BOOM!
The higher levels of the Science Research Tower erupted in fire.
A massive explosion tore through the upper floors, blasting glass into the sky and sending waves of heat rolling across Tenrihines. The capital shook. Smoke poured upward in a black spiral as emergency alarms screamed through the city.
On the streets below, civilians scattered.
Police vehicles surrounded the tower.
Firefighters rushed toward the entrances, shouting orders as evacuation teams pulled researchers, workers, and injured civilians from the lower floors.
Far above them, on the 90th floor, flames crawled across broken walls.
The floor was collapsing.
Metal beams bent under the heat.
And in the middle of the smoke—
A white blur appeared.
White Flash landed on the broken marble floor, twin electric short swords already in his hands. His armor sparked faintly as lightning crawled along his arms. His eyes scanned the destruction in a fraction of a second.
"Too many civilians below," he muttered. "Can't let this thing drop the tower."
Something hissed from inside the fire.
White Flash turned.
Through the smoke, a monstrous shape rose.
A snake-like demon slithered forward, its long body coiling around broken pillars and melted lab equipment. It towered above him, scales black and green, eyes burning like poisoned lanterns. Six arms stretched from its upper body, and four of them gripped jagged katanas stained with blood.
The demon's mouth split wide.
It shrieked.
Then it lunged.
White Flash moved instantly.
His swords snapped up, catching two of the demon's blades mid-air. Sparks exploded between them. The impact shook the floor, but White Flash held his ground for half a second before vanishing in a flash of movement.
He reappeared behind the demon and slashed.
The demon twisted faster than expected.
One of its arms caught him mid-spin.
White Flash's eyes widened.
"Oh, that's new—"
The demon slammed him through a marble wall.
The entire floor trembled.
White Flash crashed through the debris, his body skidding across the burning ground.
His swords flickered.
Then the demon came for him again.
Deep inside STF Headquarters, the mood could not have been more different.
The common room lights were dim. Snack bags were scattered across the table. A massive screen glowed in front of the couch, showing a horror game where Ian's character was currently hiding inside a closet while something screamed in the hallway.
Beside him, Blade leaned forward with a controller in hand, completely locked in.
On the other side of them sat Vex, their longtime friend and one of the most famous streamers in the galaxy. His camera drone hovered nearby, recording everything live.
Vex grinned at the camera.
"Chat, I'm telling y'all right now, Ian acts calm in real life, but put this man in a horror game and he starts moving like a civilian."
Ian did not look away from the screen.
"I'm playing tactically."
Blade laughed.
"You've been hiding in that closet for five minutes."
Ian's eyes narrowed.
"It's called patience."
Vex leaned toward the camera.
"Chat, he scared."
"I'm not scared."
The monster on-screen suddenly slammed against the closet door.
Ian's character jumped.
Blade burst out laughing.
Vex pointed at him.
"Look at his face! Look at his face!"
Ian set his controller down slowly.
"I hate both of you."
Then the alarm sounded.
Red lights pulsed across the common room.
The game audio cut out.
Everyone froze.
Ian's expression changed instantly.
The relaxed energy disappeared from his face.
He lifted his communicator and checked the alert.
Emergency response.
Capital district.
Science Research Tower.
Demon attack.
Blade stood immediately.
"Ian, that's us. We gotta move."
Ian was already grabbing his gear.
"Vex, bring the camera."
Vex blinked.
Then his eyes lit up.
"Wait. We live-streaming a demon hunt?"
Ian strapped his gauntlet into place.
"We're giving your viewers a real show tonight."
Blade looked at Vex.
"Try not to get killed for content."
Vex grabbed his camera pack and laughed nervously.
"No promises."
The STF mini warship cut through the sky with its engines blazing blue.
It flew over the capital at full speed, passing between towers as smoke from the Science Research Tower climbed into the night. The ship slowed beside the flaming upper levels, hovering just outside the shattered windows of the 90th floor.
Inside the hatch, Ian, Blade, and Vex stood ready.
Flames flickered across their armor.
Vex wore a high-tech protective suit, heavier than his usual streaming gear, with a glowing face shield and a camera drone locked to his shoulder.
He looked down at the fire below.
Then at Ian.
"You sure this suit's enough?"
Ian did not look at him.
"You'll be fine."
Vex exhaled.
"That sounded confident."
Ian stepped toward the open hatch.
"Just don't do anything stupid."
Blade smirked.
"That's asking a lot from a streamer."
Vex pointed at him.
"Bro, I built my career on doing stupid things and surviving."
Ian glanced back.
"Tonight, skip the first part."
Then he jumped.
Blade followed.
Vex swallowed once.
His camera drone hovered beside him.
"Chat," he said, voice shaky but excited, "if I die, clip this."
Then he jumped after them.
They landed inside the inferno.
