I slowly opened my eyes. Today is mission day. I bolted out of bed and pulled on the tight black bodysuit, followed by my uniform.
I looked at my reflection in the mirror; I felt that the medal made me look like an adult.
"Heh heh... I look great."
I pressed Fairy’s activation button.
"What time is it, Fairy?"
"8:45 AM. You’ll be late if you keep procrastinating, Iris."
"Shut up, I know," I said, running out of the room. "By the way, Fairy, what’s the point of this suit I’m wearing under the uniform?"
"What a helpless case. Fine, I’ll explain. This suit has many benefits, such as resisting air pressure during a fall, injury resistance, and movement support. In short, it will help you a lot in combat."
"I see. You could have explained that without the bragging.”
I reached the soldiers' sector; I was truly a soldier now. I wasn't sure how to feel about it. Looking around, I saw the training hall, the briefing room, and the examination office we visited yesterday. I noticed one large hall open and headed toward it.
Inside the massive hangar, I saw several aircraft. Is this what we're supposed to ride?
"Iris."
I turned at the sound of Aden’s voice behind me.
"Hi, Aden."
"Let’s go inside. It looks like every team is waiting in front of their plane."
"I see." I scanned the area and spotted Mirai and Revan in front of a sharp, white combat jet. I walked toward them.
"Have you seen Axel?" Mirai asked as soon as I approached.
"No."
"Doing whatever he wants, as usual," she muttered.
"Team One, are you ready?" the Colonel asked, walking toward us."Not yet. One of us hasn't arrived."
"How annoying," the Colonel grumbled. "Get on board now. A back seat was placed for me since I’m accompanying you today, but it’ll be removed later."
We boarded the plane one by one: Mirai took the first seat, then Revan, and I took the third. It was a strange feeling, and fastening the straps only made it feel more surreal. At the front, the cockpit was reinforced with screens showing a map and a gauge—likely for speed.
Both Mirai and Revan looked unhappy, probably because of Axel’s delay.
"Yo." A foot stepped onto the plane before a figure climbed in fully and took the seat behind me.
"What have you been doing all this time?" Revan grumbled.
"Exploring the place. I believe that’s my freedom."
"It’s not 'freedom' when you delay our takeoff. You’ll affect our team’s evaluation with your reckless behavior."
"Have you already appointed yourself our leader?"
"Enough! Can you all shut up?" The Colonel’s sharp tone silenced everyone. "Activate your Fairy units."
Each of us pressed the earring in our ear.
"Iris! I’m connecting you to the observation center," Fairy’s cheerful voice rang in my ear.
"This is the Observation Center. You will be given instructions regarding the location of the monsters, their attack methods, and more. Count on us for support," a woman’s voice said through the earring.
The white roof opened in preparation for takeoff.
[Prepare for takeoff.]
The voice came from the automated pilot. The jet vibrated, announcing its departure, and I felt a pressure pinning me to my seat. I had never experienced this sensation of rising before.
The plane climbed and accelerated. Looking through the window, I saw we had already left the camp. Outside the base, everything was shattered and destroyed, with no features left but rubble. I looked up at the sky—blue and decorated with white clouds. I wondered if I could touch them."Order the aircraft to turn right and head toward point C-14," the woman’s voice commanded through Fairy.
"Turn right toward point C-14," Mirai ordered.
[Acknowledged.]
The plane banked, causing my body to lean slightly. Our speed increased so much that only minutes passed before we reached the expected monster location.
"We have arrived. The aircraft will descend slightly so you can drop without injury."
"Are you serious? From this height?"
"The suits you’re wearing are resistant, so don't worry and get out," the Colonel ordered.
The plane lowered until it was about five meters from the ground. The door opened.
"Excellent!" Axel cheered before jumping out.
"Useless..." Mirai sighed before she followed, followed by Revan. I looked down at the debris-filled ground.
It’s okay, I’ll be fine. I let go of the doorframe and relaxed my body, facing the wind hitting me. It wasn't that bad. As I approached the ground, I reached out my hands to steady my landing. My feet and hands hit the earth; puzzlingly, the fall wasn't painful at all.
I stood up slowly. Although the outside was vast, it held nothing special except for ruined buildings. Mirai was sighing in disbelief that Axel had already ditched us.
"No use grumbling now. Let's run toward the monster," Revan said, taking off. Mirai and I followed close behind.
"Yes. Unfortunately, we have to do the mission ourselves and ignore him. As long as he doesn't listen, we aren't obligated to help him. Let his reckless behavior save him," Mirai said.
"Agreed. It will save us the trouble," Revan added.
Running through the rubble was entirely different from the Academy training grounds. Here, the ground was uneven, the wind carried the smell of dust and rust, and every broken wall could hide certain death.
"Iris, you’ll handle distracting the monster. Revan, protect us. I’ll deliver the final blow."
The monster’s roar was already audible.
"It’s there!" Revan pointed to a black shadow among the ruins; it was likely over two meters tall.
I squinted and noticed someone moving around it. Axel was already attacking, using distracting maneuvers. The monster’s arm swung, and its giant claws struck Axel’s chest, slamming him into the rubble.
"Damned bastard," Axel spat, wiping his face with his fist before standing back up.
"Let’s attack regardless of him," Mirai commanded.
I lunged forward first. My movements felt light, likely due to the suit. I unleashed a wind tornado that spread around the monster.
"What a pathetic attack," the monster growled, and my attack evaporated.
"It’s using Containment!"
