An old man walked through a vast corridor, his polished boots clicking rhythmically against the floor.
The architecture was pristine, showcasing the geometric precision of the civilization, with smooth, glowing utility lines running along the ceiling. Yet, this high-tech aesthetic was heavily undercut by the cold, reinforced prison cells that lined both sides of the corridor, their heavy steel doors and energy seals hummed with a quiet, oppressive vibration.
He continued walking until he reached the very end of the passage.
A barrier of shimmering crimson security lasers blocked the path. On the other side of the light grid was a stark, sterile white containment room.
Inside sat a woman.
Her dark skin stood out in sharp contrast against the absolute white of her surroundings. Her hands were bound tightly together in a heavy, white restraint device that encased her forearms entirely, locking her limbs into a rigid, defensive posture.
Hearing his approach, Jade pushed herself up from the floor and walked over to the laser bars, her expression entirely unbothered.
The old man stopped just inches from the barrier.
"Careful now, these are dangerous," he warned, his eyes narrowing. He let out a dry, mocking laugh. "It's just that you people are so much more advanced than us. I thought it would be better to warn you."
Jade stared at him, a slow, indifferent expression on her face.
"Preciate the warning, though there is something lacking in your hospitality."
The old man raised a thin brow, tilting his head.
"My apologies. Would you mind telling me what that is?"
Jade's lips curled into a sharp, mocking smirk.
"It's just that an old piece of meat keeps bullshitting. I can't help but want to rip his flesh from his bones."
The old man's smile vanished.
He turned around, adjusting his collar.
"Very well then. I'll make this old meat leave. Can't help it if my guests aren't pleased with me."
Jade rolled her shoulders, turning her back to him.
"Don't come back. Jump off a cliff or go drown."
The man paused, stopping just before the exit. He looked back over his shoulder.
"Do think about the offer. It isn't bad, right?"
Jade let out a bored, dry sigh as she sat back down on the floor.
"Fuck off, twerp."
The old man frowned, walking away until his footsteps faded completely.
Left in the quiet cell, Jade stared at the ceiling, her analytical mind mapping her surroundings.
Escaping won't be easy, she thought. There are too many eyes and traps.
She leaned her head against the wall.
Well, I've achieved my purpose. A few more days and it will be fully accomplished.
Suddenly, her eyes widened slightly.
She looked up toward the ceiling of the cavern.
Ahh... I forgot she is clingy.
Jade stood up, slowly rolling her shoulders and cracking her neck with a dull pop.
"Aight, time to go greet shawty."
She closed her eyes, focusing her mind as she began pouring a dense flow of vana directly into the white restraint. A bright, violent red energy instantly erupted across her forearms, wrapping around the white material. The device began to vibrate violently, the structural integrity failing under the sheer pressure of her power, before it shattered into a shower of plastic and metal shards.
With her hands freed, Jade's entire body was immediately enveloped in a surging, crackling aura of red vana.
Without hesitation, she spun and delivered a massive kick directly into the reinforced wall of her cell.
BOOM!
The impact tore open a colossal hole, several meters wide and deep, sending shattered concrete and metal flying into the darkness beyond.
Instantly, deafening security sirens began to wail throughout the sector.
Before her eyes, the advanced wall material began to shift, glowing with self-repairing nanites as it tried to close the gap. Jade simply smirked, unleashing another burst of vana that shattered the regenerating wall a second time, and ran straight out into the structural bedrock of the mountain.
She forced her way through the dark, tight space, using her raw kinetic energy to plow a tunnel forward.
As dust swirled around her, she clicked her tongue in deep annoyance.
"Fuck, all the shitty dirt's going in my eyes."
Behind her, the entire containment room glowed with a blinding red light. Automated turrets slid from the ceiling, firing a relentless storm of high-energy lasers into the tunnel she was digging.
Jade kept moving upward, systematically destroying the rock in front of her to clear a path, when suddenly, the cave wall directly to her right blasted open in an explosion of stone.
She reacted instantly, throwing her weight backward to dodge a high-caliber bullet that whizzed past her nose.
Standing in the newly formed breach was the old man, a cold, mocking expression on his face as he slowly clapped his hands.
