The high-pitched ringing was all too familiar. When his eyes fluttered open, Dante was met with the blurry sight of a burning street, the same street from that day. Fragments of glass and metal littered the old asphalt road. Bright orange flames spread out, eating at everything capable of burning, be it bio-fuel or human blood.
At the center of it all, an imposing figure stood motionlessly, back straight and head raised, uncaring about the destruction surrounding him.
When he laid eyes on him, Dante was convinced he was back in that dream, once again forced to relive those grueling moments. But that wasn't right. He was wide awake, even if a little shaken. This was reality he was facing.
"...id…he-… ki… DANTE!!!"
A firm hand shook him out of his stupor. He looked beside him and saw Mattia, his bloodied face twisted into a grimace. Gaspard's truck was a few meters away, or so it appeared at first. Only half of it was there. The other half was nowhere to be seen.
"Wha…what ha-"
His voice was drowned by the roaring of gunfire. Dante instinctively turned toward the source and saw Gaspard shooting his rifle without pause. Ricardo was near as well, aiming a handgun in the same direction and firing consecutive shots.
Their target was within sight. He stood there, in the center of the flames, unbothered by the rain of lead hitting his body. Sparks scattered upon impact, creating a scene of thousands of hammers striking red-hot metal.
The man was dressed in a tight spandex suit, every sculpted muscle of his body accentuated by it. Its yellow color was made brighter by the dancing tongues of flame, and the blood-red cape hanging from his shoulders fluttered despite the lack of wind.
Dante recognized him at first sight. Anyone would've done so, for he was Aegis, leader of Flame Guard and one of the most powerful heroes in the entire world. A product of Eidolon.
"Kid! Get your act together!"
A slap forced his gaze from the man in yellow. Confusion painted Dante's face as he shifted to Mattia. The situation had gone from 10 to a 100 far too quickly and despair had already tightened its grip on him.
"You need to get out of here!" Mattia said.
"Bu-"
"There is no escape."
The cold words send a chill rolling over the surroundings, chasing away the heat of the flames. Mattia gritted his teeth and spun around. His gun flashed as he took aim and fired. There was no avoiding the bullets at this distance, but Aegis, having appeared right beside them, didn't even flinch and let the shots bounce off of his face.
"Rats like you should've stayed in the sewers." He grabbed Mattia's hand and squeezed it, crushing it along with the pistol. He then lifted him with no effort.
Watching his much more experienced crewmate being handled like a ragdoll crashed Dante's mind. It was a kind of terror he had only ever experienced once before. His eyes followed Aegis' free hand as it moved up slowly before fading into a blur.
Crimson burst from Mattia's back. His expression turned ghastly, his eyes wide open. Aegis remained indifferent. He pulled his hand out and swiped it aside, the blood covering it splattering over Dante's face.
The gruesome scene engraved itself in the youth's mind. Just seconds ago, the scruffy smoker was sitting beside him, smiling as he patted him on the shoulder. Now he was hanging from one arm, his guts spilling through a hole that reached all the way to his back.
As life faded from his eyes, Mattia shifted his gaze to Dante. Blood spewed from his mouth as he struggled to say something. In the end, only one word came out.
"Ru…n…"
Something snapped inside Dante and he reached for his gun. His finger squeezed the trigger before he could aim. The recoil reverberated through his body drawing pain out of all the injuries he had ignored so far.
The bullet struck Aegis in the head but once again failed to leave any mark. All it did was bring the hero's attention back to youth.
"Look at you." A frown took over his face. "Shouldn't you be at school or something?"
Dante fired another bullet, then another. His ammo ran out before long.
"Kids these days are so quick to pick bad habits." Unbothered by the fire, the hero tossed Mattia's limp body aside. "Theft and murder are serious crimes, you know. You can't just go around stealing other people's property."
The distance between them seemed to vanish. Dante didn't get a chance to react as Aegis raised his right foot and stumped down. His leg broke with an audible snap.
"Ah… aaaAAAAAAA!!!!!!"
