Location: Tavara – Ravenhold Military Airstrip
The twin-engine jet touched down at Ravenhold with precision. Dust scattered. Engines hummed low. Inside the cockpit, Victor Kane tightened his gloves as the hangar doors began to part, revealing the Blackthorne elite waiting in silence.
Damien Kane stood at the front, coat billowing in the chill wind. Nora beside him, her eyes locked on the case in Victor's hands.
"You brought it," Damien said.
Victor nodded, stepping forward. "The vial. The Protocol. Everything she feared."
Damien took the case, his fingers brushing the ancient seal. It pulsed faintly under his touch.
Nora glanced between the two men. "What is it really?"
Victor's voice was low. "A serum created by your mother's research… stolen by the White Widow, corrupted with black-market genetics and forbidden rituals. Your mother never finished the stabilizer."
Damien opened the lid and stared at the glowing blue vial.
"And if I take this?" he asked, his voice almost a whisper.
"Your body will break," Victor said. "And if you survive, you'll become something no one on Earth has seen before. A hybrid of science and divinity. The original blueprint for the 'Ascended.'"
Nora stepped forward. "Then we destroy it. No one should have that kind of power. Not even you, Damien."
Damien's eyes met hers. "And if the White Widow uses the full version?"
Silence.
Victor added grimly, "She's already tested it on a child soldier in North Ravana. The boy exploded—took out a ten-mile radius."
Nora trembled. "That was reported as an earthquake…"
Damien closed the case. "Then we have no choice. We study it. And if it can be used… only I will carry the burden."
---
Location: Zurich – Grand Colline Estate
The White Widow stood beneath a skylight, watching snowflakes drift through the moonlight.
A young woman knelt before her—barefoot, tattooed with crimson marks across her shoulders and spine.
"I have chosen my vessel," the Widow said. "The Protocol will live through her."
"Does she understand the cost?" asked her adviser.
The White Widow turned, her expression unreadable. "She understands nothing. That's what makes her perfect."
---
Location: Tavara – Blackthorne Underground Labs
Back in the depths of the estate, Damien, Nora, and Dr. Elijah Crane, a former Watch defector, analyzed the vial under sealed protocols.
"This version lacks stabilizers," Elijah muttered, eyes scanning the compound's structure on screen. "If injected… it won't enhance—it will erase who Damien is."
Nora tensed. "You mean his memories?"
"I mean his soul," Elijah said softly.
---
Later That Night – Damien's Private Quarters
Nora found Damien alone on the balcony, shirtless, the stars casting silver on his skin.
"I don't want you to do this," she whispered.
He looked at her, pain and fire in his eyes. "I need to protect you. Our child. Our family."
She touched his chest. "Then promise me something."
"Anything."
"If you lose yourself… I'll be the one to bring you back."
He leaned in, their lips barely apart. "You already are."
They kissed—slow, passionate, eternal. As if it might be their last.