Chapter 13: The Dark Meet

Senjuro and Rin advanced cautiously through the dark, oppressive hallway,

their footsteps muffled by the eerie silence that clung to the air. The dim,

flickering lights barely illuminated the path ahead, casting elongated shadows

that danced along the cold, metallic walls.

Senjuro activated his Thermal Overlay, his

vision shifting into a spectrum of heat signatures. A sudden, blazing red

silhouette materialized in the distance—the Reaver was rushing toward

them with terrifying speed.

Without hesitation, Senjuro tapped into his Eclipse Node,

gripping Rin by the shoulder. In an instant, the

two of them flickered out of existence, teleporting into a narrow crevice along

the corridor's wall.

A burst of static erupted from the intercoms,

followed by a low, mocking voice that sent a chill down their spines.

"Where are you? You fools fear my

pawns. If you don't come out… my pawns will find you!"

As if responding to the voice's call, a deep,

mechanical hum resonated through the air. Suddenly, a swarm of Omega-War Class

robots emerged from the shadows, their optical sensors glowing an

ominous crimson as they

began scanning the area with ruthless efficiency.

Senjuro's grip on his Specter Blade tightened as he whispered urgently to

Rin, "Oh my God…

they're everywhere. We won't last in a direct fight."

Rin's gaze darted across the hallway, then

downward—his sharp eyes catching sight of a rusted

maintenance hatch in the

floor, just barely visible in the dim lighting.

"Senjuro! Look down! The abandoned

circuit room is through here!" he whispered.

Senjuro frowned. "That

section hasn't been operational in years. There are no functional systems down

there—it's completely off the grid."

Rin smirked, already pulling the hatch open. "Exactly. If nothing's

online, those tin cans won't be tracking us there. We need to move. Now!"

The whirring sound of robotic servos grew louder

as the Omega-War robots drew closer, sweeping their deadly plasma rifles across

the area.

With no other choice, Senjuro and Rin dropped down into the abyss

below—vanishing just as the machines converged upon their last location.

They moved through the hallways and a

thought struck Rin's mind "We should call Mirae and ask them for help, but how?

My Shadowlink Nexus doesn't have connection."

 Senjuro

replied "If we find a working server which has enough power to supply one call,

we can use it to contact them."

Rin replied "Good Idea! Let's do it."

As Senjuro and Rin navigated the dimly lit

corridors of the abandoned sector, the flickering emergency lights cast eerie

shadows along the cracked metallic walls. The faint hum of malfunctioning power

lines filled the silence, occasionally punctuated by the distant clatter of the

Omega-War Class robots patrolling the area.

Senjuro tapped his Cipher-Link Nexus,

the small device on his wrist flashing with holographic data streams.

"Server 7E is

still active," he confirmed, his voice laced with urgency. "If we

connect to it, we can contact Mirae and the others."

Rin, gripping his Specter Blade,

glanced around cautiously. "Where exactly is it?"

Senjuro let out a sigh, raising an eyebrow.

"Bro, it's in S7RE—obviously."

Rin furrowed his brow. "What do you mean by

that?"

Senjuro shook his head, suppressing a chuckle.

"S7RE stands for Sector

7, Row E. It's an abbreviation. You seriously never paid

attention?"

Rin shrugged, giving a nonchalant wave of his

hand. "Man, I don't have time for all those technical details. You know I

hate sitting through lectures and exams."

Senjuro rolled his eyes, muttering under his

breath, "Typical Rin."

Despite their banter, both assassins knew time was

against them. The Segrito operatives could trace their movements at any moment,

and the server was their

only chance to regroup

with their allies.

"Alright, let's move," Senjuro commanded,

gripping his Eclipse Node tightly.

Without hesitation, they sprinted through the

darkened corridors, their boots echoing against the cold metal floors as they

made their way toward S7RE—knowing

that whatever awaited them there, it wouldn't be unguarded.

As Senjuro and Rin reached the server room, the

dim glow of flickering emergency lights barely illuminated the abandoned

corridors. The air was thick with dust and the faint hum of broken circuitry.

Rin swiftly linked his ShadowLink

Nexus, fingers dancing over the interface as he prepared to call

Mirae.

Just as he was about to establish the connection,

Senjuro quickly stopped him, raising a hand. "Wait

a minute! Let me establish a firewall using my Cipher-Link Nexus so that we can

call them without getting noticed." His

voice was sharp, his mind already calculating the risks.

Rin hesitated for a second before nodding. "Good idea!" He watched as Senjuro worked with

rapid precision, deploying a defensive encryption layer around their signal.

Once the firewall was secure, Rin initiated the

call. The transmission crackled to life, distorted by interference. Mirae's

voice came through, but half of her words were swallowed by static.

"…Segrito…Quantum…capture…danger…project…dark…UNC…clone…help…"

The fragmented message sent a chill down both

their spines. Rin exchanged a glance with Senjuro, concern flashing in his

golden irises. "We need

to find them fast."

Senjuro clenched his jaw. "No doubt. If Segrito is

involved, this is bigger than we thought." He turned, already activating his Specter Phantom-XV,

the sleek combat bike humming to life, its Quantum

Veil Combat Arts (QVCA)enhancements glowing faintly.

