The steel door groaned open, and Kael stepped into the cold interrogation chamber, his boots echoing in the silence. A single light flickered above Kaas, who sat shackled to the wall, blood crusted on his jaw. His eyes, tired but alert, snapped to Kael.
"So," Kaas muttered with a dry chuckle, "the dragon returns."
Kael didn't smile. "You're going to tell me everything, Kaas. About the Crimson Sickle. About what they're planning."
Kaas leaned back, chains clinking. "You think you have time? You don't. None of you do."
Before Kael could press further, the base shook violently. A tremor, followed by a distant explosion, rattled the walls. Then the alarms began to scream.
"Code Black. Intrusion in Sector D. Hostile unknown."
Kael's comms crackled. "We've got a breach—multiple casualties," Edith's voice barked. "Evacuate non-combatants. Teams to defensive positions. NOW."
Kael turned to Kaas. "What did they drop on us?"
Kaas's smile returned—this one colder, heavier. "You're about to meet progress. Or at least what's left of it."
Sector D – Base Omega
The blast doors buckled as something slammed through them—a blur of motion, inhuman in form. The creature stepped into the light. Its skin pulsed with veins of molten crimson and shimmering blue—a horrific blend of Fire Arcana and Water Arcana, dancing violently within its unstable form.
A dual Arcana user—a manufactured abomination.
Vendetta operatives opened fire. The bullets barely slowed it. It moved like a demon, tearing through steel and bodies, a tidal wave of destruction laced with fire and pressure.
Evan's voice rang through the comms. "They dropped one of their experimental weapons. A subhuman—they've been working on merging Arcana into one host!"
Natasha's heels clicked as she arrived at the edge of the chaos, rapier Fateweaver drawn, frost trailing behind her. Her eyes narrowed.
"Everyone fall back," she commanded, voice like ice slicing through a storm. "I'll handle this."
Natasha vs. The Subhuman
The creature turned as Natasha approached, snarling. It unleashed a torrent of boiling water followed by an inferno of flames. The clash of the two Arcana within it destabilized the air, creating steam-shrouded chaos.
But Natasha didn't flinch.
"Blizzard: Entomb."
With a wave of her rapier, the temperature dropped instantly. Moisture in the air froze into spears and walls of ice. She danced between attacks, her movements an elegant blur of precision and power.
The creature lunged, claws ablaze, but Natasha caught it with a counter-strike that crystallized its limb mid-motion.
"Winter's Requiem."
A dome of cold burst from her core, freezing the steam, sealing the room in a coffin of frost. The abomination howled, body cracking, skin splitting under the unnatural cold. It thrashed—then shattered, its remains encased in jagged crystal.
Silence fell.
Natasha stood tall, barely winded, her white coat flowing behind her like a queen's mantle.
The Ice Queen had reminded the world why she was No. 8 on the Throne of Blades.
Debrief Room – Hours Later
Kaas, bruised but impressed, watched the footage from a screen.
"She's as terrifying as I remember," he muttered.
Kael entered, covered in dust and soot. "That was your experiment?"
Kaas didn't answer immediately. His gaze lingered on Natasha's final blow.
"The Crimson Sickle is done waiting. That was a prototype. The next batch won't be unstable."
Kael's eyes narrowed. "What do they want?"
Kaas met his gaze, and for once, there was no smirk. Just gravity.
"They want gods, Kael. And they're almost done making them."