Cronus' system: Against the gods

"What a lovely night," Jax whispered, his voice barely carried by the cool evening breeze. He tilted his head skyward, letting his cybernetic right eye analyze the vast expanse above. The moon bathed the city in its soft glow, while the stars, Eridanus, Antares, Aquarius, Lynx, Lyra, and Cepheus glimmered in their eternal positions.

To the naked eye, they were mere pinpricks of light. But through his cyber vision, he could see their delicate rotations, the swirling nebulae beyond, and the faint traces of cosmic dust drifting like celestial whispers.

Normally, nights like these passed him by, unnoticed. He preferred the dim glow of his lab, surrounded by the hum of machinery and the never-ending whir of circuits syncing into something greater. His latest creation...an advanced robo-hunter at the tier-one expert level had been an achievement worthy of recognition.

And yet, it wasn't enough. It could never be enough. He didn't want to build just another machine; he wanted to craft a masterpiece, a robot capable of rivaling a master-level ability user. A dream so audacious, so impossible, that even he sometimes wondered if he was reaching too far.

But tonight was different.

Maybe it was the tranquility of the evening, the way the city's neon lights blended seamlessly with the star-streaked sky. Or maybe, for once, he just wanted a reason to step away from the calculations, the blueprints, the equations that dominated his mind. A rare indulgence.

"Well... getting a burger down the street wouldn't be too bad, would it?" he mused, arching a brow.

With a snap of his fingers, the teleportation crystal in his palm cracked, disintegrating into glowing fragments. A moment later, he reappeared outside Wolf-Fang Guild.

The towering structure loomed before him, its metallic framework reflecting the night's glow. But to him, it was more than just a building, it was home. His sanctuary. His purpose.

He exhaled softly, staring at the familiar emblem carved into the entrance. Wolf-Fang. It was more than just a guild to him. It was everything.

Memories surged forward, unbidden and raw. He saw himself as a child, a broken thing, wandering aimlessly, without purpose or belonging. Until they found him. Until Voss found him. His cybernetic eye had drawn the attention of the family, and instead of being discarded or exploited, he had been chosen.

Not as a tool. Not as a mere experiment.

But as one of them.

The previous Voss head had taken him in, not out of necessity but out of kindness. Jax had been more than just a recruit, he had been raised like a son, treated with a warmth he had never known before.

His fist clenched at his side, a quiet resolve settling in his chest.

"I won't let it fall. I'll do whatever it takes to make sure Wolf-Fang thrives."

Jax clenched his fists, his cybernetic eye flickering with a furious glint. His jaw tightened as his anger surged like a slow-burning fire.

"And those damn Valenbrooks!" His voice was low but venomous, the words laced with disdain. "They really dared to send me that trash deal? What do they take me for? A coward?"

The wind howled through the dimly lit streets, rustling the edges of his cloak as he walked. Hands shoved deep into his pockets, he tugged his hood lower over his face. With a sharp pshh, he deactivated his cybernetic eye, its signature glow fading into darkness.

Right now, the last thing he needed was attention. The moment people recognized him, the infamous tech prodigy of Stellar City, it always led to trouble.

Tonight, he just wanted a burger.

The faint glow of a neon sign caught his eye, a small, rundown burger shop nestled between towering buildings. The scent of sizzling beef and melted cheese wafted through the air, a nostalgic comfort amidst the chaos of his thoughts.

Jax stepped inside, the door creaking as he entered. The place was dimly lit, the only source of warmth coming from an old electric heater buzzing in the corner. A handful of customers sat scattered around, hunched over their meals, faces obscured by shadows.

Without looking up, he placed a few crumpled bills onto the counter.

"Two cheeseburgers, please..."

A gruff voice, hoarse with age, responded from behind the counter.

"Your order will be ready in a minute."

Jax remained still, his hood shadowing his features. But something felt off. A creeping sensation slithered down his spine, an inexplicable unease tightening his muscles.

Subtly, he glanced around. The store wasn't particularly unusual...cheap metal chairs, greasy tabletops, a flickering menu screen that buzzed from faulty wiring. And yet, his instincts screamed at him.

Somebody was watching him.

Then, the voice from behind the counter spoke again, this time with amusement.

"And might I ask to what I owe the pleasure of being visited by Stellar City's number-one tech expert?"

Jax's breath hitched. His fists clenched beneath the table.

"Damn it. I concealed myself well... how could he...?"

Slowly, the grizzled old man behind the counter stepped forward, his weathered face barely illuminated by the dull glow of the heater. His smirk was slight, but it carried weight.

"How do I know you?" the man chuckled, the sound low and knowing. "It's only natural for enemies to recognize each other, isn't it?"

Jax's blood ran cold. His cyber eye flickered back on with a sharp whir, scanning the man's features. His mind raced, cataloging possibilities, a rival engineer? A bounty hunter? A Valenbrook assassin?

Then, he saw it.

A small emblem, barely visible beneath the man's sleeve, a serpent entwined around a sword. The Valenbrook insignia.

"Shit."

Jax reacted instantly. With a sharp inhale, he propelled himself backward, his chair screeching against the tiled floor. He landed in a low stance, muscles coiled like a predator ready to strike. His cyber eye calculated a dozen escape routes, but his gut told him, it was too late.
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The old man didn't flinch. Instead, he merely placed a neatly wrapped burger on the counter, his expression calm but lethal.

"What the hell do you Valenbrooks still want?! Didn't I reject your deal already? What's the matter now?!" Jax snarled, his teeth gritted.

