The forest stretched endlessly, ancient trees towering high with their roots tangled deep in the earth. Flowers bloomed in every shade, ponds shimmered with sunlight, and herds of peaceful creatures grazed beneath the watchful gaze of the mountains. It was a place of life and beauty, untouched by the outside world.
A black hare hopped toward a carrot patch, its ears twitching. Suddenly—fwip!—an arrow sliced through the air. The hare froze, but the shaft whistled past, thudding into a tree and burying itself dead center in a crudely painted target.
From the underbrush, a boy stepped out. His clothes were stitched from bison hide, his white hair neatly combed despite the wild. A bow rested in his hands, a quiver slung across his back.
"Practice does pay off," he muttered, satisfied. "I've finally mastered archery. One more skill to help me survive in the wild."
The hare bounded toward him, and he crouched, letting it leap into his arms. He stroked its soft fur, smiling faintly.
"Now… where's Mom?" he murmured, scratching his head. "She always warns me not to wander off alone—" he huffed, scuffing the dirt with his boot.
Deep within the forest, beyond a curtain of waterfalls, his mother sat in meditation. Liphina's long black hair draped over her shoulders, her body wrapped in light training garments. She exhaled slowly, and a radiant aura shimmered around her—first pure white, then fading into a calm azure glow that rippled across the water's surface.
The waterfall rose unnaturally, droplets breaking apart into billions of tiny orbs. They spun with supersonic speed, colliding and splitting, until the stronger absorbed the weaker. Four thousand droplets danced before her, darting across the clearing, each crashing into the other in violent sparks of energy.
At last, she opened her eyes. The orbs dissolved into the water, vanishing as though they had never existed.
"It seems Shintara is safe," she whispered to herself. "Good. Then… back to training."
The forest darkened as clouds rolled across the sky.
Crunch. Crunch.
Liphina's eyes narrowed. "That's the worst sneaking I've ever heard."
From the bushes, her son emerged. His head sank.
"Sorry, Mom…"
Her tone sharpened. "What are you doing this deep in the forest?"
"You left me halfway across it!" Shintara snapped. "You know I don't know this place well."
Liphina studied him, unimpressed. "Didn't you say you wanted to explore every part of the forest? To discover herbs and learn survival? Consider this… training."
He grumbled, then walked over to sit beside her. "Yeah… I guess."
"Mom…" he began hesitantly.
She turned to him. "What is it?"
"Ever since we came to this island… I've wondered. What are we, really?"
Her voice was calm, but her words sharp. "You are Jarozatsura."
"Jarozatsura?" he echoed, confused.
He thought for a moment, then his eyes widened. "Wait—you mean… I'm a descendant of Karash…?" The excitement in his voice quickly faltered as her cold glare silenced him.
"You've been disobeying me, haven't you?"
Shintara flinched. "Sorry, Mom. I… I couldn't resist."
Her lips curved into a knowing smirk. "And what tempted you?"
"The title."
Before she could scold him further, he bolted to his feet and ran off laughing. Liphina shook her head, rising after him.
"Silly boy."
Far beyond the island, the sea boiled as a massive vessel tore through the skies, crashing into the waves. The impact shook the waters, scattering fish and sending herds of antelope fleeing. More ships descended behind it, their hulls hissing with steam as they forced themselves to shore.
From the lead craft stepped three towering figures—green-skinned, armored, their helmets glowing with oxygen indicators. One glanced at the readings and nodded.
"Atmosphere stable. Deploy the first stage troops."
The ship's doors thundered open.
GRAM! GRAM! GRAM!
Three hundred soldiers marched out in synchronized steps, exoskeleton suits gleaming, weapons bristling with alien technology. Their footfalls shattered gravel, sending animals bolting into the undergrowth.
Then a shadow loomed over them—a beast twelve feet tall, a tiger standing upright with the physique of a man. His voice rumbled like an earthquake.
"Troops!"
The army froze in disciplined silence.
