(Back at Aegis Headquarters, Commander Cromwell and Commander Locke oversee Operation Black Vector themselves — the mission to capture Infinity and uncover his plans. They listen to each of the three teams’ conversations and track their current locations with calm and collected expressions: Commander Cromwell is a woman in her late-forties with brown hair tied into a bun and her brown eyes, while Commander Locke is a man in his early-forties as well with short black hair and brown eyes, wearing a sleek black suit. Begrudgingly joining them is Sylvia, a young woman with blond hair wearing a stylish blue blouse, sitting on a chair and crossing her arms with a scowl.)

  Sylvia: (scowling) You two are commanders overseeing your operation. What am I doing here?

  Commander Cromwell: (passing her a side eye, subtly stern) You’re the handler of the Sparks. That makes you as involved as we are.

  Sylvia: (her tone getting more stern as well) My team is only here to rescue Stone. We’re not working for you, and we won’t be.

  Commander Locke: (icily) You’ve made that clear, Ms. Anderson, and we also made it clear that should the Sparks show an unwillingness to cooperate, you’d be the first to pay for it.

  Sylvia: (slyly) So it’s like that, huh? Using me as a bargaining chip, aren’t you? My team will get the job done, and that’ll be the end of it, you hear?

  (Commander Cromwell and Commander Locke glance at her with a stern expression, while she remains sly as ever, and the former pair simply turn to the screen once again to monitor the progress of Operation Black Vector. Sylvia does so as well, glancing at the screen intently. Meanwhile, inside a room in Infinity’s tower, Focus grits his teeth as he glances at Hollow, his opponent.)

  Focus: (gritting his teeth) And you are…?

  Hollow: (his voice distorted under the mask) You may call me Hollow. And you’re Focus, am I correct?

  Focus: (unbothered) I’ve got quite a following, huh? (sternly) Now explain yourself. What is all this?

  Hollow: My master has planned everything. This encounter with Flare was meant to be. Now you show me… whether you too deserve to stand by my master’s side.

  Focus: (scowling) It’s not really a privilege.

  (Focus takes a fighting stance, getting ready to take on Hollow, and the latter too takes his stance, his fists glowing with neon red energy. He lunges at Focus for a blow, who eloquently steps out of the way, only for Hollow to quickly redirect himself towards him. Focus blocks that blow with his fist, the two of them getting sent skidding back. However, Hollow quickly gets in behind Focus, who just manages to sense his approach and jump out of the way of his blast. Before he manages to turn around after that, he’s forced to block another blow, getting sent flying through a wall and into another room. He regains his balance, gritting his teeth as Hollow approaches him once again with a neon red aura enveloping him and the symbol on his mask glowing red.)

  Hollow! The Overdrive Surge! He isn’t forced to the regular constraints of a Surge, for he can utilize his immense energy in whichever manner suits him. Thus, his Surge serves the purpose of amplifying his combat abilities, and though it sounds lackluster and uninteresting, he’s surely a powerhouse in his own right!

  (Hollow lunges at Focus once again, launching a barrage of blasts while he’s at it, only for Focus to cancel them out with a swipe of his hand and then parry Hollow’s fist. He quickly regains his balance after that and launches an energy fist at Focus, who cancels it out with his own fist and jumps at Hollow while landing a roundhouse kick at his face, sending him skidding back. He tries to follow that up with a punch, but Hollow lands an energy blast at his fist, sending him skidding back, and then he follows that up with a kick to his gut, sending him flying. He lunges at him again, but Focus regains his balance, holding both of Hollow’s hands down.)

  Focus: (gritting his teeth) What is your master planning with Flare? Why was he after her all this time?

  Hollow: You’ll know when the time comes. The whole world will witness the revolution.

  (Focus headbutts Hollow right in the head and sends him skidding back, but he quickly regains his balance, and the two take their fighting stances once again, the former doing so through gritted teeth, and the latter doing so as the symbol on his mask glows with energy. Meanwhile, Flare is in a separate room with her own encounter, and it’s with none other than Infinity himself, who stands firm in front of her. She clenches her fists and glances at him with a wary look on her face.)

  Flare: (grimacing) Alright, now who are you, and what’s with the costume? Halloween was over a couple months ago.

