(At a New Studio)

News Reporter- Catastrophe!! This... can be upon us very soon!! The latest message of X has successfully installed fear among the masses. Earlier, who was treated as a messiah by some, has now become the true face of evil!! The only question remains: Can the Elite Soldiers finally stop him tonight, or will we be seeing the deaths of hundreds of innocent civilians?!

(Room Number 110, Royal Crescent Hotel)

Narrator- X carefully observes Helios as he works on the laptop.

Helios- Why do you need the geriatric hospital footage anyway?

X- Huh, you don't know since you were almost unconscious. Early this morning, a geriatric hospital was bombed, resulting in the death of ten people.

Helios- Aah, really?! Guess X doesn't want to waste any time. (x grinds his teeth)

X- Why is the footage of Aquatic Academy running on one of your laptops??

Helios- That's a secret. But it isn't for any shady purposes, I can tell you that. So, do you plan on catching X? Is that the reason why you want to see the footage??

X- That's a secret. But it isn't for any shady purposes, I can tell you that. (helios smirks)

Narrator- The Aquatic Hospital, the target of the imposter X's bomb threat, was now surrounded by Enforcers on all sides, blocking anyone from entering. Inside, a seven-member Elite Soldier team gathered for an urgent meeting.

Clementine- Can't we just transfer all these patients to a different location or something?!

Kento- No, that can't be possible. Those who had minor issues have already left, leaving the major ones here; their transfer will literally mean their deaths.

Raiden(to hinaka)- I thought you said you four had checked some of the famous sites yesterday? Then was the Aquatic Trade Center not part of it??

Hinaka(with a disappointed look)- It was actually. I and Nyx did check it too and found nothing as well. Yet, we still failed.

Nyx- Hinaka, you didn't fail; it was me who did. I was the one that was in a hurry to check the sites; maybe that's when I missed the bomb.

Clementine- Hmph, at least you can take the blame. Because of you now, thousands of people have temporarily lost their livelihood.

Nyx(with a depressed look)- I know that and I truly feel guilty about it.

Clementine- No wonder you had to quit being an Elite Soldier!! You are pathetic; don't ever be the one to take the leadership role in our meetings going forward; it will be best for all of us!!

Nyx(with a depressed look)- Yes, I won't. (kento begins consoling nyx)

Diana- If this is over, let's talk about the geriatric hospital now. That was totally unexpected from X; he played it smart by bombing it early in the morning.

Raiden- Did anyone even go there to check for the bombs yesterday or not??

Clementine- Zayne and I did. And checked it thoroughly, unlike someone else, and found nothing!!

Raiden- Yet, it was still bombed. It put you on the same, rather lower, pedestrian than Nyx, as over here people did actually lose their lives!!

Zayne- Not actually. She is saying the truth; we did check it thoroughly. I can bet my life that X came in during the night and left the bomb.

Diana- Oh, so we basically have to check the public properties 24/7, and then only we could avoid bombing or killing X!! That would be stupid!!

Zayne- There are CCTV cameras for that.

Diana- Oh, so you really think that X, one of the biggest criminals in the world, would allow himself to get revealed so easily?! That would again be so stupid!!

Zayne- He actually would. CCTV camera footage shows a hoodie-wearing man entering and leaving the geriatric hospital during the night.

Raiden- How did he look?!!!

Zayne- That wasn't visible, unfortunately. He had a good height, around 6 feet, and was seen at 3 a.m.

Narrator- Meanwhile, outside the hospital, Livon was seen arguing with the Enforcers.

Livon- Just let me in, damn it!!

Enforcer 1- We can't do that, sir!! Only those visitors are allowed who are very close acquaintances of the patients.

Enforcer 2- And as you don't have any, we unfortunately can't allow you in. Please understand, these are the protocols set.

Livon- Do you have any idea who I am?! I am an Elite Soldier!!

Enforcer 2- That doesn't matter to us, sir, sorry.

Narrator- Nyx and Raiden luckily exit the hospital at the same time, thus seeing the situation with Livon.

Livon- Hey, Raiden!! Come on, tell these Enforcers it's urgent for me to go inside, as I only just want to ask a couple of questions to the receptionist. (raiden ignores and moves further)

Nyx(to enforcer)- Let him in. He is a trustworthy man.

