Kaelen lay motionless on the cracked stone of the floor. It was a miracle he was still conscious. His body was failing; his bones were shattered into jagged fragments, and a jagged hole in his abdomen pulsed with the last of his warmth.
His eyes, once filled with the flickering fire of a Flare, were now glazed and cold. He was slipping away, the darkness of the night finally matching the darkness in his lungs.
"KAELEN, KAELEN, KAELEN!
The scream tore through the air, but it wasn't a cry of sorrow—it was a roar of absolute fury. Jaxen snapped.
Suddenly, the static in the environment shifted. The humid, underground air turned freezing as Jaxen's Evoliths hummed with a terrifying frequency. Outside, high above the subway, the weather began to warp; thunder rolled through the tunnels as Jaxen drew every bit of power from the environment.
Jaxen moved like a stroke of lightning. He lunged at Skull, his fists wreathed in high-voltage blue energy. He used the metal pillars and the damp floor to arc his attacks, coming at Skull from angles that should have been impossible.
Skull didn't move an inch. He didn't even activate his powers . He relied on raw, terrifying physical speed. He caught Jaxen's first punch in his palm, the electricity sizzling against his skin without leaving a mark. Jaxen spun, kicking off a rusted vat to launch a concentrated spear of lightning at Skull's chest.
Skull leaned back—just an inch—and the spear whistled past. Jaxen followed up with a desperate, horizontal swipe of his hand, his fingers crackling.
Rip.
Skull's cheek opened. A thin, red line of blood appeared on his face—the first wound anyone had dealt him in years. Skull stopped. He touched the blood on his cheek, looking at his fingers with a dark, curious smile.
"Interesting," Skull whispered, his voice sending a chill down Jaxen's spine. "You're more interesting than the rest of these failures. You actually have a spark."
Before Jaxen could strike again, Skull moved.
A single palm strike to Jaxen's chest sent him flying back across the room, crashing through a the hideout, through the crates, cages and the walls,
His body paralyzed, he's never seen anyone with such strength, blood dropping from his mouth and head.
Meanwhile, Elias and Renji were locked in their own nightmare. Two aliens—stopped them from getting to skull in order to help kealen and jaxen.
But towering, aleins with four arms and eyes like obsidian—leaped from the rafters. These weren't scouts; they were Skull's personal guard.
Renji's Star Eyes flared. He saw the weak points , but they were moving too fast to hit.
Elias tried to fight head on, but every time he clashed with them, the vibration nearly broke his arms.
Across the underground, Cipher was frantically ushering the humans and the Valkari toward the service secret opening. "Move! Don't look back!"
From a dark corner, one of Skull's low-level soldiers saw his opening. He gripped a jagged knife, his face twisted with desperation. "Lord Skull will finally notice me," he hissed. "I'm no longer going to be a nobody!"
He lunged at Cipher's back. The Valkari screamed in their high-pitched, melodic language, trying to warn him, "Kael-Zhar! Kael-Zhar!" but the man was too fast.
Vela dropped from the ceiling like a stone, her boot connecting squarely with the back of the man's head. He hit the floor, unconscious before he knew what happened.
Vela stumbled slightly, adjusting her hair. "Hmm... looks like I slipped. Gravity is weird down here." She looked at Cipher with a wink. "Well, you guys should keep going. NYX fight is about to start, don't wanna miss that"
"Thanks, Vela," Cipher breathed, his heart racing. "I owe you one."
Miles away, in a room filled with luxury and the scent of expensive wine, Gold sat back in his plush leather chair. He was eating a rare steak, his eyes fixed on a wall of monitors. He had planted cameras in Skull's hideout months ago, waiting for the this would happen.
"Hahaha," Gold chuckled, the light from the screen reflecting off his solid gold teeth. "Looks like Skull isn't holding back. The 10th is being dismantled."
His tone suddenly flattened, becoming cold and business-like. "Either way, I win this round. Checkmate."
One of his men stepped forward from the shadows. "Sir, the 2nd Division has reached the coordinates. We've successfully lured them away and prepared the bait."
"Good," Gold smiled, raising his wine glass toward the screen. "Valkhyre won't see this coming. The surface and the underground are about to collide, and I'll be the only one left standing to count the profit."we
At the rain-slicked ruins of Sector 4, the 2nd Division arrived in force. Liora, Drayke, and Reid stepped off their transports, weapons drawn, expecting to find the 10th.
Instead, they found A massive
Seven feet tall.
Skin like black obsidian.
Horns curved slightly from its skull.standing alone in the ruins.
He wore an ornate, long coat and held a cane topped with a glowing gem. He looked at the Xenocides as if he were inspecting cattle at a market.
"Why are my products here?" the man mused, his voice smooth as silk. "And who sent the message that brought you to my doorstep?"
He wondered to himself" how did they find me,skull
That sloppy fool, either way they might be a nice specimen"
Liora stepped forward, her hand on her sword. "Who are you? Where is the 10th Division?"
The man smiled, a predatory, terrifying expression. "I am Valkhyre, the Collector. And since you've delivered yourselves to me... I suppose it's time to see if you're worth adding to my gallery."