Val's figure materialized on a ledge, his entrance as silent as a shadow slipping into place. The leader of the Serpentine Syndicate, a woman with striking golden serpent tattoos spiraling down her wrists, looked up, her eyes narrowing as she took in the obsidian black pin on his chest.

"Impossible," she murmured, her face flickering between shock and something darker, a gleam of malice settling in her eyes. "An ARM rank… here?"

Val's silence was lethal, his gaze unwavering. But the order from HQ came over the link, loud and clear.

Umbra, hold back. We need your team to gauge her first, General Luis commanded, a quiet authority threading his words. Let them test her movements.

Understood," Val replied, stepping back with a measured calm, his gaze flicking to his team. You know the drill. Let's shake her down.

Bo, Riggs, and Fon moved forward, their stance predatory as they closed in, each masked, each a silent enigma. The leader's mocking laugh echoed through the darkened streets.

"Three Aurum-ranked pups to fight me?" She raised a hand, a crackling energy forming along her fingertips. "This'll be quicker than I thought."

"Think again," Bo snapped, thrusting his hands out. A biting wave of ice surged forward, coating the ground and creating a trail of frost that glinted in the faint light.

Her footing slipped momentarily, and a scowl twisted her lips. "Cheap tricks." She waved her hand, and the dark energy shimmered, cutting through the ice, turning Bo's carefully laid path into shattered crystals.

Riggs let out a growl. "You'll eat those words," he spat, summoning a fierce gust of wind that swept up the shards, launching them toward her like a barrage of icy daggers.

The leader snarled, dark energy flaring from her hands as she deflected the shards, each strike resounding with sharp, clinking sounds that echoed back to HQ.

The officials watching leaned in, breaths collectively held as the battle played out in vivid detail across the live feed.

"Who the hell is this woman?" someone murmured in the background, awe and fear lacing his voice.

At HQ, Dr. Lewis's brow furrowed as he saw the twisted darkness surrounding her hands. He leaned toward General Luis, voice low but insistent. "General Luis, look at that aura. It's too familiar—almost identical to what we've seen from other underworld operations. If she's harnessing something akin to dark energy…"

General Luis's jaw clenched as he watched, a cold realization settling in. "Then Val might be the only one capable of facing her directly. We've dealt with something similar before. She's no ordinary threat."

On the battlefield, Fon took a step back, eyes narrowed, observing the leader's every movement. "Ready for a shake-up, Aura?"

Riggs grinned beneath his mask. "Always."

With a quick stomp, Fon manipulated the earth beneath the leader, causing the ground to tremble before it split open beneath her. She staggered as chunks of the earth rose, throwing off her balance.

"What the—" she swore, her dark energy flaring wildly as she tried to steady herself. Her surprise was evident, her smug demeanor slipping for the first time.

Bo used the opening, freezing the stones in midair. "Terra, let's show her how we do things!"

With a thrust of his hands, Riggs sent a powerful gust that smashed the icy boulders toward her, forcing her to dive out of the way. One of the boulders shattered near her, sending shards in all directions, cutting into her exposed skin.

She cursed loudly, a mixture of rage and pain flashing in her eyes. "You little shits… You're dead."

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She raised her hands, the dark energy intensifying, surrounding her with a shadowy aura that pulsed dangerously, casting an ominous glow across the entire area. Her eyes seemed to darken, a sinister gleam emerging as she unleashed a wave of energy that rippled toward Bo, Riggs, and Fon.

The force hit like a shockwave. The team staggered, their boots skidding across the gravel-strewn ground as they braced against it.

"What the hell?" Fon muttered, teeth gritted as he resisted the wave of energy bearing down on them.

Bo glanced at Riggs. "Feels like something we've seen before—something nasty."

At HQ, the tension was palpable. One of the allied generals turned to Dr. Lewis, voice pitched with urgency. "Can they handle her? That power… it's like nothing we've encountered."

Dr. Lewis shook his head gravely, his tone decisive. "We've encountered this kind of energy before—a power laced with darkness," he said, casting a quick look at General Luis. "Only one person has the capability to handle this threat effectively. The team can engage, but in the end, this task falls to him."

