—
The hum of the energy field buzzed between them like a wall of regret. Ayame stepped back, lowering her blade. Her eyes flickered—just for a moment—with something softer… familiar. Then it vanished.
Kazuki banged on the barrier. "Hoshiro! Can you hear me?!"
"I'm fine," Hoshiro called back without taking his eyes off Ayame. "Stay there."
Ayame circled him. "You've gotten stronger. But strength doesn't erase the past."
"You think I don't carry the weight of what happened?" he said. "That I haven't replayed that night every time I close my eyes?"
"Then you know," she said, voice cold. "This world doesn't need heroes—it needs reckoning."
Suddenly, alarms blared throughout the underground complex. Red lights bathed the lab. A robotic voice echoed:
*"Warning: Level Three breach. Subject E-13 containment failure."*
Ayame's eyes widened. "They woke it up early... Idiots."
From deep within the tunnels, a growl rumbled—low and thunderous, like a mountain shifting. Then a scream.
Kazuki shouted, "What *is* that?!"
Ayame cursed under her breath. "The Syndicate's new weapon. It feeds on energy... especially from powered beings like us."
The barrier fizzled, disrupted by the breach. Hoshiro turned to Kazuki. "Get out of here. Now."But Ayame didn't move.
"You're not running?" he asked.
"I may hate what you stand for," she said, summoning her blade again. "But I'm not letting that thing loose on the city."
The ground shook as a monstrous figure emerged—eight feet tall, with molten skin and jagged spines. Its eyes were bottomless voids.
It roared.
Ayame and Hoshiro stood side by side.
"Just like old times?" he asked.
She smirked. "Don't get sentimental."
They charged.
—