Chapter 4 — The Polluted Fields (Part 3)
**"Trial Shattered: The Colossal Fight"**
### The Monster Rises
The ground split, toxic light pouring into the sky as the **Colossal Neutron** emerged. Its towering form shimmered with bone-armor infused with glowing cores, each pulse sending corrupt shockwaves across the battlefield.
The academy's AR nanodrones shattered midair, scoreboards blinked out, and safety fields collapsed. Teachers shouted through static, but the students were alone.
It roared—and twelve academy teams froze.
"What… is this thing?" Lyra whispered, voice thin.
"Not part of training," Jean answered grimly. "But we have no choice. Survive!"
***
### Phase One —Collapse of Order
The Colossal struck with a clawed arm. A shield team shattered instantly, students flung aside. Another group scattered, screaming, as their Puls drained from the monster's shockwave.
Kael raged forward, fire consuming his blade. "I'll crush it!" His flames scarred the armor, but the retaliation hurled two of his teammates through the poisoned soil. He cursed, spitting blood.
Aaron's team fought measured, efficient, slipping precision strikes into seams, but even their cohesion barely staggered it. Other groups lost formation, desperate shots bouncing off plated shell.
Jean pressed forward, Kira blocking the first massive shockwave with her full shield, but cracks splintered across its surface. Lyra's voice strained as she called weak points.
"There! And there—its core channels—strike the light lines!"
Roy's Dule Gun hummed in his hands as he switched forms between weak pistol darts and shaky blade cuts. Each shot grew lighter, weaker. His HUD flickered:
[Weapon Integrity: 36%]
[Ammo Volt: Low]
[Stamina Critical]
***
### Phase Two — Breaking Point
Another roar. The Colossal's chest split partially open, glowing core radiating corrosive heat. A shockwave slammed their formation. Jean stumbled, bleeding. Kira's shield collapsed fully. Taro gagged, Puls overuse tearing at him. Lyra staggered, sight blurring.
Roy fired again—bullets sluggish, sparks shallow. His dual blade parries grew heavy, each impact ringing painfully against bone armor.
"Roy—we can't hold!" Jean gasped, sword trembling.
He froze—watching his team *fall apart*. Images overlapped in his vision, forced out of the nanobots lodged in his wristband—stored fragments of memory.
- His father Kael, lifting stone and hammer, voice echoing: *"Strength isn't your arms, Roy. It's your will."*
- His mother Elira, breath steady, hand guiding his chest: *"Control your heart before you move. Don't let fear decide."*
And the last flash—fire, crushing rock, his parents gone.
"No…" His chest heaved, hands shook. The Colossal raised a claw above Jean—too close—too fast.
***
### Emotional Trigger — Screaming the Past
"I DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU AGAIN!"
The wristband detonated with light, nanobots unraveling storm-like across his body. Shadows poured from his arms, winds coiled like a living cyclone. HUD spasmed with unreadable code:
[ERROR: UNKNOWN POWER SURGE]
[PULS BURST: INITIATED]
[Estimated Duration: 2:00 Minutes]
[Martial Arts Parameters: Umbryon (Shadow) Active | Zephyros (Air) Active]
[Speed: +200% | Reflex Sync: +180% | Shadow Step — Enabled | Air Dash — Enabled]
Light and darkness twisted across his form lightning-fast.
Jean's eyes widened. "Roy… this power—" She steadied herself against the violent currents, then shouted with certainty.
"This is your sealed surge. Your **Puls Burst**! Two minutes. That's all you've got!"
The name hit the air and stuck.
***
### Phase Three — Beast in Human Skin
His vision sharpened—every motion slowed. Claw arcs, mist shifts, veins glowing under armored plates—all of it visible.
Kael screamed from afar, voice cracking with disbelief. "No! This is impossible! You're NOTHING compared to me!"
Roy no longer answered. His body moved as storm incarnate.
- Pistols materialized—darts amplified by Zephyros gusts streaked into the Colossal's eye. It recoiled blind.
- Dual blades shifted in instant—he dove into a Shadow Step, flickering from the monster's claw to its wrist, parrying with inhuman precision.
- His slashes howled, Umbryon shadows bursting into serrated veils, each cut carving corrosion into glowing channels.
HUD screamed insane values:
[Speed Index: 340%]
[Combat Efficiency: Beyond Rank Parameters]
[Power Level: UNKNOWN]
Jean gasped from a distance: "He's fighting like—like a beast…"
Taro whispered, trembling: "Not just beast. Martial precision. Every dodge calculated…"
***
### Phase Four — The Core Assault
At [Time Remaining 0:56], the Colossal staggered as Aaron's team pierced its armored flank with synchronized strikes. Aaron shouted toward Roy: "The core! Tear it wide—NOW!"
Roy's burst senses locked on the glowing corruption in its chest. He leapt—Zephyros currents launching him skyward, shadows binding his blades into an X of black lightning.
Jean roared from below: "NOW, ROY! END IT!"
He screamed, slamming both blades into the glowing core. With each strike, teammates followed through in sync:
- Jean's blade rammed alongside his into cracked plates.
- Kira with her ruined shield slammed it like a hammer cage.
- Lyra's tracking called the fissures aloud.
- Taro bled himself dry boosting every strike with Puls reinforcement.
- Aaron's team added precise impacts.
- Even Kael hurled all his fury in fire just to not be left behind.
***
### Phase Five — The Last Countdown
[Time Remaining: 0:10]
The Colossal's body spasmed, core cracking wildly. Shadows lashed, winds screamed. Roy's HUD blurred with collapsing code.
[00:04] His arms shook as the storm receded.
[00:03] He forced the blades deeper, Umbryon veins exploding outward.
[00:02] Jean and Aaron screamed as they drove in their final coordinated cuts.
[00:01] Roy released one last howl as darts and blades struck simultaneously.
—The Colossal imploded into a cyclone of corrupted shards, raining black dust across the Polluted Fields. Silence followed the detonation.
***
### Aftermath
Roy dropped instantly, unconscious before his weapon folded back into shards. Jean caught him.
"It's over. He… he saved us," Lyra panted.
Taro collapsed nearby, smiling weakly. "Together. It was all of us."
Jean pressed Roy's hand, whispering fierce and low: "Listen to me, Roy. This is your *Puls Burst*. Two minutes of impossible strength… but at risk of your life. Never forget—this is both your hope and your danger."
Aaron stepped forward, calm yet respectful. "Without him, we would all be dead. Today—he rewrote what D-rank means."
Kael turned away, face twisted with silent rage, pride shredded. The mine orphan had not only survived—he had *led.*
Above, the teachers stood frozen as feeds returned. Their faces reflected both awe and fear. Something unknown had awakened—something far beyond the trial.
Roy stirred faintly, eyes half-closed, shadows humming in his skin before dying out. In his dreams, his parents' whispers lingered:
*"Strength is in your will… control your heart, your storm."*
And then—only silence.
***