Enforcer 1- If you say so. Only 10 minutes will be given.

Livon(in his mind)- What has happened to Raiden...??!!!

(At the Hospital's Reception)

Livon(to receptionist)- Excuse me, do you have previous year data with you??

Receptionist- How long are we talking here??

Livon- Data for the Year 95.

Receptionist(with a surprised face)- Sorry sir, that way back we didn't use to have computers with us; everything was done manually, so we don't have access to them anymore.

Livon- Sheesh!! Why don't you have access to them?? Did you burn those records?!

Receptionist- Got no idea, sir. Apparently records prior to the year 100 went missing a few years back.

Livon- How?!!

Receptionist- No idea, sir.

Livon- Sheesh!! Just bring in your senior!! They will know something about this!!

Receptionist- I am the most senior staff member here. And if I may ask you, why do you exactly need those records?? Even if we did have them, we wouldn't have just handed it over to anyone, be it an Elite Soldier, without a logical reason.

Livon- Yeah, yeah, fine!! One last question: was there a doctor named "Orion" working here??

Receptionist- Hmmmm......... There was. He wasn't a permanent doctor but a volunteer one. He used to come by and help whenever he got time from his own busy schedules. He was a very talented doctor.

Livon(in his mind)- So..... it is confirmed now. Whatever I saw, once I touched the white beam of light the day of the Carnival, was all real. No alternative universe, no imagination of God Dragon. I was simply sent back to the past to see the reality with my own eyes. The reality of my life.

(to the receptionist)- When was the last time he was seen??

Receptionist- Somewhere around Year 100, if I remember correctly. Please, that should be enough questions for now; all us staff are already scared due to X's message.

(Zayne enters the scene)

Zayne(to receptionist)- If you are scared, then why are you still here??

Receptionist- Because I want to be!! I know I am just a receptionist, but running away would be giving up, and I don't intend to do that. There are people over here that still count on me, and I don't intend on disappointing them.

Zayne(with a smile)- Nice. All the best!! (turns his attention to livon and offers him a handshake) So, you are Mr. Livon. It's nice meeting you.

Livon- Same here. (accepts zayne's handshake and then leaves)

(in his mind)- Chronos..... Chronos is the son of my parents!! Then who the hell am I?!

Narrator- Aquatic Hospital for the rest of the day was closely guarded by both the Enforcers and Elite Soldiers.

(News Studio, 9:00 p.m.)

News Reporter- With just three hours left until the deadline, tensions are at an all-time high. Earlier today, the Elite Soldiers made a bold public declaration: they will not sacrifice any of their soldiers, nor will they allow the Aquatic Hospital to be destroyed. This statement is a direct challenge to X, setting the stage for a high-stakes showdown. The question now is, who will emerge victorious? Will X prevail once again, or will the Elite Soldiers finally succeed in stopping him?!

(Royal Crescent Hotel, Helios Room)

Narrator- X, with hands in his pocket, stood beside the transparent window looking outside; meanwhile, Helios was working on his laptop.

X- It's night. Yet you still haven't been able to take out the geriatric hospital footage. Sheesh, and you call yourself a hacker?!

Helios- My teacher once told me, "Being slow is not bad if you are the only person in the race." Anyways, the work is done!! We have the footage now!! (x runs in and sits along with helios)

X(while analyzing the footage)- Now, I just need to find the imposter here. (in his mind)

Helios- I know it's none of my business, but in case you are looking for X in this video, then I could help you with that.

X(while grinding his teeth)- And how is that??

Helios- I have equipped this footage with an automatic sensor in case a person appears at any of the cameras. Look at the timestamps of the footage; you will get to know what I am saying.

Narrator- X began looking at all the timestamps; in one of those, he saw a tall man wearing a hoodie entering and leaving the hospital around 3 p.m.

X(with a surprised look)- And here he is!! Is there any angle for me to possibly see his face??

Helios- Let me see. (checks the other angles but wasn't visible) Nope, sorry, I can't.

X(in his mind)- Meaning this imposter exactly knew what they were doing!!

(Receptionist enters the scene)

X(with a surprised face)- Who are you?! And how did you get in?!! (helios quickly closes off all his laptops.)

