NOVPUBThe arena descended into chaos, screams erupting from every direction as students collapsed around them. Noah stood motionless for a moment, his dark eyes taking in the unfolding disaster while his mind raced ahead, mapping patterns in the attack, identifying threats, calculating probabilities. A flush of adrenaline sharpened his senses as he watched masked figures pour through every entrance.
'Three objectives,' he thought. 'Stop the sedative, disrupt their coordination, and protect the students from being drained.'
Beside him, Sophie and Kelvin had already risen to their feet, faces grim with determination. Noah didn't waste breath on explanations they didn't need.
"Kelvin, whatever they're pumping into the air—can you stop it?"
Kelvin's eyes narrowed behind his glasses. "Environmental controls. South maintenance corridor." His fingers moved to his temple, pressing a spot just above his right eyebrow. A blue light emanated as a compartment in his forehead opened—not mechanical but a seamless blend of technology and flesh. He extracted two small devices no larger than earbuds. Neural storage, every good technopath had one.
"Molecular filtration breathers," he explained, handing one each to Noah and Sophie. "Not much, but they'll keep us conscious."
Noah inserted the device into his nostrils, feeling it expand slightly. "We stick together. Kelvin on systems, Sophie on defense coordination."
His eyes swept the arena, noting the patterns of attack. Purge operatives moved with practiced efficiency, some eliminating staff and security, others methodically targeting students. But what caught his attention was how they seized unconscious students—hands glowing with dark chi, a sickly reddish-white energy flowing from their palms into strange devices pressed against the victims' temples.
"They're draining abilities," Noah said quietly. "Just like the commander in the underground railway,"
Sophie had already begun scanning the stands, her military upbringing evident in her posture. "We need to establish defensive positions at choke points. Where's my father?"
Noah knew why she asked. The defensive positions was something they should have set up a while back. Something, minister Reign should have. Noah followed her gaze to the VIP section. The Minister of Defense's seat sat conspicuously empty amidst the chaos and blood.
"Want to go find him?" Noah asked, though he already knew her answer.
Sophie's jaw tightened. "He's the minister. He can handle himself. These people need us more." 𝒏𝒐𝒗𝒑𝒖𝒃.𝙘𝒐𝒎
Across the arena, Commander Owen moved with surprising speed for his build. A Purge operative charged him with a weapon drawn, only for Owen to seize the man's wrist, twist it until bones snapped, and then drive a fist into his sternum with such force that the operative was thrown backwards a full fifteen feet.
"Look," Kelvin whispered, pointing toward the far side of the arena.
Multiple identical figures moved through the chaos—each with Miss Brooks' face, each glowing with ethereal blue light. One seized a Purge operative by the throat, lifting him with inhuman strength before exhaling blue mist directly into his face. The man went rigid, eyes bulging with terror, before slumping into a waking nightmare state.
"Right on schedule," Noah murmured, a grim smile touching his lips. He'd had his suspicions about Brooks since say one which was why he'd been quietly arranging for her to be their ace in the hole without even her conscious knowledge. Whatever she was—and he still wasn't entirely sure—her projections were proving formidable allies.
"What the hell is she?" Kelvin whispered.
"Later," Noah replied. "South maintenance corridor. Now."
The three moved swiftly through the panicking crowd, Noah's eyes constantly scanning for threats. Above them, Lucas and Jayden still hovered in their transformed states, confusion evident as they tried to process the sudden shift from combat to catastrophe.
Noah caught Lucas's eye and signaled toward the east exit. Lucas nodded in understanding—they needed evacuation routes. Without words, Lucas turned to Jayden whose plasma form radiated destructive heat. "You hear that, hothead? Truce until we deal with these bastards."
Jayden snarled, blue flames intensifying. "Don't think this makes us friends, Grey."
"Wouldn't dream of it," Lucas replied coldly. "East exit. You take south."
As Noah led his friends toward the maintenance access, a familiar voice cut through the chaos from nearby speakers.
"Students of the Academies," the voice announced, somehow both warm and clinical simultaneously. "The cleansing has begun. Do not resist. Those who cooperate will be spared unnecessary suffering."
"That's Vice Commander Albright," Sophie whispered, disdain evident in her voice.
"Another traitor," Noah replied, not slowing his pace.
They reached the maintenance corridor entrance, only to find it guarded by two Purge operatives. Noah didn't hesitate—he simply pointed at the first guard and whispered, "Void Bullet."
A concentrated bullet of void energy shot from his fingertip, striking the operative in the chest. The man's eyes widened in shock as the void energy dispersed throughout his body, disrupting cellular cohesion. He collapsed, target area already beginning to dissolve at a molecular level.
The second guard turned, hands glowing with dark chi, but Sophie was already moving. She closed the distance with three precise steps, ducked under his energy-laden strike, and drove her knee into his diaphragm. As he doubled over, she seized his head and twisted sharply. The crack echoed down the corridor.
"Clean," Noah said, half surprised, half impressed as they stepped over the bodies. There was no time for half measures not when they were at war.
The maintenance corridor stretched before them, dimly lit and surprisingly quiet compared to the chaos outside. Kelvin took the lead now, his technopathic senses guiding them toward the environmental controls.
"Something's wrong," he muttered, slowing as they approached a junction. "I'm sensing active systems interference. Someone's already at the controls."
Noah held up a hand, signaling them to stop. He edged forward, peering around the corner to see Adrian Albright standing at an access panel, fingers manipulating holographic controls.
"Albright," Noah whispered, pulling back. "Working for the Purge."
Kelvin's face hardened. "Let me handle this. I've got something special for traitors."
Noah shook his head. "We go together. Sophie, left flank. Kelvin, be ready with your toys. I'll take point."
