Deep inside a forest near Sector 10, the ground suddenly collapsed inward.

Trees tilted violently as dirt exploded upward.

A giant worm-like creature burst out from beneath the earth.

Half of its massive body looked biological while the other half was covered with metallic armor plates fused directly into its flesh. Blue energy pulsed beneath cracks in its skin, and its glowing eyes scanned the surroundings mechanically.

The creature opened its mouth and released a stream of blue fire across the forest.

Trees instantly ignited.

The flames spread unnaturally fast.

Before the worm could burrow underground again, a sharp slicing sound echoed through the burning forest.

A giant mech unit suddenly appeared beside it.

The machine carried the symbol of the Embers painted across its armored chest.

Its massive energy blade flashed once.

The giant worm froze.

Then its entire body split open cleanly into two halves before collapsing heavily onto the ground.

Inside a hidden underground base far away from the battlefield, loud cheering immediately erupted.

"Hahaha! This is actually fun!"

The room was filled with giant spherical chambers almost twice the size of an adult human. Inside each sphere floated a pilot wearing a visor headset while suspended in liquid support gel.

Even though their real bodies remained inside the chambers, their movements synchronized perfectly with the mechs fighting outside.

Every pilot controlled a separate mech unit remotely.

Some were laughing excitedly.

Others shouted battlefield reports constantly while monitoring maps and enemy positions.

For many Embers members, this was their first time fighting the Capital without directly risking their own lives.

Suddenly, Tyler’s voice echoed throughout the control room communication system.

"We received new information. The Capital is sending reinforcements."

The room became quieter immediately.

"All combat personnel retreat from direct frontline engagement," Tyler continued calmly. "Only remote-piloted mech units are authorized to continue fighting."

Several operators quickly acknowledged the order.

"Understood."

"Retreating support units."

"Maintaining mech pressure."

Tyler continued giving instructions.

"Focus on securing Sector 10 and Sector 13 completely."

"Yes, Elder," the pilots replied together.

Meanwhile, on another battlefield route, Ariel was currently retreating alongside several Embers combatants toward a safer zone while Capital aircraft began approaching from a distance.

"What about Sector 11?" she asked through communication.

Tyler’s answer came almost instantly.

"We’ll handle it."

Ariel frowned slightly hearing his tone but didn’t ask further questions.

At the same time, inside the Capital’s military communication network, chaos had completely spread.

Emergency messages constantly flooded command channels.

"I repeat, Sector 10 and Sector 13 are under Rebel attack."

"I repeat, Sector 10 and Sector 13 are under Rebel attack."

Communication officers rushed between stations while warning alarms continued flashing across giant tactical screens.

Inside Army Headquarters, the Commander was already preparing a counterattack order when another emergency report suddenly arrived.

"Commander, we found one of the witches."

The room instantly became quieter.

An image immediately appeared on the tactical screen.

It showed Tansy driving a large armored truck toward Sector 11.

A heavy container was attached behind the vehicle.

The Commander narrowed his eyes immediately.

"She’s heading toward the mining zone..."

Several officers became tense.

Everyone already knew how dangerous the witches had become after recent battles.

The Commander immediately turned toward the communication officers.

"All available units near the war zones are to redirect toward Sector 11 immediately."

One officer looked shocked.

"Sir?"

The Commander’s expression became cold.

"You have one objective."

"Capture that witch."

Then after a brief pause, he added ruthlessly,

"If capture becomes impossible... kill her."

The room became silent for a moment.

One nearby officer hesitated before speaking carefully.

"Sir... but what about Sector 10 and Sector 13?"

The Commander didn’t even look at him.

"We can take those sectors back later," he replied coldly.

"But if we eliminate the witches now, this war ends before it truly begins."

Sector 11 had completely changed.

What used to be a poor residential sector filled with broken apartments and narrow streets had now become a massive open-pit mining zone.

The Capital had excavated huge sections of land after the bombing, turning the entire sector into a giant crater layered with mining platforms, drilling machines, and conveyor systems.

Floodlights illuminated the area even during the night.

Thousands of people were forced to work below.

Men.

Women.

Even children.

Heavy chains were attached to many workers to prevent escape. Their bodies were covered with dark Carbonyx growths after prolonged exposure to the mines. Some could barely walk properly anymore.

Above the pit stood giant electric fences stretching across the entire sector like prison walls.

Armed soldiers patrolled constantly along elevated platforms while drones scanned every movement below.

Several flying military vehicles hovered through the air. Their designs were sleek and angular, with rotating side engines keeping them suspended steadily above the mining zone.

Everything looked more like a prison camp than a sector.

Far away from the mine entrance, a heavy truck slowly drove toward the restricted area.

Dust rose behind its wheels as it moved across the damaged roads without slowing down.

Inside the truck sat Tansy.

Or rather—

A Tansy clone.

The workers inside the mines never even noticed the approaching vehicle. Most of them kept their heads lowered while carrying mining tools silently.

Nobody dared look toward the guards anymore.

One of the patrol soldiers quickly noticed the truck approaching through surveillance cameras.

"Unknown vehicle approaching eastern checkpoint."

Instantly, warning sirens activated.

A flying patrol craft descended from above and positioned itself directly in front of the road.

