My Shard Bearer System - Elias's Legacy
Chapter 161: Bloody Madness

Chapter 161: Bloody Madness

"The Federation’s got too tight a grip on the shards. Maybe all this—the contest, the failures, the chaos—it’s not just coincidence. What if this is punishment? For trying to serve both sides."

The hum of the pod’s systems continued behind him. Still running. Still steady.

Elias didn’t answer. The lights flickered again as the corridor stretched out behind them, pipes still glinting in the low light.

Cube X hadn’t lost control.

It just hadn’t decided what to do with it yet.

Elias shook his head once, jaw clenched. He started to speak, but the system prompt flickered into view above the group—Save a life. 24 minutes remaining.

The glow pulsed in steady rhythm, a silent countdown pressing into the back of his mind.

Paul took a single step forward. His Ikona flickered low at his side, the dim light casting a tired sheen across his face.

"Even so, this—" he began, voice weighted, uncertain.

He didn’t finish.

Vira’s serpent reared before he could. Blood streamed faster from its open maw, splattering in sharp lines across the floor.

"Alright, that’s enough."

Her voice cut clean through the pod’s stale air. Sharp. Certain. Her eyes narrowed, the threat already in motion.

"Jasmine and Culdrin are holding off the backup. We don’t have time. I need the one who opens portals."

She raised a hand. Just a twitch of the finger.

The guards’ rifles jerked in unison. Blood slid beneath their boots again, thin red trails curling across the debris-littered floor. The pod’s walls hummed—soft, steady—sensors active. The air itself felt like it might snap.

Cube X was watching. Listening. Letting this play out.

Elias’s pulse jumped.

His hands stayed raised, but his fingers curled slightly. The prompt still hovered in the corner of his vision. 24 minutes left. Each second ticked louder in his head.

"Po... portals?" he said. His voice broke on the word.

He swallowed hard and forced the rest out, slower.

"We can still talk this down. No one has to get hurt."

The words barely reached his own ears.

The cry from the explosion still echoed in his memory—distant, but unresolved. His shard gave another pulse. Dot’s hum vibrated low in his wrist, steady beneath the noise.

The pod lights flickered again. Elias looked to the reflections on the cracked screen ahead—distorted fragments of the others’ faces.

Kikaru. Distrust locked into her jaw.

Faye. Pale, her Ikona trembling behind her shoulder.

Tidwell. Arms tight. Knife low.

Paul. Still holding ground, but hesitating now.

Junjio. Shaking. Not even pretending he wasn’t.

Wes. Unmoving. Focused. Set.

Outside the door, Vardency’s night waited. The chaos hadn’t moved closer—but it hadn’t gone anywhere either.

Vira moved first.

The serpent flared bright across her arm as her finger lifted. The guard to her left staggered forward. His eyes streamed red. The rifle bucked once in his grip.

Then the shot fired.

The air cracked with heat as the blast tore across the space. Dot flared without warning, light rushing from her core—materializing a copper sheet in front of Elias in less than a breath.

The metal held. Then didn’t.

It hissed as it melted through, a burst of molten spray striking his shoulder. Heat surged first—then impact. He hit the floor hard, pain blooming sharp behind his collarbone. His sleeve tore as blood soaked through the fabric, the burn already throbbing deep under the skin.

Another guard stepped forward—his eyes blood-blind, body stiff.

"Kill me," he said.

The words came out broken. Raw.

Vira didn’t look at him.

The serpent wrapped tighter around her arm. The coils dug in.

"I told you," she said. "No more talking."

She stepped once more into the room.

"I need the portal Ikona user."

Her voice held no urgency. No heat. Just the sound of a decision already made.

Blood followed her boots as she moved. The floor crunched beneath her—glass, shell casings, fragments of a life that had been lived in this space just minutes earlier.

The sensors above the pod door buzzed faintly.

Cube X didn’t answer. It just kept recording.

Elias pressed his hand to his shoulder, fingers slick with blood. It had already soaked through the fabric. The pain wasn’t sharp anymore—just steady. Dull. Hot. His breath came in shallow pulls as he glanced up.

The system prompt still floated overhead. Save a life. 24 minutes remaining.

Vira took a slow step forward.

Her serpent Ikona hissed along her arm, the blood at its mouth dripping faster. She tilted her head, almost like she was studying him. Her voice came low, but clear.

"You think you can rush me?"

She raised one hand—not fast. Just enough to show she didn’t need speed.

"My blood pull only needs a scratch. That’s it. One cut, and you’re mine. Like them."

She turned slightly, gesturing to the guards beside her. Their rifles hadn’t lowered. The blood still pooled under their boots, creeping past the pod seams in thin, branching trails.

"You might take me down," she said. "But I’ll kill three of you first."

Then her voice softened.

"We’re not the bad guys here."

The words didn’t echo. They just sat heavy in the room. The blood in the air made the silence feel thicker. No one answered. No one moved.

Around Elias, the others stood locked in place.

Kikaru’s orb hovered higher now, flaring faintly with defensive intent.

Faye’s music Ikona trembled, wings close to her shoulder.

Tidwell’s knife stayed still, but his grip had shifted.

Paul hadn’t spoken again. His weight shifted back on one foot—uncertain.

Junjio’s breath came fast and shallow.

And Wes—Wes hadn’t flinched. Not once.

The hum from the pod’s systems hadn’t changed. But it felt tighter. Like Cube X itself was holding its breath.

Junjio stepped forward readying himself thinking he had no other option.

His hands trembled openly now, fingers twitching at his sides. His Ikona flickered dim beside his arm. The glow wasn’t steady. Neither was his footing. His eyes were wide, and he wasn’t looking at anyone.