Chapter 8. The Phantom Hacker
1012 Words
Cain sat up slowly. The stench of alcohol clung to his skin, and the dull ache behind his eyes throbbed like a ticking bomb. As he reached for his head, his fingers grazed a warm body.
He turned.
The girl. Still asleep beside him. Naked. Young. Barely holding herself together, even at rest.
[“WARNING: MASK COMPROMISE. SUBJECT MAY HAVE SEEN YOUR FACE.”]
Cain’s jaw tightened.
He swung his legs over the edge of the bed. The silence in the room was thick. Not even the system buzzed.
He walked into the bathroom, shutting the door behind him. Water began to pour. Steam curled in the air. Cain stood under the shower’s heavy cascade, motionless, letting the water wash over his scars and sins.
Through the transparent curtain, his silhouette looked carved from pain.
Her voice came, soft and haunting.
“You’re going to destroy yourself.”
“And take me with you.”
He opened his eyes. The memory flickered- Amelia's smile glitching like broken data.
[“EMOTIONAL TRIGGER DETECTED. MEMORY CORRUPTION IMMINENT.”]
“I said,” Cain whispered, “let it burn.”
He stepped out, wrapping a towel around his waist.
Then-
A knife to his throat.
The girl. Eyes wild. Breath shaky. A pocket knife held in trembling hands.
“You’re not walking out of here until I get my cut,” she snarled. “You think I’m just gonna let you go? Who the hell even are you?”
Cain didn’t flinch.
“Wrong move.”
His voice was low. Dangerous. Like an animal in a cage that had already figured out how to open the lock.
“You’re standing in the exact trigger radius for a Level 4 laser trap. One twitch, and you’ll paint this whole room red.”
She paled instantly. Her eyes darted to the corners of the room.
He continued. “Deactivate. Command code: Meatball.”
A faint click.
Cain grabbed her wrist, pulled the blade away, and shoved her back against the wall with the cold of a gun barrel now resting on her cheek.
“Who sent you?”
“N-no one,” she breathed. “I swear. I was cleaning. I saw the cash and I-I needed it.”
Cain’s voice lowered, dangerously calm. “Why?”
“My parents,” she whispered. “They’re dead. I’m paying off their debt. And I’m next.”
Cain stared at her. Silent. Like he didn't care.
Her stomach twisted with contempt as he stared at her like it was no big deal. “You’ve got no heart,” she snapped suddenly, rage flaring through her fear. “You think you’re better than us because you’ve got money, scars, and some stupid gun?”
For a second, nothing.
Then he grinned. Slow. Like a devil who knew he was about to damn someone.
“Yeah!” He answered with a smug, his hand stretched towards her, “Return what you took. And disappear.”
She hesitated.
“I don’t give second orders,” he said flatly.
She ran.
From the window, Cain watched her flee barefoot into the morning mist.
“Elara,” he said into the comm. “Tail her. I want everything. Birth records, debt sources, family graves.”
“You’re really gonna track a street rat?”
“Everything broken can still be used.”
Then came another call.
Seth.
“I got a location. Next recruit. Guy’s name is Axil. Calls himself a ghost, a real digital spectre. Couldn’t find anything on him. Had to grease more hands than I’m proud of.”
Cain lit a cigarette. Inhaled. Blew smoke at the wall.
“Where is he?”
“Underground hacking tournament. He’s the final boss.”
“Perfect.”
Underground Tournament– That Night
The walls vibrated with bass, graffiti, and neon screams.
Hundreds of people gathered, chanting names, throwing cash. Massive screens displayed code and stats.
At the centre, seated like a god on his throne of tech- Axil.
Chinese. Tall. Gaunt, but sharp. Hoodie zipped halfway, fingers dancing across his custom keyboard. His glasses weren’t just tech- they were everything. HUD, thermal reader, AI-assisted interface.
Cain entered quietly. Toothpick in his mouth, suit clean. Behind him, Elara, dressed in leather and steel, her eyes scanning every shadow.
The match started.
Two hackers. One shot.
Mid-code, Axil's screen glitched.
[“I KNOW YOU’RE CHEATING.”]
[“TURN AROUND.”]
He blinked.
[“LAST WARNING. NEXT TIME I OUT YOU.”]
Axil looked up. Scanned the crowd.
Then he saw him.
Cain. Smiling.
Axil smirked and returned to his screen. He typed faster. Glitches gone. Threats swallowed.
He won.
Backstage, as the crowd roared, Axil opened a box waiting on his seat.
A note.
“Meet me. Backdoor. 10 minutes. Or I spill your little stunt in 2019.”
Back Alley– Later
Axil crept into the alley, shoulders hunched.
“Didn’t think it’d be a guy,” he muttered. “Figures.”
A gun c****d behind his ear.
“You move like prey,” Elara said.
He screamed.
Cain stepped out of the shadows. Calm. Dead-eyed.
“Didn’t mean to scare you.”
“Dude- what the hell do you want?”
Cain stepped closer. “The government’s still looking for the blackout kid from Beijing. Wonder what they’d do with the files I have.”
Axil froze.
“I don’t want your blood,” Cain said. “I want your brain.”
“Or what?”
Cain smiled.
“Or I put you on every wanted list from here to Glasstown.”
“That’s not even a choice- ” Axil muttered.
Cain pulled out a chessboard.
“Then let’s make it one.”
Axil blinked.
“Seriously?”
Cain knelt down.
“If I win, you work for me.”
“And if I win?”
Cain met his gaze.
“You’ll see me walk home naked.”
Axil grinned.
“You’re insane.”
Cain set the first piece.
“Let’s play.”
- Writer
