[[[ In the burning forest amidst the endless firestorm ]]]
The spread of fire was fast for some reason... What materials were in the explosives... Zeus didn't know, and he didn't care. Nor about the heat that kept damaging his suit's energy.
He was more concerned with dodging the bullets of that bastard while fighting the other bastard.
Zeus burst through a large blaze between two burning trees as he ran swiftly away, and behind him, another shadow pierced through the same fire, reaching him just moments later with greater speed.
Zeus turned immediately, holding two daggers, and exchanged a flurry of swift blows with his enemy, receiving three hits, each reducing his suit's energy level by 1%. He couldn't land a single hit, as the enemy was clearly more skilled with daggers.
In close combat in general, Zeus only managed to block one strike and dodge two.
Zeus launched ten daggers from the disc on his back to push his enemy away. The enemy leaped back, dodging all the daggers, and just as he did, a bullet pierced through the flames from behind and passed just a hair's width beside Zeus's head.
"Damn it, I'm going to die any second… Only 10% left… That's 100 units of blue energy, and I don't have any movement glyphs on my legs."
Zeus thought while dashing away, when suddenly an idea struck him. He summoned all his daggers and made them fly close to his body, four forming a ring each.
He had five rings of twenty daggers: two on his legs, two on his arms, and one around his waist, back, and sides.
With both hands, he summoned daggers from the hand rings to fight the enemy who had reached him again.
This time, Zeus was in a much better state, using the daggers' kinetic energy to boost his speed.
He managed to block all of the enemy's strikes and landed one hit using the flying spinning disc. The enemy avoided the rest, even with their speed and Zeus's surprise attack.
When Zeus's eyes caught the distant light behind the sea of flames, his body and instincts reacted immediately. He activated all the daggers to push himself sideways—just in time to avoid the golden energy bullet that flashed past him.
Zeus resumed his escape without delay, despite gaining an initial advantage in close combat. The enemy with the pistol was still a major threat—a single shot could kill him with his current low energy level.
He used the dagger rings on his feet to increase speed and managed to distance himself from his pursuers.
After five minutes, his energy rose to 60%, equivalent to roughly 120% of his previous level before the new glyphs were added. A single pistol shot had drained 80% of his old energy capacity.
More precisely, absorbing the bullet's damage cost him 320 units of blue energy.
His current energy was at 600 blue units.
The daggers' energy depleted after this heavy usage. Zeus knew it was only a matter of time before the first enemy reached him again—and the second enemy with the pistol wouldn't be far behind if Zeus engaged the dagger wielder.
Zeus deactivated three energy storage glyphs, reducing his max capacity from 1000 to 700 units.
Within two minutes, his physical energy reserves refilled, and the daggers regained some energy. His spinning disc was also fully charged.
On Zeus's tongue, he inscribed an explosive energy glyph with the self-detonation trait—different from the explosive release trait by one key feature: blast power. It generated five times the power compared to the release trait.
This was Zeus's final card—he had decided he wouldn't die without taking one of them with him.
The enemy approached swiftly and attacked Zeus, who was using the dagger rings to boost his speed.
They exchanged blows quickly without either landing a hit. The enemy was aware of Zeus's spinning disc.
Why are you chasing me?... Damn it!!...
The enemy didn't reply and kept fighting. Zeus was sweating as he dodged the increasing attacks, unable to fully focus due to the constant threat of the pistol wielder's treacherous bullets.
His distraction cost him—he took a dagger hit that drained 5% of his energy instead of 1%. He noticed sparks of electricity swirling like snakes around the enemy's dagger.
"He has hidden cards too!!... Damn it! … You bastards!!"
Suddenly, the enemy crouched rapidly, his body enveloped in blue electric energy. From behind him, a light beam shot forward and hit the center of Zeus's chest, giving him no chance to dodge the professionally executed combo attack.
Zeus's energy dropped below 30%. When he saw his enemy approaching at a speed beyond anything before, Zeus realized he'd lose the rest—so he cut his body's energy connection to the suit.
The energy shield shattered, and the dagger blows pierced the hard armor of the suit. Zeus took ten stabs to the body, blood spraying everywhere as he stumbled back two steps and fell.
The dagger wielder calmly approached, lifted Zeus by the neck, and removed his helmet, the dagger gleaming in his right hand. Just as he aimed for a final blow to Zeus's head, he paused—surprised by Zeus's bloody smile.
The enemy didn't understand the smile's meaning and decided to ignore it. Zeus suddenly opened his mouth and spat out a chunk of meat—it was his own tongue, which he had bitten off in a moment of furious madness.
The tongue exploded instantly, with both Zeus's hands shielding his head. Just before the blast, the spinning disc launched him away using full-discharge mode—an ability Zeus usually avoided due to its massive energy drain and inefficiency in prolonged battles.
A massive explosion erupted—far beyond Zeus's expectations—engulfing him despite the distance. The enemy was completely vaporized.
Something was clearly wrong—the explosion's force exceeded 3000 units of energy, equivalent to a quarter of the blast that killed the third enemy.
Even though the explosion should have only been five times the used energy—5 × 233, approximately.
What Zeus didn't know was that his body parts and blood contained a hidden energy different from the blue genetic energy.
…
He collapsed on the grass amidst the flames, his body severely burned—especially his hands, which had shielded his unprotected head after the helmet's destruction.
His suit was shattered and destroyed, leaving him barely wearing his pants.
…
"Maybe Grandpa Hauer was right… I shouldn't have fought alone… No… I'm not wrong… I don't want her to die like this… I made the right choice… Do I have regrets… Yes, a lot… Will I see you, brother… Maybe you'll scold me for failing to avenge you… That's my biggest regret… I'm sorry… I… Who am I?"
Zeus lost consciousness in silence amid the fiery forest.
The man with the pistol approached the area, and his devices scanned for any life signs. When none appeared, he decided to search with his own eyes to confirm the mission was complete.
Before taking another step, his sensors alerted him to several rapidly approaching targets.
He checked his pistol and realized the energy was low—so he decided to retreat immediately.
Moments later, Sorai and Beatrix entered the scene, heading straight to Zeus's last known location before his suit was destroyed.
The site of the explosion.
Sorai looked around, his shock growing with every second.
"What the hell, was this a battle of individuals or mechas!!"
(Beatrix): Where is he?
We need to search. I lost his trail here… Let's split up, be careful… I fear we may be too late.
They split up. Just a minute later, Sorai heard Beatrix scream and ran toward her.
When he saw Zeus's body, his mind spiraled into chaos and emptiness—for the first time in his life.
Luckily, Sorai quickly snapped out of it and checked Zeus's condition, despite the horrifying sight. Few would believe this mangled body was still alive.
Sure enough, Zeus's energy glyphs were barely holding on—struggling to channel restored energy to his vital organs.
Beatrix was crying, covering her eyes with both hands. Sorai was thinking of something else now that he confirmed Zeus was alive.
He decided to take Zeus somewhere private—not to the public hospital or the Raktis family… thinking this might be the perfect chance to eliminate the assassins.