Devil's Stallion sat sharpening his blade when the tiny round device in his pocket gave a soft beep. Legion technology was unlike anything outside their ranks—compact, personal, unique to each member. He lifted it, listened, and held still for a moment. Then he rose. The mask hid his face, but the set of his shoulders and the quickness in his step said enough.
A passage beneath Kâvènnto led him upward. He followed it to an opening and stepped into the open air at dusk. By the time he reached the lighthouse the sky had gone dark. Fog hung low. Waves washed against the stones. The lighthouse beam cut through the haze in steady sweeps.
Tora waited on the cliff edge, dressed in his traditional ninja attire of the Legion, mask and clothing marked with the fierce lines of a tiger. He was the only member who wore a mask that unique. Rank placed him as Supreme Commander, second only to Grey Owl. From a distance the two figures might have looked like a hunter facing a tall, heavily built devil.
High on the rocks above the lighthouse, almost lost in the fog, a third silhouette stood motionless.
Devil's Stallion walked closer.
"Why did you call me?"
Tora adjusted his stance and sat on the cliff edge.
"Arrogant as always, I see. There's a war coming. Bigger than all of us."
Stallion sat beside him, waiting.
"I'm serious," Tora said. "That man—that thing—chased you to Kâvènnto. It won't be long before it finds a way in." He looked out at the water. "We're not afraid of death, but our legacy matters. Who helps the children who have nothing? Who stands for the people who need us? The Legion has to survive. We have to survive."
Stallion stayed silent. Tora continued, voice lower.
"The ritual made us stronger, faster, harder to kill. We heal faster than anything most people have ever seen. But that thing feels different from M.A.R.K. It's beyond dangerous. We would all be dead if not for a kid—sixteen, seventeen, same age as Falcon Empress. The boy is like Virus, maybe stronger. He nearly killed it. We don't know if there are more." He turned his head. "We'll need every hand we can get. In five weeks we lure the Black Skull's big shot out and end this. We take a stand."
Stallion laughed once, short and sharp.
"First time I've heard you talk this much. That Virus… I never got the chance to face him. I was on a mission when he tore through my hideout. You managed to save one of them. And don't talk about M.A.R.K. like it was hard for Wolf King. He was cocky and proud. He didn't know M.A.R.K. could read his movements and style. He had openings the whole time and still played with the fight because he liked the thrill."
Silence stretched between them.
Stallion continued.
"I heard what happened to yours. All of them cut down. The hideout gone like something atomic had hit it. I don't think we're winning this one."
Tora's voice dropped further.
"Wolf King pulled us off that ship before. We lived through the Calamity-grade mission from Sun Cell. If we live through Black Skull.... we'll have nothing left to fear."
The scars of the past still sat heavy on him. He did not open them further.
"Make sure everyone is ready. I'll brief you on the plan when it's set."
Stallion drew a short breath. His fingers flexed once against his thigh.
"Fine. I'll see to it. You know… I've been itching to fight you for a long time. Being a general doesn't mean I can't put you down. Nine weeks with that family of yours. Hope you haven't gone soft."
Silence again.
"I hate weak people."
Stallion's hand shot forward, dagger aimed at Tora's head. Tora blocked it cleanly and stood.
"I don't want to fight you, Stallion."
He turned to leave.
"I KNOW YOU WANT TO! I'VE SEEN WHAT YOU'RE CAPABLE OF!"
Stallion closed the distance and struck from behind. Tora drew one katana, caught the blow, and spun to face him.
"Don't remind me. Don't say it."
Tora locked eyes with him.
Stallion yelling.
"You murdered your entire clan. Your little sister too. She was five. That's what made you cold. That's why they call you the Tiger. Tora. You're a Supreme Commander. Act like one."
Tora's grip on the katana tightened until the metal creaked.
"That's it. Don't hold back. Let's go all out. I want you to understand why people fear me—not just the mask. I'm a Legion." stallion continued
Tora drove a one-meter punch into Stallion's stomach. The force would have burst a normal man's gut. Stallion flew backward, nearly over the edge of the cliff.
