Apocalyptic Rebirth: With a repairman system space, she rises again. Chapter 783: A trap, not safety.

Trey scoffed and snorted with derision. He questioned what gave Moon such certainty of victory when she hadn't yet witnessed the faces of the other individuals Hadrian had brought with him.

"She's behind you," Trey declared loudly.

Moon's mind immediately leaped to Sunshine, and she swiftly turned around. The smile that graced her lips didn't merely falter; it vanished entirely when she beheld who stood behind Hadrian. It wasn't Sunshine. It was the direct repercussion of her own rash actions.

Dominic and Leah stepped forward.

Moon froze, her gaze flitting between the two. The cogs in her mind whirred frantically. "Dominic? Leah? What are you doing here? Hadrian, be cautious! These are the traitors who murdered my mother! My poor, blameless mother. You must eliminate them immediately, or Sunshine will never find it in her heart to forgive you."

Leah let out a forceful huff, so potent it felt like a physical impact. Her chest heaved, rising and falling with a fury that had been simmering for years. Tears streamed down her face, yet they were not born of sorrow. They were the tears of an impending tempest.

"Innocent?" Leah whispered, her voice trembling. "I have been awaiting your arrival for a considerable time. You have no comprehension of how intensely I have yearned for this reunion, Moon Raine." Her tone was gentle, yet lethally so.

Dominic stood beside his wife, his eyes dark and bloodshot. He appeared as a man who hadn't known a moment's sleep in a decade. The urge to reach out and snap Moon's neck then and there was overwhelming, but he restrained himself. This moment was not his to claim. Not yet, at least. He had pledged to Leah that she would have the initial opportunity to confront their adversary.

Leah advanced slowly, a wicked, curved smile playing on her lips.

Moon retreated, her hands quivering. She turned to Hadrian. "Save me! They've lost their minds! Whatever they've told you is a fabrication! Sunshine! SUNI, HELP ME!" she shrieked at the peak of her lungs, clinging to the hope that her sister would rush to her aid as always.

However, the only response was silence. No Sunshine. No rescue.

Hadrian remained nonchalantly propped against the car, engrossed in a game emanating from the phone in his hand. Moon's eyes widened in disbelief. What was he doing? Was this truly the moment for a trivial game?

She spun around, contemplating escape as the preferable course of action. Yet, armored guards had ominously materialized, sealing her path. Trey shook his head and gestured forward, seemingly indicating that she should return.

The stark realization finally struck Moon: she had stumbled into a cleverly laid trap. The perceived sanctuary was, in reality, a cage meticulously constructed for her.

Panic seized her, her eyes widening further. She turned toward the Stewarts, her expression a mixture of fear and deep regret. In a voice laced with desperation, extending her hands, Moon resolved to beg and stall for Sunshine's arrival. "Wait, we can resolve this. I offer my apologies. I am truly sorry, alright. My deepest apologies. I never intended to cause your daughter's death or the miscarriage. I am genuinely contrite. I will provide compensation, I will..."

Leah could endure no longer. With a raw, furious scream, she conjured a sphere of compressed air. It struck Moon's chest with the force of a cannonball, propelling her backward across the pavement.

Moon gasped for air, scrabbling backward, but Leah was swifter. She eschewed any weapon, relying solely on her hands. She ensnared the very air around Moon's throat, lifting her slightly from the ground.

"This is for my children," Leah hissed. Raising her hand, she hoisted Moon off the ground. A powerful gust slammed the woman against the stone facade of the reception building, jarring her to the bone.

Before Moon could recover, Dominic lunged forward, kicking her head with enough force to shatter bone. He drove his fist into her abdomen, sending her careening toward the front tires of the vehicle Hadrian was leaning against.

Hadrian nonchalantly lifted a foot, nudging her back in Dominic's direction. He then unwrapped a lollipop, utterly unfazed by the unfolding brutality.

Major Elio intervened swiftly, swooping in clad in an exo-suit. "Halt! You'll kill her!" he cried, grasping Dominic's arm. But the man flung him off as if he were mere kindling. "Hold him back," Elio bellowed to the other guards.

More guards rushed in, converging on Dominic, yet they knew that with his formidable strength, only Morris could truly restrain him. Naturally, an exo-suit and a tranquilizer could achieve the same result, but these were not measures they wished to employ against one of their own.

Major Elio was already activating his radio, urgently requesting Morris's assistance.

Moon remained conscious, emitting screams as she scrambled backward, but Leah's wind-based abilities pinned her down. Each breath was savagely torn from her lungs as invisible currents pressed her relentlessly into the dirt.

"You took my babies from me," Leah spat, her voice quivering with incandescent rage. She whipped the air into a vortex, lifting Moon only to slam her back down. Blood began to streak the ground.

Dominic tore himself free from the guards restraining him, discarding them like fragile twigs. Like a maddened bull, he dragged Moon by one leg across the ground, cruelly snapping her leg in half.

A gut-wrenching screech erupted from Moon, startling every bird within the fortress walls.

On the adjacent bubble, spectators erupted in applause. Their eagerness for the displayed violence was palpable, their desire for more bloodshed, more anguish, and more cries insatiable.

Major Elio cursed vehemently. "Pull him back and surround Moon, form a shield around that bitch!"

Guards rushed forward, as Hadrian let out a hearty laugh. Carson and Poncho arrived, their boisterous amusement filling the air as if they had come to witness a bizarre circus.

"Did I hear him order guards to form a shield around a bitch?" Poncho guffawed.

Hadrian offered them sweets and a front-row seat to the spectacle beside him. "Yup."

The assembled crowd of superhumans fractured into three distinct groups. One contingent worked to extract Dominic. Another formed a protective shield around Leah, intending to subdue her. The third group attempted to safeguard Moon. However, Leah's storm of wind tore through them, flinging bodies aside with brutal force.

Meanwhile, Moon thrashed uncontrollably, her eyes wide with terror, her hands clawing desperately at the invisible, suffocating pressure constricting her neck. She tried to utter words, to plead for mercy, but only a wet gurgle of blood escaped her lips. Slowly, her struggles abated. Her arms fell limp. She went utterly slack.

Leah finally released her grip, and Moon collapsed to the ground like a discarded, lifeless rag doll.

The aerokinetic stood over her fallen enemy, Moon, her chest heaving, her eyes brimming with the unshed tears of a year's worth of grief finally overwhelming her. Dominic stepped forward, his massive arms encircling his wife, lifting her away. He carried her from the scene, his gaze never once falling upon the still form on the floor.

This, however, was merely the prelude. A second round was inevitable.

Just then, Hades descended from above. Glancing down at Moon's inert body, he knelt and placed two fingers on her neck.

"Is she dead?" Hadrian inquired.

"No," Hades replied, his voice devoid of emotion, cold and clinical. "There’s a pulse. Faint, but it’s there." He rose and directed his gaze toward the retreating figures of the Stewards. "The Stewards have had their fleeting moment of revenge. Now... it falls to Sunshine to decide the fate of this trash."

He then addressed the guards. "Patch her up and lock her away. Ensure she doesn't die. We need her conscious when my Sunshine returns. I'm certain she'll enjoy taking her turn with the punching bag."