Ozryn's Command Center was in turmoil. The walls echoed the calm but authoritarian voices of the officers of the Aegis Alliance working around the screens that were projected in front of them by the ability of one of the intelligence team members.

They had only two goals occupying their minds. The first was to help as best they could to protect the citizens of Ozryn, while the second was to restore access to their technology as soon as possible in order to request reinforcements from other cities.

"Commander Hudson. The latest report indicates that twenty rifts have appeared throughout the city, including five of the Gold rank. As well as a report informing us that the thirty-six rifts already present in Ozryn have their refuge besieged by hordes of crystal beasts."

"Have we heard from Gudo Graham?"

"The mayor is currently busy restraining the advance of crystal beasts from the two Gold rank rifts that have appeared in the north of the city."

Commander Hudson pressed his hand to his forehead, feeling the growing weight of responsibility on his shoulders. The news was not good, and the situation was becoming more and more critical. Rifts multiplied, allowing crystal beasts to invade the city of Ozryn. Regaining control of the situation was imperative before the defense lines completely collapsed.

"Keep monitoring rifts movements and make sure every Aegis Alliance squad is deployed to strategic points in the city. We cannot allow the crystal beasts to invade our city any further. Try to contact the guilds to create safe zones to protect civilians."

The officer nodded and quickly went back to work.

Commander Hudson quickly skimmed through the reports piling up on his desk. Each page brought him a new amount of concern. The rifts continued to form, and the crystal beasts grew in number and power.

"If the situation did not change soon, even the mayor of Ozryn could not do anything about it, and the city would be condemned to destruction."

***

The invasion of the crystal beasts had taken everyone by surprise. The once bustling city streets were now the scene of hellish chaos. Atop the imposing Thundershields guild building, the high members of the Thundershields guild were gathered to discuss what action to take in the face of this sudden calamity.

Seated around a long, solid wooden table, the guild leaders gazed at each other, anguish and fear visible in their eyes. Among them, the only one who had a semblance of calm was the guild master Aiden Ashblight, his daughter, Cassandra was standing a few meters behind his seat, not daring to utter a word in this situation.

Without a word, Aiden rose from his seat, attracting the attention of all the members present in the room.

"Listen to me all, according to our first reports, five Gold ranked rifts have appeared, and beasts flowed through the rifts that were already present in Ozryn. The refuges can't stop their charge. Plus, all the technology that could help us deal with them is useless. The situation becomes more desperate as time passes, and every second counts. We don't have the luxury of saving everyone, but we can try to save the most important members of our guild. The crystal beasts haven't yet reached our building, but it won't last long. We need to act now."

A wave of concern and incomprehension ran through the assembly.

"I see you still don't understand the situation, so I'm going to make it clearer so you all understand. We need to get out of Ozryn as quickly as possible and without wasting a second."

Aiden glanced over to his daughter, who silently followed him as he left the room, leaving the still-shocked members behind.

Murmurs were heard in the room. Some members were reluctant to follow orders, and others disagreed. But deep down, none of them wanted to stay here while the crystal beasts flocked from all sides.

One after another, the high members of the Thundershields guild, including several gold ranks, fled the city in silence, leaving behind their guild members and the civilians of Ozryn defenseless.

***

In a neighborhood south of the city of Ozryn, Thomas stood outside the entrance of his house. His hands clenched into fists while his entire body was covered in black scales like thick armor.

His breathing quickened as he apprehensively watched a pack of Iron Rank horned wolves rapidly approaching his home. The situation in Ozryn had become chaotic, and he didn't have the luxury of waiting for reinforcements. His parents weren't awakener and were in imminent danger. He had to protect them at all costs.

The horned wolves rushed towards him, their eyes glinting maliciously. Without hesitation, Thomas threw himself into the midst of the pack. The scales on his arms rose as his crystal essence passed through his body quickly.

Swinging his arms forward, his scales sliced through the horned wolves before his crystal essence-filled fists crashed into their heads, killing them instantly.

His crystal sense spread around him to help him move through the pack.

A wolf circled around him, attacking him from behind with its horn, but Thomas paid no heed, diverting a portion of his crystal essence to reinforce the scales on his back, the wolf's horn failed to penetrate through them.

Spinning his body, the scales on his elbow lifted as he landed a downward strike on the horned wolf's head, ending its life.

Thomas quickly ended the pack of wolves, breathing heavily for air. He headed for the door of his house. Slowly opening the door, he was greeted by the sight of his parents, trembling with fear in the corner of the living room.

