Chapter 25 — The Pretzel Before the Storm
The day was drawing to a gentle close over the academy, stretching shadows along the dormitory walls as if even the light hesitated to linger. Inside the room, the air was calm—almost too normal for a place filled with monsters in the making. Zayn was sprawled on his bed, arms behind his head, staring at the ceiling with that insolent boredom that clung to him whenever he wasn't fighting.
"I'm hungry."
No answer.
"Like… really hungry."
Yojuro, sitting by the window, turned a page of his book without looking up.
"Fascinating."
Zayn sat up and stared at him.
"You could at least pretend to care."
"No."
A silence.
"I'm going out."
"Do what you want."
Zayn shrugged, already on his feet.
"I'm getting pretzels."
"You are predictable."
"And you're annoying."
"Statistical."
Zayn cracked a smile, grabbed his jacket, and left the room without another word.
Minutes later, the New York air hit his face like a living slap. Noise. Movement. Life. It was a world away from the controlled silence of the academy. Neon lights flickered on one by one, cars glided by like terrestrial comets, and the passersby formed a human sea—chaotic and reassuring all at once.
Zayn walked leisurely, hands in his pockets.
"Pretzels… or something even greasier…"
A smile tugged at his lips.
Then—
**BZZZT.**
The Borealis vibrated.
Not like usual.
Not gently.
But brutally.
A green light pulsed around his wrist.
Aurore appeared, her voice more serious than he had ever heard it:
"Alert."
Zayn frowned.
"Huh?"
"Anomaly alert. Radiation detected."
"Radiation…?"
He didn't have time to finish.
A streak of blood trickled from his nose.
He pressed a hand to his face.
"…What the hell is this…?"
Around him, something changed.
Subtly at first.
Then violently.
A man stopped dead in the middle of the street. A woman dropped her phone. A child began to shiver. Movements slowed down… then shattered.
Their bodies contorted.
Their eyes… went empty.
Then, they filled with an infected glow.
Luminous cracks raced across their skin, like lightning trapped beneath the flesh. Their pupils became unstable, flickering, as if something was trying to look through them.
Zayn took a step back.
"…No…"
The civilians turned toward him.
All of them.
At the same time.
And they advanced.
Slowly.
Too slowly.
Like bodies being pulled by a will that wasn't their own.
"Okay… okay, this stinks—"
They were already surrounding him.
Their steps dragged, their limbs vibrating under the effect of this unknown energy. Some whispered. Others ground their teeth. None were conscious.
"Primal recommended: Citrolle," Aurore announced.
Zayn gritted his teeth.
"…Perfect."
He raised his wrist.
"Let's test this out."
**CLACK.**
His hand struck the Borealis.
The light exploded.
His body twisted under the energy, then reconstructed itself.
Roots burst from the ground.
Plants spiraled around him.
Blue flames were born in a silent breath.
His head became an incandescent pumpkin, carved with an infernal grin, his eyes burning with a supernatural fire.
His body became a living fusion of vegetation and ancient flames.
**Citrolle.**
Zayn took a slow breath.
"Okay… this time…"
The flames in his eyes flickered.
"…let's try not to burn everything down."
He slammed his hands onto the pavement.
Instantly, the earth answered.
Roots exploded from beneath the civilians' feet, lunging like living serpents, coiling around their bodies, immobilizing them, gently absorbing the energy that corrupted them.
One by one, they fell.
Neutralized.
Silent.
Zayn looked up.
"There. Clean—"
His instinct screamed.
He vanished to the side.
A red beam tore through the space he had occupied a fraction of a second earlier, shredding the very air.
Silence fell again.
Then—
A presence.
Right in front of him.
Space itself… glitched.
A silhouette appeared like a bug in reality.
Red.
Entirely red.
Broken lines ran across its body like cracks in a poorly coded world. Its eyes were black. Absolutely black.
And its smile…
Was fake.
Too wide.
Too alive.
"Zaaayn…"
The voice repeated slightly, like an offset echo.
"It's you."
A laugh.
Glitched.
"Hahaha… finally."
Zayn's heart accelerated.
"…ERROR."
"Oh~ you already know my name… that spoils the surprise a bit."
He tilted his head.
"You know… I love breaking what is special."
His eyes drifted to the Borealis.
"And you… you are very special."
Citrolle attacked.
Without hesitation.
Plants surged, blue flames surged—a wave of nature and fire meant to crush.
ERROR simply raised his hand.
And everything… stopped.
The flames froze.
The plants twisted.
Then they disintegrated.
As if they had never existed.
"No."
A single movement.
Zayn was hurled across the street, pulverizing the ground upon impact.
He stood up immediately.
"Tch—"
He charged.
Again.
Faster.
Stronger.
A fight broke out.
Brutal.
Illegible.
Every attack from Citrolle warped the environment.
Every response from ERROR… ignored the rules.
Zayn struck.
ERROR corrected.
Zayn burned.
ERROR erased.
Zayn resisted.
But he was losing.
Fast.
Very fast.
Citrolle staggered.
His body cracked.
But he smiled nonetheless.
"Hey…"
His voice trembled.
"You ever seen…"
The flames around him soared.
"…a supernova?"
He struck the ground.
A wave of blue fire exploded.
Massive.
Devastating.
The entire street vanished into the light.
Silence.
Then—
ERROR was there.
Untouched.
"Yes."
A flash.
Then his hand went through Citrolle's chest.
Directly.
Straight to the core.
The world shattered.
The transformation collapsed.
Zayn reappeared.
Normal.
Weak.
ERROR grabbed him by the neck as if he weighed nothing.
"Now…"
His hand settled over the Borealis.
"Let's take a closer look."
Black and red energy erupted.
Violent.
Corrupted.
The bracelet shrieked.
Zayn did too.
"AAAAH—!!"
The pain wasn't physical.
It was worse.
It was as if his soul was being ripped away piece by piece.
"Hahaha… look at that…"
ERROR was laughing.
"A celestial artifact… breaking…"
Then—
A light.
Pure.
Brutal.
Sacred.
It struck.
ERROR was blasted back.
His grip loosened.
Zayn collapsed to the ground.
Gasping.
Broken.
He painfully lifted his eyes.
A silhouette stood before him.
Motionless.
A black coat.
Luminous eyes.
And on the garment…
A symbol.
A scorpion.
ERROR rose slowly.
Then he smiled.
"Ah…"
A laugh.
"Finally, something interesting."
His eyes glowed.
"A Grade Vertu…"
He tilted his head.
"I was starting to get bored…"
Silence.
Then a name fell.
Heavy.
Sharp.
Inevitable.
"Azel."