Receptionist- I-I am 'Fiora,' the receptionist. I repeatedly knocked on the door, but no one responded, so I entered using the duplicate electronic key card.

Helios- And what brought you here?? I don't remember calling anyone from the staff for their services, especially not a receptionist!!

Fiora- I am actually the owner of this hotel. And upon hearing the incident of what happened with you earlier this morning, I decided to personally take care of your medicines schedule so the incident doesn't repeat itself.

Helios- How concerning of you, hmph!! Money-minded people, only helping as it will damage your hotel's reputation in case something happens to me.

Fiora- It's nothing like that. I have brought in your dinner as well. (calls in the waiter who stood outside the room) I am sure you haven't eaten anything the entire day; kindly eat this. I wasn't expecting you to be here as well, sir. (looks at x) If you would like, then we would bring in your dinner as well.

X(in his mind)- I was so lost that I didn't even realize she was knocking.

(to fiora)- Yeah... okay, do it.

Fiora- Sure. Just give me a couple of minutes, sir. (then left)

(Aquatic Hospital, Lobby)

News Reporter- We are just three hours away from midnight, and no action has been taken by X yet, further increasing the stress among the masses. Right now, we are at the Aquatic Hospital, where 90% of the patients have already left, leaving only the most critical cases behind. Most of the staff has also left, with only a handful remaining; specifically, 188 patients and 9 staff members. Our entire team would like to request everyone to stand and salute these 9 staff members who, despite knowing the danger, continue to stay here, fulfilling their duty and placing their trust in the Elite Soldiers and the Enforcers. Yes, a few of the Enforcers will also be staying here, providing support to the Elite Soldiers. This is Emma reporting, accompanied by my cameraman, Ryan. We will continue to provide you with a live feed of all the happenings inside the hospital.

Ryan(while showing a thumbs up)- Cut!! Excellent!!

Emma- Hehe, thanks!!

Kento(to emma)- Would you both really continue staying here??

Emma- Yup, we do!! There is no bigger profit-making opportunity than this!! All the news outlets have left; we remain the only one. Perfect chance to capture the entire market!!

Diana- That's all good. But remember, if there is ever a moment when we have to choose between you and the patients or staff, then we won't be selecting you.

Ryan- That's fine; we completely understand. We are here for work; you all are here for work; let's just focus on that.

Diana- Hoping this attitude won't get you in trouble later down the line.

Emma(while putting on a lipstick)- Yup, I am ready now. Let's start off with the interviews!!

Nyx- Whose interviews are you talking about??

Clementine- Not yours, surely that's for sure.

Emma- Of the patients. We want to capture what they feel, as they are the ones in the most trouble right now.

Ryan- And before any of you call us selfish, we would like to tell you that we have already taken the respective patients consent, and interviews will also help them potentially request donations for their medical assistance.

Narrator- All the critical patients had been transferred to the closest rooms to the entrance of the hospital in order to facilitate a quick exit in the need of distress.

(Patient- 1 Room)

Emma- Hello everyone, We are back with the livestream of the Aquatic Hospital. As of now, no action has been taken by X. In the meantime, we will be interviewing three of the critical patients left at the hospital to see what they feel.

First we have "Iori," a 71-year-old woman suffering from an infectious disease named meningitis.

Emma- Good evening, ma'am, How are you feeling right now??

Iori- Worse than what I felt yesterday, that I can tell you. I don't think I have much time left.

Emma- My heart truly goes out to you. I will pray for you to get better. Could you tell us if you are staying in the loop with the recent X's happening??

Iori- Yes, I am.

Emma- Then are you not scared of what he could do to this hospital tonight??

Iori- Weak gets scared of death. Strong takes it head on. I trust in our soldiers to put this serial killer to rest for good!!

Narrator- The Elite Soldiers watching the proceedings on the lobby's TV had smiles on their faces.

Emma- Aah? I... I see... That should be enough questions for now. Let's move on to the others.

(Patient- 2 Room)

Emma- Next we are joined by Mr. "Ryo," a 48-year-old business tycoon who recently had a heart failure. Mr. Ryo happens to be one of the richest men in this country, currently in the Top 10, sitting at No. 6 position.

