Shattered Chains

Chapter 18: Shattered Chains

Ryo sat motionless in the training chamber, his eyes fixed on a spot that didn't exist. Though his body had recovered from the last battle, his mind was far from healed. The hallucinations had become quieter—not gone, but lurking, patient, like predators in the dark.

Taro had warned him: the serum never truly left. It coiled itself into your mind, whispering, waiting. And for Ryo, it was still there. But now, something else stirred within him—a question that could no longer be ignored.

Where is Ren?

He could no longer pretend that survival was his only goal. Every fight, every scar—none of it mattered if Ren was lost. The last time Ryo saw his brother, he was still that quiet, stubborn kid who looked up to him. But now, the whispers spoke of something darker.

That morning, before the next trial, Ryo broke away from the fighters and made his way to a part of the facility he'd never dared to explore—The Vault. Rumors claimed it housed the tournament's darkest secrets: records, footage, and files on every fighter who had ever bled in the Maw.

He passed through an unmarked hallway, guarded by only one man. Strangely, the guard did nothing as Ryo approached. Their eyes met briefly before the guard stepped aside, silent.

Inside, dust-coated shelves stretched endlessly. Flickering monitors lined the walls, their screens looping footage of past battles—some ancient, some painfully recent. Screams echoed faintly from hidden speakers. It was a tomb of memories and broken dreams.

Ryo moved quickly, scanning labels until one caught his eye:Subject #0451 – Ren Kazan.

His heart stopped.

He snatched the file and flipped it open. The first page showed a photo of Ren—his younger brother—still wearing the same expression of fierce defiance. But his eyes... there was something hollow in them.

The next pages revealed the truth in sharp, agonizing detail.

Ren had not died. He had been taken—selected as a "compatible host" for a new prototype serum. Unlike Ryo, who received the combat-enhancement version, Ren had been part of an experimental branch: the Enforcer Program.

A red-stamped line cut across the final page:

STATUS: ACTIVE – Code Name: Enforcer Zero

"No…" Ryo whispered.

The footage confirmed everything. He watched in horror as his brother, now fully grown and completely transformed, tore through a group of rogue fighters with merciless efficiency. His face was expressionless, robotic. A collar glowed faintly at his neck—linked to the system. Controlled. Conditioned.

Ren had become part of the very system they had sought to escape. A hunter of his own kind.

Ryo sank to his knees, the file slipping from his fingers.

Every memory came crashing down—of their childhood, of promises made, of the fire in Ren's eyes when he said, "We'll find our own path, Ryo."

Now, Ren was the system.

The Beast's Maw hadn't just taken fighters—it had taken identities, morals, family. It had reshaped Ren into a weapon.

And Ryo had no idea if his brother even remembered who he was.

Suddenly, the monitor screens all flickered to black. Then, a single image appeared—a live feed.

Ren stood in the center of a holding chamber, alone, motionless. His body was lean but powerful, wrapped in a dark exo-suit with glowing red veins. His eyes stared directly into the camera, unblinking.

Then he spoke.

"Ryo."

Ryo's blood turned to ice.

Ren had recognized him.

The voice was deeper, colder—but it was him.

"I knew you would come. I've been waiting."

The feed cut.

Ryo stood up slowly, fists clenched. The serum burned beneath his skin, responding to his rising rage and pain.

This changed everything.

The tournament no longer mattered. The prize, the fights, the arena—all of it paled in comparison to the truth.

Ren was alive. Controlled, but alive.

And he needed saving.

But how do you save someone who's been trained to kill you?

Back in the fighters' quarters, Ryo confronted Taro.

"You knew."

Taro didn't deny it. "I suspected. That they were using the serum for something else. You're not the first to lose someone."

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because once you know, you can't go back."

Ryo's voice trembled with fury. "I'm not going back."

Taro nodded. "Then the next round won't be like the others. They know you've seen it. You'll be tested—not just in the arena, but in here." He tapped his temple. "They'll send him, Ryo. They'll send Ren to fight you."

Ryo didn't flinch. "Then I'll bring him back."

"Or he'll kill you," Taro warned.

Ryo turned and walked away. "Then I'll die trying."

That night, the dreams returned. But this time, Ren was in them. Not the controlled version from the footage, but the real Ren—the one who laughed when they raced through the rice fields, who cried when their parents were taken, who stood beside Ryo and swore they would never be caged again.

And when Ryo woke, he felt a strange peace. His path was clearer than it had ever been.

The next fight would not be about survival.

It would be about redemption.

For his brother.

For himself.

For everything they lost in the Maw.