Rin wasn't far behind. He summoned his Specter Phantom-X Eclipse,

the Eclipse Stride

Stratum (ESS) modifications

giving it a ghostly shimmer as it phased in and out of visibility. "We take the tunnel route—it's

the only way to slip past their surveillance."

Revving their engines, both assassins accelerated into the darkness,

their bikes cutting through the abandoned sector like phantoms, racing towards

the unknown danger ahead.

As they reached the

tunnel's opening, a sudden surge of danger erupted before them. From the

shadows, two Plasma Cannons activated, their glowing barrels

locking onto their moving targets with lethal precision.

Senjuro barely had time to

react before Rin revved his Specter Phantom-X Eclipse, his

instincts taking over as he drifted sideways to shield

Senjuro. The cannons fired, twin streams of superheated plasma tearing

through the air.

The energy blasts collided

into Rin's armor, striking his vital points with

devastating force. The sheer impact sent shockwaves of agony rippling

through his body. His grip on the handlebars faltered as his bike veered

violently out of control. In a flash of sparks and screeching metal, the Specter

Phantom collapsed over him, pinning him beneath its weight.

"Rin!" Senjuro shouted, but his alarm was cut short as

an ambush squad emerged from the tunnel's blind spots. Plasma rifle

fire rang out—Senjuro barely dodged the first volley, but the next rounds found

their mark. The burning shots pierced through his combat suit,

striking his shoulder, torso, and leg. The pain was immediate,

his vision blurred, and his knees buckled beneath him.

Darkness took him.

When consciousness

returned, it was to a cruel reality.

Senjuro's head throbbed as

he lifted his gaze, his limbs restrained by laser-handcuffs, their

energy pulses searing into his wrists. He was bound to a high-voltage

electric chair in the dimly lit Heart of the Citadel.

Rin was slumped in the

chair beside him, his breaths shallow, wounds still bleeding from the plasma

burns.

A slow, mocking clap

echoed through the chamber.

"So, the infamous

assassins of Quantum Bay finally fall," a

voice drawled, cold and triumphant. A figure stepped forward,

their silhouette shrouded in the eerie glow of control panels and

surveillance feeds.

Senjuro's fingers clenched

into fists despite the restraints. He and Rin weren't just prisoners. They

were in the presence of something far worse.

And whatever came

next, it wasn't going to be pleasant.

Senjuro's mind raced as he

struggled against the laser-handcuffs binding him to the electric

chair. His body was weak from the plasma rifle wounds, his

vision blurred from the pain, but his resolve remained unshaken. Across from

him, Rin's breathing was labored, his wounds from the Plasma

Cannons still fresh, and the weight of his crashed Specter

Phantom-X Eclipse had left deep gashes across his body.

But none of that compared

to the scene in front of them.

Their entire team—Mirae,

Taro, Kaito, Akira, Akio, Hiroshi, and Rey Ezuna—were barely conscious, beaten

to the brink of death.

Their once-proud combat

suits were torn, blood trailing from their wounds onto the cold metal floor of

the Citadel's Core Chamber.

A slow, deliberate clap echoed

through the room.

Standing before them, a

wicked grin stretching across his face, was Crix Heshira, his

presence exuding pure malice. His long black coat, lined with

glowing red quantum circuits, fluttered slightly as he moved, the

high-tech armor beneath it radiating power. His cybernetic left eye flickered

with an ominous glow, and his arms were crossed in absolute confidence.

"Well, how's my

surprise?" Crix sneered, his voice laced with mockery.

Rin, still pinned to the

chair, groaned weakly. His head hung low, but his eyes burned

with rage. "What... do you want?" he rasped.

At this, Crix's

smirk widened.

"What do I want? Oh,

Rin... You're still so naive."

Crix's expression darkened

as he stepped forward, his boots clicking against the floor. His hands clenched

into fists, and in a sudden, violent outburst, he slammed his fist

into Senjuro's gut, causing the chair's electric restraints to

surge with power.

Senjuro gritted

his teeth, suppressing a scream as volts of energy coursed through his

body.

Crix stepped back,

watching with amusement.

"I don't just want to

kill you both... I want to break you."

He began to pace

slowly around them.

"You still don't get

it, do you? You fell right into my trap. From the very start."

He chuckled. "I

was the one who called you. The one who disguised myself as Rey Ezuna. The one

who lured you to the Citadel. The one who let you believe you had control. The

one who played along with your pathetic little 'infiltration.'"

Crix's voice turned into a

twisted growl.

"I was the one who

executed your plan before you even thought of it."

Senjuro's fists clenched. "You…"

Crix leaned closer,

his cybernetic eye flickering.

"I was the one who

made you fall into the underground complex. The one who forced you to call your

team for backup, knowing I'd get them too. The one who made you think you were

outsmarting me when, in reality, I was the one orchestrating your every

move."

He grinned, feeding off

their silent fury.

"I was the one who

instilled fear in you."

Crix let out a cruel

laugh. "I was the one who knew you'd take the

tunnel. You thought the servers were dead? Please. I supplied power to

them—just enough to bait you. And the moment you connected? Boom! I had you

tracked."

