The Rise of Vice, Part I
Scene: An Empty Rooftop, Midnight
Rain trickles off Lucen's mask. He's crouched, watching the alleyway below. A girl, 14, trembles in a soaked hoodie. Behind her, a tinted van idles.
Lucen speaks into a whisper-com:
> Lucen (low): "Three men. Driver's armed. Two buyers waiting in the bar behind."
Eshun (through comms): "You don't sound tense."
Lucen: "Because I've done this before."
He pauses.
"But the girl's scared. Same age as Tariq when I met him."
He leaps.
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Scene: The Alley – Seconds Later
Lucen strikes fast—one man hits the wall, crumples. The driver pulls a gun. Lucen's elbow shatters his jaw before he finishes blinking.
The girl sobs, frozen.
Lucen kneels, lifts his mask halfway, just enough to show her his human eyes.
> Lucen (soft): "It's okay. You're safe now. Run home."
She stares at him.
"Are… are you the monster from the old city fire?"
Lucen lowers his gaze.
Lucen: "Maybe. But I fight the real ones now."
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Scene: Club Vice – Underground Lair
VICE sits in a throne-like seat made of shattered vanity mirrors. His face flickers in reflections—never the same.
He watches Lucen's latest takedown on a projector wall.
> Vice (to his henchmen): "There he is. The silent flame. You feel it too, don't you? The regret. The control. It makes him... delicious."
He rises slowly, slick in a coat that glimmers with oily hues.
> Vice: "Let him stop a girl. Let him save a city. I don't sell evil. I sell choice. And choice... always cracks good men."
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Scene: Office Break Room – Morning
Lucen pours black coffee, watches steam rise like memory.
Aria walks in, heels clicking like authority. She eyes him—messy hair, dark eyes, bruised knuckles (badly bandaged).
> Aria: "You're limping again. What is it this time? Bumped into a coffee table?"
Lucen smirks.
Lucen: "You should see the coffee table."
She leans close, whispers.
> Aria: "You're not what you pretend to be."
Lucen looks into her eyes—gentle, serious.
> Lucen: "Neither are you."
They both go silent. For a second too long.
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Scene: Lucen's Home – Later That Night
He sharpens a blade slowly. Next to him, a file folder marked:
VICE – Suspected Locations, Missing Teens, Sin Bottles
He reads a page. A photo of a victim who overdosed on "Lust Mist." Body twisted in pain. Face frozen in pleasure. A sin overdose.
Lucen clenches his jaw.
> Lucen (to himself): "He sells hunger. But I remember famine. I'll make him choke on it."
He puts on the mask. The camera cuts to black.
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To be continued...
Next Chapter:- CHAPTER 7: THE VELVET CAGE...