Kane stared at Karl.
His focus narrowed onto the joints of Karl’s exoskeleton. There was a tiny gap—the connection point for the hydraulic system.
If he could destroy that...
But what would it cost?
Kane looked down at his right leg. The dark red arcs dancing across the surface of The Predator were pulsing erratically. If he used [ Aerial Step ] one more time, his nerves would be completely scorched.
Kane gripped The Cyclone. He looked up at Karl.
"Crag."
Kane’s voice was barely a whisper.
"Give me three seconds."
Crag didn't answer. He simply let out a low roar and hurled his massive frame toward Karl.
Karl raised his right arm, the red targeting laser of the missile launcher locking onto Crag’s chest.
"Seeking death."
The missile streaked forward, trailing a plume of white exhaust.
Crag didn't dodge. He raised his cracked, crumbling metal shield and took the hit head-on.
Boom—!!
The flash of the explosion instantly swallowed Crag’s upper body. The shield disintegrated into countless jagged shards of steel that rained down, embedding themselves into Crag’s chest, shoulders, and cheeks.
Blood sprayed outward.
Though Crag’s skin was as hard as stone, it was still shredded into horrific wounds by the military-grade blast.
But Crag didn't stop. He didn't even scream.
His massive silhouette stepped through the lingering flames like a shifting mountain, closing the distance to Karl in a heartbeat.
Karl’s expression twisted. He tried to engage his thrusters to strafe away, but Crag’s speed exceeded his calculations. A blood-soaked fist, backed by the full weight of a two-and-a-half-meter giant, smashed into Karl’s chest.
Karl managed to twist his body slightly. The punch grazed his shoulder and landed heavy.
Crack—!
The shoulder plating of the exoskeleton buckled instantly. The hydraulic system emitted a shrill screech of tearing metal as blue fluid sprayed everywhere.
Karl’s pupils shrank. That single punch had nearly crippled half of his suit!
Crag gave him no time to recover. He pressed his mountainous weight against him, his arms locking around the exoskeleton’s waist in a crushing bear hug. Karl struggled to break free, but Crag’s strength was staggering.
"Let go!" Karl roared, activating the alloy blade on his right arm and driving it toward Crag’s neck.
The blade pierced Crag’s shoulder, sinking deep into the muscle. Blood geysered out, splashing across Karl’s faceplate.
Crag only let out a muffled grunt. He squeezed harder.
"Kid..." Crag’s voice was low, thick with the scent of iron. "Now..."
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Kane gripped The Cyclone. His eyes locked onto the energy core interface on the back of Karl’s exoskeleton—a tiny seam where faint blue sparks were leaking out.
One hit there would paralyze the suit.
But the distance was at least twenty meters. With Crag and Karl entangled, the slightest tremor would result in friendly fire.
Kane gritted his teeth. He activated [ Kinetic Boost ].
The dark red arcs on The Predator went wild, looking like high-voltage wires on the verge of snapping. The neural load surged. The muscles in his right leg began to spasm uncontrollably, and a searing pain shot up his spine, feeling as if red-hot needles were being driven into his bone marrow one by one.
The veins on Kane’s temples bulged. But he didn't stop.
He leveled The Cyclone, aiming for the energy core interface on Karl’s back.
He pulled the trigger.
Bang—!
The bullet flew. But Karl suddenly twisted, using Crag’s body as a meat shield. The round struck Crag’s back, kicking up a spray of sparks.
Crag groaned, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
Taking advantage of the moment, Karl broke free from Crag’s grasp. The exoskeleton’s thrusters ignited at full power, launching him toward Kane like a shell from a cannon.
"You thought I’d fall for that?"
Karl raised the alloy blade on his right arm, the tip glinting with a murderous chill.
"Die!"
Kane didn't dodge.
He stared directly at Karl’s incoming charge, a cold sneer curling his lips.
"You talk too much."
At the exact microsecond before Karl reached him—
Kane activated [ Aero Blade ].
An invisible torrent of pressurized air erupted from the muzzle of The Cyclone, the atmosphere shrieking as it was torn apart.
Karl’s expression twisted in shock.
He tried to engage his energy shield, but it was already too late.
The air blade precisely severed the shield generator on the exoskeleton’s chest. Blue electric arcs sprayed in every direction.
The shield vanished.
Karl’s momentum didn't slow, but his defenses were now completely exposed.
Kane activated [ Aerial Step ].
His body pulled a jagged, unnatural angle mid-air, appearing instantly behind Karl’s back.
The Cyclone pressed firmly against the energy core interface of the exoskeleton.
He pulled the trigger.
Bang—!!
The energy core detonated.
A geyser of blue electricity erupted from Karl’s back like a blooming flower of lightning. All systems in the exoskeleton went dead instantly; the thrusters cut out, and the hydraulics lost pressure.
Karl’s massive frame crashed into the ground, dragging a long trail of sparks behind him.
The moment Kane landed, his right leg gave out completely.
He slammed violently into the floor.
The neural load had finally reached its breaking point.
The base of his spine felt as if a red-hot iron wire had been driven into it. The agony surged like a high-voltage current straight into his brain.
The veins on Kane’s forehead bulged, his fingernails digging into the cracks of the floor as blood began to seep from his fingertips.
He looked down at his right leg.
Beneath his pant leg, dark red vascular patterns had surfaced on his skin—marks that looked like they had been seared by extreme heat. The blue electric arcs on The Predator flickered frantically before dying out entirely.
But he didn't stop.
He forced his body up, staring at the fallen Karl.
Karl was struggling to crawl out from the wreckage of the exoskeleton, drenched in blood. His mechanical ocular implant flashed with a manic red light.
"You..."
Karl pulled a modified pistol from his waist, firing wildly at Kane.
"Die! Die!!"
Kane moved to activate [ Phase Burrow ], but immediately realized—Karl’s thermal tracking was still operational.
He gritted his teeth and forced a [ Kinetic Boost ].
His body shifted laterally to evade the bullets, but the neural load spiked again. His right leg went almost entirely numb.
Karl chased Kane with his gunfire, his eyes full of madness.
"You can't escape! My thermal scan—"
Before he could finish the sentence, Crag erupted from the side.
His mountainous frame slammed into Karl with brutal force.
Karl was sent flying. The thermal scanner on his chest emitted a shrill screech of electrical interference upon impact. The red light flickered unsteadily before a wisp of black smoke rose from the device.
Kane’s pupils constricted.
The thermal scanner was damaged!
He didn't hesitate.
He activated [ Phase Burrow ].
His body sank into the earth instantly.
Karl struggled to his feet, trying to restart the scanner to lock onto Kane. But the device only emitted intermittent red flashes, failing to function.
"Damn it... Damn it!"
Karl’s breathing grew ragged and frantic. He brandished his gun, firing blindly into the surroundings.
"Come out! Come out!!"
But Kane did not appear.
Karl turned to flee, but at that exact moment—
The ground split open.
Kane rose from behind Karl, his face beneath the hood as cold as frost.
The Cyclone was pressed against the back of Karl's head.
Karl froze.
The red light in his mechanical eye dimmed.
Kane’s voice was soft, yet it carried a bone-chilling coldness.
"Number three. This is where it ends."
He pulled the trigger.
Bang—!!
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