The monster staggered. Each step it took left behind a trail of molten flesh. Its skin—if it could even be called that—cracked under the internal pressure. Its swollen body radiated a suffocating heat, as if all the air around it had turned into an invisible poison. And yet... it still stood.
Ezra, kneeling, wiped the blood running down his forehead. His breath was ragged, but his eyes never left the creature. He could hear the frantic beating of his own heart—and not just his own. Everyone around him breathed in fear and exhaustion. Yet no one stepped back. Not yet.
"It has no more tentacles," murmured Lima. "No direct weapons left."
"But it still has fire. And speed. And that aura... that crushes you just by getting close," added Tobias.
The survivors gathered in a semicircle, each assuming a defensive stance. Even Yuna, powerless, stood firm. She gripped a rusty iron bar, as if it could be of some use.
"We hold," Keita said. "It looks like it's weakening."
But no one answered. It wasn't a battle cry. It was almost a prayer.
Suddenly, the monster raised its torso, arched its back, and unleashed another torrent of black flames. This time, Lima erected a wall of ice, immediately reinforced by Ayra with an earthen barrier.
The blast struck the defense, cracking it, but did not break it completely. A miracle.
"We won't hold another like that," growled Malik, his arm burned up to the elbow.
"Ezra, distract it!" shouted Kubira.
"With what? I've got nothing left in my legs!"
A portal opened beneath Ezra, flinging him into the air. Kohaku had acted without warning. Ezra growled mid-flight, regained his footing on a slab of earth raised by Ayra, then leapt onto the monster's head, delivering a direct blow. Not enough to injure, but enough to distract.
Meanwhile, Keita, Hiro, and Kubira focused their attacks on its left flank. Arcs of electricity, waves, amplified strikes. Nothing fell, but the monster wavered.
Oran, still present, intercepted a makeshift tail strike, protecting Soojin in the process. His face was drenched with sweat, his steps unsteady.
Kwame unleashed a sonic wave toward the ground, cracking a fissure just under the monster's feet. It dropped to one knee. That was the only opening.
"Now!" shouted Tobias.
But they no longer had the strength.
They had cornered it, wounded it, unbalanced it. But they had no energy left. Their bodies screamed for a stop. Their hearts beat only by will alone.
And the monster, howling in pain, began to emit a violet light through its skin. Slowly. Swelling. Uncontrollable.
"Is it going to explode?" asked Rhan, panicked.
"No. It's still evolving," replied Oran in a pale voice.
A shiver ran through the group.
They had reached the limit of what they could do. And the monster... was rising even higher.
"We must retreat," ordered Hiro.
"Retreat?" Ezra asked, almost shocked.
"Not flee. Hide. Find shelter," whispered Kohaku. "To come back stronger."
They all understood at once. Without discussing, they began to fall back, covering the wounded, clearing a path through the rubble. Tobias blew open a grate. Ayra tore a hole in a wall. Soojin warped the debris to open a corridor.
And in the silence, each of them cast a final glance at the monster. It didn't pursue them. Not yet. It was still transforming.
The escape did not feel like defeat.
It was a reprieve.
They ran through the ruins, stepping over bodies and ashes. Silence was gone. There was always a sob, a groan in the distance, footsteps too quick to be human. But they ran. Not to flee... to survive.
It was Ezra who flung open the broken door of an old shop, shouting:
"There! The roof's still standing!"
They entered as a group, dragging the wounded, breathless, burned. An old clothing store—the hangers twisted, windows shattered, floor littered with glass, blood, and charred scraps of fabric.
Ayra and Lima immediately seated the weakest. Keita helped Rhan to stand. Hiro cut a metal shelf to make a barricade. Kubira laid Oran at the back where he could lean against the wall.
The master remained silent. He breathed slowly, head bowed. His breath was uneven, but he showed no sign of weakness.
Then he raised his eyes. Everyone fell silent.
"You... held on. Better than expected."
He forced a smile, but his face was pale.
"This monster is more than a simple creature. It learns. It mutates. And it hunts us."
Yuna, standing near the door, wrapped her arms around herself.
"I don't get any of this... Why can we do these things? Why do some of us have powers, and others don't?"
Silence fell again. Oran took a deep breath, then spoke slower, more gravely.
"The power you feel... it's called WIND. It's a force within each of us. Invisible, but real. It's there... in the air, in our blood... in our emotions. In humans, it manifests when a strong emotion explodes. Anger, pain, love, despair. And when that happens, the body adapts. It changes."
He paused, placing his hand on his chest. He coughed once. Nothing serious, but the tension in his breathing was clear.
"And the monsters?" asked Rhan.
