Chapter 15: The Order of the Gnostics

Stonehenge, United Kingdom

03:47 AM

The night air was cold, dense with fog. The ancient stones loomed like silent judges, frozen in time. Aiden exhaled as he leaned against one of the monoliths, flipping a coin between his fingers.

“So… remind me again why we’re doing this at hallowed hour?” Aiden said, his tone playful. 

“Is there some sacred Order rule that says we only commit theft in dramatic fog?”

Cole stood a few feet away, hands behind his back, scanning the surrounding structure like a soldier awaiting divine revelation. “This is one of the oldest convergence points in the world. It’s not drama. It’s protocol.”

Aiden smirked, still twirling his coin. “You know, for a guy who reads conspiracy forums ironically, you sure act like a priest sometimes.”

Cole didn’t respond. His eyes narrowed at the base of a leaning stone slab. Ancient markings shimmered faintly under the moonlight—runes that didn't belong to any known language.

“It should be behind that one,” he said.

But before either could move—

A gust of wind swept across the field, unnaturally strong.

The fog shifted. From the mist, two towering figures emerged—Phantoms. Humanoid in shape, but distorted, their bodies masked by bone-like shells. And behind them, hundreds of mini Phantoms rippled from their backs like crawling insects.

Aiden clicked his tongue. “Well, sh*t.”

The mini Phantoms launched forward.

SWOOSH!

Aiden ducked, rolling sideways and drawing his flashlight. He flicked it on—a beam of condensed white light extending like a sword. As he channelled Spiritual Essence, the beam sharpened and vibrated with intensity.

“Guess I’ll handle the bugs,” he grinned.

Cole’s form blurred.

"Image Control!"

 One moment he was still, the next, afterimages flickered, dashing in opposite directions as he dodged the swarm. 

His real self appeared behind a Phantom, blade drawn. He struck—only for the creature to catch it mid-air.

“Tch… no blind spots,” Cole muttered.

The Phantom swung. Cole ducked and triggered Image Control again. A flash—and he vanished, reappearing behind the creature.

One clean slice.

But the Phantom didn’t fall. It turned—its eyes now glowing red.

From afar, Aiden fought with rhythm. His sword-light danced, slashing through mini Phantoms, each blow timed with a quip.

“Left foot, left foot—oh damn, that’s your face.”

But even his blade started to dim. The creatures were too many.

He back flipped, landing near Cole. “Plan B?”

Cole’s breath was shallow. His SE was nearly drained. “Into the cave. Now!” 

They ran, weaving through monoliths, the Phantoms in hot pursuit. 

They ducked into a narrow stone crevice near the rear of the site. The space opened into a dim cavern, its walls etched with ancient scripture.

Aiden grinned. “Showtime.”

He inhaled deeply and channelled everything.

His flashlight snapped off.

Darkness.

Then—

From his hand, a black flame erupted. It danced with ghostly elegance, crackling in the silence.

Shadow Flame.

He hurled it forward. The flame struck the first Phantom, devouring its body in pure silence. Not a single scream, not a sound—just… disappearance. Not death. Erasure.

Aiden fell to one knee, coughing violently.

The silence pressed in. Too absolute. 

Aiden shuddered- from the realization that there was no body, no ashes. Just… nothing.

 As if he had erased a page from reality itself.

On the other side of the cave, Cole stood firm as the second Phantom rushed him.

He chanted under his breath.

“Length. Width. Height.”

His eyes glowed white-blue.

Spiritual Volume: Pixel Essence.

Reality fractured into jagged squares, the world glitching like broken glass. The Phantom’s roar cracked into static, frozen mid-motion as if buffering inside a corrupted screen.

Within his spiritual volume, he reached out with both hands.

The Phantom stopped mid-charge.

Its body pixelated. Deconstructed.

Then—shattered.

All that remained was dust and a thin hum.