"Well, well... I was starting to think you were being far too submissive."
Behind him, a dozen elite soldiers moved into position, their rifles raised and pointed directly at her. Dozens of red laser sights painted Jade's chest and head.
The old man reached into his vest, pulling out another heavy, strap-like restraint device and tossing it onto the dirt between them.
"Wear it."
Jade let out a sharp laugh, crossing her arms.
"Don't wanna." She raised up her middle finger straight to his face.
The man clenched his fists, his eyes turning dead and cold.
"Don't worry. I just have to hold you for a short while until Lord Nightmare gets here."
Jade's eyes narrowed, her posture shifting as she looked around for any structural weakness she could exploit.
"Who's that?"
The old man slowly opened his fists, stepping back.
"You don't need to know that."
Jade let out a long, dramatic sigh, dropping her shoulders.
"Well, damn. I'm caught."
She walked forward slowly, bending down to extend her left hand toward the restraint on the ground.
The old man watched her, a smug, victorious smile creeping onto his face.
"You're a nuisance to even look at."
Suddenly, Jade snapped her head upward, her eyes widening in mock surprise as she pointed toward the ceiling.
"I've heard Angels are beautiful!"
The old man's instincts flared.
He spun around, screaming to his men,
"DUCK!"
But it was too late.
Jade focused the entirety of her red vana directly into her own left arm, compressing the energy until the biological structure could no longer hold it.
A split second later, she detonated her own arm.
-BOOM!
A catastrophic explosion ripped through the subterranean sector. The sheer kinetic shockwave was massive enough to shake the foundations of the entire underground city, completely vaporizing the surrounding rock and instantly tearing a massive, smoking vertical shaft straight up to the surface ruins above.
Ai stood in a quiet shadow near the border of District 1, her fingers tapping anxiously against her thigh.
Damn it. I managed to get inside, but this is too difficult. The people here are far too attentive—
Before she could finish her thought, a deafening explosion ripped through the air.
The ground beneath her feet violently convulsed, throwing her off balance. She instinctively covered her ears with her hands, clenching her teeth against the ringing noise.
"What was that?!"
She looked up.
A massive plume of smoke, debris, and structural metal was flying high into the artificial sky, raining down over District 1 at a certain location.
Within seconds, alarms began blaring across the entire sector. Hundreds of security forces and civilians from the second district began running frantically toward the source of the blast.
Ai's eyes sharpened as she watched the chaos unfold.
"That's my chance."
Using the earthquake-induced panic as cover, she ran toward the epicenter of the blast.
She stopped at the edge of a massive, cracked rock formation, peering down into the deep, smoking crater where several hundred armed personnel had already gathered.
Ai scanned the crowd below, her breath catching.
They are all zero-star combatants... Can I actually win if I fight them?
She looked down at her hands, her muscles tensing as she prepared to leap.
Suddenly, a cold hand clamped tightly over her mouth from behind, pulling her into the deeper shadows of the crevice.
Ai's eyes flared with lethal intent, her elbow driving back to strike, when a familiar, raspy voice whispered in her ear.
"Stay quiet."
The hand released her.
Ai spun around, a wave of profound relief washing over her face.
"Miss Jad—"
The words froze in her throat.
Her eyes locked onto Jade's left shoulder.
Her entire left arm was completely gone, a jagged, smoking wound dripping heavy streams of blood onto the rocks.
Ai's voice trembled, her face turning pale.
"Wh-what happened to you?"
Jade shook her head dismissively, her expression entirely relaxed despite the horrific injury.
"I'm touched seeing you worry for me,shawty."
"What are we supposed to do now?" Ai asked, her mind racing.
A sharp smirk pulled at the corner of Jade's lips.
She raised her remaining hand and gave Ai a light, disciplinary smack on the back of her head.
" Do something yourself,bitch. Come into yo senses first."
Ai blinked, taking a deep breath to steady her racing heart.
"I understand."
"Good. Now closely open your ear holes," Jade said, her voice dropping to a low, serious tone. "As you can see, the situation is incredibly fucked, and so are our asses. It will be extremely difficult for both of us to get out of here together without getting slimed. That's why I'm going to cause some more commotion and let myself hit the bucket."