  Infinity: This encounter was bound to happen, and I did everything to ensure that such is the case. You may refer to me as… Infinity. It’s truly a pleasure to meet you, Flare.

  Flare: (cockily grinning) Ooooh, you sure know your moves. Now what? You’re gonna ask me if I’m free next weekend? (gritting her teeth) But seriously, stop talking in riddles, dammit!

  Infinity: (still as calm as ever) Perhaps I do need to make myself clear. Simply put… I see potential in you, and I believe that only I can bring it out. I can mold you into the most powerful Surge Beacon alive.

  Flare: (faintly smirking) Thanks, but no thanks.

  (Flare lunges at Infinity while lighting up her fists with fire, looking to land the first blow, but to her shock, her punch gets parried when a sudden shadow tendril blocks it, knocking her off-balance midair. Her pupils narrow in terror at Infinity’s eerie calmness and unmoved demeanor, and then Infinity strikes her with that shadow tendril, sending her flying. Flare gets back up on her feet and grits her teeth as Infinity slowly approaches, several shadow tendrils forming behind him.)

  Infinity: (eerily calm) I plan for something revolutionary. I plan for a new world order… and to end the unseemly exploitation of Surges. I require someone of your caliber by my side.

  Flare: (gritting her teeth) Oh, really? Bite me.

  Infinity: (subtly more stern) You’ll come around… given time. For now… I’d like you to show me what you can do.

  Flare: (cockily) And that I will.

  (Flare envelops herself with her typical fiery aura and lights up her fists with fire once again, standing in front of Infinity, who remains unmoved as his shadow tendrils start floating. He launches his shadow tendrils at Flare, who knocks them back with her fire spears as she attempts a blow at Infinity. However, he teleports a step back and away from her blow, to her surprise, and then he lands a punch at her gut, sending her skidding back. She uses the flames underneath her legs to propel herself above Infinity, preparing a cluster of fireballs at him. However, he doesn’t move an inch, still composed.)

  Infinity: (muttering) Construct.

  (Several crystal-like, two-dimensional shadow structures appear right in front of Flare’s fireballs and cancel them out, the impact disorienting herself midair. The shadow crystals are then redirected at Flare, who quickly propels herself out of the way and attempts to launch another wave of fireballs to cancel out the constructs, but to no avail.)

  Flare: (annoyed) That’s cheating!

  (Flare sets foot on the ground and continues running out of the way of the constructs, which keep chasing after her. Through gritted teeth, she envelops herself in her fiery aura and propels herself at the crystal shadow constructs, canceling them out with her fiery punches. She then jumps at Infinity for a blow, propelling herself at him.)

  Infinity: Anchor.

  (Infinity’s feet get submerged in shadow, and although Flare does land a punch on his face, he doesn’t flinch at all, as if anchored in place. In fact, the sheer amount of force anchoring him to the ground under his feet is enough to send Flare skidding back, and then she gets struck by a shadow tendril that sends her crashing through a wall and into another room. Flare gets back up on her feet, glancing at Infinity in horror, who slowly walks towards her with eerie composure. She panickedly launches another wave of fire spears at him, only for his constructs to stand in the way and cancel them out as he continues approaching her. Seeing that, she takes a wary fighting stance through gritted teeth as Infinity finally takes a firm stance as well.)

  Stolen story; please report.

  Infinity: Painfully ordinary. I expected more from you, but it surely appears you’re holding back. You can’t activate it at will, can you?

  Flare: (gritting h teeth) So it’s that side of me you were looking to meet. Not a chance.

  Infinity: Then I guess I’ll have to bring it out of you.

  (Infinity’s shadow tendrils reform once again, and the purple infinity sign on his mask glows with purple energy, ready to continue this battle. Meanwhile, still inside the tower, several masked shadow soldiers are still running while holding their weapons close to confront the intruders, but suddenly, a ball of misty smoke lands between them. It dissipates into a full black mist that envelopes them, to their surprise.)

  Masked Shadow Soldier 1A: (aiming its weapon at the misty surroundings, to the others, urgently) Remain on the lookout!

