In space.
The attacker-class personal spacecraft darted like a fish in water, weaving nimbly through the overwhelming barrage of laser fire.
Countless particle laser beams crisscrossed the battlefield, forming an intricate net of energy in space.
But the attacker-class ship, piloted with extraordinary skill, flipped and twisted at impossible angles, slipping through the deadly web. At times, it barely avoided the lasers, which left black scorch marks across its hull.
"What's going on with that ship?"
Captain Larkin, leading a well-formed squadron, furrowed his bearded face in confusion.
Both sides were holding formation, yet someone had suddenly broken ranks and charged forward alone. What did it mean?
An unmanned craft?
A suicide run?
A probing dogfight?
"Cover fire. Bring it down."
Unable to make sense of it, Captain Larkin gave the order.
Immediately, the dark expanse of space lit up with energy fire. The laser web came alive again, unleashing full power and directing it toward the lone attacker.
No matter how skilled the pilot was, it was impossible to avoid the concentrated firepower of the laser net.
Boom...
The fishlike ship was struck immediately. Its hull was shredded by laser fire. Explosions erupted at the rear engine as the cascading energy barrage tore through it.
The once-nimble vessel burst into flames in space, its destruction inevitable.
But in that very instant...
From the center of the explosion, a slender black figure, bursting with unmatched power, tore through the fire and emerged.
Faora's face was grim, her slim figure clad in Kryptonian battle armor, which gleamed coldly with a violent edge.
She shot from the flames. The black cape behind her fluttered wildly in the vacuum, then clung tightly to her back from the force of her acceleration.
Like a meteor, kinetic flames scorched at her forehead, her short-cropped hair swept back. Her rigid, cold face radiated a will to sacrifice as she streaked toward Earth.
"Cease fire. Let her through!"
In an instant, Hera's supreme command echoed across communications.
Captain Larkin froze. He hadn't expected the pilot to be a woman, charging directly at Earth.
Upon hearing Hera's command, he immediately suspended the attack. His squadron opened a path, allowing Faora to descend unimpeded.
Faora dove through the opening left by Captain Larkin's squad, plummeting straight toward Earth.
Fiercer than any meteor, she pierced the atmosphere. Flames ignited around her, and she turned into a blazing comet above the skies of Metropolis.
Boom...
Faora crashed down, landing on Ninth Street in the heart of Metropolis.
The impact shattered the street. Lane markings cracked, and asphalt split open, creating a massive crater over 300 meters wide. Buildings collapsed. Dust surged into the sky.
Civilians screamed in terror. Car alarms wailed from the seismic rebound of her landing.
Faora knelt slightly at the crater's center, absorbing the shock. Her black cloak slipped down, already scorched at the edges from the extreme atmospheric reentry.
Her eyes glowed fiercely. She reached up and tore the burning cape from her back.
Amid the dust, she stepped forward like a warrior descending from legend, her boots crunching over the shattered streets of the city. She lifted her chin, eyes unwavering, filled with steel-like resolve.
Above her, the Emperor Building—the tallest structure in the world—shone gold under the slanted sunlight.
Bardi rose into view, bathed in the golden light of the sun, hovering like a divine figure above Metropolis, facing Faora.
The sun was at his back, casting his towering silhouette forward. His face, shadowed beneath the light, was still, complex, and unreadable as he descended before her.
The scene looked like a masterfully painted oil portrait, rich with heavy, solemn tones.
There were no words.
No dialogue.
"Ah..."
Faora's veins bulged around her eyes, inflamed by heat. She charged toward Bardi with explosive steps, shattering the street beneath her. Her eyes blazed red-hot, unleashing twin blasts of searing heat vision.
Fwoosh
The beams tore through the air, distorting it with visible ripples.
The twin heat rays slammed into Bardi's chest like high-speed trains crashing into a mountain.
Bardi's body swayed slightly, but his feet remained unmoved, planted as if nailed in place. His figure quickly returned to stillness.
The heat vision exploded against his chest, sparking flames with every impact, but it was not enough to shake him.
The heat only scorched his skin, no more than the sensation of a lighter grazing human flesh. It burned, yes, but in a way that carried with it something deeper—complex, unspeakable emotion.
Even with Krypton destroyed and their past gone, the tangled feelings between Bardi and Faora could not be erased.
As Faora had said, the only way to end it was for her to kill Bardi, or for Bardi to kill her.
Only then could love and hatred be resolved.
Her heat vision continued to blast his chest. Then she exhaled sharply. Her cheeks puffed, lips parted, and she unleashed a freezing breath at his burned skin. Hot and cold collided in an instant.
Her eyes burned with anger and sorrow. She began punching Bardi's chest like a machine gun, fists hammering at the ice-covered surface.
Bang bang bang bang bang bang bang...
The relentless sonic booms stirred up a hurricane, blasting dust in every direction and burying the scene in a sandstorm.
Faora gritted her teeth. Her face was cold, her eyes pained and mad. Her fists, unused to direct combat without sun exposure, turned red and swollen from the force.
So this is what you've become…
You no longer need my training. You're no longer the recruit I mentored, no longer the captain who once followed my lead.
…You're no longer…
Suddenly, Bardi raised his hand, fingers shaped like a blade.
Direct and precise.
Faora felt a pang in her chest. She stopped punching, closed her eyes, and lifted her chin.
Her sharp and elegant face caught the sunlight, smiling faintly in sorrow. She accepted her fate, prepared for execution.
Bardi's eyes flickered.
As he looked at Faora's delicate face, cold but familiar, he was overwhelmed by memories—of training sessions, of Krypton, of battles and emotions long buried.
Dust danced in the sunlight. For a moment, it felt like they were the only two people in the world.
It felt like being back on Krypton, in the training room again.
Suddenly—
The knife-hand strike sliced through the air and landed squarely on her forehead.
Boom!
Faora's body dropped, her lower half embedded in the ground like a half-buried pillar. Her head tilted to the side, unconscious.
(To be continued.)
***
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