Ryo(with an angry look)- Elite Soldiers are an absolute pile of shit!! They won't be able to do anything!! I shouldn't have been admitted to this hospital!! I don't want to dieeeee!!

Emma(with an awkward face)- Do you not trust the soldiers even a bit?? They are all world class!!

Ryo- World-class, my ass!! It's been more than a month since X arrived in this country, and yet they have done fucking nothing!! If I die, my entire business will get destroyed!! (emma smirks)

Emma(while talking to the camera)- BIG NEWS EVERYONE!! The trust of the Elite Soldiers has been broken!! This is the opinion of one of the most influential, talked-about businessmen, Ryo!!

(Patient- 3 Room)

Emma- The last patient we are going to interview is a florist named "Daigo.". Recently he met with an accident, which resulted in two broken hands and a left leg.

Emma- Do you believe in Elite Soldiers, sir??

(At the Hospital Lobby)

Diana(while watching the T.V.)- She is definitely trying an anti-Elite Soldiers thing. It's so obvious now.

(Patient- 3 Room)

Daigo- I am sorry, but I don't have any comments regarding that.

Emma- Okay, no issues. Tell me, has X ever caused any harm to you or your family in the past??

Daigo- Not to me. Can't say the same about my family, because I never had one. Everyone close to me has always abandoned me. I have always been alone.

Emma- Extremely sorry to hear that. If there is something you would like to convey to the viewers through our channel, then you are welcome to do so.

Daigo- "Sometimes even if you try your best, it still won't be enough." Giving up is indeed a viable option in some cases.

Emma- Time will change everything, sir. Just don't give up.

Narrator- While it wasn't written, Emma did ask a few more questions of each of the patients while interviewing them. They were basic questions aiming to extract the patient's overall feelings.

Emma(while looking at the camera)- This is all for the interviews. Elite Soldiers only gave us 30 minutes, so this is the best we could manage. Hopefully you enjoyed it. There are still two and a half hours left for the day to end. We will be taking a short break now and will be returning soon. Until then, it's Emma and Ryan signing off!! (camera cuts)

(At the Hospital Lobby)

Diana(to emma)- What the hell was that?! You were deliberately attempting to destroy the Elite Soldier's image!! Why would you even do that? We are here trying our best to kill X, and you, the media, aim to rattle the public's belief in us completely!!

Emma- Me and Ryan's parents are victims of X.

Ryan- Yet we harbor more hatred towards you, Elite Soldiers, than X himself. And why is that...

Emma- Because Eclipse, your soldier, rather than saving our parents lives, decided to save X's instead!! We will never forget that!!

Ryan- The public must criticize you all, so you must realize your mistake and pay for the sins gravely!!

Diana(with a serious look)- .............

Narrator- Suddenly a bomb exploded on the 5th floor of the building, blasting out flames and debris. The impact shook the entire hospital.

Raiden(with a stunned face)- He is here!!

Zayne- Everyone get to work now!! You know what you have to do!!

Narrator- Hinaka quickly flies and starts carrying the patients who can't walk outside the hospital.

Raiden- Zayne, and Diana began searching for X in the hospital. Meanwhile, other soldiers, along with Enforcers, escorted the remaining patients outside.

Raiden(while searching around)- Where are you??!! Where are you, X?!!!

Narrator- The 8th-floor building now explodes, followed up by the 10th floor.

Zayne- These are automatic setup bombs!! X can't activate these bombs so quickly manually. (calls diana & raiden) X isn't here!! I repeat, X ISN'T HERE!! Return back!!

Raiden(with a disappointed look)- Sheesh!!!!!!

(Near the Exit)

Emma(while running outside)- Ladies and gentlemen, it has started!! X has started bombing the hospital, starting on the 5th floor. We are currently running outside because it's not safe here anymore. You can clearly see that around us!!

Narrator- Ryan rotates his camera around, showing smokes everywhere. This footage was telecasted all over the country, being watched by the likes of Ayumi, along with her mother, Fumika, Livon, Aiden, and Miyuki, to mention a few.

Ryan had the camera on his left shoulder, facing backwards. Ryo, patient number 2 who got interviewed, was seen running with his tongue out, trying to run the best way he could.

