"Are you hurt?"
The voice cut through the ringing in Agnar's ears.
At first, he thought he imagined it. The world felt distant, muffled, like he was underwater. Heat pressed against his skin. Smoke stung his eyes. His head throbbed.
He blinked hard.
Shapes came into focus.
Commander Evrick stood over him, broad shoulders blocking the dark sky. His grey Exterminator jacket was torn at the shoulder, scorched black, sparks still drifting behind him. His expression was calm.
Agnar lifted a hand to his head. His fingers were painted red.
"I'm… alive," he said hoarsely.
"That's enough," Evrick replied. His gaze flicked past Agnar, toward the ruined street where the massive monster tore into a nearby building, concrete crumbling in its claws. "Suit up. Now."
A heavy clang hit the ground beside Agnar.
A crate.
The lid burst open with a hiss of compressed air.
Inside lay his armor.
Black plates with clean, sharp edges. Blue energy lines ran beneath the surface like glowing veins. Beside it rested his MEX katana, sheathed.
"They transported it ahead of us," Evrick said. "You're cleared to engage."
Agnar didn't hesitate.
He strapped his suit on and a surged of power pulsed through him.
The pain he felt earlier dulled.
His breathing steadied.
His thoughts sharpened.
He felt stronger.
Agnar reached back and drew his katana.
The blade shimmered with faint blue light.
Behind him, Ash and the other rookies stood near the helicopter, weapons ready.
"Rookies on standby!" a pro Exterminator shouted. "Do not engage unless ordered!"
Ash gripped his rail weapon so tightly revving to go. "Every cell in my body is reacting to that monster," he muttered.
Agnar nodded once.
Then
The monster shrieked.
Not in pain.
But something else.
Its chest swelled. Its throat bulged.
Then it vomited.
Thick, black sludge poured from its mouth, splashing across the street like oil. The liquid bubbled and twitched.
Then it moved.
Shapes pulled themselves free.
Smaller monsters twisted, half-formed, shrieking as they hit the ground running on too many limbs.
"What the hell is that?!" someone yelled.
"It's spawning!" another screamed. "It's making more!"
The main monster roared again, louder than before.
Agnar's HUD appeared flashing a warning.
THREAT UPDATE: CLASS A
For half a second.
Silence.
Then
"ALL UNITS ENGAGE!" Evrick roared.
The pro Exterminators moved instantly.
One slammed his armored fists together. A shockwave exploded outward, flattening three mini monsters into the pavement. Another leapt high, spinning midair, and released a crescent-shaped energy blade that sliced a spawn clean in half.
Fire tore through the street.
Ice spears burst from the ground, impaling monsters mid-run.
A sound-based Exterminator clapped once and the pressure wave shattered skulls.
The rookies stared in awe.
"So this is what a battle between a pro and a monster looks like," someone said while watching in shock.
"Can't tell who the actual monster is,"
A few of the rookies stared in desperation to join the fight.
"I'm not standing around any longer," Lyra said sharply.
She stepped forward.
Her lance flared bright blue.
She slammed it into the ground.
A pulse rippled outward, freezing several mini monsters mid-stride, ice crawling over their bodies.
"Torren!" she shouted.
The bulky boy roared and charged, his metal gauntlets glowing orange as he crushed frozen monsters with brutal punches.
Zeek fired.
One shot.
One monster's head vanished.
Ash swallowed hard.
"Well," he said, flipping his weapon as it shifted into spear mode. "Guess that's our cue."
Agnar tightened his grip.
"Let's move."
They charged.
Mini monsters broke past the pros.
Agnar met them head-on.
His blade flashed.
One clean strike neck severed, blue energy burning through flesh. Another leapt at him he ducked, spun, and sliced its legs out from under it before finishing it with a downward strike.
The katana felt right in his hand.
Every movement felt natural.
Ash stabbed through a monster's chest and fired at point-blank range, blasting it apart.
Lyra redirected energy pulses, locking monsters in place for others to finish.
Torren tanked hits, roaring as he smashed anything that got close.
Above them.
On a rooftop.
The silhouette moved.
The man stood and began to move his arms slowly.
Wide motions.
Like a conductor guiding an orchestra.
He wore a smooth black mask, glowing markings pulsing faintly across its surface. Behind it, cold eyes watched everything.
He lifted one hand.
The main monster answered with a roar that shook the sky.
Clouds twisted unnaturally, spiraling into a dark mass.
Thunder cracked.
Lightning slammed into the monster's back.
Energy surged through it.
The monster screamed and released a massive shockwave.
Agnar felt it hit like a wall.
His suit flickered.
Then turned off.
Weapons powered down.
Shields vanished.
Lights across the district went dark.
"What happened?!" someone screamed.
"My gear's dead!"
"All tech is offline!"
Civilians screamed as cars crashed and buildings collapsed.
Evrick's eyes widened.
"…This is bad."
The mini monsters charged again.
With no shields and their techs offline.
It grabbed an Exterminator and ripped him in half.
Blood sprayed.
Another was crushed beneath the foot of the class A monster.
A wall collapsed, burying civilians mid-run.
Agnar froze.
Bodies everywhere.
A child lay still near a storefront.
A man crawled toward his wife and collapsed inches from her hand.
His chest tightened.
He had trained for monsters.
Not this.
"Agnar!" Ash shouted.
The word snapped him back.
"Shut up! I'm fine," Agnar yelled. "Tsk... this is looking bad."
He surged forward again, blade flashing, cutting through monsters with raw skill alone.
Then
The rooftop man descended.
He landed lightly on the monster's back.
Slow clap.
"You lasted longer than expected."
He spread his arms.
"Time to paint my new world."
Exterminators opened fire.
The man snapped his fingers.
Mini monsters near them detonated.
Explosions ripped through the line.
Screams followed.
He laughed softly.
Then he glared at Agnar.
He snapped again.
A mini monster exploded
Right in front of Agnar.
The explosion caused tremors
White light swallowed everything.