Unwritten Mythos

Reverse

"So, you let yourself get captured on purpose?" Raven asked, a trace of confusion slipping into her usually sharp tone.

Chino shrugged, his expression unreadable. "On some level, yes. That shadow-wielding guy is strong, I can't deny that. I couldn't exactly overpower him."

Raven raised an eyebrow. "But you could have avoided being captured?"

A thin smile crept across Chino's face. "Of course. It wasn't as easy for him as he might've thought. But he had something... something that belongs to me. To figure it out, I let myself get caught. If I hadn't wanted to, with my army of hundreds of thousands of Fish-Men, I could've wiped out Kitsune myself."

The sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the corridor, cutting the conversation short.

From the far end of the hall, a blonde woman sauntered into view, her movements lazy and graceful. "Well, looks like everyone's here," she said, her voice light.

Raven narrowed her eyes. "Wait... were you captured on purpose too?"

Vex blinked, tilting her head innocently. "Captured? Oh no, that's not it."

"Then how did you escape?" Han asked, his curiosity piqued.

A slow, mischievous smile spread across Vex's lips. "Well, it's a little embarrassing, but all the ones observing and recording my info happened to be men."

"And?" Raven frowned, clearly not following.

Vex's smile turned charming. "Let's just say, after getting to know me a little better, they couldn't help but fall for me. When they heard there were orders to execute me, they... took matters into their own hands. They let me go and then fought among themselves."

Her eyes flickered over the blackened, charred body on the ground. "Is that... Spider?" she asked.

Han nodded, crossing his arms. "Yep. Impressive that you can still recognize him."

Vex sighed, a note of regret in her voice. "What a shame. I was hoping to turn him into my Guard Bee. Didn't expect him to burn out so fast."

Chino chuckled, glancing at her. "Seems we think alike. I had similar plans for these people. Turn them into Deep Ones. I'm certain they'd prove... quite useful."

Before anyone could reply, the soft hum of machinery caught their attention. The elevator at the end of the corridor whirred to life, and the four of them turned their gazes toward it, watching as the doors slid open.

From within the lift, a muscular man stepped out. He froze, eyes wide as he took in the sight before him — Raven, Chino, Han, and Vex,

The man blinked in confusion, his face paling. He opened his mouth to speak but no words came out.

"What... the hell...?"

...

Within the crack space, Mei gazed into the outside world, watching the muscular man stumble into view. With a flick of her finger, she nudged the invisible thread of his fateline. It was so fragile, it snapped with the slightest touch.

In the same instant, a whirling electric fan, already sent spiraling out of control, sliced through the air with lethal precision. Its blades caught the man's neck, sawing through with brutal efficiency. Blood sprayed in arcs, painting the scene in crimson as the man's head fell. From the gory display, a small stream of fire flew through the air, coiling into Mei's hand.

The fan, as though alive with malevolent intent, continued its path forward, tearing through the space, only to meet a new group of Kitsune soldiers charging down the corridor.