[OPENING SCENE — NIGHT, VANQUARD HQ, SKYVAULT CITY]
Rain hammers the fortified glass of Vanguard HQ. Inside, red alert lights pulse in waves, washing the walls in a crimson hue. The sound of emergency klaxons blends with the drumming storm. Suki, wrapped in a blanket and leaning on a railing near the training deck, tries to steady her breath.
Suki (internal monologue):
"I haven't recovered... not yet. My energy—my petals—they're slower. But they keep coming... why do they keep coming?"
A low hum begins to fill the halls. Lights flicker. Then silence.
[SCENE — HALLWAY OUTSIDE ARMORY]
Echo-7 and Irion walk briskly, armed and alert.
Echo-7: "Power's destabilizing in quadrants C through E. This isn't a glitch."
Irion: "An EMP cloak. Stealth-level. Someone wants in."
Suddenly, the hallway doors explode open. A blur of masked figures with silent boots and curved blades swarm in. One of them leaps straight for Irion, but Echo-7 blasts it back mid-air.
Echo-7: "INTRUDERS!"
[SCENE — TRAINING DECK]
Suki flinches, turns. Her instincts scream too late. Two ninjas land behind her. She spins and launches a flurry of weakened petals, but they barely cut through their armor.
Suki: "Not now... please not now."
She tries to run, but a shadow cuts off her path. It's him.
Kageru (stepping forward):
"This time... you die with your false family."
[HQ BATTLE SEQUENCE]
Tari and Jax are overwhelmed in the garage bay. Explosions tear through the loading decks.
Kael rallies remaining squads but the invaders outmaneuver even his predictive scans.
Veya and Yuna storm in from opposite ends of the central chamber, intercepting enemies in a synchronized strike.
Yuna (gritted teeth):
"Where is she?! Where's Suki?!"
[SCENE — ABOVE THE HQ SKYLIGHT]
Kageru throws Suki through a glass panel. She lands hard inside the command chamber, cut and bruised. Her petals flicker weakly.
Suki (panting):
"Why can't you let me go...?"
Kageru:
"Because you're not done paying."
He raises his blade. Just as it swings—
CLANG!
Yuna intercepts with her halberd. Sparks erupt. The sheer force sends both backwards. She stands between him and Suki.
Yuna (cold):
"You will not touch her again."
[INTENSE DUEL: YUNA VS KAGERU]
Their weapons clash in rapid rhythm, steel against steel, fire against shadow.
Kageru's movements are snake-like, winding, silent death. Yuna meets him with focused grace and powerful, arcing sweeps.
Blades draw blood. The HQ collapses around them, systems crashing, smoke filling the air.
Meanwhile, Veya fights through enemy reinforcements to reach them. Explosions from the southern wing ripple through the floors.
Kageru (cut across cheek):
"You protect her like she matters. She's a broken heir."
Yuna:
"She matters to me. That's enough."
Kageru hurls a flash smoke bomb and vanishes. The ninjas begin retreating. Echo-7 chases the signals, but many escape.
[SCENE — HQ MEDBAY, HOURS LATER]
Suki is bandaged. The HQ is in ruins, but the team survived. Yuna watches over her.
Suki (groggy):
"I'm sorry... again... I wasn't strong enough."
Yuna (smiling faintly):
"You stood. That's stronger than falling. We all break. You chose to bloom again."
Camera pans out to show the Vanguards regrouping, the HQ scorched but standing.
[TO BE CONTINUED...]