The battlefield trembled beneath countless footsteps—enemies clawing forward, allies holding their ground.
The air was thick with smoke, ash, and the stench of burned flesh. Screams and war cries echoed through the hollowed-out streets. Lightning crackled overhead. Fire danced along broken walls. Ice crept up shattered pavement, freezing blood and steel alike.
And still—they fought.
Students, bruised and battered, stood shoulder to shoulder with Elite Scouts and Pro Warriors.
A cluster of students worked together to hold the right flank—one created cover with earthen barriers, another dashed between enemies, redirecting strikes away from her exhausted teammates. Another hurled compressed bursts of air to knock enemies off rooftops, while one behind him readied a short-range energy blast and fired point-blank into the chest of a charging beast.
In the center, a wounded group of scouts defended a fallen healer. One threw debris as a makeshift weapon. Another jammed a broken spear into a creature's throat. They had no more magic, no more energy—but still, they didn't run.
Above them, a student with flight-like powers twisted through the sky, dodging black spikes and retaliating with wide-area energy flares, creating space for others below.
Another group surrounded one of the larger beasts that had broken through the second line. They coordinated without speaking—one slid beneath its legs and slashed at the joints, while two others climbed its back, striking its weak points. The beast thrashed wildly, but the students didn't let go.
Across the eastern street, a small squad of first-years—completely outmatched—used whatever they had. One created blinding flashes to cover movement. Another trapped enemy limbs in bands of hardened light. One of them couldn't even stand straight anymore, yet still crawled to protect a fallen ally.
Everywhere you looked, they were still fighting.
Even when they should've collapsed.
Even when their powers had burned out.
Even when the odds screamed it was over.
The night sky had turned crimson. Fire and smoke painted the horizon as if the heavens themselves were mourning. The second wave of monsters still clawed and tore their way through the city—but now, they met resistance unlike anything before.
Because the fighters hadn't given up.
They were still fighting.
Even with bloodied faces, shattered gear, and torn uniforms—they fought.
Zane stood tall, finally breathing steadily, watching the chaos with renewed clarity. The pressure in his chest was growing again, but now it didn't feel like a burden—it felt like a promise.
He clenched his fists. "Not yet. But soon."
Akuma charged past him, screaming with rage and purpose, fire exploding from his shoulders. "RAAAAHHHH!!!"
He smashed two creatures into the pavement, his arms glowing molten red. His movements were slower now, but every punch carried the weight of someone refusing to die.
Shane sprinted through the battlefield, blades humming, covering Akashi as he gathered one final surge of lightning. "Let's give them a reason to be afraid!"
"I'm not leaving this city in ruins," Akashi snarled, hurling a bolt so massive it lit up the skyline. It struck a cluster of monsters, vaporizing them mid-air.
Rika and Yumi, both bruised and limping, stayed near Mia—defending her as she pointed out weak spots through gritted teeth.
"Above! They're regrouping above the bank building!" Mia shouted, her vision still flickering. "Zane! If you're gonna awaken, it better be now!"
Zane's breath caught. He looked to the sky.
Dozens of the remaining creatures had gathered—fused together into a third form, towering over the ruins.
A skeletal beast, with wings made of shadow and a face like twisted glass. Its scream pierced the clouds, sending shockwaves through the air.
The entire battlefield paused.
Then—
A sudden scream pierced the noise.
"SHANE!!"
Zane turned his head—time seemed to slow.
Shane had leapt forward to protect Noah from an incoming strike. But in that moment… a monstrous blade—jagged and dark—pierced through her chest.
Her eyes widened.
Blood sprayed the air like red mist.
Zane froze.
"No…"
Shane's body jerked violently as the blade twisted, then the monster flung her to the ground like a broken doll. she landed hard, unmoving, her twin blades clattering beside her.
Everything—
Stopped.
The sound of battle faded.
Even the monsters paused.
The only thing anyone could hear… was the thudding of their hearts.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Zane's world shattered.
