The moment their boots hit the ground, the battlefield erupted into chaos.

  A monstrous abomination surged through the gaping rift—its grotesque, shifting form a patchwork of jagged limbs and writhing tendrils. Towering nearly forty meters, it loomed over the battlefield like a living nightmare. Its howl split the air, a sound so forceful it sent spiderweb cracks racing across the pavement.

  All around it, smaller riftspawn poured forth, their twisted maws glowing with eerie luminescence as they skittered toward their prey.

  Then—

  The instructors moved.

  Haruto struck first.

  A flicker—then a blur. His Twin Phantom Blades sliced through the air, their spectral echoes lingering for a breath before vanishing. He disappeared between the riftspawn, his attacks landing from impossible angles. One creature shrieked as a blade pierced its back—yet Haruto was already gone, reappearing behind another, his swords carving a lethal path.

  A monstrous claw ripped toward him—only to meet Finn’s Stormcleaver.

  The thrusters along the axe’s hilt ignited mid-swing, a sudden roar of propulsion sending the blade hurtling forward with unstoppable force. The impact cleaved straight through the monster’s limb, ichor splattering across the pavement. Without hesitation, Finn flipped his grip and triggered another burst, twisting his body to bring the axe crashing into another foe’s skull.

  A dozen meters away, Kael raised his hand.

  Luminous Shards flared into existence, hovering around him like a miniature constellation. With a sharp exhale, he fired. The shards streaked through the battlefield, each one homing in on a weak point. One shot detonated a riftspawn’s core, reducing it to little more than glowing embers.

  “Keep moving,” Lena called, her voice level.

  Her Aegis Swarm drones responded instantly, shifting into formation. Shimmering barriers flickered into place, intercepting incoming strikes. One drone pulsed with energy, sending a shockwave that staggered a lunging creature. Another hummed to life, its razor-thin energy blades shearing through an enemy’s limbs with surgical precision.

  Then—

  A shockwave slammed into the battlefield.

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  Dust and debris scattered as Raphael stepped forward.

  The air around him crackled with golden energy, flickering shapes of weapons phasing in and out of existence.

  He strode into the chaos, summoning a massive claymore—only to dismiss it in an instant, replacing it with a railgun. He took a single shot.

  The projectile pierced straight through three riftspawn in a perfect line before vanishing into the ether.

  His grace, humanity’s arsenal.

  Every weapon from every era. All at his fingertips.

  A behemoth lunged at him. Raphael didn’t so much as blink.

  Instead, he summoned Haruto’s twin swords, seamlessly mirroring the swordsman’s lethal, precise movements. For an instant, it was as if Haruto had split into two, their blades carving through the battlefield in perfect harmony.

  Haruto, in the middle of slashing through an enemy, side-eyed Raphael. “Tch. If you’re gonna copy me, at least have the decency to do it worse.”

  Raphael smirked but didn’t respond.

  Then the swords were gone.

  A axe materialized in his hands.

  Finn’s Stormcleaver.

  Raphael spun it once before activating the thrusters, using the sudden burst to vault over an attacking beast. Mid-air, he twisted his body and brought the weapon down in a devastating arc, the thrusters adding even more momentum to the strike.

  Finn let out a low whistle. “Well, damn. Almost looks like you know what you’re doing.”

  The grin Raphael shot him was equal parts cocky and amused.

  Then the colossus roared.

  Its massive limbs crashed down, the sheer force sending out a shockwave that hurled debris in every direction. The ground beneath them trembled, as if the earth itself recoiled from the beast’s fury.

  The instructors shifted tactics.

  Raphael dismissed his weapons. He turned his head slightly. “Akane.”

  She was already moving.

  Her Kagutsuchi bow unfolded in an instant, its mechanical wings spreading behind her in a fluid, practiced motion. Gliding across the air before landing in high enough space.

  The Aetherforge Quiver hummed, forging a specialized arrow. One designed to pierce even the toughest barriers.

  The colossus reared back, ready for one final attack.

  Her bow transformed back to its origin shape. She draws her bow, the limbs bending as she draws the bow back. Ready to strike.

  Akane exhaled.

  The world slowed.

  Amber eyes locked onto its core.

  She loosed the arrow.

  A streak of golden energy cut through the battlefield, a brilliant flash piercing straight through the monster’s heart.

  For a moment—silence.

  Then—

  The colossus let out a final, shrieking wail before collapsing in on itself, its body disintegrating into glowing embers.

  The remaining riftspawn howled in despair before flickering out of existence.

  The battlefield fell still.

  Victory.

  ---

  Back at the dropship there was only silence.

  Not the comfortable kind.

  The kind that sat heavy in the air, thick with the weight of what they had just witnessed.

  Rei’s fingers tightened around the seat’s edge. His golden eyes stayed locked on the battlefield, his breaths measured, controlled—too controlled.

  “…Holy shit,” Zane muttered, finally breaking the silence.

  Elissa let out a breath. “Did you see that?”

  Daisy only nodded, wordless.

  Luna shot Lena a sharp glance. “That’s what you were hiding in that satchel?”

  Andrei adjusted his glasses, his expression unreadable. “I thought it was just spare equipment.”

  Casper, usually the first to scoff, sat uncharacteristically silent, arms crossed as he stared at the ground. "Not bad I guess."

  But Rei—

  Rei couldn’t breathe.

  The battle replayed in his mind, every movement, every technique. The sheer gap between them and him.

  His grip tightened.

  I’m not good enough.

  I’m not strong enough.

  A slow, twisting fire burned in his chest—one he recognized well.

  A need. A drive. A desperate hunger to close that gap.

  He would push harder. Train harder. Whatever it took.

  Because if he didn’t

  He’d be left behind

  And that was something he could never allow.

  [End of Chapter]