CHAPTER 40: BURNING BONES

"My brother, Kade. He’s one of the Twelve Fangs." Ren muttered, his voice low. "Kaien was the one who confirmed it. He ran into him before some girl with portal powers like Warden Valen’s, showed up. I think he’s after me."

As soon as the words left Ren’s mouth, silence lingered in the air as the guys tried to process the information they just received.

Ren froze, expecting anger, accusations, or even doubt about his loyalty to ZEAL. After all, anyone else would have asked the obvious question. Would he choose ZEAL, or his brother?

But none of them did. Not one.

Instead, they understood. They saw how heavy the truth already weighed on him. For Ren, finding out that his long lost brother had become one of the Twelve Fangs, the very enemies ZEAL was preparing to face, was already a cruel twist of fate. They didn’t need to make it harder.

Sora stepped forward, her movements slow and deliberate, before wrapping her arms around him. Ren stiffened at first, caught off guard, but the warmth of her embrace rested in him as relief and sorrow tangled inside his chest.

"I can’t pretend to know the weight you’re carrying." Sora said softly, tightening her hold, "but I can promise you this, our squad, your friends, we’ll carry it with you. You won’t face any of this alone."

The words hit deep in him. Ren’s throat tightened, and for the first time in a long while, the storm in his heart eased. The fact that he didn’t have to bear it all by himself. It was more than enough.

"Don’t worry. I won’t turn my back on ZEAL or on you guys. I’ll knock some sense into my brother." Ren muttered.

"I know you won’t." Sora said softly, pulling away from the hug as the others smiled at him.

"I guess that means we’ll have to knock some sense into your brother too, huh?" Seth added with a grin.

"No wonder you’re strong. I guess it runs in the family," Miko teased only to get smacked on the head by Sora, making the group burst into laughter.

After a short while, the time to depart finally arrived. As ZEAL’s joint group marched toward the 10th Ward, the air grew heavy with tension. Each step carried the weight of what awaited them. They all knew that they had to face endless swarms of Ashes, Shikkoku’s soldiers, and, if fate was cruel, perhaps even one of the Twelve Fangs.

To squad 4, this mission was unlike their usual operations where they needed to hide and gather information in the dark. This time, ZEAL demanded nothing less than their full might where they would stand shoulder to shoulder with the others on the frontlines. Only Seth and Miko were assigned to operate from a distance as they joined the combined sniper unit of the other squads.

The calm before the storm pressed on their shoulders, and with every heartbeat, the reality of the coming battle drew closer.

They arrived at Ward 10, and what greeted them was both shocking and heartbreaking. The 10th Ward was unlike the others, its very design made it memorable. It was built two stories below ground level as it stretched out like a colossal crater carved into the earth, a landscape that once set it apart from the rest.

But that wasn’t what truly shocked them, or at least, not those who had seen it before. This ward was different. Unlike the other chaotic wards where citizens still struggle for survival despite living in constant fear, this one was already nothing more than a ruin. Buildings leaned like broken statues and many reduced completely to rubble. The streets were cracked open, smothered in dust, and the air itself was thick with ash. Hundreds of Ashes roamed the wasteland, as if already waiting for their arrival.

The moment the swarm caught sight of their group who were nearly a hundred with the combined squads, the sky darkened under a sudden storm of molten rock thrown at them by the Ashes, raining down like a merciless meteor shower.

Every member tensed, even Ren, as the fiery projectiles closed in. Only the three wardens and Shin stood their ground with their eyes steady.

Then, in a blur of motion, Rago launched himself up in the sky, fire blazing on his feet. Then Drive Core energy blazed around his fist, flames spiraling and compressing into his knuckles. With a yell, he punched into the air, aiming straight at the projectiles.

For a second, there was silence. Then the sky ignited. The molten barrage erupted into flames midair, scattering into smoldering fragments that streaked past him like remnants of a dying star.

"Incoming! Aeri! Shin!" Rago shouted.

Before the projectiles could strike, Aeri and Shin raised a massive barrier, a wall of solid yellow and violet energy that shielded the group entirely.

As Rago landed and the barrier dissolved after neutralizing the barrage, Aeri wasted no time.

"Miko, now!"

Miko immediately deployed two drones. The first soared above the Ashes, unleashing a torrent of sand that rained down like a suffocating storm. The scorching flames on the Ashes’ bodies sputtered and weakened, though not yet extinguished.

His second drone followed, releasing a flood of water that poured over the battlefield like a heavy downpour. The Ashes, once burning soldiers, were reduced to molten, crumbling husks.

With the drones suppressing the enemy, Rago and the squad charged forward, while the snipers picked off the Ashes with precise shots to their vital points, slowing their movements down.

