Invasion

At the control room, Shade stood in before steel and translucent, animated screens. All of them had footage filtering through cameras positioned throughout TEC's network of tunnels. Each screen displayed what was happening outside its fortified walls.

Shade, arms crossed, remained calm despite THE's pressure. He was merely surveying the situation while staying level-headed.

Just under him were three young Epsilons—trainees barely out of their adolescence. They sat glued to their consoles while waiting for a command. But Shade's quietness made them weary.

"They're at the east entrance, sir," piped up one of the Epsilons. "Looks like they're attempting to breach it with what looks like elemental Bands." 

Shade watched as flares of fire, columns of earth, and torrents of water erupted.

"Let them," he finally said. 

The Epsilons exchanged uncertain glances, processing his directive. They were used to orders, but this was different; it almost felt reckless. Nonetheless, they kept their reservations to themselves and continued relaying information.

In the distance, Shade could hear the rumbles as the barricades began to crack. The noise intensified, and a moment before the first barricade crumbled, THE Bandits rushed inside.

"They're in!" an Epsilon announced. 

The screens then split as the different camera angles captured the moment. The dust kicked up by the remnants of the barricade settling, and with it, about forty rugged figures stumbled into view.

'Where's Razeon?' Shade thought to himself while scanning the faces of the invaders. Razeon was their leader and should have been the one orchestrating this, yet Shade couldn't see him among the storming horde. 

When the last of the Bandits had entered the main foyer, Shade slowly retrieved his phone from his pocket and said without hesitation, "Do it…"

THE Bandits had split into two groups. The first went to the west entrance, while the second went to the east. Each group had about twenty members.

At the east entrance, twenty Bandits raced toward where Shade already had Nia position. She stood calmly despite them approaching her with aggression. And what made them agitated wasn't her, but who was below her: five guards all with rifles in their hands.

Relaxed, Nia poised her hand into that of a gun and smirked, "Bang!"

The room exploded with gunfire as her team of TEC defenders bullets upon the encroaching Bandits. Three were immediately dropped.

Before more could suffer, one Bandit, flustered yet relentless, suddenly activated his Band, summoning a forcefield. The shots collided with the shield, creating a visible ripple in the air to protect the rest of his comrades.

"Not bad," Nia remarked.

Then she waved her wrist, revealing an emerald glow. The attackers were stunned because the power of her Band—a C-rank—was incomparable to their D-ranks! 

In an instant, she was gone from sight, as if she had never stood there at all. The bandits became nervous as they tried to pinpoint her whereabouts. 

Suddenly, an explosion of motion disrupted the confusion. One such Bandit felt a powerful force shove against his side before slamming him into the wall. Then the onslaught began.

Bang-bang-bang-bang-bang!

The Bandit with the forcefield barely registered the noise of struggling bodies before another one of his comrades fell victim to this unseen force.

"Where is she?!" he shouted, turning in frantic circles. Shadows moved in dark bursts around them, disorienting him further. "Now I get it! She has super speed!"

With a confident grin, Nia reappeared among them. The Bandit became angry and threatened to rage at her. He raised his wrist and said, "Super speed or not, what you can't touch doesn't matter." In that split second, he looked over his wrist and saw it was bare—his Band was gone. 

Nia, now holding his Band playfully, teased, "Looking for this?"

The distance was soon closed between them. Without hesitation, she delivered a kick that sent him sprawling toward the more Bandits who all crashed like bowling pins. 

Shade, still watching through the control room feeds, smiled at this scene.

It wasn't long until Nia finished dispatching the final stragglers around her. The look on her teammates' faces was of admiration and awestruck.

"Glad she's on our side."

Shade turned his attention to the screens monitoring the west entrance. There, Stanley and Venn were locked in a struggle against another twenty Bandits. Shade observed as Stanley stood against the onslaught, but it was evident that he was stressed. 

There was a reason for this since a certain Bandit was leading the charge—Casper, the underboss of Razeon. He was a shifty character who's Band could manipulate light in a way that could create deceptive mirages.

"Stanley, focus!" Venn yelled as he sidestepped a dagger that appeared out of thin air.

