Chapter 50: The Storm Beyond the Horizon
The road stretched endlessly beneath the morning sky.
Ragnar's jeep raced across the abandoned highway, leaving behind the settlement that had become an unlikely refuge.
For a while, neither Ragnar nor Hoshina spoke.
The only sound was the engine.
The world outside was quiet.
Too quiet.
Finally, Hoshina broke the silence.
"You really think that kid and his friends has a chance?"
Ragnar glanced at him.
"Which kid?"
Hoshina rolled his eyes.
"You know exactly who I'm talking about."
A small grin appeared on Ragnar's face.
"Tokita?"
"Yeah."
Silence.
Then Ragnar laughed.
A genuine laugh.
"You know..."
He leaned back in his seat.
"When I first met him, I thought he was just another reckless teenager."
Hoshina nodded.
"Same."
"But now?"
Ragnar's expression changed.
His eyes became serious.
"Now I think he might become one of the strongest Awakeners this world has ever seen."
The jeep continued moving.
Hoshina stared at him.
Then he sighed.
"I don't know."
Ragnar raised an eyebrow.
"You don't know?"
"I'm more of a planning guy than an instinct guy."
Hoshina shrugged.
"And honestly?"
"I still think most of the Emissaries could kill him right now."
Ragnar nodded.
"Probably."
"See?"
"Right now."
Ragnar emphasized the words.
"Right now."
His gaze shifted toward the distant horizon.
"But give that kid time."
The smile returned.
"A little more experience."
"A little more growth."
"A little more pain."
His voice lowered.
"And I'd be more worried about the people standing against him."
For the first time, Hoshina didn't argue.
Because somewhere deep inside...
He felt the same thing.
That strange feeling.
That feeling that Tokita wasn't normal.
That something much bigger was waiting inside him.
Something terrifying.
Something that hadn't awakened yet.
"...Maybe."
Ragnar smirked.
"Maybe."
Suddenly—
BOOM!!
The jeep exploded.
A missile slammed directly into the road.
The jeep erupted in flames and vanished inside a fireball.
The shockwave shattered nearby vehicles.
Flames consumed the highway.
Smoke filled the sky.
Then silence.
A few seconds later...
The mercenaries emerged from their armored transports.
Dozens of them.
Heavy weapons.
Military-grade equipment.
Every one of them aiming toward the burning wreckage.
One of them lowered his rifle.
"Target eliminated."
Another nodded.
"Direct hit."
Then—
A voice came from inside the smoke.
"These guys are idiots."
The mercenaries froze.
The smoke slowly parted.
Ragnar sat calmly inside the destroyed vehicle.
His clothes were slightly burned.
But his body was completely unharmed.
Beside him sat Hoshina.
A shimmering barrier of water surrounded him.
Protecting him from the explosion.
Ragnar scratched his head.
"Seriously."
"They shot a missile."
Hoshina adjusted his glasses.
"Against a fire-type Ability user."
Ragnar looked at him.
"You see the problem too?"
"Several problems."
Hoshina nodded.
"Number one."
"You literally control fire."
"Number two."
"You can absorb heat."
"Number three."
"Your body is resistant to extreme temperatures."
Ragnar burst out laughing.
"You forgot number four."
Hoshina sighed.
"Which is?"
"The missile wasn't even close to the amount of fire I used against Tokita."
The two men looked at each other.
Then simultaneously said:
"Idiots."
The mercenaries immediately opened fire.
The battle began.
Several hours later...
Thousands of kilometers away...
Inside a hidden underground facility...
A meeting was taking place.
Dark walls.
Dim lights.
A massive circular table.
Several figures sat around it.
Their faces hidden.
Their identities unknown.
Only their voices echoed through the chamber.
"The previous 7TH Emissary known as Ragnarok survived."
Silence.
Another voice responded.
"Expected,as much as I hate the guy you gotta give him credit for being strong, and not just him but his lackey."
"What was his name again?... Hoshina right?"another mysterious figure spoke.
"The retrieval team failed to capture the traitors known as Ragna and Hoshina."another voice replied.
"Also expected."A third voice spoke.
"I don't even what we're all doing here when those traitors who betrayed the "ORGANIZATION"are out there roaming free!..."A figure spoke while shouting in annoyed tone.
The room suddenly went quiet...They all looked at the figure that just shouted at them with annoyed but curious expressions through their eyes too why that mysterious figure would even speak to them like that.
