TW/CW: Graphic descriptions, blood (It'll be like this for a while, but I thought I'd warn you!) Hope you enjoy <3

"Still no answer," said Voxe.

Ethan pulled at his hair. "W-what if she's in trouble?" he cried. "She—she needs our help."

"We have to stay here."

"What, and just—just leave her to die?"

Voxe's eyes narrowed. "I didn't say that."

"We can't do jack shit, anyway!" Ethan yelled, pointing at the static screen. "I-I'm no help here, either! Just let me find her—please."

"Ethan—"

"Just let him go!" Eyes yelled. "Voxe. Get Konray's location."

Voxe hesitated, and Eyes whirled on zem. The screen glitched.

"Now," she ordered.

Voxe grimaced, then obeyed. Ze tapped the screens—tabs and tabs and tabs—and a red dot blinked on a map. She zoomed in on the roads and houses.

"There," said Voxe, pointing. "She's in the village."

Voxe shot up a hand, and a door appeared in the room. She tossed a tracker towards Ethan, and he caught it. The red dot blinked.

"Be back soon," said Voxe, sending him a glance. Ze smiled in the slightest. "And Ethan? You are helpful here."

Ethan took a deep breath and nodded, clutched the device, and rushed off without a word.

———

The sirens were more haunting, now that the City was silent.

    Dark led the way with Xilef and Emery at his sides, scanning the wreckage. Cars were strewn off the road, lodged in buildings or piles of rubble. Smoke billowed from every corner of the City—from shattered engines, buildings, and fires.

    Their feet crunched over glass and wreckage.

    Dark took a deep breath, the scent of smoke, ash, and death flaring in his nostrils. When he gazed at one of the cars—hood curled in on itself, windows shattered, body strewn up on a stone ledge—he spotted an arm hanging out of the passenger's side. Limp, bloody. Lifeless. His stomach twisted with dread.

    In all his life, he'd never seen something so graphic. Even when he revealed the truth about corrupt rulers or callous organizations, they never ended in the wreckage he walked through now.

    A gust of wind tore through the City, riling up the smoke and ashes. Dark's cloak fluttered at his feet.

    "You give a man too much power," breathed Xilef, scanning the carnage, "and they drown in it."

    Dark gazed at him, uneasy. Xilef met his eyes with a cold stare.

    "I don't sense anything, Dark," he said quietly. "There's no life here. Not anymore."

    Horror bled through Dark, and he searched their surroundings, hoping for any ounce of life—hostile or not. Now that he focused, the dead bodies jumped out at him. A body under a car, a hand through rubble, feet lodged under metal beams.

    There wasn't as much blood as he'd expected.

    "This..." Dark looked up at the sky, up at the buildings reaching up into it. His heart ached, and his throat tightened. This was his mother's home, her hard work, her life... and now it was destroyed. "This can't be possible."

    He stopped in the middle of the intersection.

    Xilef stopped mid-walk, turning around to gaze at him. The others all shuffled behind him, feet crunching on glass, clothes rustling, breaths shallow. Dark clenched his fists under his cloak and bowed his head, closing his eyes. His hair fell before his face.

    "Look harder," Dark breathed, the words faint on his lips. His eyes fluttered open, and he stared at his feet, vaguely aware of the others staring at him. He glanced up. "Look harder, Xilef."

    Xilef hesitated, lips pressing together. Even now, despite the emptiness of the City, the lights still highlighted his face in a show of color. He sighed, giving in, and walked around the intersection, searching for auras—any signs of life.

    To strip them of every essence of their powers, Syl had said to Mark, and leave them lesser than even humans.

    There were faint thrums of life pulsing around him, but Xilef couldn't see their auras. It reminded him of animals; he was never able to see their auras, but he could still feel their life beating strong.

    Xilef slowed to a stop, gazing past the cluster of corroding buildings. Antinstine's mansion glittered like the sun from afar.

    "I still can't see anything," Xilef whispered. "The drug..." He turned around, eyes focusing on Dark's black-clad figure. The crowd of Evolveds behind him faded to a blur. "If there are any survivors, it's taken their auras away. Their actual essence."

