War of Drekis, Rearmed - Chapter 5: Zel'Myas, City of The Marauders

[Justin Law]

Chapter 5: Zel’Myas, City of the Marauders

 

Segment 52: Shirai Natsumi

In Northern Cretalia, it was only the sight of Morisato City’s people bundled up in additional layers of clothing and their breaths exiting as white puffs of fog that made Yagami Shinsuke realise the cold season had arrived. The Sentinel himself was unfazed, perfectly comfortable strolling down the streets in only a pair of denim jeans and button-up shirt.

“Even here, I smell Thenesiea’s sea breeze wafting from the Southwest,” The Sentinel said to himself as a chill breeze blew past, remaining unperturbed even as some of the people pulled their clothes more tightly around themselves – it was a detail that only someone with heightened senses of his calibre could pick up. ‘And I’m starting to miss Thenesiea already… shame, really, because Cretalia’s pretty fine too.’

‘And here we are,’ Yagami thought as he arrived outside a small restaurant located around a street corner, double-checking his phone to ensure that this was the venue where Shirai Natsumi had arranged their meeting. Thankfully, Shinsuke had gotten the correct address, though he had to wonder why a young girl like Natsumi would pick a place located in such a seedy neighbourhood – across the street, the blocks were occupied primarily by budget motels, dive bars, gambling dens, tattoo parlours, 24-hour massage salons that offered other ‘services’ besides massages, and boxing gyms that likely hosted underground fight clubs.

This particular restaurant’s facade was clean and well-maintained, a stark contrast to its neighbouring establishments with their grimy windows, flickering neon signs and graffiti-covered walls. He could only surmise that this establishment is run by – and serves – mostly people of decent moral character.

A small bell mounted above the doorframe chimed as Shinsuke made his way inside, and most of the chatting patrons immediately lowered their volume as soon as the Sentinel stepped in, though no one made eye contact with him. The interior of the restaurant sported exquisite wooden panelling on its walls and floor that gave it a charming and rustic old-school ambience, enhanced by a jukebox in the corner that played golden oldies from decades past. The place was close to fully-booked at this hour, although in contrast to the filled tables, only one patron sat at the bar counter.

Even as the patrons continued their conversations in hushed tones, Yagami’s enhanced sense of hearing allowed him to pick up almost every dialogue. Most of them were talking about banal topics, such as the weather, their jobs, their family, and various gossip. But among them, Shinsuke was able to make out conversations about current events in Xaelon.

“Old Zhang, have you heard what just happened the other day in Xaelon? Xaelis has fallen!” Two Chinese patrons at one table conversed, who appeared to address each other as Old Zhang and Ah Jiang.

“I heard demons were behind this,” Ah Jiang replied.

“Really?” His friend Old Zhang interjected, “They looked more like aliens to me.”

“I heard New Xaelis has come under attack too, is it true?” At another table occupied by young white collar executives, Shinsuke overheard more talk about the events in Xaelon.

“Has to be,” The office worker’s colleague replied, “How else do you explain all the military airships that have been leaving Khazan Prime and headed towards there?”

After a bit of searching around and overhearing various conversations, Shinsuke eventually located the table Natsumi was seated at, an easy-to-miss one that was tucked away in a corner. She was a fairly unremarkable pre-teen girl, with waist-length midnight blue hair tied with pink ribbons and braided into a pair of pigtails and purple-irised eyes, dressed in a light brown coat over a white wool sweater and a knitted green scarf, and a black pleated skirt over white thermal leggings and brown boots.

All in all, she looked like a typical ten-year old one might see playing in the neighbourhood without a care in the world. Instead, Shirai was far from the image of carefree innocence one might expect from a girl her age – the pupils of her eyes were constantly constricted from tension, and she would intermittently rock back and forth in her chair with her arms wrapped around herself and mutter gibberish. Combined with the three Shikigami companions – the Green Snare Blob, Black Void Bat and Invincible Weasel – that rested near her, the girl projected an unsettling aura that made the other patrons give her a wide berth.

“Hey Shirai-chan, quite the surprise that someone like you would choose a place like this to hold a meeting,” Yagami greeted Natsumi as he approached her table, smiling as he waved at her. The Sentinel gave the backrest of a chair at the opposite side of her table a gentle pat, “So… may I?”

“By all means, Yagami-san,” Natsumi replied, her voice kept low as her eyes darted back and forth with a nervous look as she scanned her surroundings. “T-there’s no need to be so formal when I fear that someone might be after me… t-that’s why I ne-need to speak to a Sentinel about this.”

With no need for any further formalities, Shinsuke sat himself across the table facing Natsumi, “Well then if we’re dispensing with formalities, then it’ll be just Shinsuke for you, if you’re okay with that, Natsumi-chan?” The Sentinel asked, before continuing in as friendly and reassuring a tone as he could muster, “So, what can you tell me about the monster sightings you were investigating in the Wizard Woodlands?”

“Okay, so here goes… I heard the locals around here talking about sightings of monsters in the forest outside Morisato City,” Natsumi replied, “When searching for clues in the forest, a bunch of invisible creatures appeared and started shooting energy beams at me! I wouldn’t have escaped in one piece if Itachi-kun hadn’t jumped in the line of fire to protect me.” The Invincible Weasel, who had until then been resting underneath the table near Natsumi’s feet, perked up the moment it heard itself being mentioned, climbing onto the pigtailed girl’s lap and then leaping onto the table.

“Itachi-kun! Don’t climb on me like that!” Natsumi shrieked and nearly tumbled out of her chair, her voice surprisingly loud for a child of her size – painfully so, in fact, as patrons nearby clutched their heads. But for Shinsuke’s enhanced senses, it was absolutely agonising as the Sentinel slumped over, burying his head in his hands. “Ah! Sorry about that…” Natsumi murmured after realising her outburst.

“Have you reported this to anyone?” Yagami asked as the ringing in his ears and pounding in his head subsided.

