Chapter 12

345786

The smoke had cleared. The black beast was standing in the middle of the square, all guns trained on it. The fight with Kouji seemed already forgotten in the face of the beast.

"They are here?" Zane whispered in shock, sweat pouring down his forehead when he saw the beast.

"AKU ON THE GROUND!" Roared a soldier as the beast let out a metallic scream.

"Open fire!"

"Evacuate the civilians!"

A wild scream erupted across the square as the bullets began to pound the Aku.

"Let's get out of here quickly!" Nathan said.

"Can you walk Zero?" Zane asked.

"It will work." He straightened up.

"Come on!" A soldier yelled at them. None of the soldiers knew how badly Zero was injured and hardly anyone paid any attention to him. All attention was on the newly emerged Aku, the bullets apparently ricocheting off it.

"Where's Sora?" Zero asked Zane, who was helping him walk. He was still holding the sword that had brought them victory.

Carol anxiously walked alongside Zane and Zero while Nathan watched the fight closely.

"Zero!" Asagi waved at them standing next to Sora, who had obviously just pulled the tarpaulin over the truck.

Then one of the soldiers cried out: "It's coming!"

The beast screamed and burst into a sprint.

"Keep going!" Yelled the platoon leader as the soldiers below him panicked. The bullets seemed to have even less effect than on the colossuses they had encountered earlier.

In a split second, the beast reached the first soldiers, and a fountain of blood spurted around before spreading to the ground. With its arm outstretched, it had simply run through the first soldier, ripping off his left shoulder in the process, before heading for the next. Suddenly it put its hand on the ground and catapulted itself into the air with its arm. With a somersault, it landed feet first on the nearest soldier and smashed him into the ground.

"Where are the ATBS?" The next one looked around.

The beast seemed to grab the soldier it had stamped down with its foot and threw him at another soldier who shot at it, who also fell to the ground.

"Let's get out of here quickly!" Yelled another soldier, panicking as the beast charged towards him.

The soldiers' bullets seemed to have no effect on the beast, which was taking out soldier after soldier, its blood trailing like mist.

One soldier saw the beast's palm about to close around his head when it suddenly disappeared from his view.

Dust kicked up as the beast smashed into a nearby raised slab.

The soldier fell to the ground, letting go of all tension. His pants were wet as he tearfully watched the ATBS finally join the fight.

"We're clear to fire! Retreat!" Commanded Tyler in his red ATBS, who along with three other ATBS had taken up position between the beast and the rest of the evacuation shuttles.

The mist cleared as the beast rose from the rubble. Its right shoulder appeared to have been hit by the bullet, but at the same time, it was only a minor flesh wound, which began to fully heal in front of everyone right the next moment.

"Is that really an Akuryuma?" Sweat began to drip from Tyler's forehead.

Meanwhile, Zane and his friends were almost at the truck. It was only about 50 meters but for Zero, who could hardly stand on his feet, it was clearly exhausting enough.

Suddenly Nathan yelled: "Wait!" A massive piece of metal narrowly passed the four of them before it flew into one of the parked buses, ripping a massive hole through it.

"But that's…!" Zane looked at the metal part, it was a leg of an ATBS. Zane turned his gaze to the battle and saw an ATBS with a leg missing.

"What the hell?" The 16-meter-tall ATBS fell sideways while Zane wondered how it was even possible.

The sheer size of the ATBS made it virtually impossible for the Infected and all Akuryuma to harm them. Even the colossus earlier had only been able to bring down an ABTS by using a vehicle as a racket. How had the beast done that?

The beast had rammed the ATBS' knee with full force before swinging back for the next move. Even as the ATBS was about to fall, it grabbed the other leg. Its whole arm seemed to swell, even grow. The blood on it seemed to be disappearing like it was absorbing the blood like a sponge. The air around the beast also seemed to be enriched with black particles, which were sucked into its body.

What happened next was beyond surreal. The beast, whose arms had more than doubled and which appeared to have grown itself, set the 16-meter-tall steel giant in motion.

"Evade!" Tyler commanded as the ATBS next to the beast was already caught by the damaged ATBS that the beast was using as a racket.

The two ATBS collided, sparks were flying, and the sound of metal bending filled the air.

"Keep going!" Nathan yelled as the beast threw the damaged ATBS several meters into the air before running towards the remaining ATBS and soldiers who were trying to keep their distance.

The ATBS flew as far back that it hit a ship just taking off, which sidestepped and just managed to catch itself before it scraped the ground, nevertheless.

Zane looked around. He saw the panic in the civilians' eyes, the damage the battle had done so far, and the beast about to inflict more damage and casualties.

"What is it?" Nathan asked Zane when Asagi had already come running to them.

"Zero, are you alright?" She worried.

"Asagi, can you take Zero?" Zane suddenly asked her.

"Sure..." Asagi replied a bit confused.

"I'm alright..." Zero took his hand off Zane's shoulder but staggered as he tried to walk.

""Zero!"" Asagi and Carol tried to catch him.

"Everything's OK," he caught himself with his sword, which he was still carrying.

"Where are you going?" Nathan asked, suddenly seeing Zane running towards the fight.

"I have to help them!"

"What? You hardly have any magic left." Nathan called after Zane.

