The industrial area was a warzone of fire and lightning, the clash of Leo and Aries painting the night in bursts of gold and silver. Hidden behind the rusted container, I crouched low, my breath shallow, my phone's Infinity OS map glowing faintly in my hand. Taurus's blue dot pulsed closer, his heavy footsteps rumbling like an approaching earthquake. My plan was simple: stay hidden, watch, and learn. No fighting. Not with three Riders here. My one life, ♥ 1/1, was too fragile to risk.
But the air shifted, a prickling heat crawling up my spine. Leo and Aries froze mid-clash, their weapons, Leo's flaming sword and Aries's electric blades, hovering as if time had paused. Leo's helmet, its mane flickering like a dying campfire, turned slowly toward my hiding spot. Aries's silver armor sparked, his head snapping in the same direction. Their visors glowed, scanning the darkness.
"An intruder," Leo growled, his voice deep and regal, like a lion sizing up prey. "Not Taurus… something else."
"Forbidden energy," Aries hissed, his voice sharp and electric. "Ophiuchus."
My heart stopped. How did they know? I hadn't transformed, hadn't made a sound. The Sagittarius card in my pocket burned against my thigh, its glow faint but betraying, like a beacon I couldn't hide. I pressed myself against the container, its cold metal biting into my back, praying they'd dismiss it as a glitch.
No such luck. Leo raised his sword, flames roaring to life, and pointed it at my hiding spot. "Come out, snake. Or we'll burn you out."
Aries moved faster, his blades crackling with electricity as he leaped onto a nearby container, his silhouette framed against the smoky sky. "Forbidden Riders don't belong here. Your existence breaks the System's balance."
Panic clawed at my chest. I wasn't ready for this, not for two official Riders, both with two lives and battle-honed skills. Taurus's dot was now fifty meters away, closing fast. If I stayed hidden, I'd be cornered. If I ran, they'd chase me. My trembling hand gripped my phone, the snake symbol pulsing. No choice.
"Henshin!" I shouted, my voice cracking.
The familiar cold surged through me, like ice water flooding my veins. Serpent scales erupted across my skin, forming sleek, greenish-black armor. A snake-shaped helmet encased my head, its bluish-green visor transforming the world into a digital battlefield. My muscles tightened, stronger, lighter, but my heart still pounded like a drum. The Infinity OS displayed their stats: [Leo | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Ability: Solar Flare] and [Aries | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Ability: Volt Rush]. Both untouched, both deadly.
I stepped out, fists clenched, trying to look braver than I felt. "I don't want to fight," I said, my voice steady through the helmet's filter. "Just let me go."
Leo laughed, a booming sound that shook the air. "A forbidden Rider begging? Pathetic." He swung his sword, unleashing a wave of fire that roared toward me, scorching the ground black.
I dove to the side, the heat singeing my armor, my visor flashing a warning: [Thermal Damage: 5%]. Aries was already moving, a blur of silver and lightning, his blades slashing at my chest. I blocked with my arm, the Serpent Scale absorbing some of the shock, but the impact sent me skidding across the asphalt, sparks flying. Pain shot through my ribs, my visor blinking: [Structural Integrity: 85%].
They were too strong, too fast. Leo charged, his sword raised for a crushing blow, while Aries flanked me, his blades sparking with enough voltage to fry me. I dodged Leo's strike, the ground exploding into molten fragments, but Aries's blade grazed my shoulder, sending a jolt through my body. My vision blurred, my visor screaming: [Electrical Damage: 15%]. I stumbled, barely staying upright. They fought like a unit, their movements synchronized from years of battles I'd never seen. I was a kid playing hero, outmatched and outclassed.
Desperation clawed at me. Andi's blood-soaked face flashed in my mind, his dying whisper: "What… is this…" I couldn't die here, not like him, not for nothing. My hand found the Sagittarius card in my pocket, its arrow logo glowing hotter, burning through my armor like a brand. A new notification appeared on my visor: [Star Fragment: Sagittarius | Activate? Cost: 1 Day of Life | Y/N].
One day of my life. I didn't even know what that meant, would I age faster? Lose a memory? Die sooner? But as Leo's sword descended again, flames licking the air, and Aries's blades closed in, I had no time to think. "Y!" I screamed, pressing the card against my chest.
