Chapter 88: Martial Law! II
Chapter 88: Martial Law! II
The sound of boots hitting concrete echoed faintly as Damian, Anastasia, and Serena stepped out of the old warehouse and into the bleeding dusk of Hollow Stacks. The world had changed. Even the air felt heavier, thicker with static tension, as though the Metropolis itself held its breath.They had pulled their new hoods up and slipped into large black overcoats, each one worn and indistinct enough to disappear into the crowd. Their masks, now tucked away, had become symbols too dangerous to wear openly- especially for Damian as he could not be identified as The Judge!
The streets outside had transformed. Flashing red and blue Enforcer drones hovered over intersections like vultures, their mechanical voices droning with eerie calm.
"We are here to help."
"We are here to help."
Their synthetic reassurance rang hollow against the backdrop of distrustful stares and whispered curses. People lined the sidewalks and alleyways of the Hollow Stacks, their expressions etched with fear, exhaustion, and something far more dangerous: anger.
Small groups were already forming, speaking in hushed tones, glaring at the passing drones with clenched fists.
Handmade signs reading "Enforcers can get fucked", "Guardians are the enemy", and "Stackborn Lives Matter Too" flickered under the buzzing neon lights.
Damian paused.
He watched a young boy clutch his mother’s hand tightly, flinching as an Enforcer stepped too close. The mother stared back at the armored figure with trembling resolve, ready to fight. Damian looked at such a scene with hardened eyes.
This was the result...
Every choice he made, every Guardian he struck down, had led here. And yet... the alternative was to let the Masked Guardians continue their slaughter. His chest tightened as he glanced around, as if hoping to find a different outcome hidden between the cracks in the pavement.
Beside him, Anastasia whispered, "They’ve turned grief and this whole incident into a bid for surveillance and control."
Damian said nothing.
He couldn’t.
Because even with all of this...
He knew that if they stopped now, if they bent the knee to fear and control, then everything they’d lost would have been for nothing.
Ilyana’s life would have been for nothing.
He took another breath, his silver eyes cold with purpose.
"Let them flood the streets," he muttered. "We will go out into light."
He whispered as the three of them stood in a dark alleyway with nobody near them, his mind working quickly on what to do next as he came to a decision.
"Anastasia, can you track down and form a contact with the Vagrant Beast Masters we saw in the destroyed Rustblood Circuit Arena? I want to see just how much power they truly have. Meanwhile, I will see this new Gateway they are putting across the Hollow Stacks and Skyglass Heights as Serena and I will return openly. If I want more power quickly, then the only solution is in the Skyglass Heights."
...!
The Skyglass Heights.
With Kitsuul’s power, he could do many things as he wanted to put Phasing and Invisibility on display to get as many resources as he could.
"I’ve already captured the images of the Vagrant Beast Masters we saw, especially that woman that HAO came with. I’ve got this side. Stay in touch and call me if anything happens."
Anastasia’s hoodie rose as she carried a black briefcase containing all her gadgets, disappearing into the darkness behind them.
Damian watched her walk away as he had Kitsuul jump on his shoulders, his hands moving toward his overcoat as Serena did the same.
The heavy coats fell away in a silent whisper as Damian and Serena emerged from the alley’s shadows, revealing the pristine white glint of their ZENTHRA Trial Guardian body suits. Sleek, reinforced, and laced with radiant veins of tech-aether that pulsed faintly with every movement, they stood out against the chaos like walking legends.
They moved ahead swiftly to leave the Hollow Stacks.
The streets ahead were gridlocked.
Thousands of civilians were being pushed back by Enforcers in formation. Walls of composite riot armor, glowing shock-staves, and black-plated drones hovered just overhead. The crowd’s shouts were muffled by the shrill synthetic drones repeating the same line:
"We are here to help. Please remain calm."
"For your safety, do not approach the Gateway perimeter."
But no one was calm.
The newly erected Pylon Gateway loomed in the distance like a monolith of control.
