The crater still smoked. Charred concrete and twisted metal glowed faintly in the moonlight. Tojo could still smell the beast's burnt remains on his clothes, like smoke that refused to wash off.
The girl's blade of crimson aura dimmed, dissolving into nothing. She stood there, silver hair swaying lightly, as though the chaos around her didn't exist.
And then she spoke.
"Wait, You two really are monkeys."
The silence cracked.
"...Excuse me?" Tojo blinked, pointing at himself. "Did she just—?"
"Yes," Ozaru muttered, his tone flat. "She did."
"Monkeys," she repeated, sharper this time, her gaze unwavering. "Playing with weapons you don't understand. Do you even realize what's inside you?"
"Uh… stomach acid and ramen, probably?" Tojo said, deadpan.
Her eyes narrowed. "Pathetic."
"Oi, oi," Tojo stood up, brushing dirt off his jacket. "We just got jumped by a walking nightmare. And now some space cosplayer is calling us monkeys? I demand respect."
"You'll get respect when you survive more than five minutes without tripping over your own shoelaces."
Ozaru pinched the bridge of his nose. "Tojo. Shut up. Please."
Tojo opened his mouth, then shut it again with a pout.
The girl ignored them both. She raised her hand again, and the faint red scar across her wrist glowed briefly.
"My name is Nina Voltaire. CDC operative. Class-S Genesis wielder. And you—" she gestured at them with cold precision, "—are accidents. The Stones should not have chosen you. Especially not you two."
"Accidents…?" Tojo muttered, suddenly quieter.
Ozaru frowned. "Why? If these Stones are as powerful as you say, shouldn't you be glad they have hosts instead of lying around in a crater?"
Her lips curled into a humorless smile. "Glad? Do you think this is a game, monkey?"
The word hit sharper this time, tinged with venom.
"I've seen what your kind does with power. Entire colonies ruined. Worlds burned. Because humans think every gift is theirs to use and waste. Because you don't understand the weight of responsibility—only greed."
Her voice trembled faintly, and for the first time, her mask cracked. Not hatred, but something colder. Pain.
Tojo noticed. His grin faded.
"…You lost someone."
Nina's jaw tightened. She turned away. "It doesn't matter."
For a moment, the only sound was the hiss of the smoking crater.
Then Tojo sighed loudly, clapping his hands once.
"Okay, hold up. I'm still stuck at 'CDC.' What even is that? Cosmic Donut Club? Cause honestly, I'm starving."
Ozaru facepalmed. "Cosmic Defense Corps, right?"
Nina finally glanced at him, a flicker of surprise. "…You're sharper than your idiot friend."
Tojo pointed at Ozaru dramatically. "TRAITOR."
"Cosmic Defense Corps," Nina continued, ignoring them. "The first and last wall between humanity and extinction. We hunt Voidspawns, regulate Genesis Stones, and contain idiots like you before you end the universe by sneezing too hard."
Tojo raised a finger. "Objection. I don't sneeze that hard."
"Do you ever shut up?" she snapped.
"Not when I'm being oppressed."
Ozaru couldn't help it — a small snort escaped. Nina noticed and glared, but he shrugged. "Sorry. He's like this with everyone."
Nina exhaled sharply, like she was regretting every second of standing near them.
But her eyes sharpened again as she studied them.
"Do you even know which Stones chose you?"
The boys glanced at each other.
Tojo scratched his head. "Well, mine's red, glowy, kinda angry-looking—like my math teacher. Yours?"
Ozaru tapped his chest where the faint glow still lingered. "Blue. Cold. Heavy. Like… it's pulling me inward."
Nina's breath caught. For a fraction of a second, her composure broke completely.
"What?… No. It can't be."
Tojo tilted his head. "What, bad colors? You racist against blue now too?"
Her glare snapped back to him. "Idiot. Those aren't just Stones. They're the Stones. The most dangerous of them all. Destruction and Creation."
The words hung in the air.
Ozaru froze. "Wait. You're saying—"
"Yes," she cut in. "You two are hosts to the God Stones themselves."
The crater felt colder suddenly. Tojo's laugh came out nervous, hollow. "Haha, yeah right. Us? Gods? I can barely pass science class."
"You won't pass anything if you lose control. Do you even know why your beast regenerated earlier?"