    Dark glared at the rubble on the floor, brows furrowed. They all stood there, silent, waiting.

    After a long moment, Dark inhaled, and he turned to face the crowd. He pointed at three Evolveds.

    "You, you... and you," he said. "Search the City for any survivors."

    The three shifted through the crowd so they stood at the front, their gazes alight. Dark nodded at them, and they headed down the street, already beginning their search.

    Dark met eyes with Xilef, then with those on his team, and nodded at the crowd.

    "Let's keep going," he said. His heels dug into glass as he turned around, leading them down the long, daunting streets of the City. The wreckage didn't stop, even as they neared Antinstine's mansion.

    Dark squinted at the building, his blood boiling. It didn't look right—so bright and apparent beside the City. What was once his home was now made into a display of riches and power. Just another trophy added to Antinstine's collection, put on display.

    The closer they got to the mansion, the harder the fury pumped through Dark's veins. And then the faint muffle of shouts, the banging on doors and the rattle of gates. The void of silence in the City broke when they neared the mansion.

    Dark and the others stopped behind a line of hedges, gazing through at the front of the mansion. They could see everything, with how bright the lights were.

Antinstine's Evolveds shoved people off the courtyard, kicking them down or using their powers to stun them—some even killing them. Even when they locked the gates, the remaining Evolveds—now turned human—shook at the metal bars with rage. An Evolved shot a hand out at one of them, and a jet of white knocked a man to the floor. Blood trickled onto the concrete.

    Dark bristled, his skin prickling, the adrenaline threatening to kick in. He glanced back at the crowd, about to give orders, but their eyes went wide.

    He spun around.

The High Evolveds in the yard crumpled to the floor all at once, dead.

———

The kiss was short, soft—only a few seconds—but to Mark, it felt like hours.

    When Antinstine pulled away, Mark gasped, suppressing the urge to vomit. His heart raced, and the way Anti looked at him was enough to make him cover his mouth.

    "Does that prove anything?" breathed Antinstine. Mark averted his eyes, and the Evolved smirked at him, mistaking his reaction for being flustered.

"No need to be so shy, Viper," said Anti, tilting his head. He pulled Mark's hand away and laced their fingers together. "I didn't think you were even capable of—"

    The room shook.

    Anti stumbled into Mark's body, and Mark snapped to life, tensing.

    The doors outside burst open with light.

    "The hell—"

    Anti pushed Mark to the side and threw open the window, sticking his head out. His eyes widened, and his mouth dropped.

———

Dark and his forces squinted behind the hedges, the light blinding.

    Cibil emerged from the doors, her hair waving with the wind. Her eyes glowed white, and as she walked forward, the Resistance pooled behind her, crowding in the courtyard.

    Dark stirred, and he walked along the hedges, gazing through them.

    Xilef caught his shoulder.

    "Dark..." he warned.

    Dark brushed away his hand and waved him off, staring at Cibil. He grew aware of his surroundings—the glittering mansion, the bodies strewn outside the gates... and, just like that night with Mark, he saw this scene for the second time. Realization glimmered in his eyes.

    This was one of the visions.

    Dark met eyes with Xilef, then Emery, Equinox, Lux, and Ether.

"Come on," he said.

    They exchanged glances—looked at the crowd as if they might have answers—but Dark was already circling around the hedges. They hastily followed after him, hesitant, nearing the tall, sloping gates. Dark stood in front of them, waiting, his cloak rustling.

    Cibil walked forward as Dark and his people approached, the Resistance staying behind. The wind grew stronger, and Cibil's eyes grew brighter—and with a wave of her hand, the gates broke open with a clang. Dark took a step back to avoid them swing open, then walked forward, meeting Cibil in the middle of the courtyard. His forces followed a few paces behind.

    "Dark," said Cibil quietly, gazing up at him. The glow from her eyes faded, and now she met eyes with him for the first time. The blue of her irises were so pale they blended in with the white of her eyes.

    "Cibil," he greeted.

