The Big Four

Maverick's smirk twitched as he eyed the newcomers. Libra and Taurus.

Two of the strongest warriors in the Zodiac.

Leo wiped blood from his mouth, barely holding himself together. "Took you two long enough."

Libra stepped forward, her presence alone shifting the atmosphere. Her Awakening Eyes glowed with a bright shade of pink,her symbol forming within his irises. His voice was calm, but sharp.

"This game is over. Stand down, Maverick."

Taurus cracked his knuckles, his massive frame radiating raw power. He had the aura of a tank—unmovable, unstoppable. His Awakening Eyes burned a deep pine ,the his sigil glowing ominously.

He rolled his shoulders. "Yeah, man. You're getting your ass beat either way, but we can do this the easy way or the fun way."

Maverick let out a cold laugh. "You two think you scare me?"

He raised his arms—stone and wind twisting around him, forming a devastating hybrid aura. "Bring it."

And then—

The battlefield exploded.

Leo barely had time to react as the shockwave sent him skidding back. Scorpio cursed, flipping to his feet. Maverick had just gone berserk.

Libra didn't flinch. She raised a single hand, and suddenly—the entire room tilted.

Gravity shifted.

Maverick's charge halted mid-air. His body froze, locked in place by an unseen force.

His eyes widened. "What the?!"

Libra's voice was emotionless. "You're out of balance, Maverick."

With a single motion, Libra flicked her wrist and Maverick's body was launched into the ceiling, then slammed into the ground at breakneck speed.

BOOM!

A crater formed beneath him.

Taurus grinned. "Damn. That looked like it hurt."

Maverick coughed, blood leaking from his lips. But he still got up.His willpower refusing to break.

He growled. "You think you've won?"

The air crackled. His aura spiked.

Leo's eyes widened. "No way… he's pushing himself even further?!"

Scorpio's fists clenched. "He's gonna self-destruct if he keeps going!"

Maverick's body shook violently. He wasn't stopping. His mastery over two paths—Vayu and Terra—was now spiraling out of control.

Libra frowned. "This is pointless."

She extended his palm.

The scales in her eyes tipped.

Balance Absolute.

The second the words left his lips, Maverick froze. His energy collapsed in on itself.

And then—

Taurus stepped in.

"Night night, asshole."

His fist connected cleanly with Maverick's gut.

The force of the punch sent shockwaves through the entire battlefield.

Maverick's body flew backwards, smashing through several walls before finally collapsing.

Silence.

Leo and Scorpio exhaled.

It was over.

Leo cracked his neck. "Damn, that was brutal."

Scorpio nodded. "Yeah. But we're not finished yet."

Libra turned, his expression unreadable. "No. This is just the beginning."

Taurus sighed. "Yeah, yeah. We took down the loud-mouthed idiot, but the real war's still out there."

Leo clenched his fists. He could still hear the battles raging in the distance.

Aquarius' voice crackled through the communicator. "Everyone, report in. We're regrouping. This whole charade ends tonight."

Scorpio's Awakening Eyes glowed again. "Through any force necessary."

Leo's flames burned brighter. "Let burn to a crisp if he doesn't talk."

And with that—they marched forward.

Maverick coughed up blood, his body barely holding together. Even as he lay in the rubble, his defiant smirk remained.

Leo narrowed his eyes. "You're finished, Maverick. You can barely stand."

Scorpio stepped forward, his Awakening Eyes still glowing. "Tell me one thing before we end this—how the hell did you escape?"

Maverick chuckled. "You think I'd go down that easily?"

He forced himself to sit up, wiping blood from his mouth. "You remember that high-security prison I was locked in? The one with supposedly unbreakable defenses?"

Leo's expression hardened. "Yeah. The one we put you in."

Maverick grinned. "Well, turns out… it wasn't so unbreakable."

Scorpio's eyes narrowed. "Tch. Start talking."

Maverick leaned back against the broken wall. "Simple. I didn't escape on my own. Someone let me out...A man for that matter."

A heavy silence followed.

Libra and Taurus exchanged a look.

Leo clenched his fists. "Bullshit. No one would be dumb enough to let a lunatic like you walk free."

Maverick laughed. "Oh, you'd be surprised. Because the one who helped me… was one of yours."

The air in the room turned ice cold.

Scorpio's expression darkened. "Liar."

Maverick shrugged. "Believe what you want. But someone from the Moravuno government opened that door and set me loose."

Libra's gaze darkened. "Who?"

Maverick grinned, wiping the blood off his lips. "Now, now. That'd be too easy. You'll figure it out soon enough."

Taurus took a threatening step forward. "Start talking before I break your damn jaw."

Maverick just smirked. "Nah. I think I've said enough."

Then, before anyone could react—

A distortion erupted around Maverick's body.

A strange, glowing energy crackled around him—a teleportation field.

Leo's eyes widened. "Shit—he's disappearing!"

Scorpio lunged forward. "Maverick! Who the hell let you out?!"

Maverick's body began to phase out, his laughter echoing through the room.

"I'll see you soon, boys. And when I do… you're all dead."

And with that—

He was gone.

The silence that followed was suffocating.

Libra clenched his fists. "…We have a traitor."

Taurus cursed under his breath. "Damn it."

Leo turned to Scorpio, his expression grim. "What do we do?"

Scorpio's Awakening Eyes glowed faintly.

"We find the rat and I'll the make the person pay his crimes." Scorpio said in a cold ice voice.

Libra crossed his arms, his calm demeanor hiding a storm brewing within. "If Maverick wasn't lying, then we have a much bigger problem than just an escaped prince."

Taurus let out a deep breath, cracking his knuckles. "Yeah. A rat in the government ranks? That means everything we've planned, everything we've done—it's already compromised."

Aquarius turned away, pressing her communicator. "Cancer, Pisces, Gemini, Sagittarius, Aries, Capricorn—report in."Her voice was sharp, urgent. "We have a situation."

Static filled the line for a moment before Cancer responded. "What happened?"

"Maverick escaped."

A tense silence.

Then Pisces' voice came through, careful but serious. "…How?"

Aquarius's expression darkened. "We have a traitor."

Elsewhere – Maverick's Safehouse

A swirling vortex of the glowing energy crackled as Maverick reappeared inside a dimly lit room. His body was wrecked, wounds covering his arms, but he still smirked.

"You cut that close."

A voice echoed from the shadows.

Maverick looked up, eyes gleaming. "Had to sell the performance, didn't I?"

Footsteps emerged from the darkness, and the figure stepped into the dim light.

The traitor.

Maverick chuckled, leaning back against the cold wall. "They have no idea it's you."

The traitor remained silent.

Maverick wiped the blood from his face, grinning. "And by the time they figure it out?"

"It'll be too late."

The next day in the mansion,The Big Four in one room strategizing their next counterattack

Leo paced the war room, his anger barely contained. "We need answers. Now."

Scorpio stood still, his mind already calculating. If a traitor was in their ranks, that meant every plan, every move, had to change.

Libra, always the strategist, spoke calmly but firmly. "We can't act recklessly. We find the traitor, we cut them down, and we move forward."

Taurus nodded. "And when we find Maverick again?"

Scorpio's voice was low. "We don't let him escape."

The Big Four—the most powerful Zodiacs—stood together but Scorpio might have ulterior motives at hand.

The upcoming war wasn't just beginning.

It was reaching its breaking point.

And this time, there would be no mercy.