Nathan was about to follow him. "Wait, I will come with you!"

But Zane stopped him immediately. "Please stay with Zero, Nathan. Rest up, I'll need you later."

Nathan understood what Zane was saying. Zero was hurt the worst to the point that Nathan was wondering how he was even able to stand. If he went with Zane, who was the fittest of them all at the moment, he would leave Zero and the others defenseless.

"You stupid idiot!" Nathan called after him, who just waved at him.

"Do not worry!" Zane replied as he disappeared into the smoke.

"Take care Zane...", Zero called after him and cursed his own weakness again.

"Quick, let's evacuate you Zero." Nathan rushed to the car while Zero looked in Zane's direction.

"I'm worried about Zane." Asagi followed Zero's gaze.

"Yeah..."

"Are you guys coming?" Nathan turned to them, already wanting to sit in the driver's seat.

"Zane is right." Zero faced the battle. Plumes of grenades and swirling dust obscured the view, leaving only the sounds of battle to pierce the air. "If he doesn't help the soldiers, it doesn't take long for them to be crushed and then there's nothing between it and the civilians."

Everyone looked towards the battlefield as Zero continued. "But...", he raised the hilt of his sword. "I should have at least given him this..."

"That crappy thing is aiming for the joints!" It can't be that stupid, Tyler cursed in his ATBS. The last ATBS still accompanying him had just lost a shoulder and was only able to give him limited support. The size of the ATBS was usually an advantage, but in this fight the disadvantage became apparent. The ATBS were too slow to be dangerous to the beast. Their bullets seemed ineffective, even Tyler's bullets, if they hit at all, didn't seem to bother it. The other ATBS had already been destroyed by the Aku, and the plaza was covered with the blood of the soldiers who had faced the beast.

"Back off!" He ordered the damaged ATBS as a message rang out in Tyler's cockpit.

"Mayor, the leadership plans to bomb the Academy."

"Negative, there are still civilians here!" He was startled.

"Confirm, I'll pass it on." The voice trailed off.

Do they want to bomb the academy? What is that thing?! Tyler wondered while backing away further and further.

Meanwhile, the beast savagely lashed out at Tyler with a severed ATBS leg, so he had to back away as the academy building inched closer at his back.

"Damn it!" Tyler noticed the sensor that announced the wall of the building behind him. Immediately, Tyler fired up his jets and his ATBS took off before it would crash into the academy. As soon as he was in the air, a new warning appeared on his screen, before the incoming ATBS leg just missed him and crashed into the building the very next moment.

Tyler turned his attention back to the beast, but it was gone when the next warning appeared on his display, pointing him up. He looked in the direction of the warning sign when he saw the beast high up in the air.

In a flash, Tyler channeled power to his thrusters, dodging the beast that flew fist first at him. Tyler's ATBS stabilized in the air and turned in the direction the beast had been flying. The fortified walls of the academy had given way and a deep hole had been ripped through the multi-story building.

"Mayor! We'll help you." A hovercraft appeared next to Tyler and two more positioned themselves around the hole in the academy.

The hovercrafts' sensors clicked, something moved in the smoke. They immediately opened fire when parts of the building came flying out of the clouds of smoke. The hovercraft dodged, but one of the larger pieces hit the third hovercraft.

"I'm falling!" The pilot reported, his cockpit flooded with warning sounds before his hovercraft sank to the ground in flames. The facade parts had damaged one of the two wings so badly that the drive gave way and the hovercraft lost stability.

Everyone looked at the falling hovercraft as a soldier yelled, "Look out!" Something shot out of the rush of smoke and before the hovercraft could hit the ground, the beast reached the second one.

His paws slammed into the hovercraft's wings, which lost stability and swayed from the beast's sudden extra weight and momentum.

"It's on top of me!" The pilot panicked while trying to regain stability. But before Tyler or the last hovercraft could react, the beast jammed its paw into the side of the hovercraft. Immediately, the hovercraft's engines stopped working and sputtered before the beast ripped open the wing's outer shell as if it were paper.

Panic gripped the pilot, who saw the beast's red teeth and pupils fixed on him. He grabbed the slingshot mechanism on his seat and blasted off the hatch.

"Wait!" Tyler yelled in his cockpit as the seat was already being thrown into the air and being grabbed by the beast.

The soldier lost consciousness from the abrupt stop before the beast threw him into the distance and the hovercraft crashed to the ground.

"You damned...!" The pilot of the last hovercraft opened fire, bullets ricocheting off the beast.

"Cease fire!" Tyler ordered as the beast turned its attention to the final hovercraft.

The beast turned and its feet seemed to dig into the hovercraft's wing-like hands when a crack engulfed it in flames.

A tank had fired at the beast in the distance. Behind it, they seemed to be loading the last of the buses onto a freighter that had moved into the square. A frigate was also on approach for landing.

The evacuation seemed to be on its last leg.

Tyler was frantically looking around his cockpit for evacuation reports as the beast leaped out of the flames toward the tank.

It attacked everything that moved indiscriminately, everything that attacked it. Like an injured wild animal blinded by anger.

The tank, hovercraft, and surrounding soldiers opened fire. The tank's missile narrowly passed the beast before it threw itself against the tank. The several-ton heavy tank shook, creating a deep dent where the beast had collided with it.