Natsumi nodded, “Yes! The first thing I did when I returned to town was to go to the police station! But if those things are in any way connected to the demons who attacked Sevarian and Xaelis, I fear it would be something far above even the Mobile Police’s pay grade; that’s why I need the SLJ’s help… This is way too big for me!”

“To be honest, Natsumi-chan, the fact you investigated the case on your own initiative is a surprise to me,” Shinsuke remarked as he looked at the other two Shikigami who accompanied Natsumi; the slime known as The Green Snare, and the bat known as The Black Void. “I mean, for a trio of ‘monsters’, these guys are actually kinda cute – and if you’re already so scared of them, what more could be said about actual demons?”

Natsumi pouted at Shinsuke’s statement, “Well, nobody told me becoming the prophesied hero of Hyakkai-machi would involve becoming the master of three spirits! Otherwise I would’ve never torn off that ofuda!” The blue-haired girl then sighed and rested her head on the table, only to nearly jump out of her chair as she felt the Green Snare brush against her leg as it moved. “But one way or another, as the hero of Hyakkai-machi I felt I had to live up to the prophecy one way or another and be a hero… hence my decision to investigate the monster sightings.”

“In that case, I have good news for you,” Shinsuke replied, “The Central Government in Khazan Prime is in the process of ordering a full-scale mobilisation of the Khazan Armed Forces to conduct joint operations with the SLJ; in addition, Elwin D’Larthi is holding a special press conference to shed light on the matter. I’m also headed to Khazan City to discuss a course of action with my fellow Sentinels.”

“Shinsuke-san… if you’re okay with it, can I come along?” Natsumi asked, twisting the ends of her pigtails as she fidgeted nervously, “I have a bad feeling… that something terrible is about to happen in Cretalia, and besides, I think I’d feel safer discussing my findings in the Wizard Woodlands in detail in Khazan City.”

“For a girl who’s deathly afraid of monsters… You’re aware this is going to put you in the sights of more monsters, right?” Yagami commented.

“One way or another, it’s now my destiny to be around monsters,” Little Shirai sighed in resignation, “So one way or another… I need to conquer my fear…” As if capable of understanding her words, the Black Void, who had till now been hanging upside-down above Natsumi from the ceiling rafters, flapped its wings and squeaked.

“I’ve no problem with that,” Shinsuke nodded, beaming with approval as he found Natsumi’s attitude uplifting; she was a walking example of the saying that courage is not the absence of fear, but the ability to do the right thing in spite of it. “The Sentinels always welcome the assistance of any and all who seek to do the right thing and combat evil and injustice in all its forms.”

“Now, unless you’re planning on having a bite here, may I suggest we head-” Yagami was about to suggest that he and Shirai leave, but a chill wind blew indoors as the doors flew open as four men dressed strode into the restaurant, all dressed identically – black suits and ties, fedoras and sunglasses and bearing arrogant smirks upon their faces, as if they’re the sort who are used to always having their way. From the way an uneasy silence fell over the once-lively establishment the moment the four men stepped in, Shinsuke could only guess that the quartet was well-known and largely feared by the locals.

Natsumi’s pupils constricted in fear as she tried to avoid making eye contact with the men, with only Shinsuke and the stranger drinking at the bar being the only people who remained calm in the quartet’s presence, while the bartender immediately got to work pouring drinks for the black-suited quartet, his routine almost ritual-like – clearly, it was not his first time dealing with them.

The first of the group to step up to the bar counter was a middle-aged man with angular facial features and a hooked nose with short slicked-back gray hair and icy blue eyes. He set his fedora down on the counter and chugged back the shot glass of Scotch that was offered to him before turning around to face the patrons. “Y’all should know the drill by now,” he sneered. Without saying a word, the patrons stopped whatever they were doing – even those who were halfway through eating – and hurriedly made their way to the door.

“What a pompous bunch… who are they anyway?” Natsumi asked in a low whisper.

The male patron known as Old Zhang, an elderly man with thick glasses and an almost bald head stopped just long enough to indulge the girl’s query. “They’re the O’Hanranhans,” he whispered back, gesturing to the gray-haired man and a portly ginger-haired one with a thick muttonstache, “Nigel and his brother Seamus, alongside their cousins Joey-Mac and Murphy; nothing but trouble – they’re a local gang who oversee criminal activities in this part of town; smuggling, running underground fight clubs, smuggling drugs. You name a criminal activity, they’ve probably done it…”

Old Zhang grabbed his paddy cap and jacket and put them back on, “Alright, I’ve said enough,” he muttered as Seamus O’Hanrahan shot a cold glare in his direction, causing him and Ah Jiang to leave the establishment with a surprising speed for two men of their age.

The stranger at the bar – a man of perhaps in his late-thirties to early forties with shoulder-length dirty-blonde hair and a five o’clock a few days shy of growing into a full-blown beard and moustache, dressed in a black leather biker jacket over a dark teal T-shirt and blue jeans – continued to drink at the bar, stein of beer in his hand, unperturbed by the turn of events.

Murphy, one of the O’Hanrahans, stepped forth; he was a tall man with dark hair and skinny build, with ratty facial features and a pencil-thin moustache. He tipped his shades down to glare at the stranger, who returned his glare with a blank stare of his own. “Yes, brother?” The stranger asked.

Murphy stepped back, taken aback by the man’s aloof reaction. But he quickly regained his composure and growled at the stranger, “Oy, has your hearing gone to hell or something!? Didn’t you hear us earlier? We said get outta here! Beat it, scram!” The O’Hanrahan cousin made a shooing gesture with his right hand.

The stranger snorted in disdain, and continued to drink.

“Hey! How are you not getting the message? I say, hit the road, or get hit!” Murphy cracked his knuckles.

“You heard Nigel and Murphy,” Joey-Mac chorused as he stepped over to Shinsuke and Natsumi; the largest of the O’Hanrahan quartet, with his shaved head and hulking build that his dark suit could barely conceal, he was a picture of intimidation. “Out, now.”

Murphy’s ire grew as the stranger at the bar counter continued to drink without a care in the world, “Nobody, nobody in this town disrespects an O’Hanrahan! This is your last warning!” The gangster reached into the left pocket of his suit jacket to slip on a set of brass knuckles, the metal gleaming under the lights. The blonde man remained unfazed as he continued to give him the cold shoulder.

