As the silver Triarch hovered above the grey clouds, seven black eagles flew up one after another, while their reflections glided across the hull like shadows that had nowhere else to go.

They slowed when the craft neared the thunderstorm ahead and began beating their wings against the rushing winds, while watching the Triarch push forward into the dark without them.

Inside the cockpit, Leon’s eyes remained locked on the images of Li Mei and Lily for a moment before shifting to the violet-veined clouds ahead.

"This is new," he said as the rage-lightning flashed against the glass and reflected fire in his own eyes. "But it won’t stop me."

The tip of the red-golden cloth around his neck flapped on his whitened knuckles as he pushed the wheel forward, sending the craft to more than half of its speed limit.

Pressurized air slammed hard against the hull of the Triarch as it lowered from the stormy air and neared the entry shaft. The dark circle cut into the ground looked just as it had months ago, but had fastened itself in the earth.

As the Triarch began its descent, the silence of the cockpit got crowded by voices that were no longer there.

"Has anyone thought about what it means that three expeditions went down here and nothing came back?"

Leon’s jaw tightened when he turned his head and almost saw An Lang leaning back in the rear seat.

At first, they were a unit, but now, only the cockpit and the new gears were Leon’s companions.

The moment the surface light vanished behind the Triarch, while the pale ring of the tunnel reeled ahead, Leon pressed the ninja mode button.

"If no one is bothered to answer, I will just keep it to myself."

Leon’s fingers hovered on the navigation panel when he lifted his head and locked eyes with the massive eyes while his mind reeled back in time.

He remembered the exact moment An Lang had tilted his gaze to the window and resigned to the dark. The manner in which Wu Ze’s thumb had rested on the green button of her transformable sword. And the weight of Liu Yan’s hand on her hilt like a silent promise of protection that had ultimately failed.

Just as the massive eyes blinked and vanished, Leon took in a deep breath before resuming the descent. The deeper the Triarch went, the more the locked memories broke free and roamed in his head.

The Triarch passed through the heat of the molten waves until it finally appeared in the skies of Tartarus, the upside-down world.

When the craft finally landed on the cracked earth of Tartarus’s east part, a howl tore through the air, welcoming the human whose name had already been locked in the books of Tartarus.

Leon’s heart hammered hard against his chest while his hands remained on the controls as if it wasn’t yet time to exit.

"Gia," he said as he shifted his gaze to the blue wave. "Scan the area."

"Alright. Buckle up."

A blue beam seeped out of the Triarch and expanded across the vast land of Tartarus.

When it returned, the panel buzzed with warning signs, but Leon neglected them all and exited the craft, holding the Hi-no-Kami, while the red-gold cloth flapped on his chest.

The kinetic-drift shield gleamed when a four-foot iron-lizard sliced its claws toward the back of Leon’s neck.

"Not this time," Leon hissed as he sidestepped the creature and sliced it in perfect halves. The upper torso slammed onto the ramp of the Triarch, while the lower half rolled into the black sand of Tartarus.

His fingers trembled once on the sword but tightened around it when he saw dozens of the creatures nearing him and the Triarch.

"Gia," Leon said while the ground he stood on began to shake as the creatures drew near. "Fly the Triarch to somewhere safe. I don’t want it to get dirty."

"But you’ll need it when –"

"Just move it, Gia," Leon said and exhaled once. "I will let you know when I need it."

Dust blasted on him when the craft leaped into the air and flew at lightning speed.

"Wu Ze, An Lang, Liu Yan," Leon said as he slowly closed his eyes. "Your deaths won’t be in vain, like I promised."

He stood still while the rushing wind slammed onto him and made the red-gold cloth around his neck flap hastily on his chest and arms, while the tremor in the ground intensified.

As soon as he cracked his eyes open, he gritted his teeth and dashed forward like a madman, while the blades of the Hi-no-Kami sang behind him with every step he took.

Loud, dying howls filled the air when he clashed into the first group of the dozens of iron-lizards.

"What are you waiting for?" Leon screamed while sharp air escaped from him after fighting off the first twenty five-foot iron-lizards without breaking a sweat.

When another set dashed toward Leon, a faint smile tore on his lips as he tightened his grip on the sword and refused to let go, then met the creatures head-on.

The last three of the second set clawed at Leon’s cheeks, but he smiled when he saw blood dripping from his skin.

He ducked under two of the five creatures that were refusing to die and pierced the blades into their abdomens, splattering them inside out and leaving himself drenched in their thick, salty blood.

Just as the last two dashed toward him, Leon leaped onto their backs and used their own momentum to claw down hundreds of their kind. And when he jumped down, he sliced the two creatures into countless pieces before turning on the last of the set that seemed to retreat when he chased after them.

"You’re not going anywhere," Leon said as he pulled the kinetic-drift shield from his back and hurled it forward. The shield reshaped itself into a war disc and flew through the creatures before returning as a new shield bathed in blood.