[A few hours before the incident at Base 140, Japan]
A figure strode into the high-tech computer surveillance room, his footsteps echoing against the metallic floor. "I heard the radar picked up something unusual," he said, his voice steady but alert. "What are we looking at?"
The technician in the operator's chair turned around, a look of pure confusion on his face. "A child, sir. It looks like a fourteen-year-old girl."
"A child?" The commander turned to the person standing beside him. "What do you think, Rin?"
Rin was a young girl, also around fourteen, but her appearance was far from ordinary. Her eyes were sharp ovals with pointed edges at the top and bottom—the unmistakable mark of demon lineage. She stared at the monitor, her gaze intense.
"Akira," Rin said, her voice trembling slightly. "That girl... she isn't human."
"What species is she, then?" Akira asked. As the commander of Base 140, Akira was ranked among the top ten strongest commanders across all human bases. He was a man not easily rattled, but Rin's reaction gave him pause.
"She's a demon," Rin whispered. "A very high-ranking one. Her energy... it surpasses the 8th or even the 7th Harbinger."
On the screen, the demon girl looked directly into the camera lens. She waved playfully, her voice coming through the speakers with a high-pitched, babyish lilt. "Hi! Please open up! I just want to play!"
Akira didn't hesitate. "Assemble the entire army. Protect the citizens. And get on the radio—contact every station you can. We need backup if this gets out of hand."
The room erupted into motion. Soldiers scrambled to their posts while the citizens within the base began to panic. Akira left the command center, Rin trailing close behind him. They reached the armory, where Akira grabbed his standard sword and then reached for a second, mystical weapon: a dual-blade katana that pulsed with a strange, heavy energy. As he gripped the hilt, the veins in his arms bulged from the sheer weight of the weapon's power.
"Here," Akira grunted, holding it out. "Take it, quickly."
Rin grabbed the dual blades, her hands steadying as she took the weight. "Sorry," she murmured.
Suddenly, a voice boomed through the hallways, accompanied by the distant sound of screaming. "Hellooo? Rin, come out! I can sense you!"
Akira looked at Rin, his eyes wide. "Do you know her?"
Rin's face was pale. "That... that must be Xyne's sister."
Akira gripped Rin's shoulder, trying to steady her. "Hey, calm down. Don't panic. Go to the radio room and stay with the operator. Keep trying to reach the other bases."
Tears began to well in Rin's eyes. "Don't die, Akira. Please. If you can't defeat her... just run! Please, just run!"
"Shhh," Akira whispered, glancing toward the door. "She might hear you. Now go!"
Rin gathered what little courage she had left and sprinted toward the communications hub. As she fled, Skye—the demon girl—spotted her from the end of the hall. "Come here, you little worm!" Skye giggled. "Why doesn't anyone want to play with me?"
Skye started to skip toward Rin, but Akira stepped out from the armory, blocking her path. He stood tall, his hand on his sword.
"Are you the one who's going to play with me?" Skye asked, tilting her head innocently.
"I'm the one who's going to discipline you," Akira replied, his voice cold.
Behind Skye, a soldier raised his rifle, preparing to fire. In the blink of an eye, the soldier felt a freezing presence behind him, even though Skye was still standing right in front of Akira. It was as if she existed in two places at once.
"You just interrupted the fun," Skye's voice whispered from behind the soldier.
Before the man could even turn around, he exploded into a cloud of crimson mist. Akira watched, horrified, but forced himself to stay calm.
Skye turned back to Akira, a wide, bloodthirsty grin on her face. "So, where were we? Oh, right! The game!"
***
**[The Computer Room]**
Rin reached the radio room, where a terrified soldier was frantically cycling through frequencies. Most were dead air or static. Finally, a signal clicked through: Base 105.
"Hello? We need help!" the soldier shouted into the mic.
At Base 105, Annie, Jane, and Leo were mid-conversation when the distress call broke through. Annie dove for the chair. "This is Base 105! Who is this? What is your status?"
"We—we're under attack!" the soldier stammered, his voice cracking. "It's a demon... a child!"
Through the radio, Annie could hear the sounds of crumbling stone and Skye's playful laughter. She turned to Jane, her eyes wide. "Quickly! Go get Lyla, now!"
Jane bolted out of the room. A few seconds later, Lyla and Caspian burst in. Lyla took the headset from Annie. "This is Base 105! What is your situation! Over"
"This is Rin Shimizu from Japan, Base 140!" Rin's voice came through, desperate."We've been invaded by a demon that... it looks human! We need to evacuate! We're being slaughtered!"
Back at Base 140, the door to the radio room was suddenly blown off its hinges. Akira's body came crashing through the doorway, battered and bloodied. Skye stepped into the room, her eyes locking onto Rin.
"So, you were hiding here," Skye said, sounding bored. "I don't really care about you, honestly. I'm just looking for my brother, Xyke."
Rin was frozen in terror. The soldier beside her tried to sneak toward the exit, moving slowly, but Skye didn't even look at him. With a casual flick of her wrist, the soldier's body burst, splashing blood across Rin's face. Skye's gaze drifted to the dual blades in Rin's hands.
"You're still carrying that sword?" Skye laughed. "You can't even withstand its power, let alone unsheathe it."
"This is my family heirloom!" Rin shouted, her voice trembling. "I have the right to hold it, even if I can't wield it yet!"
"Just like your brother," Skye sneered. "I'm surprised he even made it to 2nd Harbinger. Killing you is going to be so much fun."
Suddenly, a blade sprouted from Skye's stomach. Akira had crawled up behind her, driving his sword through her midsection. Skye didn't scream; she just chuckled. "You really are entertaining me, human."
"Run, Rin!" Akira gasped, coughing up blood. "Don't look back! Just run!"
Rin stumbled toward him, sobbing. "Why does it have to end like this? Why?!"
Skye looked down at the blade in her stomach, then back at Rin. "You have ten seconds to move. Then I react."
"Please, Rin," Akira begged. "You have to live. You have to stop this invasion."
"Should I let it out?" Rin whispered, her tears blurring her vision. "Maybe I should just release it..."
"Eight seconds," Skye counted down.
"No!" Akira shouted. "Don't! You have to give that weapon to someone who can actually handle it. Promise me... promise me you won't release that thing unless there is no other way!"
"Go!" Akira screamed.
Memories flooded Rin's mind—flashes of Akira's smile and his voice telling her to always listen to him.
"Three seconds."
With a final, agonizing look at Akira, Rin leaped through the shattered window, using her demon strength to jump clear of the base.
"Zero."
Skye gripped the blade sticking out of her stomach and snapped it like a toothpick. She pulled the shards out of her body, her wounds closing instantly. She turned, grabbed Akira by the neck, and threw him across the room. She flew after him, pulling back a fist to finish him off. Her fist didn't even touch him before the sheer pressure of her dark energy caused Akira's body to explode.
Skye landed in the middle of the wreckage, looking disappointed. "Hmm... maybe I should work on concealing my dark energy. They break so easily."
To be continued...