The Five Evolution

『"Divide and perish, or divide and conquer."』

The War and Plague Malices loomed at opposite ends of the cavern, the core pulsing between them. Spawn swarmed everywhere.

Maya’s mind was already calculating. "We can’t fight both at once. Not here. Not with the spawn horde between us."

She looked down at her wrist where the holographic map projector sat, but it was completely dark, fried by the War Malice’s electromagnetic pulse along with everything else electronic they carried.

"Shit." Her jaw clenched. "If I remember the station schematics correctly, there are multiple service tunnels branching from Level Three. Without the map I can’t pinpoint where they are or where they lead to."

Raj nodded and stepped forward. "Then we’re just gonna have to find it and split up. Half take one, half take the other."

"No," Yelena said. "You will all die against those things." Her voice was louder as hundreds of spawns began to circle her and Dante with the goal of keeping them occupied.

Around them, some of the spawns were reorganizing and forming a wall between Team Delta and any possible escape route. Thousands. All moving with coordinated purpose.

"We don’t have a choice," Amara said. "And War over there isn’t going to wait for us to make plans."

As if hearing its name, the War Malice was already on the move.

It wasn’t subtle or strategic, just pure aggression incarnate, barreling straight toward them with a hammer manifesting in its grip. And for some reason Amara couldn’t understand, Raj seemed to be the focus of its aggression.

"Breastplate," it rumbled mid-stride, the word vibrating through the cavern.

"Oh shit," Raj took a quick breath and a step back, but the Malice moved faster than something that size should be able to, crossing fifty feet of distance in three ground-shaking strides.

Raj tried to get out of the way, but War was already there. Its shoulder slammed into him like a bullet train hitting a pedestrian, sending him flying.

Raj’s body tumbled through the air with no control, crashing through spawn that got in the way, then slamming into the cavern wall with enough force to be embedded inside of it, right next to the tunnel Maya spoke of.

"Ugh..." Raj groaned, trying to pull himself out of the rock, and then his fingers found the opening that indicated a tunnel.

"Uh, I think I found your tunnel Maya," he yelled out from where he was sent flying to.

Ethan and Hiro were already on the move towards him. "You ok, big guy?" Hiro called out.

Unfortunately, they weren’t the only ones chasing after Raj. The War Malice was also on the move, charging after its prey with a single-minded determination as spawns scattered out of its path, at least smart enough not to get between a predator and its target.

With a single leap that defied common sense, War positioned itself twenty feet directly above Raj’s position, fifteen feet of rage and violence coming down on him with a hammer.

Ethan’s shield intercepted it. The impact sent cracks spider-webbing across the translucent barrier, and Ethan staggered under the force, one knee going down.

"It’s targeting Raj specifically!" Ethan shouted over the chaos. "Something about the breastplate seems to enrage it?!"

"Oh, come on!" Raj yelled as he extracted himself out of the hole he was in.

War raised its hammer again, power gathering around the weapon and swung again. This time, the shield shattered, unable to withstand War’s next strike.

The backlash sent Ethan flying backward, tumbling across the corrupted floor.

Suddenly, the War Malice was between the three of them and the rest of the team, cutting them off completely.

Raj scrambled fully into the western tunnel, and Hiro and Ethan were forced to follow as War advanced towards them, each step shaking the ground.

It tossed away the hammer it held and another weapon materialized faster, taking its place. A blade so huge it made Guts’ dragonslayer look like a letter opener.

"We’ll handle this one!" Raj yelled to Amara and the others, already growing larger, matching War’s size. "You guys stop Plague!"

Ethan looked toward Amara for half a second too long before turning toward the western tunnel, both of them understanding what that look meant.

Then they disappeared into the western passage, War Malice’s roar echoing behind them.

Amara controlled her breathing and spun to face the eastern region of the cavern where Plague currently was.

It was moving toward the core at the center with a sinister purpose, ultimately ruining their attempt to split up if it made it.

"It’s heading for the core! Why is it heading for the core?!" Amara asked.

"It’s likely attempting a merge." Maya answered, horror dawning. "If that happens, we’ll have a Rook threat level on our hands. Imagine diseases spreading through shadows... we can’t have that."

Maya hesitated for just a second, looking between the western tunnel, where Raj, Hiro and Ethan had to give it their all, and then some, if they wanted to stand a chance, and the eastern part of the cavern, where the Plague Malice moved from.

Then her expression hardened. "So Dante and Yelena have got their part to play." She turned to Amara and Sophia. "Us? We stop the Plague Malice. We don’t let it get to the center. We intercept and keep it in the east."

"Understood," Amara said as the starry patterns on Angel’s Bane burned brighter in her grip.

Meanwhile, Dante and Yelena maintained their position at the center as hundreds upon hundreds of more spawns encircled them and pushed them further away from the east.

It was as though the Darkness Malice within its core was trying to keep them from the Five.

"So what now?" Dante asked.

"Children of Darkness," Yelena said plainly, her blades beginning to glow. "Give or take five hundred of them between us and core. We carve a path, destroy it."

"That’s good enough for me." Dante grinned, then pointed to the core. "I guess I’ll be sending your ass to the graveyard again."

The spawn horde surged forward and Yelena moved to meet them, her twin blades cleaving through scores in an instant.

But it wasn’t just melee. Each swing sent out arcs of wind blades that slashed through numerous spawns in one go and she released a flurry of them.

Dante’s guitar unleashed sonic waves that tore through the spawn ranks, shattering scores instantly.

Amara didn’t wait to see how that fight went. She charged into the eastern part of the cavern, Maya and Sophia right behind her, racing to intercept Plague before it could reach its goal.

Behind her, from the western tunnel, she heard the sound of War’s roar and the impact of Raj’s fists meeting obsidian armor.

The plague Malice turned to face them, and when it smiled, Amara saw every disease that had ever killed humanity reflected in those weeping eyes.

"Ah," it whispered, its voice hollow and sibilant, each syllable dragging. "The Sssword. The Helmet, and... who are you?" Its body rippled, fungal growths sprouting from its limbs.

Then it thrust both hands forward and released spores that hit the ground.

Where they landed, they grew horrifically fast, transforming into fungus-born parasite-ridden monstrosities within seconds.

Hundreds of them. Each one dripping with toxic fluids, pulsating with internal parasites, and teeth gnashing as they charged forward.

Maya’s Sol lantern flared as golden light flashed outward and solidified into a dome that pushed back against the assault. "I’ve got us covered!"

From behind the barrier, Sophia telekinetically hurled the parasite creatures into the path of Angel’s Bane, and Amara cut through them in silver-black arcs without damaging the barrier.

"So far, so good." Amara said as she slashed through another. "We can end this fast."

Plague laughed, the sound like fluid in lungs. "End me? Sssooo naive."

Its form shifted, becoming less solid and more like smoke. "Let me show you what real pestilence looks like." The chamber was immediately filled with airborne pathogens, visible as greenish mist, spreading fast.

And in the western tunnel, War Malice’s next roar shook the entire underground station, making stalactites fall from the ceiling in a deadly rain.

Somewhere in the center of the cavern, Dante and Yelena were surrounded by spawn, fighting for their lives while trying to reach a core that pulsed faster.

Team Delta had split into three separate battles. Each one potentially lethal. Each one happening simultaneously. And no one was coming to save them.

***

[CRITICAL STATUS]

TEAM DELTA - SPLIT:

Western Tunnel (War Malice):

Raj Patel (Shaper ▮▮)

Hiro Josuke (Dream Walker ▮)

Ethan Bass (Shaper ▮▮)

Status: ENGAGED

Eastern Cavern (Plague Malice):

Amara Murray (Shaper ▮▮)

Maya O’Sullivan (Shaper ▮▮)

Sophia Delgado (Dream Walker ▮)

Status: ENGAGED

Center Cavern (Spawn + Core):

Dante Valentine (Tyrant ▮▮▮)

Yelena Vetrova (Tyrant ▮▮▮)

Enemy Count: 500+ spawn

Status: OVERWHELMED

Communications: OFFLINE

Backup: UNABLE TO RESPOND

Extraction: IMPOSSIBLE

Survival Probability: UNKNOWN