"THAT'S IT!" stallion shouted.
Stallion recovered fast, slammed Tora into the ground with speed, and hammered punches down. The impacts cracked through the night air. Tora locked his legs around Stallion's neck, dragged him over, then sprang clear in two steps.
Stallion rose.
"You're weaker than I thought."
Tora drew the second katana. Before Stallion could speak again Tora was on him, heel driving into his chest. Stallion skidded toward the drop. Tora caught him, hauled him upright, and began punching. Each blow landed heavier than the last. The mask cracked and began splitting under the barrage. Stallion got one hand around Tora's throat and squeezed. Tora did not stop. Blood ran. Stallion's free hand came around in a full-powered slap that caught half of Tora's face and sent him stumbling.
Stallion stood, a sharpened dagger in his fist.
"You pull those katanas and never use them. Stop disrespecting me. Stop holding back."
Tora got back to his feet. The slap still rang through him.
"I guess so."
Stallion came forward through the fog. The lighthouse beam swept across his bulk. Tora sheathed the long blades and drew a short one. They became silhouettes trading hands and elbows, sharp martial strikes. Tora pressed harder, driving Stallion back. He threw Stallion toward the lighthouse. Stallion's answering punch missed Tora and struck the structure hard enough to make the whole tower shudder.
"There's a man inside I knocked out with sleeping meds. Be careful!"
Tora's warning went ignored. He forced the fight back toward the cliff—running, leaping, both legs slamming into Stallion. He stretched his fingers once, then cracked a slap across Stallion's face like a whip. The mask deformed further but stayed on.
Tora drew a katana again, aiming for the neck. Stallion blocked, seized him, and hurled him away. Tora landed on both feet.
Then he laughed.
It started low, almost private. Stallion froze for half a second. The sound grew, rolling out across the fog, raw and wrong coming from Tora.
"ALL RIGHT, STALLION. ENOUGH PLAYING. LET'S GO ALL OUT. I KNOW YOU'VE GOT MORE."
The tone had changed. Something colder spoke now.
"ALL RIGHT. YOU GOT ME."
Stallion grinned under the ruined mask.
Tora stopped moving.
"I want to show you why I'm your Supreme Commander."
The words carried pure intent. Both men settled into readiness.
Then.
The cliff edge gave way beneath them.
They dropped into the water below.
Orchid Mantis stepped forward from the higher rocks where she had been standing the entire time, looking down while they swam for the shore. Stallion came up furious. Tora collected his gear.
"You have five weeks."
Tora left without another word.
"Why did you do that?!"
Stallion turned on Orchid Mantis, rage rolling off him like heat.
"He would have killed you, idiot." she yelled
Stallion started forward again. Orchid Mantis cut him off.
"We're going back to Kâvènnto. It's not worth it tonight."
Tora slipped into Jane's house without a sound and found Grey Owl waiting.
"I guess you had a fight. Hope you didn't kill anyone."
"I almost went all out on Stallion. I was going to kill him".
Tora leaned against the door
"I tried to hold it in, but… I'm glad Orchid Mantis got there when she did. It would have turned messy."
"It would have been all right. Stallion is strong enough to stand near a Supreme Commander. He still has the edge in pure strength."
"I'm glad you didn't end yourselves. We'll need every fighter we can keep. Jane just left to speak with Benjamin. They finally made contact."
Outside, an engine started. Jane drove into the night.
Two hours later she reached Benjamin's house. He looked tense the moment she stepped inside and asked her to sit.
"It's been nine weeks, Benjamin. No calls. Nothing."
"I know. I'm sorry. The plan we talked about earlier… it might not work."
His legs shook. His eyes stayed on the floor.
"Why? What happened?"
He set a box on the table.
"Open it."
She hesitated, then lifted the lid.
Inside lay a real human skull, painted black, two fingers fixed into the eye sockets.
Jane's hand rose to her mouth.
"Barron knows."
Benjamin's voice cracked.
"Doom is upon us all, Jane."