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Chapter 10: "The Last Sting"
The skies boiled red.
Lightning crackled over the broken ruins of Shrey's hometown. Fires raged in the distance. All of his friends were gone. Adi's body still smoked where he had fallen. Mr. Okashun had vanished in a final burst of light, his final strike having torn half of the Queen's carapace off… but not enough.
And now…
Only two warriors remained.
Captain Jacks stood tall, shirtless, blood dripping from a dozen wounds, left arm cracked, ribs broken. Zaid lay unconscious nearby—drained after controlling three legendary summons at once.
The Queen Bee, barely standing, her once-glorious golden wings now tattered, her stinger dripping a mix of black ichor and human blood, glared at the last threat.
Captain Jacks cracked his knuckles.
"It's time I ended this."
The Queen hissed, charging him with all the hate of a species long forgotten by mercy. Her roar shattered boulders.
FLASHBACK – CHIBI MOMENT #4:
(Young Shrey and Maya, chibi-style, hiding behind a rock during training.)
Shrey (nervous): "Is it me, or is Captain Jacks... terrifying?"
Maya (blushing): "Not as terrifying as my right hook."
She punches him. Again.
Captain Jacks appears behind them chibi-style: "You two are dead."
Both scream in tiny terror.
BACK TO REALITY
Captain Jacks stepped into his full power—something no trainee had ever witnessed.
His left eye opened wide. The iris fractured into twelve spinning rings.
> "Summon Archive Beasts: Final Sequence—'Chimera Core' Access."
The ground split.
A new creature erupted—a towering fusion of hydra, phoenix, and thunder wolf. It roared as it absorbed Jacks's blood, bonding to his soul.
Captain Jacks fused with the beast.
Electric blue scales ran up his arms. Wings of white flame exploded from his back. His hair turned ghost-white. A divine hum echoed from his body.
The Queen charged—one last time.
The battlefield shifted. For every step she took, Jacks took two—dodging, flying, warping around her in bursts of light and flame. He read her every move before she made it.
Then—
He whispered, "Goodbye."
And moved faster than time.
He delivered twelve precise strikes—one for every student who had died, every comrade lost, every future that was stolen. Each strike carved glowing kanji into her carapace.
Hope. Memory. Rage. Sacrifice. Unity. Fire. Blood. Legacy. Spirit. Soul. Will. Shrey.
On the final strike, he summoned all his power into his right fist and punched clean through the Queen's chest.
"SHREY'S LEGACY—IMPACT!"
Time stopped.
The Queen's body cracked like glass, shattered, and then exploded into a golden mist that covered the battlefield like snow.
Captain Jacks landed slowly, panting. Knees hit the dirt.
He looked around… silence.
Then a faint, golden voice echoed in the wind—Shrey's voice.
> "They weren't just my friends, Captain… They were my family. Thank you… for protecting them."
Captain Jacks smiled, barely holding back tears.
"Rest easy, kid."
He fell backward, unconscious.
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Chapter Ends.