Dominion: Rise of the Siblings

The Syndicate bleeds money.But when threatened, it bleeds something worse—memory.

And Alex Virell had just reopened an old scar.

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Lancaster Docks – 2:17 AM

Rain hammered the container yard like war drums. Cranes loomed like iron giants, frozen in mid-swipe. Security lights flickered, dim and faulty—just the way Cassian Rourke liked it.

Inside container 221-C, Cassian sat with two bodyguards, cleaning a matte-black auto-shotgun.

He was greying now. Slower. Richer. But not dumber.

And certainly not careless.

So when he heard footsteps approaching without a call or code—he didn't hesitate. He cocked the shotgun and aimed at the door.

But the door never opened.

Instead, a pipe hissed—steam venting through the top.

A voice behind him spoke softly:

"You still go for the same trap every time."

Cassian turned.

Alex Virell stood in the corner. Cloaked. Dry. Calm.

"Jesus," Cassian muttered. "You're supposed to be dead."

"You keep saying that," Alex said. "And yet here I am. Still disappointing people."

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Minutes Later

Cassian poured a drink for both of them.The guards waited outside now, on strict order.

Alex leaned over the metal desk, unfazed.

"I'm not here to reminisce," he said. "I need weapons. You deal in high-grade Syndicate shipments."

Cassian scoffed. "I used to. Before they marked me."

"You're still alive. Which means they either fear you…"Alex paused. "Or you're still feeding them."

Cassian didn't blink.

"I want mobile launchers," Alex continued. "EMP grenades. Tier-4 suppressors. Everything they don't sell in the open."

Cassian narrowed his eyes. "You're planning something big."

"I'm planning the end of something big."

Cassian looked thoughtful. Then leaned forward."There's a shipment landing in Sector 14. It's not theirs. It's unmarked—ghost inventory. Could be rogue military tech, could be bait."

Alex raised a brow. "You've seen the manifest?"

Cassian hesitated.

That hesitation said everything.

"You already sold it," Alex said coldly.

Cassian's jaw tightened. "I had to."

"To who?"

Cassian stood slowly. "It was either them… or the Raven's Claw."

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Flashback – 1 Month Ago

Cassian kneels in his warehouse, hands bound.A black-gloved figure stands over him—face hidden behind a porcelain raven mask.

"The boy lives," the assassin says. "The girl too. You'll feed them if they come. You'll lead them here. Or we bleed you slow."

Cassian nods, trembling.

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Present

"I'm sorry, Alex," Cassian said quietly.

Then the wall exploded.

Smoke and flashbangs detonated across the container. Red lasers sliced through the fog.Syndicate mercs—armed, masked, tactical—flooded the space.

Cassian hit the ground, screaming. "I didn't tell them! I swear!"

Alex was already gone.

He moved like a whisper of fury—sliding under bullets, striking like a ghost.

Two guards fell.

A third screamed as Alex shattered his jaw with the butt of a rifle.

Outside, backup engines roared—black SUVs circling the docks.

Alex grabbed Cassian and slammed him against the wall.

"You sold your soul and bet on the wrong side."

"I didn't tell them it was tonight!" Cassian begged. "They must've been watching the drive! They—"

THWIP.

Cassian's eyes widened.

A feather-shaped blade pierced his neck from behind.

He gurgled. Collapsed. Dead.

Alex didn't flinch.

He just looked up at the sniper tower nearby.

And saw the glint of a mask vanish into the shadows.

The Raven's Claw had struck again.

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30 Minutes Later – Safehouse

Lia patched a fresh cut across Alex's cheek while he relayed everything.

Cassian. The trap. The assassin.

"And the shipment?" Lia asked.

"Intercepted," Alex replied. "But I placed a tracker on one of their crates."

He handed her a small screen. A pulsing red dot blinked on the edge of Lancaster's government district.

"That crate," Alex said, "is heading toward someone with diplomatic clearance."

Lia's eyes sharpened.

"A government mole?"

Alex nodded. "Or worse… someone who helped authorize the original purge."

Lia stood, her expression like carved obsidian.

"Then we expose them. Pull the mask off while the world's watching."

Alex looked at her.

"No masks," he said. "Not anymore. We drag the whole throne room into the light."

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Some wars are won with armies.Others with secrets.

But this one?

Would be won with names.