Chapter 49: Stormchaser Racing the Lightning
The armored transport screamed down the neon-drenched streets of Nexus-9 — tires skidding across the rain-slicked pavement as Kain pushed the hacked-together engine to its absolute limit.
Outside, the city was a blurry mess of towering skyscrapers, glowing holo-billboards, and smog-streaked skies — the flicker of corporate security drones still buzzing high above like metal vultures.
But inside the transport?
The real storm was raging.
Elliot's Raijin Protocol was still roaring at 500% — raw electricity snapping off his skin, dancing in violent arcs along the metal walls. Sparks spiraled through the air as blue lightning coiled around his arms, the storm so intense the air inside the transport hummed with static.
He wasn't just overheating.
He was on the edge of detonation.
Nova was still gripping his arm — her bioluminescent suit pulsing wildly from the feedback loop, the neon lines along her ribs and thighs flickering hard every time Elliot's Boost flared.
The connection between them wasn't just reacting — it was feeding off him again.
Her voice was tight. "Elliot — pull it back. NOW."
But Elliot's vision was blurring — his pulse syncing with the storm, his Boost now feeling like a living thing inside him, a caged beast thrashing to break free.
He clenched his teeth. "I'm… trying."
The System buzzed — glitching worse than ever — its voice flickering between life-saving advice and unhinged meme mode.
---
[Critical Alert: Boost at Terminal Limit]
Current Output: 510%
Status: Neural collapse imminent.
Pro Tip: If you're glowing, that's cool. If you're on fire… less cool.
---
Kain, still gripping the wheel, laughed like a lunatic. "He's about to turn into a walking EMP!"
Nova did not find it funny.
"Kain — where the hell is this untraceable hideout?"
Kain swerved hard — narrowly avoiding a plasma blast from a pursuing corporate patrol car — its sleek, black hull screeching around a corner behind them, red lights flashing as it accelerated.
"Few more miles, sweetheart!" Kain grinned. "We just gotta survive until then!"
The System buzzed again.
---
[New Mission: Ride or Fry]
Objective: Reach Kain's untraceable hideout before Elliot explodes.
Bonus: Evade corporate patrols.
Failure: Neural meltdown… or public lightning storm.
---
Another violent snap of electricity flared from Elliot's arm — a Raijin's Fang forming mid-air, the crackling lightning spear screaming to life without him even thinking.
Nova's glowing eyes widened. "Rookie — you just made a weapon without trying."
Elliot's voice cracked through the static. "I— I can't control it."
The storm wasn't listening.
It was using him.
The corporate patrol car behind them locked onto their position — plasma cannons charging as a synthesized voice crackled through a speaker.
"Surrender the Raijin Protocol. This is your only warning."
Kain cackled. "What part of 'no' don't they get?"
The car fired — a twin plasma barrage shrieking through the rain.
Elliot's Boost reacted before he could think.
His storm exploded — a pulse of raw electricity howling outward — and the plasma shots disintegrated mid-air, spiraling into Elliot's Boost like a cyclone devouring fuel.
The storm fed on it.
530% Boost.
The air inside the transport cracked open.
Nova staggered back — her suit flaring violently as the feedback loop surged again, neon lines down her body glowing like wildfire every time Elliot's Boost spiked.
Her voice broke. "Kain — he's gonna hit meltdown again!"
Kain gritted his teeth. "We gotta shut him down — or he's gonna fry the whole car!"
The System buzzed — full meme meltdown mode.
---
[New Ability Unlocked: Raijin's Blackout]
Effect: Emit an uncontrolled electromagnetic pulse — disabling all tech in a 100-foot radius.
Cooldown: There isn't one.
Warning: It doesn't stop until Elliot stops.
---
Elliot jerked — lightning snapping off his shoulders — as a pulse of blue energy spiraled outward, frying the transport's interior circuits.
The dashboard glitched, screens flickering — and Kain slammed a fist against the console. "Kid — you're nuking the car!"
The corporate patrol car behind them lost power instantly — its plasma cannons short-circuiting, red lights dying out as the EMP blast shut down its entire system.
The patrol car skidded sideways — crashing into a row of neon billboards, sending a rain of shattered glass and twisted metal into the streets.
Kain laughed. "Now that's an exit!"
But Elliot wasn't hearing him anymore.
His storm was climbing again — 540%… 550% — his vision darkening at the edges as his Boost spiraled into something beyond his control.
Nova grabbed his arm — another violent shock snapping between them — and this time, the feedback loop exploded.
Her suit flared so brightly it cast neon shadows across the car's interior — the lines along her thighs and ribs flashing in sync with every pulse of Elliot's storm.
Her voice wasn't cold now — it was pleading.
"Elliot — look at me."
He blinked — his mind drowning in static. "I can't… I can't stop it."
Nova's grip tightened. "Yes, you can."
The System buzzed — flickering between glitching warnings and something almost… calm.
---
[Emergency Protocol Activated: Override Sync Detected]
Boost Output: 550% → 300%
Status: Feedback loop responding to external input.
Pro Tip: Maybe… she's the anchor.
---
Elliot's Boost dropped — the storm screaming in protest as the feedback loop with Nova's suit dragged him back down.
The lightning spiraling off his body coiled inward — the Raijin Protocol pulling itself back under control — as his output steadied at 300%.
Kain blinked. "Did she just… hack his storm?"
Nova didn't look away from Elliot.
"Breathe."
Elliot exhaled — the crackling arcs of blue energy dimmed — and for the first time in minutes…
The storm settled.
The armored transport roared down a hidden access road — Kain taking a hard turn into a gutted-out industrial zone, slipping through a barely visible camouflaged gate.
They descended into darkness — entering what looked like an abandoned cyber-lab hidden beneath the city's surface.
Finally — the car screeched to a halt.
The storm was silent.
Kain grinned. "Welcome to the untraceable hideout."
Elliot, still glowing faintly with residual static, slumped back against the wall — his Boost still simmering at 300% but contained.
Nova's hand was still on his arm.
The neon lines on her suit were still faintly pulsing.
And when Elliot looked at her…
For the first time since the storm began…
He wasn't alone.