Chapter 5: Chapter 5 – Warriors of ONE

{[Loyalty doesn’t just fall on a country, it falls on the people around you. That’s why soldiers, regardless of nation, show no mercy to traitors.]}

“It's almost time.” Ananias did a once-over on Adam's gear. He didn't carry a gun since elementals had no way to soul-bind that kind of weapon. And they just got in the way. But he did carry extra magazines and extra medical bags. They were for his allies, and since he was in the rear guard with Celi, Adam took it upon himself to bring more supplies.

Adam was smiling and studying his armor. He was itching to face the enemy with his brothers and sisters. Ananias finished tightening the straps, ensuring Adam’s armor was tight against his chest. To anyone else, a child with body armor was an odd sight. But in ONE, it was the shield that kept them alive.

“Your first battle is always the hardest.” Ananias gave Adam some last minute advice. “Slash and Celi are your superiors, so obey every command they give you.”

Adam nodded, and someone knocked on their door.

“May I enter?” Roger asked from the hallway.

“Enter!” Ananias and Adam quickly went to attention as Roger limped into their room. He held his cane in one hand and a short spear in the other.

“I have a gift for you.” Roger handed the weapon to Adam. It was made of slick steel painted black with leather wrappings on its center and near the tail end. “I know Ananias taught you how to use a pole-arm. But unlike him, you tend to be impatient. So instead of a staff, I suspect a spear works better for you.”

Ananias nodded. He had talked to Roger ahead of time and asked for this gift. He was happy that his Captain came through for him.

Adam smiled and hugged Roger. “I’ll keep everyone safe.”

“I know you will.” Roger tapped Adam's shoulder. “We’re going in with every platoon. This is an Arch, so we need to throw everything we have at it.”

Roger struggled as he walked out of the room. “Give them hell, kids.”

Ananias and Adam saluted as Roger left the room. They then studied the short spear.

“How do I soul-bind it?” Adam asked Ananias eagerly.

“Pour a little bit of your power into the weapon and say whatever you want. Those words will become the weapons ‘chant,’ and the only way you can pass the weapon on to someone else is with that same chant. So don’t you dare forget it."

“Any chant I want?”

“Yes.” Ananias took a step back as Adam willed his power into the weapon.

“Mine forever.” Adam smiled as his weapon started glowing a bright gold color. As soon as the weapon bound itself to Adam, he willed it and made it disappear into his soul.

The fluorescent lights above them dimmed and turned red.

“It’s time.”

 

*******

 

The Chinook took the soldiers deep into the mountains. Adam took a peek out the windows. Below them, the mountain had a thick layer of snow. They were dressed for the winter, but the cold still dug into their bodies.

“Recon report?” Zan glanced at Infinity, who was fiddling with his laptop. They had already been briefed, but a refresher was always a good idea before the mission started. Infinity had sent out a drone hours ago. He flipped his laptop around to show them an aerial view of the nuclear power plant.

“The demons are more than likely taking shelter inside the abandoned building.” The nuclear plant had two cooling towers and a large containment building that was attached to an office. That's where Infinity pointed at. “This is eight stories high. We'll start at the top and work our way down the building. We'll have both the element of surprise and the high ground. Then, in all that chaos, we’ll pin and kill the Arch in a confined area with a barrage of bullets.”

Adam clung to Celi. He was anxious, and she was extra clingy that morning.

Infinity studied the soldiers around him, ensuring they were all paying attention. “We don't know what element the Arch has. So stay vigilant.”

“Good job.” Zan tapped the redhead’s shoulder. “We’ll land the Chinook on top of the building and use the rooms on the eighth floor as our medic station. We'll use the Chinook to carry our wounded out if things get dicey. All medics and their guards will protect the top floors. As for the ground level.”

Zan tapped on the laptop.

“It's a maze, and we're avoiding it until we clear the building.” Zan pointed at the large generators that were littered everywhere. They were easily eight by twenty feet long. Essentially large blocks of metal that a company hid away to avoid a lawsuit. “As for Evaristo, our sniper. Your duty is to protect our medics; if you see a target, take it down.”

Zan glanced at Evaristo. He was the only sniper that went on the helicopter for this mission. Josh was flying the Chinook, but it could only carry fifty-five soldiers, and it was a thirty-minute flight, so Rose and her platoon went up the mountain first and surrounded the enormous power plant. She also took all their snipers, minus Evaristo, who opted to stay behind with the medics and rear guard. A sniper indoors isn’t a bright idea, but you need to adapt to any situation regardless. Zan had extra pieces in case the board shifted against him.

