The sky above Chernobog was a suffocating canvas of bruised purple and ash.
Dark Originium clouds churned overhead, swirling into a massive, jagged vortex that looked less like weather and more like divine execution.
Intelligence reports had already confirmed the grim reality: Chernobog’s propulsion engines were dead.
The moment the Catastrophe’s eye began to form, the mobile city’s fate had been sealed in stone and crystal.
Amiya and the Vanguard squad picked their way through the shattered concrete of the ruins.
Amidst the tense silence, Amiya kept casting worried glances over her shoulder.
Kai was dragging his feet, his usual sharp posture slumping.
“Mr.
Kai, what’s wrong?” Amiya asked, her voice laced with concern.
“You’ve been looking pale for a while now.
Did you take a hit during the last skirmish?” Kai groaned, rubbing his temples.
He felt bloated, his limbs heavy and prickling with static numbness, and his brain felt like it was stuffed with wet cotton.
He forced a weak smile and waved her off.
“I’m fine, not injured.
Just…
my stomach is doing backflips.
Probably ate some expired rations before we deployed.” “Are you sure?
You really need a Medical Operator to look at that.” Ignoring his half-hearted protests, Amiya practically dragged him over to the rear guard medics for a quick diagnostic.
A seasoned medic ran a glowing Arts scanner over his torso.
“Hmm…
no external trauma, and zero signs of acute food poisoning.
I’d need the medbay’s heavy equipment to run a deep tissue scan.
We’ll have to wait until we’re back on Rhodes Island.” Amiya exhaled a long breath, her rabbit ears drooping slightly in relief.
“Alright.
Just hold on until we get home, Mr.
Kai.” Kai massaged his gut, wincing.
Something definitely felt off, like a phantom weight settling in his core.
“Look who’s talking,” a dry voice chimed in.
The Doctor hobbled over, leaning heavily on a makeshift crutch, and mercilessly mocked him.
“You look like a stiff breeze could knock you over.
Getting soft already?” Without missing a beat, Kai aimed a swift, precise kick right at the Doctor’s sprained ankle.
“Gah—!” The Doctor howled, hopping on one foot and clutching the injured joint.
Amiya watched the exchange with a bewildered sigh.
She still couldn’t wrap her head around how these two had developed the dynamic of bitter, lifelong friends in just a few short hours.
The squad pushed forward into a wider commercial street.
Suddenly, Dobermann halted.
She exchanged a sharp, knowing look with Amiya, then flashed a series of rapid tactical hand signals.
Instantly, the entire Rhodes Island formation collapsed into a tight, defensive perimeter.
Weapons were drawn; Arts units hummed to life.
“Little mice of Rhodes Island…
I’ve found you~” A sickeningly sweet, raspy voice drifted down the ruined avenue.
A grayish-white figure stepped out from the shadows of a collapsed storefront.
Behind him, the street flooded with Reunion Movement soldiers, their red armbands stark against the gray rubble.
They fanned out with practiced efficiency, sealing off every alleyway and escape route.
Bound and gagged in the center of the Rhodes Island formation, Crownslayer narrowed her eyes.
A flash of pure disgust crossed her face at the sight of the newcomer, but as a prisoner, she kept her mouth shut.
“Hold the line!” Dobermann barked, her whip uncoiling with a sharp crack.
“Watch your spacing!
Beware of his Originium Arts!” Mephisto stood at the head of the mob, a twisted, theatrical pout on his lips.
“Heh.
Noisy little mice.
Why don’t we play a game?
A little ritualistic competition to pass the time, shall we?” He twirled his cane, his eyes gleaming with manic delight.
“My Flock will attack you.
Endlessly.
If you survive, you win.
If you fail…
you die, and join them.
How does that sound?
Simple, right?” Kai tuned out the psychotic brat’s monologue.
He gestured for Amiya and Blaze to lean in, whispering a rapid set of instructions into their ears.
“Alright, we don’t have time to play tower defense with a twisted kid like you,” Kai called out, stepping up to the front line.
He gave Dobermann a subtle nod.
Catching the cue, Dobermann shifted her stance, moving just behind Kai to cover his blind spots, her whip coiled and ready to strike.
“I’m saying your game is garbage,” Kai continued, his tone casual, almost bored.
“I’ve got something right here that you’ll find way more entertaining.” Mephisto’s smile vanished, replaced by a cold sneer.
“Oh?
Whether you play my game or not isn’t up to you.” He raised his hand, his fingers twitching as he prepared to unleash the Flock.
“Faust.” The single word cut through the tension like a blade.
Mephisto’s hand froze in mid-air.
For a split second, his mask slipped, but he quickly forced a dismissive laugh.
“Cute.
Good intelligence work, mouse.
But so what?
Don’t tell me you managed to capture him like you did that useless piece of trash,” he said, gesturing vaguely toward Crownslayer.
