Chapter 5: Shadow Amid Chaos

Screams echoed through the streets, drowning out the distant roar of the military's futile efforts. Elena had been working her usual shift at a local coffee shop when the gates opened, and the world as she knew it changed forever. The sky had darkened, as if the very sun itself cowered behind the monstrous portal. At first, it seemed like some bizarre natural phenomenon—maybe a freak weather event or some strange atmospheric occurrence. People crowded near windows, recording it with their phones, laughing nervously at the sheer oddity of the sight.

Then came the dragons.

The first one tore through the gate, a hulking mass of red scales and beating wings that sent shockwaves through the air with every movement. Its roar was a deafening, guttural sound that shook buildings and made Elena's bones feel like they would shatter from the vibration alone. People stopped recording. Phones slipped from trembling hands as the beast soared above the city, its enormous shadow casting an eerie gloom over the streets below.

When the fire came, it was chaos.

Elena remembered the sharp hiss of superheated air as the dragon opened its maw and unleashed a torrent of flames that devoured everything in its path. Cars melted into pools of liquid metal, buildings crumbled under the intense heat, and people… people were incinerated before they could even scream. The coffee shop she had been working in was spared for the first few moments, its reinforced windows shaking violently but holding.

Someone screamed, "Run!"

She didn't need to be told twice. Grabbing her coworker's arm, Elena bolted out the back door, her heartbeat hammering in her ears. Outside, the scene was worse than anything she could have imagined. The street was a battlefield. Smoke billowed from burning cars and shattered buildings, and the air was filled with the acrid stench of charred flesh. People ran in every direction, pushing and trampling each other in their desperation to escape.

And then the second dragon appeared.

This one was smaller but no less terrifying. Its deep blue scales shimmered ominously as it descended upon the streets, crushing a bus under its massive claws. Soldiers from the local military unit opened fire, their bullets pinging harmlessly off the beast's armored hide. Tanks rolled in, launching shells that exploded against the dragon's scales, but it didn't even flinch.

Elena dove behind a crumbling wall, pulling her coworker down with her. "What the hell is happening?!" her friend sobbed, clutching her arm tightly.

"I don't know!" Elena whispered back, her voice shaking. "This… this isn't real. It can't be real."

A sudden crash sent both women sprawling as a nearby building collapsed, sending up a cloud of dust and debris. Elena coughed violently, her lungs burning as she tried to drag herself to her feet. She could hear the sounds of more dragons now—multiple roars reverberating through the city like the drums of an apocalyptic symphony.

Above them, the red dragon circled back, its fiery breath lighting up the evening sky like a hellish sunset. The military had brought in helicopters, their missiles streaking toward the beast in a desperate bid to bring it down. But the dragon twisted in mid-air, its massive tail swiping through the air and smashing the helicopters like toys. Fireballs rained down on the streets below, spreading chaos and destruction even further.

Elena felt the ground shake beneath her as the blue dragon landed nearby, its massive claws sinking into the pavement. For a moment, she froze, too terrified to move as the beast's glowing yellow eyes scanned the area. Its nostrils flared, and Elena knew it had smelled them.

"Go!" she screamed, pushing her coworker away.

The dragon's head snapped toward her, and she knew she was out of time. Just as it opened its jaws to unleash its fiery breath, an explosion rocked the street. Something—someone—had thrown a projectile at the dragon, distracting it long enough for Elena to grab her coworker and run.

She didn't look back.

---

General Santiago watched the live feed from the command center, his knuckles white as he gripped the edge of the table. The footage showed a red dragon tearing through their forces like they were nothing more than ants. Tanks, helicopters, ground troops—none of it mattered. Their weapons, their years of training, their carefully laid strategies—it was all useless.

"How many are there now?" he barked, turning to his aide.

"At least five confirmed, sir," the young soldier replied, his voice trembling. "Two dragons are still airborne, and the others are wreaking havoc on the ground."

Santiago slammed his fist onto the table. "And the civilians?"

"Evacuations are underway, but the creatures are moving too fast. Casualties are… high."

The general's jaw tightened as he looked back at the screen. The dragons were more than just beasts; they were predators, intelligent and deliberate in their destruction. It was as if they enjoyed watching humans scramble in terror.

"Sir, should we deploy the nuclear option?" one of his advisors asked hesitantly.

Santiago hesitated. The thought had crossed his mind, but he couldn't bring himself to give the order. Not yet. "No. Not until we know more about that… thing." He gestured toward the massive gate that still loomed over the city, pulsing with an ominous, otherworldly light.

"What is it? Where did it come from?"

No one had answers.

---

"This… this is unbelievable. Ladies and gentlemen, we are witnessing what can only be described as an apocalyptic event."

Emma Reyes sat stiffly at her desk, her usual composed demeanor shattered as she struggled to report on the chaos unfolding in the city. The live feed from their cameraman showed a massive dragon perched atop a skyscraper, roaring triumphantly as flames engulfed the building.

"We've just received confirmation that the military's efforts to contain the creatures have been… unsuccessful," she said, her voice trembling. "Casualties are rising, and the government has declared a state of emergency. All residents are advised to stay indoors and—"

The screen behind her flickered, then cut to static. A producer ran onto the set, whispering frantically in her ear. Emma's face went pale.

"What do you mean we lost contact? With everyone?"

The broadcast abruptly ended.

