Haywire Ranger

Chapter 31: Torn Between Two Titans

"I did make a mistake, my gem," he confessed, his tone becoming sadder for a moment. "I... I might've lost control of Endurance when I shared my knowledge about bioengineering with him, let him have free will, and allowed him to repair himself and self-replicate as the need arose. I thought I needed to make him invincible, so that's what I did. I know it's a horrible mistake, and..." He made a brief pause in which he bit his lower lip. "And I... I loved you and never told you. That's another mistake."

What?! He did what?!

Naomi chuckled loudly and glared at him as she put her hands on either side of her hips.

"The nerve," she whispered with anger. "Don't you dare play with my feelings for you like they're guitar strings! You lie for personal gain. You've always had! You even go the length to commit a serious crime, like creating Endurance and losing control over him... which makes you responsible for the phoenixes that have been murdering thousands of people over all these years. One of your monsters almost killed me!"

This is so twisted. No wonder my aunt's a mess!

She was on the verge of tears. An uncomfortable silence settled in the office. The air grew heavy with tension as everyone present, stunned and taken aback, struggled to find words to fill the void. Eyes darted nervously around the room, avoiding direct contact as if seeking refuge from the charged atmosphere.

"You were my rock, but sacrifices need to be made sometimes," he whispered.

"How dare you say that to me?!" she exclaimed as a tear ran down her cheek. "Don't you feel remorse for what you've done?!"

"I did what needed to be done," he answered with pride. "Speaking of which, I'm not done yet."

This man is ruthless, even to someone who loves him!

The serene beauty of the bamboo garden and the artificial ponds in Anti-Ageing Inc.'s garden was abruptly shattered as a swarm of phoenixes descended from the night sky. The air filled with a cacophony of screeching cries and the beating of powerful wings. Led by the imposing blue ranger, the phoenixes launched a relentless assault on the drug company's headquarters.

A group of Steelvanes unleashed balls of fire that ignited the surroundings, creating a ring of flames that encircled the building. The fire burnt brightly in the night. The inferno roared with an intense heat, devouring everything in its path. The flames danced and devoured the bamboo stalks as the eerie red flames cast their hungry light upwards.

"No!" Mrs Evergreen cried as she turned around and witnessed the destruction down below. "The swarm was supposed to be free! This... This is your doing, right, Kane Kovak?! Stop this immediately!"

Wait. He made me set them free so that he could re-hack them and control them again?! Sky's fists clenched with anger.

The sound of breaking glass and crumbling structures echoed through the air as they tore through Anti-Ageing Inc.'s headquarters as more and more phoenixes of different kinds kept attacking the building. The smell of smoke filled the atmosphere, mingling with the acrid scent of burnt materials from the lower floors, which gradually came upstairs and started filling Mrs Evergreen's office.

The blue ranger's wings spread wide as it circled in the sky like a vulture, casting its eyes over the devastation below. Then, it made eye contact with the three human beings on the top floor.

Sky gulped while a cold sweat ran down his spine. Not again.

"I'm sorry, my gem," Kovak whispered to her. "Again."

"I knew our relationship was something superficial for you, but I chose to ignore the signs," Naomi whispered back as the blue ranger approached them with fierce determination.