Cronus' system: Against the gods

Chapter 77 TO HQ

Jefferson was confused. He couldn't even utter a word. Normally, when a beast died, it's crystal would surely be intact until it was taken. There was now way anyone could bypass his senses and steal the crystal! No, none was powerful enough to do so.

"Except..." He hesitated, his voice stiff as if he couldn't even believe what he was about saying "Except it was removed before the fight!"

"Removed before the fight?!.... Have you gone nuts Jefferson!" Marcus retorted. "If the crystal was removed, then what we'd have is just an ordinary beast but surely, an ordinary beast wouldn't cause this much havoc." He pointed at the destroyed buildings that were reconstructing themselves already.

"Master! You said this thing wasn't as strong as it was before right?" Jefferson turned to Hercules.

"Yea, just as you say! It's power is lacking a lot!" Hercules dropped his club on the ground as he spoke.

Jefferson paused for a moment, his eyes scanning through the empty husk of the Hydra. He couldn't bring himself to accept the thought he was having at the moment.

If it were right tho, then..... No way! If it was this powerful without a crystal, he couldn't even imagine how it'd be with a crystal.

"What do you think?" Rex arched a brow. This was his first time witnessing a real monster's death, hence he didn't really know much about the crystal-retrieving process.

Jefferson stood up and faced everyone, his expression surprisingly calm "The fact that its crystal was stolen isn't even plausible as per"

Austine interrupted, "If it wasn't stolen, then how can you explain this? Why isn't there a crystal?" He asked, his voice laced with irritation.

Jefferson ignored Austine's rant and continued "The only logical explanation for this is that the beast never had a crystal"

Shocked gasps escaped the mouths of everyone present. "What the hell?!"

"What we just faced was the beast in its base form! It's just a normal beast!" Jefferson concluded.

"Ain't no fucking way!" Rex gasped. They had classified this monster as a tier one arch-demon, just three tiers away from a leviathan-rank beast. If this thing truly didn't have a crystal, then just how powerful would it have been with a crystal?

Austine Valenbrook's face twisted with fury. "That's absurd! Are you implying that someone has the ability to manipulate events to this degree? In Astral City?" He shook his head, his disbelief fighting with the fear creeping into his eyes. "Who would have the power, or the audacity, to do that?"

Marcus, always pragmatic, stepped forward. "We can't dismiss the possibility. If this is true, it means we have an even greater threat on our hands. One that might be beyond anything we've prepared for." He shot Jefferson a meaningful look. "The Council needs to be informed immediately."

"Wait!" Suddenly, a soldier ran in to meet Jefferson, his face drowned in sweat and panic. He was panting heavily, "I...I just received.... a news.... from... from HQ,"

"News? What news?!" Jefferson's eyes widened. Lucius, the orchestrator he thought was behind this, was under HQ's surveillance. News that made this soldier pant like this was definitely not good news.

"It's... it's... Lucius... Lucius Noctis..... he escaped!"

That was it! The very sentence he didn't want to hear. Just what was going on? Jefferson mused but it seemed the soldier wasn't done yet as he kept on gesticulating.

"Anything else?"

"Yes....yes... The crystal was stolen...the leviathan-ranked crystal"

Jefferson's mouth opened wide in shock but yet...

" And.....and....." The soldier hesitated, his voice sorrowful as he spilled the last news "The general is dead!"

A heavy silence fell over the crowd, broken only by the sound of distant reconstruction drones humming in the background. Jefferson's disbelief twisted into a mask of barely contained horror. The Hydra's missing crystal was already a catastrophic revelation, but the news of Lucius Noctis's escape and the theft of a Leviathan-ranked crystal threatened to unravel everything he thought he understood about the current crisis.

Marcus clenched his jaw, the lines on his face deepening as he tried to process the magnitude of what the soldier had said. "Lucius Noctis... escaped?" he echoed, his voice low and filled with dread.

The name itself carried weight, Lucius, the no.1 most feared assassin in the city, now wielded unimaginable power. If he had the Leviathan-ranked crystal in his possession, Astral City was on the brink of unprecedented danger.

Austine staggered back, the confident bravado he'd displayed earlier crumbling. "No… no, this can't be happening." His voice was a whisper, as if he feared speaking any louder would make it more real.

"How could HQ let this happen?" Jefferson demanded, his voice cracking under the pressure. He rarely showed weakness, but this chain of events was pushing him to the edge. "The Leviathan-ranked crystal… it has enough raw power to level cities. In the hands of Lucius Noctis, we might as well prepare for an apocalypse."

The soldier who had delivered the news was still trembling, clutching his helmet as if it might protect him from the gathering storm. "HQ... HQ reported that Lucius had been biding his time, waiting for the perfect moment to strike. The General underestimated him, and when he did... Lucius didn't hesitate."

Marcus slammed his fist into his palm, his normally composed demeanor breaking. "Damn it! We have to move now, Jefferson. Mobilize every available unit. We can't let him use that crystal against the city."