“Alright, as for the rest of us, we'll go room to room and engage the enemy. This is close quarters, so stay together. We don’t want our stray rounds tagging our men.” The soldiers nodded. “Ananias, you'll take point. Do whatever you need to. And if you find the Arch find a way to get it away from its lesser demons. The less protection it has, the better our chances of killing it are.”

Ananias wasn't afraid of his men shooting him. They were all well trained, and he had his wind. On occasion, his strings pushed stray bullets away from his body. It was a skill he gained by sitting outside in the rain and using his power to push each individual drop away from his body.

“THREE MINUTES!” Josh roared to the platoon. They were almost at their destination.

ONE had more Chinooks in their motorpool, but they needed to use their entire army to surround the power plant in case the demons tried to escape.

“Once we engage, Rose and the rest of ONE will rush in from all directions and give us their support in a surprise pincer attack. But since these generators are everywhere, we can't rely on them to get to us quickly.” Zan spoke to the other soldiers. “If things get hairy, we will still have reinforcements coming our way and air support.”

“ONE MINUTE!” Josh warned the group. The rear hatch started lowering, and the freezing air entered the Chinook.

Celi stayed close to Adam, she was slim, but she carried an oversized medic backpack and a full-auto Glock 18C. On top of all that weight, she also brought dozens of spare magazines. They were on her body armor and a few on her leg straps. Her mission wasn’t to fight the enemy. Instead, it was to provide support and try to keep anyone who got wounded alive.

When soldiers brought the wounded to her, they were usually low on ammo. So she sent them off with more bullets. Deep down, she hoped that ammo kept them alive.

Kitty was ready for battle. She carried an M27 assault rifle with a forward grip. She was next to Anthony, who lugged his 249 SAW machine gun. His arms were massive enough to carry that heavy weapon around. And he refused to wear long sleeves. His arms were exposed to the elements, but it didn’t bother him.

Slash carried a FAMAS with an ACOG scope. On his legs, he had two Colt Pythons. Along with speed loaders. He preferred revolvers and had the strength to fire the fiercer rounds.

Zan preferred the SCAR-H and rotated what he took with it depending on the mission. On this mission, he had attached an underbarrel shotgun to it.

Every soldier carried whatever weapon they wanted. Whatever they were most comfortable with, they used.

“JUMP NOW!” Josh ordered the group.

Ananias jumped out first. He pulled his strings and landed softly on the roof.

No demons in sight. Behind him, two lines of repelling rope touched the floor. Then, two by two, the ONE soldiers touched the concrete roof and positioned themselves with their firearms ready to fire. They waited until all of them were in formation.

“I'll keep watch from above,” Josh informed the group through his radio as the helicopter ascended into the sky. He had four soldiers operating the machine guns on the sides of the helicopter, and Josh was armed with a 40mm automatic grenade launcher. However, he wanted to avoid using it unless he was confident his allies were out of the way.

The cooling towers of the power plant were enormous up close. Easily four hundred feet tall. The group made their way towards the only door on the roof, and they quickly readied themselves by it, with the medics in the rear. Ananias kicked the door in and rushed in first. The lights in the building were off. But they had their night vision NODS.

Ananias pulled on his strings and used the speed gifted to elementals. He propelled himself forward. The inside of the building was dark, but it wasn't empty. A lone head turned. He had scratches on the white of his eyes. Ananias’ staff pierced his heart.

Behind him, the soldiers rushed in, quickly breaching room after room, killing their targets rapidly. Once an area was cleared, they cracked, shook, and dropped a glow stick in front of the door.

“Clear!” Anthony roared as his light machine gun spilled its spent shells in the hallway.

“Clear!” Kitty hissed. ONE soldiers dashed past them and continued shooting into the rooms. In a few minutes, they took control of the top floor.

Celi, Evaristo, Slash, and Adam went into one room while the other medics and their guards secured another office. It was more efficient having multiple combat medics in various locations. In case one got overwhelmed.

Celi started clearing up some space in the office. Her hands no longer shook with the sight of her friends crying or getting covered in blood, nor was her mind stunned when they screamed in agony. Her duty was to be a medic. So she did what she needed to do. The pain was their problem, not hers.

