The Chaos Of Luna's Mark

**_Chapter 17: The Men In Black_**

---

They came to a halt. Leo frowned at the figure before him. Just then, the other Lunas caught up, standing beside him. Celik smiled, his eyes carefully examining each of them. "You guys weren't as bad as I thought," he chuckled. "But I want to fight all of you again... together this time," he said, his gaze steady and challenging.

All of them wore troubled expressions. Frost shot Leo a worried look. "Okay, but can I speak to Leo alone first?" Frost asked, his voice measured as he eyed Celik.

Leo noticed Ares and Zion exchanging suspicious glances at Frost's request. Celik narrowed his eyes but eventually nodded. Frost took a few steps away from the group, motioning for Leo to follow.

"Leo, I feel like there's something you're not telling us," Frost said, his face etched with concern. "If you tell me, I promise I won't tell the others."

Leo hesitated, glancing at Frost's earnest expression. After a moment, he relented and explained exactly what the King had told him and why he hadn't wanted to share it with the group.

"It's alright, I won't tell anyone," Frost assured him, a small smile playing on his lips. "Now, we should get back before they start spying on us again." He chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

Leo nodded, and they returned to the group.

"Welcome back... what took you so long?" Rain asked, eyeing Leo suspiciously.

"Nothing..." Frost quickly interrupted, settling down on the cool, hard ,and muddy floor. Rain whispered something in Celik's ear, who was resting an arm on Ares's shoulder. Celik nodded and sat on the ground as well.

Bewildered, Leo glanced between Celik and Rain.

"Listen up, children," Celik called out, waving his arm to grab their attention. "You will fight my men, and if you succeed, you will be rewarded. If not, you'll face me and Celik—no holding back."

"As if you weren't holding back last time," Frost muttered, shooting a glare at Celik.

"Trust me, I was," Celik replied nonchalantly, stretching his arms behind his head as he lay back. His body showed no signs of wear—no scratches, no sweat, no odor. "How?" Leo whispered, more to himself than anyone else.

"How what?" Celik arched an eyebrow at him.

"How do you not sweat?" Leo asked, genuinely curious.

Celik chuckled. "Vampires don't sweat, idiot," he yawned, "and do you really think that fight was worth breaking a sweat?"

Leo was caught off guard, and before he could respond, Rain cleared his throat, drawing Leo's attention back to him. The men in black approached, forming a line. The Lunas stood ready, with Ares in front, Leo to his left, Frost to his right, and Zion positioned behind them for support.

Without warning, one of the five men charged at Ares, while another targeted Leo, and a third went after Zion. Leo quickly glanced at Zion, who was already fighting off two opponents at once. With a swift motion, Leo threw his dagger into the air. As it fell back into his hand, he struck at his attacker. The man dodged but wasn't fast enough—Leo's second strike sent the dagger plunging into the man's heart. The other men hurriedly carried him away and applied the Vernan serum. To Leo's astonishment, the man didn’t scream—he simply stood up as if nothing had happened. *What the hell?*

Ares had already taken down his opponent, and Zion had managed to slay one of the two men he was fighting, but the other escaped. Both men then turned their attention to Frost, who electrocuted one to death with a crackling bolt of lightning. The Lunas' powers had improved significantly since their first battle.

"The best thing about being a Luna is that you don't have to wait for a countdown," Leo remarked as he threw his dagger into the air again. This time, it transformed into a dark ocean-blue bow. He fired, hitting his target squarely. The man fell dead to the ground, only to be revived by the Vernan serum moments later.

Just then, Maximus, a man in black who appeared to be the same age as Rain, approached them. He moved with the same fluid grace as Celik, but unlike Celik's dark short hair, Maximus had long, light purple hair that swayed with his movements. He launched himself at Frost, who barely managed to dodge his attack. Maximus avoided a lightning strike from Frost, moving with eerie speed.

In a flash, Maximus grabbed Ares, twisting his arms behind his back. Ares slashed wildly, trying to free himself, but Maximus held firm. Leo gulped, unsure of how to help. Suddenly, Zion transformed into a rhino and charged blindly at Maximus. Maximus stepped aside just in time, and Ares, too, managed to escape Zion's charge. Zion then transformed into a cheetah, darting at Maximus with incredible speed, but again, Maximus evaded him effortlessly.

Zion changed into a cat, thinking he could slip through Maximus's defenses, but Maximus merely picked him up and petted him as if he were a harmless kitten. Zion bit down on his fingers, but Maximus didn't even flinch. Instead, he covered Zion's mouth with his hand, preventing him from transforming again.

Seizing the opportunity, Leo lunged forward and struck Maximus in the heart with his dagger. To his surprise, Maximus didn't move. The blade pierced him cleanly, yet Maximus just stared at Leo, a look of approval in his eyes. Maximus slumped to the ground as one of the men applied the serum. Like the others, he didn’t scream—he merely winced and then stood up, leaving Leo more puzzled than ever.

---