“That’s it, ya bloody bugger, you’re going six feet under!” The bartender ducked under the counter as Murphy wound up his left arm and threw a jaw-shattering left haymaker. The gangster’s wicked sneer quickly turned into a look of shock and disbelief as his punch was halted an inch away from the stranger’s face as if he’d struck an invisible wall.

“N-no bloody way!” Murphy stuttered as he struggled to pull his arm back, but instead he found himself frozen in place, feeling a pressure on his left forearm, as if someone or something was grabbing his limb.

The remaining three O’Hanrahans attention quickly turned away from Shinsuke and Natsumi towards their cousin.

“Jesus Christ, you’re such a nuisance,” The leather jacketed stranger muttered as he set his beer stein down and rose from his seat as Murphy continued to struggle to pull his arm free. The stranger lifted his right hand, and Murphy would begin to levitate off the floorboards, his legs kicking and flailing.

 

Segment 53: The Man Formerly known as The Ragemaster 

Michael Cortelloni slowly turned around to face the four men messing with him, staring down the O’Hanrahan quartet. With a telekinetic release, Michael sent Murphy flying across the dining area, slamming into the wood-panelled far wall. His relatives watched in shock, before reaching for their guns.

Raising an eyebrow as the O’Hanrahans drew their weapons, Michael briefly turned his gaze to the jukebox. “Let’s have something more suited to the mood, eh?” He mused as he telekinetically fiddled with the jukebox’s mechanisms to switch to a different song, as Whole Lotta Shakin’ Goin’ On by Jerry Lee Lewis came over the air.

“Bloody hell! We’ve got a metahuman on our hands!” Nigel O’Hanrahan yelled as he raised his CZ 75B handgun.

“Hey, are you one of them Sentinels!?” Joey-Mac added, taking aim at Michael with a Desert Eagle.

Cortelloni gave a snort of derision as he regarded the buzz-cut O’Hanrahan with a twisted smirk, “Talk about bad comedy. No chance in hell, brother.”

Nigel and Joey-Mac prepared to pull the trigger on Michael, but the former Marauder used his telekinesis to yank the weapons out of their hands and sent the guns flying across the room. Before the two O’Hanrahans could process the situation, Michael unleashed a mind blast on Nigel, who fell to his knees screaming as his nerves were overloaded with searing pain, his body feeling as though hundreds of pins were being driven through his skin and into his flesh.

As Joey-Mac and Seamus ran over to help Nigel back onto his feet, the gray-haired O’Hanrahan impatiently swatted their hands away and pointed at the esper, “Don’t mind me! Kick that bastard’s arse!”

Joey-Mac and Seamus responded with an angry roar and bull-rushed Cortelloni, looking to tackle the esper to the ground.

“You’ve gotta shitting me…” Michael grumbled as he held up his right palm, and the two O’Hanrahans skidded to a halt as he telekinetically froze them in place, before levitating them into the air. With a series of gestures with his right hand, the esper would throw them about the place like a pair of rag dolls, slamming them against the ceiling, then the floorboards, and then smashing them face-first against each other.

As Nigel tried to crawl towards his dropped weapon, Cortelloni sent the two groaning O’Hanrahans crashing into the gray-haired gangster, sending the three of them collapsing in a limp heap.

“So much for keeping my head down,” Michael huffed, slapping his payment for the drinks on the payment tray on the bar counter as he turned to leave. The esper was known for his perpetually surly mood, but the encounter had undoubtedly worsened it, and he was at this point in a hurry to get out of this place as soon as possible.

As he made his way towards the door, a psychic premonition flashed in his mind, as he saw a vision of Murphy O’Hanrahan rising to his knees and reaching for a weapon. Michael spun around in Murphy’s direction, who had now risen to his knees and had a LotMU-manufactured plasma pistol drawn and aimed at the esper. With a burst of telekinesis, Michael yanked the plasma pistol out of Murphy’s hand and sent it flying across the room.

“Fuck!” Murphy tried to scramble back onto his feet to make a run for it, but he found himself stuck on his knees as Cortelloni used his telekinesis to keep the gangster rooted in place.

“You bought yourself a one-way ticket to hell, brother,” Michael said in a sinister tone as he drew his Webley clone and slowly walked towards the kneeling gangster, the floorboards creaking slightly under his heavy boots, each step sounding like a countdown to the O’Hanrahan’s doom. The esper raised his revolver once he was near enough, the muzzle a couple inches away from the man’s forehead.

Murphy sweated bullets and began hyperventilating as Michael’s index finger crept into the trigger guard of the revolver with slow deliberation, as if to show him that he could take his own sweet time and there was nothing Murphy could do to avert his impending demise. The gangster’s arrogance quickly dissolved at the sight of a gun in his face, tears streaming from his eyes as Michael slowly pulled back the trigger.

It was at this point that Shinsuke felt he was done watching. It was one thing for a civilian to exercise his right to self-defence, but use of lethal force was an excess that he, as a Sentinel, had a duty to stop. The blue-haired Sentinel walked up to Michael as he was holding Murphy at gunpoint and rested a hand on his revolver, “That’s enough, citizen. You’re about to overstep the legal boundaries of self-defence.”

Michael wrested Shinsuke’s hand away and raised his Webley clone to point it at the Sentinel’s face, but Shinsuke just stood his ground calmly and smiled. “From the way you talk… you’re one of them SLJ, right?” Michael remarked, then he raised an eyebrow as he studied Shinsuke’s face. “Wait, I remember you. You’re that cryomancer guy, Shinsuke Yagami.”

Murphy heaved a sigh of relief as he felt Michael release his telekinetic hold over him, but his relief was short-lived as the former hitman wheeled around to deliver a savage kick to the gangster’s face, the reinforced toe cap of his boot smashing against the side of Murphy’s head and sending him rolling across the floorboards. Barely conscious, the gangster groaned in pain as he bled from a nasty gash on his temple.

