Lucius stepped on the bodies of the soldiers he had just slaughtered. They hadn't even presented a challenge. His shadows had done most of the work, their parasitic presence carrying out his silent orders with a merciless precision. Blood pooled around his boots, staining the floor of the once-proud corridor of Astral City's fortress. He didn't pause, didn't even flinch as the lives he ended faded into silence.
He sighed, glancing at his hands. The shadows had begun to calm, receding into a slow, dark pulse around his fingertips. "I guess this is because most of their main forces are busy fighting that Hydra," he mused aloud, his voice echoing coldly. "Besides," he added with a faint smirk, "he never even told me what the Hydra's purpose was."
The thought lingered briefly, a minor curiosity he filed away. The truth could wait. For now, his target lay ahead. He stomped on the head of a still-breathing soldier with brutal finality, the sickening crunch echoing through the hall. The man's helmet crumpled, and the movement ceased. Lucius' expression remained stoic, unaffected by the carnage he'd left in his wake.
Ahead of him, reinforced titanium doors loomed, sealed tight with heavy security mechanisms. The vault. It was the heart of the facility, designed to guard the most precious and dangerous treasures of Astral City—beast crystals, forbidden artifacts, and perhaps secrets that could upend the very world.
Lucius approached, his shadows flickering in anticipation. Security systems whirred to life, scanning the intruder. Red lights blared along the walls, and a computerized voice echoed:
"Unauthorized personnel detected. Initiating maximum security measures. Vault lockdown engaged."
Massive automated turrets descended from the ceiling, humming as they charged up with an ominous glow. Defensive barriers activated, shimmering force fields shielding the vault entrance. Lucius tilted his head, a mocking smile tugging at his lips. "Now we're talking," he murmured, his eyes narrowing with a cruel gleam. "This might be... slightly entertaining."
The turrets unleashed a barrage of laser fire, bright beams slicing through the air toward Lucius. He sidestepped with inhuman speed, shadows trailing behind him like an ominous cape. Tendrils of darkness shot up, deflecting some of the blasts while others dissipated against the crystallized ice that formed instinctively around him. His defenses were seamless, a horrifying union of shadow and frost.
Lucius raised a hand, and shadows erupted forth, tearing one of the turrets from the ceiling with a shriek of metal. The turret crumpled like paper, its energy core sparking as it was crushed into a smoldering ball. Another turret swiveled to lock onto him, but he simply formed a dark spear and hurled it through the machine, impaling it and causing it to explode in a shower of debris.
The force fields shimmered, and Lucius considered them for a moment. "Barrier tech," he muttered. "Annoying." He extended his right arm, the obsidian glow intensifying. The shadows slithered out, pooling along his fingertips before forming a coiling serpent of darkness. The serpent hissed, its ethereal body writhing as it wrapped around his wrist.
Lucius thrust his hand forward, and the shadow serpent lunged, striking the barrier. It coiled around the energy field, sinking its fangs into the protective force. The barrier flickered, resisting for a heartbeat before buckling under the relentless assault. Cracks spider-webbed across the shimmering surface, and with a final, guttural snarl, the serpent shattered the force field into shards of dissipating energy.
Lucius smirked. "Nice try."
With the barriers down, he faced the vault doors themselves. They were massive, reinforced with layers of alloy and runic inscriptions that glowed with ancient power. This was no ordinary lock—it was both mechanical and magical, a collaboration of technology and arcane arts designed to keep intruders out. Lucius' eyes gleamed with dark amusement.
"Well," he mused, cracking his neck, "time to see how much you can really take."
He summoned his shadows and ice in tandem, the air around him growing colder, shadows swirling faster. With a burst of power, he drove his palm into the doors. Shadows splintered forward, seeping into every crevice, while frost spread, cracking and weakening the metal. The runes flared brightly, resisting his encroaching darkness, but his power only surged, overwhelming the ancient wards with a relentless, god-like force.
Silas barely had time to react before a shadow-cloaked fist crashed into his gut, the impact shattering the remains of his telekinetic barrier. He flew backward, slamming into the reinforced vault wall with bone-crushing force. The wall cracked under the impact, and Silas crumpled to the ground, wheezing for breath.
Lucius appeared over him, shadows dancing in the air like hungry specters. "You're still clinging to hope, aren't you?" Lucius taunted, his voice smooth and cold. "How sad."
Silas grit his teeth, blood dripping from his split lip. With a primal scream, he unleashed a concentrated telekinetic blast, aiming to flatten Lucius against the ceiling. But Lucius didn't budge. His shadows expanded in a black, writhing cocoon, and when the telekinetic force hit, it dispersed like mist against an unbreakable shield.
"Enough games." Lucius sighed, lifting a hand. Shadows erupted from the floor, binding Silas' limbs, hoisting him into the air like a ragdoll. Silas struggled, straining every muscle, but it was futile. The shadows constricted, and he cried out in agony as his own bones began to creak under the pressure.
"Your power is wasted on you," Lucius said, almost disappointed. "All that bravado... for nothing."
Silas' vision blurred, but he forced himself to glare at Lucius, defiance blazing in his eyes. "We... won't... let you... win..." he spat, his voice hoarse.
Lucius tilted his head, genuinely curious. "We?" he echoed. He let out a cruel laugh. "Your 'main forces' are busy with that Hydra, and here you are, dying for nothing. No one's coming to save you, Silas."
But Silas' eyes hardened, and a flicker of a grin pulled at his bloodied lips. "You're... wrong..."
In a last, desperate act, Silas summoned every ounce of his strength, his telekinetic energy spiraling outward in a blinding surge. The entire room quaked, metal groaning as if the vault itself would collapse. Lucius narrowed his eyes, shadows surging to meet the explosion of force.
"Pathetic," Lucius muttered. He clenched his fist, and the shadows constricted harder, snapping Silas' limbs with sickening cracks. The telekinetic energy fizzled out, Silas' scream echoing through the vault.
The general's body went limp, suspended in the air by Lucius' shadows. His eyes were wide with shock and pain, his mouth hanging open as if still trying to scream, but no sound came out. Lucius let him dangle there for a moment, savoring the utter defeat in the man's eyes.
"Goodbye, General," Lucius whispered, and with a flick of his wrist, he hurled Silas' broken body across the room. The general crashed into a pile of shattered stasis containers, lifeless.
Lucius dusted off his hands, shadows coiling around him contentedly. "And now, where was I?" He turned back to the Leviathan-ranked beast crystal, his eyes gleaming with anticipation. He reached out, his fingers closing around the stone, feeling its immense power surging into him.
A sinister grin spread across his face. "Let the gods themselves tremble."
The crystal pulsed, and a wave of energy erupted, shaking the vault as Lucius' laughter filled the chambe