They moved as a unit, months spent together evident in their synchronized approach. Adrian sensed them too late, spinning around as they entered the control hub.
"Stay back!" Adrian warned, finger pointed at them, glowing with gathering energy. "I'm under direct orders from the Vice Commander. This facility belongs to the Purge now."
"Always knew you were an asshole, Albright," Kelvin said conversationally. "Didn't realize you were a traitor too."
Adrian's face twisted with contempt. "Traitor? You're the ones betraying humanity's future. The Purge understands what's coming. What the Void is actually revealing."
Noah's interest sharpened at this because this was what the Purge commander had told Lucas. However, there wasn't time to interrogate. Adrian's finger pulsed brighter, energy coalescing at its tip.
"Down!" Noah shouted as Adrian fired.
The beam of destructive energy shot toward Kelvin's head. At that very moment, a small cube detached from one of Kelvin's shirt buttons, expanding rapidly into a defensive barrier that absorbed the impact before exploding in a cloud of gray smoke.
When it cleared, Kelvin stood protected inside a shimmering barrier of nanites, beast plates forming a second layer of defense over vital areas of his body.
"You know," Kelvin said, adjusting his glasses as the smoke dissipated, "I was just thinking I should reinforce the frontal deflection matrix. Thanks for the field test, traitor."
Adrian began channeling energy through both hands now, preparing for a more substantial attack. Noah stepped forward, void energy rippling around his fingertips.
"Kelvin, handle the systems. Sophie and I will deal with him."
Adrian fired again, multiple beams of energy surging toward them. Noah didn't bother dodging—instead, he raised his hand and activated Void Absorption. The energy struck his palm and simply disappeared. Heat was one of the more simple energies he could absorb.
"That's not possible," Adrian whispered, genuine fear crossing his face.
"You have no idea what's possible," Noah replied, then gestured to Sophie. "He's all yours."
At that very moment, Adrian's hand began to glow again as he released yet another blast. But something odd happened as his hands jerked awkwardly and he missed by a mile. Sophie moved like water, closing the distance before Adrian could prepare another attack.
Her first strike disabled his right arm, the second collapsed his left knee, and the third—an open-palm strike to his sternum—sent him crashing into the wall hard enough to crack the reinforced concrete.
When it came to hand to hand combat, she was the best barring Noah.
'Something about her luck today is just on point,' Noah thought as he watched her.
"Purge knows nothing about me," Adrian gasped, blood trickling from his mouth. "I volunteered. For the future."
Sophie seized him by the throat. "Last chance. Tell us how to purge the sedative from the air systems."
Adrian smiled through bloody teeth. "Already... too late."
Noah placed a hand on Sophie's shoulder. "We don't need him. Kelvin?"
Kelvin was already at the main control panel, fingers dancing across interfaces that responded to his touch with glowing blue lines of code.
"System's fighting me," he muttered, sweat beading on his forehead. "They've got their own technopaths working the back end. But..."
His fingers moved faster, literally blurring as his neural connection with the system deepened.
"Got it," he announced after thirty seconds of intense focus. "Reversing air flow, activating emergency scrubbers. The sedative will start clearing in about two minutes, but it'll take at least ten before it's fully neutralized."
Noah nodded. "Good enough. Let's get back to the arena."
"What about him?" Sophie asked, nodding toward Adrian who was slumped against the wall, still conscious but seriously injured.
Noah considered for only a moment. "We can't waste time on prisoners. Not today."
Sophie understood. With methodical precision, she approached Adrian, seized his head, "I pledge my allegiance to the people of earth. To defend and uphold its sovereignty. Your father said this three years ago when I first made it into the academy. He should have thought you that and he should have lived it too,"
And then she twisted sharply. Another crack echoed through the room.
"Let's move," Noah said, already heading back toward the corridor.
They emerged from the maintenance area to find the situation in the arena had deteriorated further. More students lay unconscious or dead, while those still fighting were gradually being overwhelmed by the sheer number of Purge operatives.
In the center of the arena, Commander Owen had engaged with Vice Commander Albright. Albright hadn't even gotten a chance to detonate or land a single punch yet.
"Noah, look," Sophie whispered, her voice suddenly tight.
Following her gaze, Noah spotted a woman directing Purge operations near the main entrance—a woman with features strikingly similar to Sophie's, but harder, more weathered.
"Is that...?" Kelvin began.
"My mother," Sophie confirmed, her expression unreadable.
Noah studied the woman's movements and the deference shown by the operatives around her. "High-ranking. Possibly command level."
"I thought she died. I mean, I forced myself to believe that over...this. I was really hoping Lila was lying," Sophie said, eyes never leaving her mother's form.
Before Noah could respond, a group of first-year students stumbled toward them, terror etched on their young faces.
"Please help!" one cried. "They're taking people's powers! Draining them somehow!"
Noah's attention shifted immediately to where the boy pointed. Three Purge operatives had cornered a group of unconscious students, hands glowing with dark chi as they methodically pressed devices against the victims' temples. With each connection, reddish-white energy flowed from the student into the device, leaving the victim even paler than before.
"Sophie, coordinate defense," Noah decided quickly. "Get these kids organized with the other upperclassmen still standing. Barriers, projectiles, anything to slow the Purge advance. Kelvin, keep working on the systems—see if you can trigger lockdowns in sections we can defend."
"What are you going to do?" Kelvin asked.
Noah's eyes darkened. "I'm going hunting."
He moved toward the Purge operatives, not bothering with stealth. They noticed his approach, abandoning their victims to face this new threat. The leader raised his hand, dark chi swirling around his fingers like red smoke tinged with white sparks.
"Volunteer for Purge or die," the man demanded.
Noah smiled, but there was no warmth in it. "How about a third option?"