But it was difficult to maintain control with the way Casper distorted their perceptions. Each time Stanley thought he could stop time, a spark of light would create an illusion, throwing off his concentration and making him unsure where to lay his abilities.

"Easy for you to say, kid," Stanley shot back with a carefree laugh. "You try dealing with a gaggle of phantoms!"

He was doing well to cover his stress with defiant laughter. That drew ire from Casper, who sneered at this insolence.

"Old man," Casper mocked, "look around you already! Your whole team's crawling away. All of you are down for the count."

He then waved dismissively at the injured forms scattered on the ground, each trying to rise but struggling against their earlier defeat.

"You think I'm worried?" Stanley retorted, standing tall despite the sweat glistening on his brow. He was far from being senile; he's been in fights like these tons of times. "I'm part of the greatest rebel group in the world! While THE is just a gang from the slums of Velthoria!" 

Casper's eyes narrowed as he stepped closer and said, "Let's see how brave you are when you're dead, then!" 

One of his Bandits raised their D-rank Band, causing a set of more daggers that appeared in each of their hands. Their intent was clear—they were going to cut Stanley down.

The Bandits charged forward with Casper taking the lead. Even if Stanley stopped time for a brief moment now, it would fail because Casper had already changed the scenario for Stanley.

Managing to close the distance for Casper to deliver a stab, a flash of light swallowed the corridor and Stanley vanished into thin air, reappearing beside Venn. Venn's Band glowed brightly with energy, its pulse illuminating the dimly lit area, revealing he had the power of teleportation.

"Haha-haha!" Stanley chortled. "Thanks for the save there, kid!"

But their moment of relief was short-lived as Casper wheeled around, flaming fury reflected in his eyes. "What are you laughing about, old man? You're outnumbered twenty to two; we can squash you anytime we want!"

"With just twenty Bandits, huh?" Stanley laughed the more. "Well, I might be outnumbered, but who said we were alone?" 

At that moment, as if summoned by the sheer force of Stanley's confidence, an ominous sound echoed down the corridor—the clanking of leather on the concrete floor. The doors swung open, revealing an imposing figure casually strolling onto the battlefield.

It was Shade.

"See that guy right there?" Stanley grinned, motioning playfully toward Shade. "He's worth more than twenty Bandits combined."

The Bandits all froze momentarily upon recognizing that this was their leader. And if Stanley's threat was serious, Shade could very well demoralize them.

"Shade…" Venn breathed in relief washing. "Are we glad to see you!"

Casper was left utterly speechless. To think that the leader of TEC would come right into the battlefield. It was like a king in chess moving ahead of his pawns.

As Casper fought back the weariness inside him, a subordinate Bandit approached, slapping a hand on his shoulder. "Don't sweat it, Casper. We've got this. Let's not forget—Shade is just some nobody with a D-rank Band. He's no one to fear!"

What? Only a D-rank? Suddenly, Casper felt reinvigorated.

"Ha… Haha… Hahaha!" he bellowed, rallying his troops. "You heard him, boys! Do not be afraid! They think they can take us on? We'll show them what we're all about!"

The Bandits began to pump themselves up at his battle cry.

Stanley, taking stock of the situation, couldn't shake the perplexity from Casper's actions. To him, he was wondering why the underboss had let a lackey sway Casper's heart so quickly. When he turned to Shade, he saw him incline his head toward Casper and his men, allowing the conversation to cool the tension.

"I'd like to know something," Shade ventured.

"Go ahead," Casper replied, straightening himself, though he still kept an eye on Shade warily.

"Why attack us now of all times?"

Casper still hesitated but soon responded. "It's simple," he explained, taking a bold step forward. "Matt got caught! That left us no choice but to act and invade TEC sooner rather than later. Surely you, a head, could have figured that out on your own." 

He moved closer. "Besides, we've seen you recently stockpiling resources that we desperately need. It's only right that one rebel group attacks another for our survival." 

Shade merely listened but found himself unimpressed. THE's logic was flawed, convoluted, and reckless; it seemed utterly stupid to him.

