Chapter 79 Chapter 79
“Did you come here to die?”
The One’s voice cut through the air, low and dangerous, his lips curving slightly as he stared at Ryan like he was already bored of him.
There was always something amusing about this part.
Humans talked big. They gathered courage in groups, armed themselves with weapons, filled their mouths with threats they barely understood—
And then they stepped forward.
Right into something they could never handle.
“You know,” The One continued, tilting his head slightly, his tone almost conversational, “all this confidence… all this noise… it always fades the moment you realize what you’re actually standing in front of.”
Ryan’s grip tightened around the bat in his hand, his jaw clenching as anger flickered across his face.
“Shut up,” he snapped. “You think you’re untouchable?”
Behind him, the others shifted slightly, spreading out just enough to surround them.
The One noticed.
Of course he did.
He always noticed.
And yet—
Something felt off.
It started subtly.
A faint pull.
Like something inside him was loosening.
His smile faltered—just barely.
“…What?”
The word slipped out under his breath, quieter this time, more to himself than anyone else.
Ryan didn’t notice.
He was already moving.
With a sharp step forward, he swung the bat hard, aiming straight for The One’s head with all the force he had.
Instinct took over.
The One moved to dodge—
But the motion felt… delayed.
Slower than it should have been.
The bat brushed past him, missing—but too close.
Too close.
His brows pulled together slightly.
That had never happened before.
Not once.
Something inside him shifted again.
Stronger this time.
Like a force pushing back.
From within.
His gaze darkened.
No.
Not now.
A sudden pressure slammed against his consciousness, sharp and violent, like something trying to claw its way forward.
A voice—
Not heard.
Felt.
And then—
Understanding hit.
“…Koda.”
It came out quieter, edged with something unfamiliar.
Annoyance.
Realization.
The push came again—stronger.
More forceful.
Like a locked door being hit from the other side.
For the first time—
The One’s control wavered.
“What are you doing?” he muttered under his breath, irritation slipping into his tone. “Stay down.”
But Koda didn’t.
He pushed again.
Harder.
And this time—
It hurt.
The One’s body stilled for a fraction of a second, his expression tightening as something inside him cracked—not physically, but mentally, like control slipping through his fingers.
Ryan noticed that.
And he didn’t hesitate.
“You’re distracted,” he said, a grin breaking across his face as he rushed forward again.
The bat came down fast.
This time—
It connected.
The impact slammed into Koda’s shoulder, the force enough to send him staggering slightly to the side.
A sharp sound escaped him—not quite pain, not quite surprise.
But real.
Kai’s eyes widened slightly. “Koda—!”
Ryan didn’t stop.
He swung again, this time aiming for his side.
Koda moved—but slower.
Not clean.
The hit landed again, harder this time, knocking him back a full step.
Something wasn’t right.
The One felt it clearly now.
The disconnect.
The weakening hold.
Koda was fighting.
Fighting to take control back.
And for once—
He wasn’t losing.
“Annoying…” The One muttered, his voice lower now, strained in a way it had never been before.
Inside—
The struggle intensified.
Koda’s presence surged forward, pushing against him with raw force, not controlled, not calculated—but relentless.
He didn’t care about precision.
He just wanted control back.
And that made him dangerous.
The One tried to push him down again—
But something was different.
Weaker.
Like his connection wasn’t complete.
Like something he had left behind—
Somewhere else—
Was pulling at him.
His eyes flickered slightly.
The ocean.
Harper.
For a split second—
That distraction was enough.
Koda broke through.
His head jerked slightly, his breathing shifting as control snapped back into place—rough, unsteady, but his.
Ryan froze for a second.
Because the presence in front of him—
Changed.
Subtly.
But noticeably.
Koda straightened slowly, rolling his shoulder once as if testing it, his expression no longer cold and distant—
But sharp.
Focused.
Real.
“…You talk too much,” Koda said, his voice lower now, rougher.
Ryan narrowed his eyes. “What—”
He didn’t finish.
Because Koda moved.
Fast.
Faster than before.
His hand shot out, grabbing the bat mid-swing, stopping it completely with a grip so tight the wood creaked under the pressure.
Ryan’s eyes widened.
Koda didn’t give him time.
He twisted hard, ripping the bat from Ryan’s hands before driving his elbow straight into his chest.
The impact knocked the air out of Ryan instantly, sending him stumbling back.
“Get him!” one of the others shouted.
They rushed forward together.
Bad idea.
Koda stepped into them without hesitation.
One came from the left—he ducked, driving his fist into the guy’s stomach before turning and kicking another in the knee, dropping him instantly.
A third swung wildly—
Koda caught the arm, twisted it sharply, and slammed him into the ground.
Everything was fast.
Efficient.
Brutal.
No hesitation.
No wasted movement.
Ryan recovered just enough to grab another weapon, rushing back in with anger burning across his face.
“You think this changes anything?” he snapped, swinging again.
Koda blocked it with his forearm, the impact echoing through the air before he drove a punch straight into Ryan’s jaw.
The force snapped Ryan’s head to the side, sending him crashing to the ground.
Silence fell.
Heavy.
Tense.
Ryan groaned, struggling to push himself up, his body clearly not keeping up with his pride anymore.
Koda stood over him, breathing steady, his gaze dark.
But something still felt wrong.
That unease—
It hadn’t left.
It had only gotten worse.
“Koda—” Kai started, stepping closer.
But before he could say anything—
Footsteps.
Fast.
Unsteady.
Someone running.
All of them turned.
Lila.
She stumbled into view, breathless, her face pale, panic written all over her as her eyes locked onto Koda.
