Cloe and Brian moved through the dim, cavernous corridors of Zirnoth's command center, their boots clanging against metal floors that echoed like distant drums. The path was suffused with the acrid smell of oil and scorched metal, and every flickering lamp cast long, trembling shadows across the walls. Above them, the observation towers loomed like silent sentinels, their watchful eyes cutting through the thick copper-hued air. The faint hum of energy fields from distant plasma gates made the atmosphere tense, as if the very air were alive with vigilance.
At the heart of the labyrinth rose the main hall, a structure of black stone and steel, severe and imposing. A shimmering blue plasma arch split the copper sky above it, radiating a light both mesmerizing and threatening. Intricate arcane tattoos were carved into the walls like pulsating veins, as though the building itself was a living, breathing entity that fed on power and fear.
Inside, they met Yoon, the branch commander. Short and stocky, his face was a map of battle scars, and his bare torso displayed four glowing tattoos of power. He radiated arrogance, a man intoxicated by his own image, flaunting the marks as though they were crowns.
When Brian demanded passage to the main office, Yoon waved dismissively and summoned a soldier to guide them.
"I am busy," he said, voice dripping with disdain.
Cloe's gaze sharpened, a flash of fury in her eyes. Before she could move, Brian seized Yoon by the throat, his grip like iron.
"Do you know who I am, you wretch?" he demanded, eyes blazing.
Yoon spat back defiantly, "I told you, I'm busy. Run your patrol or whatever errand brought you here."
Brian's voice was calm but deadly. "I am your superior. You are nothing but a caretaker of this pitiful branch." He glanced at Chloe. "Cut off his head."
Yoon roared, lunging like a cornered beast, but Brian sidestepped every strike. Cloe moved with lethal precision, her blade flashing as she blocked his attacks. When Yoon inhaled to release fire, she clamped his mouth shut, severing his hands in one clean motion. She followed with a barrage of bone-jarring strikes to his face before hurling him at the feet of the soldiers.
Her voice was ice.
"Flay him. Hang his skin at the gates. Let all of Zirnoth see the cost of disobedience. Let those who play at work know this is their fate."
A tense silence fell. Then a soldier stepped forward, trembling but determined. He was tall, broad-shouldered, with black hair tied back, streaks of gray hinting at the years he had endured. A deep scar ran from his cheek to his jaw, and his body bore the marks of repeated near-death missions. At twenty-two, he was considered an "old man" by Zirnoth standards, where few survived past twenty-three.
He bowed deeply. "Please… spare him, Sir. He is one of our strongest. He didn't recognize you. We've had him on deadly missions all week… he barely returned alive."
Brian's gaze was cold, measuring. "Did I not send word of my arrival? That urgent matters awaited me?"
The soldier swallowed hard. "Forgive him. His strength is unmatched in the City Corps, except for the Abyss Legion. He is reckless, but invaluable. We cannot afford to lose him."
Cloe muttered under her breath, "Should we waste our healer's power on such trash?"
The soldier shook his head. "No, Sir. There is a new recruit—a healer. Arrived this month. Capable of mending even grievous wounds. He is… different."
Brian's lips curved in a slow, cold smile. "So Zirnoth hides more treasures than I imagined. A healer of this caliber should not be ignored."
He fixed his gaze on the soldier with a weight that seemed to press down on the air itself. "Very well. Have him mend the wounded. Strip Yoon of his command. From now on, he belongs to Chloe's unit—he'll bleed outside the city walls."
Finally, his eyes settled on the young soldier. "And you, Aaron Nireval… you stood where others feared. Prove your worth. Perhaps one day, you'll sit where Yoon once did. Fail… and you'll meet the fate of the rest."
The hall went silent, the tension palpable. Then Cloe laughed, sharp and cruel, stepping closer to Brian. Her eyes glinted with dark amusement.
"So… you've decided to use him as a shield?" she whispered, voice slicing the air. "Tell me, Commander… should I place him in the front lines? Let him burn before the others?"
Her icy smile widened, reflecting a fate with no mercy.
Brian remained silent, his own cold smile promising consequences beyond the soldiers' imagination.