Another mysterious figure spoke in a calm but cold way."It seems you forget you place or should I remind the reason your rank was raised higher was because Ragna betrayed the "ORGANIZATION" or else you would still have remained under Ragna in the ranking system,hell we would have made Hoshina take Ragna's place as the 7TH Emissary if he wasn't a traitor like his captain,so next you talk to us without showing Respect I'll make to carve it into your soul,do you understand."
The mysterious figure who shouted before suddenly began to stutter while apologizing to other figures in the room."I-i apologies,I didn't mean to speak out of tern so please forgive me this time it won't happen again, but what our we going to do about Ragna and Hoshina,their still a threat to the Organization,even as we speak.
"A threat...? maybe to you dumbf*ck, definitely not to us everyone in this room is ranked higher than Ragna and you, don't ever compare us to your level."another mysterious figure spoke annoyingly.
"Ughhh...I apologize"the other mysterious figure sat quietly.
"Seriously I know Ragna wasn't on our level but damn bro,he never let us treat him like sh*t,he never backed down from a challenge, thats why liked him and now I'm already missing the guy."a Mysterious figure spoke.
"That's enough out of all of you."A mysterious figure finally spoke with an intimidating aura which made the others to keep quiet.
"What about the girl?"
A holographic image appeared.
Nezuko.
The room became silent.
Even among the mysterious figures...
She commanded attention.
"Priority Zero."
One voice stated.
Immediately.
Without hesitation.
Nobody disagreed.
Then another image appeared.
Tokita.
The room became even quieter.
A different voice spoke."WAIT! SERIOUSLY!? RAGNA LOST TO THIS LITTLE F*CKER!!?no way...I don't buy it."
"Yeah ,I mean how old is kid, what's his ability, does he have a unique ability, is he from another faction, what's his background?we need to know everything about this boy."
Another mysterious figure replied "exactly, before he becomes a problem."
"The boy took down an Emissary not just him but his vice captains and his entire platoon of mercenaries where wiped out thanks to his friends,so yeah where pretty much passed the stage where him and his gang are becoming a problem."a mysterious figure spoke cautiously.
"Problem?... don't tell me your actually worried about a group teenagers with abilities."another figure replied to the previous mysterious figure.
Another figure laughed.
"An opportunity."
Several heads turned.
The figure continued.
"The reports are clear."
"He fought an Emissary."
"He survived,not just survived but he actually won!"
"From the information we've gathered so far not just him but everyone in their group,his names Tokita Ayuto just a sixteen (16) year old kid and He continues to evolve."
Silence.
Then another voice asked:
"Recommendation?"
The answer came instantly.
"Capture alive."
No hesitation.
No debate.
Capture alive.
Another figure leaned forward.
"And if he refuses?"
The room became silent.
A dangerous silence.
Then a voice answered.
"We have methods of persuasion."
Nobody asked for clarification.
Because everyone understood exactly what that meant.
Another hologram appeared.
Aoi.
Kaito.
Natsuki.
The room observed them carefully.
"This one."
A voice pointed at Natsuki.
"Priority Two."
Several figures nodded.
"The twin."
"His blood may possess similar properties."
Another figure pointed toward Aoi.
"Potential threat."
"Kaito?"
"Moderate threat."
The discussion continued.
Abilities.
Psychological profiles.
Combat evaluations.
Potential future risks.
Everything was analyzed.
Like pieces on a chessboard.
Then one of the figures finally spoke.
A voice that immediately silenced the room.
"Who will go?"
Nobody answered.
Until...
A single figure slowly rose from their seat.
The room became quiet.
Very quiet.
Even the others seemed cautious.
The figure simply said:
"I'll handle it."
No name.
No title.
No rank.
Just those three words.
Yet somehow...
Everyone accepted it.
The meeting ended.
And somewhere in the darkness...
A new hunter began moving.
Meanwhile...
Tokita's Apartment — Hokkaido
The apartment corridor was drenched in blood.
Bodies littered the floor.
The Screams of the infected zombies echoed through out of corridor Several infected lay in pieces like they were ripped in half by brute force.
Others had clean cuts running through their skulls.
No gunshots.
No explosions.
Just precision.
The work of professionals.
Heavy boots echoed through the hallway.
Five armed soldiers advanced carefully.
At their front walked a tall man wearing a black tactical coat.
Cold eyes.
Calm expression.
Not a hint of fear.
A zombie suddenly lunged from a nearby room.
The creature never reached him.
A flash.
A military dagger.
The infected's head rolled across the floor.
The soldiers didn't even react.
It happened too often.
The man stopped in front of Apartment 307.
Tokita's apartment.
He knocked once.
Silence.
Knocked twice.