Rago crushed through the Ashes with sheer brute force, his fiery fists exploding on impact and turning enemies into dust. Aeri and Shin followed up, unleashing a relentless storm of gravity and light beams that cut down a huge number of Ashes in seconds.

In the shadows, Valen moved with quiet grace, every swing of his blade ended another one, sharp and deadly, yet almost beautiful in its precision.

The rest of the squad caught up, quickly diving into the chaos as the battlefield grew more and more heavy.

Ren, however, was different. His figure blurred like a streak of lightning, darting through the horde. Some Ashes fell instantly to his katana, while others were bound by glowing chains of thunder, left helpless for his allies to finish. He attacked and supported at the same time, weaving through the chaos without pause.

Ren, you’ve grown so much. Sora’s eyes followed him as he cut through the battlefield, her chest tightening with both awe and pride. He wasn’t the same guy she once knew. He had become someone strong, someone who could carry others.

"I’m not letting you take all the glory!" Sora grinned as she dashed across the battlefield.

Kaela backed her up, raising walls of petals to block incoming attacks and clearing a path for her toward the Ash. Sora moved swiftly, eyes scanning until she spotted it, the Ash’s core, glowing near its throat.

Without hesitation, she threw one dagger into the creature’s right eye, blinding it. By the time it roared and stumbled, Sora was already behind it, slashing its throat in one clean motion.

"I’m sorry, rest now." She whispered.

Just meters away from her, Minato, Isamu, and Botan fought in sync. Minato’s thorny branches bound a huge number of Ashes, holding them in place as Botan and Isamu struck the finishing blows.

Seth, meanwhile, made the fight look easy. His bullets curved and twisted like serpents through the air, striking weak points with deadly accuracy. Each shot cut down an Ash’s movements, giving his allies the advantage.

The battle seemed to shift in their favor, the Ashes falling one by one. But even as victory neared, Ren’s chest tightened. It was going too smoothly. Too easy. He was glad they were winning with few losses, yet the absence of Zarveth and the Shikkoku clawed at him. His heart beat faster, uneasy in the silence that lingered behind the chaos.

As they burned away the last of the ashes, the group finally began to relax. The wardens moved in to clean up, and the tension seemed to ease.

Sora and the others smiled faintly, breathing hard after the fight. But Ren’s grip on his katana stayed firm.

This is too easy, he thought. Squad 7 alone could’ve handled this, yet they gathered a whole force. Something’s not right. And Zarveth, he hasn’t shown himself either.

Rago struck down the final Ash. He stood still afterward, eyes narrowing, while Valen and Aeri joined him.

"Something’s wrong," Aeri muttered.

"Yeah," Rago said. "Zarveth hasn’t shown up yet."

"The fight ended too easily." Valen added. "We may need to push deeper into the ward."

Minato stepped closer to Ren.

"Thinking the same thing as me?" He asked.

Ren nodded. "Yeah. The man who tried to kill you and Zarveth, they’re both missing. They haven’t made their move yet."

Minato’s expression turned serious before answering. "Then it’s not time to celebrate."

Rago’s voice echoed across the ruined battlefield, commanding the attention of everyone present.

"Listen up! The fight might not be over, so stay sharp! The three of us are still deciding whether we’ll push deeper into the ward. Until then, stand by, but don’t you dare let your guard down!"

The instant his words faded, the ground trembled. Four massive tesla towers erupted upward, crackling with energy as they linked together, forming a dome of dark blue aura that sealed the entire battlefield in a split second.

Without hesitation, Rago, Aeri, and Valen shot toward the sky, aiming to shatter the barrier. But before they could even reach its surface, a deafening shockwave exploded within the dome. The vibration ripped through the air, forcing all three back down to the ground.

Inside the barrier, every member collapsed to their knees, holding their heads as an unbearable, piercing headache tore through their minds. The entire dome pulsed with a resonance that felt as though it was trying to split their skulls apart.

"Agh...! What is this?!" Aeri gasped, clutching her head as her knees buckled.

"Some kind of sound attack? Or shockwave?" Rago gritted his teeth, trying to endure it.

"That barrier, if we don’t break it, we’ll be stuck here forever!" Valen added.

As if to answer him, in the ruins of a half collapsed skyscraper nearby, two figures stepped out of the shadows. One was a massive, hooded man with smoke spilling off his shoulders like mist. The other had long, white hair like snow that reached his back, and wore the unmistakable jacket of the Fangs.

The white haired man let out a dry cough. "Ahem, ahem, I suppose introductions are in order." He smirked, eyes gleaming with amusement. "I am Rikael the Soundless. Fang Number Two. I’m just here to lend my friend Zarveth a hand."

Then his grin widened. "So, how’s my Core Release treating you? Painful, isn’t it?"