“Yes, I could say the same for you,” Shinsuke replied calmly. “You’re that Marauder guy, ex-Marauder, to be precise. The Ragemaster. Now, if you could kindly please let me take over from here? The SLJ has got this situation under their jurisdiction.”

Michael slid his revolver back into his holster with a mirthless laugh, “You need to chill, boyscout. Pun intended. Back in my Ragemaster days, I’d have those clowns turned inside-out in the blink of an eye. But as Michael Cortelloni, all I want is to teach them a lesson. Yeah, so go ahead and do your job.”

Meanwhile, Natsumi was already on the phone, calling the authorities to get the police on the scene. Her Shikigami companions also chipped in, with the Black Void having fetched a coil of rope from the store room, and together with the Green Snare and Invincible Weasel, the spirits got to work tying up the four gangsters. 

“So… What’s a Sentinel iceman and a little girl doing in this part of town anyway?” Cortelloni asked. It wasn’t typical of the esper to probe into the affairs of other people, but even for someone who believed himself to have seen it all, this was an unusual turn of events.

“This was just a meeting point for us to discuss our next course of action,” Yagami replied, “We’re headed for Khazan City.”

“I’ll bet it’s got something to do with the attacks in Xaelon, huh?” Michael said with a derisive snort, “I wonder what the great and mighty Khazanian government is gonna do about it?” 

“I sense a lack of faith in the Central Government,” Shinsuke retorted, noting the irreverent tone used by the former Marauder, “Are you still going on killing sprees?”

“Quite the contrary, brother. I have perfect faith in the Central Government — to not do anything about it until it’s too late,” Michael sneered in response, “And on the topic of killing sprees… I’ll say it again, I’ve put the Ragemaster life far behind me at this point, if that helps you sleep at night.”

Natsumi joined the conversation, although she stayed close to Shinsuke, finding Michael to be an intimidating individual. By contrast, her Shikigami companions seemed to take interest in the esper as they surrounded him and looked him up and down. “Wait, you look familiar to me…” The pigtailed girl added, “Wait! I saw livestreams on NexTube of the battle at Xaelis, your face was all over that particular livestream…”

“Damn kids and phones,” Cortelloni grumbled as he realised that he’d been caught on camera and inadvertently became the talk of the town. “Yeah, I was at the battle of Xaelis alright. Some of those things attacked me when I was evacuating, so I fought them off… then some costumed clown came at me with the whole ‘Join the Sentinels!’ sales pitch… fuck him.”

“Wait a minute,” Shinsuke interjected, raising an eyebrow at Michael’s statement, “You were in Xaelis the whole time and never thought of helping to defend the city during both battles? With the kind of power you possess, did it ever occur to you to think just how many deaths you could’ve prevented if-” Before the Sentinel could speak any further on the matter, he was interrupted by the former Marauder placing an open palm several inches in front of his face.

“Are you gonna go spewing that shit about great power and great responsibility too, iceman?” Michael snorted in a derisive tone.

“Let me tell you something, brother,” Cortelloni pulled back his outstretched palm and turned it into a thumbs-up gesture to point at himself. “The only death that I give a shit about preventing is my own. I’ve witnessed many battles in my time, so I can predict how this one is gonna play out,” The esper sneered.

“If the ‘glorious’ Central Government continues down its current trajectory – which in all likelihood it will – then I will give New Xaelis a week, tops, before it folds; maybe two if I’m being generous,” Michael continued, “Those demons will then continue eastwards, marching ever closer towards Khazan Prime through the Fields of Walshin. I sure as hell don’t wanna be there when that happens!”

“It’s one thing to be self-serving, but being so shameless about it is a whole new low,” Shinsuke sighed, shaking his head. “I would at least be sympathetic to a degree if it was because you had loved ones to go back to, but that doesn't seem to be the case with you, isn’t it? Looks like even though you’ve left the Marauders… the Marauder never left you,” The Sentinel’s tone was a combination of pity and scorn, but more of the former than the latter.

“Hmph, typical Sentinel hypocrisy,” Michael huffed in response, shooting an icy glare at Shinsuke. “For an institution that claims to stand for liberty and justice, you guys sure are quick to impose your views and standards on others, and castigate those who do not conform. That hardly sounds liberal or just, if you ask me!”

It was at this point that Cortelloni’s patience finally burned out, “Anyway, that’s all I’ve got for today. Go away now!” Without so much as a goodbye, the esper retrieved and donned a pair of aviator sunglasses and walked out of the restaurant, leaving the establishment empty save for Shinsuke, Natsumi, the owner and the O’Hanrahans.

“What’s his problem anyway?” A bemused Natsumi asked as the local police arrived not long after to arrest the O’Hanrahan quartet.

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Shinsuke replied as he led Natsumi out of the restaurant and showed her his phone, “Alright, I’ve managed to purchase for us a pair of tickets on a commercial airliner to Khazan City; we should arrive there next morning.” 

Several hours later, Natsumi and Shinsuke would find themselves on board an airliner inbound to Khazan City from Morisato City. While Shinsuke tried to make the best of his time on the flight to get some shuteye, Natsumi on the other hand kept talking to herself in order to take her mind off her Shikigami companions, who were all squeezed into the same seat as herself.

“Say… Shinsuke-san… what do you think Elwin is going to talk about at the SLJ press conference?” Natsumi wondered, glancing over to Shinsuke’s seat, where the Sentinel had his chair tilted back and a blanket draped over his head.

“I can’t say for certain,” Yagami replied, “But according to Cortelloni, New Xaelis is in danger. Perhaps Elwin has plans for striking directly at the mastermind behind all this to bring this war to an early conclusion.”

 

Segment 54: Toc Darkone, Leader of The Marauders

On the rooftop helipad of Zel’Myas’ Capital Tower, Izohn Falaris stood ready with a cadre of former presidential secret service agents who now worked as his bodyguards, dressed in finely-tailored business suits and sunglasses as a small transport shuttle touched down, the thrumming of its antigrav drives fading before going silent.

