Ch 40 : The Echo Of Chains

The sewer tunnels stretched endlessly, the air thick with rot and dampness. Every step echoed off the curved stone walls, giving the illusion that something—or someone—was following.

Renji led the way, his enhanced vision cutting through the dimness. The shadows whispered, but this time, he ignored them.

Jinno motioned toward a rusted grate ahead. "Safehouse is through there."

Astra muttered, "If this place is so 'safe,' why does it feel like something's waiting for us?"

Shirogane smirked. "Because you have good instincts."

Renji stopped in front of the grate. Something was off.

His abyssal sense buzzed, faint but undeniable.

A trap? No.

A presence.

---

Renji's fingers grazed the cold metal bars. The moment he touched them, something reacted.

A deep, reverberating hum filled the tunnel.

The others tensed.

Then—

Chains.

From the darkness beyond the grate, blackened chains shot forward, writhing like living serpents.

"Move!" Renji barked, leaping back.

The chains slammed against the stone floor, cracking it.

Astra's knives flashed, slicing through one—only for the severed pieces to writhe and regrow.

Jinno fired his gunblade. The bullet slammed into a chain, but instead of breaking, the impact sent a shockwave rippling back.

Shirogane cursed. "These aren't normal chains."

Renji's eyes narrowed.

He recognized this feeling.

Dungeon energy.

Not just any dungeon.

A sealed entity.

---

From beyond the grate, a voice whispered.

"You are not the first to walk this path… but you might be the last."

Renji's breath hitched.

That voice…

It wasn't the abyss.

It was something else.

Astra took a step back. "Please tell me none of you heard that."

Shirogane exhaled. "We all heard it."

Jinno narrowed his eyes at Renji. "What is this thing?"

Renji didn't answer immediately.

The abyss inside him stirred, agitated.

Whoever was bound beyond that grate was powerful.

And ancient.

The chains shifted, coiling tighter.

"Come closer, Cursed One."

Renji's fingers twitched.

Cursed One.

This entity knew what he was.

Or worse—what he was becoming.

Renji took a step forward.

"Renji," Astra warned. "Don't—"

He ignored her.

The moment he neared the grate, the air shifted.

It felt… heavy.

Like the dungeon itself was pressing down on him.

The chains reacted, moving away from him, as if recognizing something familiar.

Then—

A figure emerged from the darkness beyond the grate.

At first, it looked human.

A tall man, clad in tattered robes. Shackles bound his wrists, glowing with pulsating runes. His face was obscured by a featureless mask, cracked and worn.

But Renji knew.

This was no man.

This was something older.

The entity spoke again.

"You resist the abyss… yet you walk its path. Why?"

Renji exhaled slowly. "Because I have no choice."

The entity chuckled.

A hollow, grating sound.

"There is always a choice, Cursed One. Even now."

Renji clenched his fists. "Who are you?"

The entity tilted its head.

Then, in a voice that sent shivers through the tunnel—

"I am what you will become… if you fail."

---

Renji's heart pounded.

The abyss inside him reacted violently, a wave of nausea crashing over him.

His vision warped—

And suddenly, he wasn't in the tunnel anymore.

Instead, he stood in a ruined world.

The sky was cracked.

The ground was blackened glass.

And in front of him—

A monster stood.

No.

Not just any monster.

It was him.

A version of himself, twisted beyond recognition.

His body was covered in abyssal tendrils. His eyes were hollow pits of void.

And in that moment, Renji knew.

If he lost control—if he gave in—this was what awaited him.

He would become a prisoner of the abyss.

Bound. Chained. Forgotten.

Just like the entity in the tunnel.

---

Renji staggered, gasping as the vision ended.

He was back in the tunnel.

The entity watched him.

"Do you see now?" it whispered.

Renji's fists clenched. "I won't become that."

The entity let out a hollow laugh.

"They all say that."

The chains rattled, tightening around its form.

"But the abyss does not take no for an answer."

Astra grabbed Renji's arm. "We're leaving. Now."

Renji hesitated.

The entity wasn't just an enemy.

It was a warning.

A glimpse of what awaited him if he failed to resist.

Shirogane muttered, "Renji."

Renji exhaled.

Then turned away.

The entity spoke one last time.

"When the chains tighten… remember me."

The grate slammed shut.

The tunnel fell silent.

And Renji kept walking.

---

They reached the safehouse soon after—a reinforced bunker, hidden beneath the ruins.

No one spoke for a long time.

Finally, Jinno sighed. "What the hell was that thing?"

Renji sat down, rubbing his temples.

"I don't know," he admitted. "But it wasn't lying."

Astra frowned. "What do you mean?"

Renji's voice was quiet.

"I saw it."

A pause.

Then—

"Saw what?" Shirogane asked.

Renji's hands clenched.

"My future."

Jinno narrowed his eyes. "And?"

Renji exhaled.

"I have to make sure it never happens."

No one argued.

Because deep down—

They weren't sure if he could.

---

The safehouse walls felt too close. The air, thick with silence, pressed in on them.

Renji sat against the reinforced concrete, arms resting on his knees. His head throbbed from the lingering effects of the vision. The image of his monstrous self—bound in chains, swallowed by the abyss—wouldn't leave him.

Astra broke the silence. "So… are we going to talk about it?"

Jinno cleaned his gunblade, but his eyes were locked on Renji. "I'd like to know what exactly you saw back there."

