7:48am.

BOOM!

All hell broke loose.

Nobody had time to talk, nobody had time to think, all they could do was engage in a chaotic brawl.

And this is where E Rank NetRunners are at their most nefarious.

Data Lash!

Ben attacked again, attacking the 6 enemies at the same time but he was not alone with the mental attacks.

Talia was broken, she was bleeding, but she didn't hesitate to go band for band with the A.I Construct again.

Data Lash!

Mental attacks lashed at both sides like a snake's venom, but a mental type as their brains buzzed even as they bled from their orifices.

This… this was the chaos that Leon wanted.

They were outnumbered, they were outmatched, but Leon no longer felt that Cell and Swain were in control of his life.

Now, he felt that the world was back to normal, random and chaotic, filled with opportunities.

Anything could happen.

Leon didn't just decide to turn the battle chaotic and run towards Talia. When he made the decision, he made it riding on a simple psychological observation he already observed about the Freegrid Cell that he joined.

'The front-line combatants will always protect us'.

Brick, Daren, and Ghostwire did it back in the siege of the cargo trailer when they stood at the front, withstanding the tide of Neon Beasts as they allowed the Mechanists to support from the back.

Despite the fact that Leon was yet to fight a big battle alongside Talia, from his interactions with her, he knew that she was just like Daren and Brick.

This was why he knew that by running towards them, even if the trio were just one step away from death, they would still feel that protective instinct and burn the last embers of their lives to protect the Mechanists.

Leon was right.

The moment they arrived, even as they were facing two impossible enemies in Parasite and Ben, Daren, Brick, and Talia still reacted instinctively as they created a loose protective circle around the trio of Mechanists.

Leon, Rex, and Kain were protected in the middle, and this was what Leon banked on for the next phase of his plan.

Parasite had devastating power as an E Rank Gene Augur, but with Cell Repair, Brick could hold his own against him even if it was for a short time.

Talia though injured could still hold her own against Ben briefly.

As for Daren, on the long run it was suicide but on the short run, he could singlehandedly hold off Cell, Swain, Alexander Cain, and the 13 thugs that came with them, and this was exactly what happened as all hell broke loose.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

It was madness.

As Talia, Daren, and Brick valiantly made their last stand, fighting against overwhelming odds, Leon briefly glanced at Rex and Kain.

Then he ordered. "Shoot like your life depends on it!"

Both were already shooting with their kinetic pistols.

And then, Leon finally made his move as he casually dropped the Flux Crystal Spear and raised the Air Gun Rifle to face level.

This was his plan!

He aimed, his eyes gleamed, and he pulled the trigger.

BAM!

Headshot!

One shot, one kill; a thug fell down dead.

Ascended were beings whose bodies were tempered by ADE, their agility is superhuman, off the charts. Leon was not confident in killing an Ascended with each shot, but for the mundane thugs, he was damn sure.

And with Talia, Daren, and Brick protecting him alongside the other Mechanists in the middle, he had all the freedom in the world to aim and shoot.

BAM!

Headshot!

BAM!

Headshot!

BAM!

Headshot!

Leon killed 4 thugs in quick succession in almost an instant, while Rex and Kain's combined shooting also took out 3 more thugs.

In the chaos, the thugs could barely see through the dust with their mundane eyes, rendering them effectually useless in this chaotic battlefield.

Within the first few seconds of this combined battlefield, Talia, Daren, and Brick suffered even more injuries but in exchange, the Mechanists directly took out 7 enemy thugs, and they were not stopping.

BAM!

Headshot!

BAM!

Headshot!

Leon took 2 more thugs in quick succession as the thugs finally caught on to what was happening and scattered, trying to find safety and escape the danger.

But they were not hiding from his scope.

BAM!

Body shot.

BAM!

Headshot!

2 shots, one kill.

Only 3 enemy thugs were remaining now but having learned from the death of their comrades, these mundane thugs immediately sought cover away from the eerily accurate gunshots.

And then, the battle turned even more tight and intense.

Talia, Daren, and Brick fought for their lives, burning the very embers of their souls for it as the combined flare of neon green, orange, and violent purple ADE from them created a combined flare effect.

They fought and stood their ground, tanking the enemy attacks as they got new injuries every second yet they didn't stop, they didn't fall down.

Adrenaline kept them going.

But every single one of them knew that this could not continue. At the moment, they were just riding the chaos, no longer hoping for a miracle but just going out of defiant stubbornness.

'If we'll go, fine, but we'll only go after f*cking all of you over!' They now moved with this kind of energy.

They kept surviving and fighting just to make sure their enemies would not be able to brag over their corpses that it was an easy battle.

They kept going just to etch this battle in the minds of their enemies forever that even in victory, they bled and almost died for it.

Time ticked forward as they made their last stand.

Just like the others, Rex already accepted death as the battle raged, but unlike them he was not yet ready to accept that the mission would fail.

