The alley reeked of oil, ash, and something far worse—the stench of sin.

  Ananda stood in the center, hands loosely at his sides, eyes half-lidded as he watched the last ember fade from the bodies on the ground. The flames had done their work. There was nothing left but scorched stone and whispers of heat curling into the cold night air.

  Behind him, the others moved. Dark figures clad in the insignia of the Eidolon Order, their masks glinting under flickering neon lights. The leader—a man with a voice like rusted metal—clapped a hand on Anand’s shoulder.

  “Well done.”

  Ananda didn’t respond.

  He felt the fire still simmering under his skin, restless, hungry. He could still see the way their sins had blackened the air, how the flames had licked them clean. For a moment, the satisfaction curled in his chest like a purring beast.

  The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Purification.

  But then—

  A scream.

  Not of the guilty.

  The innocent.

  His head snapped toward the street beyond the alley. Another squad had finished their sweep, but instead of targets, they had civilians kneeling before them. A woman, clutching a child. A young man, barely older than himself.

  His fingers twitched.

  He didn’t move.

  The flames inside him roared in protest, the air around him distorting from the sheer heat building in his veins.

  The Eidolon enforcer standing above the woman raised his hand—

  Anand clenched his fist.

  The fire died.

  He let his breath out.

  The enforcer’s hand fell. A blade flashed. Silence followed.

  A voice in his head whispered.

  This is the mission. This is the Order’s will.

  He turned away.

  The leader beside him nodded approvingly. “You’re ready.”

  Anand said nothing.

  Because deep inside, something coiled and burned with fury.

  But this wasn’t the time.

  A new directive arrived on his comm. Assignment Update: Infiltrate MIT as a new recruit. Cover identity: Ananda, 24, newly awakened Agni Protocol wielder. Objective: Observe. Report. Await further orders.

  Ananda finally spoke, his voice quiet.

  “When do I leave?”

  The leader smirked. “Tonight.”

  And like a candle snuffed out, Anand let himself become a shadow among shadows—even as his flames begged to burn.

  ---