The forest trembled again.
A low rumble echoed through the soil, vibrating beneath their boots like a living pulse. Each beat carried the same message — something enormous was coming.
Ragna's squad stood still, surrounded by fog and the scent of blood. Their breathing grew shallow, eyes darting through the mist that refused to clear. Even the faint rustle of leaves had vanished, smothered under the weight of an unseen presence.
Then… the trees ahead began to move.
Not sway — move.
Trunks bent unnaturally as if something beneath them was forcing its way up. The ground cracked, splitting into jagged lines. Small stones started floating in the air, pulled by some invisible force.
Kaen's eyes widened. "The stones… they're rising?"
Riku swallowed hard, stepping back a little. "That's no tremor. That's something… alive."
Before anyone could respond, a deafening roar exploded from the mist — so loud it shattered branches and sent flocks of birds screaming into the sky. The shockwave rippled through their armor, knocking several off balance.
Then they saw it.
The fog parted — and from it stepped a creature that looked as if the earth itself had given birth to rage.
A dinosaur — but unlike any they had ever seen.
Its body towered above the trees, its scales jagged like shattered stone, glowing faintly from beneath with a molten red hue. Massive scars crisscrossed its skin — old wounds from battles long past. Embedded deep in its flesh were shards of rock, fused into its muscles, pulsing like veins of magma.
The beast's eyes glowed faint amber, but its chest — there, near the heart — shimmered with something else: a crystal, half-buried in its skin, radiating with faint energy.
Ragna's expression hardened. "That's no normal beast. That's… something twisted."
The creature moved one claw forward — the impact split the ground open.
Its breath came out like smoke, mixed with the metallic stench of blood. Then, slowly, it tilted its head toward them — and in that single motion, everyone felt their bodies stiffen.
Fear.
Real, animal fear.
Kaori whispered, "It's… looking right at us."
For a heartbeat, nothing happened.
Then, with a guttural roar, the creature struck — smashing its tail across the trees in a single sweeping motion. The air turned into a shockwave. Wood splintered, dirt erupted, and soldiers were thrown off their feet.
Kaen rolled across the ground, coughing blood, his ears ringing.
"Everyone— regroup!" Ragna's voice thundered across the chaos. "Formation Delta! Shields up!"
Boran slammed his hammer into the ground, activating the magnetic locks in their armored boots. Darren and Aya covered the sides, crossbows loaded and ready. Kaori drew her bow, firing several explosive arrows toward the beast's head — but before they could hit, stones materialized in mid-air, blocking the arrows completely.
The explosion barely scratched the rocks.
Riku's jaw dropped. "It… created those out of nothing!"
The dinosaur stepped forward again, and the stones shattered outward like shrapnel. Two soldiers fell instantly — armor torn open, their bodies flung lifelessly into the mud. Blood splattered across the moss, the forest drinking it greedily.
Kaori gasped. "They're dead—!"
"Focus!" Ragna barked, eyes locked on the monster. "We need to move it into the forest. That's our best chance!"
The plan — lure it deeper.
But the creature wasn't going to make that easy.
It roared again, shaking the air itself. Chunks of rock began forming along its spine, twisting and reshaping into sharp projectiles. Then, with a violent jerk of its head, it launched them — a barrage of stone spikes raining like arrows from the sky.
"Take cover!"
The forest exploded around them. Trees splintered, earth cratered, screams filled the air. Kaen grabbed Kaori by the arm, pulling her behind a fallen trunk just as a spike impaled the ground where she'd been standing. The impact sent shards slicing through their armor. Kaen winced — a cut along his shoulder burned hot.
"Damn it!" he hissed, blood dripping down his arm.
Darren stood his ground, deflecting one of the spikes with the flat of his hammer — but the sheer force sent him crashing backward into a boulder. Aya ran to him immediately, helping him to his feet.
"It's not just brute strength," she said, panting. "It's thinking."
Ragna's gaze sharpened. "And learning."
The creature stopped for a moment, studying them. Its amber eyes flickered, focusing. Then — the crystal embedded in its chest pulsed brighter. The stones around the clearing began to float again, circling it like an orbit of death.
