Battle Of Planets

"Yeah, but never mind" Tyson chuckled. "Let's find the core. I don't think we can form the bull formation again..."

"Yeah, that giant hand was... something else," Rudra said, just as a body dropped beside them with a heavy thud.

It was Ken, flung halfway across the battlefield by another golem.

"Ugh, those things are damn annoying," Ken grunted, pulling himself up. "My bullets are basically useless against their sandy layers."

"Yeah, they're a pain in the ass," Tyson admitted, steadying him. "Anyway—no time to chill. Let's move. We need more points."

A few notifications flickered on their HUDs.

[ Ding! Earned 11 Points ]

[ Current Points... 37 ]

[ Ding! volunteers found... but current points are too low to summon him ]

Tyson paused, who was this guy?...

Elsewhere, Lara, Shaun, Red, and Blue fought in tight formation, keeping each other covered through the blinding winds.

Meanwhile, Ron the healer, along with Ken, Rudra, and Tyson, held the line against waves of golems.

And Alex... still fought alone—relentless, cold, unstoppable.

---

Battle Room –

Everyone watched the screen in uneasy silence.

Things were getting stranger the deeper the team ventured. There was still no sign of the core—Just an endless wave of sand golems on the field.

At the far end of the room, the Rogues sat quietly, watching the chaos unfold. Some itched to join. Others hesitated, fear holding them back.

Meanwhile, the Rangers waited for Edward's word.

It had been Edward's strategy to send Rudra in after gauging his capabilities. Edward has planned several moves ahead, seeing potential patterns others missed. But even he knew some variables were beyond his control.

"Sir, let me join them," Mark said.

"You're a warrior, my child," Julien answered gently. "And we already have plenty of those inside."

Julien's gaze lingered on the live feed of Alex, still tearing through golems on his own.

"He's like you, Ed."

"I was smarter," Edward replied dryly, looking away.

Julien chuckled. "Sure you were."

Mark stepped forward. "Then who should we send? They'll need more supporters. Should we send them?"

Ron had indeed helped others, to gain a steady supply of nano-bots amid the fights but he also had his limits and his own reserves might plummet anytime soon.

"They'll need a supporter, yes," Edward said. "but healers won't be able to face boss monsters, they will need a ranged fighter—someone beyond the ordinary."

Across the room, Ryuk avoided Edward's eyes, wishing he'd stayed in his private quarters like usual. But now eyes flicked toward him. He could feel it. Everyone was beginning to notice.

"He's talking about you, it seems," Black, his Meta-bot, murmured.

"I know. Just... shut up."

"I'm hearing your increased heartbeat," Black added. "Are you afraid?"

"Maybe... or maybe I'm nervous, or bored... or—shut up, dammit."

Mark stepped in front of Ryuk, eyes narrowing. "Why are you hiding?"

"I'm not hiding," Ryuk muttered. "I'm n-not interested."

"Hm… If you don't join the raid," Black whispered, "will they still agree to your first Request?"

Ryuk began sweating.

"Request?" Mark echoed, eyes narrowing. "You do know something."

"I'm going to kill you, Black," Ryuk growled. Then he stood up. "Fine. I'll go next—but I want something in return."

The room froze.

Everyone turned toward him, startled. Is he volunteering? Even General Ranked Ranger?

Edward and Julien exchanged looks, shaking their heads.

"Took you long enough," Edward said. "No matter. Go ahead. It's not like I want anything from Earth anyway."

Confused glances passed around the room.

What the hell were they talking about?

Why would a high-ranking Ranger like Ryuk, suddenly volunteer to enter the dangerous terrain? What was this mysterious Request? And why did only three people seem to know what it meant?

Somewhere in the back, Mills raised a brow, debating whether to intervene. Should he let them go through with it? Or should he take this moment to bargain—maybe demand something in return?

For now, he held back. He'd watch. He'd see what unfolds next.

---

"There is a General-ranked guy," Tyson spoke, "he wants to come in"

"Heh? Are they finally moving?" Rudra asked. His drones circled above, smashing into a few of the closer sand golems and reducing them to dust.

Ken fired his pistol, marking smaller golems die while Ron assisted him. "Call them or we're dead!" Ken shouted.

