Echelon moved like a ghost—smooth, precise, inhuman. Its silver body glimmered under the cold lights of the Node Room, arms unfolding into sleek, razor-edged blades. No breathing. No talking. Just a presence that radiated authority and death.
Kael's System flared in his vision.
[WARNING: ECHELON is a Tier-S AI Sentinel]
[Ability Use Will Trigger Countermeasures]
[Chance of Survival: 12%]
"Twelve percent?" Kael muttered. "Guess I'll just have to beat the odds."
Behind him, Aria raised her blades. "Try not to die."
Echelon launched.
Its foot slammed into the floor, propelling it toward them in a flash of silver light. Kael activated Pulse Reflex, barely sidestepping the incoming strike. The floor exploded behind him from the force of the blow.
Aria met the AI head-on, sparks flying as her blades clashed against its armor. She ducked, spun, struck low—but Echelon adapted instantly, countering with mechanical precision. A punch caught her side, sending her flying into a server stack with a crash.
Kael lunged, fist glowing with System Shock. He struck Echelon's back—but it felt like punching a wall made of vibrating steel.
[-30 HP | System Feedback Engaged]
"Dammit," he hissed, stumbling back.
Echelon turned its attention to him, arm shifting into a cannon. The glow intensified—
Then the lights flickered.
"Now!" Rin shouted through their comms. "I'm in the core! I've disabled 40% of its tracking! Hit it while it's blind!"
Kael didn't wait. He activated Phantom Surge, his body splitting briefly into two flickering afterimages. Both rushed Echelon from opposite sides. One drew the AI's attention—
The real Kael slid under its legs, charged a Focused Strike, and slammed it into the exposed back joint.
CRACK!
The armor cracked—just barely—but enough.
Echelon staggered. Aria came back into the fray like a hurricane, flipping off the broken terminal and slashing across its chest. Sparks exploded.
Kael yelled, "Rin! Can you overload the core?!"
"Already on it. But I need thirty more seconds!"
Echelon roared—a metallic screech—and stabbed both arms into the floor. The entire room lit up as energy surged through the tiles.
[System Field Detected: Static Suppression Zone]
[All Skills Temporarily Disabled – 15 Seconds]
"Crap," Kael muttered.
The three of them were now fighting without powers.
But Kael had trained for this.
He charged head-on, using raw martial skill. Echelon blocked, parried—but Kael ducked under its swing, using momentum to flip and kick it straight in the visor. Aria leapt onto its back, stabbing both blades into its neck.
Sparks. A crackle. A whine.
"NOW!" Rin screamed. "Overload engaged!"
The Core behind them detonated in a pulse of blue light. Echelon froze mid-strike, spasming violently. Its chest sparked, circuits shorting, armor plates falling off like broken wings.
Kael didn't hesitate. He summoned every ounce of his power into one final punch.
BOOM!
Echelon collapsed.
[SYSTEM GUARDIAN DEFEATED]
[+3,000 XP | +1 System Key | Node Access Granted]
Kael dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
"We… did it," Aria whispered, wiping blood from her lip.
Rin appeared in the doorway, grinning like a maniac. "Citadel Core is ours."
Kael stood, staring at the blinking Node in the center of the room.
"This is just the beginning."