Fusion and Iron

8. Future's Collapse

Silence.

A horrible wind swept across the barren wasteland that was once Sector V. The suburban homes, the busy streets, the street ornaments, they were all gone. All that remained was simply cracked earth and crumbled bits of rock. The last remnants of a happy life were now erased. A toxic green fog rolled over the ground, enveloping it like a shroud. It was like nature had succumbed to the poison, rotting and sinking into the dirt beneath it. The crumbled stress had vines wrapped around broken structures like tendrils, while some wildflowers stubbornly grew past the pavement. Even they were falling weak to the horrible infection. The earth was just hollow, the last of all good things gone.

Among the ruins were wandering fusion monsters. They slithered and stalked through the wreckage, admiring their newly found home and searching for any survivors hidden within the depths. They were disgusting, mutated beyond recognition, ever-so hungry for the next ounce of human flesh. They searched aimlessly for something to destroy, yet there was nothing left but dust and decay.

The air was thick with the weight of loss. Distant, mournful howls from suffering animals echoed through the quiet streets, blending with the rustling of dead leaves and the creaking ruins. The buildings just felt like gravestones which marked the end of an era. This base was just a graveyard; that's all that was left. As the sun dipped below the horizon, casting long, orange shadows over the wreckage, the very land seemed to mourn, and hope was lost. Survival here was no longer an ambition but a cruel punishment.

From the remains of what seemed an untouched suburban home, a thrashing sound broke the oppressive quiet. Three figures emerged, two of them crudely carried by a figure in a suit of black with the faintest hue of purple. His void-black shoes clicked on the shattered ground, a blood-red cloak flowing in the wind. Two glowing skulls were marked over his chest, and a bright green flame flickered just above his head. A pair of cold, crackling red eyes looked around at the horizon like an animal.

In both of his hands, he clutched two victims. Fusion Demongo had arrived on the scene, holding a prideful chin high.

Tattered and beaten, the boy hung limply in his left hand. His once-proud chrome academy armor had crumbled, scraped, and torn from the brutal fight that had left him barely alive. Young Niles looked horrified, exhausted from the pain. His left eye was swollen black, with cuts and bruises covering his body up and down. Every breath of his was light, clinging on to life desperately.
The demon's slender fingers curled around his neck, almost stabbing him in the throat with the nail-like fingertips. Niles' head drooped, his body weak, but his eyes—blurry and bloodshot—still facing the ruined world in front of him. He was outmatched, terrified, and lost in the wreckage of what was once his dear home.

In Demongo's other hand, the woman couldn't hold on much longer. Blossom, the once-mighty leader, was now at the mercy of his cruel grasp. Her clothes were torn and bloodstained, her body battered and bruised. Her long ginger hair was tangled over her face, bits of it melted off by close calls ruining her beautiful look. Her eyes were hollow, also staring blankly in the distance. She couldn't feel any ounce of strength or wisdom left in her, just sorrow and defeat. She couldn't bear to process what was happening, the total obliteration of her world. She just hung like a broken doll in the demon's grip, bouncing slightly as the fusion creature hovered above the ground.

Fusion Demongo tilted his head, lifting the two captives higher. His head swiveled unnaturally. A click echoed in the vast distance, an unnatural and gut-punched ring like calling some unhinged border collie.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

The earth trembled with each step, the ground quivering beneath the weight of some monstrous beast. From the fog came a monster, humanoid in its shape but distorted. Each step sent ripples across the ground, leaving behind deep, muffin-shaped craters where its foot stubs were planted.