Ura

The underground prison featured rough concrete walls, completely unplastered, with massive steel support columns exposed at the corners. Spiders spun webs up high, and footsteps on the stairs produced booming echoes. All along the way, overhead yellow lamps swayed, casting harsh light on the dust kicked up from beneath their boots as it swirled violently. "Ewen, stop, please, Ewen. Listen to me: people are dying out there—dying constantly, without end. "If you truly believe there is any chance that, once outside, they would turn their blades against their comrades from behind... then whatever thinking or precautions we take right now are utterly meaningless. Do you understand?!" Because his deputy had been chattering behind him the whole way, Aleksey had no choice but to stop, turning around to halt his runaway train of thought. To that end, he glared severely at Ewen. Holding the rank of colonel and peak top-tier combat power, Aleksey served as the commander of No. 1 Top-Secret Prison, a crucial post entrusted to him due to his steadfast performance during the secessionist civil war. Guarding a prison might not seem like much of an honor in itself, but when the prisoners held within were Stepan and Gennady, it was without question a vital assignment and a mark of peerless trust. "They won't. They won't, understand? I am certain of that." With steady eyes, Aleksey looked at Ewen and said, "That is why I came—to hear what they have to say." "But you shouldn't enter this conversation hoping to be persuaded, even if the situation outside desperately needs them right now." Tilting his head, Ewen pushed up the temple of his glasses and weakly tried to dissuade him again. "I know. Rest easy, Colonel Ewen." Aleksey turned back around and squared his chest, thrusting his shoulders and the battle blade behind his back into position. "The only person who can persuade me is myself." Further down, after two turns, Aleksey emerged on the third subterranean level. Through the palm-sized slit of the dead iron cell on the left, a pair of gray-blue eyes met his. It was General Gennady. Aleksey nearly raised a hand in salute... but let it fall halfway and said, "Teacher." Gennady had once been an instructor at the Azure Xiongzhanli First Officer Academy. During his tenure as chief combat instructor, he had personally trained many outstanding talents. The two brightest among them today were Anton and Aleksey—one a super combat power, the other a peak top-tier. Yet when Gennady chose to join the rebellion, neither of his two finest students chose to follow him. Later, during the outbreak of the rebellion, when the Splinter Faction assaulted the officer academy, it was Gennady himself who took the field, wounded Aleksey, and took him prisoner. Aleksey offered his greeting. From behind the slit, Gennady did not reply. In fact, throughout his time as warden of No. 1 Prison, though Aleksey reviewed detailed daily reports on the third subterranean level, he had never once come down in person. Because it was so difficult to find an appropriate way to face the teacher he had once revered most... the hero of his heart... under circumstances such as these. Six thick walls of dead iron, with no gaps or interior lighting except for a latrine pit and a palm-sized slit. Gennady and Stepan had been locked in here for several months. Such conditions would have driven an ordinary person mad long ago. Fortunately, they were supers—not only possessing super combat power, but also minds and wills forged through countless life-and-death battles to a super caliber. "I suppose we don't have much time for a long talk, do we, Colonel?" While Gennady did not respond to Aleksey's greeting, Stepan spoke from the cell on the right, his voice low and gravelly: "So listen to me. I want you to understand one thing: we may have betrayed Azure once, but we have never once turned our backs on the Great Spikes." "...Understood." After a brief silence, Aleksey nodded. "Then there is no time to lose, Colonel." In the adjoining cell, Gennady spoke as well, addressing Aleksey by rank. "Perhaps you still know me well enough. So please, trust me." Aleksey turned to look at his teacher. Gennady gave a bleak smile. "To this day, I still do not believe the current Azure can lead humanity to victory. Yes, Mosolygin is a politician and a scoundrel, but he was walking in a direction that might have been right, one worth trying. Back then, nothing was set in stone, and the world needed a chance to attempt another way..." Here, Gennady paused, then said, "Well, none of that matters anymore. Because it is already too late for any more attempts." He had spoken at length. This irritated Stepan. "Enough! With every word you speak, someone out there is dying, dammit! Hurry up and let us go. If I don't die in battle, I swear I'll come back here, and Gennady won't even need—" "All right. Then we must trouble you and General Stepan, Teacher." Aleksey turned as he spoke, gesturing for the guards to open the cells. The soldiers looked at him, seemingly hesitant and at a loss. "Go on. Do as I say," Aleksey said, calm and resolute. He had agreed just like that? So simply?! Beside him, Ewen was stunned, but quickly realized: earlier on the stairs, when Aleksey said, "The only person who can persuade me is myself"... he had in fact already persuaded himself. Perhaps the moment he decided to walk down here, he had already made up his mind. He didn't need Stepan and Gennady to say anything more. And they didn't have that much time anyway. *Clang! Creak, creak...