"This! This isn’t what they said!"
In one of the biggest warships, amidst the thousands of others, was a group of about five individuals.
Four men and a woman—horror and shock in their stares as they looked into the distance.
There, a dark runic line had suddenly appeared resulting in a vortex, and from within it came an abysmal group.
They seemed no different from mutated beasts, except they all radiated abyss-like energy that came with intense darkness.
All of the Apex energy in the air seemed to get devoured by them, their aura sending incredible chills and the stench of death even to the Commanders standing aboard.
"We were ordered to go to Grade B to face a horde of B-Grade mutated beast. But these... These are Knulls!"
A white-haired, lanky commander stood in shock, shaking in his boots.
"We’ll call the higher-ups and inform them of the discovery. The Knulls have awakened."
A burly commander stated as he dialed a number on his device.
Immediately, a hologram appeared in the air, where a bald-headed man with sharp eyes could be seen, crackling with blue energy.
"Supreme Commander Forian!"
The commanders called out in respect as they got on one knee.
"What is it!?"
The man replied, his voice snapping like a thunderclap.
"Behind you, Commander..."
The man stated, and as the Supreme Commander’s holographic figure turned around, he saw the group of Knulls slowly leaving the ripped-open dark vortex, emerging towards them.
"The... The Knulls!?"
The Supreme Commander swallowed hard.
"Yes, Commander. The Knulls have awakened."
"This is not a Grade B mutated beast, as we were told. If our troops engage now, we have no idea how large this portal is or what it could contain."
"But having 70% of our entire troops wiped out is very well within the realm of possibility."
"We hope you can grant us the permission to retreat, involve the other races, and make a plan to combat—"
A burly, red-haired, instinct-driven soldier stated to the man, who looked at the group of Knulls, his gaze filled with sorrow, shifting into that of anger.
A hint of helplessness flashed in his eyes, only to be erased by a firm resolve.
"Supreme Commander..."
A voice called from behind, alerting Forian as he slowly turned his gaze to the five kneeling commanders. And with shaky lips, he ordered:
"Do not retreat! Engage the Knulls with every firepower you possess! Go all out and stop them!"
Supreme Commander Forian commanded, and the commanders’ eyes shook in shock.
"What!?"
"Supreme Commander, we will all be wiped out!"
The only female commander stated, but Commander Forian remained adamant.
"This is my final order: Engage the Knulls and survive as long as you can! The top ten families will send their troops to aid you. Until that happens, you can only engage. Retreating will not be allowed!"
Supreme Commander Forian said before his hologram disappeared, leaving the room in silence as the commanders looked at themselves in disbelief.
They were asked to engage Knulls!?
Truly, this was one of the best forces of the human army, if not the strongest. But against a vortex of Knulls, whose depth they had no idea of?
This was as well as suicide.
"What do you say, Commanders? Should we retreat now?"
A voice echoed through the spaceship as the commanders gritted their teeth in anger.
They had been given the order by the Supreme Commander. An order from a Supreme Commander could not be turned down.
"Unleash all force and weapons we possess! Arm the warriors to the teeth! We will engage!"
A commander replied, and silence fell on the other side. Then, the sounds of weapons being loaded filled the air.
"Yes, Commander!"
The voices resounded as the communication line cut off.
BAAAAANGGG!
The table gave way as Commanda Ruda slammed his fist on the shipboard, gritting his teeth in anger as he watched human troops begin leaving their ships, sliding downward, and the fighter jets all began moving.
"This... This is suicide unfolding!"
He said through clenched teeth as he watched helplessly, his troops charging toward the Knulls.
The fighter jets sent their missiles, dropping them toward the enemy, causing violent explosions.
Yet, his eyes widened in horror as most of the Knulls grabbed the missiles with their bare hands, crushing them into nothing.
Cold sweat ran down his face.
They were outmatched in strength! Brutally outmatched! And with the way the Knulls kept pouring from the vortex, they were also outnumbered.
"Damn it! Damn it!"
He roared in anger. But it all paused when he saw the air pressure in the area suddenly increase.
Then—
ROOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOARRR!
An incredibly deafening roar boomed out through the entire battlefield, stopping the humans and Knulls alike dead in their tracks.
Ruda’s eyes widened in shock as he looked at the new visitor.
A young-looking human, with exceptional height.
At his appearance, even the Knulls seemed to stop, and one could see the space around him shaking, shattering from the sheer force of an invisible pressure radiating from his body.
"I command every human behind me to go back into their respective spaceships and return to their base! Now!"
Ryuk’s voice resounded through the entire battlefield, ringing clearly in the ears of the commanders, who all paused in shock.
"We have been given orders from the Supreme Commander to engage anyway. Is your command coming from the Supreme Commander? Who are you to order us around?!"
Commander Ruda immediately asked. But Ryuk didn’t have the time to entertain the blind human troops.
They were stuck with the order given to them, but he didn’t give a damn who the Supreme Commander was and who wasn’t.
He wouldn’t sit here and try to convince them that they would die here, something they already knew.
And instead of saying any more words, Ryuk faced the humans, whose hearts dropped in their chests as he slowly spread his arms apart and then—
CLAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAPPPPPPPPPPPP!
An incredibly powerful shockwave whirled outward from Ryuk’s clap, strong enough to send all of the fighter jets flying, spinning backward, along with the humans who charged forward.
A powerful storm ravaged the entire battlefield, sending the edges of the harsh spacecraft into the distance.
But Ryuk also knew not to harm the humans, so he restrained his overwhelming force, redirecting the brunt of the power away from their troops, ensuring those who were about to be hurt were caught in a hard wave of space and protected.
When Commander Ruda reopened his eyes, he found the sight of the troops floating in the sky, and he held onto his scanner, his lips parting in disbelief.
"We... We’ve been sent... 1,000 miles away from the battlefield. With only a single clap!?"