Ayame stands tall and resolute, her arms held out to either side as she faces the swirling vortex of space and time that lies before her.

She is surrounded by her fellow members of the Starry Sky Brigade, their determined expressions reflecting their shared commitment to the mission at hand.

The rift itself is a tumultuous maelstrom, writhing and twisting as it threatens to engulf them all.

It seems to shimmer and shift in time with the movements of those who face it as if they were alive and aware of their presence.

She approached the swirling vortex with a steady, determined stride. She takes in her surroundings, a forest of tall trees and lush grass.

She scans for any sign of life.

Her gaze is sharp and focused, her eyes clear and alert, but she didn't find anyone in the area, just a few small animals like birds, rats, and snakes.

Ayame pressed the call button on her satellite smartphone. "Clear. Go in," she called to her teammates at the base.

In the base, the remaining members of the Starry Sky Brigade received the message. "All right, let's go."

They all stepped into the rift, along with their equipment: mostly ammo, food, and guns, but they also had other miscellaneous equipment such as binoculars, cardboard boxes, grenades, and a compass.

"Hass," the man said. He turned his back on the group as he looked into the thick trees and down the slope of the hill. "Take the compass and the map."

Hasan, whom his comrades nicknamed Hass, held the compass steady in his hand and traced his finger along the map.

He looked up at the group and stared at Sam, the group's previous leader before Ayame took him over, then back down at the map. "I think we should go this way," he said, pointing his finger.

Sam, with his short, dark brown hair and a thick, bushy mustache, cuts an intimidating figure.

His tall, muscular frame and confident demeanor exude strength and determination.

Hasan, on the other hand, had long, thick black hair that fell in unruly waves around his face.

His full beard added to his imposing stature, giving him an air of strength and determination.

Despite his smaller stature compared to Sam, he was still a tall, imposing figure, standing well over 5'10 feet tall.

Hasan led the group through the forest. He remained alert and focused, scanning the area for any signs of danger.

His eyes darted from one tree to the next, his mind constantly analyzing their surroundings for any hidden threats.

"Hey kid, what's your name?" Sam asked Ayame for her name.

"It's A-uhh, Nazuna." She replied.

'Oh god, I almost blurted out my name earlier.'

"All right then, Nazuna." The guy addressed her.

"I saw your ability the other day. You're a crack shot, and you have excellent fighting ability in close-quarters combat. But make no mistake, kid, that doesn't mean we've acknowledged you. You need experience as well as other skills to become a good mercenary, much less a mercenary leader." He said to Ayame while they were traversing the forest.

The wind blew gently through the parting leaves of the trees, swaying the branches slowly.

Ayame shrugged her shoulders.

She did not care for their acknowledgement.

Ayame's eyes were cold and steely, betraying none of the emotion behind them. She kept her gaze fixed on the path ahead as she walked, her shoulders tense and her jaw set firmly.

She knew she could handle this alone.

"If you fail or get one of us killed... We will spare nothing to kill you. No soldier fights for a king who is bound to lose. At the very least, I will not." Sam said as he stared at Ayame with cold, emotionless eyes.

Without prior warning, Ayame reached into her holster, lifted a handgun, a Colt 1911, half out of its case, and aimed the gun at Sam's face.

As Ayame pushed it toward Sam's forehead, he could feel the razor-sharp edge of the weapon tracing a line on his skin, leaving him with a sense of mounting tension and apprehension.

The rest of the men took their rifles and aimed them at Ayame.

Their eyes burned like fire, and their cold, impassive faces made them appear like wolves ready to attack.

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They simultaneously said, "What the hell are you doing?"

Ayame let out a snort of contempt before moving her hands that held the handgun down and back into the holster.

Ayame let out a snort of disgust.

She moved her hands that held the handgun down and back into the holster.

She moved her face closer to the man's ear and whispered, "It seems you forgot something. I am not your underling. I'm your superior. That's your last warning. You better think twice before you act and talk unless you want me to put three bullets inside that big head of yours."

The other members lowered their guns while Sam looked shocked, but before anyone could say anything else, Ayame moved away from the man, and the group continued to proceed through the woods.

The forest was shrouded in darkness, and the only light came from the moon hanging low in the sky. Silhouettes of trees and underbrush loomed menacingly as the men carefully made their way through the dim terrain.

