The Core Synthesis God
Chapter 12: The Sanguine Blade Test
The Tier-A energy signature thrown out by Kael's **Blood Core Synthesis** didn't just alert the city; it screamed an invitation to apex predators. Before the marble dust from the shattered roof could settle, the air grew tight, laced with the metallic tang of organized, lethal intent.
Three figures materialized on the adjacent rooftop, moving not with the lumbering corporate aggression of AetherCorp, but with the chilling, silent precision of true assassins. They wore blood-red tactical gear, marked with the crimson dagger: **The Sanguine Blade.**
"Target located," one of them, a woman, stated into a comms unit, her voice modulated to a low hiss. "Confirming Tier-A signature. Prepare for liquidation."
Kael didn't need the confirmation. His **Discipline Core** instantly recognized the quality of their power. These were not Binders; they were **Sanguine Masters**—specialists in lethality cores and high-speed termination.
"Anya, we are outmatched in a static fight," Kael commanded, his eyes blazing with the new, cold fire of the **Ascended Blood Core**. The core was demanding consumption, whispering a constant, hypnotic promise of effortless lethality. Kael fought the urge, holding the power rigidly in check.
Anya, exhausted from maintaining the **Mute Zone**, was now facing the terrifying sight of Kael's new persona—his eyes crimson, his aura dense and chilling. Yet, the sight of the **Sanguine Blade** focused her fear into action.
"I have nothing left for shadows, Kael! I can't hide us!" she warned, pulling a small, ineffective utility knife.
"You don't need to," Kael stated. He reached out, not to touch her, but to command the physics around her. He activated his **Kinetic Control**, reducing her weight to near-zero. "I am your mobility now. We need the element of surprise."
Before the Sanguine Masters could coordinate, Kael acted. He launched himself, using his **Granite/Troll Core** density to generate immense ground force, propelling them both in a single, silent, impossible jump across the wide street gap.
They slammed onto the assassins' rooftop. The Sanguine Masters, masters of speed, were momentarily caught off guard by the sheer, overwhelming **kinetic momentum** of the attack.
The closest assassin, **Blade Alpha**, a towering man, recovered instantly, generating a blade of crimson energy. Kael didn't give him the chance to strike.
This was the first true test of the **Ascended Blood Core.**
Kael lashed out, his hand moving with a speed that defied visual comprehension. He wasn't striking with a fist; he was striking with a **life-siphoning wave**. The **Blood Core** released a concentrated pulse of energy that bypassed the assassin's armor and slammed into his internal power source.
Blade Alpha staggered, his eyes widening in shock as the crimson energy from Kael's hand didn't destroy him, but **consumed** his latent life force. Alpha visibly withered, collapsing in a heap of dead weight and lifeless armor. The Blood Core siphoned the kinetic energy of the hit and the very biological vigor of the target, instantly replenishing Kael's depleted psychic reserves.
*Kael felt the rush—not just of power, but of total, unadulterated **vitalization**.* The exhausted weariness from the synthesis vanished. The **Blood Core** was terrifyingly effective, and the temptation to gorge on its power was almost unbearable.
"One down," Kael muttered, the crimson glint in his eyes sharpening.
The two remaining Sanguine Masters, **Beta** and **Gamma**, reacted with cold, practiced rage. They split their attack—Beta going low with a sweeping scythe of dark energy, and Gamma attacking high with a flurry of lethal shrapnel.
Kael used Anya. He placed his body directly between her and the attacks, maximizing his **Granite/Troll durability**. The scythe slammed into his side; the shrapnel peppered his back. The pain was immense, but the **Kinetic Control** instantly neutralized the force, transferring the residual damage into his **Troll Regeneration**.
*Anya gasped, witnessing the brute force defense. She felt the terrifying warmth of his body shielding her. He was a ruthless monster, yet he put her physical safety before the tactical move.*
"Beta is speed, Gamma is range," Kael hissed, his voice strained but controlled. "Anya, disrupt Beta's footing! Now!"
Despite her depleted energy, Anya understood the command. She created a brief, sharp **Shadow Ripple** directly beneath Beta's feet. The Sanguine Master stumbled, his speed momentarily broken.
Kael used the opening. He didn't run towards Beta; he used **Kinetic Acceleration** to *fly*, crossing the gap in a zero-second burst. He launched a sequence of nine strikes—a perfect, continuous application of his **Tier-A Composite** power.
Every strike landed on the exact same point of Beta's torso armor. The **Granite/Velocity** impact was too much for even a Tier-A defense. The armor buckled, crushed by repeated, focused physical force, not magic.
Kael hit the final strike, and Beta's core failed, the assassin instantly collapsing.
Kael stood over him, breathing heavily. He saw Gamma, the ranged assassin, retreating, already generating a powerful, crimson-laced energy blast that would scorch the entire rooftop.
Kael knew he had seconds. He had to decide: siphon the **Blood Core** from the defeated assassin to ensure his energy reserves for the next fight, or secure Anya and escape.
The **Blood Core** screamed for the energy, promising permanent power gain. His **Discipline Core** ran the calculus: *Acquisition probability: 90%. Risk of exposure to Gamma's ultimate attack: 40%.*
Then he saw Anya, pale and wide-eyed, yet standing ready to fight at his side.
*Risk to Anya: 100% if I pause.*
Kael made a choice that defied all previous strategic logic. He **ignored** the easy core acquisition. He turned to Anya, grabbed her waist, and initiated the ultimate escape.
"Hold on, Shadow Weaver," Kael commanded.
He focused all his **Kinetic Control** on both their bodies. He made Anya near-weightless, and he made his own body a dense projectile. He leaped, not across the street, but **straight up** toward the massive, multi-story skyscraper directly ahead, using the sheer vertical momentum of his **Tier-A Composite** to achieve a superhuman feat.
Gamma's devastating crimson blast hit the roof they had just left, vaporizing the marble and the bodies of his fallen comrades.
Kael slammed into the side of the skyscraper ten stories up, his **Troll/Granite** density absorbing the vertical impact. He clung to the building's edge, holding Anya securely against the wall.
He looked at her, his eyes still faintly crimson, and for the first time, his expression was strained not from pain, but from the immense internal cost of fighting his own core's demands for lethality and prioritizing her over power.
Anya looked back, close enough to feel the terrifying heat of his skin and the rapid rhythm of his heart. She saw the monster, but she also saw the restraint. He had abandoned a vital power-up to save her life.
"You... you didn't take his core," Anya whispered, her face inches from his. "You prioritized me."
"The unit requires the intelligence officer to be functional," Kael rationalized, his voice tight. "Your survival was the most efficient outcome."
But his eyes betrayed the cold logic. The choice was personal. The **Discipline Core** had been overruled by something deeper, something warmer.
"I need you to climb," Kael commanded, his voice returning to the strategic monotone. "I'll anchor us. We need to lose the altitude tracer. Now, Shadow Weaver. The Sanguine Blade is not finished."
As Anya began the arduous climb, clinging to the metallic seams of the building, she knew the terms of their alliance had irrevocably shifted. He was still the strategist, still the monster, but now she was the one variable he couldn't calculate, and the one person he couldn't afford to lose.
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**Chapter 12 complete.**