The allied representatives exchanged uneasy glances, whispers of uncertainty rippling through HQ.

One of the commanders leaned forward, his voice skeptical but tense. "And we're to believe this 'one person' is our solution?"

General Luis's gaze was steely, unwavering. "You don't have to believe it. Just watch. We're telling you—he's the only one capable of handling her level of dark energy. We've dealt with this before."

The syndicate leader, noticing her power gaining an edge, sneered, directing her taunt to Val, who watched from above with cold detachment. "Hiding, ARM user?" she mocked, her voice dripping with venom. "Too scared to face me?"

Val's eyes narrowed beneath his mask, and a flicker of Ember's cunning passed through him, but he remained silent, observing. His calm was unshakable, and his team, as if feeding off his presence, steadied themselves, holding their ground against her.

The leader's sneer deepened, and she extended her hands, calling forth an even darker energy, the aura thickening around her like a malevolent storm.

Bo exchanged a glance with Riggs. She's ramping up, he growled. What now, Umbra?

Hold the line, Val replied, his voice a steady command over the mind link. This is exactly what we want.

With a sudden movement, the leader lunged forward, targeting Riggs, her dark energy trailing behind her like smoke. Riggs sidestepped, summoning a gust of wind that deflected her attack, but it only enraged her further.

She spat a curse, dark energy surging from her hands and sending out jagged bolts that crackled and snapped in the air. The bolts seared into the ground where Riggs had been standing moments before.

Terra, now! Val commanded.

Fon stomped hard on the ground, and a wall of rock shot up, blocking the bolts. But the energy sizzled through the rock, splitting it apart with an explosive force that sent fragments flying.

"Damn it!" Fon muttered, dodging the debris. "This lady's a menace."

A dark, almost predatory laugh escaped the syndicate leader's lips as she advanced. "This is what you send against me? Fools."

Bo's voice came over the link, tinged with anger. Enough of this. She thinks she can just steamroll us? Not a chance.

He slammed his hands together, and an arctic wind whipped forward, chilling the air and coating the ground in frost that crawled toward her like icy tendrils. She glanced down, her confident expression faltering as the frost latched onto her legs, seeping through the dark aura surrounding her.

"Let's see you thaw out of this," Bo sneered, focusing his energy to freeze her in place.

She struggled, her body half-encased in ice, fury blazing in her eyes. "You… insufferable…!"

Her voice was cut off as Riggs used the moment to summon a powerful gust, directing it at her from behind, slamming her into Bo's ice wall. The crack of ice reverberated through HQ, where officials watched with bated breath.

The leader twisted, a dark energy swirling around her with a menacing hiss as it clashed against the ice. In an explosion of energy, the ice shattered, sending shards in all directions and knocking Bo back with a curse.

"You'll pay for that, you little brats!" she screeched, her voice filled with rage.

In the command room, the energy was tense, every spectator locked on the screens as the struggle played out.

Dr. Lewis, now standing beside General Luis, exchanged a grave look. "We've seen enough. She's a high-level threat, General Luis."

The general nodded, determination etched into his expression. "HQ confirmed permission. We're authorizing Umbra to engage."

A murmur of protest rose among some of the allied representatives, but Dr. Lewis raised a hand. "We've seen this energy before. If anyone's handling her, it's him."

Val's voice crackled through the link. Finally. About time you let me take over.

As HQ fell silent in anticipation, Val stepped forward, his presence felt even from afar, his stance exuding an authority that made even his team step back.

The leader, sensing the shift in power, turned to face him fully. Her gaze narrowed, and for the first time, fear flickered in her eyes.

Val's voice was cold, unwavering. "Let's finish this."

He moved forward, a shadow, a force, bearing down on the syndicate leader with all the quiet, simmering fury he had kept contained.

And with that, the feed cut off to static, leaving HQ and the allied forces on edge, a collective breath held as the screen crackled with anticipation for the showdown that had only just begun.