A searing pain erupted in my core, like a piece of my soul was being torn away. My vision flashed white, then green. The Sagittarius card dissolved into particles of light, merging with my armor. My right arm tingled, then transformed, scales reshaping into a sleek, golden-green bow, its string humming with energy. The Infinity OS updated: [Temporary Ability: Celestial Shot | Duration: 60 seconds].
Leo's sword was inches from my head. I rolled back, pulling the bow's string instinctively. A glowing arrow materialized, its tip crackling with the same energy Sagittarius had used. I aimed at Leo and released. The arrow streaked through the air, faster than I could track, and hit his chest with a deafening boom. He staggered, flames dimming, his visor flashing: [Leo | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Damage: 30%].
Aries lunged, but I was already moving, my body lighter, guided by the bow's power. I fired a second arrow, this one grazing his leg, sending him crashing into a stack of crates with a burst of sparks. [Aries | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Damage: 25%]. The bow's energy pulsed through me, but my visor blinked a warning: [Celestial Shot: 30 seconds remaining]. My body felt heavier, the cost of the fragment sinking in, a day of my life, gone.
I didn't wait for them to recover. I turned and ran, my legs pumping faster than ever, the Serpent Scale's speed carrying me through the industrial maze. Behind me, Leo roared, "You can't hide, snake!" Aries's lightning crackled, but the distance grew. I ducked behind a warehouse, my armor retracting with a hiss, leaving me as plain Rei again, gasping on the cold ground. My phone buzzed, the Infinity OS showing their dots still active but no longer pursuing. Taurus's dot had stopped, likely joining the fray I'd escaped.
Sweat drenched my uniform, my hand stinging where the Sagittarius card had burned. The bow was gone, its power spent. I'd survived, but at what cost? One day of my life for a fleeting chance to fight back. And they knew me now Ophiuchus, the forbidden Rider. The game had just gotten deadlier.
My lungs burned as I sprinted through the industrial maze, the cold night air biting at my face. The Infinity OS map on my phone flickered, showing three red dots, Leo, Aries, and now Taurus, closing in like predators. My Serpent Scale armor was gone, its energy spent after using the Sagittarius Star Fragment. I was just Rei again, a scrawny high schooler with a rusty bike nowhere in sight and a body screaming for rest. The warehouse district's narrow alleys offered no escape, their rusted walls and oil-stained ground boxing me in.
Behind me, Leo's roar echoed, his flaming sword casting an orange glow across the asphalt. "You can't run forever, snake!" Aries's electric blades crackled, his silver form a blur as he leaped from container to container, cutting off my left flank. Worse, Taurus's seismic steps shook the ground, each thud sending tremors through my bones. My visor, still faintly active in my mind's eye, flashed his profile: [Taurus | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Ability: Seismic Charge]. A new message followed: [Threat Level: Critical]. No kidding.
I ducked into a dead-end alley, a chain-link fence blocking my path. My heart sank. Cornered. The Sagittarius bow had bought me seconds, but it was gone, and the cost, one day of my life, left me dizzy, like a piece of me had been carved out. I clutched the fence, its cold metal biting my palms, and turned to face them.
Leo stepped forward, his golden armor glowing like a furnace, sword raised. "Forbidden Riders threaten the System's order. You die here." Aries flanked him, blades sparking, his visor locked on me. Taurus loomed behind them, his bronze bull-emblem armor glinting under a flickering streetlight. His hammer, glowing green, hummed with power. "I hate nothing more than those who disrupt the status quo," he growled, his voice like grinding stone. "Your existence is a glitch, Ophiuchus."
My phone vibrated, the snake symbol pulsing, but transforming now felt pointless. Three against one, all with two lives, all battle-hardened. My single ♥ blinked in my mind, mocking me. I was no hero, just a kid who'd made a stupid choice. Andi's bloodied face flashed again, his dying question unanswered. Was this how it ended?
A sharp laugh cut through the tension, light and playful, like a bell in a storm. "Wow, three big shots ganging up on one newbie? That's, like, totally unfair!" From the shadows above, a figure dropped, landing between me and the Riders. No, two figures, identical, clad in sleek, silver-green armor with a twin-star emblem on their chests. Gemini. Their visors glowed a soft purple, and they moved in perfect sync, one holding a shimmering whip, the other a pair of daggers.
"Gemini?" Leo snarled, stepping back. "This isn't your fight."
