Chapter 15: Control, A Main Essesnce

The golden hues of dawn

seeped through the Embersea Resort's reinforced windows, casting long streaks

of light across the sleek, modern interior. Senjuro stretched, feeling the

lingering soreness from their recent battle, while Rin groggily rubbed his eyes

before jolting awake, remembering what lay ahead.

They had spent the night

in the luxurious yet highly secure mansion of Kyrin Vyvron—the legendary

Firearm Master. But today, rest was over. Today, training began.

As they stepped outside

into the vast training grounds behind the resort, a crisp morning breeze

greeted them. The sky above Nova-Prime was clear, and the towering skyline of

Quantum Bay shimmered in the distance, a stark reminder of the war that still loomed

over them.

Standing at the center of

the arena was Kyrin, dressed in a sleek black combat suit laced with Prismal

Flux energy. His arms were crossed, but his piercing gaze was sharp as ever.

"Good morning,

boys!" Kyrin called out;

his voice filled with an almost unnerving enthusiasm. "Ready for

the first day of training?"

Rin cracked his neck and

grinned. "Heck yeah!"

Kyrin smirked. "That's

the spirit! Then let's get warmed up."

He snapped his fingers,

and suddenly, dozens of automated combat drones hummed to life across the

arena. The floor beneath them shifted, revealing a series of obstacle courses,

holographic targets, and a circular combat pit.

Senjuro instinctively

tightened his gloves. "This is one hell of a warm-up…"

Kyrin chuckled. "Trust

me, you're gonna need it. First, we condition the body. Then, we sharpen the

mind. Finally, we unleash the weapon."

Rin turned to Senjuro with

a smirk. "Sounds easy enough."

"Oh? You think

so?" Kyrin's tone was

teasing, but before Rin could react, he flicked his wrist, and a barrage of

stun rounds fired toward them.

Senjuro instinctively

dodged sideways, but Rin, caught off guard, took a hit square in the chest and

fell back.

"What the

hell?!" Rin coughed.

Kyrin sighed. "Lesson

one: Never let your guard down."

Senjuro helped Rin up as

the drones repositioned themselves.

"Now," Kyrin continued, "your real training

begins."

He motioned to a console,

activating a new sequence.

"Your first trial:

Survive for 15 minutes against combat drones set to 'Elite' mode."

Rin's eyes widened. "Wait,

WHAT?"

Kyrin simply

smirked. "Good luck."

The countdown began.

3… 2… 1… Begin.

The First Trial:

Outsmarting the Drones

The training arena was

alive with movement as the combat drones fired with ruthless precision. Rin's

heart pounded as he darted behind a steel barrier, but the moment he thought he

was safe, he noticed the bullets curve mid-air.

"What the—?!"

The rounds twisted

unnaturally, arcing toward him like heat-seeking projectiles. Before he could

react, a strong hand grabbed his collar and yanked him to the side. Senjuro

pulled him behind another wall just as the curved bullets slammed into the spot

where Rin had been a second ago.

"You good?" Senjuro asked, keeping his eyes on the drones.

"Yeah, but what the

hell was that?" Rin replied,

panting.

Senjuro narrowed his eyes,

analyzing their attackers. "These drones aren't just shooting at

us—they're herding us."

Rin raised an

eyebrow. "Herding us?"

"Yeah. They aren't

trying to kill us outright. Instead, they're forcing us into a corner where we

can't escape."

Rin's mind raced. "So,

their goal isn't to hit us, but to limit our movement. That means… if we can

predict their strategy, we can counter it."

Senjuro smirked. "Exactly.

We need to trick them into thinking they've got us, but in reality, they'll be

the ones walking into our trap."

The two assassins quickly

scanned the battlefield. The drones were hovering in perfect synchronization,

shifting their positions to close off their escape routes.

"I've got a

plan," Senjuro said. "We

head straight for the center of the arena."

"WHAT?!" Rin almost yelled. "That's the most

open and dangerous place!"

"Exactly," Senjuro replied. "If we make it seem

like we're desperate and trapped, the drones will tighten their formation,

leaving small gaps between their fire patterns. That's when we slip

through."

Rin cracked his

knuckles. "Alright, let's do this."

Executing the Plan

The two sprinted toward

the middle of the arena. Immediately, the drones adjusted, forming a

semi-circle around them. Plasma rounds streaked through the air, forcing Rin

and Senjuro into what looked like a no-escape zone.

Rin whispered, "They're

falling for it."

The drones, calculating

their supposed victory, tightened their formation. Their movements became

predictable.

"Now!" Senjuro shouted.