Crackling currents of blue-white lightning arced between towering pillars.
Damian and Serena went past the throngs of Stackborn who parted way in shock, the Enforcers catching sight of them just as they stepped onto Guardian’s Road while looking out inexplicably.
The Enforcer drones nearby abruptly paused while they also locked onto them and their Beasts.
A Silver Fox and a Void Serpent.
Dozens of Enforcers turned up ahead, weapons lowered slightly, as all eyes fell on Damian and Serena.
"...Trial Guardians?" one officer whispered with incredulity as they saw the insignia of ZENTHRA.
Another Enforcer’s biometric scanner blinked furiously, pulling data from a shared ZENTHRA database before flashing green in confirmation.
"...What the hell are ZENTHRA operatives doing in the Hollow Stacks?" another Enforcer muttered.
Commotion rippled through the ranks as alerts flooded upward.
Inside the nearby command outpost overlooking the barricades, Enforcer Commander Elizabeth narrowed her eyes. Her dark crimson uniform was pristine, unwrinkled even amid the madness. Her hair burned gold as her Winged Destiny Eel floated behind her, releasing a calm golden glow of light onto her.
A glowing datasheet soon hovered in the air before her, pulsing with Damian’s and Serena’s full ZENTHRA clearance.
"Trial Guardian... Therion Dark," she read, her voice measured.
Beside his image was another, Serena, eyes cold and calculating.
Elizabeth sighed. "Of all days... why the fuck are Trial Guardians on this side?"
Her Lieutenant Enforcer nearby glanced over. "Orders, Commander?"
Elizabeth tapped the hovering data. "Let them through. They’re already on the Registry Grid. One is a Stackborn that managed to become a ZENTHRA Trial Guardian, the other is a genuine Glassblood Trial Guardian. The last thing I need is a jurisdictional nightmare with ZENTHRA breathing down our necks. Not today."
"Yes, ma’am."
The command was sent down.
Damian and Serena neared the tall gate buzzing with neon lights and flying vessels all around it, the turrets and Aether Cannons glinting in the now darkening skies as night fully settled in.
Below, Enforcers parted like a tide, silent, watching, as Damian and Serena strode toward the Pylon Gateway. Not with fear, but with purpose.
One Enforcer stepped forward hesitantly, biometric scanner in hand. "Please... confirm identity."
Damian nodded. "Therion Dark. Trial Guardian of ZENTHRA."
Serena stepped beside him, her voice steady. "Serena... same designation."
The scanner beeped.
IDENTITY CONFIRMED.
REGISTRY LEVEL: WHITE. ACCESS GRANTED.
Everything checked out.
In the distance...
A low, thunderous hum echoed as the massive central gate split open, steam hissing from the sides. The electric arcs framing it receded just long enough to allow passage.
Damian looked at this as behind them, he could hear even more commotion as Stackborn screamed out and yelled.
Yet he walked toward the opened Gateway as his eyes burned with a rage and ambition to get many things done.
Enforcers parted ways to let them in, and they even wanted them to do it quickly just to make sure no news about conflict of Guardians came out from the Hollow Stacks after the death of five Guardians.
It would be a point for the future, but at this moment, Damian and Serena would actually be the first to cross from the Hollow Stacks and into the Skyglass Heights since the Pylon Gateway was put up.
As they stepped through, the world changed.
The Hollow Stacks faded behind them, gray, grim, and humming with unrest.
Ahead, Skyglass Heights rose in vertical elegance. Crystal towers gleamed under the artificial sky, platforms moved soundlessly through the air, and clean energy lines glowed across the street like veins of civilization.
Damian exhaled slowly. "Always smells like money and lies."
He turned once, looking back through the shimmering energy gate. The barrier crackled, sealing once again, cutting off the Stacks and everyone in it like a surgical wound.
"Come on, there’s someone who will be helping us out."
Damian turned away from it as he pulled out his phone and called none other than... Lyra Veyrin.