Choas Ensues

Kousi could feel his vision getting lost in the fog—a strange, heavy sensation creeping steadily into his chest. Every second that passed made the situation more dangerous; he knew he was about to die. The fear in his heart battled with an overwhelming, conflicting desire.

Yet, deep inside, he knew he wanted it all. He didn't care what it cost anymore. All he longed for was to be in her arms once again, right here, right now. That desperate yearning was stronger than any fear of death.

Weakly, with trembling determination, he moved his hands toward her waist and drew her even closer to his body. His skin, once vibrant, had already turned deathly pale, as all the life was being drained from him in those fleeting moments.

Tridnya's eyes widened in disbelief at his actions. She was literally killing him in the most inhumane, heart-wrenching way she could. Tears began to well at the corners of her eyes. It was all her fault; she shouldn't have made him fall in love with her—she shouldn't have fallen in love with him.

She stared deep into his eyes, where swirling emotions were visible as clear as day. He had not given up yet... but it all had to end.

The technique finally completed its work, making his eyes roll back in his head and his body go limp. The sight of him like that shattered her heart. Her mind raced with regret, and she could no longer bear to see his face in that state.

 She shut her eyes tightly, unable to face the guilt of seeing his face. Gently, she laid his limp body down before turning and dashing toward the direction of the mother and her newborn—never to look back again...

Oh, but how fatal that small error she had committed was.

A contorted symbol began to burn upon the middle of Kousi's forehead, glowing unnaturally and spreading newfound, dangerous power throughout his body. His thoughts became a complete frenzy as his form began to contort and reform—twisting him into something monstrous and vengeful, a disaster poised to exact retribution. With a sudden, horrifying jolt, his blood-orange eyes snapped open. His soft canines lengthened into sharp fangs, and a single horn formed on the left side of his forehead, marking his transformation.

But by then, Tridnya was long gone, having fled with her family. She saw that the mother was engaged in a ruthless battle with her foes, so she traced them by following the trail of destruction they left in their wake. Tridnya healed her fatal injuries just enough—not to fully recover, but to avoid being hindered in battle—by quickly taking in some meds.

The mother was fiercely protecting her baby while fighting, the enemy ruthlessly taking advantage. It seemed unlikely that she would have lasted much longer; the enemy had outnumbered her and driven her into a corner. It was a miracle that she had managed to survive and protect the baby at the same time.

Anger flared in Tridnya's chest as she launched a barrage of attacks as soon as she caught sight of the enemy. Needles resembling her hairpin—made from the same mysterious green halo—whizzed at the foes from multiple directions. They moved so fast, almost too fast for the eye to follow, striking enemies from multiple directions. Some foes fell instantly, while others managed to mount a feeble counter-attack against the sudden ambush.

She didn't dare give them any time to recover. With swift precision, she closed in on the nearest enemy and stabbed him right in the heart. Before the body could hit the ground, she moved to the next target. In mere moments, employing a series of other abilities that had been honed over countless battles, she cleared out the enemy force that threatened them.

Her entire body was drenched in sweat and splattered with blood—both hers and that of her fallen foes. Clutching her injured side, she collapsed weakly to one knee, her breathing ragged and labored.

"Elder, you're injured," the mother quickly approached, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Tridnya waved her off. "It's nothing," she managed, though her voice was strained. "Are you and the baby okay?"

The mother offered a gentle smile, relief mingled with exhaustion. "We're alright, thanks to you. Now let's get out of here quickly before more of those bastards show up," she said.

"Exactly," Tridnya agreed as the mother helped her to her feet. "I'm fine now, thank you."

They carefully made their way outside the building as fast as they could. Their eyes widened in horror at the devastation outside. The streets were littered with bodies, broken mechs, destroyed buildings—and fierce fighting still raged. It was a total disaster, much worse than they had feared.

These people... they didn't just want to end her clan. They wanted to wipe out their entire Ethnarchy. This was pure, unadulterated genocide.

A random rubble piece from a nearby fight swung toward them. They dashed out of the area, the rubble crashing into the spot they had just occupied seconds before. It was exactly as she had suspected—it was the work of the Yoners, those underground monsters who had likely been planning this for a long time.

As one of the Seven Leaders of the Ethnarchy, she knew this day would come. Yet never in her wildest dreams did she imagine that they would join forces with her own demon—her past love, who was a force to be reckoned with.

.

An attack on this scale was nothing short of colossal. Skyscrapers were collapsing; her people were either fighting or running for their lives. Vehicles were abandoned and choked in traffic; trains had been completely thrown off their rails. It was undoubtedly one of the most dreadful days in history.

"Let's find a safe location to regroup," she ordered, quickly trying to contact the others—only to realize that she was bombarded with messages and calls.

But first, they had to find a safe place. They made their way and eventually camped under a sturdy bridge—a spot relatively safe from the bloodshed.

She quickly contacted HQ. "Lady Tridnya, finally!" a relieved voice came through the cross-communicator. "We were worried something might have happened to you."

"Explain why we're under attack—and why we had no warning!" she repeated, her voice echoing with raw emotion.

"The enemy was smarter than us. They decided to attack on a whim and already knew all our spies. They wiped them out before they could give us any info—they really got us bad."

"So, what's the situation right now?" she pressed.

"It's not looking so good. The north, upper west, and upper east regions have all been wiped out." came the grim reply.

Tridnya's heart sank as she absorbed the news. "Whaatt!?" she screamed into the communicator, her voice choked with disbelief. "That's pure blasphemy!"