Evaristo aimed his scope out the window. He seriously doubted demons were out in the snow, but he did his duty regardless. Slash kept his weapon at the ready, pointing it at the door. If anyone who wasn’t friendly entered, they met hot lead.

“Adam, help me.” Celi tossed him a bag filled with medical supplies. She opened up the items that didn't need to stay sterile and continued pushing chairs and tables away, clearing a path for the wounded. Adam had trained with her and was ready for this.

“NEXT FLOOR!” Zan ordered, and ONE rushed down the stairway.

Outside, in the snow, a single man lifted himself up. The snow shook off his body and slid off his brown wings. By his feet, were dozens of wildflowers. They had managed to bloom in the middle of winter.

His wings crumbled and reformed like dried-up mud exposed to excessive heat. He was hidden in the generator maze. Unaffected by the cold, but not by the thunderous echoes the gunshots gave away. It had woken him up from his slumber.

He shook the snow off his body and willed his power on the earth below him. Swinging his arm created a fissure that took some generators with it. The ground didn’t collapse too deeply, just a few feet, but it was still enough to shake the earth.

The fissure took a life of its own and crumbled against the building ONE was in. It fragmented and shook. Destroying hundreds of Tulips in its path.

A portion of it collapsed, and screams followed.

Once the shaking ceased, only a few sections of the building crumbled. The very room Adam and Celi were in was among them. Exposing everyone inside to the cold, they all slid down to the ground.

“Adam!” Celi grabbed his shoulder and pulled him close as they fell stories down.

Willing his power, Adam focused. He needed his hands to touch something solid for his power to work. He reached for the building and grazed it, scratching his hand in the process. His power softened the earth below them.

All four of them landed on a mix of snow and soft sand. They were in pain, but nothing was broken. To their disbelief, thousands of Tulips had bloomed. Adam’s power had forced them to uproot. Now that they were on the ground level, the soldiers studied the flowers. They were growing wild everywhere with a thin layer of snow over them.

Around them landed the medical supplies, and some of the IV bags popped as they landed.

Adam’s body hurt, not just from the fall. Using that much power was reckless. He needed to conserve it and use it in small bursts, not all at once.

Celi and Slash turned their heads towards the building. It was still intact, and gunfire echoed from within it. They were the only ones who were forced out.

Inside the building, Zan ran towards the collapsed section. He held on to a piece of rebar sticking out of the wall and glanced down. Zan was expecting the worst.

Celi waved at him, and he exhaled softly. That’s when the earth shook again.

The earth moved like tidal waves and pushed aside generators like cardboard boxes. The four below stopped in their tracks as a demon made his way toward them.

Adam’s heart sank as the snow parted with the earth below it. The demon was dressed in a worn-out cloak, and with each step, its wings crumbled and dropped sand.

Slash and Evaristo quickly aimed their sights on the demon and pulled their triggers.

Earth lifted and stopped the hot lead. Adam’s body shook. This demon controlled the earth, same as him. But its power was leagues ahead of his own.

The Arch willed his power, and the earth around them bubbled and tossed the thousand-pound generators towards them.

“Scatter!” Evaristo ordered as the metal landed around them. Some of the generators bent, and others shattered. Evaristo fled away from the group avoiding the flying metal.

Slash dashed in another direction keeping his sights on the Arch. He fired at it as he ran. And Celi and Adam slipped away in the opposite direction of Slash and Evaristo.

Zan witnessed the event helplessly from the exposed building. That’s when fifty-caliber rounds rained down from the sky.

The Chinook fired from above, keeping one side exposed to the Arch. Using two of its side gunners. The heavy bullets ripped into the earth.

Josh kept his sights on the most significant threat. If the fifty calibers didn’t kill the Arch, he needed to use the grenade launcher.

The Arch’s dirt lifted up right before the rounds hit him. Taking away all its stopping power. He calmly glanced up at the helicopter.

Evaristo was cut away from everyone. He was blocked by a generator. He punched the metal and glanced back at the large cooling tower. It had a concrete ladder built into it. Evaristo glanced at his sniper and dashed towards it.

Slash, on the other hand, took cover behind one of the metal generators. His job was to ensure the safety of their medic. Even if it cost his life, Slash readied his weapon and gritted his teeth. If fifty caliber rounds did nothing to the Arch. His 55.6 rounds were not going to stop it.

