"Zane, Zane, slow down, I really can't take it anymore... Uwah!"
The crystal shell flew upward again as they sped along, and Nicole, completely disoriented, couldn't tell up from down anymore. She was on the verge of blacking out.
Unfortunately, Zane paid no attention to her state. His focus was on the pursuers closing in from another direction, forcing him to adjust their route again.
Behind him, the trails of fired signal flares still hung in the air. The enemy forces were converging fast, growing larger and larger, steadily shrinking the paths he could take.
"They're really persistent."
Zane twisted his body to dodge an incoming shell, glancing back. Above and below, enemies swarmed the area.
Most were still far off, though the two constables were closing in.
"Twelve mechs in the sky, about two hundred troops on the ground... Tch. I can't take them with me like this."
Ahead loomed a skyscraper dozens of stories tall. Without hesitation, Zane made his decision and charged toward it.
As he neared the building, Ether crystals rapidly condensed along its walls, forming handholds and footholds. Using them, Zane sprinted vertically up the structure, carrying the crystal shell with him.
Taking the stairs? Out of the question. That would just waste time and let the enemy surround them.
Watching the dark figure rapidly scaling the building's surface, Zhu Yuan narrowed her eyes, astonished.
"What's he doing? Isn't heading up just cornering himself?"
"No idea. But he must have a plan,"
Qingyi answered calmly.
This Etherial clearly wasn't stupid—he wouldn't make a reckless move without a reason.
One glance showed the figure nearly at the rooftop. Without hesitation, Qingyi and Zhu Yuan sprinted for the building, planning to storm up through the interior.
Unlike Zane, they couldn't climb the walls. They'd have to take the stairs.
By the time they entered the building, Zane had already reached the rooftop.
In an instant, a shimmering barrier of Ether crystals rose around the rooftop, shielding him from the enemies' view.
"Good. It's still here."
Zane's gaze locked onto a corner of the rooftop. There, a zipline system remained—complete with a loading platform and pulley.
He had discovered it during his earlier wanderings through the Hollow, drawn by his preference for high places.
The zipline stretched all the way to an abandoned amusement park in the distance. Probably a forgotten project. Thanks to its height, it had survived the Hollow's devastation.
Electronic tech didn't work here, but a simple physical setup like this remained untouched.
He planned to send Hare's House and the two Bangboo out along the zipline, while he stayed behind to draw attention.
He started dissolving the Ether crystal shell holding them. But just as he was about to set them down, his body suddenly faltered—dropping to one knee.
"What... is this...?"
Zane raised a trembling hand to his chest—the location of his "core."
The crystal shell slipped from his hands, crashing to the ground. With the Ether energy dissipated, it shattered easily, and the people inside tumbled out.
Nicole sprawled flat on her back, dazed and dizzy, still not recovered. Billy was next to her, trying to adjust to the sudden burst of light.
Anby forced herself upright despite the lingering nausea. The moment she glanced over, she noticed something was wrong with Zane and rushed to him.
"Zane, are you okay?"
Lifting his head slightly to look at her, Zane gave a weak shake of his head and muttered,
"I'm fine... just some energy fluctuations."
Anby frowned. Standing next to him, she could hear the sharp gasps in his breathing, like he was enduring some intense pain.
Breathing heavily? Etherials?
No. She quickly pushed those thoughts away. Zane couldn't be compared to other Etherials.
Since he said he was fine, she chose to trust him.
Watching him stand back up, Anby let out a breath of relief and turned to help Nicole up.
"The mechs can't lock onto you yet. Use the zipline to get out of here."
Zane's voice was steady as he addressed Nicole, who was slowly regaining her senses.
"And you...?"
"Leave this to me. Don't worry."
Seeing his expression, Nicole hesitated, but nodded in the end. At her feet, Eous—controlled by Belle—also glanced back at Zane.
If the situation weren't so dire, she would've liked to stay and see how he handled the military.
...
"Wait... what's that?"
Back at the video store, Belle leaned closer to the monitor, her hands pressed against the table.
Behind Zane, two streams of shifting, colorful light converged at his back—like a pair of magnificent wings.
But there was no time to observe. In order to avoid exposure, she quickly packed up and left with the others.
The three from Hare's House quickly evacuated, carrying both Eous and Panta with them.
As the rooftop emptied, Zane remained standing there, alone.
In the distance, he could hear the mechanical roar of mechs growing steadily closer.
"So... that's what's happening."
Zane lifted his head slightly, gazing at the empty sky, and muttered to himself.
Behind him, the pair of radiant "wings" formed from Ether energy rapidly expanded. He could already see their shifting glow out of the corner of his eye.
He could feel it—his "core" was undergoing violent changes. Vast amounts of Ether poured in, swelling it until it compressed the energy, only for the empty space to fill again.
Expand, compress. Expand, compress.
Over and over.
That explained the earlier wave of agony—
It had been the first time his core compressed.
The conditions for him to absorb Ether were strict: it had to come from dead Etherials.
And this near-infinite flood of energy pouring into him? It still met that condition.
"The Hollow of Cretan... it's dead."
Zane lowered his gaze.
In his eyes, the entire Hollow had been like one massive Etherial—and the Etherials within it mere parasites on its body.
Now, the giant had died, and all its energy was flowing straight into him.
But why had the Hollow collapsed like this?
Was it because of him? Just because he destroyed the core Etherial?
Old questions remained unanswered. New questions piled on.
Zane turned to face the direction the enemy forces were coming from.
The flowing "wings of light" on his back fluttered like silk in the wind.
The black crystal barrier that had shielded him until now disintegrated into countless shards.
Zane's tall, dark figure stood alone atop the skyscraper, quietly watching as the enemy forces—small as ants—drew closer, surrounding him from all sides.