Blackout Over Manhattan

The Crimson Broker offered profit, unity, order, peace, or survival depending on the volume of the war, and each offer sounded reasonable if you ignored the person being crushed underneath it. The leader knew Kieran's height, gait, injury history, and old delivery routes. He listed them with professional calm, as if reading shipping data. Kieran listened because listening was not surrender. The leader's philosophy had weight. That was what made it dangerous. The Crimson Broker understood scarcity. The Choir understood loneliness. The Hollow Parliament understood fear. The Silence Engine understood violence. The Architects Beyond understood extinction. None of them were stupid, and none of them thought of themselves as evil.