Blood, Power, and Secrets
The castle gates burst open with a thunderous echo as Rio charged through, smoke and energy trails still rising from his battered GodWar suit. Guards attempted to restrain him—he knocked two aside with a powered elbow burst, leaving scorch marks in his wake.
Inside the Throne Room, gasps swept across the chamber like wildfire. All heads turned toward the defiant figure standing in the center, bloodied but unyielding.
Zanna's furious voice cut through the whispers like a blade. "Where is my brother-Velatore, you psycho!?"
The courtiers and elite warriors murmured, stunned that a TIER-4 warrior—barely a blip on their radar—had not only survived an encounter with a TIER-6 like Velatore, but now stood defiantly in their sanctum.
Nyxara, seated atop the dark obsidian throne, rested her chin on her knuckles. A subtle smirk played on her lips, her emerald eyes gleaming with interest. "Everyone, out. That includes you, Nazza. Double the patrols. And keep searching for Velatore."
Zanna bristled. "But Nyxara—!"
Nyxara didn't raise her voice. She didn't have to. Her aura surged, a dense gravitational pressure that forced Zanna to her knees.
"I said, leave."
Zanna met Rio's gaze with venom as she stormed out. "You won't live to see sunrise," she muttered.
Once the chamber emptied, Nyxara's expression softened, curiosity taking the place of amusement. "So tell me, Rio Ryunn—how are you still breathing? And where is my little showman, Flashy?"
Before Rio could respond, his body collapsed from the strain of unleashing that unknown power. His consciousness faded into darkness.
---
Later, in Nyxara's Chambers...
He gasped weakly in subconsciousness , as warmth spread through his battered form. Nyxara sat beside him on the bed—his high-tech suite stripped, wounds bandaged. She ran her fingers across his skin with unnatural care. A touch too gentle for someone known to tear men in half.
"You're surprisingly durable," she whispered, brushing a strand of his hair away. Her tongue touched a cut on his neck, tasting his blood. "Sweet… dangerously so."
She raised a hand, casting a high-level barrier over the room. "No interruptions."
She applied ointment to his wounds with practiced fingers, lying beside him like a predator guarding her prey or more like a lady waiting for her prince .
---
Midnight—Outside the Castle Walls
Three guards stood beneath the watchtower's shadows.
Guard 1: "He's dead meat. He killed Velatore—no way she lets that slide."
Guard 2: "Then why the hell did she send us all away?"
Guard 3: "She wants to interrogate him herself. You know her methods. Cold, calculated."
---
Meanwhile – Outside the Fortress Grounds
Zanna paced furiously, summoning her void-bound bow in frustration.
"You two! Go to the castle and track that bastard. Spy on him. I want everything—every whisper, every move. And if you find a chance kill him ."
Hunter X hesitated. "Zanna… even if you ordered it, Nyxara is still our Commander. Spying on that humman in her presence? That's suicide."
Zanna glared. "You don't get to question me. Just do it. Or I'll kill you myself."
Hunter Y gave a mischievous grin. "Sure, but give us something in return. A hair of her eyelash, maybe?"
"Shut up, idiot!" snapped Hunter X, glancing around. "You want Nyxara to catch you talking like that?"
Hunter Y shrugged. "Relax. We're the best in telepathy after Nyxara. No one else can read us,she is busy showing her cruel behaviour to that humman !"
Zanna summoned her bow, pointing it between their eyes. "Go. Now."
Without another word, the two void-Hunters vanished into the night, slipping through shadows toward Nyxara's chamber.