The crew panicked and the surrounding soldiers watched in disbelief as the beast grabbed the tube and lifted the tank's turret. The electronics began to spark as the beast ripped the turret from its chassis. The soldiers began firing at the beast, which was swinging the turret like a racket. More soldiers flew through the air as another tank fired at the beast with its machine gun.

The beast turned to the tank and hit it with its turret. Metal buckled, the soldiers present, and a third tank tried to stop the beast. It swung the turret again and smashed the soldiers aside.

Only a shell from the third tank destroyed the turret in the hands of the beast. It screamed again and grabbed the battered armor it'd turreted. It lifted it up and in the next moment, the tank flew in the direction of the third tank. The soldiers at the third tank ducked for cover as it fell on top of the other.

"That's enough!" Tyler launched at the beast with his ATBS and fired his armor-piercing rounds at it. These smashed into the beast and this time didn't bounce off but pressed into its flesh.

Not deep enough! He placed the empty rifle in a mount on the shoulders of his ATBS. The ATBS continued to accelerate, and Tyler prepared for a punch. Just like earlier on the bridge, he activated the magical device. The brass knuckles began to glow with magical energy.

Tyler headed for the beast as it suddenly slammed its legs into the ground and pulled its right arm back as if to return Tyler's punch. Black particles gathered around the arm like before and began to steam.

Tyler reached the beast and threw his punch. At the same time, the beast brought forward its arm, which transformed into a spear of flesh.

"What?!"

The lance pierced Tyler's fist and ripped through the mechanics of his hand, but it didn't stop there. Tyler was so fast he couldn't stop, pushing the ATBS' arm further and further towards the lance.

He could only stare at his display in disbelief. In a split second, his arm was pierced piece by piece by the lance and disintegrated into its individual parts.

Tyler's ATBS continued to push into the lance as it pierced his shoulder, destroying one of his wings. The ATBS with its speed lost control, sped past the beast, and hit the ground where it began to skid and crashed into a nearby building.

"Tyler!" Yelled Zero and the others who were about to get on the truck.

"Damn..." Tyler looked around his cockpit. His forehead felt warm, but before he could check, the alarm rang through his cockpit again.

"Shit!" Tyler's ATBS moved sideways. The metal squeaked as he struggled to get up from his position and rolled sideways.

In the next moment, a gigantic whip hit the building where he had just been lying and split it. The building splinters flew, and parts of the building collapsed as Tyler's ATBS straightened up again.

"What the...?" Tyler glanced at the beast and saw that the black whip had emerged from within the lance. Tyler grabbed a smaller automatic rifle he was carrying and was staring at the evacuation reports when he noticed Zero and the others.

"You're still here?" His voice rang out of the ATBS.

"Tyler are you alright?!" Carol inquired worriedly as the beast withdrew its whip, which transformed back into an arm.

"Look out!" Nathan cried out as the beast charged at Tyler again.

"Shit!" Tyler started firing.

"What are you still doing here?" Ben also came to them, who had broken away from the soldiers who wanted to evacuate him. Immediately, Ben took over Zero from Asagi and Carol, who got into the car. Sora heaved herself onto the truck bed as Zero turned back to Tyler.

"Get out!" Tyler yelled, bullets ricocheting off the beast just yards away.

"Shit!" Tyler cursed as the beast jumped off and brought its paw forward.

Suddenly the beast stopped in midair and Tyler saw a wall of ice spikes in front of him.

The beast itself was imprisoned in a lump of ice as well.

"Was I in time?" Zane asked, a few yards away holding a magic circle.

"Phew..." Tyler sighed in relief. "It took you a long time!" He called out to Zane, who joined them.

"Well, I didn't know where all of you were."

"Thank you." Tyler said as Zane approached.

"No problem..." Zane looked around. "But I was late anyway..." The battlefield was littered with the beast's victims, the blood everywhere, and the smell omnipresent.

"Don't mind it..." Tyler tried to calm Zane.

The situation seemed to have calmed down instantly, but civilians still crowded the few ships that remained. Soldiers began to rescue the wounded and the imprisoned.

"OK. Seems the evacuation is going well." Tyler suddenly reported to the group. His ATBS was a wreck, missing the entire right side and dented on all corners. "But you should get going." He turned to the ships that took off while in the distance a frigate headed for the square.

"What was that thing?" Nathan asked, who was looking at the frozen beast and Zero was staring at it too, only Zane seemed to avoid eye contact.

"Dunno... But the leadership seemed pretty tense about it." Tyler explained. "OK, I'll make sure you get on that frigate over there. Pack up." He commanded Zane and the others.

"Thanks Tyler." Zero turned and leaned on the back of the truck.

"You should..." A crack interrupted Tyler.

Shocked, everyone turned to the block of ice when a huge crack pulled through it.

"Get out of here!" Tyler yelled and took a few steps back.

The block of ice shattered into hundreds of pieces and a metallic scream rang out. Immediately, Tyler opened fire on the beast, which lunged at him. Meanwhile, Zane created an ice pillar that hit the beast in the shoulder, catapulting it into a nearby building before it could reach Tyler.

"Tyler, I'll take care of it, you take the others to the ship!"

