Chapter 12 - A Throne of Ash and Memory
Ash clung to everything.
Kael stood alone atop a ruined cliff, the sky burning with the hues of war. Smoke spiraled where cities once stood, and bones jutted from cracked earth like forgotten monuments.
He was silent.
Not from peace.
But from loss.
Below him, the remnants of the battle lay strewn—metallic husks, hybrid corpses, and a single figure torn open under the blackened sun. Ravager.
[Codex Sync: Severed. Neural imprint terminated. Echo signature fading.]
The Codex was quiet. Not out of malfunction, but reverence.
Kael dropped to his knees, trembling. His hands were scorched, nails chipped from clawing his way through enemies and fire. A thin cut ran down his cheek, still bleeding.
It wasn't the wound that hurt.
It was the empty bond.
Ravager had leapt into the jaws of death to save him. To buy him time. To hold the line.
Kael hadn't been ready.
"He was never just a beast," Kael whispered.
No one answered. Vyrmclaw stood behind him, chest heaving, scales flecked with blood and soot. The bond was new, raw. But it could feel Kael's mourning.
And it bowed its head.
Hours passed.
Kael buried Ravager himself. No graves in this world. Just stone and silence. He etched the name into black rock using a piece of shattered hybrid tooth.
RAVAGER
Below it, a single line:
You burned brighter than any sun.
As night fell, Kael turned away. But something stirred in the shadows.
A drone.
Sleek. Silent. Watching.
He crushed it before it could transmit.
Too late.
Somewhere far away...
"He killed Unit-07?"
The voice belonged to a man draped in crimson, sitting on a throne of polished bone.
"He did," another said, trembling. "And bonded with a Vyrmclaw."
The man's eyes glinted.
"Good."
"Shall we intercept?"
"No," the man said. "We let him bleed. Then, we take what's left."
He looked at a nearby chamber.
Inside, a hybrid writhed against its chains—something massive, horned, built for siege.
"Wake the Maulborn."
Back to Kael
[Codex Signal: Detected. Incoming hybrid swarm. Direction: Northwest ridge. Distance: 6.2 kilometers.]
Kael didn't flinch.
He turned to Vyrmclaw.
"Time to burn the world back."
The hybrid hissed.
Kael reached into his pocket. Pulled out Ravager's fang—the one piece that remained.
[Genomic Fragment Detected. Do you wish to integrate memory shard?]
He closed his eyes.
"Yes."
A flood of warmth. Pain. Joy.
The first hunt. The moment Ravager shielded him. The laughter in the dark. The trust.
Kael stood taller.
[New Trait Acquired: Feral Resilience.]
[Echo Synchronization Level increased: 54%.]
The swarm would be here in under an hour.
Kael picked up his weapon.
And walked into the ash.
Author's Note:
This one goes out to the bond that started it all. But this is not the end. Not even close. Prepare for the siege. Prepare for the rise.
From ash we rise. From genes we conquer.
Stay mutant. 🧘♂️🦖✨ — EchoWomb