The Eclipse Strikes Back

The night air was thick with smoke, the scent of burning metal and dust still lingering from the destruction of the Forsaken's underground arena. Kairo and his team stood in a dimly lit alley, catching their breath. The city beyond them remained oblivious to the war that had just begun.

Sorin rolled his shoulders, the tension finally easing now that his restraints were gone. "Feels good to move properly again," he muttered.

Kairo smirked. "You looked like you were managing just fine."

Sorin shot him a look. "I was fighting with a handicap. Next time, I'll tear them apart before they even lay a hand on me."

Lena let out a breath. "Next time is coming faster than you think."

She held up her wrist device, displaying intercepted messages from the Eclipse Syndicate's encrypted network. The Syndicate had already issued a bounty on them.

> Target: Kairo & Associates

Threat Level: High

Status: Kill on Sight

Ronan clicked his tongue. "They're wasting no time."

Darius cracked his knuckles. "Let them come."

Arin, however, frowned. "This isn't just a bounty. They're planning something bigger. Look at this."

She expanded another intercepted message, one tagged with high-priority encryption.

> "Initiate Blackout Protocol. Unleash Project Revenant. The Underground belongs to us."

Kairo's brows furrowed. "What the hell is Project Revenant?"

Lena's expression darkened. "Nothing good."

As they made their way through the city's lower districts, Kairo could feel the shift in the air.

It was subtle at first—less noise, fewer people, as if the entire underground world had suddenly gone into hiding. Then came the flickering lights. The sudden blackouts. The unnatural silence between alleys.

They weren't just being hunted.

The Eclipse Syndicate was already moving.

"Something's not right," Ronan whispered, his hand resting on his blade.

Sorin tensed. "They're flushing us out."

Then—the first shot rang out.

BANG!

A sniper round whizzed past Kairo's head, embedding itself into the wall beside him.

"MOVE!" Lena shouted.

They scattered as more gunfire erupted from the rooftops. Shadows moved in the darkness—Syndicate enforcers, armed and waiting.

Kairo activated Phantom Step, weaving through the chaos as bullets barely missed him. He reached a nearby ledge, kicked off the wall, and launched himself toward the sniper's nest.

The Syndicate gunman barely had time to react before Kairo's fist smashed into his jaw.

CRACK!

The man collapsed instantly.

Below, the fight raged on.

Darius barreled through multiple enforcers, his brute force making short work of them.

Sorin, back at full power, was a storm of destruction, his fists breaking bones and shattering weapons with every hit.

Lena moved like a ghost, her knives flashing in the dim light as she took down enemies one by one.

Ronan and Arin provided cover, picking off Syndicate soldiers before they could regroup.

But then—a deep growl echoed through the alley.

Kairo felt it before he saw it.

Something huge dropped from above, landing with a sickening thud.

The ground shook beneath its weight.

Kairo's eyes narrowed. This wasn't a normal enforcer.

It was a Revenant.

The creature stood at least eight feet tall, its body wrapped in dark exo-armor, reinforced with cybernetic augmentations. Glowing red veins pulsed along its arms and neck, and its eyes burned with an unnatural hunger.

"Shit," Lena muttered. "That's not human anymore."

The Revenant moved fast.

Too fast.

In a blink, it slammed into Sorin, sending him crashing through a brick wall.

BOOM!

Kairo lunged forward, his system flashing warnings.

[ Danger: Hostile Detected – Revenant Class Enemy. ]

[ Threat Level: Extreme. ]

The Revenant turned toward him, its movements eerily smooth for something so massive.

Then—it grinned.

And charged.

Kairo barely had time to react before a metallic fist came swinging toward his head.

He ducked, rolling beneath the attack. The shockwave from the Revenant's punch shattered the concrete behind him.

Darius roared and tackled the creature, locking its arms. "Got him!"

For a moment—it seemed to work.

Then—the Revenant twisted its body unnaturally, escaping the grapple in an instant.

It grabbed Darius by the throat—and lifted him off the ground.

Kairo's instincts screamed.

[ Skill Activated: Adaptive Counter. ]

He dashed forward, striking at the Revenant's exposed side.

His fist connected—but it barely flinched.

The Revenant grinned wider.

"Pathetic."

And then—it threw Darius straight into Kairo.

CRASH!

Both men went flying, hitting the pavement hard.

Pain exploded in Kairo's body. His vision blurred for a moment.

The Revenant stepped forward, its red eyes gleaming.

"This city belongs to the Syndicate."

Kairo wiped the blood from his mouth. He could feel his system calculating, his adaptive traits analyzing the Revenant's movements.

Slowly—he got back to his feet.

Sorin stumbled out of the rubble, blood dripping from his forehead. "We're not done yet."

Lena, Ronan, and Arin regrouped, weapons drawn.

The Revenant cracked its knuckles.

"Good."

Then let's finish this."