"OK Zane..." Tyler accepted Zane's instructions somewhat grumpily.

"CRRRRRRRRRRRRRR!" Cried out the beast, throwing aside the debris around it.

"I am your opponent!" Zane faced the beast. It immediately ran towards him. Zane slammed both hands against the ground, creating a massive ice barrier. The beast stopped abruptly and began pounding angrily at the ice, which then immediately began to crack.

Sweat ran down Zane's forehead when he heard Tyler's voice. "Zane, you don't have to defeat it! Just hold it off until the reinforcements arrive!"

"All right!" Zane replied as the last ice broke and the beast charged at him again.

"What do you mean by reinforcements?" Nathan asked as Zane created another ice pillar, this time spawning directly underneath the beast and catapulting it high into the air.

"Shelter is sending troops over to take care of that thing."

"Come on, get in!" Ben ordered, who was already in the driver's seat.

The truck rushed to the frigate, which was just settling in the square.

Most of the civilians had left the square by now. Frantically, the soldiers had squeezed as many of them as possible into the ships. Only a few remained and crowded the evacuation ships. Many of the buses were abandoned as there was no time to carefully load them into the cargo holds.

Then a group of soldiers stopped Ben and the truck.

"They're coming with me." Tyler interjected before the lead soldier could ask a question. They were all tense. Civilians were squeezing to get out of the city, and maintaining order was becoming increasingly difficult for the untrained soldiers.

"Mayor," The soldier greeted Tyler while the others lowered their weapons.

Shortly thereafter, the frigate began its approach to land. The wind it created swept across the plaza and the trees began to lean in. Compared to the transports, the frigate was a lot bigger, to the extent that it took up almost the entire plaza.

Gates began to open on all sides of the frigate and soldiers poured out.

"Evacuate!" One of the soldiers yelled and immediately many of the stationed soldiers began to move into the frigate. Tyler and the truck moved to the loading dock as well.

"Mayor Seavers." Tyler introduced himself to a soldier on duty who waved the soldiers inside one by one.

At another loading ramp, one truck after the other rolled in, tanks and ATBS were there too. Many of them were damaged, some slightly, while others left one wondering if it might not be better to leave them behind.

"Welcome Major."

"Those civilians belong with me." Tyler pointed out the truck.

"All right." The soldier accepted the civilians without further hesitation.

The truck pulled into one of the loading bays, a few soldiers already seated along the wall. The bay was quite large, easily fitting several tanks, but it was too low for Tyler's ATBS who stood guard with his gun.

"Do you have a paramedic here?" Nathan asked, who had gotten out of the truck with Carol and sought out the first soldier who came along.

Worried, Asagi looked at Zero who was sitting next to her, coughing up blood when they heard screams of joy in the distance.

"Shelter is here!"

A hovercraft circled above the academy. The Shelter logo was prominently displayed on its wings when Zero suddenly opened the door.

"Where are you going, Zero?" Asagi asked.

"Stay here Zero," Ben also objected when Zero got out anyway.

"I just want to check on Zane. Please stay here Asagi." He stopped her, who was also about to get out and hobbled to the exit of the ramp to get a better look.

"What are you doing here Zero?" Tyler wondered as a soldier was about to address Zero.

"Shelter is here?"

"A transport hovercraft, yes."

"Then Zane made it?" Zero looked at the academy, which was littered with ice pillars and dust.

"If he's not dead already..."

"What?!" Zero looked at Tyler in horror. "What do you mean by that?"

"This isn't your normal Akuryuma... I don't know the details, but if she gets too close to it, Zane's done for..."

Zane was almost out of strength. He'd been firing spell after spell at the beast, but it didn't seem to have any effect. It simply shattered the ice pillars and blocks he shot at it. Zane quickly realized that he would not survive a blow from the beast unscathed. His magic was almost used up, it was barely enough to keep his shield up.

Therefore, Zane just leaped among the rubble as the beast pursued him. As soon as he jumped off, he heard a massive impact behind him.

The beast was right behind him.

Does that thing never get tired? Zane wondered, seeing the frigate land in the distance. But there was also a good thing. The tension of the fight made Zane's fear melt away. Even the fact that it wasn't human or an Infected helped him not to panic as he had at the hospital.

But the beast gave him no time to breathe and continued to rush him across the square.

If this keeps up, I'm going to die here. Zane looked around frantically and saw a higher point among the rubble and jumped towards it. This time, however, he cast an ice spell under his feet. Shortly thereafter, catapulted himself into the air with the resulting ice pillar. He heard another impact and again, the beast had struck where Zane had been just a moment earlier. Zane flew high into the air and landed on the roof of a partially collapsed building.

Zane stared down at the beast, who didn't seem to be chasing him this time. Instead, it crushed a massive block of concrete it was holding between its fingers and let out a scream of rage.

Rage and fury reached Zane. He could feel it somehow, it was almost as if he could see inside the beast, and it made him shudder.

Then he heard shots. Projectiles of all calibers slammed into the beast, which perished in the resulting sea of ​​flames. A column of military vehicles was passing through the battlefield, firing at the beast as they drove by, before passing Zane and preparing to pull into the square.