I clenched my fists. I wouldn't let this defeat me. I accelerated to get closer and unleashed a diffusion of wind even stronger than the last.
"Move, you pink weirdo!" Axel screamed from behind me as he summoned raging flames. I retreated quickly so his attack wouldn't hit me.
"Don't get in my way," Axel said, still diffusing flames that surrounded the monster’s body. Did it work?
"Make your attacks stronger, you pathetic soldiers!" the beast bellowed, its massive fangs becoming more prominent.
Without warning, the ground shook beneath us. Debris began to shift. My legs wobbled, unable to keep me upright. I braced my hands on the ground; everything was vibrating, even my body. I tried to move and stand to attack, but I stumbled. I remained crouched, watching as the fire around the monster died down. Axel stopped his attack, his balance thrown off by the tremor.
"Did you cause this earthquake?" Mirai shouted at the monster.
"And what if I did?" it replied mockingly.
"Modification. That is the monster's Extension power," the woman's voice addressed us through the earring. "His power type allows him to modify the laws of the universe; he can cause these quakes through that."
"What an exhausting power."
"Don't panic! Revan, can you block its attack?"
"I’ll try, but I can't guarantee anything."Revan raised his arms, preparing to use Containment. The ground stabilized beneath our feet as if the earthquake had never happened.
"Hurry! I can't maintain this balance for long!"
"Iris, use your tornado not to attack, but to kick up dust and block its vision. We’ll perform a coordinated attack!"
"Understood!" I ran beside Mirai, keeping enough distance. I launched a massive tornado, but this time I directed it at the ground around the monster. Rubble and thick dust swirled, enveloping the area in an impenetrable grey mist.
Mirai stayed behind me, ready to strike.
"Not so fast!" Axel jumped in, interrupting our attack.
"Damn you!" Mirai hissed.Suddenly, Axel stumbled. The vibration returned under his feet, even though the rest of us were unaffected.
"I’ve canceled my defense over him," Revan said coldly. "Unlike us, he will face the monster’s attack."
"You bastard!" Axel glared at Revan in fury.
"To hell with you all!" Axel screamed, trying to cling to a piece of tilted rubble while flames erupted randomly from his hands due to his loss of balance. "I'll burn this monster and burn you with it!"
"Save your energy for screaming later," Revan replied, sweat dripping from his forehead from the intense focus. "Mirai, now!"
Through the dusty fog I had created, I saw a blinding white flash. It launched at a speed my eyes couldn't follow and pierced the monster's body.
"Argh!!" the monster roared.As the dust slowly cleared, the monster’s staggering silhouette appeared. It was standing with great difficulty, clutching a bleeding wound, its massive body shaking with every labored breath.
"Bastards..." it growled in a cracked voice, its claws digging into the earth with every step.
A scene flashed in my mind: I was struggling to stand, as were the others... not because of a quake, but because of Gravity.
Is this a vision of the future? The monster’s next attack... we're in trouble.
"Revan, are you still able to use Containment?" I asked.
Revan looked at me out of the corner of his eye; his face was pale and drenched in sweat.
"Barely." He looked at me sharply. "Why do you ask? Did you discover something?"
"Yes. It’s going to use Modification to increase gravity."
"Did you learn that through Clairvoyance?"
I nodded.
"You’d better be telling the truth. I’ll try to apply Containment to all of you." Doubt colored his voice, but he didn't refuse.
Revan raised his arms, veins bulging on his forehead.
"Let’s see which of us lasts!" the monster bellowed and activated its power.
The air around us grew heavy, and the dust dropped to the ground all at once as if pulled by an invisible force. I saw small pieces of iron sink into the dirt and heard the sound of rubble cracking under the monster’s feet.
But we remained standing, each of us surrounded by a transparent bubble protecting us from the crushing force."Axel, I will cancel the Containment on you if you make a single unnecessary move."
"Tsk, fine," Axel grumbled.
"Axel, Iris—let’s do a unified attack now!"
The three of us lunged forward.
"Axel, now!" Mirai screamed.
"No need to tell me!" Axel roared, and a majestic wind tornado surged from him. For my part, I diffused fires that merged with his winds. The fiery cyclone surrounded the monster from every side.
A transparent bubble suddenly surrounded the monster—right, it was using Containment too.
"It won't be that easy!" Mirai roared, raising her arms toward the monster. In moments, a light formed between her hands and launched directly at it.
"AGHHHHH!" The bubble around the monster shattered, and our combined attack pierced through it. It fell to the ground, motionless.
"Dammit..." it wheezed beneath its injuries.
Silence suddenly filled the area, and nothing could be heard but our heavy, synchronized breathing. The monster’s crumpled body didn't move. The dust of battle began to settle slowly, revealing the chaos of the debris we had left behind.
I stood there, my body trembling slightly from the effort of diffusing the raging flames. The feeling of power was strange.
"Tsk, that took longer than I expected," Axel broke the silence, wiping a wound on his forehead with the edge of his glove before casting a sharp look at Revan. "If you had kept your Containment on me from the start, we would have finished in half the time."
"If you had stuck to the plan and hadn't acted recklessly, I wouldn't have had to change my protection priorities. Accept the fact that you aren't the only one here," Revan replied coldly.
"And why would I care about any of you? You're too weak for me to even bother cooperating with."
"If you were that strong, you would have finished that monster and spared us the trouble."
"Enough!" Mirai’s voice rang out as sharp as a sword. "And you, Axel, stop acting like a child."
Mirai approached the exhausted body of the monster, then leaned down to observe it cautiously.
"It’s still breathing….”
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