Kai's body was a weapon. After the Mutant Training Camp, Kai's body alone allowed him to rival most mid-tier mutants. His progress and potential were unheard of, and his physique had only improved since then.

Matched with his Bloodweaving and terrifying combat prowess, he was a monster in human form that was hard to rival.

Every strike he threw was delivered with the precision of a surgeon and the force of a freight train. When he finally connected - a solid, crushing punch to Zeke's ribs - the shockwave of impact threw him back through a steel container, denting the walls and scattering debris across the ground.

"Mid-tier mutant at best," Kai muttered as he pushed his Blood Pumping just a touch faster, his strikes accelerating to inhuman speed. Zeke barely had time to register the impact before a flurry of fists smashed into him like falling anvils.

Each punch, each elbow, a controlled apocalypse; each strike capable of ending a life instantly, if Kai let it.

Zeke spat blood, his body battered, bruised, and trembling, but defiance burned in his eyes. "I won't stop!" he growled, forcing his limbs into another spinning kick, another wave of vibrating force. The ground under him shuddered and cracked as if protesting.

Kai dodged and countered, each strike precise, controlled - but he didn't go for the kill. His strikes pummelled Zeke into exhaustion, bruising muscle, rattling bones, shredding confidence. Yet after a moment, Kai paused, chest heaving slightly, and stepped back.

Zeke staggered, coughing blood, eyes wide in disbelief. Deep down, he had expected Kai to defeat him, but not this easily. And more confusingly, his opponent wasn't going for the finishing blow.

'What's he up to?'

Kai's smirk appeared through his sweat-streaked face. He ran a hand through his damp hair, flexed his fingers, and said softly, "That's enough for now."

Nadya, Amina and Lenny sat down on the hatch of the cargo plane and awtched Kai and Zeke's battle. Kai was clearly enjoying moving his body, but it was good to see that he was in control and his red eyes were sharp.

They had learnt to notice when he had lost control, especially Nadya who had seen Kai at his worst.

This was domination, control, and restraint displayed like a weapon.

But then he went on to say something that baffled them all completely.

Kai's grin widened as he glanced at Zeke, still crumpled on his knees. "Get up," he said. "I've got a better idea than killing you."

Zeke's ears rang. His body shook with adrenaline and exhaustion. Confusion flickered in his gaze - he'd expected blood, not orders...

Kai's red eyes cooled to a deadly ember as he watched Zeke struggle to his feet, the younger mutant's chest heaving with breath and shame. Around them, the dockyard lay in ruin - crates splintered, a forklift bent like a toy, and men kept their distance, eyes wide with the kind of fear that had teeth.

"You're going to help me break into the Pentagon," Kai said again, voice flat as a blade. It wasn't a question.

Nadya's laugh barked out - half disbelief, half hysteria. Lenny and Amina pressed closer to the metal rib of a downed container, staring with mouths open. Zeke just stared up, fists trembling, trying to reconcile the fact that he'd been battered and now was being given an order.

And the order itself was absurd.

"What?!" Zeke exploded, voice cracking. Even Nadya shot to her feet, fury and incredulity in her posture.

"I'm recruiting you," Kai said. "And your boss would be useful too. Take me to her."

"WHAT?!" The word ricocheted off the shipping containers like a thrown brick. Memories of the last clash shadowed Zeke's face.

The idea that he expected cooperation after almost killing them last time felt insane.

Kai didn't flinch. The cold red in his gaze pulsed faintly, the hunger coiled but controlled. "I need every mutant I can get for what I'm about to do. If you don't want in, I can finish what your boss rudely interrupted last time."

Zeke's throat scraped. He remembered the blood chains that had pinned him to the ground, the way Kai had toyed with ending him. A chill crept across his skin.

Trying to run or refuse felt futile; he felt like he couldn't get away from the red-eyed freak. Zeke's mind was running wild.

The idea of his boss coming down on him later, furious and dangerous, made the choice a thin one.

He swallowed and barked out a condition before his pride could be fully crushed. "Fine. I'll help. But my boss and her organisation stay out of it. I won't let you drag her into this."

Kai considered the stipulation like weighing meat. A small smile ghosted his lips. Dominique wouldn't be as easy to get to accept as Zeke had been; she was a storm in her own right. He also didn't want to take the detour and draw unneeded attention by doing so.

"Alright," he said finally. "That's fine, we can keep her out of it. It would be bothersome to deal with her and get her on board anyway."

Zeke nodded, relief and tension tangling in his shoulders. "Give me a bit to organise the cargo and speak to her."

"Go for it," Kai said coolly. "As you do, get us a car to get to DC and something to eat."

Zeke's glare flashed - half defiance, half the last stand of a wounded animal. Kai could almost read the thought as plain as print: 'I don't work for you, fucker.'

But all Zeke could do was clench his jaw as he nodded again, the motion brittle.

"What makes you think I won't run now?" Zeke asked, voice a dangerous whisper.

Kai's grin was simple, vicious in its comfort. "Then I'd have to come after you. And I don't think you want that." He winked, casual, like a man handing out tickets to a funeral and smiling about the weather.

The threat hung heavy. Zeke's breath hitched; he understood the implication. Kai had supposedly gone toe‑to‑toe with the Scalpel and the Messiah and come out whole. He was not bluffing.

As such, Zeke got straight to work...

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