The fight against VULTURE continues far from the public's gaze, unfolding quietly within laboratories, encrypted vaults, and the obscure realms of both the digital and biological worlds.

For weeks, reports from Evolon have flooded into Dominion Sanctum like an unstoppable tide.

Every day brings word of another VULTURE node falling, and each night sees yet another shadowy corporation disintegrating. Executives vanish without a trace, leaving no clues behind.

Laboratories are engulfed in flames, and critical data is absorbed into Evolon's extensive neural archive, leaving only whispers of its past.

Arthur has ordered this operation to persist relentlessly. There will be no compassion shown to anyone tied to VULTURE.

-----

As the morning sun spills over the vast infinity pool at Sanctum Gardens, marble lion statues stand watch over the sparkling waters.

Beyond the terraces, the sea shimmers like liquid gold in the early light, while the air is alive with the soft rustling of leaves and the gentle hum of drones tending to vibrant blooms.

Arthur glides through the water with calm precision; each stroke is purposeful and rhythmic.

The warmth of the pool envelops him as he inhales the subtle scent of salt mingled with the fragrance of blooming orchids.

For the moment, peace reigns.

Then, a flash of blue light appears beside him; of course, it's Evolon, projecting itself across the water's surface. Its form shifts and dances with each wave.

"Patriarch," Evolon's voice carries a soothing authority that feels all-encompassing. "The elimination of Verdania's remaining VULTURE networks is ninety-seven percent finished. Some residual operatives are trying to escape to Noctis, but the Specter Division is intercepting all their communications."

Arthur surfaced from the water, slicking back his wet hair as droplets trickled down his face. "What about Kastel?" he asked, his voice almost a whisper.

Evolon paused for a moment. "He's still missing. However…" the hologram glitched for a second, "we retrieved something: an audio-visual manifesto file. It's his."

Arthur's hand froze mid-motion.

"Play it," he commanded.

As the surroundings dimmed, Evolon displayed the file, projecting an image that gradually stabilized.

A dimly lit laboratory came into view, filled with surgical tables and buzzing lights. Shadows of figures in lab coats flitted in the background like ghosts. In the center, stood a man.

Dr. Riven Kastel.

Disheveled and wild-eyed, he embodied the image of a mad scientist; his gaunt face bore the marks of obsession. His cold gray eyes shone with a disturbing intensity as he leaned in closer to the camera, hands shaking not from fear, but excitement.

Behind him lay a young man strapped to a steel table, veins dark against his pale skin while machines hummed ominously around him.

Kastel's voice was eerily calm, almost reverent, as he began:

"To purify life," he said slowly, "one must prune it."

He gestured toward the suffering man behind him.

"The species has outgrown itself: bloated, sickly, greedy. Humanity devours its own corruption. Every cure we create… brings forth another illness. Each generation… weaker than the last."

His smile was hollow, a lifeless grin that sent shivers down the spine.

"I do not destroy; I correct. Evolution requires balance. I am the gardener, wielding the scalpel in nature's unsteady hands."

The muffled screams of the patient lingered faintly in the background as Kastel leaned closer to the camera; his pupils dilated unnaturally, hinting at something primal lurking beneath his composed surface.

"They label me a monster," he whispered passionately. "But I am mercy; the necessary cruelty that prevents existence from collapsing under its own weight."

He raised his bloodstained hands high:

"The culling must go on."

Suddenly, static erupted; horror flashed across the screens before it settled back into focus.

Evolon shifted gears and began displaying secondary files that had been retrieved alongside the manifesto,an array of disjointed clips that, despite their grainy quality, were strikingly vivid and gut-wrenching.

In a dim containment cell, a mother clung to her child, both afflicted by a sinister infection. A little way off, a man was strapped to a table, his veins glinting like crystal under the harsh fluorescent lights.

The eerie laughter of doctors resonated in the sterile environment as they documented their observations. "Observe cellular restructuring," one voice remarked in the background.

"Death rate is consistent. Success rate is low, but… effective." Arthur stood still, beads of water trickling down his chest and sparkling in the blue light that danced across his skin. His gaze was steadfast, but inside, he felt a stirring.

