Part 1 — The Signal
Several days later, night returned to the wasteland.
The sky hung low, heavy with storm clouds.
Blizzards rolled across the plain like silent roars, shredding the world into shades of gray and white.
Inside the abandoned fuel-station base, Flame Squad prepared in silence.
Wind howled through broken steel, carrying the echo of weapons being checked and armor locked in place.
The Thirteenth District had long since turned to ash,
yet the fire in their hearts had never gone out.
Then—on the tactical screen—a crimson flare blinked to life.
[Distress Signal · Source: E.DEN Sector Seven]
Encrypted ID: S.L.
Su Li's signal.
She'd been missing for five days since the last mission.
Until now, there had been nothing but static.
> "It's a trap," Kain muttered.
"I know," Lian replied, his voice disturbingly calm.
"But she's there. We're going."
Renn adjusted his sniper scope, a cold grin crossing his face.
> "Then let's light it up.
Let them see that even traps can burn."
---
Nightdust Alliance · Tactical Link
Yuna's fingers flew across the console.
> "Got them! Nightdust's Second Unit and the support camp are ready to join the assault."
The commander of the Nightdust Alliance appeared on the screen, his tone urgent.
> "Flame Squad, we'll draw enemy artillery from the east flank.
You strike the southern control line.
Remember—Sector Seven is E.DEN's main energy core.
Any mistake could trigger a chain reaction."
> "Understood," Lian said with a nod.
"This time, we'll make E.DEN lose a wing."
---
Joint Assault · Sector Seven Perimeter
The night sky exploded with cannon fire.
Nightdust's armored columns advanced, their engines howling, heavy shells bursting in synchronized arcs that lit the field like sunrise.
> "Enemy intercept incoming! Hunter-Flame Task Force engaging Nightdust mainline!" Yuna called.
> "Perfect—southwest approach, move!" Lian ordered.
Kain surged forward, lightning crackling across his arms.
> "Thunder Cut — Flow Current!"
The first defense wall shattered under the blast.
Renn vaulted from cover, wind-charged rounds piercing armor plates.
> "Path clear—advance!"
Nightdust's Second Unit broke through on the opposite flank.
Explosions and flame twisted together into a single nightmare.
> "Too many of them!" Yuna shouted.
"Keep pushing!" Lian roared, flames roaring in his hands.
The ground convulsed under the blast—
and then boom! The entire defense line collapsed, swallowed by fire.
> "Hunter-Flame forces down to one-twenty! Central core still intact!"
A broken voice crackled over comms from Nightdust Command.
> "We're suppressing them—but they're barely holding—!"
> "Leave the thunder zone to me," Kain said, voice cold.
He raised a hand; lightning crawled across the field like serpents.
> "Thunder Domain: Heaven's Drum!"
The air detonated with sound and light.
Dozens of E.DEN soldiers—and their turrets—disappeared in a blinding surge.
> "Kain, you're insane!" Elina cried.
"Just warming up," he said, wiping blood from his mouth with a grin.
Part 2 — The Core Battle
The corridor reeked of smoke and burning metal.
After the outer defenses fell, the Nightdust units held the perimeter,
while Flame Squad advanced straight toward the central control hall.
The blast doors were half melted when they stepped through.
And there—standing before the humming energy chamber—was Warren.
A faint smile curved across his face.
> "You finally made it."
Lian's voice was low, steady.
> "Where's Su Li?"
Warren tilted his head slightly.
> "Right behind me."
Suspended in the air, bound by streams of light,
Su Li hung within the energy array—
her body lined with conduits that pulsed like veins of liquid fire.
Her eyes fluttered open, dazed and faint.
> "Lian…" she whispered, but no sound came.
Warren turned, extending a hand toward the array.
> "Welcome. You'll witness the birth of a new world."
Energy surged. The entire chamber began to quake.
Kain moved first, lightning bursting from his palms.
> "Thunder Slash — Twin Strike!"
Warren's hand flicked up. The lightning vanished—absorbed in an instant.
> "Interesting," he said, a grin twisting across his face.
He countered with a pulse wave that tore through the air.
Kain was thrown backward, slamming into the wall—blood splattering across steel.
Renn fired a round straight for Warren's chest;
the bullet shattered against an invisible field.
> "Interference in progress!" Yuna shouted.
"Core shell integrity down twenty percent—keep him busy!"
> "Cover me!" Lian roared.
Flames erupted around him, the marks of Ash Veins blazing to life across his skin.
The air itself began to ripple.
He stepped forward once—
and fire tore the room apart.
> "Falling Ember Strike!"
A dragon of flame spiraled upward,
crashing down onto Warren and the control platform in a single devastating arc.
The explosion engulfed the entire core chamber in blinding light.
Panels ruptured. Power lines snapped.
The array collapsed.
Elina rushed in, slashing through the last of the energy conduits and catching Su Li as she fell.
Kain pushed himself up, wiping blood from his chin.
> "Captain… your guy finally burned like a real fire."
Warren staggered out of the flames, body scorched but still smiling.
> "Fools… Flame Squad will never stop the truth."
The core in his chest began to pulse faster, glowing red-hot.
> "Get back! He's going to self-destruct!"
The explosion hit a second later—
a roar that swallowed everything.
Part 3 — The Escape and Aftermath
> "Core meltdown in progress! Everyone fall back!" Yuna screamed through the comms.
Renn raised a wall of wind to block the falling debris while Kain unleashed lightning to carve open an exit route.
Lian grabbed Su Li and sprinted down the corridor, heat waves bursting around him as the base began to collapse.
Outside, Nightdust's Second Unit had their vehicles waiting.
> "Get in—move! The whole sector's about to blow!" someone shouted.
The explosion came just as the hatch sealed.
Fire swallowed the horizon.
The entire E.DEN Sector Seven erupted into a tower of flame, its core detonating like a dying star.
Inside the armored truck, the world was nothing but light and thunder.
Elina worked quickly, patching Su Li's wounds with trembling hands.
Her voice was quiet, almost accusing.
> "Was she really worth all this?"
Su Li's eyes fluttered open. Her voice was weak, barely a whisper.
> "I'm not… worth it. But he deserves the truth."
The silence that followed was heavier than the roar outside.
---
Aftermath
The mission was over.
Flame Squad and Nightdust had annihilated E.DEN's Seventh Division.
The Hunter-Flame Task Force was gone.
Warren was dead.
A voice crackled through the Nightdust channel,
filled with triumph and disbelief.
> "Flame Squad—by command authorization—you are now officially recognized as Nightdust's Tier-One Combat Unit!"
Snow drifted over the ruins where Sector Seven had stood.
Flames still burned beneath the storm.
Inside one of the trucks, Su Li rested her head against Lian's shoulder.
Her voice was soft, almost lost in the wind.
> "So you really did grow up after all…"
Lian looked at her, eyes reflecting the distant firelight.
He tightened his grip on her hand.
> "Now it's my turn to protect you."
The blizzard howled again.
In the distance, the remnants of E.DEN still glowed faintly through the smoke—
a reminder that the war was far from over.
But for this single, fleeting night,
the fire that refused to die burned quietly between them.