They could have approached TEC with a request for trade, but instead, here they were: locked in senseless conflict because of an impossible grudge. Yet it was clear that Casper and his men had little desire to play fair after Matt's downfall.

"Enough talk!" Casper abruptly declared in anger. All the men raised their hands, allowing a member to materialize daggers as their weapons again. "Let's put this charade to rest, Shade! Attack!"

Without waiting for a second thought, Casper and his troops charged forward, daggers at the ready.

Venn, panicking, instinctively shifted his stance to intervene, but something odd shocked him: Shade gestured not to interfere!

The first to reach Shade was Casper himself, dagger raised high. Just as he swung down, Shade slipped aside with a quick dodge, causing Casper to stumble past him. The underboss's eyes widened in disbelief as his strike missed completely.

Before Casper could gather his thoughts, a second Bandit lunged at Shade. The same result awaited him—the Bandit's attack was evaded. 

Then three attackers came at him in tandem, each poised to strike. With a swift motion, he glided past the first, dipped under the second's slash, and spun aside to avoid the third.

The fluidity of his movements was nothing short of astonishing in the face of armed men.

That's when Casper felt something off. There was something distinctly odd: why wasn't Shade's perception being distorted? That first attack he tried shouldn't have been dodged.

Testing the limits of his own abilities, Casper stayed still to assess the ongoing skirmish while the Bandits swirled around Shade.

One of his men, desperate, hurled a dagger at Shade's face. But before the weapon reached its target, Shade reached up with a quick hand and caught it midair.

"Pathetic," he muttered.

A second Bandit rushed at Shade from behind. So Shade swiftly pivoted to deal with the new threat, parrying the sneak attack before it could land. Three others tried to catch him from his blind spot, but he deflected a series of strikes from them.

Each deflection left Casper grasping to understand. Was his own Band really not working? If it wasn't, and Shade was the immediate cause, then it could only mean one thing: Shade simply was unaffected by certain Bands like his own.

"Smoke!" he shouted at one of his men, looking back. Even if Shade wasn't affected by his Band, his vision could still be deterred by external Bands like smoke-users. Casper would be screwed if he let another opportunity pass. "Create smoke; cloud the room!"

But as he directed his attention to the Bandit with smoke powers, he saw that the Bandit was frozen in place.

"What the heck?!" he said in shock.

Then he understood the trap he had fallen into—Stanley's time-stopping Band was in play.

Venn hadn't hesitated to teleport Shade next to the frozen Bandit.

"Just like that," Shade said as he swiftly sliced the Bandit's throat. Blood gushed, painting the ground from the fallen Bandit. "You're in check." 

Casper's hopes quickly faded as he struggled to piece together what was transpiring; his attention had led him into the clutches of imminent defeat. Even though he tried to use other Bandits' Bands, would they even affect Shade?

"Fall back!" he tried to command

Yet, before he could vocalize another thought, a sudden stillness overtook him—a sensation of being wrapped tightly in a cocoon. He struggled against the hold, each muscle of his body tightening as he fought to break free.

Then, inexplicably, Casper opened his eyes. In that breathless moment, he became aware that he couldn't move—his time had been stopped by Stanley!

One second felt like one hour, and one hour felt like one day. By the time he became aware, he saw that all his men were down for the count. Then he felt warmth flooding from his own throat. His palms scratched absently against the wound that began seeping with liquid.

"I'm... dying?" He managed to rasp.

The truth settled; indeed, blood ran freely as it soaked through his hands, drenching the fabric of his tunic. He then slumped to the ground, finally defeated.

"Shade!" Venn breathed afterward with exhilaration. "You were incredible!"

With a calm demeanor, Shade noted, "One of them got away."

"You mean that guy who could create little swords?!" Stanley asked, still chuckling with victory.

"Yeah," Shade stated, narrowing his gaze behind his mask.

"Oh, that's okay," Venn said, smiling. "He should be the last one, right? A guy like that can't even do a thing against our Epsilons."

Shade's expression hardened as the tension rose. "The one who got away… it's not just any Bandit. It's Razeon…"

In that moment, the two understood—THE's invasion was far from over.