Chapter 20: The Inquisitor Lands
As Carson drove his Supernova back toward the Zenith Spire, the sky above New Seattle turned a dark, bruised red.
A black spear, three hundred feet long, descended from the clouds. It wasn't a ship; it was a weapon. It pierced the roof of the Syndicate headquarters, shattering the upper twenty floors.
A man stepped out of the spear. He was dressed in obsidian armor, and the space around him seemed to warp and fold.
"I am Inquisitor Vane of the Solaris Hegemony," his voice boomed across the city, amplified by Void-energy. "I am looking for a thief named Carson McCain. Every hour he does not surrender, I will erase one city block."
Carson pulled his car to a stop and looked at the black spear in the distance.
"Aura," Carson said. "Cancel my dinner reservations. And tell Hobs to get his tea ready. I'm going to need the Large-Scale ORB for this one."
