The next night, the battalion is in the middle of another incursion.

The groups are separated: Group Alpha went for storage while the Delta and Delta went for Stand users and groups of sellers.

Marcos and Olívia keep moving, showing no weakness when taking down groups of sellers and delivering them to the military police. After sending another group of sellers, they try to lighten the mood.

Marcos speaks up: "... Y'know, not to underestimate our power… but I think that it would be better if Joel put Daniela with me instead of you. I mean, she's really strong and powerful, and Joel's also very strong and powerful, but I'm not so powerful and you're not so strong."

Olívia sighs and nods: "Don't act like a fool, Marcos. You know why Joel put her with him."

Marcos shakes his head: "No. I know Joel might be… unstable, but he would never allow himself to be seduced. Trust me, we're best friends, we've been together in all the police training and BOPE enlistment, I know him like the back of my hand, and it's frightening how he can be so focused on the mission."

She raises an eyebrow: "Well… according to the vampire, they got all cozy up after the first mission, and when I and Felipe were leaving the planning for the last mission, I swear I saw them cuddling before leaving."

Marcos bursts out laughing, the tension in the air easing just a bit. "Cuddling? Seriously? I mean, Joel? Our stoic leader, wrapped up like a teddy bear?"

Olívia smirks. "I know. Crazy, no? Apparently the only thing that could melt Joel's heart was a hot, blood-drinking vampire."

Marcos shook his head, still chuckling. "I mean, don't get me wrong, Daniela's a total badass. But Joel? I just can't picture it." He adjusted his grip on his weapon, scanning the area ahead as they advanced cautiously.

Olívia shrugged. "Well, I've tried enough times to know that Joel is hard to crack, so we can give Daniela some credit."

They both chuckle… but they hear someone walking behind them.

They quickly turn around and see a slender man using a suit standing right there. He just stares at them with a creepy smile.

Marcos and Olívia quickly raise their guns at the man… but he just stares with that same wicked smile… They feel a frightening presence from the man… no… from the thing.

"What do you want?" Marcos quickly speaks up.

The thing smiles wider. Its gray skin, dark deep eyes filled by luck and a touch of disgrace, sharp teeth, formal clothes and weird manners made it strange to look at it. It only mumbles slowly instead of speaking.

A voice comes from behind the thing. "What my friend means is: We came here to kill ya two." A man steps from the same shadows the thing came. This man uses simple clothes and is full of tattoos, mostly devils, skulls, tigers, clowns and tattoos of Joker. He carries a revolver with him.

Before they could even react, the man tried to shoot Marcos' head.

Marcos quickly makes a shield of shadows, deflecting the bullet. Olívia and him run to get cover behind a wall and so does the man… yet the thing keeps standing there, watching everything with a wicked smile.

As Marcos and Olívia dive behind the wall, Marcos' shadow shield dissolves, his heart pounding. He peers out briefly, catching sight of the tattooed man, who is also taking cover but clearly preparing for his next move. The strange "thing" still stands in the open, grinning eerily, not reacting to the gunfire or the chaos around it.

"That thing... it's definitely a Stand user, no normal person would just stand there like that," Olívia whispers, eyes scanning the area. She grips her gun tightly, adrenaline sharpening her focus.

The tattooed guy suddenly shoots at a wall two times. One of the bullets ricochets and hits Marcos' shoulder while the other hits the wall right next to Olívia's head.

Marcos winced as the bullet grazed his shoulder, a jolt of pain radiating through his arm. "Damn it!" he hissed, trying to keep his voice low. Blood seeped through his shirt, but he knew he couldn't show weakness now. The tattooed man had them pinned down, and the thing still lingered ominously in the background, its wicked smile unchanged.

"We need to make a move," Olívia said, her voice steady despite the chaos. "Those two are Stand users, and we need to defend ourselves."

Marcos nods. As he was about to use the radio to warn the other groups, the gunner shoots the wall again, bullets ricocheting and getting right to the radios of him and Olívia.

Olívia widens her eyes. "There is no doubt. This guy has a Stand related to his aiming."

Marcos scoffs. "No shit, Sherlock. The bitch has an aimbot, I get it. But what does that thing do?"

Marcos and Olívia look back at the thing… but it disappeared. They turn back and see the thing appeared in front of them.