The beast immediately grabbed parts of the concrete layer and threw them out of the sea of ​​flames at the convoy of vehicles. Zane could only watch as one of the pieces of concrete hit a truck, which was crushed under its weight. The soldiers fled the truck in a hurry, while the rear vehicles made a detour around the destroyed vehicle.

The soldiers jumped onto the passing vehicles as the beast charged at them.

"Not gonna happen!" Zane fired some ice darts at the beast, which came to a halt and roared. Again, it pulled its arm back and black particles gathered around it.

"Oh shit!" Zane leaped off the building as another whip shot out of the beast's arm, splitting the building in two. The force of the whip shattered the building and crushed the previously hit truck beneath it before another truck, which could no longer make it, crashed into the concrete sections raised by the whip.

"Is everyone alright?" Zane asked frantically, looking at the truck from which soldiers were getting out.

"The passage is blocked!" Yelled one of the soldiers as a tank pushed forward to clear the way. But even as it drove forward, Zane felt the beast running towards them again.

"Not so fast!" Zane jumped between the beast and the soldiers, creating a wall of ice that shattered in an instant. Zane watched in shock as the wall of ice melted away while the beast's fist smashed against it.

In the next moment, Zane disappeared from the soldiers' eyes and a cloud of dust shot out of the building.

"Take cover!" One of the soldiers yelled as parts of the already damaged building came crashing down on them.

"Damn." Zane found himself surrounded by debris in the middle of the building. The beast had smashed him into the building in one fell swoop. "Without my shield, I'd be dead..."

Zane looked down at himself. He was unharmed, but there was only rubble around him and in the distance, he heard the sounds of battle picking up again.

"I have to help them!" He straightened up.

Meanwhile, the beast attacked the convoy, whose vehicles tried to gain distance while firing at the beast. The beast was about to reach the first truck, which had hit debris and got stuck when one of the building's walls exploded. Debris and shards of ice flew through the air as an ice pillar erupted from it.

The pillar caught the beast in the back, which sent it flying a few meters into the air before crashing into a distant building.

"Keep going!" Shouted a soldier and the convoy made its way back to the square.

"Thank you!" One of the soldiers waved at Zane, hearing the beast's screams again.

It leaped out of the building toward Zane, who dodged with another leap backward, the impact shaking and collapsing the concrete slab. However, the beast kept its attention on Zane and lunged at him again.

Zane heard a slight whirring in the air as he jumped backward again. Suddenly, a beam of light caught the beast and it disappeared from his field of vision.

He landed a few feet away and looked around in wonder where the beam of light had come from. This had seized the beast and hurled it into the same house into which it had been smashed before. But this time the building finally gave way and collapsed.

Zane turned back in the direction the beam had come from and saw a hovercraft in the sky.

"Shelter!" Zane exclaimed, and some of the soldiers cheered as well when they saw the hovercraft.

But shortly thereafter, Zane heard a cracking noise behind him in the building. There was a rumble and the next moment the beast shot out of it towards the hovercraft.

"Look out!" Zane tried to warn the hovercraft when a hatch opened. A figure stood there, holding a weapon.

In a flash, the figure lunged at the approaching beast and brandished its weapon. Immediately, the beast smashed to the ground with a mighty thud. Meanwhile, the figure landed on the ground a few meters in front of Zane.

"Good work, we'll take over now." The figure turned to Zane. It was a girl, not much older than him. Her white armor and sword seemed from another world. Zane had only heard of them before, she was a Pandera.

Shortly thereafter, four more girls jumped out of the hovercraft, which moved away and took up a defensive position. The four other Pandera landed in the four cardinal directions around the beast's impact crater. They wore standard white uniforms compared to the first, which had some form of full body armor. All four also wore a bracelet on their wrist, which appeared to have a crystal in the center that glowed blue. The leader also seemed to have such a crystal in her wrist.

Shortly thereafter, a message from the hovercraft sounded across the field: "Continue the evacuation, we'll take care of the Infected."

Zane froze briefly as the dust began to settle and the beast reappeared.

"Today we'll finish you off, Blood." The Pandera held her weapon aside in front of Zane as the bracelets of the four others began to glow, creating a barrier around the beast.

The beast, Blood as the Pandera had called it, screamed and ran towards the first Pandera, slamming its fist into the barrier. Now Zane realized that the beast was wounded. It was the first time he saw wounds on it. A cut could be seen on one shoulder, presumably from the Pandera's blade, and the rest of the body appeared to be burned. Was it the beam that had caught the beast earlier? Even as Zane examined the wounds, they began to heal.

Blood threw itself against the barrier with all its might and pressed its paw against it. Sparks flew before it let go after a few seconds, jumping backward again and letting out a scream of rage.

"This will be the end of you!" One of the four cried out in anger and all four aimed a massive cannon at Blood, which they carried on their backs. The bracelets lit up again and the shield began to generate some kind of force field. The beast turned and trembled as the four cannons ejected massive beams that engulfed Blood. A massive explosion followed, held back only by the barrier.

As soon as the explosion was over, the first of the four Pandera seemed to be at the end of her strength and the bracelet on her wrist stopped glowing. Shortly thereafter, the shield collapsed as well, and immediately a black shadow shot out of the flames towards the first Pandera and Zane.

