Re-Awakened :I Ascend as an SSS-Ranked Dragon Summoner-Chapter 263: No time

A guard slid a tray through a small opening at the bottom of a cell door, the metallic clang echoing through the sparse room.

"Dinner," he grunted.

Kelvin leaned forward in his restraints, eyeing the sad pile of wilted greens with exaggerated horror. "Seriously? More lettuce? I'm starting to photosynthesize over here. You guys ever hear of protein? Carbs? The basic building blocks of a non-depressing meal?"

The guard's expression remained impassive behind his tactical visor. "Eat it or don't."

"At least tell me there's dessert," Kelvin pressed, his easy smile belying the calculating look in his eyes. "A mint? One of those little chocolate squares they leave on pillows at fancy hotels? I'm not picky."

"Shut up."

"Room service review: zero stars," Kelvin sighed dramatically. "Would not recommend to friends and family. The hospitality is severely lacking, and don't get me started on the décor. All this metal? Very last season."

The guard turned away without another word, the door sealing with a pneumatic hiss behind him.

Kelvin waited until the footsteps faded, then slumped in his chair. "Tough crowd," he muttered to himself, scanning the room for the thousandth time. Every surface was lined with tech-dampening material, specifically designed to interfere with his technopathic abilities. He could sense the machinery beyond—vast systems humming with data and power—but couldn't quite reach them through the interference.

A faint purple shimmer appeared in the corner of the room, so subtle Kelvin thought he'd imagined it. Then it expanded—a swirling vortex of dark energy that seemed to bend the very fabric of reality.

"What the—" Kelvin began, tensing against his restraints.

A figure stepped through the portal—dressed entirely in black, face concealed behind a sleek mask with narrow eye slits that revealed nothing of the person beneath. Purple energy crackled around gloved hands.

Kelvin's heart hammered against his ribcage. "If this is the upgrade from lettuce to torture, I'd like to speak to management."

"It's me," the figure said, voice low but unmistakable.

Relief flooded through Kelvin's system. "Noah? Holy shit, man. Nice entrance. The whole dark bringer of doom aesthetic really works for you."

Noah moved quickly to the restraints, void energy crackling around his fingertips. "Hold still."

[Entropy Touch activated]

The metal restraints corroded under his touch, degrading in seconds as if subjected to years of decay. Kelvin rubbed his wrists, wincing as circulation returned.

"Domain link was a success," Noah said, helping his friend to his feet. "I can find you anywhere now."

Kelvin grinned, clapping Noah on the shoulder. "I knew you'd come through. Though I didn't expect the whole masked vigilante vibe." He glanced around the cell, his expression suddenly serious. "Listen, we need to talk about this place."

"Later," Noah replied. "We need to move."

"No," Kelvin grabbed Noah's arm. "You need to hear this now. This entire structure? It's one massive machine. I could sense it even through the dampeners. We're inside something big, man. Like, submarine big."

Noah paused. "A submarine?"

"Can't confirm yet, but feels nautical. More importantly—" Kelvin lowered his voice, eyes intense. "This is our chance. If this is truly a Purge facility, we could gather critical intel. I've been thinking—if I can access their mainframe, we could potentially uncover their entire operation."

"That's not the plan," Noah countered. "We get out, regroup, then—"

"When do we get another shot like this?" Kelvin pressed. "We're already inside. They caught me snooping around the tournament systems—there was data about a planned attack. But I'm betting that's just one small part of something bigger."

Noah was silent for a moment, calculation evident even behind his mask. "Fine. But we move fast, and at the first sign of serious trouble, we're out. No arguments."

Kelvin's face split into a wide grin. "That's my man! I knew underneath all that brooding was a reckless idiot like me."

Noah moved to the door, placing his palm against it.

[Null Strike activated]

Dark energy pulsed from his hand, and the door—lock mechanism, reinforced metal, electronic components and all—simply ceased to exist. A perfect circular hole remained where his palm had touched, edges smooth as if the material had never been there at all. Complete erasure.

Kelvin's eyes widened at the display of destructive power. "Whoa. That's... new."

"Stay behind me," Noah instructed, peering into the corridor beyond.

The hallway stretched in both directions, sleek metal walls illuminated by recessed lighting. No guards in immediate sight.

"Which way?" Noah asked.

Kelvin closed his eyes, fingers flexing. A faint green glow emanated from his fingertips, flickering erratically. "Damn dampeners are still affecting me. But..." His eyes snapped open, now glowing the same unstable green. "Power source that way." He pointed left. "Big one. Probably the central systems."

They moved quickly down the corridor, Noah taking point while Kelvin followed close behind. At the first junction, Noah raised a hand, halting their advance as two guards rounded the corner.

"Hey!" one shouted, reaching for his weapon. "Prisoner esca—"

Noah moved like liquid shadow. One moment he was beside Kelvin, the next—

[Void Blink activated]

—he materialized directly between the guards, void energy crackling around his fist.

[Null Strike activated]

The first guard didn't even have time to scream. The void energy engulfed him, and in a heartbeat, he simply vanished—erased from existence. Not a drop of blood, not a scrap of uniform remained. Complete deletion.

The second guard barely had time to register what happened before Noah's boot connected with his chest, sending him flying against the wall. The man slumped to the floor, unconscious but alive.

Kelvin jogged up, his face pale as he stared at the empty space where a human being had stood seconds before. "Noah... you just..."