  (The soldiers frantically look around, anticipating an attack, but they get taken by surprise regardless when a mist copy of Mistrick appears out of nowhere and kicks one of the soldiers in the back, sending it skidding back. Another soldier immediately shoots down the mist copy, causing it to dissipate, but then another mist copy kicks the soldier in the face, disorienting it. The copies continue showing up to disturb the masked soldiers until the real Mistrick appears out of nowhere inside the mist, with the soldiers no longer as focused as they once were.)

  Mistrick! The Mist Surge! She can generate a black mist within a fifty-meter radius that not only slows down the movements of anyone who happens to be inside it, but it also amplifies her own speed and strength! She can also form several cloudy copies of herself inside that mist to mislead her foes, as well as blend in with that mist to reappear out of nowhere!

  (Given that she’s more powerful than her copies, she energizes her fists with a black misty cloud and lands the finishing blows at all of the masked shadow soldiers at high speed, causing them all to dissipate. Seeing that, she reabsorbs the black mist with a cocky half-smile. Meanwhile, Pulse and Hunter follow Proxy as they run through a hallway, with the latter extending her energized palm ahead. Her pupils are also glowing with purple energy; she has hacked into the security cameras with her Tech Surge and can see through them with her own eyes, switching between footage whenever needed. Right now, she’s examining the way to the control center inside this tower with one eye and inspecting the shadow soldiers’ movements with the other.)

  Proxy! The Tech Surge! She can manipulate all sorts of technology into whatever she can imagine, from weapons to utility! She can also hack into almost any network with ease, making her the ultimate technological wildcard!

  Pulse: How long until we get there?

  Proxy: (firmly) We’re on the right track. (to Mistrick, via communicator) There are still multiple enemy soldiers converging on our location. Continue straight ahead then take the second turn to the right and you’ll be able to intercept.

  Mistrick: (shrugging, via communicator) Yeah, whatever, kid.

  Proxy: (smirking) Don’t call me that.

  (Mistrick sighs deeply before running off and following Proxy’s instructions, eventually crossing paths with the shadow soldiers upon taking that turn to the right. She immediately summons her black mist around them, and she’s joined by her mist copies as she takes a stance with a confident grin. Though Mistrick is dealing with the soldiers that may stand in the other trio’s way, another batch of soldiers manages to intercept Proxy, Pulse, and Hunter, ambushing them all of a sudden and immediately opening fire. However, Proxy quickly forms a plasma shield with some spare tech parts out of her open backpack, and then Pulse steps in, striking herself with her green energy lance, as if applying a buff on herself.)

  Pulse: (firmly) Buff: Level.

  (Having applied that buff on herself, she lunges at the masked shadow soldiers, punching one of them in the face. She heads for another soldier, her hands and legs getting enveloped in green energy, and as she kicks a soldier in the face and uppercuts another, her blows get stronger progressively, the effect of the buff she applied on herself.)

  Pulse! The Support Surge! She may not have a flashy combat Surge like everyone else, but she can both support her allies with a variety of buffs such as healing, power amplification, and whatnot, while being a handful for foes with a variety of debuffs under her sleeve. Let’s not forget that she’s a capable fighter herself! That girl is the ultimate backup unit, folks!

  (Pulse manages to take out a bunch of those soldiers, then Hunter gets the rest of the job done, swiftly taking out the remaining soldiers and shooting them down with his pair of guns. He firmly continues his path, seeing the door leading to the control room just head, and he blows it open with his gun, setting eyes on a control panel and a giant monitor ahead.)

  Hunter: (firmly) Proxy.

  (Proxy firmly nods and approaches the control panel, using the spare tech inside her backpack to create a small device that she connects to the monitor. Afterwards, her pupils start glowing purple as she activates her Tech Surge, hacking into the device and beginning to extract the information with ease. However, the fact that she did so with such ease adds to her wariness.)

  Proxy: (warily) This is easy. Almost… too easy.

  Hunter: (skeptically) Our enemy wouldn’t have made it that easy of us… not unintentionally. What could be behind that?

  Pulse: (placing a hand on her chin) And though we did encounter resistance, it was nowhere near as heavy as expected. We would’ve encountered a greater sort of resistance if… (the realization gnawing on her) if we were the priority.

  Hunter: (grimacing) Then this showing was to conceal the real priority… (clenching his fists) the Surge Beacon. (urgently, to Proxy and Pulse) Make your way out of this tower the moment you’re done with extracting the intel! Let Mistrick in on that as well!