"It can't be!" One of the four Pandera cursed when she saw Blood running towards the leader.

Blood was visibly injured, its whole body was submerged, and in some places, deep wounds had been burned into its flesh. But something was beginning to move inside the wounds – its regeneration had already begun.

The leader immediately ran towards Blood, causing it to lose its left arm, which had been badly damaged. Deep wounds had drawn all over it.

"She aimed for the wounds?" Zane was startled at the leader's accuracy.

Blood, however, seemed unimpressed, turned to face her, and charged at her again. It hit her with its right hand, but she dodged while Blood's punch sank into the ground, cracking the concrete and throwing pieces in all directions. The leader had jumped as far backward that she landed on the wall of the academy before pushing off and flying the gun at Blood, who pulled its fist out of the ground.

She passed Blood again, and black blood spurted out of his side. Cheers rang through the soldiers and the four Pandera.

"He doesn't stand a chance against an A-rank Pandera!" One exclaimed as the leader warned them to not be rash.

"Don't get too close to the blood!" She ordered, before running towards Blood again. The two exchanged punches, Blood's always missing, while the leader's punches mostly hit. Black smoke gathered around Blood's right arm and swelled into a massive paw. Blood smacked his paw at the leader, who just managed to dodge. Zane saw the paw brush against some sort of shield surrounding the leader.

She landed a few meters away, but Blood no longer pursued her. Black smoke billowed from its wounds and missing arm as the leader gave an order and three of the four other Pandera fired at Blood again and again.

A massive explosion followed as the beams struck Blood. The shock wave could be felt as far as the frigate.

"Is it over?" Zane asked as the blast from the explosion dissipated. The place was still shrouded in smoke from the explosion. As it dissipated, black smoke appeared instead.

"That can't be!" The leader wondered and the other four Pandera looked at the black cloud in which a shadow seemed to be moving in disbelief.

"This is your end!" The leader jumped at Blood again before it could regenerate. But this time the leader was stopped abruptly.

Everyone looked at the leader in amazement as the smoke cleared with the gust of wind from the stopped blow.

Her gun was lodged in Blood's right hand, which held her steady. Blood's body was tattered, with pieces hanging off everywhere and deep wounds spread all over its body.

"Did he...?" The leader was startled when Blood let out a scream and tightened its grip on the blade. The next moment Blood snatched the gun from her, she took a step back, but it was already too late because Blood followed her. The leader crossed her arms protectively in front of her as she felt a hit on her hip.

The following kick smashed the leader into a building 30 meters away, where she disappeared into the resulting dust.

Damn it! She cursed as she found herself in the rubble of the building. Her armor had saved her. How can this beast be so cunning? She wondered, trying to get up again, the survival of her comrades and that of the Alliance soldiers depended on how quickly she got back to the battlefield.

The reports portray Blood as a savage Infected bent on destruction, blinded by rage. Then how can it come up with such an idea? Is there some sense left in it? Blood had used the smoke to limit her vision, so she missed, allowing the beast to grab her blade.

Isn't an A-rank enough? The leader cursed as she straightened up.

"Heaver!" Exclaimed one of the four other Pandera as Blood turned to her.

Immediately, the still-wounded beast charged at them, radiating more anger than ever before, making Zane shiver.

"Damn!" Zane ran to her, catching her at the last moment. It was luck that she was the closest of the four. He lunged at her, dragging her out of the way as Blood shook the ground beside her with his punch.

"What are you doing?" The Pandera asked Zane puzzled.

"Saving you!" He replied while they both straightened up.

"Fire!" The two others with their bracelets still glowing fired their cannons at Blood. Meanwhile, the fourth ran to the leader, who was still stuck in the rubble.

Blood ducked just under the cannon beams before the truck parked behind him was hit by the beams and blown up.

Blood turned to Zane and the Pandera, who had just straightened, and swung again. Instinctively both raised their hands and created a shield before each was thrown towards the frigate.

They heard gunshots as Zane looked up and Blood was in front of them again, ready to launch another swipe with its claws. Zane slammed his hands against the ground and pillars of ice pushed Blood into the distance again. For a brief moment, the Pandera saw something glow in Zane's eyes. The pillars had flung Blood no more than 10 meters away, but he didn't give up. Again, he jumped towards the two, who in turn raised their hands.

Sparks flew as Blood's claw scraped against the double shield. It wasn't a fist this time. Instead, the beast had formed its razor-sharp paw into a spear again, slowly breaking through the shield.

Zane heard an electronic sound. The light on the Pandera's bracelet stopped glowing, causing her shield to disappear, leaving only Zane's shield to protect them. The pressure was intense as Zane's shield also dissipated.

I'm out of magic! He felt the distinctive sign of exhaustion inside him.

Damn it! I... Zane cursed when suddenly a shadow appeared in front of him.

Black and red.

That's all Zane saw as he shifted his gaze forward to Blood. Black and red blood-spattered the floor. An arm flew through the air right in front of Zane's eyes.

"Zero, you..." Zane looked up at his rescuer, horrified. Behind him, he heard more voices screaming for Zero.

"Everything OK... Zane?" He heard Zero's weak voice, almost drowned out by the sound of the dripping blood.

