The case file arrived encrypted.
Not local.
Not national.
Global.
Luna Nakamori read it without blinking.
---
A Pattern Across the World
Twelve cities.
Twelve incidents.
Different countries. Different cultures.
Same result.
Entire crime networks dismantled overnight.
No suspects. No witnesses.
Only one recurring detail:
Security footage corrupted by moon-shaped distortions.
Interpol didn't say it out loud, but Luna understood immediately.
Others like me.
---
The First Name
One file was marked in red.
CODE NAME: SOLSTICE
Location: Eastern Europe
Status: Active
Psychological profile:
Emotionally detached
Surgical violence
Leaves no survivors when engaged
Bren stood behind her, uneasy.
"This one doesn't save people," he said.
"They erase them."
Luna closed the file.
"Then they're unstable," she replied.
"And unstable people make mistakes."
---
Departure
That night, Luna boarded a black military aircraft.
No press.
No farewell.
Just silence.
As the engines roared, she felt it again—the pressure behind her thoughts.
Not fear.
Recognition.
---
The Watcher Returns
The cabin lights flickered.
For half a second, the window reflected something impossible:
A massive eye, overlapping the moon.
"You move faster than expected," the voice echoed in her mind.
Luna didn't react.
"You said there were others," she replied calmly.
"I'm going to find them."
A pause.
Then—
"They are already finding each other."
---
Solstice
The aircraft landed near an abandoned industrial city swallowed by snow.
Bodies lined the streets.
Not mutilated.
Not tortured.
Placed.
Kneeling. Facing the moon.
Luna stepped forward, boots crunching over ice.
"He wants to be seen," she said.
A slow clap echoed from the shadows.
A figure emerged—tall, pale, eyes reflecting silver light.
"Correction," Solstice said softly.
"I want to be understood."
---
First Contact
Solstice tilted his head.
"You feel it too, don't you?"
"The Watcher. The pull. The silence."
Luna raised her blade slightly.
"I control myself," she answered.
"You surrendered."
Solstice smiled.
"Then let's see which of us the moon favors."
The wind howled.
Snow lifted into the air.
Two chosen stood beneath the same moon—
One who ended monsters.
One who became one.
---
Cliffhanger
The crescent mark burned briefly on Luna's wrist.
Solstice's eyes widened.
"So it's true," he whispered.
"The Silent Moon exists."
Luna stepped forward.
"Step away from the bodies," she said calmly.
"Or I end you."
The moon disappeared behind clouds.
And the world held its breath.
---