ON THE COLOSSAL ROPES – CROSSING INTO THE LAND OF SNOW
The ropes groaned with every step, ancient fibers straining under the weight of hundreds. The abyss below them, endless and black, the sway of the bridge turning every footstep into a gamble. Still, the crowd surged forward, rebels and civilians alike, following the trail of fire that Micheal had unknowingly sparked.
"Everyone!" Micheal's voice boomed above the roar of the wind. "Stay cautious! I don't know how many of us this thing can hold, but don't stop! Keep moving! The Land of Snow is ahead, and our target is CORE himself!"
A thunderous cheer erupted, the sound rolling like waves across the rope. Fear melted into fury, despair into defiance. Torches lifted higher, broken weapons raised. The flame of hope burned brighter in their chests.
Doug, shoving through the press of bodies, caught sight of Madison beside him. For the first time in what felt like years, she was smiling. He smirked back, then thumbed the button on his radio.
"Sage, you seeing this?"
Static crackled before Sage's voice answered, calm but charged with energy:
"Hell yeah. I told you, this was our chance. ZE210 should be in that crowd somewhere. If you spot him, keep watch on him for me."
Doug's grin sharpened. "10-4."
The rope swayed violently as another surge of bodies pressed onto it, but no one stopped. The Land of Snow got closer with every step.
TUCKER'S POV
The crowd's roar thundered in Tucker's ears. He shot a glance toward the distant uprising, just for a second.
But that was all Asura needed.
In a blur, Asura lunged, his fist glowing with Strength Presence. The punch landed squarely, sending Tucker crashing through the canvas of a nearby pop-up tent. Pain seared his skull, blood dripping down his face as he staggered to catch his breath.
Asura loomed over him like a shadow before pouncing. He slammed Tucker to the ground, raining down blow after blow, each strike cracking with unnatural force. The crowd gasped, frozen in horror at the one-sided assault.
The woman who had once helped Tucker felt her chest tighten with urgency. Without thinking, she dove at Asura, only to be swatted aside with a brutal backhand that hurled her into the mob.
Tucker's vision blurred, but his spirit refused to falter. Gritting his teeth, he gathered an immense ounce of Strength Presence into his fist. With a roar, he drove his knuckles into Asura's eye.
Then, both vanished from sight, moving faster than the eye could follow. Their fists collided again and again, shockwaves cracking the air as the crowd stared in awe.
Each blow shook the air. Tucker's knuckles cracked against Asura's jaw, while Asura's fists hammered into his ribs with bone-splintering weight. Sparks of Strength Presence exploded at every collision, lighting the battlefield in bursts of raw force.
They tore across the riot like streaks of lightning. Tents shredded, sand was blasted into the sky, and bystanders stumbled back, shielding their eyes from the whirlwind of violence.
Tucker's lungs burned, his muscles screaming. He swung wild, but Asura weaved low, slamming his elbow into Tucker's gut. Tucker coughed blood, stumbling back before Asura seized him by the collar and hurled him into the ground.
Asura dropped down after him, fist raised for the ending blow. "You're out of your depth, kid!" he snarled.
But Tucker caught his wrist. His veins glowed with defiant energy, every ounce of Commabdjbg Presence flooding through him. With a grunt, he heaved Asura off and launched a desperate counterpunch straight into his chest.
The shockwave rattled the ground beneath the crowd.
Then Asura grinned, blood trickling from his mouth.
They vanished again, colliding midair with a thunderclap. The crowd could see only flashes, Tucker's fist, Asura's kick, the blur of bodies colliding at impossible speeds. Each impact echoed.
Finally, their fists met dead-center. The explosion of force sent both skidding back across the battlefield, their shoulders heaving, and eyes locked.
And then—
SHIRLEY'S POV
The sound of the clash still echoed in the distance, but Shirley had no time to watch. Steel clashed in front of him, sparks flying as Cael pressed forward with relentless precision. Shirley gritted his teeth, tightening his grip. The fight was his now.
One cleaver made him faster. He carved through the air with savage strikes, each swing grazing Cael and reopening the glowing X carved into his flesh. The wound pulsed, deepening with every exchange, as if the cleaver itself demanded blood.
Strength Presence flared between them, raw shockwaves splitting the ground under their feet.
"You're getting slower," Shirley growled, cleaver raised, eyes burning.
Cael smirked through the pain, sweat dripping down his face. "And you're forgetting, you're still being healed. You're still losing, even with that little advantage."
With a blur of motion, Cael lunged. Shirley pivoted just in time, his cleaver scraping across Cael's armor, sparks bursting. Their blades collided again, and the battlefield roared with the force of their clash.
The clang of steel split the air again, Shirley's cleaver sliding against Cael's blade. Sparks rained down in fiery arcs, the shockwaves of their Strength Presence slamming against the cracked pavement. Every strike rattled the world around them.
Shirley roared, cleaver flashing, and drove Cael back step by step. His strikes were vicious and unrelenting, like a predator cornering prey. Each swing carved into the X wound across Cael's chest.
Cael staggered, his wings twitching as if ready to launch him skyward again. But Shirley was faster. He lunged, seized Cael's wrist, and slammed his head forward, a brutal headbutt that cracked across Cael's nose. Blood sprayed as Cael reeled.
Shirley grinned through the sting, spitting blood of his own.
"Stop trying to run. I won't let you."
Cael coughed, but the smirk never left his face. "You think you've got me cornered… but you're the one burning yourself out."
He twisted suddenly, blade flashing like lightning. Shirley barely brought his cleaver up in time, the impact jolted his arm numb.
They broke apart, circling. The ground between the two was scorched, chunks of stone and twisted metal scattered from their Presence bursts and the crater from Cael's attack.
Shirley charged again, cleaver whistling through the air. Cael countered, steel crashed, their shockwaves colliding in a dome of force. The air rippled, and glass shattered, rubble lifted and spun.
Each strike now came with a cost, Shirley's breathing grew ragged, sweat streaming down his head, his arms trembling ever so slightly between swings. But still, he pressed forward, every move saying I refuse to stop.
Cael noticed. His eyes narrowed.
"You're strong… but strength without stamina is nothing."
He spun, blade singing through the air, forcing Shirley onto the defensive. Each clash sent jolts of pain up Shirley's arms. His grip on the cleaver tightened, but his shoulders ached, his chest heaved.
Still, even as his body begged to slow down, he forced himself to push harder.
Shirley barked back, voice raw but steady:
"Then I'll end this before I burn out."
With a sudden burst of speed, he swung upward, cleaver dragging a fiery arc of Commanding Presence. Cael blocked but the force sent him skidding back, boots carving trenches in the dirt.
Shirley stumbled too, chest heaving, sweat and blood dripping from his chin. His hands trembled on the cleaver's handle.
And still, he smiled.
"Still standing. What about you?"
Cael wiped the blood from his nose, eyes gleaming with both pain and admiration.
"You'll break soon enough… but I'll admit, you're harder to kill than I thought."
They squared up again, both battered, both refusing to yield, the battlefield hanging on the edge of their next clash.
NARRATOR
Steel clashed, fists cracked, and the ropes shook under the march of thousands. Tucker staggered, Shirley's arms trembled, yet neither yielded. The rebels pressed onward, their fire unbroken.
And far ahead, in the Land of Snow, CORE smiled.
But the battlefield, was edging to its end.