Zero stopped Blood. At the last moment, he had jumped between Blood and the two with his blade. In the move, Blood had caught Zero's left shoulder and ripped off his arm. At the same time, Zero had accomplished the impossible – his blade sunk into Blood's shoulder and worked its way down to mid-chest.

"Zero!" Zane cried out as Zero sagged and he heard Blood's shriek.

"CCCCCCCCCCCCHHAAAAAAAaaaaaaarrrrrr..." Blood cried out and seemed to be looking at the sky before seeming to exchange looks with Zero, who was covered in its blood.

The leader arrived, ready to continue the fight when Blood hung his head and the lights in his body went out.

"One last gasp..." She remarked before Zero and Blood collapsed as Blood's body began to dissolve.

"Zero!" Ben came running and Zane got up too. Zane was about to grab Zero when the leader stopped him.

"Wait! Do not touch him! He's full of Corrutin!"

"What?" Zane looked at her in surprise.

"Akuryuma blood," explained the Pandera he had rescued.

"But we have to help him!" Zane cried out while looking at Zero, who was bleeding from his arm and soaking the floor.

"Do something!" Ben said worriedly.

The leader touched one of the pockets located on the thigh of her suit and a holographic field was created, from which a mechanical device emerged. She bent down to Zero and the contraption wrapped around the rest of Zero's arm, stopping the bleeding immediately.

"That simple?" Zane wondered and Ben looked at the Pandera in wonder.

"It's only temporary, he needs medical attention." She looked at Zero. "He needs it fast...", she added, seeing all the wounds on Zero's body.

"There's the frigate that's evacuating us." Ben explained. The leader nodded as mechanical sounds could be heard in the distance.

"It probably wasn't enough for more... Let's pack up!" The leader ordered her four companions, who had rushed to her. "Take a sample of Blood and then to the frigate."

"You're coming with us?" Asked a soldier who had rushed over to them.

"Yes, we have to get out of here, this island is no longer safe." She straightened herself and Zero, who she supported with her shoulder. She looked at Zero's blade, the weapon that defeated Blood. He still hadn't let go of it. What is that blade? She wondered.

Meanwhile on one of the Teikoku battleships.

"My lord, we can't just...", an officer walked next to Kouji, whose arm had been provisionally bandaged with technical bandages and was hanging in a loop.

"I do not care!" Kouji yelled at the officer as they headed towards the command bridge.

"But Shelter has..."

Kouji suddenly stopped. "To whom did you swear allegiance?" He snapped at the officer.

"You, my Lord." The officer knelt as Kouji turned away and stepped into the command bridge.

The officer followed Kouji who gave orders. "Get the missiles ready for a bombardment."

Kouji was standing at one of the screens, his gaze fixed on a broadcast from the academy and the square. A grin tugged at his lips.

Civilians were still crowding the square, cramming into the vans. The leader, her four companions, Ben, Zane, and Zero were almost at the frigate as the Pandera that Zane had rescued turned to him.

"Thank you for saving me."

"No problem." Zane smiled at her. Her amber eyes gleamed in the midday sun and her long blond hair was blowing in the wind as Carol ran up.

"Zero!" She ran to them and stopped in horror. "What happened?"

"I'm okay, Carol...", he tried to calm her down, which was not that successful considering the situation.

"He needs medical attention." One of the Pandera told her.

"Do not touch him!" Zane stopped Carol who was about to approach Zero.

"He'll make it," the leader continued as the sounds of battle and metallic screams grew louder in the distance.

"The unit retreats." One of the four Pandera looked at a hologram projected from her bracelet.

"As are we." The leader saw the frigate in front of them when they heard something hissing.

The soldier and one of the Pandera turned toward the hiss.

"What are they doing?" The soldier wondered, whereupon the others turned around.

Missiles had been launched from the Teikoku battleship and were heading towards the island.

"Did Shelter give them an order?"

"Wouldn't be unusual, a bombardment could cover our retreat." Explained another Pandera.

Some of the missiles landed in the distance near the bridge, but most of the missiles made a huge arc. Directly towards the academy and the evacuation ships.

"They are coming here!" A soldier was startled, and panic broke out. In the airspace above the island, a few ships were stationed to oversee the evacuation, which immediately began intercepting some of the missiles. But it was too late because the rockets kept flying towards the academy.

"Faster, faster, faster!" The soldiers rushed the other civilians into the ships and partly diverted them to the frigate.

In a panic, everyone tried to squeeze into the ships as the first volley of missiles hit the academy, shaking the ground.

"Quick! Let's get to the ship!" Shouted the leader who took a mighty leap and landed on the ramp. She held Zero tight the whole time.

Asagi immediately ran to him, but she was stopped by the leader. Sora also looked out of the truck window at Zero worried and Deadra seemed to stir under the tarpaulin.

"Stay with them." The leader commanded her four companions, who had followed her before he jumped back outside.

A second volley of missiles had reached the square, destroying the battlefield on which Blood's body lay. The resulting tremors were as strong that the first buildings began to collapse. One of the evacuation ships also got caught in the missiles' trajectory and was brought down before crashing into a nearby building.

Zane stayed behind with Ben, Carol, and the soldier. He could have leaped like the Pandera, but his magic was so depleted that he was just barely able to stay on his feet.

