The war never paused—fire cracked like thunder, Nomu roared with unnatural rage, and the ground trembled beneath our feet. But then, through the smoke and shattered streets, I saw them—Diamond, Eliza, Marcus, and the others, limping but alive, blood matted in their hair, bruises painting their skin like battle scars.
Their eyes locked on me—Dark Phantom—mask on, but the secret shattered beyond repair.
"Anos…" Diamond's voice wavered, disbelief crashing against the steady chaos around us. "It's you. You're… Dark Phantom."
Eliza stepped forward, fists clenched so tight her knuckles shone white. "Why hide this? Why put us in the dark?"
Marcus's voice was sharp, bitter. "We fought. We risked everything for you, and all this time, you kept us in the shadows. How are we supposed to trust you now?"
The questions slammed into me like a freight train. The rage in their voices mingled with hurt and confusion—the raw wounds beneath the surface of our battles.
I wanted to reach out, to explain the burden I carried, the stakes that kept me silent—but the war's roar swallowed my words.
"Now's not the time," I said, voice rough, barely holding back the tide of emotions. "We live through this fight first. Then we talk."
Diamond shook her head, pain etched in every line of her face. "How can we survive if you keep secrets that tear us apart?"
Before I could answer, a Nomu crashed into our circle, shattering the fragile moment with brute force. The world exploded back into violence.
Steel met flesh. Flames met shadow.
I threw myself into the fray, but the weight of their eyes stayed with me—watching, questioning, hoping.
Through the chaos, my assassin team's voices crackled in my earpiece—steady, loyal. Their calm grounded me.
"Focus, Phantom," Thorn said, "They need you. We need you."
I nodded to myself.
"No more secrets," I said, locking eyes with Diamond and the others amidst the battle's fury. "We fight together."
Eliza nodded slowly, Marcus tightened his grip on his weapon, and Diamond's lightning flared—brighter than ever.
We moved as one—friends, fighters, fractured but unbroken.
Nomu came at us in endless waves, their monstrous forms tearing through the ruins like tidal waves of destruction.
But we stood.
We fought.
And beneath the blood and fire, a fragile hope sparked.
Maybe this war could break us.
Or maybe, just maybe, it could make us stronger.