    Cibil sidestepped and motioned to the Resistance behind her. Dark eyed them, and they shifted under his gaze, stunned by his presence.

"This is only half of us," she said. "We're here to help you take down Antinstine."

    Dark narrowed his eyes at her. "But you're on his side," he said.

    "If I were truly on his side," said Cibil, "I wouldn't have shown you all I did." She gazed at him, searching his features. "You wouldn't have approached me, just now, if I didn't show you those visions. You know I'm not going to hurt you."

    Dark stared at her.

    "I know your plans to attack," said Cibil. "Let me and the others be the first wave." She stepped forward. "We know the ways of the mansion better than you do. We can help lead."

    Dark lingered for a moment, glanced at the Resistance, then back at Cibil... He gazed over his shoulder towards his own forces, then met her eyes again.

    "When you showed me the vision," he said. "There was a man standing beside you. Prada."

    Cibil sighed, lashes fluttering. They were white like snow. "That's the downfall," she said, "of revealing visions to the Unseen."

Dark knew what she meant, now that she said it. He noticed it with Mark, and he noticed it now.

The future changed, when you anticipated it.

"Alright," Dark muttered. He glanced back and waved his forces over. He nodded at Xilef.

Xilef walked forward and gazed at Cibil, examining her aura—and nodded. She could be trusted.

"You can help lead the first wave with Emery," Dark told Cibil. "Their priority is to weaken Antinstine." Cibil rose a brow. "His powers have side effects. He needs to use them as much as possible before we—" Dark motioned to his team: Equinox, Lux, and Xilef "—kill him."

Ether approached Cibil carefully, eyes glittering. "Are there other healers?" she muttered.

Cibil nodded. "Three," she said. "Join them—please. I've made sure they have protection."

Dark caught Ether's gaze and nodded at her. She swallowed, walked past Cibil, and joined the trio of healers in the crowd.

Sparks charged the air, and both sides of the crowd shifted.

Cibil took a deep breath and exhaled.

"It's time to get this over with," she said.

———

Mark followed Antinstine's gaze, and his eyes widened.

    There, in the courtyard, stood Dark. And then Xilef, Ether, Equinox... Lux and Emery... He didn't recognize the others, but there were a lot of them, and a surge of hope swelled in his chest. They were facing something—just standing there—but the edge of the wall blocked his view.

    Antinstine's breaths went shallow at his side.

    Mark swallowed, eyeing him, then brushed past him to stick his head out the window. His eyes widened.

    Cibil stood in front of Dark with her own reinforcements. And then the hope in his chest increased tenfold, and he could say with confidence that Antinstine didn't stand a chance.

    All these people—all these Evolveds—the ones that weren't subjected to the drug, Cherub—were against Antinstine. And there was no doubt that they would fight him with all their strength.

    It was him against an army.

One against hundreds.

    Antinstine stepped back from the window, breaths quivering. The veins under his skin lit up, looking like lighting bolts. When he clenched his fists, the glow brightened.

    Seeing Cibil—standing there—so... so cooperative with the enemy...

    A cold gust blew inside. He caught a glimpse out the window. Saw Dark shaking Cibil's hand.

    His blood boiled.

    He thought of Cibil like a daughter.

    Sparks crackled from the edges of his eyes, and he bared his teeth.

And to see her—betraying him—

    "Stay here, Viper," he seethed.

It broke what heart he had left.

    Antinstine tore away from the room and slammed the door without another word. The walls shook.

    Mark breathed hard, and he leaned out the window, the cold biting his face.

    Evolveds poured inside, the rush of feet and the rustle of clothes like thunder. Dark stood to the side, jaw set and brows furrowed. His eyes were glowing bright red, intense with determination.

    Mark clutched at his racing heart, unable to pull his eyes away.

    After all this time... it was finally happening.

    All of it would be over.

    All the pain, all the suffering...

    All the thorns from Antinstine's rule would rot and die.

What are your thoughts? Hehehehe... >:)

Thank you so much for reading, and have a wonderful day!

Love, Kass xoxo