A low hum filled the air.
Kaen felt it in his bones. "It's charging something!"
"Move!" Ragna shouted.
They dove aside as the dinosaur unleashed a shockwave of stones — thousands of shards ripping through the air like bullets. The forest turned red. Leaves and bodies alike were shredded. The screams of the injured echoed through the trees.
When the dust settled, half of Boran's squad lay unmoving. Blood ran in streams down the roots.
Kaori pressed her trembling hand against the ground, staring at the devastation. "We… we can't beat this thing head-on."
Ragna clenched his teeth, eyes narrowing. "We won't. We'll outsmart it."
He turned to Boran, who was wiping blood from his brow, armor cracked from the shockwave. "You take Jin, Kaen, Riku — lead it deeper. Make it chase you. We'll be ready."
Boran grinned, the kind only battle-hardened soldiers make when staring at death. "Understood, captain. Let's give it a reason to follow."
As Boran's squad sprinted into the forest, the creature's head turned slowly — and with another ear-splitting roar, it gave chase. Every step it took cracked the earth, uprooted trees, and sent tremors through the soil.
The hunt had begun.
---
Behind them, Ragna watched the chaos unfold. His knuckles were white against the shaft of his spear.
Aya glanced at him. "Sir… do you think they can make it?"
Ragna's voice was low. "They have to."
He looked once more into the forest — where the sounds of pursuit faded into distant destruction.
"The beast bleeds. That means it can die."
But as the ground trembled again, and the faint red glow of the creature's crystal pulsed through the fog like a heartbeat, even Ragna's eyes darkened with doubt.
The monster wasn't just alive.
It was evolving.
The forest was silent — unnaturally silent.
Only the faint rustle of leaves echoed, disturbed by the distant beat of heavy steps.
The Ragna Squad moved through the dense mist, their breaths visible in the cold air. The ground trembled softly beneath their boots. Every step forward felt heavier, as if the forest itself was warning them to turn back.
"Stay alert," Ragna murmured, his eyes scanning through the fog.
Even without words, the rest understood. The scent of blood still lingered from the last battle — sharp, metallic, unforgettable.
Then it came.
A roar — deep, guttural, monstrous — shook the forest like thunder. Birds scattered into the air. The ground split, trees cracked, and the very sky seemed to tremble.
When the mist cleared, they saw him.
The dinosaur was colossal.
Its hide was layered with scars from countless battles, its flesh partly fused with jagged stones that glowed faintly beneath the skin. Massive crystal-like rocks protruded from its spine and arms, pulsing like a heartbeat.
Every breath it took released dust and fragments of gravel from its body — as if it was breathing out the earth itself.
Kaori whispered, "What... what is that thing?"
No one answered.
The creature raised its head and roared again, shattering branches and shaking the canopy. Rocks formed beneath its claws as it stepped forward — and wherever it stepped, the ground hardened into stone.
It wasn't just a beast. It was the forest's curse given form.
---
"Split into two groups," Ragna commanded instantly, his tone cold and focused. "Team Boran, lure it toward the deep valley. We'll set the trap there. Don't engage unless necessary."
Boran nodded, gripping his blade. "Understood."
Within seconds, the team divided.
Jin, Kaori, Riku, Kaen, Boran, and two others sprinted toward the left ridge, shadows weaving between the trees.
Ragna, Draxion, Darren, and Aya stayed behind, preparing the trap — a massive pit lined with sharpened stakes, barely hidden by fallen leaves and mud.
---
Boran's squad moved silently, but stealth meant nothing before a creature that could sense vibration.
A sudden rumble — and the beast's tail swung like a boulder.
It crashed through trees, sending shards of bark and stone flying. Jin barely rolled aside as a massive rock spike burst from the ground where he stood.
"He can control the ground!" Kaori shouted.
"No—" Riku gasped, eyes wide. "He's making it! The stones are growing from his body!"
The dinosaur's skin shifted, shedding rough plates that fell and exploded into smaller rock spikes around them. A storm of stone shards rained down, slicing through branches, cutting skin, and tearing through armor.
Kaen's shoulder was grazed; blood trickled down his arm.
