Dreams floated through his subconscious like fragmented glass.

     "No!" Ben screamed when he found out his family was gone.

     "I'm going to kill you!" Ben had shouted at the Black Dragon operatives.

     "They knew not the element of gold," the man, who Ben considered to be the Silver Assassin, had taunted.

     A news story floated into Ben's mind. It was news coverage on the Silver Assassin showcased a year prior. The female news anchor was doing a report on the murderer:

     "Today is a cause for remembrance as political activist, and father, Jeremy Clarkson was assassinated today. Reports indicate that the mysterious use of a toxic element turned his skin a silvery-grey, and an autopsy has revealed that the element was the cause of death due to asphyxiation. But the question still remains unanswered: who is this silver assassin?"

     The Silver Assassin...

     The name echoed throughout Ben's subconscious. After the story "Who is the Silver Assassin" aired, the name had stuck. The figure was thought responsible for dozens of major murders throughout the country, but primarily in New York City. Strangely, the man seemed to only target mafia, gang, or terrorist members. This caused for some to revere him as a "hero", yet Ben had always remained firm on his stance that the man was a murderer.

     Ben's eyes slowly opened, his left one slightly swollen shut by a bruise. His chest was humming with pain, but Ben was sure it was only due to bruises. The rest of his body hurt like hell, so much so that he couldn't even get up. All the man could do was lay in his motel bed, wishing that the near-unbearable pain would go away.

     As he continued to lay, his mind wandered to another news piece interviewing a person who had actually claimed to see the Silver Assassin.

     "He was huge," the man had said. "I would say, well over six feet tall and just ripped with muscle. The shadow made it hard to see anything, but it kinda looked like he was wearing a mask or something. I-I could hear his breathing too. It was deep, but muffled for some reason..."

     That was the catch, nobody had actually fully seen the Silver Assassin. There were news stories, and there were some people who caught glimpses. However, he was a man who worked in the obscure. Ben must've been the first to fully see him, but the only thing that tipped him off about his identity was by what he said:

     "They knew not the element of gold."

     There was a vibrating sound from off to his left, and Ben grudgingly rolled over to pick up his old flip-phone. The caller was unknown, but he answered it anyway. Before the receiver was even touching his ear he already knew who he was talking to.

    "Mr. Cain," a familiar voice, possibly Mr. Chase's, "have you obtained the artifact?"

     "What? How did you get this number?" Ben grunted. "I mean...yes, and I nearly got killed for it too. You didn't tell me there were others..."

     There was a moment of silence, and voices could be heard in the background.

     "Hello?" Ben asked. "Why am I being called?"

     "You need to hand the artifact over immediately," Mr. Chase demanded. "You have one hour to meet us in the same building we met at two days ago. We will begin the exchange then. Come alone."

     The receiver went dead, and Ben flipped the phone shut. He slowly sat up in bed, heavily breathing as he did so, and searched around on the floor. The suitcase lay at the foot of the bed, tipped over on its side. Ben crawled out of his bed and went over to make sure the artifact was still intact.

     He clicked the suitcase open and the mysterious glow entered the room. The divine artifact was still, miraculously, inside of the suitcase. It hummed with its beautiful array of colors within.

     "Fuck," Ben whispered to himself, shutting the suitcase.

     He undressed and addressed his wounds. Surprisingly, he had no broken bones and everything just appeared to be really nasty bruises. His nose and chest were badly bruised as well, but when the Silver Assassin punched him he'd mainly done it in the cheek. He sighed at the sight, going into the bathroom to take a cold shower.

**

     He took some pills to help with the pain, preparing to depart. His heart beat with anxiety as he walked, almost ran, out of his motel and into San Diego. Ben's family awaited him.

     He hailed a taxi that took him into downtown San Diego, and over to where the Black Dragon's secret operating facility was. Along the way, they passed by Starlight Laboratories which was streaming with police officers. Yellow tape had been set up to keep the news out, while a crowd of people had begun to form at the entrance to the lab. Ben looked away, clutching the suitcase just a little tighter.

     The taxi arrived at its destination and Ben was let out. He paid the cab driver, and stood a moment in front of the building before heading in. How ironic, he thought, that a building of such ordinary appearance could house such bad people? Dismissing the thought, Ben walked slowly, and cautiously, towards the front entrance. His breaths were shallow, and his senses remained on high alert, as Ben opened the door.

     But something was wrong.

     He could sense it from the moment he stepped into the building. The hallway was dark, save for a few lights that were on. Everything seemed eerily quiet. Ben padded the gun in his back pocket he'd brought just in case. It didn't matter to him if he was caught with it or not; the gun gave him a sense of security to have it with him. Slowly, he journeyed to the elevator and stepped inside. As the compartment began moving upward, Ben felt an increasing sense of uneasiness. Things were just too quiet.

     The doors opened and Ben stepped out. He immediately saw the secretary's desk but the woman's chair was turned away. She must've been working on some paperwork as Ben walked up to her.

     "Miss?" Ben asked, approaching the desk. "I'm here to see Mr. Chase."

     There was no response.

     "Miss?" Ben reached out to tap the woman's shoulder, getting impatient.

     But when he touched the shoulder, it felt rock-hard.

     "Hello?" asked Ben, turning the chair around.

     He jumped back because the secretary, or what used to be the secretary, was nothing but a statue. Her face gawked upward at the ceiling with an expression a mix of pain and awe. The woman's entire body was glossed over with a gross silver metal that eerily reflected Ben's horrified face.

