The heavy blast doors of the Sector 7 perimeter wall groaned as they slid open, exposing the jagged grey wasteland beyond.
The air outside hit Caine's lungs immediately—it was cold, smelling heavily of wet rust, ozone, and the distinct, bitter tang of raw Jahgred radiation. The sky was an overcast, bruised purple, cast in shadows by the towering, broken skeletons of pre-war skyscrapers in the distance.
An armored transport dropped Auxiliary Squad 4 at the edge of the perimeter before speeding back toward the safety of the wall.
"Stay sharp," Lyra instructed, unholstering her sleek, silver focus rod. The tip glowed with a faint, steady amber light as she scanned the immediate terrain. "We're in the outer ring of Ruin Zone 7. The beasts here are mostly Scavenger-class—Level 1 to 5 threats—but they pack in swarms."
Behind them, a tall, burly boy named Jax unslung a heavy steel kite shield from his back. His body radiated an uncomfortable wave of ambient heat—a side effect of his leaking energy core.
"I'll take point," Jax grunted, his voice deep and gravelly. "My core might be defective, but my shield can take a beating. Caine, stay behind me. Don't try anything stupid like you did on the test pad."
"Understood," Caine lied smoothly, taking his position in the middle of the formation.
They moved quietly through the debris, navigating around overturned, rusted car frames and cracked concrete slabs swallowed by strange, glowing blue moss.
After ten minutes of silent marching, Lyra's focus rod pulsed twice, vibrating against her grip.
"Hold," she whispered, dropping to one knee behind a crumbled brick wall. Jax and Caine instantly crouched beside her. "I'm picking up two energy signatures two hundred meters ahead. They're feeding on a power cable."
Caine peered over the ruined brickwork.
Fifty yards away, crouched over an exposed subterranean line, were two Gloom-Stalkers. They were quadrupedal Jahgred beasts, roughly the size of wolves, but covered in jagged, obsidian-like chitin instead of fur. Their heads lacked eyes, featuring only a gaping maw lined with needle-sharp teeth and a glowing azure crystal embedded directly into their foreheads.
"Scavenger-type Gloom-Stalkers," Jax whispered, his knuckles whitening on his shield grip. "Hard chitin armor. Standard iron blades bounce right off 'em."
"I'll pin the left one with an amber bind," Lyra said, her voice calm and calculated. "Jax, you draw the right one's attention and slam it with your shield. Caine, once Jax holds it down, flank it and strike the soft flesh beneath its throat."
"Got it," Caine replied, unsheathing a standard steel tactical knife from his vest. It was a useless weapon against Jahgred chitin, but it maintained his cover.
"On three," Lyra muttered, her focus rod gathering a humming ball of golden light. "One... two... go!"
Lyra fired. A beam of amber energy shot through the fog, slamming into the left Gloom-Stalker's legs and instantly calcifying into heavy stone-like fetters. The beast shrieked, a high-pitched metallic screech that echoed off the ruined buildings.
The second Gloom-Stalker snapped its head toward them, its tail whipping violently as it lunged forward with terrifying speed.
"Hah!" Jax roared, stepping into the beast's path. He channeled his core into his shield, lighting up the metal face with a fiery orange glow.
BANG!
The beast collided with Jax's shield, the impact driving Jax's boots two inches into the dirt. Heat washed over the clearing as Jax's leaking core flared, singeing the grass around them. The beast bounced back, temporarily stunned, its jaw snapping wildly.
"Now, Caine!" Jax yelled, struggling to hold his ground as his body overheated.
Caine didn't hesitate. He sprinted forward, closing the distance in two long strides. He raised his steel knife, pretending to aim for the beast's throat.
The Gloom-Stalker, recovering faster than expected, whipped its head around and snapped its jaws toward Caine's face.
Too fast for a normal Level 10, Caine thought.
Instinct took over. Caine abandoned the knife. He drew the roaring energy from his chest, bypassing his arm's external channels, and compressed the entire flow directly into his right fist. His skin didn't glow. No blade erupted.
Instead, his arm locked into place, dense as solid titanium.
He stepped inside the beast's guard and drove his bare fist straight into the side of the Gloom-Stalker's armored skull.
THUMMM!
There was no visible flash, but the sound was like a heavy iron vault door slamming shut. The compressed shockwave passed completely through the Gloom-Stalker's thick obsidian chitin, shattering its internal organs and energy core instantly.
The beast didn't even yell. It collapsed into the dirt, limp and lifeless, its forehead crystal shattering into harmless blue dust.
Silence fell over the clearing, save for the crackle of burning brush from Jax's shield.
Jax stared at the dead beast, then at Caine's unmarked, bare fist, his jaw dropping open. "What... what kind of strike was that?"
Caine pulled his hand back, sliding it smoothly into his pocket as he turned to look at the second beast still bound by Lyra's energy.
"Lucky hit," Caine said softly, his eyes flashing with a faint, hidden blue gleam. "I hit the weak spot."