He entered the house cautiously, his senses on high alert. The room was pitch dark, only the dim light of a flickering candle illuminating the terrified faces of his parents. Their eyes fell on him with a mixture of relief and concern.

"Thomas! You came back!" his mother exclaimed in a trembling voice.

"We need to get out of here before more crystal beasts arrive."

Thomas walked towards his parents, reassuring them with a look full of assurance despite the chaos that reigned in the city.

"Don't worry, I'll protect you," he said in a calm voice, though tinged with urgency, "Stay behind me and follow my steps."

Thomas's parents nodded, holding each other's hands tightly.

He moved cautiously through the devastated streets, his parents following a few meters behind him. Using his crystal sense and observing with his own eyes, he slowly made his way to a gathering area.

His parents trembled with fear as each explosion echoed in the distance, witnessing the clashes between the forces of the city of Ozryn and the crystal beasts.

A massive shadow suddenly fell in their path, hitting the ground with violence, causing a crater of several meters to appear.

The dust hid the figure that had appeared from Thomas's eyes, but his instinct sounded an alarm in his mind. He raised both arms in front of him to protect himself when a sword even bigger than him sliced him.

He flexed his muscles as he folded his scales on each other and swirled his crystal essence through his arms. Thomas managed to mitigate the damage of the attack. His body was pushed back several steps while a deep cut had appeared on his arms, breaking the scales and revealing the flesh and the bones below.

The dust vanished, and the figure in the crater could be seen as a whole.

A massive body composed of dark metal armor, solid and imposing, about four meters in height. Its intimidating appearance was accentuated by the blue flames that shot from its empty eyes, creating a cold and ominous glow. In its hands was a giant sword surrounded by a cold blue flame.

The armor moved out of the crater, emitting a metallic rumble with each step that echoed through the air like an ominous warning. Every step it took was heavy, making the ground tremble under its imposing weight, making it look like an impenetrable fortress.

Thomas was shocked by the devastating force of the living armor attack. He felt the searing pain from his wound, his arms bleeding profusely.

The living armor rumbled menacingly, and its flaming eyes seemed to burn with dark, powerful energy. Thomas clenched his fists, trying to gather his strength, but he could feel exhaustion gripping his weakened body.

"Run away! I'll keep him here!" shouted Thomas.

Not taking a moment to look behind him to see his parents' faces, Thomas stepped forward. Forgetting the pain in his arms, he clenched his fists and threw himself at the living armor.

"No, Thomas!!" cried his mother, holding out a hand to him, hoping to be able to stop him.

"We have to trust Thomas and get away from here!" said his father.

"No, I'm not leaving him here!!"

"If we stay, we will disturb him!!"

His father carried his mother on his shoulder, who struggled violently while fleeing as far as possible from this impenetrable fortress.

Thomas' gaze became more relaxed when he felt his parents fleeing the scene through his crystal sense.

The living armor stomped towards him, brandishing its giant sword with unnerving ease. The blue flames surrounding the blade seemed to pulse with demonic malice.

Thomas felt a shiver of apprehension run down his spine as the living armor swung its sword. Throwing himself forward while rolling, he felt the violent wind that accompanied the movement of the sword brush his back.

Suddenly getting up, he strengthened his fists with his crystal essence. Leaning on the ground, he leaped onto the living armor. His right fist raised back, accumulating all the crystal essence he could find in his spiritual world.

Thomas' fist met the living armor's head, causing a powerful bang that echoed through the area.

The living armor fell to the ground headless with a thud. Thomas followed it closely, crashing to the ground without an ounce of strength.

He heard screams in the distance but ignored them in the chaos that reigned, the unbearable pain in his arms occupying all his mind. He forced himself to stand, taking several steps forward when he stopped in his tracks with his body shaking.

His eyes looked off into the street and gradually became empty and without emotions.

Dozens of living armor had invaded the street, and what he thought were the screams of strangers driving away from the area were actually the screams of his parents, who had their limbs ripped off by the living armors.

Like a doll whose threads had been cut, his body fell to the ground. His mind was blank as he witnessed the death of his parents.

A shadow rose over his body. A headless living armor stood behind him, slowly raising the giant sword in its hands above its headless body before bringing it down with fearsome force.

Under the deluge of rain that fell on the city, a single tear escaped Thomas's eyes, immediately getting lost in the rain surrounding him as if it had never existed.

Living Armor Illustration :