Vortex Origins
Chapter 104: Judgment

Chapter 104: Judgment

The air shifted.

People slowed in their work. Tools stopped clanging. A murmur rippled through the crowd like wind through brittle glass, eyes turning toward Ash and Lane.

Lane stared, frowning.

"What are you talking about?"

Ash didn’t blink.

"Don’t play dumb. This... all of it... started because of you."

The murmuring grew louder. Some turned to each other, whispering names. Others just stared, silent and still.

Lane’s voice sharpened.

"You’re really going to believe him? I’ve bled for this place. Why would I put it at risk?"

Ash stepped forward.

"Then explain it. Why was the asteroid shard in your building?"

Lane hesitated. His lips parted—no words.

Ash’s voice rose like a blade unsheathed.

"Say something!"

Eir moved between them.

"Ash,"

he said, steady.

"Hold. Let him speak."

He turned to Lane, voice softer now.

"Lane... we’ve known each other a long time. You should’ve told me."

Lane exhaled, eyes darting to the crowd, then back to Eir.

"I didn’t know it would bring this... I swear. I got a message. Said if I secured the shard, I’d be paid. A fortune in points."

He gestured vaguely toward the rubble.

"With that, we could finally build. Better walls. Food. Gear. Real safety. I thought—"

Eir’s voice cut in, low and disappointed.

"But why hide it?"

Lane hesitated again. His shoulders slumped.

"Headquarters sent that warning about the asteroid... I knew you’d never approve."

Max’s voice came from the side, quiet but sharp.

"Who sent the offer?"

Lane didn’t answer.

Max stepped forward.

"Who, Lane?"

Lane’s lips moved. A whisper.

"...Apex."

A hush dropped like a hammer.

Even the wind seemed to go quiet.

A flash of steel.

The crowd gasped as Lane’s knees buckled. Blood splattered across the dirt. He hit the ground with a cry, hands reaching instinctively for the wound.

All eyes snapped to Ash.

Max’s voice cracked through the silence.

"Ash! What are you doing?!"

Ash didn’t stop. He walked slowly, blade dripping, gaze locked on Lane.

Lane crawled backward, heels scraping broken stone.

"I—I told you... I didn’t know this would happen! Someone stop him!"

No one moved. Some looked away. Others stared down at their boots. Among them were faces hollowed by loss—mothers, sons, friends. They had buried the charred remains themselves.

Accident or not, the blood traced back to Lane.

Ash stood over him, cold fury boiling just beneath his skin.

"You risked all their lives for a handful of points."

Lane’s breath shook.

"I didn’t mean—!"

A fist drove into his mouth, cutting the lie in half. He sprawled, face smeared with dirt and blood.

"You didn’t let them leave,"

Ash growled, stepping closer.

"Why? When they begged to go—why did you keep them here?"

Lane flinched.

"Their application... wasn’t approved."

Ash dropped to one knee. Another punch. Wet, heavy. Lane spat blood.

"Liar. I know the Terra family really well you see. I know you never sent it."

Silence.

Lane groaned, wiping at his busted lip. His glare rose through swollen eyes.

"Yeah... Fine. You’re right. Is that what you want to hear?"

He turned to Eir.

"I did it for the settlement. Someone had to."

Ash didn’t answer.

But the weight of the crowd, the silence that followed—that said enough.

Eir stepped forward, voice low but firm.

"Lane... you remember what we swore when we built this place? No one stays here against their will. That was the promise."

Lane chuckled, wiping blood from his chin. His teeth were stained red.

"That’s exactly why I didn’t tell you. You’re too soft, Eir. Always thinking these people deserve a choice."

He spat to the side.

"If I hadn’t done what I did, this settlement would’ve rotted from the inside out."

The words hadn’t finished leaving his mouth before another fist crashed into his face.

Then another.

Lane’s head snapped back as Ash pounded him, knuckles splitting skin and jaw.

Eir moved to grab him.

"Kid, stop! That’s enough—!"

Ash didn’t stop. He struck again.

"Because of him,"

Ash growled, breath ragged.

"a good family died—"

Another punch.

"Because of him... this settlement burned—"

Another.

He grabbed Lane by the collar, dragged him up just enough to look him in the eye. His voice trembled—not from fear, but rage that had festered too long.

"And because of this coward, my brothers nearly died."

The next hit sent blood spraying across the ground.

Lane groaned, barely conscious.

Max rushed forward, grabbing Ash’s arm.

"Ash. Stop. He’s done."

Ash stood still, breathing hard, fists trembling.

Around them, no one spoke.

Not because they were afraid.

Because too many agreed.

Ash stepped back, fists still clenched, chest rising and falling with heavy breaths. He turned away from the broken man on the ground.

Behind him, Lane coughed. Blood dripped from his mouth as he pushed up on one elbow. His voice rasped like rust scraping steel.

"Yeah... I didn’t want this,"

he wheezed.

"But if it’s for the settlement—I’d do it again."

He laughed, hoarse and bitter.

"Who do you think you are, attacking me like that? You’re a Stage One. Trash."

Lane raised a trembling hand. A sharp crack echoed. Ice burst from his nail—thin spikes like frozen needles, firing forward.

Time slowed.

To Ash, the sound of the shards tearing through air felt loud, too close. His jaw tightened. People had forgotten what vessels could do.

He moved.

"[Skill: Phantom’s Stride]"

The world stretched thin.

In a blink, he was gone.

Then—there.

In front of Lane.

His foot slammed into Lane’s chest, knocking the air from his lungs. The man hit the ground, hard.

Ash’s blade slid free.

Steel pierced flesh.

Lane’s eyes went wide, breath caught in his throat as the blade sank deep into his neck. Blood gurgled. His limbs twitched once. Then fell still.

Screams cut through the silence. One woman covered her mouth. Others backed away.

Eir stumbled forward.

"What have you done?!"

Ash rose slowly, wiping the blade clean with a torn scrap of cloth. He snapped it shut and turned, glancing back over his shoulder.

His eyes were cold. Empty.

"You all saw what he was. Letting him live would’ve poisoned this place all over again."

His gaze shifted to Max.

"When’s the ship getting here? We’re done with this place."

Max stared for a moment. Then exhaled through his nose and rubbed his temple.

"Soon,"

he said quietly.

"It’ll be here soon."

Ash nodded and walked off, steps echoing through the broken street.

Silence clung to the crowd like ash after flame.

They just stared.

Stared at Lane’s body.

Eir didn’t look down. He kept his eyes on the horizon, voice low.

"Burn it. With the others."