Smoke choked the air. Flames roared along the ceiling. Collapsed beams blocked hallways, and melted research equipment sparked against the floor. Somewhere nearby, pipes burst, spraying steam through the wreckage.
Blade moved first, faster than Vex could even track.
A second later, his voice came through the comm.
"Found White Flash."
Ian cut through a fallen beam and stepped into the next chamber.
White Flash lay half-buried beneath rubble, unconscious and bruised, his armor scorched from the fight.
Blade lifted him over his shoulder.
"He's breathing."
Ian looked at the damage around them.
Then at White Flash.
"Seems like your student still needs work."
Blade's jaw tightened.
The joke did not land.
"His ego's gonna get him killed if he doesn't wise up."
Ian's expression softened slightly.
Only slightly.
"Then make sure he wakes up to hear that."
Before Blade could answer—
CRASH!
The demon exploded through the smoke.
Its massive snake body smashed through the wall, six arms spread wide, four jagged katanas catching the firelight.
Vex stumbled back.
"Oh, nah."
The demon moved faster than its size should allow.
It dropkicked Ian through a burning console.
Ian crashed across the floor, sparks bursting around him.
Blade laid White Flash down and charged.
The demon turned, caught him mid-air, and hurled him through a wall like he weighed nothing.
Vex's camera drone spun wildly.
"Chat, I don't think this is balanced!"
Ian flipped back to his feet, katana already in hand.
The demon lunged.
Ian met it head-on.
Steel clashed against steel. Sparks and flame burst between every strike. The demon attacked from four angles at once, its blades moving in a storm of jagged metal.
Ian blocked one.
Deflected another.
Ducked the third.
The fourth grazed his shoulder plate.
He stepped in close and slashed across the demon's chest.
Black blood sprayed onto the burning floor.
The demon hissed in pain.
Blade crawled out of the broken wall, coughing dust.
He spotted Vex pressed behind a half-melted lab table.
Blade pulled a plasma pistol from his side and tossed it to him.
Vex fumbled it but caught it.
Blade pointed at the demon.
"Shoot him when you get an opening."
Vex stared at the gun.
Then at the demon.
Then at his camera drone.
"I'll try…"
He raised the pistol with both hands.
"Yo, stream, we working with the big dogs tonight!"
Ian shoved the demon back.
"Vex, less commentary. More shooting."
"Right. My bad."
Vex fired.
The shot missed by several feet and hit a wall.
Blade looked over.
"That was the wall."
"I said I'd try!"
Suddenly, the ceiling groaned.
A flaming metal beam broke loose above Vex.
Ian turned.
"Move!"
Too late.
The beam slammed into the floor beside Vex, the impact launching him backward through the shattered window.
For one terrifying second, he was falling.
Ninety floors above the capital.
Vex screamed.
His camera drone dove after him.
Blade vanished.
A streak of motion shot through the smoke, out the window, and into the open air. He grabbed Vex mid-fall by the back of his suit, twisted, and hurled him back through the broken window.
Vex hit the floor and rolled hard.
Blade landed beside him with a grin.
"You good?"
Vex lay on his back, gasping.
"I think so…"
He raised one finger.
"Probably not."
Blade nodded.
"Good enough."
Back inside, Ian drove the demon backward with a sharp combination of strikes. His katana cut through two of its arms, forcing it to recoil.
The demon hissed again, eyes burning with hate.
For a moment, Ian thought it would keep fighting.
Then its body twisted.
It slithered backward into the smoke.
Ian moved to chase.
But the floor cracked beneath him.
The demon disappeared into the burning ruins.
Blade stepped beside Ian, eyes scanning the smoke.
"It ran."
Ian lowered his katana.
"No."
He stared into the flames.
"It escaped."
By the time they reached the ground level, the tower was surrounded.
Media drones filled the air. Reporters crowded behind police barricades. Cameras flashed as firefighters continued rushing civilians out of the lower floors.
The crowd erupted when Ian, Blade, Vex, and the unconscious White Flash emerged from the wreckage.
Civilians cheered.
Reporters shouted questions.
"Ian! Was this a targeted attack?"
"Blade! Is White Flash alive?"
"Vex! Are you still live?"
Vex looked up.
His camera drone hovered beside him, somehow still recording.
He gave a weak thumbs-up.
"Chat… we survived."
The comment feed exploded across his visor.
Ian ignored the cameras completely.
Blade walked past them with White Flash over his shoulder.
Vex watched the reporters swarm closer, then lowered his voice.
"Let's just get back to HQ."
Ian looked at him.
For once, Vex did not sound excited.
Ian nodded.
"Agreed."
The STF warship descended through the smoke.
The team boarded under the flashing lights of the capital.
As the hatch closed, Vex looked back at the ruined tower.
The demon was gone.
White Flash was unconscious.
And millions of viewers had just watched the STF fail to capture whatever had attacked the Science Research Tower.
The warship lifted into the night sky.
Mission over.
But questions were only beginning.