Accompanying Izohn were two fellow ranking Marauders; to his right stood Klart the Firebane, a giant of a man with a herculean physique ripped straight out of a Frank Frazetta artwork, clad in a set of battle armour consisting of a breastplate, pauldrons and gauntlets made from a cobalt-coloured alloy and wielding a massive zweihander that he carried over one shoulder with ease while his eyes emitted a supernatural red glow.

To Izohn’s left stood Morlos Gao – or floated, with the way his robes covered him all the way down to his feet it was difficult to tell. Much like Izohn himself, barely an inch of Morlos’ body or skin could be seen as his voluminous wizard robes, black and purple with red arcane sigils embroidered into the fabric, covered him from neck-down, and the cowl of his billowing cloak hid his head and face.

And meanwhile, Gabriel Demonchild sat perched atop a nearby radio mast; he looked mostly human, dressed in an open greatcoat that exposed his bare chest and a pair of black jeans, with a slim, athletic build and attractive facial features – the one feature that set him apart from normal humans being a pair of red batlike wings that grew out of his back and his amber-irised eyes that sported diamond-shaped pupils.

As the shuttle’s tail door opened to form an alighting ramp, Gabriel leapt off the radio mast with his wings spread and glided through the air to take his place behind Izohn Falaris.

“Welcome back to Zel’Myas, Toc Darkone,” Izohn bowed as two men alighted from the shuttle. Toc Darkone was a tall man with a slender build and long, pointed ears akin to an elf, with long white hair and a matching goatee and sporting a thin scar that ran diagonally across his face, dressed in an elegant navy-coloured waistcoat, black slacks and leather dress shoes with a dark blue shirt and purple necktie, with a dark blue robe with silver embroidery and white fur trim draped over his shoulders.

Next to Toc Darkone was Razor, a bald and muscular thug with dark skin – the man was shirtless, exposing the hulking physique of his upper body, clad in camouflage combat trousers and black combat boots and a pair of orange-tinted sports sunglasses. A military dog tag hung from his neck, and his arms and waist were wrapped in metres upon metres of steel chains. 

“I take it that the objectives of your trip have all been successful?” Falaris asked as he accompanied Toc and Razor as they left the rooftop to head indoors, escorted by Klart, Morlos, Gabriel and the retinue of bodyguards.

“I would say so myself, yes; we are on the right track towards securing powerful alliances,” Toc Darkone replied, “With the unfortunate exception of Uly’Castor Morzan, of course – but given their isolationist policies, I’d give them at least 20 years before they reconsider their stance. Slowly but surely, we Marauders are gaining power and influence over Khazan.”

 “I’d say it’s all thanks to our occupation of Zel’Mier that changed The Marauders’ public image,” Morlos seconded as the group entered an opulently-furnished boardroom. “Many Marauder underbosses had their reservations about such a grand undertaking, but I can safely say you proved the naysayers wrong by taking Zel’Myas… isn’t this what you desire, sir?”

“In this, you are right,” Darkone replied as he sat in a luxurious leather-bound armchair in front of a large marble-topped mahogany desk and got to work on a PC, checking emails that were sent to him by his subordinates. “Izohn, can you explain what I’m seeing? These are disturbing reports I’m reading here – outside of Zel’Mier, Marauder activity has dropped in Khazan Prime, Araelis and Cretalia. There are even reports that some of the Xaelon-based Marauder chapters have seceded.”

“None of this is our – or any Marauder’s fault, I assure you,” Izohn said as the group held a conference in what was once the office of the mayor of Zel’Myas, but now repurposed into Toc Darkone’s personal office. “The attacks being carried out by the Drekis Empire all across Xaelon has caused us some unfortunate setbacks, and some of our Marauder outposts were caught in the crossfire – the Marauders there were either killed in action, or fled to parts unknown.”

“Ah yes, the demons that Ms. Carlisle spoke about, and the supposed deal their leader proposed,” Toc chorused, recalling the phone conversation and exchange of texts he had with Izohn Falaris on the day The Unsubtle reported her findings in the Endless Caves to Izohn at The Monarch.

Gabriel Daemonchild folded his wings behind his back, “Ever since the Drekis Empire began their attacks on Xaelon, I’ve found that Sentinel operations to liberate Zel’Mier have all but ceased, so despite our Xaelon-based chapters being part of the collateral damage, overall this has been a fortuitous turn of events for our Zel’Mier occupation. I would suggest officially taking up on Drekis’ offer to deepen our ties with them, boss.”

The red glow in Klart’s eyes grew brighter as the barbarian spoke his piece, “You seriously underestimate the SLJ, Gabriel. I think with the Drekis Empire making headlines everywhere, the Sentinels have the perfect cover to conduct their anti-Marauder operations in Zel’Mier more covertly.”

“Regardless, you said The Unsubtle has met Drekis in person, right, Izohn?” Toc asked as he looked up from his computer keyboard. 

“That she has indeed, boss,” Izohn replied with a nod. “But like I said in our call, Drekis was pretty cryptic on his exact goals and motivations, and vague on what he has to offer us in exchange.”

“Not exactly the most useful information, I might add,” Gabriel seconded. 

“We could only guess that Drekis wants to crush the hero institutions of Khazan such as the SLJ and Maniacal Heroes,” Falaris continued, “And once he is done, villain organisations such as the Marauders are free to help themselves to Khazan’s wealth; therefore, to expedite this goal, he proposes an alliance between the Marauders and the Drekis Empire.”

“Drekis’ tight-lipped attitude makes him automatically suspicious in my eyes,” Razor interjected, his voice deep and gravelly. “I’d sooner trust The Fallen than him.”

“Boss, I believe we should prioritise the Marauders’ success and well-being,” Morlos added, “Thus, I propose that we invest our resources primarily in crushing the loyalists once and for all and securing the nation’s gold reserve.”

Toc Darkone’s eyes narrowed as he glared at Morlos, “Morlos, I alone shall have the final say on where Marauders’ priorities lie.” As the Marauder leader spoke, the room quickly chilled, and not due to faulty air-conditioning, as the surroundings turned cold enough that frost began to form on the windows and the marble top of Toc’s desk. 

