Chapter 5:The Gauntlet of Fire

The intercom's voice echoed through the ruined cityscape, its tone cold and unyielding. "Round two begins now."

Yuki groaned, his shoulders slumping as he wiped sweat from his brow. "Oh, come on! We just survived a mech ambush! Can't we get, like, a five-minute breather or something?"

Thalos, still catching his breath, smirked faintly. "You really think they'd go easy on us? This is the academy, Yuki. They don't do 'easy.'"

Before Yuki could retort, the ground beneath them began to tremble. A low, mechanical hum filled the air, growing louder with each passing second. The disabled mechs from the previous round sparked and twitched, their red eyes flickering back to life.

Yuki's eyes widened. "Uh… Thalos? Please tell me those things aren't getting back up."

Thalos didn't answer. Instead, he grabbed Yuki by the arm and yanked him behind a crumbling wall just as one of the mechs fired a laser blast that scorched the ground where they had been standing.

"Okay, they're definitely getting back up," Yuki muttered, peeking around the edge of the wall. "And they look… angrier?"

The mechs, now fully operational, moved with a newfound ferocity. Their movements were sharper, their attacks more precise. It was as if the academy had cranked up the difficulty level to "brutal."

Thalos glanced at Yuki. "We need to move. Now."

Yuki nodded, gripping the energy rifle Thalos had tossed him earlier. "Where to? The east side's a war zone, the south's a deathtrap, and the west… well, we just came from there."

Thalos's eyes narrowed as he scanned their surroundings. "North. There's a communications tower. If we can reach it, we might be able to hack into the academy's systems and shut this whole thing down."

Yuki raised an eyebrow. "You can do that?"

Thalos shrugged. "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve."

"Alright, north it is," Yuki said, though he didn't sound entirely convinced. "But if we die, I'm blaming you."

### The Sprint to Survival

The two of them bolted from cover, weaving through the debris-strewn streets as the mechs closed in. Laser blasts tore through the air, narrowly missing them as they dodged and ducked. Yuki's heart pounded in his chest, his legs burning with the effort of keeping up with Thalos, who moved with the precision of someone who had done this a hundred times before.

"Keep moving!" Thalos shouted, glancing over his shoulder. "Don't stop for anything!"

Yuki didn't need to be told twice. He sprinted as fast as he could, his grip tightening on the rifle. The communications tower loomed in the distance, its spire piercing the smoky sky. It was their only hope.

But the mechs weren't about to let them reach it so easily.

A massive mech, larger and more heavily armored than the others, landed in front of them with a ground-shaking crash. Its red eyes glowed menacingly as it raised its arm, a plasma cannon charging up with a high-pitched whine.

Yuki skidded to a halt. "Oh, you've got to be kidding me!"

Thalos didn't hesitate. He grabbed Yuki and dove to the side just as the mech fired. The blast obliterated the ground where they had been standing, sending chunks of debris flying in all directions.

Yuki coughed, his ears ringing. "Okay, new plan! How do we take that thing down?"

Thalos's eyes darted around, searching for an opening. "We need to disable its core. But to do that, we'll have to get close."

Yuki stared at him. "You want to get close to that thing? Are you insane?"

Thalos smirked. "Got a better idea?"

Before Yuki could answer, the mech charged, its massive fists slamming into the ground with enough force to crack the pavement. Yuki and Thalos scrambled to their feet, barely avoiding the next attack.

"Alright, fine!" Yuki shouted. "But if I die, I'm haunting you!"

### The Gauntlet

The next few minutes were a blur of chaos and adrenaline. Yuki and Thalos worked in tandem, using the environment to their advantage. They lured the mech into narrow alleyways where its size worked against it, forcing it to slow down and giving them precious seconds to regroup.

Thalos, true to his word, had a few tricks up his sleeve. He pulled a small device from his belt—a portable EMP generator—and tossed it to Yuki. "When I give the signal, activate this. It'll buy us a few seconds."

Yuki caught the device, his hands trembling slightly. "And then what?"

"Then we go for the core," Thalos said, his voice calm despite the chaos around them. "Aim for the glowing panel on its chest. One well-placed shot should do it."

Yuki nodded, though he wasn't entirely sure he could pull it off. But he didn't have time to doubt himself. The mech was closing in, its plasma cannon charging up again.

"Now!" Thalos shouted.

Yuki activated the EMP, and a pulse of energy surged through the air. The mech staggered, its systems glitching as it struggled to stay upright. Thalos didn't waste a second. He sprinted forward, scaling the mech's arm with surprising agility and slamming a shock baton into its core.

The mech let out a deafening roar before collapsing to the ground, its red eyes flickering out.

Yuki let out a breath he didn't realize he'd been holding. "We… we did it?"

Thalos jumped down from the mech, landing gracefully beside Yuki. "Not bad for a couple of rookies."

But their victory was short-lived. The intercom crackled to life once more.

"Round three begins now."

Yuki groaned, sinking to his knees. "I hate this place."

Thalos offered him a hand, a faint smile on his lips. "Come on. We're not done yet."

Yuki took his hand, pulling himself to his feet. "You know, for someone who's supposed to be my partner, you're really bad at giving me good news."

Thalos chuckled. "You'll thank me later."

As they turned toward the communications tower, the sound of more mechs approaching echoed through the ruins. The gauntlet wasn't over—not by a long shot. But for the first time, Yuki felt a flicker of hope. Maybe, just maybe, they could make it through this.

Together.