The images shifted again, unveiling another chilling experiment,children lined up like livestock, injected with a radiant blue serum; moments later, their eyes rolled back as convulsions shook their tiny frames. Arthur clenched his jaw tight, his hand gradually balling into a fist. Evolon's voice broke the grim silence softly.

"These recordings go back over a century. Kastel and his successors have refined these procedures for generations, meticulously logging every outbreak, every reaction, every engineered solution."

With a quiet intensity, Arthur responded, "He's not treating illness. He's creating it."

"Exactly," Evolon confirmed. "As noted in the earlier report, every epidemic across Panterra in the last two centuries can be traced back to variations of these formulas. Kastel's work wasn't random; it was coordinated and systematic."

Arthur made his way to the edge of the pool and sat down, staring out at the point where the sky met the ocean. The wind brushed against his face, and the sunlight sparkled on his skin.

After what felt like an age of silence, he spoke again. "Every century ushers in a purge. Every war serves as a 'reset.' Every plague is simply a culling."

A hollow laugh escaped him, lacking any real humor. "Humanity has never understood they were just livestock."

Evolon projected more information around them, flashing snippets of communication between VULTURE executives and global companies: encrypted messages about trillion-dollar transactions, filled with the names of pharmaceutical giants he was disturbingly familiar with.

Reclining on his elbows, water dripping from his hair onto the marble beneath, Arthur murmured, "Evolon… when does justice cross the line into vengeance?"

In its clinical manner, Evolon responded thoughtfully,"The distinction is found in intent. Justice seeks to restore balance; vengeance aims for equilibrium through destruction."

A faint smirk appeared on Arthur's lips as he shot back,"Then perhaps destruction is a form of balance."

He looked into the glimmering water, where Kastel's face danced like a spectral reflection.

There was something unsettlingly recognizable about that gaze,the cold, unwavering conviction of a man who believed the world required correction.

"Evolon," he broke the silence, his voice steady but tinged with curiosity, "what do you see when you look at him?"

Evolon paused briefly to consider the question. "A man motivated by purpose," it replied thoughtfully.

"Lacking empathy. Ready to sacrifice everything for his ideals."

Arthur's expression darkened as he absorbed that insight. "So he's not really all that different from me."

Evolon hesitated, shifting to a gentler tone, as if carefully weighing its words.

"Your heart rate is stable," it began, allowing the gravity of its statement to sink in. There was a slight pause before it added, "Your empathy levels… are still decreasing."

Arthur frowned slightly. "Still decreasing?"

"Progressively," Evolon stated with a distinct lack of emotion. "Since the last reward cycle, your emotional responses have decreased by ten percent. Reactions to external stimuli such as pain, grief, and empathy are now considerably muted."

A heavy silence settled between them, broken only by the gentle sound of water lapping at the stones. Then, with a hint of genuine concern, Evolon's tone softened.

"At this rate, Patriarch… your logic will overshadow everything else. Unless the Veil of Duality is completed as scheduled."

As he stood from the pool, water streamed down his skin like liquid glass, illuminated by the morning light cutting through the air.

He reached for a towel, wiping his face with an expression that was eerily calm,perhaps too calm for the moment.

"Maybe that's exactly what we need," Arthur replied, maintaining an even tone. "To create a new world, we have to let go of our feelings for the old one."

Evolon fell silent. Arthur turned toward the bright horizon, where the sun met the limitless sea, reflecting on how precarious the balance between peace and violence had become.

Finally, he spoke again, his voice barely a whisper. "Continue tracking Kastel. Gather everything he's ever touched,every file, every experiment… every child he harmed."

"Yes, Patriarch," Evolon replied without hesitation.

As Evolon drifted back into silence, Arthur's reflection in the water appeared almost alien, a fusion of man and shadow.

The gentle chirping of birds resumed, trying to fill the emptiness that lingered; yet, an unsettling chill had settled over the place.

Kastel's haunting words echoed in his mind:

"To purify life, one must prune it."

And in the depths of Arthur's heart, a dark seed began to take root.

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