Ai's eyes widened in protest.
"Why?! If you stay here, won't they just kill you?"
Jade shook her head.
"They won't do shit to me. They want me alive and well for whatever it is they are planning. I don't have the time to explain all that shit right now."
Ai nodded slowly, swallowing her worry.
"Okay, I understand."
Below them, the frantic shouts and alarms of the searching soldiers grew louder, their searchlights sweeping the rock walls.
Jade placed her hand firmly on Ai's shoulder, her eyes locking onto hers with absolute intensity.
"Call our homies in the base, and Jump their asses. Call that elemental boy, and make him go wild."
Ai's breath caught, a slight flicker of hesitation crossing her eyes.
Jade noticed the pause immediately, her brow furrowing.
"What's wrong? Wanna take a piss?"
Ai clenched her fists tightly, forcing her expression to turn completely blank and cold.
"It is nothing."
"Then I'll entrust this entirely to you," Jade said. "Once everything above is destroyed, you need to launch a direct attack on the front gate. I think it will be difficult for me to escape on my own in this state, but if you divert their attention, I'll easily manage."
Ai squeezed her hands into tight fists.
"Alright. I'll leave now."
Jade nodded, a brief, thoughtful look crossing her face.
"Well, whatever."
The shouting from the crater below grew deafening as the search parties closed in.
Ai turned around, blending into the shadows, and began running back toward the lower districts.
Jade watched Ai's retreating figure until she disappeared.
Once she was gone, Jade stepped out of the shadows and jumped directly down into the center of the crater.
The moment her boots hit the dirt, bulley rounds instantly tore through both of her legs.
Jade collapsed onto her knees, her body convulsing slightly as dozens of red laser sights locked onto her head and chest. She gripped the bleeding stump of her left shoulder with her right hand, her teeth clenched against the pain, but she kept a mocking smirk on her face.
The old man emerged from the dust, his right arm completely mangled and ruined from the previous blast.
He glared down at her with pure, unadulterated venom.
"You bitch... I won't be polite with you any longer."
Jade smirked up at him, her eyes gleeful.
"Oh, you survived? You really are like a fucking cockroach..."
The old man's face contorted in rage.
He turned to his men, veins bulging along his neck.
"Throw her into the deepest cell! Every single one of you is to personally guard her. If she runs again..."
He leaned down, his voice dropping to a terrifying, guttural whisper.
"I will fucking rip you all apart myself."
The soldiers shivered, nodding frantically as they grabbed her.
As they dragged her away, Jade looked in the direction Ai had run.
Her vision began to blur rapidly from the massive blood loss, but a faint smile remained on her lips.
Just hurry, she thought.
Ai ran back through the streets of District 3, her breathing heavy as she spotted the Hyponox supplier wagon parked near the curb.
Yulva was standing outside the vehicle, her face pale as she wrung her hands in a state of absolute panic.
Seeing Ai approach, Yulva rushed forward, her voice trembling.
"D-Did you do that? Was that explosion you?"
Ai walked right past her, her voice dead and freezing.
"Shut up. We are getting out of here right now."
Without waiting, Ai jumped into the passenger seat of the wagon.
Yulva scrambled into the driver's seat and turned the key.
Her hands shook violently against the steering controls as she pulled the wagon into the transit lane.
"Wh-what happened over there?" she whispered, terrified.
Ai kept her eyes fixed straight ahead.
"Nothing of significance."
When they reached the checkpoint station, the heavy blast doors were completely open, and there was not a single security guard in sight.
"They must have evacuated to help with the blast," Ai muttered.
Yulva nodded quickly, her chest heaving with relief.
"Yes... that must be it."
The moment the wagon cleared the final gate, Ai opened the passenger door and jumped down onto the empty pavement of the lower district.
She turned back to Yulva.
"Go on."
Yulva looked down at Ai from the cabin, her eyes filled with a mixture of terror and quiet gratitude.
She gave a silent nod, slammed her door shut, and drove the wagon away into the distance.
Ai immediately slipped into a quiet, deserted alleyway.
