The alarms wailed, drowning out everything but the pounding of Ryo's own heartbeat.
Red warning lights flashed across the facility walls.
> [FACILITY SELF-DESTRUCT IN 9 MINUTES 45 SECONDS.]
The Hellion forces were coming.
And for the first time, Ryo didn't feel like prey.
He felt like a predator.
Holding the Line
Vos slammed a fresh shell into his shotgun, planting his boots firmly in front of the blast doors.
"Karin, how long?" he barked.
"Five minutes. Maybe." Karin's fingers flew across the console. "If I screw up, we're all dead."
"No pressure, then." Vos grunted.
Ryo exhaled, rolling his shoulders. His body felt electric, like his muscles were vibrating beneath his skin.
This wasn't just adrenaline.
It was the system.
Adapting.
Calculating.
> [ENEMY FORCE APPROACHING: 15 UNITS. ARMORED INFANTRY. ESTIMATED TIME UNTIL CONTACT: 30 SECONDS.]
Ryo cracked his knuckles.
"Let them come."
First Contact
The blast doors exploded inward.
Hellion troops poured in, clad in heavy exo-suits, their rifles raised.
"OPEN FIRE!"
Gunfire tore through the room.
Vos and Karin dived for cover, returning shots where they could.
Ryo?
He charged.
The New Ryo Kisaragi
Bullets ripped toward him.
But his body moved before he could think.
> [GEARBOUND REFLEXES: ACTIVE.]
[PREDICTION ALGORITHMS: 89% SYNC.]
He weaved.
Ducked.
A bullet whizzed past his cheek—
Another grazed his shoulder—
But none hit where they were supposed to.
The Hellion squad hesitated. They weren't used to enemies dodging gunfire like a goddamn machine.
Ryo was already on them.
He grabbed the first soldier by the throat—
Slammed him into the floor so hard the metal cracked.
The next one swung a rifle like a club—
Ryo caught it mid-air. Ripped it from his hands.
Then used it to cave his skull in.
> "Wooo! Look at you go, rookie! That's some real main character energy!"
Another soldier tried to bring up a shotgun—
Ryo closed the gap in a blink.
One elbow to the ribs. Armor dented.
A second strike to the helmet. Visor shattered.
The soldier dropped like a puppet with its strings cut.
The Fear of the Ironborn
The remaining Hellions hesitated.
They'd come in expecting a simple sweep-and-clear.
Instead, they were watching their squadmates get torn apart by something that looked human—but fought like a machine.
Ryo exhaled, his breath fogging in the cold air.
Then he smiled.
"Who's next?"
> "Holy shit, you're actually enjoying this. I love it."
One of the Hellion soldiers panicked.
He lunged for his radio.
> "This is Echo Squad! We've engaged the target—"
Ryo moved faster than thought.
His hand closed around the soldier's helmet—
And crushed it.
Sparks. Blood. Silence.
The remaining troops ran.
The Turning Point
Vos and Karin stared.
Ryo breathed heavy, hands slick with blood.
For the first time since this nightmare began—he wasn't the one barely surviving.
He was winning.
But then—
> [ALERT: SECOND WAVE INCOMING.]
[SIGNAL JAMMER DETECTED.]
The system pinged.
And Ryo's stomach dropped.
A New Challenger Approaches
A new figure stepped into the ruined doorway.
Not a normal soldier.
Not even a Lazarus cyborg.
This one was different.
A tall, sleek exo-frame, painted in black, glowing red along its joints.
The visor was smooth, unreadable.
But Ryo felt the weight of its presence.
This was no grunt.
This was a specialist.
> "Ohhhh, shit. You got a mini-boss fight incoming."
Ryo rolled his shoulders.
His heartbeat was steady.
No fear.
No hesitation.
Just pure instinct.
Because right now, he wasn't thinking like a human anymore.
He was thinking like a weapon.
The black-armored soldier raised a blade, humming with unstable energy.
"Ryo Kisaragi." The voice was distorted, modulated.
> "Surrender."
Ryo smirked.
"Make me."
The specialist charged.
And the real fight began.