Rin and Senjuro dodged in

opposite directions, forcing the drones to adjust their aim. But in their

attempt to track both targets, their curved shots began interfering with each

other. Bullets collided mid-air, disrupting their attack patterns.

"Time to end

this," Rin grinned.

He jumped onto a low

barrier, kicked off the wall, and flipped over a drone, landing behind it.

Before it could react, he grabbed it and twisted its aim toward its allies.

"Let's see how you

like friendly fire."

Senjuro, moving in sync,

dashed between two drones, narrowly dodging their fire. With a well-timed

maneuver, he redirected their shots into another drone, causing it to spark and

collapse.

One by one, the drones

fell to their own gunfire.

Within moments, the

battlefield was silent.

Kyrin's Verdict

A slow clap echoed across

the training arena.

Kyrin Vyvron stood at the

edge of the battlefield, arms crossed, an impressed smirk on his face.

"Not bad, rookies.

Not bad at all."

Rin wiped sweat off his

forehead. "You almost got us killed!"

Kyrin shrugged. "And

yet, you survived. You adapted. You thought like assassins."

Senjuro exhaled, relaxing

his stance. "So, what's next?"

Kyrin's grin

widened. "That was just the warm-up."

The ground beneath them

shifted, revealing another set of challenges.

"Now," Kyrin said, "we get serious."

The Real Battle Begins

The training arena was no

longer just a simulation; it had turned into a full-scale battleground. Ten

enemy soldiers, armed with Plasma Rifles, stood in formation, their

weapons humming with Prismal Flux energy. The air was thick with tension as Rin

and Senjuro gripped their newly assigned weapons—the Custom FluxFire MK-II,

a well-balanced handgun designed for rapid adaptability.

"They're already

locked onto us," Rin muttered,

adjusting his stance.

Senjuro remained

calm. "Then let's make sure they can't predict our

movements."

Before they could plan

further, the enemy soldiers opened fire. The Plasma Rounds tore

through the air, their trajectories unpredictable, curving mid-flight as if

they had a mind of their own. Rin barely managed to roll behind a low barrier

as a shot zipped past his shoulder. He aimed and fired a round at the closest

soldier—but missed.

"Damn it!" Rin cursed. "They're too fast!"

Senjuro, crouched behind a

steel crate, assessed their opponents. "They're dodging in sync.

If we don't disrupt their formation, we won't land a single shot."

The Plan: Controlled Chaos

Rin whispered, "I

have a plan. We need to force them to spread out and maintain at least a

two-meter distance from each other."

Senjuro nodded. "You

want to set up a chain reaction?"

"Exactly," Rin confirmed. "We make the first

soldier think he's about to get hit, but the real target is the second. If we

pull this off, their entire formation will collapse."

Senjuro smirked. "Then

let's pair it with our instincts, reflexes, and heat-illusions."

"We're gonna finish

this easily," Rin grinned.

Executing the Strategy

Senjuro made the first

move, dashing out of cover with blurred speed, activating his heat-illusion

technique. His afterimage split into two, confusing the soldiers

momentarily. They fired at the wrong target, their shots passing harmlessly

through his illusion.

"Now!" Rin shouted.

He fired a single shot—not

at a soldier, but at the ground just beside him. The bullet ricocheted off a

metal surface and curved straight toward another enemy's blind spot.

One down.

The soldiers flinched,

adjusting their formation.

Senjuro seized the moment,

firing a precisely curved shot that zipped past the first enemy's head—making

him instinctively duck—only for the bullet to strike the soldier behind him.

Two down.

Breaking Their

Coordination

The enemy soldiers,

realizing they were being outmaneuvered, switched tactics. Two of them rushed

forward, trying to close the gap and limit Rin and Senjuro's mobility.

"They're

adapting," Rin muttered.

"Not fast

enough," Senjuro countered.

Rin sprinted toward a

wall, using the momentum to wall-run before flipping backward.

Mid-air, he fired a shot—one that curved around Senjuro's position and struck

an enemy sneaking up from behind.

Three down.

Senjuro ducked low,

sliding beneath a hail of plasma fire. He aimed not at the enemies, but

at a loose piece of debris overhead. The bullet shattered a metal

beam, sending shards of steel crashing down on two more soldiers.

Five down.

The Final Clash

The remaining five enemies

regrouped, forming a tight defensive position.

"They're trying to

hold their ground," Senjuro noted.

"Then we flush them

out," Rin replied.

He raised his FluxFire

MK-II, charging the Prismal Flux within the gun. The weapon pulsed

with energy as he fired a single enhanced round into the

center of the enemy formation.

