Chapter 31
The first rupture appeared over the western sea.
It was not an explosion. Not a tear. Reality simply paused—a momentary stutter in the air, like the world had forgotten which rule came next. Satellites lost signal. Time-sensitive systems reported negative seconds. Weather patterns reversed direction mid-motion.
And then the name spread.
EnIGMA EVENT: BLACK VEIL
Kai felt it through the bond like a scream swallowed by distance.
He staggered, catching himself against the command table as Crescent Pack leaders stared in alarm.
"He's doing it," Kai whispered.
The Enigma had not gone feral.
He had gone precise.
Across the city, Council infrastructure failed in cascading layers. Surveillance blinded itself. Suppression fields flickered, then collapsed. Delta strike teams reported impossible terrain—streets folding, doors leading nowhere, corridors looping back into themselves.
The Enigma moved like a ghost through it all, never seen directly, only inferred by absence. By silence where noise should be. By fear where certainty once lived.
"He's rewriting probability," one Beta analyst said, voice shaking. "Just enough to destabilize without total collapse."
Kai closed his eyes.
He could feel the strain now—raw power grinding against restraint, like a star forced into human shape.
You're pushing too far, Kai thought fiercely.
The bond responded with a pulse of acknowledgment. Pain. Control.
Across the table, Commander Rhex of the Crescent Guard shifted uneasily. "We're gaining ground—but something's wrong."
Kai looked up. "What?"
"Internal channels," Rhex said. "Someone's feeding the Council our fallback routes."
The room went cold.
"Names," Kai said.
Rhex hesitated. "It's… internal leadership. Upper tier. Alpha-born."
Betrayal always wore a familiar face.
Kai straightened slowly. His scent shifted—not aggressive, not dominant, but absolute. The room responded instinctively, pack bonds tightening around him.
"Seal the chamber," Kai ordered. "No one leaves."
A man stepped back instinctively. Another avoided his gaze.
Kai's eyes locked onto one figure at the far end of the table—Senior Strategist Halven. Respected. Trusted. Alpha-tier.
"You sold us out," Kai said quietly.
Halven lifted his chin. "I saved us. The Council promised immunity."
"For you," Kai replied. "Not the pack."
Halven sneered. "You're an Omega pretending to be Alpha. This chaos proves it."
Silence fell.
Kai walked forward, each step measured. "You still believe Alpha means domination."
He stopped an arm's length away. "That's why you'll never understand what terrifies them."
Kai placed two fingers against Halven's chest—and released his pheromones.
Not coercion.
Truth.
Halven gasped, knees buckling as buried guilt, fear, and selfishness surged to the surface. He collapsed, sobbing uncontrollably.
Kai turned away.
"Detain him," Kai said. "Alive. He answers to the pack."
The room exhaled collectively.
A tremor rolled through Kai's bond—violent this time. The Enigma.
Kai pressed his palm flat against the table, grounding himself. "Status on Black Veil."
A screen flared to life.
The Enigma stood at the epicenter of a warped district, coat torn, blood at his temple. Time distorted around him—rain hanging frozen midair, debris suspended like a shattered crown.
Council Sentinels surrounded him at a distance, afraid to approach.
A voice echoed through the feed—High Arbiter Solenne.
"You've proven our point," she said. "Unstable. Uncontainable."
The Enigma smiled.
"You built a world that cages power," he replied calmly. "Then blamed us for breaking the bars."
Solenne raised her hand.
Kill authorization.
Kai's heart slammed violently.
Now, he thought desperately. Feel me.
The bond flared—white-hot.
The Enigma's head snapped up, eyes burning with recognition. He inhaled sharply, anchoring himself through Kai's presence.
The execution order stalled.
Reality bent inward instead of outward.
The Enigma lifted one hand—and every Sentinel weapon turned to dust.
"You don't get to decide who I love," he said softly.
Then he vanished.
The feed cut.
Kai stood frozen, breath shallow.
He was still alive.
Barely.
And the Council had just learned the most dangerous truth of all—
The Enigma was not alone.