  Proxy: And what about you?!

  Hunter: I’ll see what I can do with the situation. If my assumption is correct, then both Focus and the Surge Beacon are already on the ropes.

  (Hunter heads off out of the control room and across the hallway, leaving Proxy and Pulse inside. The two reluctantly nod at each other and glance at the monitor, waiting for the download to complete. Meanwhile, Flare continues her battle with Infinity, attempting to dodge his shadow tendrils as she circles around him. After acrobatically jumping between a pair of shadow tendrils he launches at her, she launches a burst of flames at him, which he easily cancels out with a shadow construct.)

  Infinity: How rudimentary.

  (Infinity teleports above Flare and launches a shadow tendril at her that she quickly avoids, only for him to teleport once again in front of her and punch her in the gut, sending her flying. Frustrated, she propels herself at him at high speed with the flames underneath her legs, and then just as Infinity prepares another blow at her with a shadow tendril, she prepares to give herself a little push upwards with the flames coming from her palms, but Infinity quickly notices that.)

  Infinity: Latency.

  (Suddenly, Flare’s initial decision gets delayed for a mere moment, as if her body isn’t responding to her for just this microsecond. Her pupils narrow in shock, and it’s then that brief moment that a shadow tendril strikes Flare, sending her flying upwards and crashing through the ceiling into a room above her.)

  Infinity: Tether.

  (Infinity jumps, and as he does so, a thick layer of shadow envelops his waist, releasing four thin shadow tethers. They latch onto Flare’s limbs as she struggles to maintain her balance midair and seemingly hold her still, to her shock, and those tethers help him grapple upwards, and with Flare held in place, she lands a powerful punch at her gut, sending her flying upwards all the way to a room at the top floor. She pants in exhaustion while on the ground and attempts to crawl out of the hole on the ground, only for Infinity’s shadow tendrils to pin her limbs and back to the ground, which is accompanied by sharp pain.)

  Flare: (wincing in pain) Dammit!

  (Flare attempts to break free, but she literally can’t move, not even wiggle her limbs. In fact, the pain only increases as she tries harder, as if several daggers are planted deep into her arms, legs, and back. Infinity slowly flies upwards through the hole in the ground, arriving at that room with his typical composure, and Flare’s expression gives in to fear upon sensing his arrival. She continues trying to break free, groaning loudly in pain as she does so.)

  Infinity: (firmly) It’s pointless. Give it up.

  (Infinity calmly and slowly approaches her, his footsteps echoing across the room and the purple infinity sign on his mask glowing with energy, and he continues until he stands right in front of her, seeing her pinned to the ground with his shadow tentacles. Flare weakly glances up at him with a horrified expression, and he kneels down on one knee, ever so firmly.)

  Infinity: I have all the time that I need to recruit you into my cause. Don’t you also want it, Flare? To see this world burn with its degeneracy? You have all that it takes to manifest this far-fetched dream into reality… and end this tragic travesty.

  Flare: (weakly yet fiercely gritting her teeth) Why don’t you just… leave me alone?! I’ve got no business with you or with anyone!

  (The purple infinity sign on Infinity’s face narrows, apparently in mild disappointment, and with a mere snap of his fingers, the shadow tendrils pin Flare to the ground even more powerfully, causing her to yell in pain. He also infuses the shadow tendrils with energy, further doubling down on Flare’s suffering. As she endures all that pain, flashes of deep memories suddenly flood her mind: a man aggressively holding a pitchfork, the fire she once caused, and other memories she can neither recognize nor even focus on. Her pupils start flickering between her usual orange color and a crimson color, and Infinity notices that.)

  Infinity: (powerfully) That’s right, Flare! Show me why you’re a Surge Beacon!

  (Her hair also starts flickering between her usual orange-red hair and a dark red color, and a faint crimson aura starts taking over. However, the process is interrupted when Infinity quickly turns to his right and uses a shadow construct to block a rapid punch coming at him. The punch was still powerful enough to knock him back a fair bit, thus setting Flare free. He glances at the person who dealt that blow, noticing that it’s none other than Boltix arriving at the scene, who confronts him through gritted teeth.)

  Infinity: (the purple infinity sign on his mask glowing) Boltix.