Ozaru swallowed. "…Because we didn't hit its AURA CORE?"
"Because your aura was unstable," Nina said, voice like steel. "Genesis Stones aren't weapons. They're alive. They amplify aura — life force itself. And unless you learn to control it, your own bodies will collapse long before your enemies do."
Tojo went pale. "…So we're ticking time bombs?"
"Yes."
He opened his mouth again, but for once — nothing came out.
Ozaru clenched his fists. "Then train us."
The words surprised even Tojo. "Train—bro, what? We just met her! She called us monkeys five times already!"
But Ozaru's eyes didn't waver. "If what she says is true, then ignoring it is suicide. We need to understand what these Stones are. What they want."
Nina studied him, her expression unreadable. Then she chuckled bitterly.
"You're either braver than you look… or dumber."
"Probably both," Tojo muttered.
But Nina's smile didn't reach her eyes. She sheathed her aura blade and turned, activating a small device at her belt. A shimmering portal of light began to form, its edges humming with energy.
"Tojo Akatsuki. Ozaru Kuruzama. Whether you like it or not, you're coming with me. CDC command will decide what to do with you."
Tojo stepped back. "Whoa, whoa, field trip already? We didn't even pack snacks!"
The portal widened, pulling at the air. Dust and loose rocks began to float toward it.
"Resistance is pointless," Nina said flatly.
Ozaru's gaze hardened. "Where will it take us?"
Her eyes gleamed in the crimson light. "Off this rock. To where your fate was sealed the moment those Stones chose you."
The pull grew stronger. Tojo staggered, gripping Ozaru's arm.
"Bro, this is insane! Are we seriously—"
"Yes," Ozaru said grimly. "We are."
And before Tojo could protest further, the portal swallowed them whole.
The crater fell silent, the night sky calm again.
But far above, in the void of space, Nexarius sat within his throne of obsidian steel. The ripple still echoed in his veins.
A smirk cut across his face.
"…So the primitive scums have touched godhood. Interesting. How… entertaining."
---
The spacecraft started pulling them in, while Tojo seemed scared. Dust lifted, rocks floated, the dark night itself seemed ready to collapse into the fearsome light.
But then—
Tojo raised his voice above the pull. "Wait."
Nina spun toward him, annoyed. "SHUT THE F*CK UP!? What now?!"
"Take us tomorrow." His voice was calm, deliberate. "Tonight, we return home."
Ozaru nearly lost it. "TOJO WHAT?! Home? After cosmic wormholes, demon beasts, and this chaos, you're thinking about home?! You really are crazy."
But Tojo didn't flinch this time. "Yes. Ozaru's mansion. We regroup there. If we're being dragged into this, then we do it on our terms, not yours. Since you said these are God Stones—you have to obey us, right? Or else this red stone might cause destruction."
For the first time, Nina looked genuinely conflicted. "You out of your mind? You think the CDC will allow—"
"They don't have to allow," Ozaru cut in, gaze sharp. "I'll handle the Corps when the time comes. For now, you handle me. Even though I got this stone just now… I might challenge you. Because for the first time in my life, I feel… important. And right after that, you want to steal my freedom?"
Tojo's eyes softened; Ozaru's voice cracked just a little.
Nina, devastated by their words but too proud to admit it, snapped. She flared with fury not because she was heartless but because she's bound to her duty to bring GOD STONES back because she indeed is CRIMSON STONE WIELDER COSMIC DEFENCE CORPS CLASS-S VICE-CAPTAIN...
She takes step towards them saying with her blade raising up
"Genesis Galacta — CRIMSON AURA BURST!"
The entire ground shuddered.
Ozaru barely managed to shield Tojo, who fell unconscious from the sheer pressure.
"Nina, stop!" he gasped. "Please… he never meant it. It's the stone—it's twisting him."
For a moment, her eyes flickered. Then the crimson light faded.
"Fine," she said coldly. "One night. You're lucky no one else came. This area's under a cloaking field — no signals in, no out."
Ozaru nodded weakly. "Thanks… for that." His vision blurred. a shadowy figure comes in from woods "Butler… finally found us, huh?"
ozaru's Butler stepped from the shadows, calm as moonlight. 'Indeed, sir.' Behind him, another presence stirred – a shadow in black watching from the treeline.
The night swallowed them all... but not before a pair of blue eyes flickered open.