The Arch willed its power and flung half a dozen items towards the Chinook. Smashing its rear tail, right under the helicopter’s secondary blades.

“We’re hit!” The helicopter spun out of control in the air and started descending away from the abandoned power plant and into the woods. Josh's training kicked in. His body instinctively acted as the soldier’s in the gunner's seats held their breaths. “We’re going down!”

The Chinook crashed and spun on the snow, losing its blades and crumbling a few trees far from the power plant.

No response came from the helicopter.

“Josh. Give me a sitrep.” Zan waited but got no answer. “JOSH, SITREP NOW!”

Behind Zan, the gunfire continued. ONE was pushing down another floor with Ananias leading the charge. He switched his channel.

“Rose, send a squad to check on the Chinook,” Zan spoke confidently. Even if he lost his soldiers, if he panicked, the rest of the army would too.

“Sending Sharrah and his platoon,” Rose replied quickly. However, she also kept her cool. “No demons have escaped. Permission to close the distance and engage?”

Despite the little ONE understood about demons. One thing Zan was certain of was that demons don't turn on each other. This Arch was reckless, so it didn’t have any allies outside where his attacks could harm them, at least not in the immediate vicinity. Its nest had to be inside the building. And on top of that, they were down a medic station.

“All forces move in!” Zan gave the order. “Kill the Arch at all costs!”

Rose smiled and gave the order to move out. She instructed her snipers to stay behind and moved in with her ground forces. They were half a mile or so away from the power plant, in the snow, no less. Even so, they pushed through the cold terrain.

“We have four soldiers facing the Arch! What happens when a brother stands alone!” Zan yelled to his men clearing the rooms.

“We send in everyone!” They chanted back.

“DOUBLE TIME IT!” Zan pushed forward with his men. The element of surprise was gone, and the demons were ready for them. Occasionally shooting arrows or bolts. Sometimes with spears or swords. ONE trained hours upon hours for this type of situation. Breaching a room was as natural as breathing for them.

 

*******

 

“That's an Arch?” Adam dared to peek at the monster that had easily torn them away from the rest of their platoon. The two had escaped and were making their way through the metal maze. They stopped for a second, and Celi focused on the younger soldier.

Her hands groped every inch of Adam. She checked her gloves. No blood. She sighed softly. “Adam, our job isn't to fight it.” Even so, Celi readied her Automatic Glock.

A generator landed next to Celi and Adam, lifting mud and snow. Then another landed a stone toss away from them. “RUN!” Celi tugged on Adam's shoulder, and they dove deeper into the metal mess. Generators were stacked on top of each other with a small path that forklifts used to dump the worthless hunks of metal at one point.

 

*******

 

Slash fired his weapon. Sand blocked his bullets.

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The Arch turned his body towards the goth teenager. He quickly slung his weapon and reached for a round object on his chest.

“Come after me.” Slash smiled and tossed his only grenade.

The Arch squeezed his palms, the earth swallowed the grenade, and it popped underground.

Slash wasn’t going to wait. He made himself bait and rushed towards a different part of the maze.

The Arch walked slowly towards Slash.

 

*******

 

Celi and Adam needed to reunite with another platoon. Their best option was Rose’s company.

“It stopped throwing generators at us.” Adam made a quick judgment call. Unaware of the information he just gave away. Celi's eyes widened. It hadn't thrown anything towards the entrance of the abandoned nuclear plant.

That signified one thing.

A demon jumped out from between the generators with a sword in hand. Its target was Celi. His swing came down heavily. Adam willed the earth beneath him and wrapped it around the lesser demon’s arm. Stopping the blow halfway.

Celi fired a few rounds into its body and a spare one into his head. Around them, demons revealed themselves. They were hiding in the maze of generators. Their clothes were frosted over, and their scratched-up eyes delighted as soon as they met with Celi’s and Adam's.

They were trapped. On one side, an army of lesser demons impeded their path to Rose’s platoon, and on the other, an Arch-demon. “Adam.” Celi aimed her weapon at a demon twenty meters away from her. She aimed at its knee and held the trigger. The recoil forced the gun to jerk up and hit its target.

Adam willed his spear and took the stance he had practiced over and over. But, this time, it was real. The enemy was directly in front of him, and blood painted the snow red as they fell. It wasn’t in his head, stories, or videos. It was real, and it was horrifying.

Adam hesitated.

