The Underdogs Throne

Chapter 7: The Viper Clan's Strike

"No," she said angrily. "I'm trying to keep you alive! But we won't be alive if we're still here in ten seconds!"

Leo stared at her. He didn't know what to do.

Then, more blades came through the walls. They were warning shots from the reinforcements coming.

"Fine. But after this, you're going to start telling me the truth." He said.

"Deal." kira replied.

The wind blew hard. Leo and Kira ran fast across the rooftops, jumping from one building to another. They could still hear the Wolf Fang Clan behind them, but the sounds were getting quieter. Leo knew they weren't safe yet.

"I need to stop," Leo said, breathing hard. A sharp pain hit his chest.

"We can't stop now," Kira said, pulling him along. "They're still after us."

They saw an old bell tower ahead. It stood tall in the empty part of the city where old factories used to be. The metal door made a loud creak when they opened it and went inside. Leo locked the door behind them.

The air inside was thick with dust, but at least they were safe for now.

Leo fell to the cold floor. He held his side where it hurt. The Battle Core had made him use too much power again. His hands shook, and he couldn't see clearly. He felt like he was burning up from the inside.

Kira came over to him. "You have to stop using the Core like this. It's hurting you."

Leo didn't answer. The energy was still moving under his skin like fire. It scared him.

Then they heard a soft click sound from above.

They both looked up.

A person dropped down from the ceiling without making any noise. They wore black and green clothes and moved like a snake. Their eyes glowed under a dark hood, and they held two curved knives that had dark poison on them.

"Viper Clan," Kira whispered. She pulled out her own knives.

The person attacked fast.

Kira blocked the first knife, but the second one cut Leo's arm. The pain was terrible. His body stopped working because of the poison on the knife.

He fell to one knee.

Kira yelled his name, but he couldn't move. The attacker came closer to kill him.

Then the Core woke up.

Power shot through Leo's body and burned away the poison. He rolled away just before the killer's knife could hit him. Time went slow. Everything became clear. His body moved fast without him thinking about it.

He rolled across the floor, grabbed a broken pipe, and hit the attacker with it.

The person stepped back and made an angry sound.

Leo got back on his feet. He was hurt but still alive. "I'm not going to die tonight." He said

The attacker came at him again. This time, Leo could see every move before it happened. He could tell when they were going to strike just by how they moved. This wasn't from training. The Core was helping him.

He moved away from a knife swing, hit back at their ribs, then twisted and took one of their knives away.

But the attacker didn't keep fighting.

Instead, they jumped back to the window. Before they left, they dropped something on the floor - a piece of paper.

Leo picked it up. His heart was still beating fast.

The paper said: "The Tian Heart is waking up. You are the storm and the key. Choose well."

Kira read it too. "Great. Now the Vipers want you too."

Leo stared at the note. "They know about the Tian Heart."

"They all know," Kira said. "That's why they're hunting you. But it means the Heart is real."

Leo looked at her with angry eyes. "What else haven't you told me?"

Kira waited before speaking.

"I have been telling my father about you," she said quietly. "He wants to know what you can do. But I haven't told him everything."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't know which side I'm on anymore," Kira said. "I grew up thinking the Tian Clan were bad people. That you were dangerous. But then I saw you fight. I saw that you're lost and scared. You're not the monster they said you were."

Leo made fists with his hands. "That doesn't mean I can trust you."

"No," she agreed. "It doesn't."

They stood quiet for a while.

Then she said, "But if the Tian Heart is real, you need answers. Shen might be the only one who can help."

Leo nodded slowly. "We find him. Tonight."

They left before the sun came up. They moved through hidden parts of the city - back alleys, old tunnels, and rooftops. Kira moved like she knew every shadow. Leo followed, moving slower but feeling sharper.

Something was changing inside him.

The Core wasn't just helping when he was in danger anymore. It was growing stronger. As they moved, he could sense things far away - footsteps from other streets, someone watching them from far off. It was like having a new sense.

But every time the power came, it made him weaker after. Like the energy cost him something.

When they got to a high bridge over the river, Leo stopped. He grabbed the rail. The pendant around his neck had been getting hotter all night. Now it was burning hot.

"Something's wrong," he said.

Kira turned around. "Leo?"

The pendant lit up bright, and Leo fell down.

His eyes rolled back, and everything around him went away.

He was standing in a big field under a night sky full of stars. In the middle of the field was a glowing ball of light floating in the air. It pulsed like a heartbeat and gave off warm, strong power. The Tian Heart.

A tall figure in robes stood in front of it. Leo couldn't see their face.

"You want something you don't understand," the figure said. Their voice sounded like wind. "The Heart wakes up to bring balance. But power without truth will destroy you."

Leo tried to move or speak, but he couldn't.

The figure turned. "Find the truth or be destroyed by it."

The vision broke apart.

Leo woke up on the bridge, breathing hard. Kira held him steady. "You passed out. What did you see?"

He didn't answer right away.

Now he knew for sure.

The Tian Heart was real. And something was protecting it.

He looked at his pendant, which was cool again. Then at Kira, whose face was pale and worried.

"They all want the Heart," he said. "Every clan. And they'll kill to get it."

Kira nodded. "Then we better find it first."