Chapter 53: Come Out to Play

The command center held its breath.

The hum of generators and holographic projectors pressed in from all sides, a low mechanical pulse that seemed to thrum in time with the unease coiling through the room. Outside, rain continued to fall against reinforced glass and steel, distant but unrelenting, as if the world itself were waiting.

Porpo broke the silence first.

“What do we do?” she whispered. Her voice barely carried, but the tension in it was unmistakable. The fury that had fueled her earlier had drained away, leaving something sharper and more brittle behind. Her fingers twitched at her sides, residual green wisps of Gale Trigger flickering and fading as she fought to keep her magic in check. Her eyes slid sideways, sharp and venomous, settling on Kade. “What. Tuck tail and run away?”

Kade stepped forward.

He stopped beside Jane, close enough that she could feel the heat of his presence, but he did not look at her. His attention remained fixed on the holographic map hovering before Shin Lu, on the blinking red and blue markers creeping closer with every passing second. Whatever rage had twisted his face earlier was gone. In its place was something colder. Calculated. Dangerous in a quieter way.

“The priority is the civilians,” he said. His voice was low, measured, stripped of emotion. “If those Bloodclaws breach the doors, none of this matters. I don’t care how many people just awakened classes. Most of them have zero combat experience. The men barely qualify. The women and kids will die first.”

Porpo stiffened.

She took a step toward him, teeth clenched so hard her jaw ached.

Lynis reacted instantly. His hand shot out and clamped down on her shoulder, fingers digging in with bruising force. Not aggressive. Grounding. A reminder to stay where she was.

“Motherfucker,” Porpo hissed under her breath. The air around her fingers stirred again, a faint spiral of green before she forced it down.

Jagger watched Kade from the corner of his eye.

Anger churned in his gut, hot and acidic, but he hated the fact that the man’s words made sense. He stayed silent, shoulders tight, jaw set.

Shin Lu inclined his head slowly.

“Yes,” he said at last. His voice carried the weight of command without rising. “Women and children are the top priority.” His mismatched eyes swept the room, cutting through lingering defiance and unspoken arguments alike. “Move them into secured stores. Barricade every entrance. They stay hidden until this is over.”

The room shifted at once. Orders began moving through the hunters like ripples through water. Leo straightened at his terminal, fingers already moving to reroute internal cameras and seal off access corridors. Hector stepped away from the wall, prosthetic arm whirring softly as he tapped a control pad on his wrist.

Shin Lu turned to Jane’s group. “I want you with us,” he said. “You’ve survived this far. That matters. I need an experienced hunter with me right now. So, what do you say?”

Jane did not wait, her expression hardened.

“If at any point where survival odds drop past recovery,” she added, voice flat and final, “my team withdraws. I am not sacrificing them for nothing.”

Shin Lu studied her for a long moment.

Before he could respond, Kade turned.

He faced Jane fully now, contempt curling his lip. “I don’t trust them. The moment things look risky, they’ll turn tail and leave us. That is not something that will guarantee our people’s survival.”

His gaze dragged across Jane’s group, slow and dismissive.

“And she did attack Hector without warning,” he continued. “Her mage is unstable. That one,” he gestured toward Lynis without looking, “is all muscle and no strategy.”

Then his eyes settled on Jagger.

“And the boy,” Kade said. “He’s just a kid who got lucky.”

The room snapped.

“Fuck you!” Lynis snarled, stepping forward before anyone could stop him. “You tried to assault our leader, and you’re calling us weak? You’re the one who got your ass handed to you by a ’kid’!”

Porpo’s hand rose again, green energy spiraling tighter around her fingers. “Say one more word, and I’ll bust your kneecaps, bitch.”

Weapons shifted. Hunters tensed. The command center teetered on the edge of violence again.

“ENOUGH.”

Shin Lu’s voice cracked through the room like a physical blow.

The air froze.

He stepped forward, presence slamming down hard. His gaze snapped between Jane and Kade, sharp and absolute. “This is not the time for internal conflict,” he said. “Kade, you will get on the same page. When you step outside those doors, you are a hunter who protects our people. A leader who fights for them alongside whoever is willing to fight with us. That is all. Am I clear?”

Silence fell.

Kade’s jaw tightened, and he took a deep breath. “Yes, sir!”

Hector cleared his throat carefully, “We can reinforce the front line with rotating squads,” he said. “Hit and fall back. Keep Reika busy without feeding her kills.”

Leo nodded rapidly from his terminal. “I can track Bloodclaw’s movement in real time. Drones, cameras, heat signatures. If they split up, we’ll know.”

“It would be better for us to join you at the front,” she said.

Her voice was calm. Clear. Stripped of fear or hesitation. She stepped forward, posture straight, eyes locked on Shin Lu. As she spoke, her hand moved unconsciously, sketching formation lines in the air as if the battlefield already existed before her.

“The four of us can hold our own if things go sideways,” she continued. “I can provide buffs and battlefield control. Porpo has AOE and burst magic. Lynis is a natural tank.”

Her gaze flicked briefly toward Jagger.

“…and he’s still a liability,” she finished, a faint, almost imperceptible curve touching her lips, “but he can fight.”

Lynis grinned sharply. Porpo straightened, nodding once, energy snapping back into her spine. Both of them glanced toward Kade with identical expressions, mock smiles sharp enough to cut.

Jagger’s shoulders eased a fraction. He met Jane’s eyes for a beat, the sting of her words softened by the unspoken trust beneath them.

Shin Lu watched Jane, a rare flicker of approval crossing his features. He gave a single, decisive nod.

The speakers crackled.

Every head snapped up.

A voice spilled into the command center, cold, amused, and dripping with mockery.

“Oi,” Reika’s voice boomed through the system. “You Bastion fuckers sure like hiding behind your walls, don’t you?”

Several hunters stiffened.

“Shin Lu~” she sang, playful in a way that made skin crawl. “I know you’re in there watching me. Be a dear and come out to play.”

On the holographic feed, she raised her blade and pointed it directly at the hovering drone, sparks leaping where steel scraped stone.

“We can do this the easy way,” she continued, smiling wide beneath the rain, “or the hard way.”

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