Its searchlights locked onto the truck.

A soldier’s amplified voice echoed through external speakers.

"You are entering a restricted military zone."

"Stop the vehicle immediately and surrender yourself."

The truck didn’t slow down.

Instead, it continued driving forward steadily.

Inside the command center overlooking Sector 11, several officers frowned.

"Why isn’t she stopping?"

One soldier quickly enlarged the vehicle image.

Then his eyes widened.

Inside the Captial headquarters,

"Commander... it’s one of the witches."

The Commander’s expression immediately darkened.

"Tansy."

The patrol pilot repeated the warning again.

"Final warning. Stop immediately."

Still no response.

The truck kept driving.

The Commander finally gave the order coldly.

"Fire."

A missile launched instantly from beneath the flying patrol craft.

The projectile streaked across the air before directly hitting the truck.

BOOOOM!

A massive explosion erupted across the road.

Flames and smoke instantly swallowed the entire vehicle.

Debris scattered across nearby rocks while shockwaves echoed throughout the mining pit.

The pilot relaxed slightly.

"Target cleared."

But only a second later—

"Oh no... what is that?!"

His voice suddenly turned panicked.

Something burst out from inside the smoke.

A massive dark figure shot upward through the flames at terrifying speed.

Before the pilot could react properly, the object landed directly onto the patrol craft.

CRASH!

Metal screamed violently.

The flying vehicle spiraled out of control before smashing into nearby structures and exploding.

Inside the command center, alarms immediately activated.

"What happened?!"

"Report!"

Several operators quickly pulled back the combat footage and replayed it frame by frame.

The entire room became silent.

Emerging from the burning truck wasn’t another vehicle.

It was a giant mech.

And unlike the previous mech units seen during the war—

This one could fly.

The machine was enormous.

Far larger than standard combat units used by the Embers.

Its black armored body reflected the firelight while blue energy lines glowed beneath the plating. Massive propulsion engines behind its back released bursts of energy, keeping the giant machine suspended above the mining zone.

Down below, the prisoners of Sector 11 stared upward in fear.

Some thought it was another Capital weapon.

Others simply froze after seeing a giant metal monster flying through the sky.

The mech hovered above the center of the mine silently for a moment.

Then soldiers opened fire.

Gunfire erupted from every direction.

Heavy machine guns.

Energy rifles.

Rocket launchers.

Several RPG missiles shot upward simultaneously.

But the mech moved unexpectedly fast for its size.

It twisted sideways midair, avoiding most incoming attacks before instantly raising its arm cannons.

Blue energy gathered rapidly.

Then—

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

Several military towers exploded instantly.

Another laser blast pierced directly through the giant electrical transformer supplying power to the sector fences.

The entire structure erupted into sparks and flames.

A second later—

The electric fences surrounding the mine shut down completely.

The prisoners below slowly realized what happened.

The barriers trapping them were gone.

Inside Capital Headquarters, the Commander’s expression turned ugly.

"How is that thing moving like that?!"

More warning alarms immediately rang throughout the room.

"Additional hostile aircraft approaching the sector."

Several Capital fighter crafts rapidly entered the battlefield from surrounding sectors.

Missiles launched toward the giant mech from multiple directions simultaneously.

But the mech dodged continuously through the air with terrifying agility.

It moved nothing like a heavy machine.

One missile nearly struck its shoulder before the mech fired directly at it midair.

The missile exploded before impact.

Then another.

And another.

One officer watching the battle muttered nervously,

"That thing is slippery as an eel..."

The Commander stared coldly at the battlefield footage.

Then suddenly his eyes shifted downward toward the mine prisoners below.

A cruel thought immediately appeared in his mind.

"Target the people below."

Several officers froze.

"Sir?"

"Fire one missile directly into the mining pit."

The room became silent briefly.

Then the order was executed.

A missile immediately changed direction and descended toward the chained prisoners below.

The workers inside the mine panicked instantly after noticing it.

Some screamed.

Some tried running despite their chains.

And some simply closed their eyes helplessly.

At the last second—

The giant mech suddenly accelerated downward.

It moved so fast that sonic booms echoed across the mining zone.

The mech positioned itself directly between the incoming missile and the prisoners below.

BOOOOM!

The missile exploded directly against the mech’s body.

The giant machine was thrown violently into the ground below, crashing through layers of rock and mining equipment.

Dust and smoke exploded across the entire pit.

Inside Capital Headquarters, cheers immediately erupted.

"We hit it!"

"It’s down!"

Several officers laughed in relief.

Meanwhile, far away inside a hidden Embers control facility, Tyler floated inside one of the neural control spheres wearing a visor headset.

"Fuck! I got hit!"

His voice echoed angrily through the control room while warning alerts flashed around him.

Back in Sector 11, the smoke slowly cleared.

Then—

The giant mech slowly stood up again.

Its armor was damaged heavily across the chest, but it was still operational.

The cheering inside Capital Headquarters instantly stopped.

The mech reached toward its back slowly.

Then it pulled out a giant metallic spear.

At the center of the weapon was a massive glowing Carbonyx crystal embedded into the shaft.

Blue energy surged violently across the spear’s surface.

Inside the control sphere, Tyler grinned.

"Alright..."

"Let’s go round two."