The sun rose weakly through the city's smog, brushing the rooftops with pale light.
Mando and Kael stood at the edge of an abandoned industrial yard. Broken machinery and rusted cranes littered the ground.
Kael placed a crate on the floor.
KAEL Today, you will learn the first step of real modification.
Mando raised an eyebrow.
MANDO Modification… again? I thought I was getting better just moving without my weapon.
Kael didn't smile.
KAEL Movement is survival. Modification is dominance. One without the other gets you killed.
He handed Mando a stripped, metallic gun frame, bare, unpowered.
KAEL This isn't summoned. You'll have to configure it yourself. Adapt it for combat as it happens.
Mando's hands shook slightly as he took it. The weight was heavier than his summoned weapon felt.
A low rumble came from the perimeter.
Kael's eyes narrowed.
KAEL We're not alone.
From the shadows emerged a creature unlike anything Mando had seen: four thick legs, armored scales along its spine, and a head shaped like a jagged crown. Its eyes glowed faintly red, scanning the pair.
MANDO Is that… a monster?
KAEL Not just any monster.A legendary-class scout. And it's testing us.
Mando's hands instinctively adjusted the weapon. It hummed faintly, responding to him but untrained, unstable.
KAEL Don't fire blindly. Modify as it attacks.
The creature charged, claws scraping the metal floor. Mando felt the vibrations through his feet. He raised the gun, attempted to change the barrel shape mid-flight, but his adjustments were slow, hesitant.
The first shot grazed the creature. It hissed and struck back, swiping the gun aside. Sparks flew. Mando stumbled.
MANDO (thought) It's… faster than anything I've fought…
Kael moved alongside him, calm, precise.
KAEL Feel the recoil. Adjust the rounds' density. Predict its path. Don't just shoot control.
Mando's eyes widened. He altered the chamber, creating multiple mid-sized rounds instead of a single large bullet. He fired. The rounds split mid-air, hitting the creature on two sides simultaneously.
The creature shrieked, staggered, but didn't fall.
Kael nodded.
KAEL Better. But your hesitation almost cost you your arm.
Mando's chest heaved.
MANDO I… I didn't think I could control it like this.
Kael stepped back.
KAEL Control comes with conviction. Not fear. Fear is a leash.
The fight lasted hours. Mando stumbled, adapted, and learned. The gun changed shape dozens of times, bullets merging, splitting, and ricocheting. By nightfall, the creature retreated into the shadows, leaving the yard scarred.
Mando collapsed to the ground, weapon still warm in his hands.
MANDO I… did it.
Kael crouched beside him.
KAEL Yes. But remember… one day, creatures like this won't retreat.You need to be faster than that.
That evening, Mando returned home, battered but exhilarated.
Aysh was already there, pacing silently.
AYSH I felt it today… outside.
Mando noticed the tension in her posture.
MANDO The creature? I fought it.
Her lips pressed into a thin line.
AYSH You should not have. Not yet.
Mando frowned.
MANDO Kael said I needed to learn.
Aysh's eyes darted to the window.
AYSH Learning… can get people killed. Sometimes by monsters.Sometimes by those you trust.
Mando felt a chill, remembering Kael's warnings and her words.
Later, alone, Aysh knelt in the dark corner of her apartment.
The communicator glowed.
UNKNOWN: He is progressing too fast. Your orders remain. Keep him… in check.
Her hand trembled as she touched the screen.
AYSH (whisper) I… can't let him fall into the system's hands. But… I also can't let him die.
Far above the city, Kael watched the skyline.
The rumble of the legendary-class creature still echoed faintly in the distance.
He touched the scar across his arm.
KAEL (thought) He survived…But this is only the beginning.
End of Chapter 13