Afterall, unlike them, he'd envisioned and seen moments like this countless times in his dreams over the past few days.

He'd thought, he'd analyzed, and it was the inspiration that made him create his first ever blueprint.

'I can still do something,' Rex thought as he observed the battle even as he kept on shooting. 'But how?'

As he looked, he heard a subtle voice ringing in his head. 'Mechanists have to think outside the box!' He gritted his teeth.

For every second that ticked forward, the more desperate he became, then suddenly, like a beacon of light illuminating a dark abyss, the bright light of an idea illuminated the world of his mind.

Rex turned his head and looked at Talia who was once again in her AR psionic form, and then at the A.I Construct who was in the same form.

His brain whirred, then Rex suddenly knelt down and opened his leather bag. For the first time in this whole battle, he brought out the weapon that was hidden inside- the ADE Nullification Shackles.

Alone with this weapon at this moment, Rex did not believe that he could do anything tangible with it, but the good thing was that he was not alone.

He had allies.

"BOSS!" Rex stood up and roared as he tossed the weapon at Talia.

At that moment, time froze.

All eyes moved towards the pair of metallic chains and cuffs that were flying through the air, and only 6 pair of eyes knew the true significance of it.

The moment Talia saw the pair of chains and cuffs flying at her, she understood Rex's idea immediately and then, she left her AR psionic state.

Talia became corporeal again, and then she grabbed the chains.

Data Lash!

Ben took the opportunity to attack her again as Talia bled even more from her nose, mouth and eyes.

Her eyes were blood-red but they gleamed with murderous intensity.

Then, she moved!

Ben did not know exactly what the rebel had in mind, but common sense still told him to retreat and he did, but anticipating this already, Talia directly threw the cuff end of the chains at him.

Ben tried to dodge but the cuffs moved too fast.

He wasn't panicked though, he expected the cuffs to phase right through his ghostly body in the psionic state but to his shock, it did not.

The cuffs fueled by Talia's neon green ADE directly clasped into his arms even in his psionic state, handcuffing him and then they pulled him back into reality!

Ben was dragged directly out of his AR psionic state.

His eyes widened in shock. 'How?!'

Before he could react though, Talia's eyes flashed neon green as her ADE flared violently.

Weight Modulator!

Instantly, the weight of the chains on the part connected to Ben became as heavy as a mountain as they dragged the A.I Construct to his knees.

Thud!

Ben collapsed to his knees but his eyes showed surprise, he expected to suffer a heavy attack. 'Is that it?'

But then, another skill of the chains took effect as Talia triggered it.

ADE Nullification!

BZZZ!

A suppressive field fueled by Talia's neon green ADE instantly erupted, covering the A.I Construct's whole body, and then Ben was shackled, literally.

His body froze, turning numb.

Literally all his bodily processes shut down, including his ADE circulation, restricting all his Ascended abilities.

Finally, he panicked.

Instinctively, he wanted to return back to his AR psionic state after suffering a restriction that he'd never suffered before in all his years as an Ascended but like expected, nothing happened when he tried.

His ADE circulation was shackled!

Ben raised his head and stared at Talia with horrified eyes, but Talia was not attacking him yet as he expected.

At that moment, Parasite already noticed the A.I Construct's plight as he pushed Brick aside and charged towards him like a Bull.

Thud… thud… thud…

Ben was confused. 'Why is she not attacking me yet?'

At that moment, he noticed the Mechanist who threw the chain at Talia pick up another object from inside his leather bag.

'What is that?'

It was a slightly circular object with an uneven surface. Ben didn't know what it was, but the mere sight of it made him uneasy.

At that moment, Rex roared again.

"BOSS, RUN!"

Talia didn't hesitate, she used Neural Projection to enter her AR psionic state before rapidly running away.

And then a confusing situation appeared where Ben was shackled and on his knees, Parasite was running towards him to save him, and instead of Talia to stop him she was running away.

Parasite was confused but instantly his survival instincts that were honed for decades made him uneasy. 'Is this a trap?'

His predatory blood-red eyes instantly narrowed as he focused on the slightly circular object that was flying towards Ben. 'Is it that thing?'

He decisively stopped charging towards the A.I Construct, but he was already too close to him. Before he could turn to run, the world suddenly turned white!

KABOOM!!!

The world turned white as thick plumes of orange flames and metallic debris rose into the sky, causing a dust storm.

The explosion affected Parasite, throwing him into the distance even as he suffered terrible burns, causing him a lot of damage. He had to use multiple ADE-fed organs just to save his life.

The E Rank Gene Augur reacted fast as he stared into the middle of the still-burning flames with wide eyes, but he saw nothing.

Mr. Representative Ben was nowhere to be found!

Just soot, metallic debris, blackened footprints, and the lingering echo of a man's terrified scream showed that a man was once there.

Mr. Representative Ben was dead.

An E Rank NetRunner died to Rex's attack!

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