Shirogane leaned against the opposite wall, arms crossed. "Let's start simple. Who the hell was that thing?"

Renji exhaled, closing his eyes. "I don't know its name. But I know what it was."

A pause.

Then, in a low voice—

"It was like me."

Astra frowned. "Like you?"

Renji nodded. "An infected… one who lost control."

The words hung in the air.

Jinno's expression darkened. "So you're saying that thing was a failed version of you?"

"Not exactly." Renji met his gaze. "It was stronger than me. Older."

Astra shifted uncomfortably. "Then how the hell is it still alive?"

Renji's fingers curled. "Because it's sealed."

Shirogane let out a sharp breath. "By who?"

Renji hesitated.

That was the part he didn't understand. The abyss inside him had reacted to the chains—recognized them.

That meant whatever had bound that entity…

Was something tied to the dungeons.

And worse—

It could do the same to him.

---

The tension was broken by a distant thud.

Astra immediately grabbed her knives. "Tell me that was just the pipes."

Jinno was already moving, gunblade raised.

Shirogane closed his eyes for a second, then muttered, "There are footsteps above us."

Renji stood. His abyssal sense stretched outward, seeking—

Three presences.

One was faint, barely noticeable. The other two… familiar.

Hunters.

Shirogane's face darkened. "The organization."

Jinno cursed. "Did we lead them here?"

Renji shook his head. "No. They were already looking."

Astra's grip tightened on her knives. "Then what do we do?"

Renji took a slow breath.

There was no time to run. No time to hide.

That meant one thing—

They had to fight.

---

The ceiling hatch above them rattled.

Then—boom.

The reinforced metal caved inward as a figure dropped down.

A woman in a sleek combat suit landed lightly, twin pistols drawn. Her crimson visor glowed in the dim light.

"Contact confirmed," she said into her earpiece. "Target is here."

Astra swore. "She doesn't even hesitate, huh?"

Before anyone could move, another figure blurred into the room.

A second hunter—this one clad in reinforced armor, a massive greatsword on his back. His aura pulsed with restrained energy.

Shirogane narrowed his eyes. "I know these two."

The woman turned her head slightly. "Shirogane Arata. Still alive, I see."

Renji's gaze sharpened. "Who are they?"

Jinno gritted his teeth. "Elite task force."

Shirogane finished the sentence. "Executioners."

Renji's blood ran cold.

Executioners—the organization's top enforcers.

Not just hunters.

Killers.

---

The woman moved first.

A sharp crack filled the room as she fired.

Renji dodged—barely. The bullet grazed his shoulder, burning like acid.

Enhanced rounds.

Astra flung her knives, aiming for the gaps in her armor—

But the woman twisted, dodging with unnatural speed.

Shirogane was already moving, closing in with a burst of shadow energy.

Jinno fired his gunblade, forcing the greatsword-wielding hunter to block. The impact sent a shockwave through the room.

Renji didn't hesitate.

He lunged.

The woman fired again, but this time—

Renji let the abyss guide him.

His body twisted unnaturally, evading the bullets by a hair's breadth.

His claws flashed, aiming for her throat.

She ducked, rolling backward—

But Renji had anticipated it.

Before she could counter, he shifted his weight and slammed his knee into her chest.

Crack.

She hit the wall hard, but recovered instantly.

"Not bad," she muttered. "But you're not fast enough."

Renji barely had time to react before she vanished—

And reappeared behind him.

Pain exploded across Renji's side as her pistol slammed into his ribs.

Then—another gunshot.

Renji twisted at the last second, the bullet tearing through his shoulder instead of his skull.

Blood splattered the ground.

But something inside him snapped.

Abyssal energy erupted from his wounds, tendrils writhing, regenerating the damage in seconds.

The woman froze.

"…What?"

Renji's breathing was ragged. His hands trembled.

His instincts screamed—

Take her power. Tear her apart.

No.

He forced the abyss down.

He wouldn't lose control.

Instead, he let his power flow outward—not to consume, but to augment.

His muscles tensed. His movements sharpened.

This time, when he attacked—

She couldn't keep up.

---

The battle shifted.

Astra danced through the chaos, knives flashing. Shirogane's shadow abilities kept the greatsword hunter pinned.

Jinno, despite his injuries, moved with precision—his gunblade forcing the enemy into defensive maneuvers.

And Renji—

Renji was winning.

The woman's speed was impressive, but against his evolved reflexes, she was a step too slow.

A dodge—too late.

A counterattack—too predictable.

Renji's fist connected with her visor, shattering it.

She staggered, blood dripping from a cut on her forehead.

For the first time, uncertainty flickered in her eyes.

Renji took a slow step forward.

She raised her pistol—

But her hands were shaking.

She had realized the truth.

She wasn't the predator in this fight.

She was the prey.

---

Then—

A low, mechanical chime filled the air.

The battle halted.

Astra's eyes widened. "No way…"

Shirogane exhaled sharply. "This is bad."

Jinno's jaw clenched.

Renji turned toward the sound—

And his heart stopped.

Standing in the doorway, clad in a high-tech combat suit, was a third hunter.

But this one—

This one was different.

Because Renji recognized the face beneath the helmet.

Mikasa Ryou.

His ex-fiancée.

The woman who had left him before all this began.

She raised a sleek, custom-made rifle—

And aimed it directly at him.

"Renji Kuroya," she said coldly. "You're coming with us."