His breath caught in his throat. His fists trembled. He didn't scream. He didn't move.
His eyes locked on Shane.
Blood pooled beneath Shane's body.
Akuma turned slowly, the fire on his fists dimming.
Rika dropped to her knees.
Yumi covered her mouth, eyes wide with horror.
Akashi looked down from the sky, lightning fading from his fingertips.
Mia's precognition went blank.
Asher's portal flickered, collapsing.
The battlefield—the entire city—fell into a deafening silence.
Even back at PNHS HQ, the school head stood motionless, her eyes locked on the screen.
Mr. Shawn's face drained of color. His voice caught in his throat.
All across the school, students, teachers, division heads—watched in stunned silence.
Gasps echoed in the halls.
Some cried out.
Others couldn't look away.
One voice whispered through the intercom. "...Was that… Shane…?"
Zane turned to Shane, lying motionless on the ground. His eyes flickered with wild nystagmus, vision dimming until all he saw was darkness. A piercing scream tore from his throat.
"AARGHH…!! YOU…!!!"His rage echoed like thunder across the battlefield. He exhaled—shakily, desperately—as the cold bit into his lungs, turning his breath to mist, like a dragon denied its flame.
"You'll pay for this...!!" he roared, his voice a trembling promise.
Meanwhile, on Saturn, the celestial orbs began to radiate with an otherworldly brilliance. Light surged from the largest orb, expanding outward, weaving through the solar system like an ancient path being reawakened. As it traveled, comets aligned themselves with the glowing trail, forming luminous rings that spiraled like planetary armor.
The light pierced space, descending toward Earth—toward Zane. The moment it reached him, a cataclysmic explosion erupted in the area. The earth trembled. The sky cracked.
Akuma, thrown back by the force, stood slowly, eyes wide. Before him stood Zane—transformed.His body glowed like Saturn incarnate, with radiant rings orbiting him, forming an ethereal armor.
Back at PNHS, the school head and faculty stared in disbelief at the monitors.
"Is… is that really Zane?" one of them gasped.
Mr. Shawn, standing at the center, watched in silent awe. Power pulsed from the screen.
Zane moved, his gaze locking onto the alien who had stabbed Shane. Slowly, he raised his palm toward it. The air around him shifted. Gravity seemed to vanish. Small stones within his one-meter radius rose, circling him like satellites. The fragments coalesced into a ring of jagged stone.
"Vanish," Zane commanded.
The ring launched forward with unstoppable force, encircling the creature. A moment of stillness—then the alien was torn in half, dissolving into smoke that vanished into the wind.
Zane turned to face the horde. His aura burned like a newborn star. Yet the others still stood frozen—his classmates, the elite pro-warriors, all overwhelmed by the magnitude of what they had witnessed.
Then, Selene shouted, her voice cracking through the paralysis.
"Fight! Let's fight one more time! Zane is our hope—let's stand with him!"
Her cry lit a fire in their hearts. One by one, they rose to their feet, shouting as one:
"We've got this! We're not alone!"
Akashi, bloodied but standing, gave the order:"Take Shane away from the front lines—find a safe place and begin healing her!"
The lab was dim, only lit by the flickering lights of screens showing chaos unfolding across the city. Teachers, students, and tech staff moved with urgency. In the center of it all, Mr. Shawn stood like a storm about to break.
Mr. Shawn stepped forward, eyes sharp with realization.
"All units—call Akira Takahashi from Class F!" he shouted, his voice rising above the noise.
The school head turned toward him, confused. "What are you planning, Shawn?"
He answered urgently, "Akira—she has a rare ability. She can heal others with her energy. As the others continue to fight, she can move between them, healing their wounds, restoring their strength. I've seen her do it before. She's the only chance we have at keeping them on their feet."
The head's eyes widened as the gravity of his words sank in. For a moment, she stood still, watching the students fight bravely against overwhelming odds. Then she nodded, her voice steadier now. "Do it. Call her immediately."