Marcos tries to shoot it, but the bullets pass right through its body. The thing smiles and flicks the air, throwing a metal nail right at Olívia's neck. It doesn't pierce any vital part but still hurts.

Olívia gasped as the nail grazed her neck, a sharp sting igniting a fire in her veins. She quickly recoiled, pressing her hand against the wound to stem the trickle of blood. The sight of the wickedly grinning creature sent a chill down her spine. Its gray skin glistened under the dim light, and its eyes, dark and hollow, seemed to absorb the surrounding shadows. Marcos, still behind cover, gritted his teeth at the sight.

They share a glance and a nod before splitting up. Marcos goes for the thing while Olívia goes for the shooter.


As soon as Olívia left her cover, the tattooed man aimed at her, time slowing down on his perspective. He calmly aims at Olívia's head and shoots, but she manages to dodge in pure luck.

Olívia throws a flashbang at the shooter, stunning him. However, even stunned, the shooter kept shooting with amazing precision.

As Olívia took care of the shooter, Marcos lunged toward the thing, determination flooding his veins despite the sting of pain in his shoulder. The creature's wicked grin remained fixed, almost mocking, as it effortlessly floated a few inches above the ground, its body shifting as if made of liquid shadows.

"C'mon, you overgrown shadow puppet!" Marcos shouted, drawing its attention. He aimed his weapon and squeezed the trigger, but the bullets merely passed through, leaving the creature unharmed. It cackled silently, its deep-set eyes glinting with a predatory gleam.

"Damn it!" Marcos hissed, throwing the gun aside. He analyzed the situation and decided to try something. He rushes towards the thing and punches it.

Unexpectedly, the thing receives the punch and actually feels the hit. It looks at Marcos with an annoyed smile.

Marcos felt a surge of adrenaline as his fist connected with the creature's bizarre, shadowy form. To his surprise, it reacted with a slight jolt, the wicked grin faltering for just a moment. The thing recoiled, its face contorting into an expression of irritation rather than pain. Marcos seized the opportunity, his heart racing.

"Gotcha!" he shouted, swinging again, this time aiming for the creature's midsection. His punch landed solidly, and he felt the resistance of its body as if he were striking something more tangible.

Marcos grins. "So, shadow body, huh? Guess what? I manipulate shadows."

The thing's laughter, a sound like brittle leaves rustling in the wind, filled the air. It lunged forward, swift and unpredictable, its elongated limbs extending toward him in a series of jerky movements. Marcos barely managed to duck, the creature's hand swiping overhead, a nail embedded in its fingertips glinting ominously in the low light.

Meanwhile, Olívia was still locked in her own battle. The tattooed man, though briefly stunned by the flashbang, was regaining his composure. "You think a little light's gonna stop me?" he taunted, gritting his teeth. As he steadied his aim, a wicked grin spread across his face, revealing his intentions. He fired again, bullets whizzing through the air with deadly precision.

Olívia rolled to the side, narrowly avoiding a shot that might've taken her out. She retaliated, tossing another flashbang, but the tattooed man was quick, using the shadows to dodge the worst of the blast. She understood that taking his vision away won't be enough to stop him.

She quickly gets an idea. She quickly throws three more flashbangs at the shooter, who quickly shoots at them. Olívia leaves her cover and rushes to the shooter, who tries to shoot her… but he ran out of bullets.

Olívia takes this chance to hit the shooter with a gunbutt. He falls to the ground and Olívia kicks his gun away. She manages to handcuff his hands so he doesn't be a threat anymore.

She looks at Marcos fighting the thing. That thing is clearly an automatic Stand and the user is somewhere around. She takes a deep breath and starts concentrating on using Green Quest and finding the user.

In a few moments, she finally finds the user. He is tucked behind a wall, waiting for the Stand to finish Marcos.

Olívia shouts to Marcos: "That thing is a Stand! I found the user!"

Marcos looks back at Olívia and nods. He follows the path of Green Quest to get the Stand User.

As Marcos follows the path closely, the Stand follows him at an absurd speed. It shoots metal nails towards Marcos. He manages to dodge some, but some pierce his arm.

Marcos ignores the pain and keeps following the path until he finds a tall man with formal clothes. Marcos quickly makes a bat made of shadows and hits the man's head to knock him off and deactivate the creepy Stand.

