Biological Supercomputer System

In the meantime, Erik and June already got to where the meeting was going to take place.

"This must have been the town hall," Erik said.

It made sense. The meeting was likely going to be huge, and they needed a space adequate enough to ensure everyone could listen to Shade talk.

"I see the main entrance there," June said.

"Do you see anything we could use to enter?"

"Nothing that isn't guarded."

If Erik could simply kill the guards, he would be thrilled about it. He wasn't willing to take the risk of dealing with these individuals and blow up his cover, despite the potential reduction in street criminals.

Until now, every time Erik went somewhere, there weren't as many people as now.

The risk of someone hearing the battle, or glimpsing at him and June scaling walls, was high right now.

"I do, Master."

"Good, then follow me and act as my guard."

With that, Erik placed a mask on his face. Just to be sure, he morphed his face into that of an older man.

Erik was sure that those at the meeting were hiding their faces.

They were the kings and queens of the underworld, maybe even from other countries.

It was unlikely they were willing to let people see their faces. Rat could be everywhere, after all.

The duo then walked toward the entrance. There were at least 300 people just there guarding it.

A group of 30 guards rushed toward them, weapons poised.

"Let me enter," Erik said. Then June took the onyx sculpture to let the guards see it. Only those invited by Shade could have that sculpture, so after a couple of seconds, the guards let them pass.

They entered the town hall. The building, abandoned for centuries and patched up for this singular event, kept a ghostly charm.

Many lights had been placed all over the place, cutting through the all-encompassing darkness, guiding them along cracked marble floors.

The walls, though bearing scars of time, were adorned with drapes that fluttered in the draft, an attempt to bring life to a place long forgotten.

They were escorted through corridors by guards who seemed as out of place in the ancient hall as the modern lighting fixtures.

They led them to a large room repurposed for the meeting.

The chamber itself was a spectacle with old grandeur peeking through the temporary fixes.

The room was crowded, but not with the opulence of attire one might expect.

Instead, there was a practical uniformity, with attendees in simple, dark clothing, all hidden behind identical masks.

The masks served a dual purpose: anonymity for the wearers and an easy way to identify intruders.

Erik cursed. The conformity of the masks meant identifying anyone, let alone Shade, would be next to impossible.

It was clear now; the masks were a strategic choice, allowing Shade to blend among his followers or enemies alike, while being able to identify any outsider.

<Keep your head low. >

Remaining inconspicuous had become of utmost importance. In a room where everyone was made indistinguishable, letting people see their masks could be their downfall.

Just as they adjusted to the sea of masked faces, the throng of people shifted, creating a clearing in the center of the room.

All eyes, hidden though they were behind their masks, turned towards a singular figure entering.

This man, if he could indeed be called that given the enigmatic air he projected, was different from the rest.

Unlike the sea of expressive, smiley-faced masks surrounding them, he was a stark canvas of white.

The man's mask was a simple, oval shape devoid of any features—not even the slits for eyes that the others had, making it impossible to guess where his gaze might fall.

The mask gave away nothing of the individual it concealed.

In a room where faces were hidden and identities blurred, the absence of detail on this mask spoke volumes. It marked him as separate, perhaps above the surrounding masquerade.

Erik looked at the newcomer, but he wasn't the only one doing so. Something within him told him that was Shade.

The crowd's deference, the way the space was given, suggested reverence or fear, maybe both.

But there was also something weird. Erik and June exchanged a glance.

"Ladies and gentlemen, welcome," Shade said.

Everyone and everything was silent. They were giving the man time to talk, listening to him, almost as if he was the messiah.

"I apologize for having called you here, but this meeting will be important."

Erik scrutinized Shade closely as he addressed the crowd.

Shade's towering figure and broad shoulders commanded attention, yet there was an oddity about him that Erik couldn't pinpoint.

It was as if a subtle discord lingered beneath Shade's composed exterior, an anomaly in his presence that tugged at Erik's senses.

This perplexing detail nagged at Erik. Something was not right with the man in front of him.

<Is this really Shade? >

June telepathically asked Erik, who was using his instability brain crystal power to glimpse at the man's mind.

However, he found nothing. There wasn't a shred of emotion, not a single thought, in the man's mind.

<I'm not sure…> Erik said, observing the man who kept talking. But then Shade said something the young man half expected at that point.

The masks, the clothes. Erik and June were sticking out as sore thumbs in a sea of elegantly disguised attendees.

Their attire, chosen for stealth and combat readiness, clashed with the refined elegance that draped the bodies of everyone else present.

The masks they wore, functional and devoid of the decorations that seemed almost compulsory here, marked them as outsiders.

"But, before continuing, I must tell you that someone sneaked inside this sanctuary. These people are those who killed Gabriel, our loved friend."

Shade turned to gaze in the direction of Erik and June. The others followed suit, parting ways to grant Shade a clear view, just as they all had.

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