Arc IV: “Advent of Acier”
Chapter I: “The Syndicate”
Episode I: “The Scout: Nami”
A SMALL AIRCRAFT slipped through the night sky, wind gusting through the open hatch.
As the doors began to close with a mechanical whir, a woman dragged herself across the floor—hauling a charred, dismembered torso behind her.
“Lady Cataline,” another woman said, looming over her. She knelt and offered a hand, pulling Cataline to her feet. “Is that—?”
“Yes. This—” Cataline pointed at the charred torso, “is my husband. This is Apocalypse.”
“To think he could be reduced to such a state… I thought he was supposed to be the hero who’d lead our Dystopian cause to the Grand World.”
“Watch your tongue,” Cataline snapped. “Make no mistake—his power is no joke. He triumphs even over me…”
Her fists tightened as she stared at the blood seeping from his wounds.
“He needs urgent care,” the woman said, stepping into the cockpit. She grabbed an overhead bar as the craft jolted. “How far to your lab, Doc?”
“My lab? We’re not taking him to my lab—are you crazy?”
The sickly young man kept one hand on the wheel. His other hand danced across the controls, calibrating the ship without him even glancing down.
“We barely escaped back there,” he muttered, glancing over his shoulder at Cataline—and the remains of Apocalypse.
The hull groaned as something scraped along their wake—then fell into the night.
Then his eyes narrowed at the woman beside him. “Hey, I thought those two weren’t on Earth right now.”
“They weren’t, not until today. They must’ve returned and slipped past our patrol sensors. If it weren’t for Akira Lyte and Young Master Rikito, Lady Cataline would’ve crushed them.” Her fist clenched. “We wouldn’t have lost the Dark Heart… after only just finding it…”
“Ugh,” the pilot sighed. “I wonder what Acier will say when he learns that all that time and resources went up in smoke.”
“Silence,” Cataline hissed. “It wasn’t in vain. The Dark Heart accomplished our goals… all of them.”
She turned her devilish smile on the woman before her.
“Didn’t they, Nami?”
[About a Month Ago]
Behind the Lyte Residence, a pink horizon spilled across the pool. Two figures stood at its edge, sunset light catching in their eyes.
“Akira! What do you mean you’re leaving Earth?” Asuka snapped, jabbing a finger into his chest. “What about the kids?”
“Don’t worry. I’ll figure it out.”
“Take our kids into space? Are you insane? Akaza’s just turned ten—Kazuma’s, even younger!”
“Yeah… you’re right.” Akira rubbed the back of his head. “Then we’ll have someone watch them. They could stay with Fevee. I’m sure Leo wouldn’t mind watching them either.”
“Leo is already busy covering your job as Earth’s protector. And I’m not dragging Fevee into this again—especially after last time.”
Asuka groaned. “Maybe I should just stay and watch them myself…”
“Yeah, that works.”
Asuka’s eyes sharpened. “Don’t sound so relieved. Actually—no. I’m going with you. You’ll wander into trouble without me.”
“W-what? I can handle myself.” Akira tried to laugh it off.
“I spent years with the Cosmic Guard. And—Kyte’s coming. He’s traveled the Universe his whole life!”
Stolen from its rightful author, this tale is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.
“But still, what if…” Her voice softened. “What if you get hurt?”
Akira looked into her pearly eyes; sunset reflected in them. He cupped her face, thumbs brushing her cheeks.
Asuka held his wrists and leaned into his warmth, eyes closing.
“Everything will be fine,” he whispered.
He pulled her into an embrace as the sun finally sank beneath the horizon.
[Elsewhere]
A small ship touched down in a rocky mountain range. Wind knifed across the terrain as two figures stepped out.
“Are you sure you want to set up here?” the woman asked.
“Yes, Nami,” the sickly, young man said.
“This environment is… harsh.” Nami scanned the jagged slopes, then the cave mouth beside the ship.
“Why pick this place for your lab? You’re always so particular about your delicate specimens, Doctor.”
“The reason I’m so particular is exactly why I picked this place. Based on our scans, it’s far from any significant lifeforms—and this environment will keep visitors away. The exterior of my lab will be built with Eclipsed-Steel, meaning there’s no cause for concern about the specimens.”
He gestured toward the ship. “Now, stop worrying so much. Help me unpack these storage cubes.”
[Wave Island]
Later that night, Reito was already fast asleep—but in the next room, Rikito and Sikira were deep in conversation.
“So, Akira is going to Utopia…” Rikito murmured.
Curled up around him as they lay in bed, Sikira pressed the side of her face into his back. “Yeah, I just heard from Asuka. I think they’re leaving in a couple of weeks.”
“Alright. Then it’s time I took my own trip.”
“What? You’re leaving too?”
“I can’t let Akira get ahead of me. He can be Earth’s hero—fine. But I will be Earth’s champion.”
Sikira raised a brow. “So, you’re just leaving to train? Why can’t you just train here? What about Reito? Weren’t you going to keep training him and Kyoto? I don’t understand why you always want to leave to go train by yourself!”
As the storm of questions rained down on Rikito, he let out an exasperated sigh. “Because…” he whispered, voice thinning. “How else are we going to find her—your sister?”
[The Western Mountain Range]
Inside the cave, Nami placed a small silver cube on the ground. It was hollow, but it had diagonal metal bars on each side.
She leaned down and pressed a button on its side.
Within moments, the cube expanded—until it towered over her.
Inside the cube were metallic sheets. She opened the bars of the cube and pulled the sheets out.
