The recruiter returned two days later.
No briefcase this time. No smile. Just a metal collar in one hand and a squad of armored enforcers behind him.
Kyren stood at the mouth of the alley, spear in hand, heartbeat already syncing to a rhythm his muscles knew better than his mind.
"We offered peace," the recruiter called out, voice amplified. "You refused. The Guild doesn't waste time negotiating with anomalies twice."
Kyren didn't answer.
The spear hummed. The glyphs on his arms lit red.
The enforcers spread out. Each wore the mark of the Spear Guild's secondary enforcement branch: black triangles painted on matte helmets. Fast. Heavy. Meant to subdue, not kill. That would come later if needed.
The recruiter raised the collar. "You put this on willingly, and we'll preserve your memory. Make you a hero. Laughing Flame. Savior. Symbol."
Kyren spun the spear once, low and slow. "I'd rather be forgotten than owned."
The first enforcer moved, fast and low.
Kyren dodged the sweep and countered with a blunt-end jab to the chest. The blow sent the man flying backward into a trash chute.
Two more came in. High-low pincer.
Kyren rolled between them, twisted, and hooked the spear across one leg, dragging the second into the third. They fell in a heap of metal and curses.
From the roof, Chiyo dropped into the fray with a cry, staff spinning. She struck one helmet hard enough to dent it, then kicked off the wall and cracked another in the throat. The man dropped without a sound.
"You said you wanted action," she called.
Kyren grinned, breath already coming fast. "You always deliver."
The recruiter watched, unmoved. "Switch to suppressive pattern."
The remaining enforcers pulled batons that buzzed with static. Riot tech.
They rushed again.
Kyren activated Technique Nine on instinct—Momentum Split. He slid backward mid-air, just enough to avoid a downward strike, then redirected into a horizontal spin that cracked two ribs and a visor.
Electric shocks lit his jacket, tearing cloth, stinging skin. He bit back a scream.
Two hands grabbed his spear mid-motion.
He didn't hesitate. Headbutted the helmet. Stomped the foot. Snatched the spear back.
Chiyo screamed from across the alley.
Kyren turned just in time to see her stagger from a hit. One of the enforcers had clipped her leg. She dropped to a knee.
The recruiter moved then, quick as a snake, collar raised high.
Kyren moved faster.
He launched himself forward and drove the spear like a piston into the recruiter's midsection.
The man coughed, stumbled, dropped the collar.
Kyren kicked it away.
Then everything slowed.
The last four enforcers formed a line, synchronized. A new command protocol.
Kyren's spear pulsed. A new technique emerged, half-formed in his mind, not from training—but memory.
Technique Ten: Disruption Cascade.
He moved.
Three precise strikes. Two feints. One direct spiral jab that shattered the formation's timing.
The line broke.
Kyren pivoted, ducked a strike meant for his head, spun behind the attacker, and brought the spear down across the back of their armor. The enforcer crumpled.
Chiyo swept the legs out from the last man and cracked him across the temple.
Silence fell.
The recruiter was on one knee, coughing blood. He looked up, dazed.
"You've chosen the wrong legacy," he gasped.
Kyren stood over him. "I am the legacy."
He raised the spear—then stopped.
Letting him live would send a clearer message.
Chiyo limped beside him, eyes on the remaining bodies. "They'll send more."
"Let them."
They turned as sirens wailed somewhere in the distance. Too far to matter.
Kairashi floated down from the roof, clapping slowly.
"Ten out of ten," they said.
Kyren exhaled, finally allowing himself to feel the sting in his ribs and the buzzing in his limbs.
The fight was over.
But the war had noticed him now.
Jamo came rushing around the corner from a side path, carrying a handheld broadcast unit. "You're on the UnderNet already," he said. "Someone filmed that. The footage's going viral."
Kyren looked up, blood still on his chin. "What are they saying?"
Jamo smirked. "They're calling you the glitch in the chain. And the Guild? They just issued a new reward tier. Two million. Lethal capture authorized."
Chiyo whistled. "Congratulations. You just graduated to a real problem."
Kyren lowered the spear. "Good. Let's start giving them some real nightmares."
The spear vibrated in his hand.
"Finally," it whispered. "Now we get to play offense."
Kyren turned to the others. "We need to move. Fast. They'll track this unit, sweep the zone, then wipe anything left standing."
Rios stepped out from the shadows. "Already ahead of you. I've got a van and three alternate routes. Pick your poison."
Kyren glanced at the wreckage behind them—bodies, sparks, smoke.
"I pick forward."
Then they disappeared into the night.