Claude walked through the solitary white corridors of Hero HQ. He was so lost in thought that he didn't notice when Mei rushed up and tapped him lightly on the shoulder from behind.

  "Hey Claude... Mirage asked for you... c'mon, this way..." She said with an insistent tone.

  As the two walked down the corridor together Claude asked Mei for her thoughts.

  "Mei, what do you think Mirage wants with me?"

  She looked up at him and shrugged. "I dunno... He asked me to come and get you..." Her voice returned to it's normal softer tone.

  The pair came across an old room in Hero HQ and gently pushed the door. It creaked open and Mirage was on the other side, hunched over a desk he was scanning through a sea of case files linked to various kidnappings..

  As Claude and Mei stepped forward Mirage didn't bother turning away from the file he was studying. "Come in Claude." He gestured inside the room and pointed down towards a spot on the floor beside his chair. He turned slightly and glared at Mei. "You can leave now. I only require Claude to be here."

  Mei nodded silently and with a large yawn she turned and walked away down the corridor.

  Claude looked around the room and noticed minimal signs of any furniture or decorations that suggested it was lived in. Mirage's appearance seemed less well groomed than usual, he looked tired, as if he'd been up all night.

  Mirage turned to Claude and shoved a folder into his hands. "Read this. It's important to what I'm about to ask you."

  Claude opened the folder and skimmed over it's contents. It portrayed a series of kidnappings linked to a masked man calling himself Reaper. "Mirage, what's this about?" Claude asked with a note of scepticism.

  "Check the latest entry. I got this from the Archive last night." Mirage sounded mildly annoyed at having to explain himself.

  "I didn't know there were physical documents in the Archive. I went there with Mei the other day and they were almost entirely digital."

  Mirage shook his head with a sigh. "You simply didn't know where to look. As a Gold Rank I have access to many things that you do not. Now read the final entry." He threw the folder's last few pages open decisively and nodded to Claude with a bored expression.

  As Claude looked down at the page he saw the most recent case, dated yesterday it detailed one Rubina Silver who was abducted from a vehicle at around midnight.

  Just as Claude had finished reading and was about to ask questions Mirage snatched the folder from his hands and snapped it shut with a loud clap.

  "Now you understand the situation. If you have any further questions please keep them to yourself."

  Claude shook his head and raised his voice. "Hang on just a second! Rubina Silver. Is that a family member of yours? If I'm going to help you I want answers Mirage! Otherwise I walk away!"

  Mirage glared at him with a disgruntled expression on his face. "That folder is classified by the way. If I tell Ghost you read it there'll surely be consequences."

  "You're trying to blackmail me? This isn't how you get people to do things!" Claude paced around the room. "You can't just manipulate people to get what you want. You treat everyone like dirt and then force them to help you."

  Mirage nodded along to Claude. "You have the honour of assisting me today, don't let that go to waste Claude. You have one chance to prove my assessment of you wrong. Though perhaps you're just as worthless as everybody else. You have a fancy power but in this environment that doesn't make you special. Everyone here has a power of some manner."

  He stood up and adjusted his hood over his head. "I have discovered a lead which upon further examination lead me to a location. We must head to the abandoned underground train station. Do not slow me down or make any mistakes. I don't care what happens to Rubina, she's a means to an end, as are the rest of my family. Those who do not prove their worth cannot possibly be allowed privilege." Mirage sighed, his expression shifted as he fell into deep thought.

  His voice suddenly lost it's venom and he tried a more diplomatic approach. "I'll be honest with you Claude. I distrust you, a lot. However I require your skillset for this specific task. Should you decline it shall prove to me that you're just as worthless as everybody else. I won't report you to Ghost. So, do you belong here or not? Are you truly a hero? Prove it to me!"

  Claude sighed loudly. "Fine, but I'm doing this for Rubina, not for you."

  A small amused smile grazed Mirage's face as he walked towards the doorway and gestured for Claude to follow him.

  "I suppose we should begin moving then. Before this so called Reaper kills yet another of his victims."

  Their footsteps echoed as the two of them walked through a dimly lit rail tunnel. Mirage's mirror shards reflected light from the flickering feint bulbs above their heads. Both wore their Limiters as they descended further into the tunnel.

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  "As your senior by numerous ranks you shall obey my every command during this operation. You're no longer with that pathetic excuse for a squadron you work with normally. If you're lucky you may even catch a glimpse of how a real hero works."

  Claude turned his head to face Mirage. A puzzled expression crossed his face. "Why is it that you hate Claire Regent so much?"

  Mirage walked ahead silently for a few seconds and promptly answered in a frustrated voice. "I don't just hate Captain Regent. I hate her father too, I hate their entire bloodline. Pretentious and overconfident. All because they have that heaven ordained power of theirs. The Regents have always seen themselves as above everyone else. The irony lies in Miss Regent's own weakness. She is after all only Silver Rank. She must surround herself with subpar allies in order to make it as a hero. Being wholly reliant on others won't get anyone anywhere. That is why I am Gold Rank and she is merely Silver. Yet despite these facts she still acts as though she's better than everybody else. The Regent family never change."

  The two walked in a heavy silence, the tunnel before them got darker and darker until Mirage suddenly raised his hand and stopped moving.

  "Two meters to our left. A ventilation cover hasn't been put back on properly. That's our goal."