"I'm guessing it hadn't been that long since you turned to crime." Aegis raised his foot and stumped the other leg. "I will let you off with a warning this time. You better get yourself back on the right track."
The words didn't reach Dante. His mind was flooded with agonizing pain, leaving him incapable of a single coherent thought. He barely noticed when something blasted the side of the hero's head. The impact was powerful enough to tilt it a little, and though it left no mark, Aegis' expression changed, a hint of annoyance appearing on the surface.
"The rest of you will get no mercy."
His figure blurred and he zoomed toward the source of the last bullet. His left hand crushed the long barrel of the sniper rifle while his right reached for the shooter's neck.
Maria flailed her arms desperately but a single squeeze robbed all of her strength, turning her into a corpse.
"NOOOOOOO!!!"
With tears in his eyes, Marcel raised his weapon and fired. His target vanished and a faint gust of air blew behind him. Before he could try anything, two hands grabbed his face and the back of his head then pulled in opposite directions.
Ricardo could only watch as another crew member fell to the ground. His eyes met the hero's and he realized his turn had come. Everything turned black the next instant.
"You bunch are villains as far as the public is concerned." Letting go of the crushed helmet, Aegis dusted his hands. "Still, it would be troublesome if your fate were to be seen."
He turned to the only other person still standing. Gaspard's face was grim. He knew there was no escape and could already see the end of his life. The rifle in his hands was capable of firing armor-piercing rounds, but even those could do nothing against a Level 5 Prime.
"Drop your weapon," Aegis said. "Do that and I will make it quick."
The offer held no value. The others were killed in an instant whether they fought back or not, and with that in mind, it was clear what would happen next.
"Fuck you," Gaspard forced a smile. "Eidolon scum."
Raising his weapon, he was ready to fight till the very end, but before he could fire a single shot the hero appeared in front of him.
Aegis brought his hand down and chopped Gaspard's left arm off. He then grabbed the other and swiftly tore it off, exposing the machinery camouflaged under a layer of synthetic skin.
"Gah!!!"
Gaspard screamed as he crumbled to his knees.
"Titan Forge tech?" Aegis said as he stared at the severed right arm. "Probably a counterfeit. A street rat like you won't be able to afford the real thing in a million years."
"Go… fu…ck… yourself…"
Tossing the severed arm, Aegis looked down at the black man and raised his hand.
"You know, all of this could have been avoided." He said. "If only you stayed in your sewers."
Gaspard's head went flying, drawing a trail of blood in the air. The rest of his body fell to the ground a second later. A frown replaced the indifferent mask Aegis wore as he performed the execution. The last of the villains had fallen, which brought the incident to an end far too quickly.
Letting things drag out wasn't his thing, but once he was left with nothing to do he couldn't help feeling regretful.
"Well, guess it's time to head back…"
Only one thing remained. He was sent out to retrieve a package stolen by a group of guns for hire. Such mundane tasks were far below a top-ranking hero like him, but he couldn't refuse a direct request from that person.
"Now, where is-"
Just when he thought he would have to start looking through the car wreckage, a loud bang came from behind him. The sound was that of a massive metal construct slamming its weight on the old asphalt road, sending cracks spreading out like spiderwebs.
Chaotic clatter filled the air. Countless parts manifested, shifted and snapped into place, guided by threads of light that brought everything into a magnificent shape. At the center of it all was a small disk the size of one's hand. The mysterious symbols engraved on its edge pulsated like beating heart and the light at their center grew brighter each time.
Aegis watched with rapt interest as it took form. A mechanical monster three times the size of a human, covered in metal plating the color of a starless night. Craters formed under its legs as it leaned forward, its knees bent as if preparing to lunge. On its back, several boosters ignited, blue flames blasting out of them like the engines of a rocket preparing to take off.
The world froze entirely, silence overtaking the burning street. The mechanical monstrosity was there one moment and it was gone in the next. Eyes wide with horror, Aegis tried to react. He was far too slow, however, and by the time he realized it all he felt was the impact.