Celi pushed him back and unloaded her clip on a female demon. “Let’s go!” She grabbed him, and they both ran.

Adam's body shook with each step. This is what he wanted, what he desired more than anything. To face the enemy. But right now, at that moment, he was petrified so much that the cold didn’t bother him.

“Adam.” Celi shook him, but he wouldn't snap out of his trance. “ADAM!”

Celi hit Adam's head with her knuckles. It was enough for him to come back to reality. Celi had killed half a dozen demons, but they were hidden everywhere in the maze. Unfortunately, Infinity’s drone didn’t record a single one, which led to them falling into a trap.

One demon readied his bow, and he focused it on Celi. Adam recalled the days he shook in rage, leering at the coffins of his brothers and sisters. He willed his power. The earth molded and turned into a spear that ripped through the demon's chest.

The dirt quickly crumbled, and the bow in his hands cracked then shattered.

Adam had killed a demon, a thing he trained for. Yet, the rage and fear in his heart didn’t soften. It was still there. Even so, he willed his power and killed another and another. Celi reloaded quickly and unloaded her clip.

The two didn’t stay in their position for long. Their objective now wasn’t just getting away. It was surviving.

Celi reached for another magazine. As she reloaded it, a demon with a pike managed to climb on top of the generators. He wanted blood, needed it. The madness in his mind roared for it.

A bullet ripped through his head, and his weapon shattered. He tumbled loudly behind Celi and Adam.

 

*******

 

Deep in the wilderness, a sniper and her spotter focused on their next shot.

“Hit, two targets closing in on the left side, four from the right.” The spotter tapped the button on his radio. “Rose, demons are hiding in the generator maze. Had we rushed in, they would’ve ripped our platoon apart with a surprise attack.”

Rose and her soldiers were running through the snow. They were not trying to remain silent. As they moved, they trampled Tulips. Rose continued passing the information to the rest of ONE.

“ONE, lesser demons are in the courtyard. We have soldiers fighting them alone.” Rose waved her hand, and her soldiers pushed faster, now armed with new knowledge.

Zan and Ananias still had three floors left. The demons on the lower levels were dug in. They had managed to wound two soldiers, but they had an extra medic on the top floor, a precaution that had worked out for them.

Rose’s snipers gave Celi and Adam support, but it wasn't nearly enough. Celi grabbed Adam, and they rushed back into the maze.

“Why are we running back?” Adam asked as he willed his power, knocking a generator off another. It crushed a lone demon.

“We’re only going to get in the way of the snipers. We need to find cover until our main force finds us.” Celi dropped her magazine. She hadn't bothered keeping them on her after she spent them. The less weight on her body, the better her chances of surviving. Roger had taught them that if you have to choose between your life or your equipment, choose your life, always.

She was down to her last magazine.

The earth shook violently, and generators flung through the air. Slash slid and tumbled in the snow before recovering. His eyes shot up once he discovered Celi and Adam were in front of him. In the back of his mind, he imagined they had escaped unharmed, but instead, he had led the Arch right towards them. “Run!” Slash glanced back, dozens of metal fragments flung down from the sky.

The Arch sauntered towards Adam and Celi. With a flick of his wrist, the ground shook, and metal flew towards them. Adam willed the earth beneath him. He used his power and lifted the ground, protecting his allies. It stopped the more oversized metal items, but a single piece slammed against Slash’s head. He hit the ground hard and refused to move.

Adam held the earth up like a tidal wave. But Slash falling on the snow cut into Adam. Like a sharp blade digging slowly against your fingernails. He lost his concentration for a second, and his earth wave collapsed.

Adam breathed in, and his body pulsed in pain. Every muscle and every nerve screamed at him. The pain was so much that his body twitched. But his power negated the demons.

The Arch willed his power. In his hands, a crossbow manifested from the dust.

He aimed it at Adam and fired.

Adam’s left leg moved forward, but his right calf cramped. The bolt hit his hand and pinned it against a generator.

Adam screamed.

The Arch’s wings were so heavy it kept it from moving fast, so it strode slowly towards Adam, and he reloaded his weapon as he moved towards his prey.

Celi unloaded her clip on the Arch. The ground below him lifted up and stopped the bullets before they reached him. She wasn’t a threat to him. Only the elemental was.

The Arch readied his weapon again, and he pulled his trigger.

Celi hugged Adam. The bolt ripped through her medic bag and her body armor.

