CHAPTER 23

A paraphrased sentence: The scene of battle was stained red as the dying men's cries faded away. But somewhere within the chaos, something had changed — something that shouldn't have happened.

Ego stood still, his body shaking as confusion and disbelief muddled his thoughts. He gasped, faced ashen. "No… no, this can't be happening," he whispered, his voice trembling. His gaze shifted to Rudra in front of him, who was exuding a bone-chilling energy from his body.

Ego gripped his head, struggling to understand the impossible. "How? How did this happen? How did my power get taken away?" It was hard for him to believe. It's a test… may have been a mistake in the process… no, no, no… That power should have died with Ayush! There's no way—no one has ever been able to steal the power of a dead man!"

A fear landed deeply in Ego's belly. "Is it… that you… absorbed Ayush's power from his head?" "I can get you out of here," he said, stepping back, his voice tinged with panic. "How is that even possible? Nobody has ever seen anything like this! Power transfer like this… it just doesn't happen! It shouldn't happen!"

Rudra was silent; his expression inscrutable. He raised his hand slowly and flexed his fingers. Bit by bit, the mechanical dust around him percolated, stirred, reacting to his thoughts. It urlined, writhing and twisting, molding itself into a blade. The shimmering weapon throbbed with unholy power; what had once been Ayushs.

A smirk stole upon the corner of Rudra's lips. "Whatever happened, it don't matter no more," he said, his voice low and deadly. A frown darkened him as he reached down toward Ego, who quaked beneath his gaze. "You only need to know one thing — you're not getting out of here alive."

Before Ego had properly registered it, Rudra pounced.

The initial blow came quickly — too quickly. The blade wheeled across Ego's arm, digging deep into his flesh. His screams became screeches of agony, but Rudra had not finished. The knife sliced through his body over and over, and yet never deep enough to kill.

Blood spattered on the cool steel floor. It hurt, of course, but every vital organ had been overlooked. Rudra was dragging—ensuring Ego endured every drop of agony.

Ego screamed out in agony, his vocal cords raw, unable to contain the sound as each injury bled heavily. His cries ricocheted off the silent corridor, pungent and red, like metal and blood. The torture lasted a full hour.

He begged. He pleaded. But Rudra was relentless.

By then, Ego was hanging on for dear life. His body was still, though it twitched occasionally. His breath came shallow, his eyes fixed with dread. Then at last he came to rest.

Dead.

The room fell into silence.

Rudra rose up straight, moving away from the bloodied corpse. He breathed out slowly, the high of combat and battle draining from him. His men looked on in silence, waiting for him to act.

One of them stepped forward. "You're the brother of our leader," he said sternly. That makes you our captain now."

Rudra's expression was cool, inscrutable. "I know nothing about leadership," he admitted. "But at this moment, we have to focus on survival." Gather every surviving ally. Anyone on the enemy's side — kill them. And get us a new stronghold we can't stay here anymore This place is compromised."

His men didn't hesitate. They advanced rapidly, dispatching all remaining foes with merciless efficiency. Blood splattered the walls, but there was no faltering, no compassion. The battlefield was cleared within fifteen minutes.

The survivors reunited and boarded their transport. As they placed several streets and miles between themselves and the wrecked base, one of the men walked up to Rudra, brandishing a small device. "Sir," he said. "This is yours to do."

The relentless hunter now picked up the device and, without a second of deliberation, pressed the button.

A roar of an explosion seared about the land behind them. The whole top building was on fire, huge shockwaves up to the earth. Concrete shattered, steel melted, and seconds later, the base had disappeared, reduced to ash and dust.

There was no evidence that they had ever existed. No data, no evidence. As if they had never been there at all.

Rudra saw the devastation with cool satisfaction. There was no going back now.

Turning to his men, he spoke

. "Let's move. Our new destination ahead

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