Lunar Legacy: Rise Of The Beastlord-Chapter 312: Southside

The next day,

18:50 PM

Rusty Spoon Diner.

Jayden arrived at the diner still sore from the previous night, but his Lycan healing factor had worked overnight. The worst of the bruises had faded, the cuts had scabbed over, and his ribs no longer screamed with every breath.

Fred was already there, sitting in their usual booth with two cups of coffee waiting.

The EVA captain looked tired—deep circles under his eyes, jaw tight with stress. When Jayden slid into the seat across from him, Fred just stared for a long moment.

"You look like hell," Fred said finally, pushing one of the coffee cups toward Jayden.

"You should see the other twenty-four guys I fought last night," Jayden replied flatly. 𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

Fred chuckled softly. Then he let out a satisfied exhale. "It’s over, Jayden," he said, his voice a low, gravelly whisper. "The entire human trafficking operation of the Black Cobra syndicate located in Emerald city. This is something we’ve been trying to do for years. I don’t know how you pulled it off, kid. But... you have my gratitude. The syndicate is going to be reeling for months."

Jayden’s jaw tightened. He looked out the window. He didn’t care about that. He didn’t care about the gratitude either. He just wanted one thing. Finding Cassandra.

"I had to report it as an anonymous tip," Fred continued, leaning in closer. "If the brass knew a kid with your... capabilities... did the heavy lifting, they’d be breathing down your neck before lunch. As far as the city is concerned, the authorities tracked them down. I hope you don’t care about the medals."

"I don’t care about the credit," Jayden said sharply. "I care about finding my friend."

Fred’s smile faltered, replaced by a heavy sigh. "I know," he muttered softly. "And I assure you we’re doing everything in our power to find her."

Jayden’s indifferent expression didn’t waver. He wasn’t moved by any of that. What he needed was...

"What do you know about the Black Cobra Syndicate’s pioneers?" he asked flatly,

"Right, the syndicate’s Pioneers," Fred repeated, his expression darkening. "These are the syndicate’s special agents, consisting of professional serial killers and mercenaries who handle the syndicate’s most sensitive operations. Each one is said to be an high-level evolved human with really insane skills."

"How do I find them?" Jayden asked without hesitation.

"I don’t know," Fred admitted. "We’ve been trying to identify the Pioneers for years. They operate completely independently from the rest of the syndicate. Different locations, different methods, different chains of command. They’re ghosts, Jayden. Even the EVA doesn’t have solid intel on them."

The hopelessness in Fred’s voice made Jayden’s frustration spike. "But there has to be something. A lead. A pattern. Anything."

Fred was quiet for a moment, thinking. Then he spoke: "There might be one thing."

Jayden’s attention sharpened. "What?"

"Cassandra’s last known location," Fred said carefully. "After she disappeared, some field agents went around the city, trying to see if anyone could have spotted her anywhere. Eventually, they got a lead. But with everything else going on, the EVA hasn’t had a chance to do a thorough investigation of the site."

Jayden furrowed his brows. "Where?"

Fred pulled out his holo-tab, swiped through some files, then turned it to show Jayden a map.

"Southside Park," Fred replied. "Near the old amphitheater. Security footage shows Cassandra entering the park around 2130 hours three nights ago. She never came out. The cameras in that section were conveniently offline after she went in—probably sabotaged—so we don’t have visual of what really happened."

Jayden memorized the location. "No one’s checked the actual site?"

"Officers did a cursory sweep, but they didn’t find anything conclusive. But Jayden..." Fred’s expression was serious. "You have abilities they don’t. Your... enhanced senses should give you a better chance than them. If there’s any lead there, I believe you might be able to find it."

Jayden stood up, already moving.

"Wait..." Fred called after him, confused and amused. "You’re going there already?"

"There’s no time to lose," Jayden replied flatly and walked out of the diner.

-----

19:42 PM.

Southside Park.

The park was beautiful in the afternoon sunlight—sprawling green lawns, walking paths lined with trees, families having picnics. The old amphitheater sat at the north end, a relic from decades ago when outdoor concerts had been popular.

Now it was mostly abandoned, used occasionally for community events but otherwise forgotten.

Jayden approached the area slowly, his Dragon Eye already activated. The world shifted into analytical clarity—energy signatures, heat traces, microscopic details all flooding his enhanced vision.

He started at the amphitheater entrance, working his way inward in a systematic grid pattern.

Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.

Then—there.

A section of ground near the amphitheater’s back wall looked... wrong. The grass was slightly discolored, darker than the surrounding area. And when Jayden knelt to examine it closer, he found scorch marks.

Small ones, partially hidden by regrown vegetation, but definitely there.

[Burn marks] Luna observed. [Recent too. Maybe three, four days old]

Jayden’s heart rate picked up. He expanded his search radius, looking for more.

There—another scorch mark on the amphitheater wall itself. And there—a section of stone that had been superheated, the surface slightly melted.

A pattern was emerging.

Jayden stood, studying the burn marks’ locations and sizes. Apparently, there seemed to be two different variations of the scorch marks.

He compared the two.

The first mark was wide but shallow—a defensive burst, meant to create distance. The second mark, however, was terrifying. The soil had been vitrified; the heat had been so intense it had turned the dirt into a crude, jagged glass. The trees behind it were stripped of their bark, the wood carbonized instantly.

Two fire users had fought here. One weaker, defending. One stronger, attacking.

Cassandra was the weaker one. The first was Cassie. Jayden recognized her scorch signature—hot, but controlled. She’d probably been defending herself.

Which meant her attacker was a fire user too. A stronger fire user. The thickness of the scorch marks and the depth of the thermal penetration suggested an Output Level far beyond a standard evolved. This was a pioneer.

Jayden’s mind raced. David had said Pioneers handle VIP targets. If a Pioneer took Cassandra, and that Pioneer was a fire user, then that made things easier.

He’d just narrowed down his search parameters significantly. Instead of looking for any Pioneer, he was looking for a fire-wielding Pioneer in the Black Cobra Syndicate.

This was a great lead. One he could work with.

Jayden continued searching the area, looking for anything else.

And then he found it.

Partially hidden under a bush, covered in dirt and leaves—was Cassandra’s holo-tab.

Jayden picked it up carefully, brushing off the debris. The device was off, probably dead battery. He pressed the power button.

Nothing.

He pulled out a portable charging cable from his pocket, connected it to his own device, and waited.

After thirty seconds, Cassandra’s holo-tab flickered to life.

Jayden’s hands shook slightly as he unlocked the device, using Cassandra’s password that she had once shared with him, and checked the recent activity.

He scrolled through the device for a while and found nothing unusual until his eyes then landed on a draft message. One directed... to him. It was timestamped four nights ago.

Jayden exhaled sharply and opened it.

[Jayden, there’s someone’s following me. I think I’m in trouble. Please come find me. I’m at—]

The message ended there. Never completed. Never sent.

Jayden stared at the incomplete text, his chest tight.

She’d tried to reach him. Tried to ask for help. And he hadn’t been there.

"I’m sorry," he thought, pocketing both holo-tabs. "I’m sorry I wasn’t there. But I’m here now. And I’m going to find you."

He stood, his resolve hardening into something cold and absolute.

A fire-wielding Pioneer in the Black Cobra Syndicate. That was his target now.

And Jayden knew exactly who might have that information.

He summoned his hoverbike, climbed on, and started making his way to downtown.

-----