It stopped a few inches from Adam’s chest. The tip of the bolt dripped blood down Celi's stomach. Even so, she clung to Adam tightly.

The Arch-demon's weapon was slow to reload. He had to pull the lever of the crossbow back, ready a bolt, then aim and fire. It took a few seconds.

Celi’s blood dripped on a yellow Tulip, quickly melting the snow on top of it. And a scream ripped through the winter air.

“Don't worry,” Celi spoke with a sweet tone. Adam himself hadn’t put it together. He was the one who screamed. In his head, Adam had imagined Celi doing it. He didn’t sense the pain in his hand anymore. His eyes were on Celi's wound. “Don't look at that. Look at my eyes instead..”

Adam’s head tilted up towards her.

“I have lived for you.” The second bolt ripped through her armor. This time it hit a little lower than the first. She closed her eyes tightly as the pain settled. Adam's eyes watered, and his lips and jaw trembled. “And I will die for you.”

“Live for a brother…” Adam managed to repeat the oath of ONE. “Die for a brother.”

“We are bound by the blood that we shed… Both our own and our enemies…” Celi held on to Adam as the Arch behind her readied another bolt slowly. Seconds both of them treasured and loathed.

Her warmth held him tightly like the sunlight in the desert. Golden hair, sweat, blood. Her breaths were ragged, and her eyes struggled to stay open.

Adam’s fear rose, and his tears landed on the snow. With death a breath away, Celi held Adam regardless.

Comforting him through the storm of war.

Another bolt struck her, and it went through her chest. The pain made her flinch, but she did the last thing Adam expected.

Celi smiled.

Her head tapped his as tears ran down his face. Adam’s tears molded together and formed an Angelite gem when they mixed with the snow at his feet. It landed on top of the yellow tulip and solidified there.

“Adam, you have to live.” Her body was dying, but her eyes were filled with so much love. She didn’t fake her pain. Her voice gave it away. Even so, she refused to be afraid for Adam's sake. “Promise me you’ll never lose your smile… This world will always find a way to hurt you… Don’t let it win… Even if it hurts… If you’re strong enough to smile sincerely… Nothing in this world can ever harm you…”

Adam's tears flowed down his face, but he did what he thought she wanted. He forced a smile. Forgetting the pain in his hand, he tried reaching out for her, only for his hand to stay in place. It was too painful for Celi, and she collapsed to one knee. Her vision pulsed, and her body was cold, so bitterly cold.

The Arch-demon loaded his fifth arrow. Adam held Celi with his free hand. She was dead weight now that she used the only thing she had to protect Adam. Her body.

The Arch aimed the weapon at Adam. Before he pulled the trigger, a crystal staff smacked it away.

Ananias pulled his strings, leaving thin lines on the snow, occasionally cutting the flowers that grew out of them. Leaving the world around them covered in snow and flower petals. He spun his body and staff, slamming his weapon against the Arch’s.

The Arch swung his crossbow like a club and missed Ananias. Ananias pulled on his strings and flung his crystal shards at the Arch. The earth quickly lifted up and stopped them from piercing its skin.

Ananias didn’t slow down his assault. He pulled his strings and pushed the shards of his weapons deeper into the Arch’s earth shield. But it failed. The Arch waved his hand, and the earth below them crumbled and shook.

Adam witnessed the battle. Every rumor about Ananias, from his skills to his decisions and courage. They were all shared among the younger members of ONE. Adam took the rumors with a grain of salt. But now that he bared witness to it, Adam admired him more. The stories didn’t do Ananias justice.

Ananias slid back. Somewhere in the battle, he had grabbed Slash’s collar and pulled him away from the fight. He placed him next to Adam and Celi.

The Arch raised his eyebrow. His earth defended him, sure, but up close, Ananias had an advantage. The demon glanced around him.

Hundreds of firearms were pointed at him. ONE had him pinned.

Both Zan and Rose’s platoon. Ananias had grabbed Slash and moved him away from what came next.

“ENGAGE!” Zan roared. All of ONE fired on the Arch. Zan’s platoon had finished off the demons inside the abandoned building. And Rose and her soldiers had eradicated all the demons hiding in the generator labyrinth. Only one monster remained.

The thunder of the gunfire echoed across the mountain. Some of the soldiers were on the ground level, others had climbed on top of the generators, and some fired from the cleared building. They had created a perfect U shape. ONE fired their bullets away from Ananias and the others.