“I have decided that Marauder efforts will be temporarily redirected towards matters pertaining to the Drekis Empire,” Toc continued, resting his hands on the tabletop as he steepled his fingers. “Izohn, Gabriel, I want most of our forces to be positioned around the borders of the Zel’Myas metropolitan area to keep an eye on the Drekis Legions. I want their movements through Zel’Mier to be carefully monitored and reported to me – if they dare to make any move against us, they will pay dearly for it.”

“Your wish is my command, Mr. Darkone,” Izohn Falaris replied with a bow.

“I shall see to it,” Gabriel Demonchild added.

“And Morlos,” Toc Darkone commented as the room temperature slowly returned to normal. “You will be tasked with overseeing the monitoring of SLJ and Maniacal Heroes’ activities – make sure that they do not take advantage of the chaos caused by the Drekis attacks to sneak into Zel’Myas.”

Morlos Gao nodded, “As you wish, boss. No hero will get into Zel’Myas on my watch.”

 

Segment 55: Double Agent

Morlos left Toc Darkone’s office after the Marauder leader adjourned the meeting between the Marauder underbosses, returning to his personal quarters – a luxury apartment suite that the mayor once called home. Morlos headed straight for what might have once been a study room, although it had since been stripped of most of its furniture and interior decoration.

The only pieces of furniture left were a half-length mirror, an armchair, and a desk made from umbricite. Gutted of all electrical systems, the only source of illumination for this room came from four candelabras that held lighted candles made from black wax. The door slammed itself shut as soon as Morlos stepped inside and sat himself down in front of the mirror.

The wizard lowered his hood to reveal the face of a sallow-skinned bald man with gray-irised eyes and black eyebrows, but the face being reflected in the mirror was that of a red-skinned demonic humanoid with fiery yellow eyes, pointed ears and large fangs. Morlos reached for the amulet hanging from a chain around his neck with his right hand and clutched it tightly.

The red gemstone set into the amulet began to glow, but instead of illuminating the room, it appeared to absorb light into itself, the already dim room growing darker even as the stone glowed brighter, and Morlos felt a deathly chill radiate from the amulet, causing his arm to tingle. “Eminent One, it would seem that The Marauders have their… doubts regarding your offer; I bring to you the report that Toc Darkone himself has given the order to redirect Marauder assets from finishing off the loyalists, to fortifying Zel’Mier against a potential attack.”

“It’s nothing I hadn’t anticipated,” Drekis’ voice rang inside Morlos’ mind as the Archon of Chaos held a telepathic conversation with the wizard. “They can suspect me all they want, but it matters not – my new form has almost fully stabilised at this point, Xaelon is down on its last legs, and soon Aigonis will march his legion into Araelis. Zel’Mier is of little consequence at this point; it matters not whether it remains occupied by the Marauders, liberated by heroes, or reduced to a wasteland.”

The dark mage chuckled, “Indeed, other than keeping watch over your minions passing through their territory the Marauders have no plans to make any move against you… their arrogance will be their undoing. You can rest easy, Your Eminence, and save your strength for subsequent campaigns to the east. In the meantime, I will continue to keep you updated on the developments in Zel’Mier.”

“Morlos, don’t go around patting yourself on the back just yet,” Drekis’ telepathic voice chastised. “I’ve caught wind of a plan that the heroes of Khazan are formulating.”

“Wait, what!?” Morlos exclaimed.

“In Khazan City, they are planning an operation; one that involves seeking out my lair and striking directly at me… an attempt to cut the Drekis Empire off at its source,” Drekis continued, “They will no doubt be getting some of their most elite heroes to take part in this bold undertaking, and they will conduct their operation in Zel’Mier.”

“But… Your Eminence, why Zel’Mier?” Morlos asked.

“It would appear that they’ve managed to gather limited intel that my primary hive-fortress is located in a section of the Endless Caves that runs under Zel’Mier,” The Archon replied, “I predict that they will commence their operation within a few days from now, and head to Zel’Mier from the east, where they will pass by Zel’Myas.”

“I see… but are they really able to locate your citadel?” The dark mage wondered.

“For someone who has spent years living in the Khazanians’ midst, I expected better of you, Morlos,” Drekis rumbled, and like a bolt out of the blue, Morlos recoiled as a sharp pain exploded inside his head, drilling through the insides of his skull as though the dark mage’s head was ready to explode at any moment. 

“Y-Your Eminence, forgive your humble servant!” Morlos groaned as he slumped over, clutching at his head as it continued to throb and pulse torturously.

The pain inside Morlos’ head subsided just as suddenly as it began as Drekis’ telepathic voice spoke once more, “Do not underestimate their resourcefulness and resilience, especially now that they have a female Seeker working with them… one who has a very personal vendetta against me, no less. If nothing else, she could lead them right to my lair.”

“Understood, my Archon, but what is my role in all this?” Morlos asked as he awaited new instructions from Drekis.

“Continue to play the role that has been assigned to you… wait for their arrival in Zel’Mier and observe their activities from there,” Drekis remarked, “When they approach Zel’Myas, you will work with The Marauders to capture and detain them in Zel’Myas; do whatever it takes to stop them from reaching the Endless Caves. It is still too early in my campaign to risk having the Khazanians find my citadel!”

“But Your Eminence,” Morlos stuttered, “Toc Darkone is suspicious of me, and I cannot let The Marauders know where my true allegiances lie just yet…”

“The Marauders are too preoccupied with their own well-being to come within a thousand miles of finding that out,” Drekis reassured, “All you have to do is tell the Marauders that the heroes encroaching upon Zel’Myas are part of a Sentinels operation to liberate the capital, and they will jump to your aid to handle the heroes!”

“Well put, my Archon,” Morlos replied as he bowed, “I shall not fail you.”