Despite his arrogant front, Mephisto’s eyes darted slightly.
Kai knew exactly what was happening: the kid was frantically trying to ping Faust on their encrypted internal comms.
Seconds ticked by.
The silence stretched.
Mephisto’s pale face grew visibly strained.
“Can’t reach him, can you?” Kai asked, a dry smirk playing on his lips.
“That proves absolutely nothing,” Mephisto spat, his voice dropping an octave.
“Then how about this?” Kai reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of jagged, iridescent scales.
Thanks to his obsessive memory of drawing Arknights fan art in his past life, he had sketched a perfect replica of Faust’s unique traits and had the Rhodes Island Engineering Department fabricate them on the fly.
They looked flawlessly authentic.
He held them up, letting the dim light of the Catastrophe catch the edges.
Mephisto stared.
He didn’t speak.
He didn’t blink.
Kai let the silence do the heavy lifting.
He knew the gears turning in Mephisto’s twisted head.
The kid was paranoid.
He knew Faust wouldn’t go down easily, and they had only separated recently.
But the doubt was a poison.
What if?
And those scales…
they were too detailed, too specific to be a blind forgery unless someone had seen the real thing up close.
Recognizing the exact moment the bait was swallowed, Kai pocketed the props.
“Relax.
The kid isn’t dead—at least, not yet.
So, are we negotiating, or are we playing games?” The oppressive silence dragged on until Mephisto finally lowered his cane.
“Speak,” he hissed.
“First, call off your dogs,” Kai demanded smoothly.
A Reunion squad leader standing next to Mephisto panicked.
“Sir!
You can’t just—” The man never finished his sentence.
Mephisto didn’t even look at him.
The squad leader’s body suddenly seized, his spine snapping backward at an unnatural angle.
His skin grayed over, muscles bulging and tearing as he let out a wet, gurgling roar.
Within seconds, he was reduced to a mindless, twitching member of the Flock.
The surrounding Reunion soldiers flinched, sheer terror flashing in their eyes as they backed away from their own commander.
The Rhodes Island operators gripped their weapons tighter, a cold sweat breaking out across the formation at the casual display of body horror.
“Withdraw,” Mephisto commanded, his voice devoid of emotion.
He flicked his wrist, and the horde of infected soldiers and shambling monsters reluctantly pulled back, widening the perimeter.
“Now.
Your terms,” Mephisto demanded, his eyes locked onto Kai with murderous intent.
“Simple.
You let us walk out of here, and I give you Faust’s coordinates.” Kai held his gaze.
Anyone else might think it was a suicidal bluff, trading a supposed hostage for a mere retreat, but Kai knew the lore.
He knew exactly how heavily Mephisto leaned on his sniper.
Another suffocating silence fell over the street.
Rhodes Island operators kept their fingers on their triggers, acutely aware that the mob could surge forward the second they blinked.
The Reunion ranks murmured nervously, but after witnessing the squad leader’s gruesome fate, no one dared to speak out of turn.
“Fine.
I accept,” Mephisto finally ground out.
“But how do I know you aren’t lying to my face?” Kai just shrugged, offering no guarantees, no oaths.
He just stared back.
The staredown felt like an eternity.
Finally, Mephisto slammed his cane into the asphalt.
“Let them pass!” The Reunion soldiers hesitated, shuffling their feet but blocking the road.
Mephisto’s composure shattered.
“I said let them pass!
Are you deaf?!
Move, or I’ll bury every single one of you with him!” The threat worked.
The sea of red and gray parted, leaving a narrow, tense corridor through the ruins.
Kai gave Amiya and Dobermann a sharp nod.
“Go.
Double time.
I’ll take the rear.” Amiya hesitated, her eyes wide.
“Mr.
Kai…” “I’ll be fine.” Kai waved her off, gesturing to the tall, imposing figure of M3 beside him.
“M3 is with me.
We’ll be right behind you.” M3 stood silently, effortlessly balancing the massive, heavy stone Sarcophagus on her shoulder.
She had actually been calculating the optimal trajectory to use the ancient coffin as a battering ram if negotiations failed.
Mephisto watched the Rhodes Island squad vanish into the dust of the ruined city.
His face was a mask of pure, unadulterated malice.
“Now.
Tell me.” Kai tossed a small, blinking tracking device through the air.
Mephisto snatched it.
Without another word, M3 hoisted Kai up, securing her grip on both him and the Sarcophagus, and dashed down the cleared path at breakneck speed to catch up with the Vanguard.
Mephisto crushed a piece of rubble under his boot, his eyes burning as he stared at the tracker.
“Contact Sister Talulah,” he ordered coldly.
“Yes, sir!” [Rhodes’s Note: Enjoying the operation so far, Doctor?
(This daily grind literally pays the landship’s rent!
to use the links!)