"This is a top-tier mission," the beast roared. "To claim our rightful place, we must bring those criminals to justice. Do you understand?"
"Yes, sir!" the soldiers thundered back.
At his signal, the army surged forward, their armored strides swift as predators.
On a high branch, Liphina crouched, eyes hard. Below her, Shintara clutched his hare tightly.
"Mom? What's wrong?" he asked nervously.
"They're here…" she whispered. She opened her hands as a long sheathed sword appeared out of nowhere.
Her gaze didn't waver. "Shintara, run home. Stay inside. Do not come out, no matter what."
She vanished into the treetops, darting from branch to branch in a blur.
"Be careful… Mom," Shintara murmured, then turned and sprinted toward their hut.
Deeper in the forest, one hundred soldiers slowed their pace. Silence pressed in, broken only by the rustling of leaves.
"Remember our agreement," said Gonmara, their commander. "No animal is to be harmed."
A blue-skinned officer, snake-eyed with a long tail coiling behind him, sneered. "You Bhiriians always sound so righteous. But when the Second Stage arrives, this forest will burn anyway."
"Watch your tongue, Anzy," Gonmara growled. He pulled off his mask, revealing human features—except for his blood-red eyes. "One mistake, and it'll be your last."
Anzy smirked, unfazed. "Impressive. You can breathe here too…"
Before Gonmara could reply, a roar split the air.
RRRROOOAAARRR!
The ground shook. Weapons snapped up.
From the brush emerged a tigress, massive and feral, her growl vibrating the forest itself.
Anzy smirked, but instantly found Gonmara aiming his gun at him.
"Don't even think of it," Gonmara warned, before shifting his focus back to the threat.
The tigress kept growling, her fangs bared. A soldier fired an electric bullet, shocking her—but she shrugged it off. With a deafening roar, she charged at the soldier. He met her with a punch from his exoskeleton fist, sending her sprawling. The tigress rose again, only to be blasted by another troop member. The energy tore through her hide.
"No holding back. This is the direct order of the High Chief…" the soldier declared coldly.
Anzy laughed, and the troops continued their march.
Far away, a pack of black dire wolves streaked through the forest at 100 km/h, rushing straight toward a nearby squad.
"Inspector! Wolves incoming, 50 degrees west!" one soldier shouted. "Requesting battle output: 100."
"Request granted."
The squad aimed and fired. Laser blasts filled the air—until, from the shadows, a second pack of brown-furred wolves lunged into the fray.
One soldier shot a black wolf and grinned—until another slammed him down from behind and ripped his head clean off. Blood poured onto the soil. Chaos erupted as lasers blurred, blood sprayed, and wolves tore through armor. At last, only a few remained. They glared at their fallen kin, then turned their fury toward the next squad.
Liphina arrived in silence. Closing her eyes, she unleashed a white aura, which flared and deepened into brilliant green. Her eyes snapped open, glowing emerald, as she laid her hands on the wounded wolves. Instantly, their wounds sealed.
The wolves rose, bowed their heads in respect, and vanished into the trees.
"And now… it's my turn," Liphina whispered before vanishing into thin air.
Meanwhile, at another squad's position, Gonmara halted. Ahead stood a small house, its entrance guarded by thirty dire wolves.
"This is going to be difficult," Gonmara muttered.
Anzy's eyes glowed as his x-ray vision pierced the walls. He spotted Shintara trembling beneath a table.
"Target sighted," Anzy reported.
"She inside?" Gonmara asked.
"No. Just the kid," Anzy replied, already aiming his gun.
The troops unleashed volleys at the wolves, laser blasts exploding around the clearing. The wolves, stunned, snarled and counterattacked.
Inside, Shintara crouched under the table, his body trembling as the explosions shook the house.
"Why are they after us…?" he whispered.
Suddenly, the wolves' eyes blazed red. Their bodies swelled, muscles rippling, as they transformed mid-battle. One blurred forward, slicing clean through a soldier's armor with a single swipe.
