"The aircraft's control is gone!"
The pilot's scream tore through the narrow cockpit. Warning lights flashed crimson across the console—every altimeter and energy sensor flatlined. The Southern Haven airship spun slowly in midair, losing stability.
"Pull up! Stabilize the pressure!" Aeria Voss ordered, gripping the wall for balance. Her voice was firm, but her eyes never left the dark figure standing below.
The giant moved.
One step was enough to fracture the open ground beside the school. The shockwave shattered windows and warped the air like a silent fire burning without color.
From afar, the Southern Haven control tower reactivated its highest emergency sirens. Dozens of small fighter crafts launched from the western bastion, sealing the skies above Valdora.
"Recon units, report immediately!"
"Visual confirmed—massive target, presumed Origin-Class Entity! Repeat, Origin-Class!"
"Full assault authorization—keep it away from the civilian sectors!"
On the school rooftop, Elara Quinn sat exactly as before.
The lights on her headset blinked softly—noise-cancellation fully active. No screams. No explosions. Only the gentle rhythm of her heartbeat, slow but steady.
A faint blue light began to pulse at her left fingertips. She glanced at it for a moment, then clenched her hand tightly. The glow vanished—snuffed out in an instant.
But something changed.
The giant stopped walking.
Its head turned slowly toward the rooftop where Elara sat.
Aeria Voss held her breath. "It's… looking at something."
"Target lock?"
"No. It's—"
A violent tremor cut her off. The monster roared—a deep, guttural bellow that shook the air like thunder born from the earth's core.
The sirens wailed even louder. From the control tower, Captain Solaris' command echoed through the comms:
"Seraph Unit, focus all weapons on that creature! Do not let it advance any further! Evacuate all civilians underground—now!"
Aeria's airship lurched to the side, nearly spinning out of control.
She managed a final glance downward—and saw Elara standing on the rooftop. Just for a second.
Then, the girl was gone.
The wind stopped.
Dust hanging in the air began to fall slowly, as if the world itself were holding its breath.
From Aeria's distant view, the once-mighty Origin creature no longer moved.
Its blazing eyes dimmed, fading like embers dying in ash.
A faint pulse—barely visible—rippled through the air. Then the giant collapsed, slamming into the earth with a final tremor that shook the entire school grounds.
Aeria Voss stood frozen, her heart pounding violently.
"Captain…" Her voice cracked as she pressed the comm switch.
"What is it, Voss?"
She swallowed hard, eyes fixed on the motionless titan below.
"The creature… it seems to be dead."
-----
Elara Quinn walked slowly down the narrow alley, her steps calm as if the world around her were still at peace — though above her, the roar of transport aircraft echoed, rumbling between the buildings.
Fine dust drifted through the air each time the engines thundered, but Elara kept walking, her expression unchanged.
Every now and then, she glanced to her left and right — as if searching for something, or perhaps lost in thoughts she couldn't quite put into words.
Her steps stopped at the end of the alley.
"Dad's probably coming home late…" she murmured softly, her voice nearly drowned beneath the distant wail of emergency sirens.
She ran a hand through her hair, looking uneasy. "And there's no food at home, either."
Her tone was flat — like she wasn't talking to anyone at all.
Elara took a slow breath, then started walking again — her shoulders slightly hunched, as though she'd left her spirit behind somewhere in that alley.
-------
The atmosphere inside the second western fortress was tense — now crowded with superhumans from all three Alliances.
Above the compound, three massive carrier ships hovered, accompanied by fighter escorts and passenger transports unloading high-ranking officers from each Alliance.
Captain Solaris stood motionless beside the corpse of the creature, joined by Dr. Araki Shion, who had just descended from one of the carriers.
From a distance, the body of the Origin-Class Entity sprawled like a fallen hill — half-sunken into the ground, the other half slumped lifelessly, silent and still.
Origin-Class Entity.
The second-highest classification of all recorded outer beings — terrifying, and nearly impossible to kill.
Ordinarily, it would take the combined might of all three Alliances to bring down even one of them. And every victory came at a terrible cost — lives lost, weapons spent, and cities reduced to ash.
But this time… there had been no explosions, no scorch marks.
Only a decaying body — and a silence that unsettled everyone.
"Indeed," murmured Dr. Araki Shion, running his hand across the creature's hide, which had hardened like stone. "It's definitely an Origin-Class Entity."
Captain Solaris said nothing, his eyes tracing every inch of the fallen giant.
"Now I believe the reports — that this Origin killed the other one out there. But then… what killed this one?"
Dr. Araki didn't answer. He circled the carcass, recording readings on the wrist device strapped to his arm.
Parts of the creature's flesh had already begun to crack and merge with the soil — a sure sign of an Origin species after death.
