The gate chamber smelled like ozone and panic. Crown handlers shoved gear at them—basic leathers for Kai, upgraded gauntlets for Aria that hummed with stored charge. No time for questions. Juno's tablet still glowed with the alert: Dockside Market, breach confirmed, multiple goblin-class monsters loose, civilians trapped.
Kai's heart slammed against his ribs. Mom's night shift ended at dawn. She'd be right in the middle of it—closing up her cleaning cart, maybe grabbing coffee from the stalls.
"We're going in blind?" he snapped at Shen.
"Containment's failing," she said, cool as ever. "Your sync data under live fire is priority. Clear the Domain, extract civilians. Fail, and Crown disavows."
Rook pulled Kai aside while techs synced their comms. "Market's a maze—stalls, alleys, tight corners. Goblins swarm. Core's probably central plaza. Watch for a boss spawn if civilian kills hit threshold."
Aria stepped up, voice low. "We get the people out first."
Kai met her eyes. Surprise flickered there—she'd said it without thinking.
"Yeah," he said. "We do."
Juno lingered by the gate controls, face tight. "Aria. You don't have to—"
She cut him off with a look. "Open it."
The violet oval flared. They jumped through.
Chaos.
They landed in the fish market—overturned crates, ice melting into pink runoff, screams echoing off corrugated roofs. Morning light slanted through the open sides, but the Domain had twisted it: sky bruised purple, air thick with rot.
Goblins everywhere—scrawny green things with jagged knives, eyes glowing fever-bright. Civilians huddled behind stalls or ran in blind circles.
Kai spotted her instantly.
Mina Veylan, back pressed to a shuttered coffee stand, wielding a broken broom like a staff. Two goblins circled her, hissing.
"Mom!"
He sprinted. Aria was half a step behind, lightning already crackling.
A goblin lunged at Mina. Kai slid in, Basic Slash lighting his borrowed knife—cheap steel, but the edge bit deep. Green blood sprayed. The thing dissolved into mist.
Mina's eyes went wide. "Kai?"
"No time!" He grabbed her arm, pulled her behind him.
Aria vaporized the second goblin with a bolt that left the air smelling like burnt copper. More swarmed—dozen, maybe more—drawn by the noise.
"Central plaza's that way," Aria said, nodding past the stalls. "But we clear a path first."
Kai felt the tether hum—warm, focused. Sync Efficiency ticked up without prompt.
They moved like they'd practiced it. Aria's lightning forked, thinning herds. Kai darted in for kills, drawing aggro so civilians could run. Every shared strike fed the bond.
[Kill chain: 8
Sync Efficiency: 35% → 41%
Echo Step charges: 1/1]
A woman screamed from a side alley—trapped with a kid. Goblins closing.
Kai glanced at Aria. Fifty meters—Echo Step range.
"Do it," she said, reading him.
He triggered it. World blurred. One heartbeat he was beside her, next he flickered into the alley—right behind the goblins.
Knife flashed. Three down before they turned.
The woman stared, clutching her kid. "You—you teleported?"
"Run!" Kai barked. "Exit's west side!"
They fled.
He reappeared beside Aria—Echo Step cooldown starting. She didn't comment, just blasted a path forward.
Central plaza opened up: fountain cracked, stalls burning. Dozens of civilians ringed by a goblin horde. And in the middle—something bigger. Hobgoblin chief, easily C-rank, wielding a cleaver made of bone.
Core pedestal pulsed behind it, violet and angry.
Mina caught up, breathless. "Kai, there's more trapped in the cold storage!"
He froze. Cold storage—back of the market. Opposite direction from the core.
Aria's eyes flicked to him. "We split?"
"Can't. Tether's still tight." Three meters max without Strain.
The hobgoblin roared. Horde charged.
Civilians screamed.
Aria grabbed his wrist—deliberate contact. Warmth surged. Sync Pulse voluntary now.
"Take half my energy," she said. "Go. I'll hold the plaza."
"You can't solo a C-rank swarm!"
"I've done worse." Her grip tightened. "Trust me."
The word hung there. Trust.
He nodded once.
Energy flooded him—storm-charge crackling under his skin. Stats spiked temporary.
[Sync Pulse received: +50% Agility/Vitality, 30 seconds]
He blurred toward cold storage, knife glowing with borrowed lightning.
Behind him, Aria unleashed hell—lightning chaining goblin to goblin, buying time.
Kai smashed into the storage doors. Locked. Civilians pounding from inside.
He slashed—fusion edge, accidental again. Metal melted.
People poured out—ten, fifteen. He herded them toward the exit shimmer.
Last one out: old man, limping.
Goblin stragglers hit from the side.
Kai fought, energy fading. Thirty seconds almost up.
One got past—lunged for the old man.
Kai dove, took the claw across his back. Pain exploded.
Then light—Aria's bolt spearing through, precise even from plaza distance.
He staggered up. Civilians clear.
Ran back.
Plaza was a warzone. Aria ringed by bodies, breathing hard, but the hobgoblin still stood—wounded, raging.
Core pedestal cracked but holding.
Kai slid in beside her. Energy spent, but the tether sang.
Together.
She met his eyes. "Fusion?"
"Yeah."
He grabbed her hand.
Lightning poured down her arm, into his knife. Blade became pure storm.
They charged.
Hobgoblin swung. Kai ducked, slashed legs. Aria leaped, palm to its chest—discharge.
Fusion detonated.
The chief burst into ash.
Core shattered.
Domain unraveled.
They spilled out into real morning light—market smoking, sirens wailing, civilians safe.
Mina ran to Kai, hugged him fierce despite the blood.
Registry teams swarmed. Crown banners everywhere.
Juno waited at the barrier, face unreadable.
Shen approached, tablet glowing.
"Clear time: record for unscheduled Rogue. Civilian saves: 100%. Sync data… exceptional."
She turned the tablet.
New text, gold and cold:
[Stage 1: Truce → Complete
Stage 2 initiation: Partners
New skill unlocked: Dual Cast (basic fusion control)
Experiment 07: Performance exceeds projection.]
Then, smaller—private:
[Hidden file accessed: Pair 07 viability confirmed.
Next phase: External acquisition recommended.]
Juno stepped forward, eyes on Aria.
"Crown's putting you on probationary contract. Both of you. But there's an offer on the table—from higher up."
He glanced at Kai, smile thin.
"For her to drop the dead weight. Promotion to elite squad. Solo again."
Aria's hand still in Kai's—forgotten in the rush.
She didn't let go.
Kai felt it through the tether: resolve, sharp as lightning.
Mina watched, quiet. Proud.
And deep in the system, a new countdown started—silent, ticking.
[Acquisition window: 72 hours.]
(To be continued…)