"Battle output: maximum power," Anzy commanded. His armor pulsed as he struck a lunging wolf with a devastating punch, hurling it through the air.
The rest of the soldiers followed, their suits surging with maximum output, and the tide began to turn.
Gonmara fired electric tasers, shocking wolf after wolf—but they pushed through the jolts, relentless.
Elsewhere in the forest, thirty soldiers stood guard over a clearing littered with the bloodied corpses of thirty hyenas. Their grips tightened on their rifles.
Liphina appeared atop a tree branch. Instantly, every barrel turned toward her. A blue flame aura surged around her, her eyes burning sapphire.
"That's her!" a soldier shouted.
They opened fire.
But Liphina vanished, reappearing behind one soldier. His head fell before the others even turned.
"Sorry… but this is where your journey ends," she said coldly.
"Shoot her!" the commander roared.
At supersonic speed, she zigzagged across the battlefield. Laser fire whizzed by, never close enough. She ducked, twisted, and her blade sang—each slice igniting her victims in searing blue fire until they crumbled to ash.
"Ashes," she murmured as the flames consumed the last soldier.
Blood dripped from her lips. She spat it aside.
"This damned ceil…" she muttered, before charging forward once more.
At the shoreline, massive missile launchers lined the coast.
"Begin the Second Stage Invasion!" Lisk commanded.
Fifty missiles roared into the sky, each one carrying the force to annihilate a full kilometer.
Bison herds thundered across the plains as a missile locked onto them. The leader looked back—it was already ten meters behind—
BOOM!
The explosion engulfed the valley. Yet the bison reappeared elsewhere, safe, as if displaced. At the blast's center, Liphina stood unharmed, her aura shimmering.
"So this is their next tactic… well, they've succeeded in provoking me," she muttered, slashing apart another missile midair before it could detonate.
Lisk stood atop a towering boulder he had raised with earth-bending, his green aura flaring. He smirked.
More missiles rained down. Forests collapsed in firestorms.
"Now let's see your response—tch!" His smirk vanished as a colossal wave surged across the shore. It wasn't destructive, but its force shattered his boulder beneath him.
The soldiers tensed, sweat beading on their foreheads. Then—an overwhelming pressure flooded the air.
The sea trembled. The very earth groaned. A devastating aura swept across the battlefield, forcing every soldier, even Lisk, to their knees. Blood spilled from their mouths. Launchers erupted in flames.
"Such a powerful Rampage…" Lisk groaned. "I've never felt pain like this before."
He staggered, his defenses buckling. "Even with my Core Chura… I can only resist thirty percent of this pressure…"
Back at the house, the first squad still battled regenerating wolves. Gonmara dropped one with a precise shot—then froze as a wave washed over him. His eyes widened in horror, memories clawing back.
The Rampage…
The crushing aura slammed them all to the ground. The house shook violently.
Inside, Shintara clung to the floor, yet the pressure never touched him.
"Mom's… Rampage," he whispered.
At the shore, the Rampage subsided. Soldiers gasped, staggering back to their feet, blood still dripping. Lisk wiped his mouth, but his grin returned.
"All five hundred Second Stage soldiers, regroup!" he barked.
From the smoke, Liphina walked forward, her white aura blazing, her presence unshakable.
Lisk narrowed his eyes. "Her Chura is… phenomenal. I suppose it's up to me now."
She stopped before them, her gaze sharp.
"So you finally reveal yourself…" Lisk said. "On behalf of the Younasaxo Organisation, I demand you surrender."
Liphina's glare cut through him. "You slaughtered innocents. You destroyed the homes of animals. Explain yourself."
"It's protocol," Lisk replied smoothly. "We were granted permission by Authority to use this portion of the island as a war zone. And with 12.4 million square miles of territory, there's more than enough space for them." Lisk said with menacing grin.
Liphina pointed her sword at them. "Very well then let's do this."