"Keep moving! Don't stop!" Boran roared.
They had one goal — draw it in.
Jin and Riku took the lead, darting through the trees, deliberately exposing themselves. The dinosaur's glowing eyes locked onto them. It let out a thunderous roar and charged, crushing trees like paper beneath its claws.
The earth shook violently, each step a miniature quake.
Behind them, Kaori and Boran hurled flares to mark the direction for Ragna's squad. The signal was seen.
---
At the trap site, Ragna's group was ready.
"Positions!" Ragna ordered. Draxion stood with his weapon drawn, Aya prepared the detonator.
The ground rumbled louder — the beast was near.
From the shadows, Jin and Riku burst into view, panting, covered in dirt and blood.
"Now!" Ragna yelled.
They leapt aside just as the colossal beast broke through the clearing — and fell straight into the pit. The ground shattered beneath its weight, and a deafening crash followed as spikes tore into its flesh.
Dust. Silence.
For a moment, hope flickered.
Then — movement.
The creature roared, and stone shards erupted from its body like an explosion. The spikes that had pierced it shattered instantly, and it began clawing its way out.
The pit that was supposed to kill it became its weapon.
Rocks surged upward, impaling trees, smashing the squad's cover.
"Fall back!" Ragna shouted, but a boulder the size of a house flew past, striking the ground near them. Darren was thrown backward, blood spraying from his mouth.
Boran rushed forward, slashing at the dinosaur's leg. His blade barely left a mark — the stone plating deflected it like steel.
"Damn it, nothing's working!" he cursed.
Kaori fired another shot, the bullet ricocheting off the creature's skin. Riku launched a chain-blade strike at its neck — it embedded, but the monster simply moved, dragging Riku through the air like a rag doll before slamming him into the ground.
Blood splattered across the stones.
---
"Cover Riku!" Kaen yelled, his tone filled with fury.
He sprinted through the chaos, ignoring the shards piercing his arms and legs. He leapt onto a tree trunk, using his Shadow Stalker tool to propel himself higher, faster, scaling the height above the beast.
From above, the battlefield looked like hell — smoke, blood, debris, and the massive form of the creature tearing through everything.
Kaen tightened his grip on his blade.
"This is for everyone you killed…" he muttered and leapt.
He descended with a scream, aiming for the monster's neck — but before his strike landed, the beast turned, its tail swinging upward.
Kaen's body was thrown midair — he would have been crushed had a bright flash not split the air.
Clang!
A figure intercepted the blow — tall, calm, and scarred.
"Captain… Ryn?" Kaen gasped, coughing blood.
Ryn stood firm, sword drawn, the tail of the beast inches away from him.
"Still alive," Ryn said with a faint grin. "Good."
The dinosaur roared again, shaking the forest, but Ryn didn't flinch.
"Everyone, regroup. I'll take the front."
His voice carried the weight of command — and for the first time that day, the squad felt hope.
---
The storm of stones began once more.
But this time, there was someone who didn't back down.
Ryn dashed forward, his movements precise and brutal. Every swing of his sword shattered the stones mid-air before they could hit the squad. He moved like a ghost through dust and chaos.
"Captain's… insane," Darren muttered weakly, half-smiling.
"Insane or not, he's here," Ragna said, eyes burning with renewed fire.
The squad reformed, covering each other as they fought back. Boran shielded the wounded, Kaori took ranged support, Jin and Riku guarded the flanks, and Kaen, despite his injuries, joined Ryn in offense.
Together, they pushed back against the storm.
The dinosaur howled, angered, bleeding from dozens of wounds — but not yet defeated. The crystals on its body pulsed brighter, absorbing the blood from the ground.
Ryn noticed, eyes narrowing.
"This… is just the beginning," he muttered.
---
The roar echoed through the forest again, louder than before.
The air itself trembled. The stones on its back started to shift — forming wings made of jagged crystal.
And then — darkness swallowed the forest.
The light faded, leaving only glowing fragments of stone floating around them, like stars in a nightmare.
Ryn raised his blade, the squad standing behind him, battered but unbroken.
"Everyone," he said quietly, "don't blink."
The monster opened its mouth — and the world turned to dust.