The bullet split

into five smaller projectiles mid-air, each one curving in different

directions and striking their targets with pinpoint accuracy.

All enemies eliminated.

Kyrin's Approval

As the last enemy fell,

the arena's emergency ceasefire alarm blared. The holographic

enemies vanished, signalling the end of the match.

A slow clap echoed through

the training chamber.

Kyrin Vyvron stepped

forward, nodding in approval. "Not bad, rookies. You're catching

on quicker than I expected."

Rin smirked. "You

expected us to fail?"

Kyrin chuckled. "No.

I expected you to survive. But adapting and dominating the battlefield? That's

another level."

Senjuro took a deep

breath. "What's next?"

Kyrin grinned. "Next,

we take things up a notch. Get ready—because that was just the beginner's

course."

As the lights dimmed and a

new challenge loaded onto the training interface, Rin and Senjuro exchanged a

glance.

They were ready.

The training arena

transformed once again, this time into a maze of shifting laser grids,

moving obstacles, and strategically placed drones—each one armed with

tracking plasma turrets. The energy from the barriers pulsed in unpredictable

intervals, making it impossible to rely on a single path.

Senjuro and Rin stood at

the starting point, scanning the battlefield.

Kyrin's voice echoed

through the arena's intercom. "This is your final test for today. Clear

all checkpoints, avoid the lasers, and survive the drones' attacks. This isn't

just about speed—it's about instinct, adaptability, and control. If you want to

master Inferno Veil Tactica, you need to become one with the battlefield.

Ready?"

Both of them nodded.

"Then begin."

Phase 1: The First

Checkpoint

The moment the test

started, the drones activated and fired tracking plasma rounds

in rapid succession. Rin instinctively jumped sideways, barely

dodging a round that scorched the floor beside him.

Senjuro quickly analyzed

the laser grids—they weren't random. The pattern repeated every 3.5

seconds.-

"Rin, watch the pulse

intervals! The lasers shut down for half a second every cycle!"

Rin took a deep breath,

focusing on the rhythm. He dashed forward, his body tilting at the perfect

angle, sliding just as the laser deactivated.

One checkpoint cleared.

Phase 2: Dodging the Drone

Assault

The second checkpoint

required them to cross an open area filled with four airborne drones—each

tracking their movements. The moment they stepped in, the drones adjusted and

started charging their homing plasma rounds.

Rin cursed. "They're

locking on!"

Senjuro activated his heat-illusion

technique, sending multiple afterimages sprinting in different directions.

The drones hesitated, unable to distinguish the real one.

"Now!" Senjuro called.

Rin leapt forward, using wall-running to

propel himself above the drones. He twisted mid-air and fired at a reflective

panel, causing his bullet to ricochet—disrupting a drone's targeting system.

Senjuro dashed through the

confusion, using the distraction to vault over the drones' attack

radius.

Phase 3: The Inferno Veil

Activation

As they reached the final

section, the lasers became more erratic, shifting at random speeds.

This was the true test—Inferno Veil Tactica wasn't just about

dodging, it was about controlling one's internal rhythm, predicting

danger beforeit happened.

Kyrin's voice rang through

the intercom: "The battlefield will always be unpredictable. Your

goal is not to react, but to become the storm itself."

Senjuro exhaled. He

closed his eyes for a brief moment—then opened them, fully locked in.

Rin saw it—the shift in

energy, the calm before movement.

Then, they moved.

Senjuro weaved through the lasers

like a phantom, each step placed in perfect sync with the shifting pattern.

Rin used his heat signature to

manipulate the drones' sensors, tricking them into locking onto false targets.

They weren't just

dodging anymore—they were controlling the battlefield.

As they reached the final

checkpoint, Senjuro vaulted over a spinning barrier, landing in a

precise roll. Rin followed suit, flipping through the last set of lasers.

The moment they landed, a final

drone appeared—armed with a heavy plasma cannon.

"One last

challenge," Rin smirked.

Senjuro nodded. "Let's

finish this."

With a perfectly

synchronized shot, they fired at a nearby reflective panel—curving the

bullets so they struck the drone's weak spot from behind.

The drone exploded in a

burst of Prismal Flux.

Mission Complete

The alarms shut off. The

lasers powered down.

Kyrin stepped forward,

arms crossed, a proud smirk on his face.

"Not bad. You both

just unlocked the first principle of Inferno Veil Tactica. You're not just

dodging anymore—you're shaping the flow of battle itself. Keep this up, and you

might just surpass me someday."

Rin and Senjuro exchanged

a look—exhausted, but victorious.

This was just the

beginning.