THE WAR THAT FOLLOWED ME

CHAPTER 2: SHADOWS OVER NEW ARDENT

The city of New Ardent was alive with chaos. Neon lights flickered through columns of smoke, illuminating streets that had once been bustling with hover-bikes, neon markets, and skyscrapers that reached above the clouds. Now, shards of concrete and fire reflected in puddles like broken glass. Somewhere in the distance, a building collapsed with a roar that shook the city to its foundations.

Kade Reyes ran. Every step was precise, calculated, measured against the chaotic pulse of the city and the relic thrumming inside him. It was subtle at first, a low hum at the base of his skull, growing sharper with every passing second. Ish’Rael was alive, aware, feeding him threads of possible futures but none were safe.

Above him, the sky crack glowed blue and jagged. Massive Vaelith dropships poured out of the rift, their smooth, alien surfaces gleaming with a metallic light that made the neon signs feel cheap and fragile. Beams of energy lanced toward the streets, incinerating hover-bikes mid-flight and throwing screaming civilians into the chaos.

Kade ducked behind a broken vendor stall, gripping the Phaseblade he had stolen years ago. Its soft blue hum seemed to resonate with the relic. “They’re scanning for me,” he muttered, almost to himself.

A scream tore through the night—a child’s voice and Kade’s instincts kicked in. He darted through a ruined street, Phaseblade slicing through the air. A Vaelith scout was descending, its red visor locking onto his movement.

The blade extended with a hiss, catching the scout mid-stride. Sparks flew as metal and alien alloy clashed, then disintegrated. The creature collapsed into a molten heap. Kade wiped his brow, but there was no time to pause. The city was a battlefield, and he was alone in the eye of the storm.

Kade ducked into a narrow alleyway, where the stench of wet concrete, oil, and burning neon assaulted his senses. He moved like a shadow, silent and precise, until he reached a small tunnel beneath a collapsed service hub.

Inside, the air was thick, electrical lines arcing sporadically. Lights flickered as he emerged into a wider chamber—part underground maintenance corridor, part safe haven.

“Mila,” Kade whispered, spotting her crouched behind a flickering console. She looked up, eyes wide, scanning the tunnels.

“You’re insane,” she said, her voice calm but tense. “The city is burning above us. They’re everywhere.”

“I don’t have a choice,” he said. “They’re coming for the relic. And for me.”

Mila’s fingers flew over the keyboard, hacking into the city’s grid. Streetlights pulsed, electricity hummed through pipes, and the shadows themselves seemed to shift, creating cover where there had been none.

“They won’t find us here… not immediately,” she said. “But you can’t fight this war alone, Kade.”

He swallowed. “I never said I could. Just that I would try.”

The relic pulsed in his mind, sharper now, feeding him calculations of patrol patterns, weaknesses in alien sensors, and probability spikes. You cannot survive this without using me, it whispered. But using me will change you.

Kade exhaled slowly. Change was inevitable. He had survived wars before but this time, the war had come home.

Above the city, Vaelith shock troops landed in the industrial district, their armored legs thudding against concrete. Energy rifles flared, cutting through walls and igniting small fires. Kade and Mila moved silently through the labyrinth of tunnels, but escape would not be easy.

They emerged into a ruined plaza, where debris from collapsed buildings offered cover. Three Vaelith soldiers scanned for movement, their glowing visors cutting through the neon haze.

Kade gritted his teeth. The relic pulsed faster, feeding him options, strategies, escape routes—but each one carried a cost. Civilians would die. He would have to make choices that could haunt him forever.

The first soldier raised its rifle. Kade leapt from behind cover, Phaseblade slicing a precise arc. Sparks flew, armor melted. The second soldier turned, and Kade dodged, using the debris as leverage, his movements almost preternatural.

Mila activated a drone, which zipped past the soldiers, releasing a blinding flash of electromagnetic light. Sensors overloaded, the soldiers staggered. Kade moved in, striking each one down with the precision of a machine and yet, every strike felt like a moral weight pressing down on him.

The last soldier retreated, melting into the shadows. Kade exhaled, muscles burning, sweat mixing with rain and soot. “This isn’t over,” he muttered.

They returned to the hidden station beneath the financial district. Rashid, the leader of the underground resistance, waited. His eyes were sharp, calculating.

“You’re the one they want,” Rashid said. “The rumors… they’re real. Alien powers in your head.”

“I’m not their weapon,” Kade replied. “I’m their target. And I’m not alone anymore.”

Rashid narrowed his eyes. “You better not be lying. Because if you fail, the city dies.”

Kade glanced at Mila. “We organize, we fight smart, we don’t die in the streets. That’s the only way this city survives.”

Rashid grunted. “You think we can survive? They’re not just hunting—they’re cleansing.”

The word cleansing echoed in Kade’s mind. It was exactly what the Vaelith were doing: precision destruction, leaving only the unclaimed alive.

Flashback: The Aurelian War

Kade’s vision blurred. Memories came unbidden: explosions in alien jungles, screams of comrades lost, the relic glowing in his hands as he fought the Vaelith. The Core Relic had been a weapon of unimaginable power, capable of predicting entire battlefields before they happened.

I should have destroyed it, he thought. But it would have killed everything. And so I ran.

The relic pulsed again, almost sympathetically. I am alive because you survived. We both survived.

Shaking off the memory, Kade focused on the present. New Ardent needed him alive.

A holographic projection illuminated the underground station. The Vaelith commander appeared, colossal and calm, its voice deep and resonant:

“Kade Reyes. Surrender the asset, or watch your city burn layer by layer.”

The projection shifted to a younger version of Kade, armored, holding the glowing Core Relic in his hands. He remembered the war, the theft, the oath to hide it forever.

Mila gripped his shoulder. “You can’t give it to them.”

“I won’t,” Kade said. “But we need a plan. Fast.”

The relic whispered directly in his mind, feeding him tactical possibilities, escape routes, and strategies he could not conceive.

We can fight, it said. But the cost will be high.

Kade’s jaw clenched. High or not, there was no choice.

Overhead, the Vaelith commander’s ship hovered like a predator. Sensors glowed, locking onto Kade’s presence beneath the neon chaos.

The underground room buzzed with preparation. Civilians learned to hide, barricades were reinforced, and improvised energy turrets were brought online.

Mila worked furiously, coordinating drones and traps. “We’re barely ready,” she said. “If they come through, it’s over.”

Kade’s eyes scanned the perimeter, every shadow, every tunnel. He had one advantage—the relic. One chance to outthink the invaders.

He exhaled, gripping the Phaseblade. “Then we make them pay for every step.”

Outside, New Ardent burned, and the first wave of shock troops descended into the streets below. Energy weapons flared, civilians screamed, and fire spread through the wrecked buildings.

The relic pulsed in Kade’s mind. Everything depends on your next move.

Kade smiled faintly, dangerous and calm. “Let them come,” he muttered.

The night had only begun.