The morning light broke through the industrial haze over Mississauga, spilling faintly across the steel beams of an old factory. Inside, Kevin Wei stood before a line of men—engineers, mercenaries, and loyal subordinates. Their eyes were fixed on him, waiting for orders.
“Good day, Mister Wei,” one of them greeted nervously.
Kevin didn’t return the smile.
“Tonight, we launch our plan to decimate Toronto.”
The room fell silent.
One man hesitated. “Sir, are you sure? What about the one you requested us to build? We simply—”
“Simply what?” Kevin cut in, stepping forward with cold authority. “I brought everything we need here, didn’t I? I told you to reverse-engineer the weapons and power sources from Nanase Corporation into a smaller form. That’s your job.”
The man swallowed hard. “It’s taking longer than expected. We’re struggling to make them portable—fitting them into the battlesuit you wanted isn’t exactly simple.”
Kevin’s stern expression broke into a faint, unsettling laugh. He placed a hand on the man’s shoulder.
“Jerry Li,” he said, switching to Mandarin, his tone low and menacing. “If Rin Nanase could do it, so can you. I don’t want to hear any more excuses. Understand?”
Jerry nodded quickly, his face pale. “Y-yes, boss.”
By late afternoon, kilometers away, Rin Nanase stirred awake. After his usual morning routine, he descended into the basement—a private command center hidden beneath his home.
He plugged a USB-C drive into his computer. The interface expanded into a floating holographic display, blue light reflecting in his focused eyes. Files and schematics spun into view—data Chizuru Kawasaki had extracted.
Rin’s attention sharpened. Everything depended on what he could learn.
Across the city, Chizuru arrived at one of the taller buildings which is Olsen Tower, one of Toronto’s tallest buildings. Her rented car sat parked below as she stepped through the glass doors, her calm expression masking the tension behind her eyes.
“Good morning,” she greeted politely to the lab team. “Rin Nanase requested that you analyze this compound and create a curable solution for it.”
She passed the documents across the table.
The executive frowned. “Did something happen?”
“No,” she replied calmly. “But if anyone’s ever exposed, we need a way to reverse the effects immediately.”
“Quite the request from him,” the man murmured.
“Yeah,” she said with a small smile. “And please—make it in a large container. The same size you used for the other compound.”
“Understood. It’ll take several hours.”
“I can wait.”
As evening fell, Rin was still buried in data when a flicker from the television caught his eye.
Breaking News: Toronto Under Attack.
Explosions rocked the city. Smoke and fire filled the streets. Missiles rained down from the sky. Crowds fled in panic as strange, thick clouds spread through the air.
Reporters shouted warnings about hallucinations and mass hysteria.
Rin froze. His gaze locked on the screen. A dark, metallic figure flew above the burning skyline, armed with a massive weapon system.
One word burned across the display: HALLUCINATOR.
His phone rang—an unknown caller. He ignored it. There was no time.
He shot up from his chair.
“Retro, locate Chizuru and connect me to her—now.”
Moments later, the Dark Knight sliced through the air, his jet boosters roaring.
At the top floor, Chizuru’s phone vibrated. She answered immediately.
“Rin?”
“Chizuru, get out of Toronto. There’s an attack underway.”
“I can’t,” she said firmly.
“What do you mean you can’t?!”
“The antidote’s still processing. If I leave now, everything we worked for will be gone.”
“Listen to me,” Rin barked. “You have to evacuate. That building isn’t safe.”
“I’m sorry, Rin. I’ll call you back once it’s done.”
She ended the call, turning back to the lab reactor. The microwave-sized device pulsed with orange light. The progress bar read 52%.
“Damn it,” Rin growled under his mask.
“Sir,” Retro warned, “reports confirm civilians are hallucinating after exposure to the smoke bombs. Avoid contact with the compound for extended periods.”
“Understood,” Rin replied. “Divert focus to civilian rescue.”
Chaos reigned across the city.
Traffic snarled. Fires raged. Civilians screamed and ran in every direction. Victims of the gas turned on one another—eyes wild, attacking imaginary monsters only they could see.
Masked Yubiwa agents moved through the haze, firing more biochemical rounds into the crowds.
One aimed a missile launcher toward a panicked group—
when the Dark Knight landed behind him, blasting him back with a repulser beam.
Rin fought fast—hand-to-hand, calculated strikes. He disarmed and disabled enemies without killing. But the gas had already spread.
A mob of hallucinating civilians surrounded him, screaming.
He blocked, dodged, struck precisely, refusing to harm them. Each breath echoed inside his helmet.
After subduing the last, he ignited his boosters and shot upward. Repulser beams lit the night sky.
But a delirious man lunged from a balcony, grabbing Rin mid-flight. They crashed hard into the asphalt. Rin rolled, groaned, and rose again, surrounded.
He clenched his fists and reengaged.
At Nanase Tower, Chizuru pressed her palms to the glass, her reflection illuminated by the inferno outside. The city burned below. Explosions painted the skyline in orange and black.
Then—she saw him.
A metallic figure hovered over the city, his armor dark silver with a glowing white Yubiwa insignia across his chest. The Hallucinator.
He adjusted his trajectory—
directly toward Olsen Tower.
Her breath caught.
From her vantage point, she saw him carrying a massive, capsule-shaped red compound and a large machine—something like a projectile launcher.
The Hallucinator landed on the rooftop, placing the machine at its center.
He plugged thick cables into the building’s power lines, siphoning energy into the weapon.
Dark Knight landed on one of the taller buildings, collapsing to one knee in exhaustion. Sparks flickered across his armor.
“How much power do you think I can hold up tonight?” he asked.
“Power reserves at twenty percent,” Retro replied. “This battlesuit isn’t designed for continuous rapid discharge. You’re pushing it beyond limits.”
Rin looked up.
Through his visor’s HUD, Olsen Tower came into focus. Zooming in, he saw The Hallucinator anchoring the red compound into the machine.
YOU ARE READING
Dark Knight
ActionA young multimillionaire decides to become a masked vigilante to find the one responsible for eliminating his entire family when he was a child. However, later on, he realizes that the city needs him as a criminal organization hides in the shadows t...