“Koda—!” she called out, her voice breaking.
Koda’s expression shifted immediately.
Something in her face—
The fear—
The urgency—
It wasn’t normal.
“What happened?” he asked, his voice sharp now, all focus snapping toward her.
Lila struggled to catch her breath, her hands shaking as she tried to speak.
“It’s Harper,” she said finally, her voice trembling. “They—they took her—”
Koda’s entire body went still.
Something dark flickered in his eyes.
“Where?”
Lila swallowed hard.
“They threw her into the ocean…”
The words barely left her mouth before the air around Koda changed completely.
And this time—
There was no hesitation.
Koda didn’t hesitate.
The second Lila’s words landed in his chest—Harper… ocean… taken—everything else stopped mattering.
He turned sharply, already stepping away, his mind locking onto one thought alone.
He had to get to her.
Now.
But before he could take more than a few steps—
Something slammed into his leg.
Hard.
His body jolted forward slightly as he was forced to stop.
Slowly, Koda lowered his gaze.
Ryan.
Blood still smeared under his nose. Dirt on his clothes. Bruised, but still glaring up at him with stubborn, burning hatred.
His fingers were locked tightly around Koda’s leg like a chain.
“I’m not done with you yet,” Ryan said, his voice rough, broken in places—but deliberate. “Not until I finish what I started.”
For a moment, everything went still.
Even the wind seemed to pause.
Koda’s expression shifted—slowly—into something colder than before.
“Let go of me,” he said quietly at first.
Ryan didn’t move.
Koda’s voice sharpened. “I said—let go.”
Still nothing.
That was the last warning.
Koda’s eyes darkened fully.
“Will you let go of me?!” he suddenly roared, his voice exploding with raw fury.
In the same motion, he drove his foot back violently.
The kick connected.
Ryan’s grip snapped instantly as his body was flung across the ground, rolling hard before crashing to a stop a few meters away.
He coughed, laughing weakly through the pain.
Not because it was funny—
But because it was working.
Exactly as planned.
Delay him.
Keep him here.
Just long enough for the ocean to finish swallowing Harper.
Koda didn’t care about any of that.
He turned immediately, breathing heavy now, his entire body tense like a coiled weapon.
“Harper…” he muttered under his breath.
He took one step forward.
Then another.
But—
It started again.
At first, it was subtle.
A faint pressure behind his eyes.
A strange heaviness in his chest, like something inside him was shifting out of place.
Koda slowed.
His brows pulled together.
“What… is this?” he whispered, more to himself than anyone else.
The ground beneath him didn’t change.
The air didn’t change.
But he did.
Something inside him was reacting.
Pushing.
Pressing upward like it had been waiting for this exact moment of weakness.
“No…” Koda exhaled sharply, his hand coming up to his head as he staggered slightly. “Not now. Not now—”
His voice broke slightly at the end.
Because he knew.
He knew what was coming.
The presence inside him grew stronger.
Not loud.
Not chaotic.
Controlled.
Too controlled.
Like it had been watching.
Waiting.
And now it was stepping forward.
Koda’s breathing became uneven as his body tensed, fighting it with everything he had.
“I need to go,” he gritted out through clenched teeth. “I need to get to her—”
A low sound echoed inside his mind.
Not a voice in the world.
A voice in him.
Calm.
Deep.
Unshakable.
“Stand back,” it said.
Koda froze.
The pressure surged.
His fingers trembled slightly.
“I said NO—” Koda tried to fight back, his voice breaking under strain.
But it was already too late.
The control didn’t snap.
It slid away.
Smooth. Effortless. Like something unlocking a door from the inside.
Koda’s body went still.
His breathing slowed.
His expression changed—not instantly, but deliberately, like a mask being replaced.
The tension in his shoulders disappeared.
The panic in his eyes faded.
And when he spoke again—
It wasn’t Koda.
It was him.
“Stand back,” the voice said again, softer this time… almost amused. “And watch how it is done.”
The air around him shifted.
He lifted his hand slightly.
No rush.
No anger.
Just certainty.
Ryan, still struggling on the ground, suddenly froze as an invisible force lifted him slightly off the earth.
His eyes widened in shock.
“What—”
Before he could finish—
He was thrown.
Hard.
His body slammed into a nearby tree with a sickening impact, wood cracking loudly as he dropped unconscious at its base.
Silence followed.
Cold.
Heavy.
The One tilted his head slightly, as if unimpressed.
Then his gaze moved.
Lila.
She had barely stepped back when his hand lifted again.
No hesitation.
Just movement.
Lila was yanked off her feet instantly, dragged through the air by an unseen force. Her scream was cut short as she was thrown violently to the side.
Her body hit the ground hard.
She didn’t move after.
Kai’s eyes widened. “Lila!”
He rushed toward her immediately, dropping to his knees to check her, shock and confusion written all over his face.
But The One didn’t look at him again.
His attention was already gone.
Far away.
Beyond them.
Beyond everything here.
The ocean.
His voice dropped lower.
Almost quiet enough to disappear into the wind.
“I’m coming, Harper.”
Far away—
Deep beneath the surface of the ocean—
The water pressed in from every direction.
Cold.
Heavy.
Unforgiving.
Harper’s body drifted downward, sinking slowly into the dark, her lungs burning, her consciousness slipping further and further away.
The world above felt gone.
Distant.
Unreachable.
Her eyes fluttered closed.
Then—
They snapped open.
A sudden glow burst through the darkness.
Bright.
Unnatural.
Alive.
And something inside the ocean… reacted.