Out of nowhere, Hinaka lunges toward Ryo with incredible speed, delivering a powerful punch to the back of his head and sending him flying straight into Ryan, causing the camera to crash to the ground.

Emma- Aaaaaaaagh!!!!

Ryan- The hell?!! Why would you punch a patient, Hinaka?? Have you gone insane?!!

Emma- Not just any patient; it's Mr. Ryo!! The sixth richest man in the country!! You are going to get into so much trouble now, and I am all for it!! Film it quickly, Ryan!! Let's show the reality of the Elite Soldiers to everyone!!

Ryan(while looking around)- Where... where is the camera??

Narrator- Hinaka, now even at a better speed, charges towards Ryo again, aiming to punch him in the face.

Emma- Oh my lord!!!! He is beyond insane!!! Let's run away, Ryan, before we get hurt!! (emma and ryan run away outside)

Narrator- Ryo, after seeing both Emma and Ryan heading outside, packs his fist, which begins to emanate plasma, and punches Hinaka before he could, sending him crashing backward.

Coincidentally, the camera landed in a position where everything happening was broadcast live.

Everyone from Ayumi to Livon had their jaws dropped seeing it happen.

Ryo(with a low-pitched voice)- You are not X; you are one of them.

Narrator- Ryo keeps a hand on his face and slowly starts taking out the face mask, which had already cracked open due to Hinaka's earlier punch.

A person having black and white hair, along with a red scar on the left side of the face, is revealed. So, for simplicity, we are going to be mentioning this person as "Scar Face" until an actual name for it is provided.

(Ayumi's Home)

Ayumi(with a stunned look)- Is that X??!!!

(Near the Hospital's Exit)

Narrator- Scar Face takes a few steps forward, his body again emanating plasma, and then suddenly teleports himself in front of Hinaka.

Now both Hinaka and Scar Face were out of the camera range.

(Miyuki's Home)

Miyuki(with a confounded look)- ........

(Near the Hospital's Exit)

Narrator- Scar Face grabs Hinaka's head and slams it against his right knee. He then follows up by throwing him straight, unintentionally sending him back into the camera's range.

Hinaka- WIND SLASHES!!

Narrator- Hinaka sharpens the surrounding wind, forming it into slashing blades, and directs multiple air slashes toward Scar Face, causing severe cuts across his entire body.

The wind pressure intensified, but Scar Face powered through by crossing his arms. Solar flares erupted from his body, burning away Hinaka's skin with their intense heat, forcing him to retreat and stop his wind slashes.

Hinaka- TEMPEST BLAST!!

Narrator- The surrounding air around Scar Face was pressured into a bomb, which, upon bursting, created shockwaves, knocking him.

Hinaka- WIND TRIDENT!!

Narrator- Hinaka swiftly follows it up with his Wind Trident, throwing it at Scar Face, piercing directly through his chest.

The trident struck the ground, leaving Scar Face's body hanging from it.

Hinaka- WIND ORB!!

Narrator- Hinaka creates a huge wind orb and launches it at the Scar Face.

A highly charged electrode appears in the air, releasing energy that electrifies nearby gases like neon or argon. This energy strips electrons from the gas atoms, turning them into charged particles called ions. These charged particles create plasma, a glowing, electrified state of matter. The core pulls the glowing strands of plasma toward it, creating a mesmerizing display of light and energy. A suitable name for this attack would be "Plasma Globe.".

Both attacks, Wind Orb and Plasma Globe, hurtled toward each other, but suddenly, the Plasma Globe dimmed and faded away.

Scar Face- Not right now!!

Narrator- Wind Orb engulfs Scar Face and finishes him off.

Narrator- The people watching it on the T.V. jumped in joy and relief, thinking that X was finally dealt with.

After half an hour, when the fire from the bombed floor was taken care of, Zayne, along with the other soldiers, took custody of Scar Face, handcuffed him, and escorted him to the Aquatic Academy.

While they were on their way, the entire Aquatic Hospital got bombed.

Scar Face(with a smile)- ............

(Somewhere Near the Aquatic Hospital)

X- If you are copying me, at least do it properly!!

TO BE CONTINUED