00:45, February 10, 2295


    Platinum Crescent Plaza, 28 Avenue de la Victoire, Central Business District, Abidjan, Ivory Coast, Emerald Directorate territory


    "Almost there," Jabari Adomako maneuvered his Scarab mech through the labyrinthine streets of Abidjan, the cockpit a cocoon of steel and blinking lights.


    The city sprawled beneath him — a pulsating tapestry of incandescence and shadow. Skyscrapers, like stoic sentinels forged of glass and steel, pierced the heavens; their neon arteries throbbed in sync with the rhythm of the midnight economy.


    Jabari''s Scarab moved with mechanical precision, its six legs finding purchase on the urban terrain with surprising grace for something so massive. From within his cockpit, nestled beneath the armored shell, Jabari had a panoramic view of his surroundings. The pedestrians marveling at his mech appeared almost miniature from his elevated vantage point.


    As Jabari''s metallic behemoth lumbered into Platinum Crescent Plaza, the melding of eras was stark. Holographic ads for Medi-Vap and Indra-Sprite flickered beside murals of ancient warriors and elephant herds, the dichotomy not lost on him. In the plaza, the Scarab''s hulking form cast long shadows over the cobblestones while sleek hovercrafts glided silently by.


    Approaching the plaza''s nucleus, a figure emerged from the penumbra — a guard, clad in the unmistakable green-and-gold of the Directorate, neon reflections dancing across his uniform.


    "Platinum Crescent security. State your business," the guard''s voice cut through the quiet, a staccato demand that demanded attention.


    The Scarab''s speakers crackled to life, magnifying Jabari''s reply. "Jabari Adomako, Lieutenant, reporting to the Kimaris Warband." His voice carried the subtle vibration of respect.


    "So, you''re the one Prince Laurent picked?" The guard scoffed. "Couldn''t wait until morning to show up? Don''t plan on sleeping?"


    "I apologize, sir. My orders were to report in as soon as possible," Jabari explained from within the cockpit. Then, his eyes squinted in recognition. "Ahmad, is that you?"


    "Glad to see you remember a depot mate, buddy. Truth is, I was told to let you in no matter what time it was," the guard begrudgingly admitted. "Your Kimaris superiors are still awake. Working on some difficult cases, I''ve heard."


    "Difficult cases?" Jabari tilted his head.


    "Laurent himself. Gone missing. Went on some wild goose chase, so I heared."


    "Missing? As in?"


    "Madam Celine can tell you more. Be careful where you park that Scarab, alright?" the guard said with levity, stepping aside but still wary, his eyes scanning the darkness from which he''d come.


    "Right. Thanks, Ahmad," Jabari acknowledged with a nod, the mech''s joints articulating his silent gratitude as he continued forward, the weight of his mission settling heavily upon his shoulders.


    As the Scarab moved deeper into the plaza, Jabari''s sensors highlighted several large containment units near the parking area. The unmistakable sickly green glow of Helionite leaked from their seams despite the shielding.


    "Ahmad," Jabari called through the comm, "what are those containers doing here? That''s a lot of fusion waste for a civilian plaza."


    The guard glanced back at the containers and sighed. "Emergency reroute from the Central Processing Plant. They had a power surge from the Summit at Golden Hall. Maintenance promised they''d be gone by morning." He shook his head. "Not great, but what can we do when them higher-ups make decisions, right?"


    Jabari frowned at the readings. The Helionite concentration was significant enough to register even through the containment. Basic training had drilled into every cadet that improperly stored Helionite was practically an invitation to...


    Suddenly, the air was filled with the discordant symphony of chaos; a cacophony that began not with a crescendo but an ominous tremor. Jabari''s hands tightened on the Scarab''s controls as the earth convulsed beneath them, its spasms ominous.


    "Radi-Mons! Look out!" The guard''s voice crackled over the comm-link, a beacon of panic amidst the madness.


    Jabari''s heartbeat quickened, but his mind cleared. This was different from the simulations – this was real. People would die if he failed. An image of his grandmother''s broken body flashed through his mind, strengthening his resolve. In reality, there was no room for overthinking – only action.


    "Here they come," he replied, his voice steady despite the thundering in his chest.


    Over a dozen Bone Fiends, their wolf-like forms a perverse mockery of life, erupted in a shower of debris, encircling the plaza. Their skeletal frames twisted unnaturally as they moved, drawn by the Helionite''s call.


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    Meanwhile, a shadow spread across the stars above. A massive form, dark against the night sky, descended slowly. Three enormous eyes blinked open, revealing a creature unlike anything in nature''s design – a Kraken. The creature was a mass of long arms surrounding a bulbous body, a grotesque form resembling a mutated octopus the size of a bus.


    "Skarn shall awaken!" A deep, menacing voice boomed from the creature. "He who is both devil and divine! The Blue Garden of Sinners shall bow to his power!"


    Ahmad''s face drained of color as he stared upward. "Shango''s Schlong, it can talk?"


    "That''s what Krakens do." Jabari said as his mech faced the flying monster. "It''s here to coordinate the Fiends."


    "Plaza Guards! Rally at the gate!" Ahmad raised his rifle as a few more guards emerged from the shadows to join him, all opening fire on the Bone Fiends.


    "Leave some for me!" Jabari called, his mind already calculating trajectories and firing solutions. The lives around him – Ahmad, the other guards, civilians in nearby buildings – all depended on his actions now. The weight of this responsibility didn''t paralyze him; it focused him.