Cole turned off his SE, sweat pouring down his face. His vision blurred—he'd pushed past 20 seconds. Blood trickled from his eyes.

Aiden grunted, rising. “Well. That sucked.”

They stumbled toward the tablet embedded in the central stone.

It shimmered with inscriptions in an ancient tongue, faintly glowing with SE. Cole ran a hand over it with reverence.

“This… is proof.”

Aiden leaned beside him, eyes flicking between the script and the sky. 

“Proof of what, exactly? That the Order’s version of God wants to hit reset?”

Cole didn’t answer immediately. His voice was low. 

“That the world’s a lie. This… all of this. The pain, the suffering. The illusion of progress. It was always a simulation. The reset… is the cure.”

Aiden exhaled slowly. “You ever think that cure might kill the patient?”

Cole turned his head, meeting Aiden’s gaze. His eyes were unreadable.

“…Even if it does, it’ll be better than this.”

Location: Sahara Desert, Mauritania — Classified Sector

The sun hung like a flaming omen above the dunes, casting jagged shadows across the sand-slick walls of the Order’s hidden base. 

From above, the outpost looked like nothing more than a scattered series of broken rock formations. But beneath, buried beneath the centuries of dust and bone, lived a heartbeat of something far older. Far more dangerous.

Deep underground, layers of rusted steel and cold concrete formed the base’s veins, pulsing faintly with lights powered by SE-infused cores.

 At its center stood a tall, glass-panelled chamber, where rows of robed followers moved in silent purpose.

Arthur Wockenfuss stood before a reinforced glass wall, hands clasped behind his back, gazing down at the barracks.

 His sharp blue eyes still burned with the fervour of a man half his age, even though the skin around them sagged like melting wax. His silver beard was neatly groomed, and his white cloak bore the mark of the Order—12 stars formed in a circle, with the sun in the centre & the moon outside of the circle.

He turned when the sliding door hissed open.

Anya stepped in quietly, her eyes lined with worry. 

The heat hadn't gotten to her—she was used to that—but the growing whispers of what the Reset might bring had begun to reach even the youngest agents & believers.

"Arthur," she asked hesitantly, "if the Reset really happens... will we die too?"

Arthur smiled softly, as if she had asked him whether the sun would rise tomorrow.

"No, child," he said, voice warm but absolute. “Your father… Aries… he was the first to walk beyond the veil. The first to remember where we truly come from. He will lead us again—into the true paradise. Into the real world.”

"But… if the others don’t follow?"

“They were never meant to.”

Anya looked down, her fists clenching. Arthur placed a firm, withered hand on her shoulder.

“When the Nostradamus event took place came, I buried my wife & four sons,” Arthur said softly, almost to himself. 

“The Order taught me they were not truly gone. Just trapped in this fake world. That promise is why I still stand.” 

“Do not let fear rot your purpose, Anya. The world is an illusion. This desert, your body, even your doubts—fleeting shadows. You are your father’s daughter. You will walk in fire and come forth as gold.”

Location: Airspace above Mauritania

The engines hummed low as a sleek black craft descended silently toward the hidden landing platform, the signature crest of the Vatican emblazoned subtly on its undercarriage. Armed guards in desert camouflage snapped to attention.

Inside the helicopter, John Smith sat cross-legged, eyes closed, arms draped loosely at his sides like a monk in meditation. The air around him shimmered faintly, as if even reality itself refused to settle near him.

His pale white suit was immaculate. His silver tie remained untouched by the turbulence. His name was a pseudonym—a joke, some said. But those who had seen what he could do had long since stopped laughing.

Location: Base Command Chamber — Moments Later

The chamber stood in silence as John Smith entered. Arthur dropped to one knee, followed by every agent in the room.

“Master Smith,” Arthur whispered reverently. “It is an honour… truly.”

John smiled with eyes that did not smile.

“I’ve come to see the state of your preparations. There is little time left.”