The Arch willed his power, focusing on hardening the earth before rounds hit him. Even with all his power, stray bullets managed to break through his shield. Something Ananias was hoping for. He fired his shards and spun them around the demon, attacking him from random directions.

Adam was in awe. His brothers and sisters had all come to save him.

But the Arch refused to die. He flicked his wrist and willed his power.

The earth shook once more.

Adam’s eyes flared. He inhaled sharply, and the limit of his power increased. He willed his own earth against the Arch-demons. Once his earth and the demons mixed, they canceled each other out.

The Arch glared at Adam. But the green-eyed boy held his ground. The very idea of losing a brother or sister sickened him. His chest tightened, and his body burned with his power. Then his eyes shifted. His pupils opened like a cats, then separated, taking a new form.

The sign of earth formed in his eyes. A crescent moon formed in his pupils, and designs melded in the green of his eyes.

His power took a new shape. The metal bolt in his hand and a portion of the generator his hand was stuck on rusted and turned to dust. Adam held Celi, and with sloppy steps, he willed his power into the earth.

The Arch fought back. Trying his best to toss the metal generators, with so many targets, he was guaranteed at least one kill if even one flew into the air. But Adam held his power back.

A single boy challenged fallen divinity in a test of willpower and held his ground for his friends.

At the same time, the bullets didn’t reach the Arch either.

Against an Arch-demon, Adam reached his limit in seconds. His body burned, and his head became dizzy. He had overexerted his power, and the pain was bound to overtake him soon. But, even with that knowledge, if his brothers and sisters fought. He would too.

Adam’s power started faltering. His eyes burned, and breathing became a chore.

A single bullet passed through the Arch-demon's head. It came from above. The earth around the demon stayed up for a second, but he fell to his knees.

Hundreds of bullets ripped into the demon's body as it tumbled. “Cease fire!” Zan ordered as the demon tumbled to the ground. His crossbow cracked and shattered like glass.

To Adam's right was a spike. The bullet that was fired was exposed. It was a depleted uranium fletcher round. Essentially, an anti-tank round. And it had barely managed to get through the Arch-demon’s earth shield. It had lost so much stopping power that it stuck out in the snow.

On top of the cooling tower, Evaristo's Steyr AUG’s barrel was so red it was starting to melt, and next to him, a shell spun in circles. It tumbled and rolled, revealing that Evaristo had written ‘Super Sabot’ on it. He had to swap out his weapons buttstock as well. Using one that reduced the recoil, but even with it, Evaristo’s shoulder was sore. Without it, his collar bone would’ve shattered.

Evaristo inhaled with relief. Then under his eye, a pair of brown wings merged into his flesh. The pain made him grip his face, but it faded softly.

He removed the barrel and replaced it. He only used that bullet if he had no options left. It permanently destroyed his barrel, but he carried a spare, just in case.

Down below, Adam’s eyes returned to normal, and he collapsed. With the Arch dead, he had nothing keeping him going. Ananias caught him and Celi before they fell. Zan ran towards them, but Celi’s wounds were too severe. And she had lost too much blood.

“How’s Adam?” Celi asked as Ananias forced her up on her knees. Blood had soaked her pants, and her lips had turned blue.

“He's exhausted, but he's fine.” Ananias glanced down at Celi's chest. Three arrows had pierced through her body armor. “He kept everyone safe.”

“That's my little cutie pie.” Celi's eyes tore into Ananias’. They didn't want to say what would happen to her. But it was obvious. Instead, Celi asked for a favor. “One last kiss? For me?”

Ananias knelt without any hesitation. Her lips wrapped around his, and she kissed him, enjoying the one thing she had imagined herself doing for years. Her heart raced, and her face grew hot. Then mid-kiss, she stopped and closed her eyes.

A kiss of death... Bitter with the flavor of blood and sorrow. Even so, Celi had savored it like honey on tea.

Ananias didn’t mind that he had her blood in his mouth.

He had given her what she asked. But it didn’t stop his pain.

Ananias gritted his teeth and held Celi's head against his shoulder.

Zan glanced away. He turned towards the Arch and inspected his body. Around its neck was a small diamond shard. “You were right, Roger.” He ripped the necklace off and put it in his pocket.

ONE returned victorious with eleven wounded soldiers and one dead medic. The best results they’ve ever had when they faced an Arch.

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