    The air reeked of ozone as Jabari''s Scarab mech loomed over the pandemonium, its insectoid form an emerald silhouette against the chaos below.


    Around the Scarab, multiple Ologuns in deep green exosuits formed a line, their Plasma Rifles chattering angrily at the swarm of Bone Fiends.


    Yet for every monstrosity that fell, another took its place, their numbers a grotesque mockery of infinity. Above, the Kraken, seemingly indifferent to the fight below, cast forth its green ichor. It descended like a curtain, anointing the guards with a sticky embrace. Those ensnared became statues of terror, petrified witnesses to their imminent doom.


    "No!" Jabari shouted, memories of his grandmother''s death surging forward. The same helplessness threatened to overwhelm him, but he pushed it down. He was not that frightened child anymore.


    His fingers raced across the control panel, bringing the Scarab''s hidden weaponry online. Armored plates on the mech''s head slid open, revealing its signature weapon.


    "Plasma Spitter, engaged!" he warned the guards as he took aim at the nearest cluster of Bone Fiends.


    But the thundering of his heart disrupted his usual precision. His first volley of plasma bolts went wide, striking not the monsters but the row of fusion-powered cars parked along the plaza''s edge.


    Metal screamed as the vehicles detonated, consumed by blossoming fireballs that threw shadows dancing across the devastation. Alarms wailed their protest, and lights strobed in a discordant rave, punctuating the battlefield with bursts of artificial light.


    "Lion''s loins!" Jabari muttered, the swear word doing little to calm his dire mood. His breaths came quick and shallow as he wrestled with the controls, seeking to tame the Scarab''s power. He hadn''t made such a basic error since his first days at the training depot.


    The Bone Fiends, sensing vulnerability, surged forward, their forms a writhing mass of malice and bone. They swarmed the immobilized guards, rending and tearing with a fervor born of otherworldly hunger. Blood painted the plaza in broad, gruesome strokes, a canvas of crimson upon which the night''s grim tableau was etched.


    Jabari watched, his heart a leaden weight. This was happening again – people dying while he struggled to save them. Just like that night in rural Ghana, when the Bone Fiends had torn through their village, when his grandmother had pushed him into a storage cellar and locked it from outside, sacrificing herself.


    But today would be different. Today he had the power to fight back.


    Jabari''s Scarab reared up, its joints hissing with hydraulic fervor as the pack of Bone Fiends clambered onto its armored legs. The scraping of claws on metal was cacophonous in Jabari''s ears, each screech chilling. His fingers moved across the control panel, thrusting the Scarab mech into a relentless charge.


    The ground shuddered under the weight of the mechanical titan. Legs pistoned down, obliterating the Radi-Mons beneath its gait. Bone shattered against steel, a percussion that resonated through the plaza.


    "For the Directorate!" he growled, the word a barbed lance aimed at his own disquiet. Jabari''s gaze latched onto the Kraken, a leviathan specter looming above, its arms unfurling. His hand moved with deliberate intent to another weapon control.


    The Sun Moon Cannon roared to life, panels sliding open on the Scarab''s head to reveal a weapon that seemed to draw energy from the very air around it. A torrent of golden and quantum blue energy surged forth, searing the heavens with its ire. His rushed aim was not precise, but the blast made contact with the Kraken, and for a moment, time itself seemed to falter in awe of the Scarab''s might.


    Losing two arms, the creature let out a pained shriek that tore through the air. Wounded, it floated higher and retreated into the expanse, leaving a trail of phosphorescent blood in its wake. "Savor your small victory, Earth-Dwellers. The Day of Oblivion will come."


    Silence reclaimed the plaza as the echoes of battle faded into the ether, leaving behind the sullied canvas of Platinum Crescent. Ahmad, battered and coated in the curative sickly green of the Kraken''s goo, approached the towering Scarab. His voice was hoarse and tired, a far cry from his initial greeting to Jabari.


    "Anansi''s ass, Jabari!" he scolded as he limped forward. "Look what you did to the parking lot! What kind of Scarab Rider are you, shooting at a damn parking lot?"


    Jabari opened the cockpit, climbing down to meet Ahmad at eye level. "Sorry," he said, genuine regret in his voice. "I got distracted. Remembered something I shouldn''t have in combat."


    Ahmad studied him, recognition dawning in his eyes. "The Kumasi Incident? I heard about what happened to your grandmother. Half the cadets at the depot knew."


    Jabari stiffened. He never talked about it, but of course, word had spread. "Yeah," he replied, almost quietly. "It was a small village outside Kumasi. I was…nevermind."


    "Well, at least I''m still alive to write up a report on this," the guard said in a gentler tone. "If it weren''t for you and your Scarab, my men would be Radi-Mon food now. Just like..."


    "Just like my grandma," Jabari finished for him. "That''s why I''m here, Ahmad. So what happened to her doesn''t happen to anyone else."


    Ahmad nodded, respect evident in his gaze. "Power down your Scarab, Lieutenant," he instructed, pointing to a golden monolith that towered above them. "See this golden skyscraper? The Topaz High-Rise. The Kimaris Warband is waiting for you on the sixty-sixth floor."


    "I thought that might be their HQ." Jabari eyed the skyscraper.


    "Go on now, I''ll take care of everything else."


    Jabari nodded, his spirit buoyed by the understanding in Ahmad''s eyes. The Scarab powered down with a hum, like the sound of a giant exhaling its last breath before succumbing to slumber as Jabari made for the cockpit''s exit.