Few moments later,
The door hissed open.
Akira Takahashi stepped in, wearing her school-issued tech gear. Her eyes darted across the room—confused, wide.
On one of the main screens, a live drone feed showed Akashi bloodied, still fighting, barely holding on.
Akira froze.
"Akashi…? What—what is this? What's happening?"
Shawn turned to her. His face was stern, but his eyes carried something deeper—hope mixed with desperation.
"Akira. You came just in time."
"What do you mean? Why is Akashi—why is he even out there? I thought this was a training exercise, not—this!"She gestured wildly at the screens—at the explosions, the monsters, the chaos.
Shawn took a step forward, lowering his voice.
"Akira, listen to me. The training was cancelled because i send them to battle to help other pro and elite warrior. And right now, we need every gifted person we've got."
She shook her head."But i only have a few combat skills the more i can do is I heal. That's all I do."
"Exactly." Shawn's voice was sharp, but not cruel."That's everything right now."
Akira looked back at the screen, where a medic team was dragging a wounded student out of the battlefield. She looked away."You can't be serious. You want me to go out there?"
Shawn took a slow breath, stepping closer.
"You think this isn't serious? People are dying, Akira. Zane just awakened something we've never seen before. Shane nearly lost her life. Akashi is buying us time—and bleeding for it. And those students out there? They're standing back up because they believe in someone. They believe in each other."
Akira clenched her jaw. Her hands trembled.
"But I'm scared, sir…" she whispered. "What if I fail? What if I can't save anyone?"
Shawn looked her in the eyes, softening.
"Then you'll stand beside the ones who tried. And that is more than most ever do. But I don't believe you'll fail. I believe you'll change the tide of this entire battle."
Silence. The room was filled with distant echoes of gunfire and alien shrieks from the feeds.
"You were born for more than the classroom, Akira. This is your moment."
Akira slowly looked at the screen again. She saw someone rising behind Zane. She saw courage where there had been fear.
She whispered, almost to herself:"…Zane's glowing like a star…"
Akashi was doing what he was asigned for
Then louder, steadier:"Okay. Send me. I'll go."
Shawn's lips curled into the faintest of smiles."Good. Gear up. I'll have Mandaue Sector open a gate immediately."
Akira nodded, fire sparking in her eyes now."If we're going to win this… we need hope out there. I'll be that hope."
Even with Zane's celestial transformation radiating across the city, the waves of monsters showed no signs of slowing. Burnt ground cracked under every step, and energy blasts lit the sky like fireworks from hell.
Zane fought at the center like a beacon of starlight—his orbiting rings of power lashing out with every motion, severing limbs and vaporizing beasts in an instant. But even that cosmic strength had its limits.
His breathing was starting to shake.His hands trembled from strain.
Still, he fought.
Behind him, Akashi clashed blades with a hulking brute—his lightning blades barely holding together. Blood streamed from a wound on his side, but he didn't fall.Not yet.
"ZANE!" Akuma yelled, shielding Mia from a barrage of needle-like projectiles. "WE'RE RUNNING OUT OF TIME!"
Zane didn't answer.He couldn't.The pressure building in his chest was turning his vision white.
Suddenly, a piercing whistle split the chaos.
A golden rift opened in the sky—and from it, she descended.
Akira.
Her combat suit shimmered in the smoke-light, and as she landed atop a crumbling rooftop, the wind shifted. Akashi turned, mid-fight, nearly dropping his blade.
His voice broke through the static of battle."...Akira?!"
She landed lightly beside him, eyes hard with resolve. "There's no time."
Akashi stared for a second—his face a mix of confusion, shock, and something unspoken. Then—
Wings.
Wings made of radiant light unfurled from Akira's back, wide and glowing like dawn breaking through night. Feathers, delicate and shimmering, began to fall from her wings, carried by the wind like embers from a divine fire.
The feathers flew.Across the battlefield.Over friend, over ally, through smoke and flame.