“And you had better not!” Drekis’ telepathic voice rang one last time in Morlos’ mind before fading into silence as the red glow faded from the amulet’s gem, and the candlelights in the room returned to normal. ‘For if you fail, you will learn during the fall of Zel’Myas that what I have given to you, I can just as easily take back…’

 

Segment 56: State of Emergency

“I’m usually not one to question Mrs. D’Larthi, but does she have to summon me to Khazan City at this critical juncture?” Uberman wondered as he arrived at the courtyard outside the main entrance of the SLJ Headquarters, glancing up at the building’s grand facade – which incorporated an eclectic combination of different aesthetic themes; regal castles, mythic temples, and futuristic architecture, the golden crest of the Sentinels set above the entrance gleaming in the rays of the morning sun.

“It’s not that I doubt Col. Freebird’s leadership, but I feel that at this point in time New Xaelis needs us more than ever,” The cyborg continued. Despite his stressed mood, the armoured Sentinel still kept up his positive image as an icon of heroism as he waved back at the civilians who waved at him as they walked past, even going so far as to pause to oblige a trio of high school girls’ request to take a group photo, with one of the girls making one half of a heart shape with her hand, while Uberman made the other half, with hilarious results due to the massive differences in hand size.

The Sentinels leader was accompanied by Captain Khazan and Tanin, who like Uberman, were also personally contacted by Elwin to attend the upcoming press conference that was due to be held in the SLJ Headquarters in Uptown Khazan City.

“I understand how you feel, Uberman,” Tanin said in a reassuring tone as he gave Uberman a pat on the back, which due to their sheer height difference required the Archon to levitate himself off the ground to do so. As the schoolgirls were walking away after their groupie with Uberman, Tanin grinned as he made a finger gun gesture at the girls when they stole a glance in their direction, eliciting giggles and swooning as they snapped photos of the living legend on their phones. 

“But I believe this has something to do with the operation she has been planning together with the top brass of the Khazan Armed Forces and Khazanian Security Services,” The Archon’s serious and professional mood quickly returned as he continued, “Something about infiltrating the Endless Caves to strike directly at Drekis himself.”

“So, madame Vice-President intends to aim straight for a checkmate instead of fighting a protracted war with the Drekis legions,” Captain Khazan added, garbed in his Sentinels duty dress uniform as the trio made their way up a short flight of steps leading up to the main entrance of the Sentinels HQ, “While there are a number of unknown variables in this operation, it’s hard to fault the logic behind this plan.”

“Well, that’s a pleasant surprise,” A voice called from behind Captain Khazan. Looking behind him, the caped crusader caught sight of Yagami Shinsuke, who was accompanied by Shirai Natsumi.

“Mr. Yagami,” Captain Khazan smiled as Shinsuke walked up to him, and the two men shook hands. “It’s been a while since I saw you in Khazan City, so what brings you here?”

“I’d presume it’s for the same reason as the rest of you guys,” Shinsuke replied. “Elwin called me to attend the press conference about the latest Sentinels operation.”

“From the looks of it, it’s quite the crack team she’d assembled,” Tanin remarked as the group consisting of himself, Yagami Shinsuke, Captain Khazan and Uberman made their way into the Sentinels HQ and headed to the auditorium where Elwin’s press conference was due to take place. At this point, the foyer was crowded with press teams, selected representatives of the Khazanian Central Government, and foreign dignitaries – but among them were also the familiar faces of Vincentzo Maiinverno and Raea Shalhalla.

But unbeknownst to everyone, mingling among the crowd was Michael Cortelloni, who’d somehow managed to sneak into the SLJ headquarters by blending in with the press crews.

“Well, this is quite the dream team Mrs. D’Larthi has put together,” Shinsuke remarked.

“Heh, well said,” Vincentzo chimed in as he stepped up, adjusting the necktie of his elegant, finely-tailored business suit. “It feels good to have the Sentinels finally recognise my talent,” The archmage grinned as he glanced at Uberman. “What would you say, that once all this is over, that you recommend granting me a seat upon the Sentinels’ leadership council?”

“I could certainly put forth a recommendation for you, Mr. Maiinverno,” Uberman replied, “But that doesn’t promise you a seat upon the council, as that would rest upon a majority vote from the rest of the incumbent council members.”

“I have mixed feelings about all this,” Raea chimed in, giving her hair and dress uniform some last minute adjustments to make herself as presentable as she could muster. 

“And looks like here’s our cue,” Captain Khazan remarked as the doors to the auditorium were opened, and attendees began to file in in an orderly fashion. Elwin was already on the stage – her blonde hair styled in an immaculate bun, attired in a smartly-tailored skirt suit and crisp blouse, standing behind a rostrum. Uberman, Captain Khazan, Tanin, Shinsuke, Vincentzo, Natsumi and Raea quickly took their positions on the stage. 

During that beat of silence before Elwin kicked off the press conference with a speech, a palpable aura of anticipation hung in the air as guests and officials shifted in their seats, anxious to hear the veteran Sentinel – who holds both titles of Vice-President and First Lady – address the escalating situation in Xaelon. 

Michael Cortelloni stood at the far end of the auditorium, his back leaning against a column behind him where from his position he could see past the rows of seats, all the way to the stage at the front. “How pathetic, what a bunch of sheep…” The former Ragemaster muttered under his breath as he studied the crowd. Sheepish masses who just needed someone to tell them everything was going to be alright, ready to blindly trust their fate to a powerful few. It was a stark reminder to Michael why he detested crowds, and for a moment felt a pang of regret coming here in the first place.

“To all citizens of Khazan and foreign guests,” Elwin began addressing the attendees and press, “We are currently living in trying times, between the Marauder occupation of Zel’Mier and the escalating attacks by the Drekis Empire in Xaelon, Khazan faces a crisis the likes of which had not been seen since the war with The Fallen, twenty-five years ago when they were at their zenith under the leadership of Archon of Void, Quietus.”

The veteran Sentinel continued, “It is in times like this that we extend our utmost gratitude to Khazan’s brave defenders for their unwavering duty; as well as our deepest sympathies to the sacrifices they have to make, and to the victims of these senseless acts of cruelty and barbarity.” With that, the Vice-President stepped away from the rostrum to make way for Uberman.