Arthur rose slowly, respectfully. “We are ready. The SE fusion chambers are stable. The recruits—”

“Your faith, Arthur,” John interrupted, “is not in question.”

He began to walk the perimeter of the room, trailing a finger across one of the glass railings.

“Have the fragments of the first code been located?”

“We've retrieved two so far." Arthur said. “Two in Africa. One we believe is… inside one of the Zodiacs. We’ve sent Agents Aiden and Cole to retrieve the fourth.”

John turned slowly, as if weighing invisible threads in the air.

“And the girl—Anya. Has she awakened?”

Arthur hesitated.

“Yes, during the Convergence,  we discovered that she's the Leo Zodiac. She is strong. She is her father’s echo.”

“That,” John said, “remains to be seen.”

Location: Interior Corridors — Base in Mauritania

The desert heat faded the deeper one walked into the base, replaced by recycled air and the faint buzz of fluorescent lights overhead.

 Two figures strode down the corridor side by side—one tall, broad-shouldered, clad in a patched leather coat, the other wiry and sharp-eyed, carrying a steel briefcase marked Class II Artefact – SE Signature.

Cole adjusted the strap of his katana, his expression unreadable. “If I have to see one more Solo Leveling panel.....”

Aiden blinked, then let out a short laugh. “Wait—what? That’s your breaking point?”

Cole’s voice sharpened, uncharacteristically heated. 

“It’s an empty spectacle. It's just power for the sake of power. It lacks weight, & it lacks consequences. He kills armies and gods, and yet I feel nothing. That isn’t struggle—that’s pageantry. Hollow worship disguised as narrative.”

Aiden raised an eyebrow, grinning. “Wow. I’ve never heard you talk this much outside of a mission briefing. Are you secretly running a review blog?”

Cole stopped walking for a beat, realizing how much he’d let slip. His jaw tightened. The intensity drained from his eyes, replaced by that familiar cold reserve.

 “Forget it.”

They walked in silence for a few steps.

“You know,” Aiden said lightly as the scanners swept them, “I think that might be the first thing we’ve ever agreed on.”

Cole gave the faintest exhale—half a chuckle, half a sigh. “Even broken clocks,” he murmured, back to his quiet self.

The reinforced door marked High Clearance – Wockenfuss Wing slid open with a hiss.

Location: Arthur’s Office – Inner Sanctum

Arthur stood at attention inside, flanked by Anya near the back. John Smith stood near the center console, pale hands folded neatly behind his back. He didn’t turn to acknowledge them—but the room seemed to quiet in his presence.

The mood shifted instantly. The joking drained from Cole and Aiden’s faces like blood.

“Report,” Arthur said.

Cole stepped forward, placing the metal case on the obsidian desk between them.

 “No signs of a fourth Zodiac. They were either never there or… they knew we were coming.”

Aiden opened the case, revealing a black stone tablet inscribed with thin silver lines, glowing faintly with residual SE.

 “But we did find this.”

John stepped forward now. The air thickened, subtle pressure pressing down on their lungs.

He placed a hand on the tablet, eyes flickering with recognition. “It’s an ancient cipher- looks Gaelic.”

He traced the grooves with his fingertips. The silver lines sparked, and the tablet shimmered.

A low hum filled the room as glyphs shifted into view. John spoke, slowly, each word falling like a stone into still water:

“I was the one…

The only…

Who saw.

Who knew the secret-

The Original Sinner is …...”

Then all of a sudden...

The glyphs collapsing back into black stone.

John’s voice was softer now. “This confirms it. This is what Aries spoke of.”

Arthur’s face paled. “Then the original sinner, is the creator of this world?”

John turned, for the first time, to Anya. His gaze lingered.

“Yes,” he said. “And the Thirteenth was the witness to it. We need to find the Thirteenth Zodiac.”

Anya was surprised. She didn’t know why, but for a moment, she felt as if his words were aimed directly at her.