"We need more points," Tyson replied, glancing at Alex—who stood atop a giant golem, stabbing through its thick layers of sand head. "Let's get them as we move. Hurry!"

After a while, Tyson was huffing. Ron looked drained, nearly depleted of all his nanobot reserves.

"Found the core," Rudra reported. "Seven o'clock!"

"Guys, move!" Tyson shouted. His voice rang through their connected Meta-bots, but no one was in shape to keep going. They were too tired, too spent.

"We need to rescue them," Tyson insisted to Rudra.

"I don't think so," Rudra replied, eyes glued to the screen. "We're the closest to the core—they'll focus on us. either we move to core or stay here and die"

He glanced at Ken and Ron, who were on the verge of collapse. "You two have to hold on. This won't be over until we destroy that core."

"We can't..." Ron knelt down, panting. "I'm at thirty percent..."

Tyson gritted his teeth. "Blue, I need you to back them up. Rudra and I are heading forward. You hear me?"

"Like hell! I've got my hands full!" Blue snapped. "Where's Alex, goddamn it?"

Tyson scanned the map—no sign of Alex. He wasn't in the visible radius. Then he spotted him... a lone green dot heading straight for the core.

"Shit. No time. He won't make it through alone." Tyson jumped off a nearby golem and plunged his blade into a larger one's head.

[Ding! Earned 2 points]

[Current Points: 67]

"I can..." Tyson panted, dragging Ken away from a collapsing sand golem. "Stay here. Don't move."

"Roger that," Ken replied weakly.

Tyson tapped the floating card in front of his screen. Somewhere in the storm, a drop echoed—but he couldn't see anything. He only hoped whoever this Ryuk was, he'd be useful.

"I'm leaving their safety to you, Ryuk. And you too, Rudra," Tyson said before dashing toward Alex.

"I'll do my best," Rudra replied. "But we can't hold much longer...Go fast"

Tyson sprinted through the thick sandstorm, eyes fixed on the green blip—Alex. Both of them were zeroing in on the core.

Suddenly, a massive hand burst from beneath. Whitey blinked a rapid warning. Tyson rolled forward just in time as a pile of sand exploded behind him.

"That was close," he huffed. "Let's go, Whitey."

He spotted Alex dodging wildly. Sand hands swarmed around him, trying to snatch him.

"Need a hand?" Tyson asked, shielding Alex from an incoming strike.

"No!" Alex shouted, slashing the hand—but it reformed instantly. "These damn things don't have a core!"

"It's the boss monster," Tyson explained, pointing toward the far center of the battlefield. "Destroy the core, and they'll stop!"

"Then what the hell are we waiting for?" Alex smirked, dodging another blow and charging ahead.

"Wait!" Tyson shouted, frustrated, before running after him.

"Whitey, keep alerting me if I get into danger, alright?" Tyson muttered as he leaped and ducked, never taking his eyes off the glowing object in the distance...

The Core of the Boss Monster.

A blink. Warning came...

Suddenly, Alex's feet sank. "What the fuck!"

"Alex?" Tyson skidded to a stop.

"It's a sand pool," Alex grunted, lying flat to escape. He rolled free with some effort.

Whitey scanned the area and quietly revealed a grid of hidden sand traps to Tyson's vision—something it hadn't done before.

"You can do that too?" Tyson murmured.

Another blink. Yes.

"Wow," Tyson muttered, scanning ahead. "Move to your left—there's hard ground there."

"How the hell do you know?" Alex grumbled but followed the instruction anyway.

Just as he stepped clear of the sinking sand, a massive hand shot up from below, grabbing Alex by the leg and slamming him hard into the ground.

Whitey blinked furiously as the hand then twisted toward Tyson. He staggered back.

The monstrous hand lunged again. Tyson barely managed to summon his shield in time. It struck with a deafening crash, sending Tyson skidding backward across the sand.

Alex groaned, dragging himself up. "How dare he..."

Now both brothers stood still, staring at the distant Core. Around them, no more golems. Instead, countless hands rose from the ground—regenerating, relentless, and far more dangerous.

"This is gonna be a hell of a fight," Tyson muttered.

Then, without warning, a dark chakra shimmered into view beside them. A shadowy figure walked out of the sandstorm.

"Lets finish this..." the figure said, "i wanna go and read my books"