EPISODE 4: THE NETWORK ## CHAPTER 1: THE THIRD THIEF His name was Alexei, and he'd been hiding in the European underground for nine months. Kira arranged the meeting through Echo's network—encrypted communications, multiple secure handoffs, the kind of paranoia that came from being hunted across continents. The video call showed a man in his forties, his face lined with exhaustion and fear. [ALEXEI VOLKOV][LEVEL: 25][CLASS: SKILL THIEF (MYTHIC)] "You're the American thieves," Alexei said, his accent thick. "I heard about Viktor Petrov. Bold move." "We need allies," Kira replied. "Elena Voss is coming for us. We need to be ready." Alexei's expression darkened at the name. "Voss killed my partner. Dragged her into a government facility and took her apart piece by piece. All to prove that stolen skills don't transfer on death." "I heard." "Then you know what she's capable of. She doesn't just hunt us—she studies us. Catalogs our abilities. She wants to understand how Skill Drain works so she can counter it. Or replicate it." Marcus leaned into frame. "Can she?" "Not yet. But she's close. Her scientists have been experimenting with captured Awakened, trying to force skill transfer through technology." Alexei shook his head. "If she succeeds..." "Then Skill Thieves become obsolete. Or worse, reproducible." --- ## CHAPTER 2: THE ALLIANCE The...