* Dead iron cells could not be fastened with ordinary locks, so naturally they could not be opened with keys. In hidden chambers on both sides, soldiers turned winches together. Steel cables went taut, gradually shifting the concealed interlocking sections of the cells. The walls slowly moved aside, opening. "...No! No, Aleksey, you can't do this! You don't have the authority. We should at least consult command and the Council first..." Ewen tugged at Aleksey, his voice hushed and frantic. Aleksey turned to look at him. "Do you think they haven't thought of this, Ewen? When the red-shoulders descended—one, and then a second—do you think they didn't remember that Teacher and General Stepan are down here?" "...Then why haven't they—?" Ewen looked bewildered. "Perhaps the proposal was voted down. Perhaps they're still hesitating... or perhaps they're holding a vote right now." A faint smirk touched Aleksey's lips—a bitter smile, tinged with helpless mockery. "Then can we ask Major General Anton and General Mikhail for their opinions? At least let them decide, not you." Behind his spectacles, Ewen's eyes were filled with worry and conflict. "They're currently facing red-shoulders," Aleksey said. "All right. I... I'm sure command and the Council have already requested reinforcements from our Huaxia allies," Ewen muttered, looking down. "Too late," Aleksey said firmly. "I'll say it once more: people are dying out there—dying constantly, endlessly. Ewen, do you understand what that means?" The dead iron walls were about to part wide enough for a person to exit... "What if they don't head to the battlefield...?" Ewen pressed anxiously. "They will. At the very least, they won't turn their blades on their comrades now," Aleksey said calmly. "What if they don't come back after the battle—what if they run?" "Teacher possesses character we can trust," Aleksey replied. "General Stepan certainly doesn't!" Ewen said frantically. "You must have heard of his reputation. It isn't good." "Then let them run. No matter where they flee, they'll still swing their blades at the Great Spikes, won't they?" Aleksey said. "In any case, I'm certain they will never join an outfit like the Snow Lotus or Pure Purgatory. If they wanted to, they would have done so long ago." "And what about you?!" Ewen stared into Aleksey's eyes. "If that happens—if they take off immediately, or slip away after the fight—and an investigation follows, have you considered the consequences?" "Ah, will they investigate?" Aleksey chuckled. "I hope not. But if they really do..." "Maybe you'll be the one locked up in here." Ewen pointed at the dead iron cell. "No. If it comes to that, I'll be thoroughly disappointed. And then I'll run—run off to a certain place. I imagine you can guess where, Ewen... Conveniently enough, I miss Miss Milla terribly." Aleksey smiled. At that moment, the cell walls finished retracting. Both Gennady and Stepan had full beards. Flanking the opening on either side, they stepped sideways out of their cells, halted, and held out their hands. "Give us devices and blades." Their personal gear and weapons from the past were naturally not kept here. The soldiers hesitated, unsure whether they should fetch spare devices and swords. Before them stood two traitors—and two super combat powers. They were out. Once they had their devices and blades... *Clatter!* With a sharp sound, Aleksey unbuckled his own device and threw it along with his blade to Gennady. "Use this, Teacher. Tenth-generation device. It boosts efficiency by thirty percent." Gennady looked at him, nodded, and began strapping it on. "Hey, wait... what are you—!" Ewen protested in a panic, but to no avail. Aleksey stripped off Ewen's tenth-generation device and blade as well, turned, and tossed them to Stepan. Aleksey and Ewen then put on spare devices and weapons. Stepan and Gennady finished gearing up. "Location," Lieutenant General Stepan asked, looking upward. "The Winter Palace," Aleksey answered. "Then we'll meet at the Winter Palace," General Gennady said. Immediately following, *whoosh! Whoosh!* Two consecutive bursts of super source energy erupted. Like two blurred phantoms, they vanished into the stairwell. Their speed was far beyond what anyone present could hope to match. The third subterranean level fell silent for half a second amid the turbulence and echoes. The soldiers all threw their heads back, staring upward. "Ura!" one of the soldiers called out hesitantly in a low voice, raising a fist almost involuntarily. Because it was always like this: whenever the supers launched a charge, it was always exhilarating. And now, those once-familiar figures they had long looked up to were charging once again before their eyes. "Ura!" Aleksey also raised his fist and shouted at the top of his lungs. At the same time, *whoosh!* Source energy surged as he gave chase upward. "Ura...!" Ewen and the remaining soldiers roared, engaging their devices and hurtling upward together. Their objective: the Winter Palace.