‎"Darius!"

‎Norvax roared. He sped forward with inhuman speed, his figure becoming a blur, but in the very next instant, he found himself trapped in an iron grip.

‎The bones in Norvax's neck creaked from the immense pressure exerted by the man's grip.

‎" What the hell?! Is this man actually able to see me?"

‎" I hate pests, " the masked figure quietly muttered. His gaze shifted to Norvax, the slits in his mask staring ominously at him.

‎" Good thing they're less of a nuisance when they're crushed underfoot."

‎Norvax strained against the man's grip, but the newcomer's strength was unyielding.

‎" Shit! What the hell?!"

‎Alissa was the first to react; her eyes glowed an unnatural black and green.

‎A split second later, green spheres of energy materialized in the air, projecting towards the masked stranger.

‎A sinister chuckle escaped his lips, echoing eerily through the damaged building.

‎ The masked figure glanced up, piercing the petite green-haired woman with a calm gaze.

‎"Do you think that it's wise to threaten me when I literally hold the life of your beloved comrade in my hands? "

‎The man confidently strode forward, drawing level with her, all the while holding Norvax, like he weighed nothing in his hand.

‎The assassin stood a whole foot taller than her, her head barely reaching his chest.

‎He gazed down at her, dark amusement flickering through his eyes.

‎" Would you like to put it to the test?

‎Let's call it a game of good old Russian roulette. Your energy beams against my strength, would you like to prove which is quicker?"

‎A slow, sinister smile spread across the lower half of his face that was visible through the mask.

‎ Alissa trembled then, her body shivering slightly at the sound of the insidious whisper.

‎" I can assure you, it wouldn't take me much effort to snap his neck like a twig and get away from the trajectory of your ability."

‎Alissa slowly lowered her hands.

‎She gritted her teeth in frustration, turning away from the man's heated glare.

‎" He'll do it, I can tell he'll do it."

‎The light in her eyes dimmed, then faded completely.

‎She had deactivated her ability. The green energy vanished too.

‎" I'm glad we understand each other. That applies to the rest of you. Nobody move. If you so much as even move a limb, then the life of your dear friend here is forfeit."

‎Norvax renewed his struggles, but it almost felt like he was trying to move a mountain.

‎" What am I even doing?! I'm probably going to regret this!"

‎" Don't listen to him," he yelled.

‎Despite the absurdness of his situation, his voice carried a calm, authoritative tone.

‎" Fight, all of you, move it! Operatives die all the time in this line of work. So move it."

‎The members of the kill squad hesitantly gazed at Norvax's struggling figure.

‎Norvax could see the hesitation in their eyes

‎" Shit! They won't move because they know he's not bluffing."

‎The masked figure let out a quiet sigh.

‎" That's enough out of you. Go to sleep now."

‎Abruptly, the pressure on Norvax's neck increased drastically.

‎The crushing grip bore down on his neck with inhuman strength.

‎He clawed against the man's arm, with all his strength, trying everything he could to get out of the indomitable grip.

‎Norvax activated his abilities in rapid succession

‎His super speed, gravity manipulation, and then his wind ability were to no avail.

‎Norvax increased the gravity around the masked man several-fold.

‎The granite steps cracked from the strain of the brutal pressure when gravity abruptly increased several-fold.

‎ Next, he unleashed a storm of air blades, their lethality amplified by the increased gravity that whipped through the air, but the blades dissipated on contact with the masked figure.

‎" Shit! Damn, it. I'm screwed."

‎The squad members watched the struggle hesitantly, their minds refusing to accept the futility of the fight.

‎The combined power of Norvax's abilities washed over the masked man, flowing around him harmlessly.

‎The man observed his attacks nonchalantly, unbothered, almost like he was dealing with a child throwing a tantrum.

‎" He's somehow managing to repel my attacks."

‎The startling realization filled Norvax with dread.

‎A cold feeling sank into the pit of his gut.

‎" Time's up, go to sleep now."

‎The man's grip around Norvax's neck tightened considerably.

‎" Shit, I can't breathe, I'm going to black out."

‎Darkness crept into his vision, and a myriad of stars appeared behind his eyelids.

‎Norvax bit his cheek until he drew up, tasting the salty, tangy taste of blood in his mouth.

‎The pain helped him cling to consciousness.

‎Just barely.

‎" I can't fall unconscious, I refuse to be defeated."

‎Blood bubbled out of Norvax's mouth between his gritted teeth.

‎His eyes turned bloodshot from the increased pressure around his neck.