     Nothing could mask his horror, and Ben let out a yelp in surprise. His grip briefly slackened on the suitcase, but quickly he tightened his hold out of defense. Ben shut his eyes against the morbid sight, and it took a moment for the reality to even sink in.

     Then he heard the breathing.

     How could it be possible? How could he have been followed in such a short time? Ben's wounds suddenly flared in pain, his heart quickening in pace. The blood rushed through his veins, and, like prey being stalked by its predator, his survival instincts awoke.

     "I hope you didn't think I was going to let you escape," a muffled voice cackled from behind. "I, like you, have important promises to keep to my clients."

     Ben froze in place, his knuckles turning white from his grip on the suitcase. He slightly turned his head, and out of the corner of his eye he could see his enemy standing behind him. Quickly, his mind raced and his reflexes sprang into action.

     "Your time has come," the Silver Assassin hissed. "Your resistance would be...unfortunate."

     Ben whirled around and, to his worst fears, saw the Silver Assassin standing in front of the elevator. His gaping eyes reflected the lifeless florescent lights from above. Ben, before he could even think, instinctively pulled out his gun and fired several shots at the figure, but all he did was stagger back.

     "Enough!" the Silver Assassin screamed, seemingly out of irritation. "You've been enough of a setback already!"

     He pulled out a gun with a pipe connected to one of the canisters clipped onto his belt. The Silver Assassin aimed and fired at Ben, but he dodged. The bullet, or whatever it was, collided with the secretary's desk and exploded in a mess of powdery silver.

     "Do you like it?" the Silver Assassin gloated, pursuing Ben. "It's of my own design. I spent years crafting it."

     Ben ducked behind the secretary's desk, breathing heavily.

     "How did you know I'd come here?" he stalled as he loaded a fresh magazine into his measly weapon.

     "Amazing what a simple wire tap can do," the Silver Assassin coughed. "Believe me, the N.S.A. has been doing it a lot longer than I have."

     Ben crawled away and tore through the room. He smashed his way through the door he'd entered with Mr. Chase just two days prior. Behind him, he could hear the terrifying raspy breathing of his pursuer. He turned, just as another silver bullet was shot in his direction. Ben held up the suitcase and was pushed to the ground as the bullet collided with its surface.

     "No!" he heard his adversary yell.

     Ben looked at the suitcase and threw it away. Silver metal spider-webbed and crackled its way around the suitcase, encasing it in a silver tomb. But, when Ben threw it, it was just enough to jostle the suitcase open and send the Stone of Ascension rolling out.

     "Idiot!" the Silver Assassin scoffed, bending to pick up the glimmering stone.

     Ben watched while, with his gloved hands, the Silver Assassin grasped up the stone and gingerly placed it within a special container he had clipped to his belt.

     "You are remarkable, Mr. Cain," the Silver Assassin whispered, standing up. "In intelligent ways and...not."

     Ben raised his gun, "Don't try me."

     The Silver Assassin stared at Ben, curiously tilting his head at him. Then, he turned and began to walk away. It left Ben seemingly stunned; he was being spared.

     Ben launched himself to his feet, anger relentlessly tearing at him. The Silver Assassin didn't even have the decency to kill him! He ran at the man and launched his body onto his. He tore at the mask, but with one sweep of his arm the Silver Assassin had thrown Ben to the ground.

     "Get away!" Ben's opponent screamed.

     Ben stood up, "Not today you son of a bitch."

     The Silver Assassin turned and started running toward a far window. He smashed through it, his momentum was enough to carry him over to the next roof of a building.

     "Of course he has to do that," Ben whispered to himself, tensing up.

     He started sprinting to the far window and, with as much energy as he could, threw himself out. For a moment he went completely weightless, his stomach lurching, as he flew through midair. He landed on the next building with a thud, screaming in pain from his bruises, and he staggered. Ahead of him, the Silver Assassin was sprinting and his breathing could be heard a mile away.

     Ben dashed after him, following the assassin as he impossibly leaped from rooftop to rooftop. He shot at him with his gun, but it was of no use.

     "Stop!" Ben screamed.

     The Silver Assassin stopped, turning with an air of resentment. They locked gazes for a second, but the Silver Assassin immediately raised up one of his guns. Ben laced his fingers around his own weapon, preparing to fire at any vulnerable spot he could.

     "You don't realize what you're doing!" Ben accused, across rooftops. "You don't know what's at stake here!"

     The Silver Assassin remained silent, denying Ben the answer he desired.

     "Answer me!" Ben cried, frustration echoing in the tone of his voice. "Answer me, you fucking murderer!"

     A moment later, the Silver Assassin had ignited his own weapon. A bullet of silver, crackling through the air, raced its way towards Ben.

     Time seemed to slow down as Ben raised his own weapon. He aimed, and he fired. Somehow, perhaps it was simply luck, his bullet collided with the silver one. There was an explosion, and a shockwave of air hit Ben like a wall. He staggered backwards...and he fell.

     He fell down into a dark alley. His entire body was weightless, falling through the air like a bag of sand. Time slowed down even further as his body cut through the air like one of the bullets.

     Then he landed.

     It hurt.

**

     The Silver Assassin stood for a moment, the weapon still sizzling in his hand. He watched Ben fall off the building, and for a moment there was a sense of loss in the air. Then, the villain holstered his weapon.

     And he left.