Wherever they landed—wounds closed. Burns faded. Bones knit. Eyes opened.Breath returned.
The weary stood.
Even—
Even Shane's broken form began to glow as feathers landed around her, like a thousand little miracles in motion. Her body, unmoving seconds ago, twitched. Then a breath. Then another. Her fingers clenched in the dirt.
Inside PNHS HQ, cries of joy and gasps of relief echoed through the corridors. The students watching the battle feed clung to one another, sobbing, laughing, cheering.
"She's alive… Shane's alive!"
Even the school head collapsed into a chair, whispering thanks under her breath.Mr. Shawn closed his eyes, letting out a long breath."They made it…"
On the battlefield, Akira turned to Akashi. Her voice steady."I'll handle the wounded. You focus on ending this."
Akashi, silent for a moment, gave a single nod.
Together, they turned back to the fight.
Zane, his aura still flaring like a dying star, pushed through the final wave with Akuma and Selene beside him. Yumi and Rika followed, backs now straight with renewed energy. Mia coordinated from above, eyes clear. Shane, though still weak, stood behind a barricade—twin blades in hand once more.
They fought together.
Until the final creature fell.Until the city quieted.Until the flames dimmed.
Victory.
A hush fell over the battlefield. The dust slowly settled.
And then they breath like it was their first time to inhale oxygen,
But before anyone could breathe—
The sky split.
A ripple in the clouds.
And from it, a man descended.
Floating.Wearing a tattered black cloak, the hood hiding his hair. A porcelain white mask covered his face—expression frozen in eternal sorrow.
The entire battlefield tensed.
"Who… is that?" Rika whispered.
Akashi stepped forward, arms glowing again. "Stay sharp. That's not over."
Even Akira's feathers stopped midair, no longer glowing.
The man hovered silently, eyes unreadable behind the mask. Then he spoke, voice echoing across the entire battlefield, soft and haunting.
"So this… is him."
"Zane. The First in history to awaken the Saturn Protocol. A power never recorded, never witnessed. Until now."
The air grew cold.
The man raised a single finger toward Zane. "I want it. That power belongs to me now."
Before anyone could react—
The sky twisted again.
A colossal shape emerged from behind the clouds.A serpent so massive it dwarfed the moon, coiling endlessly through the sky.
Its name whispered in the back of every mind at once:
Bakunawa.
Terror gripped the entire battlefield.
Akira's wings faltered.Akashi's eyes widened.Even Zane's pulse skipped.
Selene's eyes widened, her voice barely above a whisper, but sharp enough to cut through the stunned air:
Selene: "It's him… from the Mactan Shrine. That mysterious man."
All around her, the Pro Warriors froze.
Rios, usually calm and unreadable, took a step back, his eyes locked on the fading sky.
Kaien, known for his relentless composure, felt a chill crawl down his spine. "That mask… I've seen it in the shrine's sealed texts…"
Luna, her daggers still dripping with black blood, lowered them slowly. "i saw him again!"
The battlefield—moments ago filled with triumph—turned cold again.
From behind the front line, Gale spoke, his voice trembling:
Gale: "Why is he here… now?"
No one moved. No one answered.
Even the teachers watching from the PNHS perimeter stood in stunned silence.
At HQ, the school head, Elira, leaned forward slowly, her expression unreadable—but her silence said everything.
Something far more dangerous had just awakened.
Zane raised his palm again.His ring of power spun—then launched.
Faster than sound.
It sliced through the air, slamming into Bakunawa's celestial tail.
A violent shockwave shook the planet.
The tail was cut clean through.The sky bled stardust.
Zane turned toward the masked man—but the moment the second ring launched, the figure vanished like smoke, just in time.
A whisper lingered in the air:
"Impressive. But I'll be back… Zane."
Then—silence.
The sky cleared.
Only the wind moved.
And below, across a city ruined by war and sacrifice, they stood.
Exhausted.Alive.Together.
TO BE CONTINUED...