"We don't have time," Noah cut him off, his voice devoid of emotion. "Can you access their comms? We need to stay ahead of their security protocols."

Kelvin swallowed hard, clearly shaken, but knelt beside the unconscious guard, placing his still-glowing fingers against the tactical visor. His connection to the tech was weaker than normal, the green light from his fingers sputtering like a bad connection.

"Still not at full capacity, but..." He forced himself to focus on the tech, pushing aside what he'd just witnessed. "I can work with this."

His fingers danced over the interface as he hacked into the guard's communications system. "Looks like a standard patrol rotation. No general alarm yet. But—" His expression darkened. "—Noah, this place is massive. Three levels, multiple security zones. We're on a seafloor base, not a submarine. Security hub is two sections over."

Noah nodded, processing the information. "We stick to the plan. Find the central data core, get what we need, then get out."

They moved with greater purpose now, Kelvin guiding them through the complex based on the schematics he'd pulled from the guard's visor. They encountered another patrol—three guards this time—rounding a corner directly into their path.

The guards reached for their weapons, but Noah was faster.

[Void Bullet activated]

Three precise projectiles of concentrated void energy shot from his fingertips. Where they struck, matter simply ceased to be. Three perfect holes appeared in the guards' chests before they could even raise their weapons. They collapsed, expressions frozen in shock as their bodies registered fatal damage that had bypassed all armor.

"Jesus, Noah," Kelvin whispered, visibly disturbed as they stepped over the bodies. "What happened to you?"

Noah didn't answer, merely checking the corridor ahead. Behind his mask, his system interface continued to update:

[Enemies eliminated: 4]

[Experience gained: 80]

[Void Energy: 900/1100]

"Through here," Kelvin directed, pointing to a reinforced door at the end of the passage, clearly trying to focus on the mission rather than Noah's lethal efficiency. "That should lead to the systems hub. But it's locked down tight—biometric security, encrypted access codes, the works."

Noah stepped forward, void energy swirling around his hand.

"Whoa, wait," Kelvin cautioned. "Go all void-erasey on that, and every alarm in this place goes off. Let me try something more subtle first."

He approached the security panel, pressing his palm against it. The green glow intensified, pushing through the interference as he concentrated.

"Come on, baby," he muttered. "Talk to me."

The panel remained stubbornly dark.

"Dammit," Kelvin sighed. "Too much interference. I need more juice. I'll need a second,"

"We don't have a second. Work faster," Noah watched his back while kelvin concentrated.

"There we go," Kelvin grinned, fingers moving rapidly across the now-responsive interface. "Just need to convince this lovely system that we're authorized personnel with very important business inside."

The door slid open with a soft chime.

"After you," Kelvin gestured with mock formality, though his cheerfulness seemed somewhat forced in the wake of the corridor's carnage.

The systems hub was a circular chamber dominated by a central column of servers that stretched from floor to ceiling. Workstations ringed the perimeter, each displaying scrolling data and system diagnostics. The room was mercifully empty.

Kelvin made straight for the main console, his eyes wide with excitement. "Oh, mama. This is the motherload." His fingers were already dancing across the interface, green energy flowing into the systems. "Give me five minutes. Maybe ten."

"Make it three," Noah replied, taking position by the door. "Security will notice those guards are missing soon."

Kelvin was already lost in the flow of data, his entire being syncing with the Purge systems. "This is... Noah, this is bigger than we thought. The tournament attack was just a distraction. They've got operations planned across all twelve academies. Simultaneous strikes."

Noah tensed. "When?"

"Three days from now. During the championship finals." Kelvin's fingers moved frantically, copying data to a secure drive. "They're calling it 'Sunrise Protocol.' Complete destabilization of the academy system."

Outside, an alarm began to wail.

"We've been made," Noah said calmly. "How much longer?"

"Almost there," Kelvin replied, not looking up from his work. "This is too important to rush. They've got names, Noah. High-ranking military officials who are secretly Purge. Commanders from multiple academies. Government officials. It's a whole damn conspiracy."

The sound of running footsteps echoed from the corridor.

"Kelvin..."

"Thirty more seconds!"

Noah turned to the door, void energy gathering around his hands. "I'll buy you time. When you're done, stay put until I come back for you."

[Void Blink activated]

He vanished in a flash of purple light, reappearing in the corridor outside just as a squad of guards rounded the corner—eight of them, all armed with beast ravager guns, their bodies outlined in the telltale red and white glow of dark chi enhancement.

"Hostile identified!" the lead guard shouted. "All units, engage!"

Noah didn't wait for them to organize. He launched forward with impossible speed, void energy swirling around his fists.

[Null Strike activated]

His palm struck the lead guard's chest. For a heartbeat, nothing happened—then the man's torso simply disappeared, leaving lower limbs and a head to collapse grotesquely to the floor. The void energy had erased his entire chest cavity as if it had never existed.

The remaining guards recoiled in horror, but training kicked in quickly. Beast ravager rounds tore through the air where Noah had been standing a split second earlier.

[Void Blink activated]

He reappeared behind one shooter, hand connecting with the man's back.

[Null Strike activated]

The guard vanished—complete erasure. Noah scooped up the fallen beast ravager, using it to deflect a chi-enhanced blow from another attacker before countering with a void-infused strike.

[Void Bullet activated]

Three more guards dropped as void projectiles erased vital portions of their anatomy. The remaining three backed away, dark chi flaring defensively around their bodies.

'I don't have time to trade blows with any of you!!'