Varrik didn't wait anymore.
From the storm beside the bridge, he came charging on the back of a massive snow beast, axe in hand, armor shining white against the blizzard. The creature raced alongside the train, claws tearing into the ice-covered bridge as it gained speed.
Then it jumped.
The snow beast slammed onto the train roof with enough force to shake the entire cart. Varrik leapt off its back and swung his axe immediately, catching Ice King before he could fully brace. The impact sent Ice King flying backward across the roof, his armor scraping against frozen metal.
Blue Blaze saw the opening and moved fast. Raiders were still trying to climb onto the train, but he kept his attacks tight and controlled. He fired precise Kia blasts from his staff, knocking raiders off the sides without damaging the train or hitting civilians inside. When the snow beast tried to charge deeper across the roof, Blue Blaze stepped into its path and hammered it with focused bursts, forcing it back toward Ice King.
Inside the train, Nightcoil was fighting in the narrow aisles, using his chain like a living weapon. He wrapped raiders by the arms, slammed them into walls, tied some together, and knocked others unconscious before they could reach the passengers.
One wounded soldier stared at him as Nightcoil dragged two raiders down at once.
Nightcoil huffed. "Yeah, I've been practicing."
On the bridge, Shadow made his move.
He sprinted backward across the train roof, then jumped clean off the side. For a moment, he disappeared into the snowstorm. Then he landed hard near the rigged power core, rolling across the icy bridge before rising into a crouch.
The raider commanders guarding the device barely had time to react.
Shadow moved through them fast, low, and silent. One went down from a strike to the throat. Another got disarmed and slammed into the bridge railing. The third reached for the detonator, but Shadow shot the device out of his hand before closing the distance and dropping him too.
He found the detonator box wired into the stolen power core.
"Found it," Shadow said over comms. "Disabling now."
The wires were crude, but dangerous. One wrong move and the entire bridge would become a crater. Shadow worked quickly, fingers steady despite the wind tearing around him.
A few seconds later, the red light on the detonator died.
Shadow grabbed the power core and lifted it from the rig.
"Core secured. Moving to the other side of the bridge."
Back on the train roof, Ice King got back to his feet just as the snow beast charged again. He slammed his staff down, freezing one of the creature's legs in place, then brought the staff across its knee with a brutal crack. The beast roared and collapsed, sliding across the roof before falling off the side of the train.
Varrik jumped clear.
He landed in front of Ice King, axe in one hand, spear in the other.
The spear began glowing white.
Ice King narrowed his eyes. "Great. He can use Kia."
Varrik charged.
The spear struck like a bolt of winter lightning, sending Ice King flying back again. He caught himself with a wall of ice, boots skidding against the roof as frost exploded around him.
Ice King planted his feet and summoned a thick ice wall between them. Then he punched through it, sending razor-sharp shards blasting toward Varrik.
Varrik spun his spear at terrifying speed, breaking the ice apart before it could hit him.
Ice King didn't stop.
He used the wall as cover, jumped over it, and came down with a heavy strike from his staff. The blow landed clean, sending Varrik sliding backward across the roof.
Before the raider warlord could recover, Ice King froze him to the train floor.
Varrik snarled and tried to break free.
Ice King was already in front of him.
He drove one final strike into Varrik's chest, knocking the air out of him and cracking the armor across his ribs.
Varrik dropped to one knee, breathing hard.
"You're not a normal Galactic Empire soldier," he growled. "You're one of the Vanguard. A Kia master."
Ice King rested his staff on his shoulder, looking down at him.
"Yeah, I am."
The wind howled between them.
"I grew up on an ice world. I know how people like you think. You survive because others panic in the cold."
His eyes hardened slightly.
"But you got careless. You thought brute force and fear were enough."
Varrik glared up at him.
Ice King stepped closer.
"Next time, think smarter about your approach."
Then he kicked Varrik off the train.
The raider warlord disappeared into the snow below.
A few moments later, Shadow reached the far side of the bridge with the power core secured. The train roared past him, finally clearing the danger zone as the last of the raiders pulled back into the storm.
No more harpoons.
No more snow beasts.
No more avalanche.
Just the sound of the train pushing forward.
By the time they reached protected spaceport territory, the crew looked exhausted, but alive. The conductor stepped down and shook Ice King's hand with both of his.
"You saved this train," he said. "All of us."
Ice King glanced back at the battered cars, the wounded soldiers, the civilians staring out from the windows.
"Yeah," he said. "Just make sure next time you tell us when raider armies are involved."
Blue Blaze walked past, carrying his staff over one shoulder. "And maybe upgrade the train security. Just a suggestion."
Nightcoil climbed down from one of the cars, bruised but grinning. For once, he didn't look like the rookie trying to keep up. He looked like someone who had fought through hell and stayed standing.
Shadow returned with the power core, calm as ever, like he hadn't just prevented an entire bridge from being blown apart.
Back at STF Headquarters, the mission report spread fast.
Shadow was given Soldier of the Mission for disabling the detonator and recovering the power core under pressure. The rest of the squad received a strong bonus for completing one of the most difficult escort missions of the year.
Nightcoil stood with the others during the ceremony, listening as the mission details were read aloud.
And for the first time, something clicked.
He wasn't the new guy anymore.
Not really.
He had fought raiders on a moving train, held off boarders, survived a bridge assault, and kept functioning under pressure when everything around him was chaos.
He still had a long way to go.
But now he knew one thing for sure.
He belonged in the fight.