Jefferson swallowed hard, nodding. His mind was already formulating strategies, calculating the risks. But before he could respond, Hercules who had been silent, taking in everything spoke up, his voice graver than ever.

"Even if we mobilize," Hercules said, his muscles tensing visibly under his lion-skin cloak, "we're up against a foe who is beyond mere military might I've faced monsters, gods, and everything in between, but if he truly has the power of a Leviathan, we need more than brute strength."

"It isn't necessarily the Leviathan you know of tho, the crystal is still at the tier one stage but even at that, it's power isn't lacking at all. I doubt you won't have problems against it master!" Jefferson replied.

Jefferson's voice carried with an authority that left no room for hesitation. "All units only and master!, prepare for immediate teleportation to HQ. We need to secure the area, assess the damage, and search for any sign of Lucius Noctis."

The soldiers sprang into action, forming orderly lines near a shimmering, circular platform. The teleportation device pulsed with energy, ready to transport them to the heart of the crisis.

Rex, watching the soldiers assemble, couldn't contain his disbelief. "Wait, hold on a second!" he protested, stepping in front of Jefferson. "You're sending everyone but me? Are you kidding? I helped take down that freaking Hydra, and now you want me to stay behind? Not happening!"

Jefferson sighed, rubbing his temples as if Rex's persistence were physically painful. "Rex, this isn't the same situation. We're dealing with a strategic threat, one that even your abilities may not be ready for. We need you to remain here and...."

Rex interrupted, throwing his hands up dramatically. "Remain here and what? Babysit the Hydra's empty husk? Plant flowers on its grave? Come on, Jefferson, I'm more than just a rookie hero! I'm practically… okay, maybe not indestructible, but very hard to kill."

Despite the tension in the air, a few soldiers snickered at Rex's antics. Jefferson's lips twitched, but he forced himself to stay serious. "No, Rex. You're staying. We need someone strong to hold the fort in case anything else happens here."

Rex crossed his arms, pouting. "Fine, but if you find any world-ending threats and regret leaving me out of the action, don't come crying back to me. Just remember I offered my very awesome services."

Jefferson rolled his eyes. "Duly noted." With that, he turned back to the soldiers. "Activate the device."

The runes lit up, and the teleportation field erupted in a swirl of blue light. In a flash, the soldiers vanished, leaving Rex grumbling to himself and pacing around the ruins of Astral City.

Meanwhile, at HQ, the situation was a nightmare given form. The soldiers materialized into a scene of utter devastation: walls reduced to crumbling rubble, floors scorched black, and shattered equipment sparking erratically. The once-imposing headquarters, a symbol of strength and order, lay broken and desecrated, a stark testament to the sheer chaos that Lucius Noctis had unleashed.

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"Fan out!" A soldier barked, his voice cutting through the chaos. "Search for survivors and clues. We need answers, and we need them now!"

Jefferson, with his personal squad, carefully made their way deeper into the wreckage. Each step crunched over shards of glass and twisted metal, and every shadow seemed to hide something sinister. The tension was thick, almost suffocating, and the soldiers moved with their weapons ready, eyes sharp for any sign of danger.

It wasn't long before they stumbled upon a chilling sight: the General's body lay sprawled in the middle of a ruined hall, eyes wide and unseeing. His uniform was torn, stained with blood, and the stillness of his form felt unnatural, wrong. Jefferson knelt beside him, his throat tightening with grief and disbelief. Despite their differences, the General had been a steadfast ally, a leader he had relied on. Losing him like this was a blow Jefferson hadn't anticipated.

"This wasn't a fight," one of the soldiers murmured, his voice shaky as he examined the wounds. "This was an execution. Quick, efficient, merciless."

Jefferson clenched his fists so hard his knuckles turned white. "Lucius did this," he said, his voice a low growl. The assassin's name hung heavy in the air, a curse, a symbol of everything that was spiraling out of control.

They pressed onward, Jefferson's instincts screaming that something more sinister awaited. The air felt charged with a malevolent energy, a lingering echo of Lucius's dark power. His senses sharpened, and he stopped abruptly, holding up a hand. "Wait," he commanded. The soldiers froze, tension rippling through their ranks.

Jefferson's eyes narrowed as he spotted something, a faint movement near a shattered console. He approached cautiously, the hairs on the back of his neck standing on end. Clinging to the debris was a tiny, writhing mass of darkness. It pulsed and twitched, tendrils of living shadow creeping out and retreating as if sensing his approach.

"By the gods," Jefferson breathed, leaning in to examine it. The fragment pulsed with unnatural energy, dark tendrils snaking out and retreating as if sensing his presence. "He left part of himself behind…"

A/N: Hey guys, I've got some issues to sort out. Phewwww.... What a drag.... It'll last for a week at most.... So till then, it might just be some few previous chaps next.

Sorry ? guys