"Why don't we send our Awakened?" one of the scientist suggested. "They outnumber the intruders."
Rain shook his head. "Bad idea. They might switch sides. I'm sure they weren't keen on being called numbers and treated like science experiments."
The scientists looked guilty at the accusation, because it was the undeniable truth.
"Then what do we do? We can't just sit here and wait." Another raised his concern.
Rain closed his eyes. Numbers flickered through his mind; probabilities, variables, outcomes.
"Twenty percent," he muttered aloud.
Confused frowns rippled through those who heard him.
Instead of clarifying himself, he turned to Jackson.
"Open the door."
Elaine planted herself in his path. "Master, you can't be serious! These are supernatural beings—we don't know what they can do."
He just smiled and patted her head. "Never in my life have I known defeat… I hope today will be different."
She opened her mouth to argue, but the words wouldn't come. He didn't care about winning. He wanted a real challenge.
"Master—take the emergency elevator. Goes straight to the main floor." Jackson suggested.
"That would be convenient."
Up on the main floor, Maxwell raised his fist. "Be alert. I'm sensing someone dangerous."
They moved into a defensive formation right away.
Before them, the elevator doors slid open, and a figure stepped into the long lobby.
"A monk?" one of them blurted out.
"Who are you?" demanded by the silver-haired man with the magnetic abilities.
"That's not quite how etiquette works. You're the ones who came here, so it's proper for you to introduce yourselves first— "
Without warning, a steel spike lanced through the air.
Rain snatched it mid-flight. The spike groaned and twisted in his grip, unable to break free.
"I've read the younger generation lacks respect for elders, but attempted murder over an etiquette lesson? That seems excessive."
Uneasy glances passed between the intruders.
"My name is Maxwell. I'm one of the team leaders of the 'Children of Darkness.' We're here to free blessed people like us—including you."
"Me?" Rain shook his head. "There's a misunderstanding here. I'm not part of that 'nightmare' business. But you're free to rescue everyone here if…"
He paused, his smile widening. "…you can get past me."
The woman's footsteps cracked against the floor then stopped. Before anyone could react, her hand blurred forward, passing straight through his abdomen.
"No matter how tough your exterior, organs are still—"
His palm cracked across her face with a gunshot like effect. She slammed into the wall and slid down, unconscious before she hit the floor.
"You know, getting close to me is a bad idea. It's kind of my specialty."
"Kill him!" Maxwell raised his right hand, sending metal shards flying.
Clang! Clang! Clang! He swatted the shards away, metal ringing against his skin like he was made of iron.
Maxwell was furious and changed tactics—debris ripped from every surface, forming a screaming dome of metal around his target.
"Nice try." Rain delivered a single punch to the surface, shattering it.
The others attacked in tandem. Fire and wind merged, forming a cyclone that engulfed anything on its path.
"Keep it going." Maxwell sent metal into the firestorm. The shards superheated, melting and trapping their opponent in the inferno's core.
"Is… is it over?" the wind user asked, eyes on the cooling metal.
Maxwell approached in silence. His hand touched the cooling surface, eyes closing as he reached out with his power.
No heartbeat. No breath. Only residual heat and the smell of charred meat.
He smiled. "We did —"
A fist punched through the metal and hit Maxwell's back skull.
Then, the mound split apart. Rain stepped out, exposed bone visible beneath charred skin that knit itself whole in moments. He rolled his shoulders with audible pops.
"That was fun. The last time I felt that much heat, I was swimming in an active volcano."
To anyone else, it would've sounded like a joke. He wasn't.
"I've taken out your leader, so why don't we try talking like normal civilized people?"