She pulled the sleek technological bracelet out from under her sleeve, tapping the interface.
A blue holographic screen hovered in front of her face, static crackling for a second before Kiyomasa's face appeared.
He took one look at her hurried, tense expression.
"Ai! Is everything alright?"
Ai shook her head quickly.
"Don't panic. Track my coordinates right now. There must be a small entrance hole somewhere on the surface ruins directly above me. Come down through there quietly."
Kiyomasa nodded rapidly, his expression turning serious.
"Should I come alone?"
"Yes, come alone for now. Navigate down carefully, I'll be waiting for you at the bottom," Ai instructed.
"I'm on my way," Kiyomasa said, cutting the transmission.
In his room on the surface, Kiyomasa stood up from his bed.
He grabbed his coat, threw it over his shoulders, and ran out into the cool evening air.
Taking a few massive, leaping strides, he focused his vana.
Swirling wind currents began to hover like miniature tornadoes around his legs, lifting his body effortlessly off the ground.
He launched himself high into the sky, pushing through the thick clouds using the wind vectors to accelerate.
He raised his right hand, displaying a holographic map of Beuno on his bracelet, tracking Ai's signal.
Reaching the designated coordinates, he slowly lowered himself toward the desolate mountain terrain.
He floated a few feet above the rocky ground, searching the area until he spotted the vertical hole that ai had created.
"This is it," he muttered.
Clenching his fists, he dove straight down into the darkness of the hole. He hadn't expected the breach to be this massive, but his eyes widened in sheer disbelief as he descended past the cavern ceiling and witnessed the colossal underground city stretching out beneath him.
"Insane..." he whispered. "Ai was actually living down here?"
He drifted toward a quiet, empty alleyway, executing a silent roll as his boots touched the ground, and quickly pressed his back against a composite wall to hide.
Suddenly, a hand pressed firmly onto his shoulder.
Kiyomasa spun around instantly, his fist raising, but relaxed when he saw Ai standing there. A look of intense worry washed over his face.
"Ai, is everything alright?"
Ai nodded quietly.
"Yes. But we have to free Miss Jade."
"What are we supposed to do?" Kiyomasa asked.
"The streets are under extremely high security right now," Ai said, gesturing toward the main avenue. "Let's go somewhere quiet first, then we'll talk. I have a room booked at a nearby hotel."
Kiyomasa nodded, and they navigated the backstreets until they reached her room.
The moment they stepped inside and locked the door, Ai turned to him.
"Miss Jade is severely injured right now. We can't carry out our plan immediately. We have to wait until tomorrow at the minimum."
Kiyomasa sat down on the edge of the bed, looking up at her with a desperate need for answers.
"What is the plan? Why is she injured? Please explain everything to me, Ai, so I can understand what we are dealing with."
Ai let out a quiet, hollow laugh, her lips curving into a dry smirk.
"Would you even understand it if I did?"
Kiyomasa looked her dead in the eyes, his voice steady.
"I would if you tried."
Ai's smile slowly faded, her expression turning completely serious as she sat down across from him and began explaining the entire situation.
When she finished, Kiyomasa plopped back onto the couch, burying his face in his hands.
"What have we gotten ourselves entangled with..."
He let out a long, heavy sigh before looking up.
"So, what is the actual plan then?"
Ai stared at him, her gaze cold and unwavering.
"Can you burn down this entire city?"
Kiyomasa gasped, sitting up straight.
"The entire city?"
Ai gave a slow, firm nod.
Kiyomasa stared at the floor, his mind calculating his elemental reserves.
"Well... it is possible."
"Then that's exactly what we are doing," Ai said, her voice devoid of any hesitation. "We are burning this entire place to the ground."
Kiyomasa hesitated, his brow furrowing.
"But won't Miss Jade get caught in the fire? And if she's already injured, shouldn't we wait a little longer to let her heal?"
Ai shook her head.
"We don't have the luxury of time. We have to hope she's healed enough by tomorrow. And no, she is currently being held in a secure cell located several meters deep underground."
"If I create a fire of that caliber inside an enclosed space, the heat will easily reach the core of the planet," Kiyomasa warned.