"Hurry," he muttered. "We don't have much time before the entire body disintegrates. Once the process is complete, only one thing remains."
Captain Solaris frowned. "Idocrase?"
Dr. Araki nodded. "Yes. Pure energy crystal. A single core could power an entire Alliance city for ten years… or keep a heavy carrier operational for five."
He paused, watching the faint green light emerging from the cracks along the creature's skin.
"But… something's wrong. This energy pulse—"
Dr. Araki swallowed, his face tightening. "It's not just the creature's residual life force. There's another trace within it… something similar, but far more stable."
"No."
He turned his gaze toward the distant shadow of Valdora City, his tone low and uncertain.
"Not another creature. Something… or—"
His words were cut short by a sharp explosion nearby. Shouts and the sound of collapsing earth followed.
"What now?" Captain Solaris spun around, leaving Dr. Araki beside the giant's corpse.
Several senior officers from the three Alliances were arguing near the perimeter — voices raised, fingers pointed, each demanding jurisdiction over the investigation site. Their shouting clashed with the endless hum of engines and the still-blaring emergency sirens.
Meanwhile, not far from the Origin-Class corpse, Aeria Voss and her squad moved carefully among the ruins, sweeping through every alley and rooftop.
Her gaze was sharp, focused — every glance calculated as they searched the shadowed streets.
"What exactly are we looking for, Lieutenant?" one of the soldiers asked, glancing her way.
"The girl on the rooftop," Aeria replied without turning. "She vanished — just like that."
"If she fell… why are we searching here?"
Aeria stopped walking. She turned slowly, her eyes narrowing.
"She didn't fall," she said quietly. "She disappeared. Do you understand?"
She raised a hand, signaling her team to halt. The distant hum of the carriers echoed faintly through the ruins.
Crouching down, she touched the cracked ground. Fine fragments glittered faintly under the red glow of the emergency flares.
"…What is that?" a soldier behind her asked.
Aeria scooped a handful of the dust — and instantly dropped it. The particles were hot, but not with fire.
It was energy.
"Bring the scanner," Aeria ordered sharply.
One of the officers handed her a wrist-sized device. She activated it and swept the area ahead.
A holographic projection blinked to life, displaying a pulsating ring of energy — as though something had detonated there, but without any visible explosion.
"Bio-energy… but not from the creature," the officer stammered. "And the pattern—"
Aeria stared at the display. The waveform twisted — like a human heartbeat.
"Report to command," she said softly. "This area is off-limits without my authorization."
"But Lieutenant, if this is residual energy from the Origin-Class—"
"It's not," Aeria cut in, her tone firm. She turned toward the shadows between two buildings. "This isn't creature energy. It's something else."
She paused — her expression distant, her voice a mix of doubt and quiet fear.
"This energy… it's stable. Controlled. Not chaotic like an Origin."
The soldier behind her swallowed, unease creeping into his tone.
"That's impossible. There can't be another Origin anywhere near here. If there were, it'd be a catastrophe."
Aeria didn't answer immediately. The wind shifted, carrying the metallic scent of the fallen creature's remains.
"I don't think so," she said at last. "Origin-class catastrophes don't kill their own kind. They… observe. They don't intervene."
"Then… it can't be human, right, Lieutenant?" the soldier asked, voice trembling slightly.
Aeria turned to him, her gaze blank yet heavy.
"I don't know," she said quietly. "That girl…"
She glanced toward the narrow street leading back to the school.
"She vanished — just like that. And the spot where she was sitting…"
Aeria lowered her gaze to the ground beneath her boots — fine cracks spiraled outward, as if power had burst from beneath the surface.
"…is still warm."
------
The evening wind blew gently, brushing through the short strands of Elara Quinn's shoulder-length hair. Her gaze was distant, hollow — as if the world around her had stopped breathing.
Her neighborhood was silent. Maybe everyone had already fled after the incident in the city.
She sat calmly on the front steps of her house, as though waiting for someone to come home.
After a while, she took off her headphones. From the end of the street, a tall, broad-shouldered man with a shaved head appeared, walking slowly toward her.
Victor Sergei.
Elara Quinn's father — a man with a stern, hard face that hid something unspoken behind his cold eyes. He worked as a cleaner, one of those tasked with clearing the remains of fallen creatures after battles. But he wasn't a native of Southern Haven.
He came from a small city under the Western Rebirth Alliance — a city that was wiped out years ago in a Primal attack. That assault took his wife's life, and since then, he had moved to Southern Haven with Elara.
"You're home early today, Dad?" Elara said without looking at him.
Victor let out a long breath and sat beside her. "My team was forced to pull back. Not my choice."
"Why?"
"That Origin creature… it's rare. Everyone's fighting over it. Especially the higher-ups. They want full control of the site. But I know there's something dirty behind it — they're in league with the black market."
