TRIBE Chronicles: The Complete Saga

[CH3] CHAPTER 15

A battle broke out in the Scale Shield organization, and what ensued was a bloody, one-sided massacre. Bernard's team charged at the armed Scale Shield securities with everything that they got, reaping their enemies in halves and setting up a crimson path for Bernard to walk through.

Bethany engaged herself in a frenzied bloodbath, dashing around with phantom speed and reaping visible enemies apart with a crazed smile on her face. Shadow on the other hand, utilized his 'Hidden Shadow Flame' techniques. He lurked in the shadows, tactically surprising unsuspecting preys in their hiding corners and incinerating them with invisible fire strikes.

Donald and Boid, however, took a less brutal approach, choosing to incapacitate their adversaries with calculated fist strikes, leaving them in a comatose state.

Amidst the pandemonium, Bernard was the only one idle. He strode with an unruffled calm, his somber gaze fixed unwaveringly on the distant end of the door. The maelstrom of brutality unfolding around him only seemed to exist on the periphery of his consciousness as he navigated through the chaos with an expression of indifference.

After a long while of fighting, the horde of Scale Shield securities dwindled with the passing moments. However, one lone guard managed to find a hiding spot amidst the rubble, frantically attempting to reload his firearm in a trembling state of terror.

But his efforts were in vain.

He didn't get the chance to completely reload his gun as Shadow, with a stealth that defied the shadows themselves, quickly sought him out. With a menacing breach through the wall barrier, Shadow seized his prey from behind, swiftly reducing him to ash in an instant.

Triumphantly emerging from the first phase of the battle, Bernard and his comrades regrouped under his leadership, advancing through the designated door with purpose. However, upon entering, their eyes beheld a chilling sight – a myriad of prison cells housing sobbing humans that had been subjected to grotesque experiments.

Surveying the grim tableau before him, Bernard discerned that these tested humans shared the same tragic fate as the captured Crestivenians—thrust into an unwanted existence against their will. But despite this empathy, Bernard, assuming that the existence of these human prisoners would eventually pose a future threat to the TRIBE, made a difficult decision.

With steely resolve, he decided to eradicate the lives of the prisoners confined in their cells.

BERNARD: "Forgive what I must do to you all, but know that I do this for the greater good!" Bernard spoke to all prisoners as he slowly illuminated his sky flames.

A wave of panic swept through the human prisoners as Bernard made his intentions clear. He expressionlessly amassed a huge surge of flame energy, poised to erase them from existence. But in a crucial moment, Donald swiftly intervened, halting Bernard's fiery onslaught. With a measured tone, Donald urged Bernard to pause and reconsider, cautioning against the potential ramifications of a decision that could mark a grave and irreversible mistake in their collective lifetimes.

DONALD: "Stop it, Bernard! These people are innocent victims. You can't just kill them. Take a better look at them before you make a terrible mistake that would haunt us all."

SHADOW: "[Chimes into the conversation.] The humans locked up here are the Scale Shield's failed experiments. Fortunately, the DNA alteration program wasn't successful on them. We should help them, not offer them cold steel, Bernard!" Shadow supported Donald's argument.

BERNARD: "[Contemplates for a while before giving a resignation sigh.] Fine! You guys do whatever you want. It's not like I even give a fuck, anyways. Got bigger priorities on my table right now," replied Bernard as he reluctantly extinguished his flame.