District 9 — Industrial Zone — The Soundproofing Factory
The target location was ironic: an abandoned factory that used to manufacture acoustic foam.
The warehouse was massive, filled with towering stacks of rotting foam and rusted machinery. It was the quietest place in the city.
Renji, Aeva, and Kazuki crouched on a catwalk forty feet above the floor.
Renji signaled with his hand: Two guards at the North door. One patroller. Silencer is likely in the central office.
"Kazuki," Renji whispered over the comms. "You take the floor. Draw their fire. Aeva and I will flank."
"I'm the distraction?" Kazuki asked, gripping his new staff.
"You're the tank," Renji corrected. "Go."
Kazuki didn't argue. He jumped.
He fell forty feet.
In mid-air, he extended the Fulcrum Staff.
CLACK.
He slammed the end of the staff into the concrete floor as he landed.
BOOM.
The Kinetic Release feature triggered. A shockwave rippled out, knocking over stacks of foam and sending the three guards flying before they could even raise their weapons.
"Showtime!" Kazuki yelled.
The door to the central office burst open.
The Silencer stepped out. He looked angry.
"Noise," he hissed. "Disgusting, chaotic noise."
He raised his dual tuning forks.
HMMMMMM.
The vibration wave hit Kazuki.
Yesterday, this would have crippled him.
Today?
[SONIC DAMPENERS: ACTIVE.]
Kazuki's helmet glowed amber. The screeching noise was reduced to a dull hum. He stood his ground.
The Silencer tilted his head. "New toys? No matter."
He struck the forks together violently. CONCUSSIVE BLAST.
An invisible cannonball of air shot toward Kazuki.
Kazuki didn't dodge.
He remembered Renji's lesson: It eats momentum.
Kazuki spun the staff and planted it firmly in front of him.
"Absorb!" he shouted.
The blast hit the staff.
The black metal hummed, vibrating wildly as it drank the kinetic energy. The force was immense—Kazuki's boots slid backward across the concrete, carving grooves in the floor—but he didn't break.
The Silencer's eyes widened behind his mask. "That... is not possible."
"My turn," Kazuki gritted out.
He thumbed the release switch.
He swung the staff like a baseball bat, aiming at nothing but the air between them.
The stored energy released in a concentrated beam of pure force.
KRAKOOM.
The blast hit The Silencer dead center.
The villain was launched backward through the glass window of his own office.
"Clear!" Renji shouted, dropping from the ceiling with his rifle raised.
Renji and Aeva stormed the office.
Kazuki ran after them, his heart pounding. "I got him! Did you see that? I got him!"
They entered the office.
The Silencer was lying against the back wall, groaning, his armor cracked.
Renji had his boot on The Silencer's chest, rifle aimed at his head.
"Baron Ryx," Renji said coldly. "You're under arrest by the authority of... well, us."
The Silencer laughed. Blood leaked from his mask.
"You think... you caught me?" he wheezed. "I was just the alarm clock."
Renji frowned. "What?"
"The Helix... they don't care about a few soldiers," Ryx coughed. "They care about the data. And I just uploaded it."
Ryx looked at Kazuki.
"They have your biometric signature now, boy. Every camera in Tokyo is looking for you. You can wear a helmet... you can hide in a hole... but The Cursed King is coming."
Renji's face went pale. "Kaelen Rhyne? He's here?"
The Silencer grinned.
"He arrives... at midnight."
BEEP.
A red light on The Silencer's chest began to flash rapidly.
"Bomb!" Aeva screamed. "Suicide vest!"
"Move!" Renji roared.
He grabbed Kazuki and Aeva and tackled them through the back window, out into the alleyway.
BOOM.
The entire office exploded. Fireball erupted into the night sky, consuming the factory.
The Silencer was gone.
They landed hard in the wet alleyway, covered in debris and ash.
Kazuki sat up, coughing. "He... he blew himself up just to send a message?"
Renji stood up, brushing glass off his shoulder. He looked at the burning building, his expression darker than Kazuki had ever seen.
"No," Renji said quietly. "He blew himself up because he was more afraid of failing Kaelen Rhyne than he was of dying."
Renji turned to Kazuki.
"We have to go. We have two hours until midnight. If The Cursed King is coming... this isn't a skirmish anymore."
Renji checked his ammo clip.
"It's a war."
[To Be Continued…]