Rose went off comms, her eyes scanning the ruined streets below."I count forty machines in the area," she reported, her voice steady.Kai's voice crackled through the earpiece. "How many hostages?""Twelve."A pause. "…Only twelve?""Yeah."Kai exhaled. "Alright…"He switched channels. "Aika, you know what to do.""Right," Aika responded from the adjacent building, already preparing her spells.Kai turned his attention to Arnik. "Arnik, on your command."Silence.Kai frowned. "Uh, Arnik—"BOOOOM.A sudden explosion of light and energy roared through the center of the enemy ranks. A massive bolt of lightning split the sky, striking the ground with deafening force. When the dust settled, Arnik stood in the middle of the battlefield, electricity coursing through his veins, his fists crackling with raw power.In his grasp—one of the machines' severed heads."Lightning Mutation—Consecutive Strikes."The words barely left his mouth before the energy surged again. A pulse of lightning erupted outward, chaining through the machines in an instant. Sparks flashed as ten machines collapsed, their circuits fried beyond repair.Kai sighed, shaking his head. "A little heads-up would be nice…"Arnik smirked. "You're slow."Kai clicked his tongue. "Aika, Rose—go."Rose didn't hesitate. She leapt from the broken window, her Yari gleaming as she shot downward. "Fourfold Strike!"Her weapon blurred as she moved—one clean motion. Four machines fell, their bodies sliced cleanly in a way that made it seem like a single attack had done the damage.Aika followed immediately, her chains bursting forward, wrapping around thirteen machines at once. With a flick of her wrist, the ground beneath them cracked open. The machines struggled, but the enchanted chains dragged them down into the earth, crushing them upon impact.Kai moved next.He shot out from an alleyway, his pistol in one hand, his shifting weapon in the other. His blade molded mid-motion, striking one machine before morphing instantly to strike another. His attacks were so fast the machines didn't even process them in time.The moment they did—They went for the hostages.But Arnik was already ahead of them.He slammed his hands together, releasing a pulse of plasma energy. A barrier erupted around the hostages, cutting the machines off from their targets.The machines faltered. Their leader stepped forward, its body crackling with unstable magic. It raised its hand.A powerful spell ignited, tearing through the battlefield.Kai barely had time to duck behind a pillar as the blast sent debris flying. "Damn, that was strong!""Thanks!" Rose yelled back, already moving.She swung her Yari, sending out enchanted chains that wrapped around the machine leader, locking its limbs in place. "Gotcha."With a smirk, she vaulted over its immobilized frame, striking down with her spear. The machine's arm was severed in a clean motion.Kai's weapon shifted again, forming into a massive magic axe. Without hesitation, he stepped forward and brought it down with full force.The blade cleaved straight through the machine's core.A surge of energy exploded outward from the impact, cutting through the ground in a deep, jagged line. The sheer force split apart the battlefield.Kai exhaled, spinning his weapon back into a neutral stance. He turned in time to see two more machines rushing him with drawn swords.Without missing a beat, his weapon shifted again.With a swift motion, he swung.A razor-sharp magical slash shot forward, cleaving through the approaching enemies in an instant.Kai smirked, flipping his weapon back to its neutral form. "I can see why these are sometimes more effective than blasters."The battlefield fell silent.The machines were defeated.The hostages—safe.Without missing a beat, his weapon shifted again.With a swift motion, he swung.A razor-sharp magical slash shot forward, cleaving through the approaching enemies in an instant.Kai smirked, flipping his weapon back to its neutral form. "I can see why these are sometimes more effective than blasters."The battlefield fell silent.The machines were defeated.Then—A deafening sound erupted from the ruined buildings.The team snapped their heads toward the noise.Ten machines burst out of the wreckage, their glowing optics locking onto the squad. Their movements were swift, merciless, weapons drawn as they rushed in to overwhelm them.But—Before they could take a single step further—BANG. BANG. BANG.As swiftly as they appeared, they fell.One after another, each machine dropped where it stood, their heads exploding in perfect precision.Far in the distance, perched on a high rooftop, Markus lowered his sniper rifle.Arnik smirked, speaking through the comms. "Great job, Markus."A grunt was his only response.Kai exhaled, glancing toward the fallen enemies. "Show-off."Aika adjusted her grip on her staff. "Are there more?"No movement. No sound. Just the flickering of distant flames and the crackle of ruined metal.Arnik nodded. "Alright. Requesting evac ship to our position."Minutes later, the hum of engines filled the air as a transport ship descended, its hatch opening as soldiers rushed out to secure the area. The survivors—what little remained of them—were carefully ushered aboard.Aika watched as the civilians climbed into the safety of the transport. Her hands tightened around her staff. "There were so few…"Kai sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I know…"Rose crossed her arms, her tail flicking. "How horrible."They stood in silence for a moment, watching as the ship ascended, carrying the survivors away from the wreckage of what had once been their home.Aika adjusted her grip on her staff. "Are there more?"No movement. No sound. Just the flickering of distant flames and the crackle of ruined metal.Arnik nodded. "Alright. Requesting evac ship to our position."Minutes later, the hum of engines filled the air as a transport ship descended, its hatch opening as soldiers rushed out to secure the area. The survivors—what little remained of them—were carefully ushered aboard.Aika watched as the civilians climbed into the safety of the transport. Her hands tightened around her staff. "There were so few…"Kai sighed, running a hand through his hair. "I know…"Rose crossed her arms, her tail flicking. "How horrible."They stood in silence for a moment, watching as the ship ascended, carrying the survivors away from the wreckage of what had once been their home."We should probably leave before more of those things show up.""Right."At Markus's position, he was loading up his sniper when he suddenly felt a powerful magic aura. His grip tightened. He drew his weapon.Arnik was about to call for another ship when—BOOM.Markus came flying in, crashing into a building next to them."MARKUS!"He staggered to his feet, brushing dust off his coat. "I'M FINE.""Damn, that hurt," he muttered, rolling his shoulder.The team turned toward where the attack had come from."What was that?" Kai asked, already drawing his weapon.Everyone tensed, weapons at the ready.Walking toward them was a man.He looked human."What?!"But the aura surrounding him was overwhelming."A human?" Aika muttered.Markus scoffed. "No."His grip on his sword tightened, his teeth gritted. "That's no man… I can feel it.""He's a demon?"Arnik narrowed his eyes. "A demon? But Lionel is the only demon left.""It's hard to explain," Markus said, shifting into a combat stance. "But he has a demonic aura.""We can talk later," Arnik said, stepping forward, his mutation crackling around him.The man smirked, slowly drawing a blade that shimmered with magic. His eyes burned with anticipation."I'm getting excited," he murmured.High above them, hidden within the shadows of a drone's surveillance, someone watched.A low chuckle echoed through the feed."This should be interesting," the voice mused."Go, my brother… Let's see how you fare against them."