"Then wouldn't that just destroy the entire planet?" Ai asked.
Kiyomasa shook his head.
"I'll use my earth manipulation to form protective layers of rock and dirt beneath the city. The upper structures will get destroyed, and new rock will form to stabilize the pressure, so the destruction will be strictly limited to this civilization."
A brief spark of hope appeared in Ai's eyes.
"That's perfect. Then let's do that. We'll use the chaos to reach Miss Jade's cell."
Kiyomasa gave a quiet nod.
He stood up, walked over to the window, and parted the curtains.
He stared out at the brightly shining, advanced underground city, watching the neon lights flicker in the distance. He placed his hand against the glass, a heavy, suffocating silence filling the room.
"I can't believe it..."
His voice trembled as a single tear escaped his eye and ran down his cheek.
"I'll be killing so many people tomorrow."
He looked back at her, his expression utterly broken.
"I wonder if this is truly the right thing to do..."
Ai walked over, standing right next to him as she looked out at the city.
She kept her face completely neutral, forcing her voice to remain steady and cold.
"You don't need to feel guilty, Kiyomasa. You are just doing what needs to be done."
She took a breath, her heart hardening.
"You are just killing monsters."
'Monsters, huh?' Ai thought to herself.
The memory of Yulva flashed before her eyes—a terrified, innocent mother who had been entirely prepared to die just to protect her young children. She remembered the kind old woman from the orphanage who had helped her in the alleyway without asking for anything in return. She thought of all the ordinary families, the laughing children, and the peaceful citizens she had seen using their abilities to bring joy to others.
Kiyomasa looked at her, his eyes searching hers.
"Is that really true?"
Ai forced herself to nod, her voice firm.
"Yes. These people commit atrocious acts like it's nothing. You wouldn't even believe the things I've seen... the horrific things these people do."
Kiyomasa looked at her, his heart breaking for his friend.
"I can't even imagine what you've had to go through down here..."
Ai gave a stiff nod.
"These people are completely selfish and cruel. They wouldn't even hesitate to kill their own family members if it brought them closer to their goals."
As she spoke the lie, her throat tightened.
The image of Yulva's bruised, bandaged children flashed in her mind—the children she had threatened to mutilate.
She was the monster.
She was the one who had used innocent lives as leverage.
Her voice began to crack, the immense pressure of her own lies suffocating her.
She turned toward Kiyomasa, her eyes filling with hot tears as she reached up and wrapped her arms tightly around his neck, burying her face near his chin.
Kiyomasa blinked in surprise, wrapping his arms around her to hold her close.
"Ai?"
"Don't feel guilty, Kiyo...," she sobbed, her voice breaking completely.
Tears streamed down her face, soaking into his coat.
"You are just doing what needs to be done. Every single person down here deserves—"
She choked on the words, unable to finish.
The smiling face of the old orphanage director flashed in her mind.
Ai clenched her teeth, her fingers digging into the fabric of Kiyomasa's jacket.
*This is war,* she screamed at herself internally, trying to claw back her cold detachment.
'I should just ignore it all...'
'I have to.'
But deep down, she knew that by carrying out this slaughter, by forcing her gentle, pure friend to become a mass murderer to save them, she was losing something beautiful and irreplaceable inside her soul.
Kiyomasa held her even tighter, misinterpreting her tears as fear and trauma from her time in the city.
"Don't worry," he whispered, his voice suddenly filling with a dark, protective rage. "Everything is going to be fine. I'll make sure not a single one of them survives to hurt you again."
Ai's damp hair clung to her face.
She raised her hand, slowly stroking the back of his head, her fingers gently running through his hair.
She stared blankly at the wall, her eyes hollow as she spoke to him in the silence of her mind.
'If you ever find out what I did to make you do this...
If you ever learn the truth about the people in this city...'
She pulled back slightly, looking up into his trusting, angry eyes, and whispered so softly he could barely hear it.
"Don't ever forgive me."
Kiyomasa blinked, tilting his head.
"Did you say something?"
Ai forced a faint, watery smile, wiping her eyes with her sleeve.
"It's nothing."
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