The skies of Cindaros-7 split like torn fabric as the first Harbinger dropped.
Black-armored, faceless, humming with annihilation.
Kael had exactly 4 seconds to react.
> [Harbinger Class Identified: Apex Executioner - Unit 01]
[Recommended Action: Evade. Survive. Retreat.]
Kael ignored it.
His feet launched off the shattered ground. Phase Cut activated with a thought—his body dissolved into blue mist, reappearing just as a plasma spear shredded through the air where his chest had been.
The Harbinger didn't hesitate. It spun, each motion like a war ritual. Twin scythes unfolded from its arms, humming with starfire.
> "They really want me dead," Kael muttered, eyes burning.
"Too bad I'm just getting started."
---
The sky howled again.
Six more Harbingers descended like meteor gods, each one landing across the ruined temple in a perfect formation.
One raised its arm. A glyph formed in the air—a command.
> [Engage: Total Erasure Protocol. Target: Kael Veyar.]
> [Warning: Host is outnumbered.]
[Probability of survival: 6.2%]
Kael grinned. "Better odds than last time."
---
He slammed his fists together. Energy roared outward.
> [Starbreaker Form – Engaged]
[Skill Modifier Active: Graviton Surge + Adaptive Core Layering]
[Effect: +35% impact / Time Dilation aura]
Everything around him slowed—dust hung in the air like snow. Kael moved like lightning through tar, weaving between strikes, kicking off broken statues and slamming into one Harbinger with a glowing fist.
> Impact registered. Armor integrity: -14%
Ascension Progress: +3.1%
But they learned. Fast.
Unit 03 intercepted with a counter-kick, launching Kael into a pillar. His ribs cracked. Sparks flew from his armor. He coughed blood—and laughed.
> "You hit like royalty," he growled, standing up.
---
Above them, the ruins shimmered.
> [Hidden Code Node Detected – Ascended Archive Locked]
[Condition: Sustain combat for 5 minutes to override seal]
So that was it. The fight wasn't just survival—it was a trial.
He needed to endure long enough to unlock the data.
He couldn't win. Not yet.
But he could outlast them.
> "Bring it on," Kael whispered. "You want to erase me?"
> "Then come erase a god in progress."
---
The Harbinger War Begins
Unit 05 launched a volley of void daggers. Kael deflected two with raw energy. The third pierced his thigh.
He didn't flinch.
Unit 02 charged with a sonic boom, trying to crush him with a gravity field. Kael triggered Phase Cut, teleporting behind and unleashing a double Starbreaker Slam to the back.
> Critical Hit. Harbinger Core Fractured – 12.4%
They began to adapt, syncing with each other, moving like a hive. Strike. Trap. Suppress.
Kael's system raced to keep up, feeding him counter-moves, combo techs, adaptive battle data—but his body was bleeding, joints burning, vision blurring.
> "Not yet," he gasped. "Not yet, not yet—!"
---
Suddenly—the ruins pulsed.
> [Time Elapsed: 5:00]
[Ascended Archive Unlocked]
[Uploading New Technique: Protocol Override – Chaos Mode Lv.1]
Everything exploded.
The world inverted. His body burned from the inside out as raw protocol code surged through his nervous system. His hair lit up white-blue. His eyes turned black, filled with flickering stars.
> [Chaos Mode Engaged]
[For 30 seconds, all system limits are nullified]
> "...You shouldn't have cornered me," Kael said.
He vanished.
---
Chaos Mode Kael was a different creature.
He moved faster than sound, stronger than tanks. He tore through Unit 05 with bare hands, ripped through 02's weapon core, and parried 03's warblade with nothing but momentum.
> Harbinger Unit 05 – Terminated
Harbinger Unit 02 – Disabled
Ascension Progress: +12.8%
Skill Acquired: Echo Dash Lv.1
---
As the final seconds ticked away, Kael dropped to a knee, Chaos Mode flickering out. Sweat poured from his skin. His vision swam.
Only four Harbingers remained—but they hesitated.
That gave him one, vital second to breathe.
And that second saved him.
A new portal cracked open behind the ruins—someone was watching.
---
A hooded figure stepped out.
Slender, glowing with layered rings of stardust armor. Female. Eyes glowing silver.
> "So you're the boy who woke the Protocol," she said softly.
"Interesting."
> "Who—" Kael coughed, standing.
> "Save your questions." She looked at the remaining Harbingers. "They won't survive the next minute."
She raised her hand.
A sun collapsed in her palm.