amari added, "you should hear the whole truth."
Zayden's eyes narrowed. "Truth? Like how you betrayed our father? Lied to me for years? That truth?"
Amari didn't flinch. "He wasn't the man you think he was."
Zayden's voice was ice. "He trusted you."
"And he used us both," Amari snapped. "He was working with Chief Ekanem. They were building an empire together, smuggling tech and trafficking information. Until your mother found out."
Zayden's fist clenched. "Lies."
"No. She was the one who threatened to expose them. That's why she died."
Zayden felt the air leave his lungs.
"She died in a fire—"
"Set by Ekanem," Amari finished. "But ordered by our father."
Silence thundered between them.
Zayden stumbled back, a war erupting inside him. He wanted to deny it—but the pieces were falling into place. The closed investigations. The sudden silence after their mother's death. The change in their father before he disappeared.
Amari stepped closer. "I didn't betray him. I punished him."
Zayden stared at his brother—at the stranger in front of him. "Why come to me now?"
"Because I need your help. Ekanem wants something. Something only you have. You were the last person our father trusted before he vanished."
"What does he want?"
Amari's voice dropped. "The Codex."
Zayden blinked. "That's a myth."
"No," Amari said. "It's real. It's hidden inside something you carry every day. A memory chip. One you never thought to check."
Zayden's mind raced.
His old pendant. The one his father gave him on his twelfth birthday.
Suddenly, the door slammed behind them.
Footsteps. Multiple.
They were surrounded.
Amari drew his weapon. "We finish this later. For now, we fight."
---
📌 Scene Cut:
Gunshots shattered the cathedral's silence. Candles flickered and fell. Brothers back to back—two sides of a broken coin—firing into the shadows.
Zayden didn't know what was real anymore. But one thing was clear:
Trust was no longer a luxury.
It was a risk.
---
🧠 Author's Thought:
> This chapter changes the game. Nothing is black and white anymore. Zayden and Amari must now face the world—together or torn apart. In war, truth is the first casualty. But the real war? That's just beginning.