Pride pointed in the direction of the new threat, advising them to flee if they valued their lives. Royer, exhausted and skeptical, dismissed Pride's warning, convinced that the threat was exaggerated. However, as the soldiers scanned the area, an enormous, camouflaged figure emerged from the ground. The sight was both awe-inspiring and terrifying.
The creature, known as the Fairy Man, stood colossal, with wings larger than the White House.
His wings were camouflaged on the upper surface, blending seamlessly with his surroundings, while the lower surface shimmered in vibrant hues, adorned with colorful figures and diamonds that sparkled like fireworks.
The Fairy Man was a majestic yet terrifying entity, embodying the true extent of the threat described by Pride.
As the soldiers and Isabella stared in disbelief, Steve, a young soldier, bravely took action. He emerged from the shadows, firing a rocket launcher directly at the Fairy Man. The rocket struck with explosive force, but the Fairy Man remained unscathed.
Steve, prideful of his achievement, turned to his superiors with a triumphant shout, "I got him!" But as the smoke cleared, it was evident that the Fairy Man had sustained no damage.
The beast's counterattack was swift and ruthless. Steve's head exploded in a shower of blood, his body collapsing lifelessly to the ground.
"Steve!" Julia screamed, her voice filled with horror as she watched from her car. The sight left Isabella and Royer stunned and disoriented.
The Fairy Man advanced with a predatory grace, and the remaining aircrafts opened fire in a desperate attempt to subdue him. The bullets merely created sparks as they ricocheted off his diamond-encrusted wings.
As the gunfire ceased, the Fairy Man spread his wings wide, unleashing a violent gust of wind that swept everything within miles. The jets, battered by the gale, lost control and plummeted from the sky.
Julia had to abandon her car and lay flat to avoid the debris, while Isabella and Royer sought cover, shielding themselves from the onslaught of flying vehicles and blinding dust.
"You should have fled when I warned you," Pride's voice echoed ominously. "Now your demise is inevitable." In a chilling display of power, the Fairy Man's attack continued with devastating effectiveness, mirroring what had befallen Steve to all the remaining aircrafts.
Despair gripped Isabella as she watched their forces being decimated.
She turned to Royer, her hope fading. "I think Pride was right. No matter how I think, I can't see a way to win this fight."
"Then don't think," Royer replied with steely resolve. He summoned his spear, which responded to his call and materialized in his right hand. Moving Isabella aside, he hurled the spear at the Fairy Man, teleporting alongside it with unmatched speed.
The spear flew like a speeding bullet, but the Fairy Man caught it effortlessly before it reached his eye. He crushed it in his grip, the weapon breaking into fragments.
The battle was far from over, and the odds seemed insurmountable. With the remaining forces dwindling and the Fairy Man's power on full display, the fight for survival had reached its most critical point.
Inside the White House, Guion listened to Julius's ideals with a calm demeanour, absorbing every word without interruption. Each statement from Julius underscored his profound disdain for humanity, revealing a man consumed by a desire to dismantle the very fabric of human society. Julius's hatred might have had roots in valid grievances, but his approach to solving them through sheer destruction was far beyond rational bounds. Guion recognized that while Julius's arguments about human flaws and the injustices faced were compelling, they were ultimately overshadowed by the destructive means he endorsed to address them.
Julius, with his charismatic conviction, tried to persuade Guion to join his cause, claiming that they were brothers in a fight against a world that had wronged them. He presented Guion with a stark choice: to align with him or be branded a hero or monster, a psychological tactic designed to provoke guilt and fear. Julius's belief was that hardship only served to enhance the power of an Overwhelm holder, suggesting that Guion's recent battle with Fear had equipped him with a deeper understanding of pain.
"The pain you feel is nothing compared to the hatred that defines me," Julius declared, his voice a mix of bitterness and challenge. "We have endured far worse."
He spoke of a world where destiny seemed to mock human efforts, a cruel twist in the grand design that made their choices ultimately futile. Julius's worldview was that people were bound to fail because they chose others over themselves, and he envisioned a new world order where such betrayals would no longer occur.
"We will create a world where your choices will not lead to your demise, where you will not be judged for being who you are," Julius said, his eyes burning with fervour. He paused, searching for a flicker of agreement in Guion's stoic expression. "Are you a hero or a monster?"
Guion remained silent, his mind racing through the implications of Julius's words. When he finally spoke, his tone was both mocking and resolute. "That's the most childish thing I've ever heard. You've sworn vengeance because the world didn't know you existed. You've killed countless innocents in the name of justice. Annika isn't coming back, the world is a mess, and the president is under arrest. No matter how much pain you're in, you can't upset the natural order."
He challenged Julius's view of fate and strength, declaring that if vengeance was justice, he would be the judge of that. "So here's my judgment: you let me kill you now before you do something you'll regret."
At Julius's command, his two allies Fury and Michael stood up, preparing to attack. But Guion was ready. With a powerful strike, he slammed his fists onto the table, summoning a surge of sharp bones that erupted from the floor, piercing through the table and sending Julius and his allies flying through a gaping hole in the wall. They landed gracefully, despite the wounds inflicted by the bone shards, their injuries already healing.