The incessant buzzing of mosquitoes and the scurrying of bugs and snakes filled the air around them, accompanied by the occasional chirp or squawk of other small creatures.

Crickets and cicadas clicked and trilled, their songs echoing through the woods.

The men were alert, and on edge, their senses heightened by the eerie atmosphere.

They walked with purpose, knowing that any minute from now, they could come face-to-face with danger.

As they walked deeper into the forest, they saw the light in the distance.

The light grew brighter as the men drew closer. They couldn't tell it at first, but walking further, they noticed the light was coming from a hut.

"We're here! I think that's his hut." The man named Hass announced. He moved his hands and pointed his finger to a wooden hut.

The wooden hut looms on the horizon, with its light flickering in the distance.

Roughly constructed of mangrove palm and bamboo trees, the hut looks weathered and worn.

They sense an air of danger as they draw closer to the hut.

"Should we just shoot it? An M4 should pierce it without any problems. I mean, how difficult can it be to shoot through that thing?" Gerard, another member of the Starry Sky Brigade, suggested.

The rest agreed, except Ayame.

"Hold on. We need to make sure it's really him. We don't even know he's there." She requested, "Give me the binoculars."

"All right, you're the boss." The ex-leader Sam said.

Ayame lifts the binoculars to her eyes and carefully scans the small door on the side of the hut.

She watches intently, waiting for any sign of movement.

She remains focused and still, waiting to see what dangers lie ahead.

A few minutes had passed with no sign of movement. She lowered the binoculars from her eyes.

Ayame handed the binoculars back to the mercenaries.

"Give me the Mk14eBR. I'll kill him once he exits his hut." Ayame commanded as she grabbed a black gun with a silencer.

Sam nudges the gun over to Ayame while nodding his head, his tone dripping with sarcasm. "Sure, boss~."

Nothing happened for ten minutes.

Sam suddenly exclaimed, "Damn, this is taking too long– we're setting up camp deeper into the forest, and we're going to backtrack fifty or so meters." He places his rifle onto his backpack and starts walking back deeper into the forest along with the other mercenaries.

"If you're sleepy or hungry, just come find us and go inside the tent. We'll put our supplies there." Sam said before walking back deeper into the forest along with the other mercenaries.

"All right," Ayame answered.

Ayame expertly sets up her rifle, carefully positioning the bipod behind a large, sturdy root.

Focusing her gaze through the rifle's scope, she scans the area around the hut for any signs of movement.

But there is none, and she grows increasingly anxious as time passes without any sign of her target.

She fell asleep a few hours later.

Ayame is suddenly jolted awake by the sound of an explosion, her eyes snapping open as she quickly scans the area for any sign of movement.

She curses under her breath as she slowly reaches for her Mk14eBR rifle and carefully positions the bipod behind a large, sturdy root.

As she trains her sights on the hut, she mutters to herself.

Bang. Bang. Bang.

The flashes of gunfire are accompanied by the whistling sound of bullets as they fly through the air. Ayame's heart races as she frantically scans the area, her eyes darting from one point to the next

Bang. Bang. Bang. Three consecutive gunshots ensued, followed by a loud scream. The sharp crack of gunshots echoes through the forest.

Ayame's eyes were wide with surprise and fear as she noticed the ones firing the guns were the men she was with.

Amid the chaos and confusion of the battle, Hasan falls to the ground, his body riddled with bullet wounds.

Another man quickly rushes to his side, his face filled with worry and fear as he attempts to catch his falling comrade.

The air is thick with the sharp smell of gunpowder, and the sound of gunfire echoes in the distance.

A shadowy figure is seen huddled inside a small hut. The muzzle of his gun is the only visible part of his body as he fires shot after shot at the remaining members of Starry Sky Brigade.

"FUCK! WHY DID THOSE IDIOTS LEAVE ME HERE WHILE THEY STARTED THE ATTACK!" Ayame screamed and punched the trunk of the tree beside her. Her rage ignited the Asura Qi inside her, causing her eyes to glow red and the trunk of the tree to explode.

"Shit," she cursed again.

She ran towards the hut.

Along the way, Ayame freezes momentarily as she notices the injured mercenaries, their hands waving frantically in an attempt to stop her.

Blood coats the ground as two men lie writhing in pain. One of their legs was completely blown off.

They cry out in agony as they struggle to push through the pain.

As she watched the injured mercenaries, she thought. "These injuries... they're unnatural."