"They have WIND too. But theirs is instinctive, brutal. Sometimes... some of them can manipulate their WIND to make it resemble ours. To deceive us. That's what makes them even more dangerous."
Yuna frowned.
"And the overload? You mentioned that word earlier."
Oran lowered his eyes, then slowly raised his hand, pointing to his own body.
"Every human has a natural limit. A quantity of WIND they can withstand and channel. When that limit is exceeded, the WIND becomes unstable. That's what we call overload."
He stopped. A drop of sweat fell from his forehead. He inhaled deeply.
"I'm not overloaded yet. But... I'm close. My WIND is starting to turn against me. My body is tiring. If I push further..."
He stopped again. This time, he coughed, a thread of blood appeared at his lips. Several people immediately reacted.
"Master Oran!" shouted Ayra.
"We need to heal him!" added Tobias.
But Kohaku stood up abruptly, her eyes red with emotion.
"Don't you understand?! Do you think he put himself in this state for fun?! Do you know what being rank A means?! He could have killed this monster from the start! But he chose to save you. Again. And again. He pushed his limits, and now he's approaching overload just so we're still here complaining in a lousy shop!"
She was trembling. Her voice vibrated.
Keita approached slowly, his voice soft.
"You're shouting... because you care about him, aren't you?"
She looked at him, tears in her eyes, then turned away.
"I'm shouting... because I refuse to lose him for this."
Hiro placed a hand on Kohaku's shoulder.
"She's right. But Oran chose to do what he's doing. He knew what it would cost. And he would do it again."
A heavy silence settled. Yuna looked at Keita. His pupils were back. A human gaze. But something had changed in his eyes.
Then a sound. A vibration. The ground trembled slightly.
"It's outside," said Ezra, tense.
A gust passed through the broken window. The smell of burning. Of melting flesh.
"He's here," whispered Oran.
A huge silhouette appeared in the dust. The monster. It had mutated again. Its skin gleamed, its muscles vibrated. And its central eye already fixed on the shop.
It wasn't finished.
The battle resumed violently. Each drew on their last reserves.
Keita and Kubira chained coordinated attacks: precise electric discharges and swift strikes. Kohaku opened portal after portal to move allies or deflect the monster's assaults. Tobias, despite his injury, dismantled projectiles launched their way. Ezra multiplied feints, disturbing the monster's vision with ghostly doubles. Kwame howled waves to repel burning breaths.
But despite their coordination, the monster remained superior. It had lost mobility, but its resistance and violence had increased. Each punch opened craters. Each roar shook the foundations.
Suddenly, the monster turned to the shop—where Oran had been left, protected in a corner. As if it had sensed his weakness.
It raised its arm.
A beam of pure energy formed between its fingers.
"NO!" shouted Kohaku.
But she was too far.
The light exploded toward the shop.
And just as everyone thought Oran was doomed, a figure leapt before the entrance.
Ayra.
"Not today!"
She pressed both hands to the ground, closed her eyes, and screamed:
"STONE DOME!"
The ground spiraled upward, encircling the façade and the shop. A solid, compact, thick dome of stone formed in a second. The beam struck, shook the structure... but did not destroy it.
"I'm here, Master Oran," Ayra whispered inside, kneeling, breath short. "You saved too many people for us to lose you now."
Outside, the fight continued. Tension rose again.
The monster turned its head, furious. It charged again. Many barely dodged.
And suddenly, amid all the chaos, a soft laugh cut the silence.
"Honestly... I had completely forgotten," said Hiro.
Keita turned his head.
"You're laughing? Are you joking?"
"No, I'm serious," Hiro replied, smiling despite his state. "I've got something... that I totally forgot. I can reduce an opponent's power. Minimize their WIND. Slow them down, weaken them."
Kubira stopped.
"Wait. You mean you can weaken the monster?"
"Yes, totally. But given its size and level, if I do it... I might pass out. And that wouldn't be ideal."
A heavy silence followed his words. Then a voice sliced the air.
"DO IT!" shouted Malik, beside himself. "We have no other option!"
Hiro sighed. He closed his eyes.
"Alright."
He raised his arms, and an invisible wave burst from his body. The monster growled, slowed. Its violet light flickered. Its aura seemed to stretch and crumble.
Everyone felt it.
"It's working," murmured Lima. "It's losing energy!"
But Hiro wavered.
"A little more... just a little more..."
His legs shook. He tried to stay standing.
"I can hold on... I can..."
And suddenly, he collapsed.
"HIROOO!" shouted Kohaku, running toward him.
She caught him just before he hit the ground.
He was unconscious. Victorious... but drained.