Nothing.
His expression darkened.
Then—
BANG!
The door exploded inward beneath a single kick.
The soldiers entered immediately.
Weapons raised.
The apartment was untouched.
No blood.
No signs of struggle.
No corpse.
No Tokita.
The man looked around slowly.
Then let out a long sigh.
One of the soldiers approached.
"Sir?"
The man rubbed his forehead.
"My idiot son isn't here."
Another soldier blinked.
"Sir?"
"I told him to stay inside."
The man's jaw twitched.
"I leave him alone for two weeks and somehow he disappears during when the country-no the world is currently facing one of the worst if not worst pandemic recorded in Human history.
The soldiers exchanged nervous looks.
The captain continued.
"That boy never listens."
A pause.
"He Gets that from his mother, don't tell her I said that by the way."
The captain inhaled deeply.
"TOKITAAAAAAA!!"
The roar exploded through the city.
Windows shook.
Birds scattered.
The soldiers nearly jumped.
One soldier covered his ears.
"Sir!"
"What?!"
"I think half of Hokkaido heard that!"
"GOOD."
Then the drone operator runs in.
"Captain!"
"What now?"
"We have a problem."
The captain sighed.
"Of course we do."
The soldier swallowed.
"The drones picked up movement."
"How many?"
"..."
"How many?"
The soldier looked pale.
"Approximately 3,856 infected."
Silence.
"...that's a lot."
"Um Captain."One soldier pulls out a camera."please don't me asking, can I video this situation as we head into this slaughter fest..."
"No."
"Understood,Sir!!"the soldier replied.
Then the fight begins.
Then the Horde Leader appears.
Huge.
Fast.
Terrifying.
It leaps.
Everyone expects a battle.
Instead:
FLASH
The creature freezes.
A red line appears across its body.
Then—
SPLATTER.
The Horde Leader falls apart into pieces.
The soldier holding the blade casually wipes blood from his cheek.
Then Tokita's father finally steps forward.
Thousands of infected flooded the streets.
An endless sea of bodies.
Screaming.
Running.
Hungry.
The soldiers gripped their weapons.
Tokita's father looked at them.
Then looked at the horde.
Then sighed.
"Alright."
The infected continued charging.
The captain cracked his neck.
"Let's finish this quickly, I've got an annoying but cute son to to find fast before my wife kills me herself."
A small smile appeared on his face.
Far away.
The group continued their journey toward Tokyo.
Two jeeps moved across the highway.
The setting sun painted the sky orange.
Inside the lead vehicle...
Nezuko was driving.
Natsuki sat beside her.
Tokita stared out the window.
Lost in thought.
Then suddenly—
"ACHOO!"
Tokita sneezed.
Everyone jumped.
Nezuko looked over.
"You okay?"
Tokita rubbed his nose.
"...Yeah."
Natsuki raised an eyebrow.
"That sneeze sounded serious."
Tokita stared into space.
A strange chill ran down his spine.
An uncomfortable feeling.
Like someone was watching him.
Like something dangerous had just entered the game.
"...Weird."
Nezuko glanced at him.
"What?"
Tokita frowned.
"I don't know."
"It felt like somebody just said my name."
Natsuki laughed.
"An Emissary?"
Tokita immediately shook his head.
"No."
His expression became serious.
"Something way scarier...or maybe it's just my hormones acting up."
The jeep went silent.
Then everyone burst out laughing.
Nezuko shook her head.
"You're being dramatic."
"Maybe."
Tokita smiled.
Maybe he was.
Or maybe...
His instincts were warning him.
The sun slowly disappeared beneath the horizon.
Tokyo waited ahead.
The CDC laboratory waited ahead.
The cure waited ahead.
But so did new enemies.
New horrors.
New truths.
Tokita looked toward the distant skyline.
A small smile appeared on his face.
Whatever happened next...
They would face it together.
And somewhere far beyond the horizon...
The next storm had already begun.
NOTE FROM AUTHOR:
This is the End of the first (1) volume of RED AND THE APOCALYPSE, first of all I would like to thank my loyal audience,I know they haven't been much people reading my novel but still to the one's that actually stayed,thank you very much for the support I wouldn't have reached or continued this journey without you guys and I would also like to thank my family and friends for supporting me through out this journey and lastly I would love to thank my bestie,bf or best friend who helped me the most through out this journey,thank you SENSEI,I really meant everything I said especially the part about you SENSEI. I'll see you guys next time for volume 2 of RED AND THE APOCALYPSE.
BY KING IMMANUEL AND SENSEI