Location: Zone-9 Kaiju Ruins, Deep Rift Expanse
Objective: Investigate seismic activity, eliminate any emerging Kaiju threat
---
The ground rumbled.
Dust trembled on ancient ruins.
Akira stood in front, his obsidian blade drawn, eyes narrowed as waves of seismic pulses rolled under their boots. Behind him stood Yuki, Reika, and Shin—each poised like a different blade, honed by battle, forged by pain.
Yuki stepped forward, her twin daggers glowing faint blue.
"Reading heat signatures. Something's waking up below."
Reika cracked her knuckles, sparks flying from her body.
"I hope it's big. I skipped breakfast for this."
Shin remained silent, perched on a rock high above them with his sniper trained on the horizon. His breath was still. Measured.
Akira pointed forward.
"Formation Omega. Reika, you're tank. Yuki, mid-flank. Shin, eyes everywhere."
Reika grinned. "Time to break something."
Moments later, the earth cracked open.
A Kaiju emerged, like a monstrous centipede with armored plates and blades for limbs. Its shriek shattered the air.
Yuki dashed to the side, her footwork crisp. Reika charged ahead, fists glowing with stellar power. Akira activated his glaive, which split into dual spears.
Shin's voice clicked in the comms.
"Target's brain core visible. 200 meters from the left mandible."
"Got it," Akira responded.
In under ten seconds, the team exploded into motion. Reika slammed her fist into one of the limbs, shattering it. Shin fired a shot that pierced through a Kaiju eye. Yuki cut her way through the beast's flank with surgical precision.
Then came the finisher.
Akira launched upward, blades spinning.
"Starlight Fang, Final Arc!"
He descended like a comet, striking the Kaiju's brain core in one clean blow. A shockwave spread as the beast collapsed.
Silence.
Then cheers from Nova HQ echoed through the comms.
"Confirmed kill. Kaiju neutralized. Excellent work, Nova Fangs."
As they regrouped, Reika leaned on a broken claw.
"You two work like freakin' soulmates."
Shin nodded. "Your synergy is unnaturally tight."
Yuki glanced at Akira.
He shrugged. "Should we tell them?"
Yuki smirked. "Might as well."
Reika tilted her head. "Tell us what?"
Yuki casually replied, "We're dating."
Reika choked on her water. Shin blinked.
"Wait. Since when?" Reika asked.
Akira smiled. "Since we were five."
---
[Flashback Begins]
Small park, golden afternoon sun.
A young Akira, hair messy and clothes muddy, sat beside little Yuki, who held a stick like it was a sword.
"When I grow up," Akira said, kicking a rock, "I'm gonna protect everyone."
Yuki turned to him. "I'll fight beside you."
He nodded solemnly. "Then we should get married. That way we never leave each other."
Yuki blushed. "Deal. But only if you don't cry when I beat you in sword fights."
Akira grinned. "Promise."
They locked pinkies.
---
[Flashback Ends]
Reika looked stunned. "You're telling me you two lovebirds have been in this for over a decade?"
Yuki nodded. "Been through hell together."
Shin finally spoke. "Intimacy level?"
Akira raised a brow. "...What?"
Reika leaned forward, grin mischievous. "C'mon. You mean to say all that tension didn't lead to anything spicy?"
Yuki rolled her eyes but smirked. "Only a little."
Akira rubbed his neck. "Just... light stuff."
Reika exploded. "ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Are you two, like, protagonists in a slow-burn manga?!"
Shin looked mildly uncomfortable. "I regret asking."
Yuki crossed her arms, standing close to Akira.
"It's not about how far we've gone. It's about how deep the connection runs."
Akira took her hand. "She's my blade. My balance. My everything."
Shin blinked slowly. "Noted."
Reika scoffed. "Alright, alright, this is too much fluff. Can we go punch more monsters now?"
---
Later that night, under a crimson moon, the Nova Fangs sat around a flickering campfire.
Yuki rested her head on Akira's shoulder. Shin cleaned his rifle silently. Reika roasted Kaiju jerky with shocking skill.
"So what now?" Reika asked.
Akira looked into the flames.
"Now we wait. Something big's coming. I can feel it."
Yuki added, "A storm in the stars."
Shin narrowed his eyes at the horizon.
In the distance, the wind howled like an omen