‎The masked figure tilted his head, observing Norvax's struggle with something akin to amusement.

‎" I must commend you for your resolve; you really are a persistent man."

‎A pained gurgle escaped his lips.

‎A split second later, Norvax lay on the pavement, gasping for breath.

‎" How is this possible?! How am I here? Did I lose consciousness?"

‎The painful bruises around his neck proved him wrong.

‎He winced then spat out a wad of blood that accumulated in his mouth.

‎"But if I'm here, then..."

‎Norvax shot a quick look at the front of the building where the killsquad had been standing and found nothing.

‎Except for the masked figure.

‎In the next moment, a dark figure appeared next to him.

‎"What the...."

‎Norvax's surprised yell was cut off mid-sentence when he too vanished, disappearing.

‎****

‎Raymond calmly observed the fight, waiting for an opportune moment to strike.

‎" I must say things are pretty bad."

‎He observed Thrain and Liu Zhen for a moment, then his gaze shifted back to the masked figure.

‎Thrain was aware of his presence within the dome; he'd most likely sensed the moment when Raymond had forced his way through the barrier.

‎" What a time to be alive," he thought with a grin.

‎" Hang in there, Norvax."

‎Raymond had humorously named his primary ability Jumper.

‎It allowed him to teleport to different locations on the condition that he'd been there or if he could see the place with his eyes.

‎Unfortunately, moving over long distances was quite energy-consuming and draining.

‎The amount of energy his ability increased drastically when he moved with other people and objects.

‎His secondary ability, Render, allowed him to move through the illusory space that connected the points between which he teleported.

‎Render made him essentially undetectable and untraceable, as he neither existed in the place he was teleporting to nor in the place where he was until he materialized there, which made him the perfect stealth operative.

‎His third ability granted him telepathy.

‎His ability to gaze into the thoughts of others wasn't as strong as Victoria's, but it served its purpose when push came to shove.

‎It also allowed him to communicate directly with his allies in the event they couldn't speak.

‎" Seth, you bastard, it's time you made a move, move your ass along," he snarled telepathically.

‎Seth Cravenus was also known as Seth the undying within the Videntis.

‎One of Seth's abilities made him essentially immortal.

‎As long as his brain function remained, as long as he could think, the youth could regenerate and heal from any injury inflicted upon him, no matter how grievous.

‎"I'd better not regret this, Ray," Seth quietly muttered.

‎He opened one eye, glancing at Norvax.

‎"That idiot Raymond. Well, what a fine mess."

‎In the next second, he stood in Norvax's place.

‎Dried blood stained his formerly pristine white Videntis uniform.

‎Seth grinned and flipped the masked figure the bird.

‎" And now for my next trick..."

‎The masked man promptly snapped his neck, cutting him off.

‎" That was unexpected."

‎Raymond almost laughed then.

‎" If you think that was unexpected, wait till you see this," he thought.

‎A heartbeat later, he materialized next to the dark figure, activating his primary ability.

‎He spread Jumper over a wide area, encompassing most of the operatives within it.

‎His hand briefly brushed against Seth's body.

‎In the next moment, Seth vanished from the man's grip.

‎The masked figure lunged for Darius' unconscious form, but he too vanished into thin air.

‎A faint smile appeared on Victoria's face, just as she vanished with the squad member supporting her.

‎Then the whole squad disappeared into thin air.

‎" Well, that was certainly even more unexpected," the man muttered.

‎" What will you do now?"

‎Thrain's deep voice echoed through the devastated street.

‎The masked figure shrugged.

‎" This is nothing but a small setback in the grand scheme of things. One of you will have to do."

‎Annonymous stepped forward as well, swinging his dark blade casually through the air.

‎Just then, a dimensional rift appeared.

‎A blurred figure shot out of it, slamming into Annonymous with inhuman speed.

‎Anonymous crushed through the ruins of a building behind him, the momentum of the blow carrying him into the building behind him.

‎The newcomer wore a loose-fitting black shirt and pants.

‎His hair was stylishly slicked to the side.

‎He elegantly fixed his dark sunglasses in place, hiding his golden irises from view.

‎Thrain noted the man's sclera were an unusual black.

‎The man let out a quiet laugh and a low whistle, turning his head.

‎"Would you look at that? I love what you guys have done with the place."

‎A moment later, a tall man clad in a crisp black suit stepped out of the rift, joining the first.

‎His ghostly red eyes nonchalantly surveyed the carnage around him, a slight frown forming on his face.

‎" Apologies for our tardiness," Luke said with a smile.

‎" We'll take it from here."

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