The rain refused to stop.
The air was thick with mist as Balin's team split into three groups. Elaine and Hector stayed behind, gathering the scattered cargo.
Kanee, Lira, and Ruben moved east toward the higher ground, searching for survivors.
"Don't go far," Balin warned before splitting up. "Whatever did this could still be hunting."
As they ran toward the rise, the fog thickened, swallowing them bit by bit. For a while, only the dull hum of rain and the shuffle of boots filled the air. Then they reached a landscape that looked like a graveyard of broken wagons, blackened trees, and half-buried bones or helmets from humans and wild animals alike.
They looked around for survivors but were shocked by the number of dead surrounding the place. Kanee pointed out that this could be its lair and they exchanged uneasy looks.
Lira broke the silence. "If that's true, it could be watching us right now... right?"
Ruben grunted. "Then let it watch. Maybe it'll die from looking at your ugly face."
Kanee gave a small laugh, but it faded as quickly as it came.
Something slithered through the mist ahead, slow and wet. Shapes appeared, several of them. The creatures had skin that shimmered with a dull gray light.
Their muscles and tentacles pulsed unnaturally, as if their flesh had been stitched and restitched again. None of them had faces.
"In positions!" Kanee shouted.
Ruben took cover behind a broken wagon, crossbow aimed. His SINISA activated, shadows thickening around him. His bolts warped through the darkness, seeking vital spots. Kanee's arms flared with crimson light as energy pulsed through his arm veins. Each punch sent shockwaves through the air, breaking bones and ground alike.
Lira darted through the fog, moving like a phantom. Her SINISA let her split her image for a second, confusing her enemies and appearing behind them in the blink of an eye. Her daggers flashed twice, cutting clean lines across hide and muscle.
But the creatures didn't die. Their wounds sealed almost instantly, black veins pulsing faster as flesh knitted itself back together.
"What the hell…" Ruben muttered.
"Regeneration," Kanee said grimly. "These things aren't natural."
A sound began to rise. Low at first, then higher and sharper. It clawed through their skulls like metal scraping glass. All three covered their ears and stumbled. The creatures had formed small mouths within their own bodies and started howling.
Then small explosions erupted, sending mud and rain flying everywhere.
The creatures detonated parts of their bodies, bursting into waves of flesh and gore. The noise also stopped and they attacked again. Ruben fired bolt after bolt at their open wounds. Kanee knocked them askew, but they reformed instantly. Lira's blades sliced through their skin, yet every wound she made closed within seconds.
Then suddenly, everything went silent as the creatures stopped moving.
Mist grew thicker, and something big moved within it.
A massive shape appeared... An abomination of sewn limbs and crawling flesh, green eyes glowing through the fog. It stood two stories tall, breathing like a forge. The smaller creatures crawled toward it and merged, making the monster even larger.
"Fall back!" Ruben shouted, but the creature struck first. Its arm whipped down like a collapsing tower. Kanee blocked the blow, the impact shaking the ground and pinning him in place. His SINISA flared again, reinforcing his fists with bursts of energy, but another tentacle was heading his way that he couldn't dodge.
"Move!" Lira screamed, grabbing his clothes and pulling him back before the second tentacle hit.
The monster's jaw unhinged wider than humanly possible and let out a scream that made the world vibrate. Half-broken wagons, like the one Ruben was hiding behind, shattered. Lira's eardrums rang as blood trickled from her ears.
She blinked and saw Ruben running for cover, trying to aim for a shot. But the creature's tail-like limb swept through the fog and hit him from behindt. He staggered, trying to regain balance, but a tentacle wrapped around his waist and squeezed. Lira dashed toward it, stabbing with her daggers, while Ruben struggled to break free. But it didn't work as it healed every cut.
Lira kept attacking as Ruben's eyes bulged, close to popping from the pressure. Then Kanee ran toward the monster and grabbed it tightly, charging his power beyond its limit. His veins glowed, his face strained. He glanced back at Lira and Ruben with a sad smile.
"Survive, my dear friends."
Lira reached out, screaming, "Noooo!"
A massive explosion tore through the storm. Kanee had overcharged his SINISA and exploded to sacrificing himself in order to weaken the monster and free Ruben.
Balin heard the explosion echo through the rain.
He tore through the mist, thunder rolling above him. His cloak clung to his body as he sprinted toward the sound, breath sharp and swords drawn.
Then he slipped. His boot hit something slick. He fell, and his hand landed in something warm and wet. For a heartbeat, he froze.
It wasn't mud.
He landed in a puddle of blood. Half of Ruben's body lay beside him, torn and mangled. Balin's stomach twisted.
And then he saw it...
A massive creature stood before him —a nightmare stitched from corpses, its black veins glowing faintly beneath pale, stretched flesh. Its green eyes turned toward him. And trapped in its jaws was Lira.
She was still moving, weakly clawing at its teeth with her body half-crushed.
"LIRA!" Balin roared.
He dashed forward, both blades igniting with light as he swung upward, striking the creature's jaw from its blind spot. Sparks flew. He wedged one sword between its teeth, pushing with all his strength.
"Hold on!" he shouted. "I'll get you out!"
Her trembling hand reached toward him, fingers brushing his face. For a second, she had hope.
But the creature's jaw snapped shut. The warmth of her blood splashed across his face. Her body gave way with a sickening crack. Lips parted, but no sound came. Her eyes that once bright and teasing, dimmed. Her last thought wasn't fear but Balin's shocked face.
Balin froze again. The world fell silent except for the rain... something inside him broke at that moment.
His scream tore through the storm, not a call for help but raw human pain.
He dashed faster than ever. His swords blurred, carving through the creature's flesh with impossible speed. Again and again, each strike hitting the same spot. The creature couldn't react because of his technique. Balin kept attacking until its neck split completely and its head tore free.
But he didn't stop...
He kept cutting, every motion fueled by grief, rage and despair. Blood poured like rain. The abomination finally fell in pieces.
When it was over, he stood in the downpour, covered head to toe in red. But the rain couldn't wash the blood away.
Hector's voice was quiet as he told the rest to Axel.
"When we arrived at the source of the sound, we found him like that... standing in the rain, surrounded by what was left of them."
Elaine's eyes glistened. "Lira, Kanee, Ruben… gone."
"What happened after?" Axel asked.
"We didn't talk," Hector said. "Not on the way back. Not at the university. He'd changed."
Elaine's voice broke. "He pushed everyone away. He wasn't in the right headspace after that. And when he snapped during the final exams…"
Hector's tone hardened. "He killed a lieutenant and a duchess and their noble family's heir. Then vanished before the authorities found out. The Empire labeled him Rogue with a S-class bounty, meaning to Kill on sight."
Silence filled the room. The fire crackled softly.
Axel looked into the flames, lost in thought. The director's words echoed in his mind again:
"...just a small task that you need to do first…"
Now he understood.
It wasn't a small task. He will be sent to his death.
The next morning at the university, a secretary guided Axel down a long corridor.
"In here, you'll meet your teammates for the task," she said, stopping before a door.
Axel nodded, hand hovering over the handle. He pushed it down and opened the door.
Inside, three figures turned their faces toward him.
His eyes widened in surprise. Those people looking at him were the last ones he ever expected to see on this task heading towards death.