Everyone ran nearly 100 meters to the frigate as fast as they could when Zane suddenly felt a push.

"Look out!" He heard Ben yell before a tremendous rumble was heard behind him.

Zane turned and saw a pile of rubble in front of him. Part of a building had collapsed and fallen in their path. Ben had knocked Zane off the trajectory at the last moment.

"Ben!" Carol called out.

"I'm doing fine!" He yelled through the dust, blood running down his leg. Beside him lay the soldier under the rubble of the building.

That's when the leader appeared next to Zane and Carol. "Where are the others?"

"I'm here!" Ben limped out of the smoke as the next volley of missiles approached in the distance.

Zero had straightened up and was leaning on his sword, which smashed a furrow in the ground when he saw the missile.

"Ben!"

Ben turned to the missiles heading towards him.

"I can't die yet!" He cursed before the rockets turned the square into a sea of ​​flames.

At the last moment, the leader grabbed Carol and Zane, whose shield extended around them. She jumped backward to get away from the blast, however, the blast caught them anyway and threw the three of them back close to the loading dock.

Immediately, the four Pandera rushed to their aid while Zero looked around uncertainly between Carol, Zane, and the sea of ​​flames.

"We are closing!" A soldier yelled as Zane, Carol, the leader, and everyone else arrived at the landing bay.

"We can't leave yet!" Zero screamed as a barrier formed in front of the gap and the gates began to close partially.

"Wait!" Zero yelled again as Tyler got out of his ATBS and rushed to Zero, Zane also standing next to him.

"Zero, I'm sorry...", Zane tried to apologize, but Zero didn't seem to see him. In a panic, he tried to persuade the frigate to wait.

"Zero!" Tyler yelled at him and Zero finally looked at him. Meanwhile, Carol lay in Asagi's arms. Tears ran down her red face. Deadra and Sora got restless, they both wanted to go to Zero, but they couldn't do anything.

"He is gone..."

Now, Zero seemed to finally realize it and sank to his knees as the frigate's engines pushed the flames aside and lifted off.

Tears ran from Zero's eyes. His body was battered, his arm was missing, and he was covered in Blood's black blood. He had previously received an emergency injection from the ship's doctor that accelerated blood clotting to prevent any further loss of blood.

They were already above the island for about 800 meters. The frigate had joined the cruiser that had taken on most of the civilians.

Meanwhile, two other Shelter ships had jumped above the sea near the city, passing the Alliance ships waiting for permission to jump.

Zane cautiously walked over to Zero, since everyone was keeping their distance. Zero was staring out through the barrier at the island. Nathan, along with Asagi, stopped Carol who was desperate to rush to Zero.

"Zero... I..."

Zero turned to Zane, his cheeks flushed with tears. Tyler stood by some of the other soldiers who held their weapons and watched Zane and Zero. The Pandera stood at a distance and seemed to be watching Zero as well. Beside them, staff wearing anti-infection suits prepared for Zero's treatment.

"Zero... I'm sorry...", Zane said, but Zero was already looking out of the barrier at the island again. "If only I had been stronger..."

Zero turned around again and was about to pat Zane on the shoulder when he saw the black spots and stopped.

"Zero... I promise I'll get stronger! I'll find out how they ended the last Outbreak too! I swear!"

"Thanks Zane," Zero smiled when they suddenly heard something.

"An Infected!" One of the soldiers cried out, recognizing Sora in the truck by chance. Deadra immediately jumped out of the truck bed and stood between the soldiers and the truck.

"An Aku?!" The Pandera immediately readied themselves for battle. All guns were trained on Deadra as Sora opened the door and lay protectively on Deadra.

"No! Leave Deadra alone!"

"They're not harming anyone!" Carol cried out, trying to get to them but was stopped by a soldier and Nathan. Asagi also wanted to go to the two, but she was stopped by Tyler, who seemed to be observing the situation not knowing what to do.

"Leave them alone!" Zero suddenly stood between the soldiers and his two friends with his blade.

"Zero, wait!" Zane came running.

"I brought them both! They belong with me." Zero began to take all the blame. "They haven't hurt anyone! I vouch for them!"

All the soldiers and the Pandera looked at each other while Zero suddenly started to cough and covered his mouth with his hand. Blood.

"His wounds are opening!" Tyler startled.

"Get a doctor, quickly!" Zane yelled as Zero collapsed, the blade resting on the ground.

"Zero!" Sora bent down to him.

"Everything will be fine...", Zero brushed her cheek while his vision slowly blurred.

"Zero!" Carol broke free of the soldier's grip and ran to him, only to be stopped by Zane again. Doctors in anti-infection suits rushed over.

Zero's vision became increasingly blurred, he could hardly move when his hand slipped off Sora's cheek.

"His lung is punctured!"

"He's suffocating!"

"Zero!"

People's voices seemed far away to him.

He saw the silhouette of Zane trying to calm down Carol. Unfamiliar faces of the doctors crowded around him.

"He's losing too much blood."

The shadows of Sora and Deadra pressed towards Zero as other shadows grabbed them.

"Lock them both up..."

"Zero!"

"Zero!"

Zero's vision began to disappear.

"We're …osing hi…"

Black…

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛

⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛ ⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛⬛