Dust, lightning, and blood merged in a violent storm as three monsters collided with one man. Jack met their charge head-on. The Dragon Dagger howled—a living storm in his grip—sending emerald lightning streaking through the cavern. Sparks showered as claws screeched against steel. The red-eyed champion swung first—its obsidian plates grinding like ancient machinery. Jack ducked under its left claw, slashing its torso as he slid across shattered crystal. Blue blood sprayed, hissing where it landed. The Smilodon darted in from the flank, limping but vicious. Jack twisted, boots scraping, and blocked with a raised elbow. The impact rattled his bones. Oxygen hissed out of his battered suit. Sarah’s voice cracked over comms. “Jack—watch your six!” The serrated alien’s blade-arms slashed downward. Jack spun, sparks flashing across his visor. He kicked the serrated one back, sending it skidding across the crystalline floor. “Still standing,” he muttered, ragged breath fogging his

A thunderclap rolled across the thin Martian sky, distant yet fierce, vibrating through the crystal cavern’s walls. The brief flash of lightning outside licked across the fractured ceiling, casting jagged shadows that danced over the two towering Smilodon-beasts. Their fangs gleamed, dripping acid that hissed against the floor. Not a single tremor of hesitation rippled through their hulking frames—they weren’t slowing. Not even a fraction.Jack’s chest rose and fell in uneven bursts. Every breath tasted of copper and burnt ozone. The Dragon Dagger in his grip pulsed with emerald light—hotter, brighter—responding to the thunder’s call like a living thing. His HUD screamed warnings: OXYGEN CRITICAL. SUIT INTEGRITY 47%. He ignored them.Sarah’s voice cracked over comms, raw with fear. “Jack… please. We can evac. Just hold on long enough for me to—”“No,” Jack said, low and sharp. “If they get past me, you’ll never make it out.”Emily’s reply was a desperate hiss. “Jack, you can’t take an

The cavern seemed to shrink as the reinforcements slunk from the shadows. Their claws clicked against the crystal, echoing like a ticking clock counting down to Jack’s death. Dust drifted from the ceiling fractures, coating his visor in a faint gray mist. His lungs screamed for oxygen. His suit’s alarms bellowed.Emily’s frantic voice broke through the static again. “Jack, there are at least eight—no, nine signals—”“Just two in front of me right now,” Jack growled. “Let’s keep the math simple.”“Simple?!” Sarah’s voice cracked with disbelief. “You’re bleeding out—”“Then I’ll make it count.” Jack shifted his grip on the Dragon Dagger, holding it low and reverse, the blade’s emerald fire flaring against the dim. The two Smilodons pacing before him flexed their claws, their jaws dripping acid.The limping one’s corpse lay sprawled behind him, smoke rising from its chest wound. The smell of scorched alien flesh mixed with the metallic tang of his own blood. Jack could almost taste the f

Jack met the charging giant head-on, emerald light spilling across the cavern like a second sunrise. Their collision sent a shockwave through the crystal floor, shattering smaller spires and spraying shards that hissed in the acidic air.The leader’s claws came down in a blur—one overhead, one sweeping low. Jack vaulted sideways, feeling the gust of displaced air as the claws smashed where he’d stood. He used the momentum to roll onto his feet and slash upward. The Dragon Dagger bit deep into the giant’s bicep. Acid blood splattered his chest plate, eating a sizzling groove through the armor.Old Joe’s voice boomed inside him, steadier than his own heartbeat: Don’t give ground. Not to them. Not to fear.“Not planning on it,” Jack hissed, twisting away as another swipe narrowly missed his helmet.Two of the smaller Smilodons flanked him, snarling. One lunged for his left leg while the other leapt for his throat. Jack dropped to a knee, ducking beneath the high attack and driving the da

The cavern shuddered like a living thing. Red dust sifted down in lazy spirals, catching the glare of emerald lightning and flickering plasma. The Smilodon leader’s claws glowed brighter—sparks dancing across its massive forearms as energy coiled inside it like a storm. The other aliens froze in a wide circle, their snarls hushed to low, guttural rumbles. Even wounded, their warlord commanded their respect.Ryan, breathing hard and clutching his plasma spear like a crutch, staggered two steps back. “It’s… drawing power from the cavern… Jack, it’s about to—”Jack cut him off with a raised hand, never taking his eyes off the beast. “Stay back, Ryan. This one’s between me and him.”The alien’s translator hissed, carrying its venomous words through the static: “You desecrate sacred ground. Mars belongs to my bloodline. I am Khar’zek, Warlord of the Crimson Sands. You will die before you steal our sky.”Jack’s lips curved into a grim smirk. The Dragon Dagger pulsed in his grip, its emerald