"Not every monster is born. Some are created… by fear."
---
The battlefield was silent.
Broken weapons. Scattered corpses.
The ground was soaked in blood.
And standing in the middle... was Kaizen — covered in dried blood, eyes closed, unconscious.
But no one went near him.
Not even his own squad.
---
Whispers in the Ashes
As the medics arrived, they didn't even check Kaizen's pulse. They hesitated.
Kira stepped back. Rei clenched his sword tighter.
Zeke whispered, "He's not one of us anymore…"
Only Ayaka ran to him. "Move! He's alive!"
She cradled him in her lap as the soldiers and survivors watched silently — not in grief, but in fear.
> "He ripped that Bist apart like it was made of paper," one whispered.
"His eyes… they weren't human," said another.
No one thanked him.
No one helped her.
---
The Chains of Fear
Two hours later, while Kaizen lay unconscious in the medical tent, Central Command arrived — four soldiers in black armor with red veils.
They didn't speak. They shackled Kaizen's hands and neck, like he was a beast.
> "Protocol 9-Black. Possession of forbidden power. Suspected hybrid."
Ayaka screamed, "HE SAVED YOU ALL!"
One of the black-armored soldiers struck her down with the butt of his rifle. "Silence."
Kaizen stirred — barely conscious — and muttered her name.
But they dragged him away.
---
The Capital: Iron Sanctum
Kaizen awoke in a cold iron cell — underground, deep beneath the Iron Sanctum, the HQ of all human military operations.
He had no idea how long he'd been out.
No windows. No sunlight. Just silence.
Until…
> "So... this is the monster everyone's talking about."
A group of five entered the cell chamber — dressed in elite armor with deep red cloaks. Each had a unique weapon. Their presence felt heavier than stone.
This was Squad Umbra — the most feared elite squad of the empire.
The group that executed Bist kings — and humans too.
---
Judgement
The leader stepped forward — a tall, silver-haired man with cold violet eyes.
> "My name is Kavros. We decide who lives and who burns."
He circled Kaizen.
> "You awakened something unnatural. Half of your comrades believe you saved them. The other half believe you'll kill them next."
Kaizen didn't answer.
> "So what are you? Human… or Bist?"
Kaizen growled, "I don't know."
Kavros smiled faintly.
> "Then until we find out… you'll rot here."
---
Ayaka's Fate
Meanwhile, Ayaka stood in chains before a military tribunal.
> "You assisted a threat to humanity. You refused to report his transformation. That makes you complicit."
"I saved his life!" she shouted. "He's not a threat — he's Kaizen!"
"Silence."
Her punishment wasn't death. But close.
> She was stripped of rank.
Her blade was taken.
And she was sent to the Isolated Wing — a dark cell near the central prison.
---
Alone. But Not Broken.
Kaizen sat in the cold dark, bruised and aching.
He looked at the cuffs on his hands.
> "Why did they fear me... when I fought for them?"
In the distance, he thought he heard a soft voice. Ayaka's voice.
She was still alive.
Somewhere close.
And in that moment, Kaizen's eyes glowed faintly again — just for a second.
> "Let them fear me. I'll show them what real monsters look like."
---
End of Chapter 4