The city still smoldered from the clash with the Abysmal Abomination, the air thick with dust, smoke, and the acrid tang of burnt stone. Buildings were reduced to skeletal frames, streets cratered, and the cries of civilians mingled with the dying screeches of aberrant insects. Yet even amidst the ruin, the hunters—Ash, Kael, Riven, Juno, and Lunaria—stood poised, their eyes fixed on the horizon.
From the distance, the ground quaked in unison. Millions of aberrant insects marched forward, hundreds of thousands of them already visible even to the human eye, but the truly terrifying fact was clear: the Hive Queen herself had sent nearly all her children to lead this assault. Only the one with innate abyssal-chaos power, the prodigy, remained behind, guarded at the center of her formation.
The children, now fully matured, towered over ordinary hunters. Their exoskeletons glimmered with the infusion of chaos and abyssal energy. Wings unfurled like banners of doom, claws gleamed with lethal precision, and their psychic coordination allowed them to move as one, adapting instantly to any attack or threat. They moved in structured formation: the weaker units pressed forward, the stronger ones formed the midline, and the apex of their power—the abyssal-chaos-infused children—took position at the very center, their presence enough to make even S-ranked hunters hesitate.
Lunaria inhaled steadily. His fused ultimate skill hummed faintly around him, shadows and chaos energy coiling in anticipation. This was no longer a test, no longer a diversion. This was the Queen's real assault.
Ash stepped forward, scanning the swarm. "Lunaria… there are millions. And they move like a single entity. If they break through, the city is gone."
Lunaria's silver hair shifted as he glanced toward the horizon, his calm demeanor steady against the overwhelming tide. "Then we move as one. Each step they take, we counter. Each advance, we stop. This is the line they will not cross."
Kael clenched his fists. "We'll hold, no matter what. But… how do we stop all of them?"
Riven's eyes narrowed. "We exploit the formation. The weaklings in the front can be cut down quickly, but the center is the danger—the children."
Juno's hand rested on her weapon. "We'll need precise strikes. We can't waste energy. One misstep, and they'll overwhelm us."
The ground quaked again. The swarm pressed closer, moving as a living wave. The weak units surged forward, their sheer numbers a tidal force that threatened to crush the first line of defense. They clicked, hissed, and lashed, driven by the psychic guidance of the Queen. The stronger units shifted in response, closing gaps and protecting the abyssal-chaos children at the center.
Lunaria stepped forward, letting the fused energy from his ultimate skill swirl around him, the shadow and chaos flames reacting to the incoming threat. "We strike fast. Hit the front, force them to break formation, and exploit the opening to reach the center."
Ash nodded. "We move together. No one strays."
With a synchronized motion, they advanced. Lunaria's speed rivaled the S-ranked hunters beside him, a blur weaving between the advancing weaklings. Each strike was precise: shadows coiled around limbs, chaos flames licked across wings and carapaces, and the weaker units fell in clouds of black dust and burning energy.
Kael and Riven coordinated attacks, blasting through the midline, while Juno targeted the joint points of the stronger units. The children, sensing the incursion, surged forward to fill the gaps.
The battle became a symphony of destruction. Every clash, every swing, every pulse of abyss and chaos was choreographed. The ground trembled with every step, the air shimmered with heat and energy, and the city around them became both stage and weapon.
From the rear of the swarm, the Queen observed. She did not interfere directly, letting her children fight and test the hunters. Her eyes, however, never left Lunaria, reading every move, every pulse of energy. The prodigy remained behind, hidden and protected at the center of the formation, its power coiling like a predator waiting for its moment.
Lunaria's fused skill flared brighter as he engaged the central abyssal-chaos children. Shadows and fire intertwined, striking with precision, deflecting psychic attacks and countering movements that could have overwhelmed even seasoned hunters.
The Queen's children adapted instantly, their movements flowing like water around obstacles, shifting to protect the nucleus of their formation. The air hummed with tension, a living orchestra of psychic resonance, abyssal energy, and chaos flames.
Ash, Kael, Riven, and Juno fought beside Lunaria, each strike calculated, each movement precise. They held the formation, cutting down the front lines, forcing gaps, but every step forward came at a cost—minor injuries, exhaustion creeping into muscles, and the relentless pressure of facing monsters that adapted to every attack.
Lunaria's silver hair gleamed in the chaos, his voice steady, commanding, as he guided his allies. "Keep moving. Exploit the gaps. Aim for the children, not the swarm."
The Queen's psychic voice echoed in his mind, cold and calculated. "You cannot stop them all. Every child is a weapon, every movement perfect. Fail, and all falls."
Lunaria's gaze hardened. "Then I will not fail."
He unleashed a wave of his fused ultimate skill, shadows and chaos fire colliding in an explosion that carved a path straight through the midline. The abyssal-chaos children faltered momentarily, giving Ash the opening to strike a lethal blow to one of the smaller units. Kael and Riven followed, their combined force dismantling the protection around the Queen's brood.
The battle raged across the streets, a cacophony of destruction, psychic pulses, and elemental flares. Buildings crumbled, smoke and dust filled the sky, and every step Lunaria took left devastation in his wake. The Queen's children countered relentlessly, but the combined precision of the hunters and Lunaria's fused skill allowed them to maintain control.
Finally, after a relentless barrage of attacks, Lunaria, with Ash, Kael, Riven, and Juno, managed to isolate and annihilate the last of the abyssal-chaos children that had been sent forward. Their bodies dissolved into black and crimson energy, a testament to the precision and power of the hunters' combined effort.
The swarm wavered, confusion rippling through the ranks, but the Queen herself remained untouched, her prodigy waiting at the very center. The battlefield was silent, save for the wind, the distant collapse of buildings, and the labored breathing of the hunters.
Lunaria lowered his blade, shadows dissipating slowly, but his eyes remained fixed on the horizon. "This is far from over," he said. "The Queen still has her prodigy. And she will not be idle."
Ash rested a hand on his shoulder, voice tense but determined. "We held them back. For now."
Kael nodded. "Next, we prepare. She'll strike again, and her power is still beyond anything we've faced."
Riven's eyes flickered toward the distant center of the swarm. "And that child… it's something else entirely. Even the Queen's children couldn't match its power."
Juno's voice was soft, but firm. "Then we must be ready. Together."
The city lay in ruin, but amidst the smoke and debris, Lunaria and his allies stood tall. They had won the first wave, survived the Queen's assault, and proven their strength against the abyssal-chaos army. Yet the true threat remained—the prodigy, the Queen herself, and the inevitability of a battle that would decide the fate of the city.
And above it all, the Hive Queen's eyes glimmered with unwavering intent, her psychic connection with the remaining brood pulsing like a heartbeat across the battlefield.
> The war was far from over