Marcos felt a surge of satisfaction as his shadow bat connected with the Stand user's head, the impact sending the man sprawling to the ground. The eerie creature that had tormented him and Olívia vanished into wisps of shadow, its wicked smile dissolving into nothingness.

"Got him!" Marcos shouted, adrenaline coursing through him. He quickly glanced back toward Olívia, who had taken care of the tattooed shooter.

They look at each other and share a sigh of relief.

"Okay, I didn't expect this." Olívia admitted.

Marcos huffs."Don't even worry, I don't think anyone could expect that…" He looks at the knocked Stand Users. "... Let's go back to the van and then we call the other groups…"

Olívia nods tiredly.


[LATER]

The rest of the battalion comes back to the van.

As the Alpha and Delta teams arrive, they see Marcos and Olívia bandaging themselves up.

Joel approaches with a raised eyebrow. "02, 04, what happened here?"

Marcos rolls his eyes. "These two guys." He pulls the two Stand Users that he and Olívia fought.

The tattooed one is blindfolded and tied while the suited one has an ice sack on his head.

Joel sighs and crosses his arms. "Alright, what's the context here? Who are those guys?"

Olívia says slowly. "The tattooed one obviously serves Ardente, but the suited one said that he's just a worker who was passing by here, got captured and was pierced with an arrow, and then he developed his Stand. He said that Ardente said if he didn't follow his orders he would kill this guy."

Joel's eyes widen and he grits his teeth. "... Good fucking grief. So Ardente really got THIS low? This is madness, even for him…"

Marcos nods in agreement.

The silence settles on the ambient… but it is broken by Daniela's smug tone. "So, are we going back to the HQ or are we going to stay here forever? I might be eternal, but my patience isn't.

Joel sighs and rolls his eyes.


In the BOPE High Quarters, Olívia has changed to her normal clothes and now is glancing at Joel and Daniela. Daniela is teasing Joel and toying with him while he just endures it.

Marcos approaches Olívia and looks at her. "... so, you're staring at them."

Olívia, who had been quietly observing the playful banter between Daniela and Joel, blinked in surprise at Marcos' comment. She turned her gaze away from the pair, her expression neutral but betraying a hint of curiosity.

"Yeah," she muttered, glancing back at Daniela, who was grinning like a cat that got the cream, her fingers lightly tracing the fabric of Joel's shirt. Joel, on the other hand, stood rigid, clearly enduring the teasing but with a trace of amusement breaking through his usually stoic demeanor.

Olívia shrugged slightly, still watching the interaction between Daniela and Joel from the corner of her eye. "I guess I just didn't expect him to let his guard down like that. I mean, Joel... of all people."

Marcos chuckled softly, his eyes flicking toward Joel and Daniela. "Yeah, it's weird, right? The guy's like a brick wall most of the time. But I guess even he has a weak spot." He folded his arms, smirking. "And apparently, that weak spot drinks blood and likes to tease."

Olívia laughs and shrugs. "True…"

Everybody on the HQ starts leaving and going to their respective homes.


Stand Name: 「The Thing」

Inspiration: O Treco - Kamaitachi (Brazilian Singer)

User: José

POWER: B

SPEED: B

RANGE: A (Automatic)

DURABILITY: C

PRECISION: D

POTENTIAL: C

Ability:

The Thing is an automatic Stand with the shape of a tall, crooked man with gray brittle skin, black deep eyes, a creepy long smile and a suit. It has its own way to walk. It has a dark creepy aura, capable of frightening the bravest of men. It can shoot metal nails from its fingers.

Stand Name: 「Six Bullets」 (Not Sex Pistols)

Inspiration: 6 Balas - Kamaitachi (Brazilian Singer)

User: Wesley

POWER: N/A

SPEED: N/A

RANGE: C (Automatic)

DURABILITY: N/A

PRECISION: S

POTENTIAL: B

Ability:

Six Bullets has no appearance, being only an ability. Six Bullets has two "acts".
ACT 1: Act 1 can fix the user's aim at the target, and if the target is out of the user's vision, it will find a way to shoot it and will aim at this way.
ACT 2: Act 2 can slow down time as the user aim, giving a longer reaction time for him.

The worst part about Six Bullets is that it requires guns to work and the ammo is very limited (besides, Wesley is too proud to use an UZI)