Chapter 46 One horn…

Words : 1231 Updated : Sep 10th, 2025

The word "Harbinger" rippled through the gathered students like a physical force. Some froze. Others stumbled backward. Years of academy training, of building confidence against beasts, crumbled in the face of humanity's greatest nightmare. "That's impossible," someone whispered. "They can't be here. They can't—" The Harbinger's head snapped toward the voice with terrible precision. Its movements weren't bestial anymore – they were calculated, almost elegant. The horn on its head caught the filtered sunlight, its komodo-like scales shifting with each breath. Sienna's voice cut through their comms, stripped of all its usual authority: "Adrian? Adrian, status!" Twenty meters away, Adrian Albright lay crumpled against a shattered tree trunk, his skin still smoking from his nuclear release. He coughed, blood speckling his lips, and managed to rasp out: "Armor... it's wearing... modified..." before his head lolled to the side. "Any healer...any healer!!!" Someone else started to call, but the Harbinger moved again. Not toward them. Not toward Adrian. Instead, it reached down to what remained of its camouflaged covering – now revealed as some kind of advanced bio-mimetic armor. With deliberate motions, it began stripping away the burning fragments, revealing more of its true form. "Micah," Kelvin's voice shook as he read his instruments. But Micah remained silent, staring "dear in a headlight" at the creature before them. Noah watched in horrified fascination as the Harbinger straightened to its full height. Standing upright, it towered over them, its proportions all wrong for anything evolved on their worlds. Those arms, reaching almost to the ground. That tail, moving with a precision that spoke of intelligence rather than instinct. The Harbinger's head tilted, almost curious. Then it spoke. Not in roars or growls. Not in any sound a beast would make. Instead, through the burning wreckage of its disguise, came words. Distorted, guttural, but unmistakably words: "Interesting specimens. Your combat protocols have... evolved." The silence that followed was absolute. Even the jungle seemed to hold its breath. "Oh god," Lila whispered. "Oh god, oh god, oh—" "Nobody move," Kane, the number two had just arrived to the scene yelled. "Nobody fucking move. It's assessing us. They always assess first. That's how they—" "Correct assessment," the Harbinger interrupted, its words carrying an almost academic tone. "Though your understanding is... outdated." Its tail flicked, almost casually, and another piece of its disguise fell away. Beneath it, they could see what Adrian had noticed too late – not just biological armor, but technological augments grafted seamlessly into its hide. "This," it continued, gesturing to Cora's broken form, "was merely calibration," And everyone stared with a pale face. The jungle had gone deathly quiet. Students who moments ago had been racing for flags now stood frozen, ravager guns trembling in their hands. The Harbinger's presence seemed to distort the very air around it, making each breath feel thick and insufficient. Noah still kept his eyes on his system interface : [QUEST: SURVIVE] [PROBABILITY OF SUCCESS: CALCULATING...] The air itself seemed to ignite as Lucas launched from his perch, his body wreathed in crackling energy that turned the surrounding atmosphere into plasma. He crossed the distance to the Harbinger in a fraction of a second, the supersonic impact creating a shockwave that forced everyone to their knees. His fist connected with the Harbinger's jaw in an upward arc, the blow carrying such force that the creature's feet actually left the ground. The following combo was too fast to track – kicks and strikes flowing together in a display of speed that made the Harbinger's earlier movements look sluggish. The assembled students watched in stunned silence as their nightmare was driven backward by a teenager in a standard academy gear. Lucas's attacks left trails of ionized air, each impact releasing enough energy to shatter nearby trees. The Harbinger recovered quickly, its tail whipping around with lethal intent, but Lucas was already gone – appearing behind it with that same impossible speed. "Come on," he taunted, still wearing that lazy smile. "Show me what made humanity run away for so long." The creature's response was immediate and violent. It spun with devastating precision, its augmented limbs moving faster than before, but Lucas flowed around the attacks like water. Each near miss filled the air with more crackling energy until the clearing was bathed in a constant electrical storm. "Is this..." Kelvin breathed, his analytical mind seemingly rebooting. "Is this what a rank one student can do?" The ground beneath them began to tremble as Lucas and the Harbinger traded blows, each impact carrying enough force to register on seismic sensors. But as all good things, the exchange came to a vicious violent end. The Harbinger's counterattack came without warning. One moment Lucas was weaving through the air like a force of nature, the next – a single blow connected. The impact echoed like a thunderclap, and Lucas's confident smile vanished as his body crashed through three trees before rolling to a stop. He tried to stand, but blood erupted from his mouth instead. His standard academy gear, now in tatters, offered no protection against a being that had conquered worlds. One hit. That's all it had taken to show the gap between humanity's best and their ancient nightmare. "Interesting," the Harbinger observed, studying the blood on its claws. "Your species has developed remarkable abilities. Yet your defensive capabilities remain... inadequate." Lucas managed to get to one knee, his usual lazy demeanor replaced by sharp, survival-focused calculation. Another hit like that would kill him. No question. "Oh?" Sienna's voice cut through the tension, carrying its usual frost. "And here I was thinking our number one could handle everything alone." She stepped forward, her gothic outfit rippling as ice began forming around her. In one hand, an impossibly long katana materialized. In the other, a sword of pure ice took shape. "How unsightly. Making a lady step into combat." The movement seemed to break a spell. Kane Wilson crashed down from above, his scarred face set in grim determination. Xavier Chen appeared at his flank, red scarf whipping in the energy discharge from his prepared attack. One by one, the elite twenty-five emerged – each bringing abilities that had earned them their prestigious ranks. All except Micah. He remained on his knees, gauntlet lying useless beside him, eyes wide with generational terror. "Micah!" Lila's scream pierced through the gathering storm of abilities. "What about Cora? We need to get to Cora!" But Micah didn't respond. Couldn't respond. His mind had retreated to the archives he'd studied – endless footage of humanity's greatest weapons failing against these monsters. Of entire armies being torn apart by single Harbingers. Of Earth's final days. Meanwhile, Noah stared at his system interface, the word "SURVIVE" pulsing with urgent simplicity. But how? How do you survive something that had driven humanity to the stars? Something that had just batted aside their strongest student like a toy? [ANALYZING HARBINGER COMBAT PATTERNS] [WARNING: CONVENTIONAL COMBAT APPROACHES - INSUFFICIENT] [CALCULATING ALTERNATIVE STRATEGIES ...] [1 RESULT FOUND - RUN...] The elite students moved as one, a coordinated assault born from countless training sessions. Ice spears flew alongside energy blasts. Many more attacks came from everywhere. The question was... Would it be enough?!

Chapter 46 One horn…

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