Chapter 20: Severed Moon's First Strike — Tai’s Proposal
592words
Behind the Gray Tower, in a long-abandoned stone shrine, eight people sat in a silent circle.
This was Severed Moon’s first gathering.
"From now on," I stood in the center, scanning their faces, "you’re no longer discarded failures."
"You are the claws of the night, the pieces that break the board, the ones I trust most."
“…And the most dangerous."
Their eyes stayed quiet, but something long-buried began to burn.
Amy unrolled a map on the floor.
"First mission — a mock assassination. Target: Northern Watchtower Captain, ID G27."
"He’s one of the Queen’s monitors, here to assess 'violent tendencies' among trialists."
"If he stays alive, every moment of our act gets sent straight back to her."
Raccoon snorted. “So he needs to die like… some bug who stepped on a live wire.”
I nodded. “No trace. No signal. No suspicion.”
"I’ll do it," said Kahn — Severed Moon’s oldest member.
"I served with G27. He’s got a habit — sneaks out at midnight to feed a stray cat."
My brow lifted. "A cat?"
"Yeah. White fur. Hangs around the tower. He likes her."
"I can use her as bait. Lure him into the trap."
I smiled. "Perfect. You’ll handle the kill."
"The rest — cover, extract, erase."
"Severed Moon’s debut should be like a passing wind."
"Only the chill remains."
The plan came together quickly. I raised my hand, ready to dismiss the meeting—
And someone strolled in through the doorway.
It was Tai.
The guy with the most unreliable grin and the scariest aim.
He waved a half-eaten corn cob.
“Next time you hold a ‘secret meeting,’ maybe post a lookout.”
I frowned. “Why are you here?”
He plopped down cross-legged.
"You’re planning an assassination? Cool."
"But have you ever thought… what if we turned this into a public test of control?"
Everyone looked at him.
Tai took a bite of corn, talking like he had all night.
"Right now, you’re working behind the curtain, yeah?"
"But what your mom fears most — is you rewriting the stage.”
"Kill a monitor, and she’ll think you snapped."
"But if you get the entire trialist base to question her rules— now that’s terrifying."
I looked at him, slowly.
"You have a better idea?"
He grinned.
“We still make G27 ‘die.’”
“But not as an assassination.”
“We stage an accident during the trial.”
“He tries to rig the results. Gets caught. Killed on the spot by angry trialists.”
“Then we spread the word. Make sure everyone hears it.”
"Let them start wondering— is the organizer even fair?"
"Let them believe— the only rule is strength."
I was silent for a moment.
Then smiled.
“…Tai.”
"You’re more of a maniac than I thought."
"I like it."
The mission evolved.
Severed Moon turned a simple kill into a full-blown trust collapse operation.
We split roles. Kahn lured the target. Raccoon "leaked the news." Amy planted fake “evidence.” Tai even edited a fake recording of the victim's “final confession.”
Two days later, word spread like rot:
G27, caught manipulating results, was mobbed and killed by furious trialists.
Rumors exploded:
"The organizers can mess up?"
"We can break the rules?"
"Who cares what she says — what we say matters now."
I stood above it all, watching chaos bloom like mold.
Tai came up beside me.
"You know what you look like right now?"
I glanced at him. “What?”
He grinned.
"Like a mad goddess lighting a fuse."
I whispered back:
"This is just the spark."