---

The rooftop of a shattered skyscraper stood ominously against the burning skyline, its broken edges illuminated by the flames consuming the city below. Suddenly, the shadows that danced in the flickering light began to ripple unnaturally, pooling together like liquid darkness. The shadow expanded, forming a figure cloaked in an armor of obsidian black, sharp and jagged like the edge of a void.

The figure's form was concealed entirely—armor covering his body from head to toe, intricate with glowing violet patterns that pulsed like a heartbeat. The glowing lines spread across his chest, arms, and even the edges of the long black cape that flowed behind him like living smoke. A dark, menacing helm veiled his face entirely, save for two glowing, amethyst eyes that pierced the night with an otherworldly light.

It was Drix.

He stood silently, his cape flowing unnaturally in the absence of any wind. His glowing gaze locked onto the red dragon circling in the distance, spewing fire that turned everything it touched into ash. Below, smaller dragons roamed the streets, their claws ripping through cars and walls with ease. Flames crackled, screams echoed, and chaos reigned.

Drix sighed, the sound low and distorted through the helm that concealed him.

"How troublesome," he muttered to himself. His voice carried no sense of urgency, only irritation. He had known this was coming. The gate's break, the monsters spilling out into the world—it was all inevitable.

He could have stopped it before it began. He could have closed the gate before the dragons emerged, saved countless lives, and prevented the chaos spreading across the city.

But he didn't.

"It's not my responsibility," he said coldly, as though reminding himself. His glowing eyes followed the red dragon as it descended, breathing fire onto a block of fleeing civilians.

"I'm not some idiot hero who believes in 'great power comes with great responsibility.'"

Protecting strangers wasn't his purpose. He didn't care about the lives lost in the chaos. These people, their world—they were strangers to him, just passersby in his existence.

Yet, as his eyes turned toward the direction of his home, a faint smirk tugged at the corner of his hidden lips.

"They're being too noisy," he muttered. "Disturbing my sisters' sleep… how annoying."

Of course, it wasn't really about his sisters' sleep. He had no intention of letting the dragons roam free and destroy the world. He simply didn't see himself as a savior. This wasn't an act of heroism; it was necessity.

With a low growl, his shadow expanded beneath his feet, merging with the darkness of the rooftop until the entire surface seemed to disappear into a black void. Drix moved forward, stepping off the edge of the building, and his form melted into the shadows below.

---

The streets were chaos incarnate. Flames licked at the edges of buildings, cars were overturned and burning, and bodies littered the roads—some charred beyond recognition, others crushed by the claws of the smaller dragons that prowled through the city.

Anna clutched her daughter's hand tightly as they ran, weaving through the wreckage and chaos. Her heart pounded in her chest, her breath coming in ragged gasps as she pulled her daughter along. The little girl, barely nine years old, was crying uncontrollably, her legs stumbling with exhaustion.

"Mommy, I can't…" the girl sobbed, her voice weak.

"Just a little further, sweetie," Anna said, her voice trembling as she glanced behind them. A smaller dragon with blue, shimmering scales was stalking the streets, its glowing yellow eyes scanning for prey. She pulled her daughter harder. "We have to keep going!"

Suddenly, the ground shook violently, and Anna's heart dropped. The blue dragon landed with a deafening crash directly in front of them, its massive claws digging into the pavement and sending cracks spiderwebbing across the ground.

Anna froze, her body trembling as the beast's enormous head turned toward them. Its glowing yellow eyes locked onto hers, and a low, rumbling growl escaped its throat. She felt her daughter clutch her leg tightly, sobbing in terror.

This was it.

Anna swallowed hard, tears streaming down her face as she pushed her daughter behind her. "Run," she said, her voice shaking.

"Mommy, no—"

"RUN!" Anna screamed, turning to face the dragon. Her hands trembled as she spread her arms wide, placing herself between her daughter and the monster. If this was how it ended, she would make sure her little girl had a chance to escape.

The dragon roared, its hot breath washing over her like a wave of fire. Anna squeezed her eyes shut, bracing herself for the inevitable pain of being ripped apart.

But the pain never came.

She opened her eyes, confused, and gasped at what she saw.

The dragon was frozen mid-lunge, its massive jaws stopped mere inches from her face. A dark blade, jagged and dripping with shadows, was impaled through its throat. The dragon's glowing eyes dimmed, and its massive body crumbled to the ground with a thunderous crash.

Standing behind the beast, wreathed in swirling shadows, was a figure unlike anything Anna had ever seen.

His armor was pitch black, its surface gleaming faintly in the firelight. Glowing violet lines pulsed across the jagged edges of his chest and arms, giving him the appearance of a living shadow. A cape of pure darkness flowed behind him, and his face was completely hidden beneath a black helm with glowing amethyst eyes that seemed to pierce into her very soul.

The figure stood silently, his massive sword dripping with the dragon's blood as he turned his glowing gaze toward Anna and her daughter. For a moment, she felt as if time itself had stopped, the weight of his presence pressing down on her like a physical force.

"Go," the figure said, his voice cold and distorted.

Anna didn't need to be told twice. She grabbed her daughter and ran, her heart pounding as she fled from the scene.

Behind her, the figure turned his attention to the chaos around him. The dragons were still wreaking havoc, their roars echoing through the burning streets. With a sigh, he stepped forward, his shadow expanding beneath him as he prepared to eliminate the rest of the "bugs."

It was time to clean up the mess.