He suddenly grabbed

Senjuro by the collar, yanking him forward against the restraints,

their faces inches apart.

"Now, look at you.

Helpless. Trapped. Powerless to stop what comes next."

Crix let go, stepping back

with a sigh. He ran a hand through his jet-black hair, feigning disappointment.

"I expected more from

you, Senjuro. I expected a challenge."

Senjuro spat blood onto

the floor, glaring up at him. "Go to hell."

Crix grinned wider. "Oh,

I intend to send you there first."

His hand hovered over a holographic

control panel, the Reboot Button flickering ominously in

red.

"Once I activate

this, Quantum Bay will fall under Segrito control. All systems will be

rewritten. All resistance will be erased. Your people—your so-called home—will

belong to me."

He turned toward Rin, his

expression shifting from amusement to something far darker.

"But before that... I

have one last piece of business to take care of."

He extended a clawed

cybernetic hand toward Rin, his fingers crackling with energy.

"I will be taking

your core, Rin. And Senjuro… yours will follow soon after."

The moment Crix's

fingers inched toward Rin's chest, the intercom system suddenly

crackled to life.

A distorted voice—cold,

calculated, and eerily familiar—echoed through the chamber.

"You think you

control everything, Crix? You're about to find out just how wrong you

are."

Then—before anyone could

react—the reinforced chamber doors exploded open.

The room shook violently

as the reinforced steel door blasted off its hinges, sending waves of Prismal

Flux energy rippling through the air. The force was so immense that even

the hardened Segrito assassins and Quantum-class sentries were thrown backward,

crashing into the walls like rag dolls. Sparks flickered through the air,

casting eerie shadows across the dimly lit chamber.

Crix Heshira's smirk

faltered for the first time. His fingers hovered over the Reboot button,

but a moment of hesitation crept into his expression as his eyes widened in

shock.

The smoke from the blast

slowly dissipated, revealing a lone figure stepping forward, cloaked in a

shifting aura of Prismal Flux resonance. Their silhouette pulsed

with energy—an ominous mixture of Quantum Nexus distortions and Eclipse

Stride enhancements—as they advanced into the heart of the Citadel.

"No... it can't

be..." Crix whispered, his voice laced with disbelief.

The figure emerged from

the smoke—a tall, imposing warrior clad in a heavily modified Phantom

Reaver Exo-Suit, its black and silver-plating glowing with streaks of

unstable Prismal energy. Their face remained hidden beneath a sleek, angular

combat visor, but the sheer pressure of their presence sent a

chill through the room.

A Segrito commander

stumbled back, his voice shaking.

"Impossible… he's supposed to be—"

Before he could finish,

the intruder disappeared.

In a blur of motion, the

warrior teleported—a sudden distortion of space flickering in their

wake—and reappeared behind the Segrito commander. A crimson energy

blade ignited from their gauntlet, cutting through the air with a

whisper before piercing cleanly through the assassin's chest. No sound.

No resistance. Just death.

The body slumped to the

floor.

Crix growled, slamming his

fist against the control panel.

"I don't care who you are!

Kill them!"

At once, the remaining Omega-War

Class robots recalibrated, their plasma turrets whirring to

life, targeting the new arrival. The air vibrated with the hum of charged

weapons locking on.

But the warrior simply raised

a hand.

With a single pulse of Prismal

Flux, every turret, every mechanized soldier, every single electronic

system in the chamber froze.

The assassin's Cipher-Link

Nexus had overridden them in seconds.

A cold, distorted voice

echoed through the room, amplified by the exo-suit's vocal modulator.

"Your arrogance led you to believe you were in control, Crix. But the

only thing you've executed… is your own demise."

Then, all hell

broke loose.

With inhuman speed,

the warrior launched forward, their Eclipse Stride Stratum-enhanced

footwork allowing them to move unpredictably—dodging, weaving, and

countering with mechanical precision.

A plasma rifle

fired.

The warrior tilted

their head, dodging by mere millimetres, before sending a quantum-enhanced

throwing dagger into the shooter's visor.

Three assassins lunged

forward with energy blades.

The warrior activated

their Void Rift Module, phasing briefly into spectral form,

making the attacks pass harmlessly through them before materializing behind

their opponents and delivering a devastating Prismal Shockwave Pulse.

Bodies hit the floor.

Senjuro and Rin, still

weak and restrained in their electric handcuffs, struggled to

process what they were witnessing. The battle was over in less than thirty

seconds.

Crix stumbled backward,

reaching for his last resort—a Neural Disruptor Grenade, capable of

shutting down even the most advanced cybernetic systems.

But the warrior was

already there.

In a single, brutal

movement, they grabbed Crix by the throat and slammed him against the

wall, their energy blade inches from his face.

Crix gasped, struggling.

"Who… are you…?"

The warrior leaned in

close. The Prismal energy around them dimmed for a moment as the combat visor retracted,

revealing a face that Crix Heshira never expected to see.

Senjuro and Rin's eyes

widened in shock.

The warrior smirked.

"Surprise."