  With a look of shock Claude stopped moving and turned to where Mirage was glancing. "How did you spot that in this darkness?"

  Mirage smiled a little under his hood. "I'm not a Gold Rank Hero for nothing. I spotted it in the reflection from one of my shards. Pay more attention Claude. If you cannot find a practical purpose for your power beyond simple combat then you don't deserve to call yourself a hero. Remember what you see and hear today, this is a once in a lifetime opportunity to learn from somebody of my calibre."

  As they both reached the vent cover Mirage began to pace around the perimeter, his eyes scanned the immediate area. "No traps. This villain is confident. This may be more interesting than I initially thought." He waved his hand in Claude's general direction. "Take the ventilation cover off. We shall proceed as planned."

  Claude nodded and moved the vent cover away, it came off easily and slid across the concrete with a screech. Mirage waved his hand and a series of mirror shards flew down his arm and into the vent, they reflected light back to him as he kept his eye trained firmly on the shard peeking out of the vent.

  "Three people. One taller person and two shorter. I can't make out their genders. Their reflections are obscured by their clothing. The two shorter people are wearing what appear to be large robes that obscure their features, while the taller one fits the profile of this so called Reaper."

  As Mirage observed closely Claude watched him with a keen interest. "How did you learn to use your power in this way?"

  He let out a low chuckle. "I was one of the last graduates of the Arhke Academy. I have been a hero for around five or six years. It'd be truly tragic if I hadn't learned the full extent of my capabilities in that time."

  Mirage identified a doorway hidden in the wall of the tunnel, after prying it open the two of them arrived in a large room filled with electronics. Two hooded figures in black robes moved around the room, their pale white hands held all manner of electronic equipment which they transported to a man with a skull mask in the middle of the room who was crouched down beneath a large machine with a camera and a screen. The two robed figures moved perfectly synchronised with one another, as if they were two halves of the same person.

  The man in the middle stood up and turned to face Mirage and Claude. He waved away the two robed figures and they stood off to the side, remaining unnaturally still, like statues.

  He spoke with an eerily welcoming voice. "The heroes arrive at last! Oh, I know you, you're Julius Silver! Here to save your sister?"

  Mirage shook his head. "I'm not here to talk. Where is she?"

  Reaper laughed loudly. "All in due time my friend, first things first, introductions." He extended a hand sarcastically. "Reaper. Knight of Ruin in service to his and her majesties the King of Salvation and Queen of Liberation."

  He gestured to the two robed figures. "These two lovely people are the Bishops of Control. They are helping me out with this wonderful endeavour of mine here."

  Mirage glanced around the room. "You brought backup. You're prepared, that's more than most criminals I fight. Once more, where is my sister?"

  "Relax, I haven't harmed her... much. Let's make a trade. Give me your family's Protector's Artifact and I'll release your sister, we can both pretend this never happened. How's that sound?" He laughed and faced Mirage.

  "I believe you already know my answer. I cannot and will not compromise the Silver Family for any reason or in any way, I shall be retrieving my sister now. You will tell me where she is or I'll cut it out of you!" Mirror shards began to swirl rapidly around Mirage.

  Reaper sighed and shook his head. "Shame. I would have liked to have avoided conflict. Ah well, killing two heroes is of no odds to me."

  The two Bishops of Control stepped forward at the same time without a word and handed Reaper his scythe. They turned to face Claude and tilted their hooded heads at a ninety degree angle as they separated him from Mirage.

  One of the Bishops extended their hand palm up into the air. The other repeated the gesture then both jolted their hands to point at the floor, which caused the ceiling to crack and several wooden puppets to fall from the ceiling, their faceless wooden frames creaked and they were dressed in electrical technician clothes.

  The puppets wobbled and jolted as they surrounded Claude. He stretched out his arm and focused on one of the puppets as it moved towards him, He crushed his hand into a fist and the puppet's wooden head exploded with a loud crunch and a pop, human blood exploded everywhere from the decapitated body of the puppet as it's headless frame kept moving forward.

  Mirage repeatedly fired mirror shards where Reaper struck with his scythe in an attempt to disorient him. The two fought on equal footing as Mirage reflected blow after blow while Reaper kept up the pace.

  Claude closed his eyes and focused, all of the puppets around him crashed to the ground and one of the Bishops stumbled backwards, the other frantically panicked and stepped back into place beside the other. Their movements immediately calmed down and they composed themselves once again. Claude seized the opportunity and used his power to pull an electrical box off the wall, throwing it at the Bishops.

  Both fell to the ground while Mirage grabbed hold of Reaper and slammed him through the fragile wall into the tunnel. He cornered him and right before he delivered the finishing blow Reaper pulled a small button from his pocket. "I wouldn't do that if I were you." He clicked the button. "You have ten minutes until the building housing your sister explodes! You can take me down or you can go save her. She's in a warehouse in the industrial district. Have fun!"

  Mirage punched Reaper and knocked him unconscious. He dropped him on the floor and turned back towards the room he'd just left. Claude rushed to his side. "What's going on Mirage? Why did you let him escape?"

  He shook his head. "Claude, my sister is in the industrial district, which is on the other side of Arhke! We have ten minutes before the building explodes! We need a plan, NOW!" Mirage yelled.