New York City, USA, Year 4055
Sirens screamed without end, swallowing the city in noise. Flames crackled across the city as explosions burst at uneven intervals.
Screams of women and cries of children echoed through the streets. People scattered like frightened birds, their footsteps pounding the pavement.
They were running from something.
Beasts.
Hundreds of them. No—thousands, flooding the entire city.
The Defense stood at the forefront. Their fighting gear looked unreal, something straight from the future. Large armored cars and planes flew into the midst of the beasts, firing lasers into their ranks.
On the ground, soldiers charged in mech suits, shots firing repeatedly, but the beasts kept swarming in. Each one stood nearly the size of a small house, blue markings glowing on their necks.
They moved nothing like mindless beasts. Their attacks had been well thought out, dodging the barrage and forcing their way into the middle of the force.
Tanks rolled out, firing concentrated beams that killed the creatures on the spot—but more kept coming. The Force seemed to be holding their own against them.
Until…
A roar echoed—so powerful it forced the others to clear a path.
One stepped forward. It looked exactly like the smaller ones, but its markings burned yellow. The ground shook beneath its feet. The others kept their distance.
The tanks fired their beams, but they bounced off completely. Bullets were ineffective.
But what choice did they have? Shooting was the only thing they had been trained to do.
"Fire! Kill them! Don't let up!" a voice shouted from atop a tank.
The large beast opened its mouth and fired a blast that broke their defenses.
As soon as the smaller beasts saw this, they launched in, killing them as they ran for their lives.
The sound of flesh being torn, bones being crushed, and screams filled the air.
"Retreat! We shall regroup at camp—"
Before he could finish, he was gone. The top half of his body missing.
The ones who had stayed behind immediately ran. They ran as fast as they could. The human part of them had taken over.
They couldn't escape.
One soldier hid behind a dumpster, staring at the chaos outside. The bodies of his allies were being devoured, fought over like scraps.
He scratched his head, panic creeping in.
"Why are there so many…? The Blues shouldn't move together. That wasn't in the report."
Throughout this chaos, a figure moved quietly, undetected.
Hands buried in his long brown coat, a mask covering his face. His white hair, tied in a neat ponytail, swayed with the violent winds sweeping the city.
The blue beasts instantly cleared a path for him as he walked through the chaos, some even stopping to flee.
The soldier behind the dumpster stared in awe as not a single one looked his way.
The name Devon Veyron meant something—even here.
He stopped beside a burning store, its TV screen flickering. Through the cracked glass, silhouettes of dead bodies lay slumped.
The news blared:
"The world plunges into despair as thousands of Oedipals lay waste to New York City's once-buzzing streets. Never has such a large number of Blues been seen moving together in these numbers. Thousands are dead, the toll still rising. Government agencies, including the army, have been nearly annihilated in two days. Reports flood in from across the country and the world. Humanity may have to accept our time here has ended. We—"
An explosion shattered the store into rubble, shards of glass scattering across the street.
Devon stood in the debris, unmoving, waiting for the dust to clear.
A massive beast emerged.
A grotesque cross between a dog and a bat. Four wings sprouted from its back, its face carrying the clear features of a dog.
Its markings burned yellow.
The same beast who had broken through the army's defenses effortlessly.
Devon met its gaze, unflinching.
Through his mask, he spoke.
"…You're in my way."
The monster hesitated… then backed away, sensing danger.
Devon stared for a moment, expecting it to test his patience.
But nothing.
Devon walked on, hands still buried in his coat.
Fear told the beast to retreat
But it's instinct told him otherwise.
It chose instinct.
The beast lunged from behind, razor-sharp teeth sinking into his arm, flinging him across the city. He crashed through debris, buildings, walls.
The beast stood still,
From the crumbling structure, a silhouette stepped forward. Lightly patting his coat to rid himself of dusts
Devon's boots crunched, through the rubbles
Although the sounds of sirens and the echoes of screams filled the city, that sound stood out.
Steady.
Deliberate.
He stood before the monster once more, coat tattered, presence suffocating.
"Taking your life changes nothing. Merely an insect in the grand scheme of things."
He spoke as if addressing something that could understand—despite knowing it couldn't.
He pulled his right hand from his pocket. Removed his glove.
And touched the beast's leg.
The monster froze.
Its eyes—once filled with malice—softened.
It looked at Devon like a loyal dog.
Then collapsed.
Its massive body struck the ground, a shockwave cracking the pavement.
Devon walked forward, climbed the beast, and placed his hand on its head.
"Elucin."
And with that the creature's body broke into tiny blue particles, dissolving into the air.
Devon slipped his glove back on and continued walking.
Who would have thought beasts could deserve such painless deaths?
Distant roars echoed through the city.
"You're only delaying the inevitable, Nick," Devon shouted.
Almost immediately, rain began to fall.
The timing felt almost deliberate.
As his entire body got wet
Devon let out a quiet sigh.
"You and I both know how this ends."
With that, he pulled off his second glove.