They cut through a narrow pass when it happened. A hulking demon burst from the treeline, roaring, and slammed into Billix with bone-crushing force. The impact sent him flipping off his bike, tumbling down a steep, rocky slope.
The rest of the team surged ahead, not realizing he was gone until Ian glanced back several miles later.
Ian skidded to a stop. "Wait, Billix is missing."
Optimus's visor flickered as he scanned the ridge. "Should we double back?"
Ian shook his head. "No. I'll radio a squad to find him. But we have to stay on track, undetected."
The team throttled forward again, disappearing into the mist.
Groaning, Billix pushed himself up. The demon that hit him lay sprawled nearby, its body twitching from the crash. Without hesitation, Billix raised his rifle and put three shots through its skull, just to be sure. He limped to his bike, but when he tried to start it, the motor gave a dead click.
"Perfect…" he muttered.
A rustling sound made him freeze. Through the skeletal trees, shapes moved, shadowy, hunched silhouettes with glowing eyes. Demons. Dozens of them, spreading through the forest. Billix slung his rifle and sprinted deeper into the woods. Branches whipped against his armor until the trees broke into an unexpected clearing, and in the middle stood a two-story wooden house, weathered but eerily intact.
He rushed inside, bolting the door behind him. The air was stale, smelling faintly of rot and something metallic.
"You've got to be kidding me… What is this place?"
The floorboards groaned under his boots as he explored. The furniture was old—dust-caked and warped from years of neglect—yet there were fresh footprints in the dust. As night fell, pale moonlight poured through the cracked windows, painting long shadows across the floor.
Billix moved toward the kitchen and froze. Standing there, half-shrouded in darkness, was a figure. Eight feet tall, draped in a tattered black robe, its clawed hands hovering over a circle carved into the wooden floor. Strange runes glowed faintly as it muttered in a guttural language. Billix didn't wait. He shouldered his rifle and fired point-blank into its head, CRACK CRACK CRACK,
but the bullets sparked and ricocheted as if hitting steel. The robed demon turned slowly, its face concealed beneath a bone mask, and in one movement it crossed the room, seized Billix by the neck, and hurled him into the living room. His back smashed against an old couch, the frame splintering on impact.
The team burst from the forest and skidded to a halt. Before them, rising above the treeline like an obsidian monument, was a giant circle of black stone, its surface etched with shifting crimson runes. A wide, cracked road led directly into its glowing center.
Ian's voice was grim. "So this is where they've been hiding since the attacks… stopping this should slow them down for months."
Optimus nodded, gripping his blade. "Ever since the 3rd Great War, we've been stuck on defense. Today… we take the fight to them."
They split up, racing to plant the explosives along the base of the portal. The forest around them was eerily still—until a deep, metallic voice growled over comms.
Voltron: "Ian… Varnyx is on the battlefield. He's coming straight for you."
Ian's head snapped up. "Brace for impact—!"
The ground erupted as Varnyx slammed into the clearing like a meteor, his impact shockwave flinging Roger across the dirt. Ian drew his katana in a flash, charging forward. His kick caught Varnyx in the side—but the demon didn't flinch.
Optimus sprinted in, lowering his shoulder, and smashed into Varnyx with the force of a battering ram, sending him sprawling. But the warlord rolled back to his feet in one fluid motion, then darted toward Optimus at blinding speed.
Their blades met in a thunderous CLANG, sparks flying as they locked weapons. Ian came from the side, aiming a high kick, but Varnyx caught his leg mid-air and hurled him like a ragdoll. Meanwhile, Blade slammed the final charge into place and dashed into the fray, his strikes a blur. The two exchanged a flurry of vicious blows before Blade drove his katana deep into Varnyx's side.
Varnyx's head snapped back, and he let out a screech that shook the ground, and every demon on the battlefield turned toward them at once. Roger dropped to one knee and opened fire, cutting down the first wave of the incoming swarm.
Voltron thundered into view, shoulder-checking Varnyx so hard the warlord's armor buckled.
Ian keyed his comm: "Danger close airstrike—now!"
Above, the sky split with the roar of engines as jets streaked overhead, dropping a rain of bombs.