Chapter 44: i awlays wanted to kill you
Stray rays deflected off Coco’s armor, striking the battlefield like wild lightning and threatening to hit the Rangers and Rogues around them. Tyson instinctively threw himself in front of Alex, pouring every last bit of his nanoparticles into forming his metallic shield. His once-formidable armor dissolved, its particles constantly repairing the Shield as it absorbed the brunt of the attack. He had no protection left—only his sheer will kept them safe.
Coco stood his ground, allowing the plasma ray to crash against him. He could feel his armor repairing itself, with the nanoparticles working to mend his sustained damage, but his thoughts drifted elsewhere.
He had consistently recognized Blue’s potential—that reckless, untamed talent. Recruiting him into the Rogues had required effort, even though Blue never truly embraced the cause. Coco saw something in him that felt familiar. A fire that refused to be extinguished.
For years, he tried to suppress his connection with the boy, convincing himself it didn’t matter. Blue was an enemy, nothing more. And yet, deep down, Coco couldn’t shake the thought—if he had ever been a father, his son would have been like Blue: brave and unyielding.
But that future had ended with his wife.
His whip dissolved back into his armor and its weight. He thought that, perhaps, in another life, things would have been different. But in this one, they were enemies. And he had a war to win for humanity’s sake.
Coco directed his attention to his feet, anchoring them solidly against the ground as he took a heavy step forward. The nanoparticles in his armor adapted, ensuring he could retain balance despite the ongoing assault of Blue’s plasma cannon.
Blue clenched his teeth as his armor rapidly depleted, its nano-bots breaking down to power the cannon. His reserves were draining quickly. On the other side, Tyson’s shield started to weaken, cracks appearing as stray plasma beams struck it. Unlike Coco, Tyson’s Meta-bot wasn’t strong enough to absorb that level of damage, nor did he have enough nano-particles left to maintain the barrier.
"Damn," Alex muttered, cursing himself. He reached out and placed a hand on Tyson’s shoulder, initiating a transfer of his nano-particles.
Tyson glanced at him in surprise.
"I’m doing this for me," Alex muttered. "I don’t want Father to scold me."