The old man let out a slow, deliberate sigh before meeting Jax's gaze. His fingers tapped against the counter rhythmically, as if pondering the weight of his next words.

Then, his voice dropped to a chilling whisper.

"A deal rejected means death in the Valenbrook family, Jax..."

He nudged the burger forward.

"Deals are just like hamburgers," he paused, his lips curling into a ghost of a smile, "you either take a bite... or get eaten."

A click.

The unmistakable hiss of an energy weapon hummed to life beneath the counter. Jax's muscles tensed.

In the same breath, he threw himself sideways—just in time.

A piercing spear of ice shot through the air, impaling the seat where he had just been. The metal chair split in two, encased in jagged frost. A wave of cold exploded outward, sending a thick, chilling mist creeping across the floor.

Jax landed in a crouch, electricity crackling at his fingertips. His cyber eye flared, scanning every exit, every possible route—none. The windows had already been frozen over, thick sheets of glacial energy crawling up the walls. The customers? Gone.

Jax cursed under his breath. It wasn't just a coincidence. The Valenbrooks had set this up.

The old man slowly stepped from behind the counter, rolling his shoulders as a thin mist of frozen air curled around him. His grizzled face remained calm, his deep-set eyes carrying the patience of a predator.

"I always liked you, Jax," he mused, cracking his knuckles as frost spread across his fingertips. "Smart kid. Too smart for your own good. But you should've known..."

His breath turned to mist as he exhaled.

"Valenbrooks don't take 'no' for an answer."

Jax didn't respond. Instead, he struck first.

Lightning erupted from his fingertips, arcing like a whip of pure energy. The crackling bolt surged through the misty air, aimed directly for the old man's chest.

The old man didn't dodge.

With one swift motion, he raised his hand, and a jagged wall of ice exploded from the floor. Jax's lightning smashed into it, sending shards flying in every direction. But the ice didn't shatter, it absorbed the energy, cracks forming but holding firm.

Jax's eyes narrowed.

"Shit. That's not normal ice."

Before he could move, the old man's voice turned cold.

"Too slow."

A spike of ice shot from the ground, aimed straight for his heart.

Jax barely twisted in time, the blade grazing his side. His cloak ripped as a deep gash split across his ribs, icy pain lancing through his nerves. He gritted his teeth, ignoring the sting.

Gotta stay mobile.

Jax launched himself backward, flipping onto a nearby table before kicking off the wall. Sparks of blue electricity crackled from his feet as he dashed sideways in a blur of movement.

The burger shop erupted into chaos.

Tables shattered as Jax blitzed across the room, dodging incoming ice shards. The old man never stopped. With every flick of his wrist, spikes of frozen death shot through the air, forcing Jax to stay on the move.

Jax gritted his teeth. He couldn't keep dodging forever.

His fingers sparked with raw voltage, the air around him charged with energy. He twisted his body mid-air, launching another bolt, this time, straight at the ground.

The lightning exploded, sending a pulse of energy through the floor. Sparks detonated outward, short-circuiting the restaurant's lighting system. The entire room plunged into flickering darkness.

Perfect.

Jax vanished into the shadows.

A heavy silence settled over the ruined burger shop. The only sounds were the distant hum of broken electronics and the faint hiss of frost spreading across the walls.

The old man didn't move. He simply stood there, his breath slow and steady, eyes scanning the darkness.

Then...

A blur of lightning.

Jax appeared behind him in an instant, his palm charged with a surge of lethal voltage.

"Gotcha"

Before he could strike, a wave of unbearable cold crashed into him.

Jax's body locked up.

Ice.

It spread over his limbs in an instant, locking his joints in place before he could react. He barely had time to gasp before his body was encased in a thick layer of glacial frost.

Frozen solid.

The old man turned, slow and deliberate, watching as Jax's motionless figure trembled under the weight of the ice. His cyber eye flickered weakly, his breath trapped in his throat.

"Hah... Thought you had me, didn't you?" The old man sighed, rubbing his temple. "Damn kids and your fancy tech. Always forget about the basics."

He raised his hand, and a long, razor-sharp ice blade formed at his fingertips.

"Now, let's finish this..."

Crack.

The ice fractured.

A single arc of lightning pulsed through the frozen shell. Then another. Then another.

The old man's eyes widened.

"No way"

Jax's cybernetic eye flared to life, its blue glow blinding in the dim room.

The ice exploded.

Jax roared as he burst free, a storm of electricity erupting from his body. The sheer force sent shockwaves through the room, walls shaking as neon signs shattered from the overload.

The old man was already moving, summoning a towering ice spear in his grip.

Jax didn't dodge.

Instead...

He charged.

Their attacks collided in a blinding flash of blue and white.

Ice met electricity.

For a brief moment, the entire world was light and fury.

Then

A sickening crunch.

Jax's body hit the ground.

His vision blurred as he gasped, pain lancing through his ribs. He barely registered the blood trickling from his mouth, his limbs numb and unresponsive. The old man stood over him, his expression unreadable, his ice blade dripping with frost.

"You lost, kid."

Jax tried to move. He couldn't.

His lightning sputtered, weak, flickering.

The old man sighed.

"A shame. You really are talented." He tilted his head, studying Jax's fallen form. "But not enough."

He raised his hand, the final strike.

Jax's vision darkened. His mind screamed for him to move, to do something.

But his body wouldn't respond.

The cold was too deep.

Jax felt powerless.