I’m not fond of it—this Eclipsed-Steel…
She sank into a squat, bracing the panel against herself. Then with a sharp grunt, she lifted it.
“Yeah, put that one right there,” the Doctor said while pointing.
Nami scrunched her face. “How come I’m the one doing all the heavy lifting?”
“Um… have you seen me?” the Doctor lifted his scrawny arms to his sides, the white sleeves of his coat pulled back to reveal his brittle, pale physique.
“Then why don’t you have one of your little pets move all this stuff around? It would save me a ton of effort, and I could start my real job,” Nami panted, placing her hands on her waist.
“Don’t be lazy. You want me to waste my test subjects’ capabilities on menial labor when they aren’t even complete yet? Also, this is part of your job. Until the lab is complete and the barrier is erected, I can’t have my specimens exposed. The Guardian of Solaris would find us immediately. Don’t you know that—”
“I know, I know. That’s the whole reason why Lady Cataline only sent the two of us. You’re a pitifully weak little man, and my aether suppression skills are second only to Ronin’s.”
“Ouch… but exactly. Once my lab is established and I can continue my research, you’ll be free to start your reconnaissance. Then I’ll set up the bridge to allow the troops to portal in.”
“Speaking of research… why are you working for Lord Acier? I know you’re helping Lady Cataline on his orders… but why did you join this syndicate in the first place?”
“Why’d I join, huh?” he placed his hand on his chin as he looked off into the distance.
“You don’t take me for the type who wants to conquer all existence. So, what do you get out of this?”
“Well, money and resources, of course.”
“Geh… really? That’s it?”
“That’s it? Do you know how hard it is to come across these tools and materials?”
He pointed to the crates of supplies that they had yet to unpack. “Have you even seen a Hypercube before joining this syndicate?”
“So, you just want access to cool stuff?”
“No, it’s not that simple. It’s not about the stuff itself, but rather what I can do with this stuff. Take my ‘pets’ for example—Filter, Sink, and Head. I was only able to create them because I had access to the tools to study Apocalypse’s DNA. Do you know what that feels like?”
His eyes sparked, a pure light shining within them. “To give birth to a new life with your very own hands?”
Nami clutched her abdomen, her head drooping down as a soft smile took over her expression. Her lip quivered as she held back the tears.
“Yeah…” she whispered.
The Doctor glanced at her, the regular dullness returning to his gaze.
“Ah, that’s right. You’ll be reunited with him soon. We have the Dark Heart, after all.”
[Two Weeks Later – New Woodberry]
Late in the evening, Nami walked down a busy street.
Vendors shouted. Costumes swayed. Music carried on the air—while Nami slipped through the crowd like a shadow.
Eventually, she made her way to an empty street and strolled down the block.
“Hey, c’mon, Kyoto!” a voice called behind her. “We’re gonna miss them!”
A young boy sprinted past.
“Yeah, what Kazuma said!” Another boy shouted, following close behind.
“I’m coming, I’m coming. You know, they aren’t going to leave without saying bye to us,” a third, much older boy said.
As he rushed after his two younger brothers, he bumped into Nami.
“Oh—excuse me, sorry about that.” He reached down to help her stand back up. “Are you alright?”
“Yes, I’m fine,” she said as she took his hand.
Nami looked down the street to see the two antsy boys calling to their brother. “Your siblings? They seem excited for something.”
“Oh, uh… yeah—hehe.” Kyoto chuckled as he rubbed the back of his head. “Our parents are leaving on a long trip, so they’re really eager to see them off.”
“Is that so?” Nami smiled. “Then in that case, you’d better take good care of them.”
She patted his shoulder.
“Right!” Kyoto bowed his head. “Have a good evening, miss! I hope you enjoyed the festival, and sorry again for bumping into you.”
Kyoto waved as he ran off.
Nami waved back. The moment he turned away, her smile cooled—then vanished. She turned back to look at the banners.
Celebrating Earth’s hero… how sweet.
Ten minutes later, Nami was flying back to the lab while making a transmission to the Doctor.
“I’ve confirmed all of the locations,” she said.
“Good,” the Doctor replied over the intercom. “I’ve just confirmed that this Rikito individual you wanted to speak with just left the planet. His aether signature pinged one of the outer patrol’s sensors.”
Nami bit her lip. Damn, so the Young Master has left…
“No matter. Lady Cataline can deal with him later. More importantly, he is leaving tonight as well.”
“You mean—”
“Yes, Akira Lyte is leaving Earth. His wife and brother are leaving too.”
“Then that means the only one we’ll have to worry about is—”
“The Caliekian, Leo. But we can’t underestimate him. Not only does he have a mysterious heritage, but he was personally trained by Akira.”
“That’s right. I wonder how Head would match up against him… Okay, the bridge for the portal is ready. You should make use of what Cataline entrusted to you and start reviving the targets. The Guardian of Solaris probably won’t notice, since less energy will be required for the others. They only need partial revival, and I’ll take care of the rest. Once Cataline arrives, you can meet up with her to fully revive Apocalypse.”
“Right!”
[Next Time on Lyte of Utopia]: “Secret Operation”
[Yield Levels]:
Nami: 7z
- Suppressed: 1
Doctor: 1
Cataline: 11z
- Weakened: 6z
Apocalypse: 12z
- Weakened: 5
Akira: 5z
Asuka: 50 – 4z
Rikito: 5z
Sikira: 6z
Kazuma: 20 – 4z
Akaza: 30 – 4z
Kyoto: 280 – 4z