Elara raised an eyebrow. "Working together that openly, huh?"
"They move fast," Victor replied quietly. "Faster than licensed cleaners, even. But, Elara…" — he turned to her — "did anyone see you today?"
Elara smirked faintly, her tone edged with sarcasm. "And if they did, why should I care?"
"Aren't you afraid they'll try to drag you back to the main fortress?"
Elara turned to him, her eyes cold. "When I was useless, they threw me out here. Now that I'm useful again, they want to pull me back? If they value their lives, they can try."
Victor chuckled — a rough, world-weary laugh from a man too familiar with corruption. "The fortress isn't as bad as you think, Elara. At least… it's safe."
"I don't like noise, Dad. I just want peace. This place is enough," she said flatly. "I hate it when people tell me what to do."
Victor laughed again, softer this time. "You really are my daughter… but your temper — you're just like your mother."
He rose to his feet, patting her shoulder gently. "Come on inside. No need to worry about what's ahead."
"There's no food at home," Elara said indifferently. "All the stores are closed."
"Oh, right." Victor lifted the plastic bag in his hand. "I brought some meat home."
Elara turned, half uninterested. "Monster meat again?"
Victor grinned. "Origin meat, actually. But don't worry — it's been purified."
Elara stood, exhaling softly. "Whatever. As long as we're eating meat tonight."
Victor burst into hearty laughter. "Hahaha! That's my girl."
-----
Night descended with a thick, biting chill. Beneath the glare of massive floodlights, the cleanup of the Origin-Class Entity's carcass continued. The area was now under the tight control of the three great Alliances — as if every inch of the creature's hide was worth more than a human life.
Yet high above, in the tallest tower of Southern Haven's defense headquarters, a secret meeting was taking place — an emergency council between the highest-ranked superhumans: the Omegas and the Novas.
The world called them the chosen few — but that night, not a single one of them looked special. The air was heavy with tension, everyone alert, as though sitting at the edge of a war that hadn't yet begun.
Captain Solaris, the only Omega-class superhuman still serving under the Southern Haven government, stood at the far end of the main table. On his left and right — two empty chairs.
The other two Omegas had not come.
"Why did you call us here, Solaris?"
The voice came from a man in a sleek black coat, his hair neatly combed back, his presence sharp and predatory.
Jeremy Hunt.
The second Omega-class human — head of Guardian Corp, a private security company controlling trade routes between the cities and the black zones.
His ability: to convert the energy within his body into ammunition, firing it through any part of his form — though his signature weapons were his twin pistols, known as the Requiem Twins.
Solaris didn't answer right away. He stood tall, hands clasped behind his back, eyes sweeping across the room.
"Starting tonight," he said calmly, "all registered private companies under the Alliance will cooperate directly with the government."
The atmosphere tightened instantly.
"What?"
"Why the hell should we?"
Voices of protest erupted across the table.
Jeremy tapped his fingers lightly against the table, his tone grave. "The government promised to stay out of our affairs, Solaris."
"This cooperation isn't absolute," Solaris replied evenly. "It applies only under certain conditions — especially when a large-scale assault threatens the city."
"Large-scale assault?" Jeremy sneered. "Don't expect much help from us. You know damn well most of the rank-two superhumans serve under the government, and the young ones are locked up in the Academy. In private corps like mine, Novas are dying out."
Solaris nodded slowly. "I'm aware, Hunt. But this isn't an order — it's an offer. A partnership. The government will supply Idocrase energy crystals to any company that agrees."
Heads turned. Murmurs rippled around the room. Jeremy's expression shifted from scorn to intrigue.
"Idocrase?" he repeated. "The sacred power stones? And the government's just handing them over?"
Solaris' voice grew colder. "Because we're taking the Northern Fortress."
The room fell silent for a heartbeat — then exploded in noise.
"That's madness!" shouted a Nova from the western sector. "The Northern Fortress is overrun by Primals! Each one has strength equal to a rank-two superhuman — and there are hundreds of them!"
Solaris strode toward the large digital screen on the wall. A flickering map of the Northern Fortress appeared, dotted with red markers.
"Isn't that a fair trade for what you're being offered?" he said quietly, his tone slicing through the commotion.
"You all know your energy reserves are running low. Your transports — without Idocrase — are nothing but dead steel. We're willing to give you power… if you help us open the way."
Jeremy laughed, a low, humorless sound. "Hahahaha… never thought I'd see the day the government came begging to us. The world really has turned upside down."
He leaned back in his chair, eyes locked on Solaris.
"But before I decide…" he said slowly, "there's one thing I want to know."
Solaris turned to him, calm as ever. "What is it?"
Jeremy's lips curled into a thin smile.
"Who killed the Origin-class monster?"