"Oh, but it's so boring just watching!" one Gemini chirped, her voice bubbly. The other, silent, spun her daggers with a cold precision. My visor updated: [Gemini | Lives: ♥♡ 2/2 | Ability: Mirror Clone]. Before I could process, the cheerful Gemini snapped her whip, and the air shimmered. Two more Geminis appeared, then four, then eight, clones splitting like reflections in a fractured mirror. Each held the same whip or daggers, their movements a chaotic dance.
"Scatter them!" the serious Gemini barked. The clones surged forward, a whirlwind of silver-green. One clone lashed her whip at Leo, wrapping it around his sword arm, yanking him off balance. Another pair tackled Aries, their daggers clashing against his blades in a shower of sparks. Taurus swung his hammer, crushing a clone into light particles, but three more took its place, their whips coiling around his legs, slowing him.
I stood frozen, my breath ragged. The cheerful Gemini grabbed my arm, her grip firm but warm. "Come on, cutie, time to go!" Before I could protest, she leaped, pulling me upward with impossible strength. The world blurred, wind rushing past as we soared, landing on the roof of a distant factory, its smokestacks looming like silent giants. The industrial district sprawled below, Leo's flames and Aries's lightning flashes tiny in the distance. Taurus's roars echoed faintly.
The Gemini armor dissolved in a shimmer of purple light, revealing two girls, identical in face but opposite in vibe. Both had short black hair and sharp green eyes, but one wore a bright yellow jacket and a grin that could light up the night. The other, in a dark blue coat, crossed her arms, her face etched with irritation.
"Ugh, why did we save him, Mira?" the serious one snapped, glaring at me. "He's a forbidden Rider. He'll just cause more trouble."
"Oh, come on, Lena!" the cheerful one, Mira, said, twirling a strand of hair. "A forbidden Rider? That's, like, *super* fascinating! Ophiuchus, right? The snake guy? I wanna know *everything*!" She leaned closer, eyes sparkling with curiosity, ignoring my dazed expression.
I slumped against a rusted vent, my legs shaking. "Why… why did you help me?" My voice was hoarse, the weight of the chase still crushing me.
Lena scoffed, adjusting her coat. "Don't get any ideas. I didn't want to. Mira's too soft for her own good. Helping a glitch like you could screw us over in the System."
Mira pouted, nudging Lena. "Oh, stop being such a grump! He's, like, a total underdog! And besides, did you *see* how he took on Sagittarius? That was cool!" She turned to me, grinning. "So, spill! How'd you become Ophiuchus? What's your deal? Got any cool powers yet?"
I stared at them, my mind reeling. The Infinity OS hadn't mentioned Gemini's dual nature, but their clone ability had saved my life. Lena's hostility and Mira's enthusiasm were a confusing mix, and I didn't trust either. Ophiuchus's words echoed: *They're your enemies, Rei.* But Mira's curiosity seemed genuine, and they'd just pulled me from certain death.
"I… I don't know much," I admitted, clutching my phone, its screen dark now. "Some guy, Ophiuchus, gave me this power. Said I could make things right. But I've got one life, and everyone wants me dead." The Sagittarius card was still in my pocket, its faint heat a reminder of the day I'd burned.
Lena's eyes narrowed. "Ophiuchus himself contacted you? That's bad news. Forbidden Riders don't just *happen*. You're part of something bigger, and I don't like it."
Mira clapped her hands, undeterred. "See? That's why we gotta keep him around! He's, like, a mystery box! Maybe he's the key to winning the System!" She winked at me, but Lena grabbed her arm.
"We're not keeping him," Lena said coldly. "We got you out of that mess, kid. Now stay out of our way, or next time, I'll let Leo burn you." She turned, pulling Mira toward the roof's edge.
"Wait!" I called, standing shakily. "What's the Zodiac System really about? Why's everyone after me?"
Mira glanced back, her grin softening. "It's a game, cutie. Win, and you rewrite the world. Lose, and you're erased. Forbidden Riders like you? They're wild cards. Nobody likes wild cards… except me!" She giggled, but Lena yanked her away.
They leaped off the roof, their forms shimmering back into Gemini armor, vanishing into the night. Below, the industrial area glowed with distant flames. My phone buzzed, the Infinity OS map showing Leo, Aries, and Taurus moving apart, their chase disrupted. For now, I was safe. But Lena's warning and Mira's fascination left a knot in my gut. I was a glitch, a threat to their game, and Gemini's help wasn't charity, it was a gamble.