Chapter 20: Shockwaves and Shrapnel

The rooftop detonated.

Cipher's plasma arm roared to life—a blinding blast of blue energy screaming across the rooftop, shattering glass and scorching the concrete. The force of it sent Elliot and Nova flying—static still crackling between them as the feedback loop refused to die.

Elliot hit the ground hard, rolling over broken shards of tech and molten debris. His Neural Boost flared—violent, unstable—sending a pulse of electricity through his body with every breath. Sparks jumped from his fingertips to the concrete, lighting up cracks in the rooftop like glowing spiderwebs.

Nova landed beside him, her blade flaring to life in a violent arc of violet light. Her suit was still glitching—bioluminescent lines crawling over her body like liquid fire—each glowing circuit reacting to Elliot's surging Boost.

The feedback loop wasn't just alive.

It was hungry.

Cipher stepped through the smoke—his new plasma arm whirring, the weapon humming with a charge so strong the air around it seemed to warp. His red visor flickered with a twisted sort of delight.

"Look at you two," Cipher rasped. "A walking electrical storm… and a malfunctioning weapon."

Nova's jaw tightened. "Keep talking."

She moved first—fast and brutal—her blade slicing through the air in a flash of neon light.

Cipher blocked her swing with his plasma arm, the energy blade screeching against his cybernetic limb, sending a burst of sparks flying between them. The impact rippled through the rooftop—shaking loose more debris—but neither of them backed down.

Elliot forced himself to stand—his Boost snapping again—sending another shockwave through the ground. "Nova—!"

"Stay back!" she growled, dodging Cipher's counterstrike—a plasma blast that missed her by an inch, scorching a hole through the rooftop. "You're too unstable!"

"You're unstable!" Elliot shot back, his entire arm still crackling with stray bolts of electricity.

Cipher's visor flared as he fired another plasma blast at Elliot.

But this time—Elliot's Neural Boost exploded.

Time slowed.

The plasma bolt rippled through the air, but Elliot's reflexes—overclocked by the Boost—kicked in. He sidestepped the shot, the heat grazing his shoulder but missing him by a hair.

His body moved on instinct—faster than his brain—every nerve sparking with raw, untamed power.

Nova blinked. "What the hell—"

Elliot didn't think.

He grabbed a broken metal rod from the rooftop wreckage and charged Cipher.

Cipher barely had time to react—Elliot's speed unnatural—his Neural Boost still roaring at 110%, sending arcs of blue electricity rippling across his body.

He swung the metal rod—aiming straight for Cipher's head.

Cipher blocked the strike, but the moment their weapons clashed—

Another shockwave erupted.

The raw energy from Elliot's Boost lashed out—violent and unpredictable—surging into Cipher's plasma arm.

Cipher's visor glitched—the red glow flickering wildly—as the feedback from Elliot's Neural Boost fried his circuits.

"What the hell—" Cipher snarled.

Elliot didn't stop.

He drove his knee into Cipher's gut—hard—forcing him back.

"Not so fun when someone else messes with your tech, huh?" Elliot growled.

Cipher stumbled, his plasma arm sparking, the charge destabilizing.

Nova didn't waste the opening.

She was a flash of silver and violet—slashing her blade in a deadly arc—carving a glowing line across Cipher's torso.

Sparks and blood sprayed the rooftop.

Cipher roared, his visor glitching again, but he didn't go down.

His plasma arm flared—firing another blast point-blank at Nova.

Elliot's Boost snapped.

He didn't think—he moved.

Before the blast could hit Nova, Elliot grabbed her arm and yanked—spinning her out of the way as the plasma shot tore through the space where she'd just been.

They hit the ground together—hard—Elliot landing on his back, Nova half-straddling him, both of them crackling with stray static from the feedback loop.

The shock of contact sent a violent jolt through them—Elliot's Boost flaring, Nova's suit glitching harder.

"Rookie," Nova growled, her face inches from his, "are you trying to kill me again?"

Elliot's heart slammed against his ribs. "You're welcome."

Another snap of static between them—Nova's suit flaring brighter at the sudden contact—sending a rippling pulse of light down her chest and hips.

Her breath hitched.

Elliot's Neural Boost spiked. "Uh—"

"Focus!" Nova barked, pushing off him—still sparking from the feedback loop—and launching herself back at Cipher.

Cipher, still recovering from the shock to his plasma arm, was slower now—but not beaten.

His visor blinked furiously, his voice a low snarl. "I don't know what you two are, but you're a malfunction I'm going to fix."

Elliot staggered to his feet, his Boost still firing off stray bolts of electricity. "Good luck with that."

Cipher aimed his plasma arm at Elliot again—this time charging the shot longer. The weapon hummed louder, the glow intensifying—bright blue energy pooling in the barrel like a miniature sun.

"Move, rookie!" Nova shouted.

But Elliot's Neural Boost snapped.

The charge in Cipher's arm hit critical mass—ready to fire—

And Elliot's Boost reacted.

Before Cipher could fire, Elliot's hands lashed out—a wild arc of electricity surging from his palms, colliding with the plasma weapon's charge.

The feedback loop between him and Nova ignited.

The rooftop exploded.

The plasma blast misfired—detonating in Cipher's arm before he could release it. The shockwave sent him flying—slamming him into a nearby vent, his visor glitching as his systems overloaded.

Sparks and smoke poured from his damaged cybernetic arm, the weapon fried from the violent reaction.

Nova blinked at Elliot—still sparking from their connection. "Did you just—"

Elliot's chest heaved. "I didn't mean to."

Cipher struggled to stand—his damaged plasma arm twitching, his red visor still flickering. "You—"

Nova raised her blade—still glowing. "Looks like your upgrade's not as fun when it's backfiring."

Cipher's breathing was ragged, his visor glitching harder.

Then—without a word—he activated a hidden command on his wrist.

A hovercraft appeared over the rooftop—sleek, black, silent.

Nova's jaw tightened. "He's running."

Cipher staggered to his feet, his plasma arm still sparking. "This isn't over."

The hovercraft's door slid open—Cipher stepping inside, blood dripping from his torso, smoke still rising from his damaged tech.

The craft shot into the night—leaving behind only the aftermath of the battle.

Silence.

Except for the crackling static still hanging between Elliot and Nova.

The feedback loop wasn't gone.

It was worse.

Elliot's Boost still buzzed—his body still sparking—and Nova's suit still reacted to him, the glowing lines along her thighs and ribs rippling every time a bolt snapped between them.

Her voice was low, rough. "We're still connected."

Elliot swallowed hard. "Yeah… I noticed."

Another snap of static—another violent flicker of neon light across Nova's chest.

Her jaw clenched. "We need to fix this."

Elliot's heart pounded. "How?"

Nova's lips curled into a wicked smirk. "We burn it out."

And the heat between them—

Didn't fade.

It ignited.