“There is no need for thanks,” Uberman said in a calm and authoritative tone as he stepped up to the rostrum, his armour gleaming under the lights. “I am well aware of the duties foisted upon me when I was elected to chair the Sentinels council. And that is that regardless of who threatens Khazan – be they Marauders, The Fallen or the Drekis Empire, we will defend the people of Khazan and their way of life with everything we have and then more.”

The cyborg nodded and stepped away from the rostrum amidst a round of applause from the crowd, as Elwin once more took her place.

“We have witnessed firsthand the brutality of the Drekis Empire – Sevarian City, Xaelis, Leibrook, Cashar and many others; the land of Xaelon bears numerous scars of Drekis’ unprovoked aggression,” Elwin addressed the crowd and press in a firm voice, her eyes burning with conviction. “We know not where this enemy came from, but we do know that a diplomatic solution is not possible; from the moment they made their first strike by attacking Sevarian City, the enemy has not issued any demands nor explained their motives. Make no mistake about it, this is unlike the Marauder occupation of Zel’Mier. With the Drekis Empire, they are an enemy driven not by greed or political ambition, but an unreasoning hatred towards our very existence.”

“Therefore, speaking on the behest of my husband, the president, I declare that Khazan Prime will use every available resource to stamp out this threat; I bring to you good news that at this very moment, the Prime Senate has passed the bill for a full-scale mobilisation of the Khazan Armed Forces,” The Vice-President continued, “And in addition, additional aid packages of both humanitarian assistance and arms shipments have been cleared to be sent to Xaelon as we speak, but this isn’t the highlight of today’s press conference…”

The blonde Sentinel held up her right hand, pointing towards the ceiling, “No, the highlight of this press conference is to announce that after meticulous strategising with the top brass of the Khazanan Armed Forces and Khazanian Security Services, we have put together a bold plan to bring about a swift conclusion to this war.”

Elwin paused as a collective gasp rose from the crowd; some appeared stunned, others looked optimistic and hopeful, while still others appeared apprehensive and skeptical. One way or another, murmurs filled the auditorium as members of the crowd spoke among themselves, speculating, exchanging theories. 

“First off, allow me to say that none of this would be possible without the cooperation of Seeker Telissa Ravan; her arrival in Khazan is practically a providence from the Powers That Be,” The First Lady continued as the crowd’s whispers died down. “In contravention of GDF protocols, she has shared valuable intel that Drekis, the ruler of this eponymous empire has established his seat of power in a section of the Endless Caves that run underneath Zel’Mier – without her assistance, only the Archons know how long it would’ve taken us to locate Drekis’ base, and all the while our people continue to bleed and our cities continue to burn, and recent findings by Captain Khazan and Amy Coleman prove the veracity of the Seeker’s claims.”

Captain Khazan nodded as the cameras and microphones were turned towards him, “Yes, during one of our recent anti-Marauder operations in the Karia Valley region, Ms. Coleman and I encountered a large number of the creatures known as Deminite Soldiers and a Hive Guard in a section of the Endless Caves there. ”

“Although this is still a large area to search, it’s enough for our strategists to work with,” Elwin declared in a resolute voice, “The fact that Drekis relies on his Magisters and agents known as Discordant Scions to conduct his operations on the surface imply that he alone is the keystone that keeps the Drekis Empire’s war machine running. Therefore, in order to avoid a prolonged state of war, we will strike directly at the heart of the beast.”

“We are aware of the potential complications; we have ruled out the option of deploying troops to Zel’Mier – a large military presence in the region risks either drawing the attention of the Drekis Empire, or be perceived as an escalation by the Marauders. Either way, they will be met with strong military force,” The blonde Sentinel continued, “But where an army may fail, an elite team of some of Khazan’s finest heroes could succeed, and this is the crux of Operation Guillotine.”

“Heh, that’s a poetic name indeed,” Tanin remarked under his breath, a smile creeping across his face. “It’s as they said, cut off the head of the serpent, and the body will die.”

The auditorium fell deathly silent at Elwin’s announcement, before coming alive with a round of rapturous applause as the attending officials and dignitaries gave the Vice-President and her handpicked task force a standing ovation. It wasn’t long after that the press conference came to an end, and what came next was a photo-taking and Q&A session as the press conducted interviews, and officials and foreign dignitaries came up, one after the other to shake hands with Elwin and the heroes and pose for photographs.

“So the plan is to infiltrate Zel’Mier territory, locate that king darkspawn known as Drekis, and smite him?” Vincentzo queried, going over the details of Operation Guillotine one more time. “But how are we able to locate an enemy we’ve never even seen?”

Raea nodded, “Not even Telissa herself has seen Drekis in person, despite her longstanding vendetta against him… she said that Drekis is not bound to a fixed form, that he is a foe who wears many faces.”

“Still, this is the best shot we’ve got,” Uberman chorused, “We’d have better odds infiltrating Zel’Mier compared to sending an entire military division.”

“If nothing else, this will greatly reduce the potential casualties we might suffer otherwise,” Shinsuke added.

“My only reservations to this is that even with the intel Ms. Ravan shared with us, we still know so little about the enemy – what he looks like, or how powerful he is, or where his base might be located,” Uberman remarked with a tinge of concern in his voice as the cyborg folded his arms, “It’s as good as going in blind.”

“Yo, have more faith, all of ye!” Tanin said with a laugh as he joined Uberman’s side after taking a photo with a team of representatives from Axia. “Elwin roped the Archon of Light on board for the specific reason that no matter what form an Archon chooses to clothe themselves in, another Archon will always be able to sniff them out!”

“So here’s saying, leave finding Drekis to me,” The Archon of Light grinned as he cracked his knuckles and craned his neck, “And you figure out how to get into Zel’Mier without drawing half of the Marauder occupation on our tailpipes.”

“I think I might just have a way,” Vincentzo smirked, adjusting the cufflinks of his suit. “See, an associate of mine by the name of Woose used to live in Zel’Mier long before the Marauder occupation… he used to own a small trading business there, and he told me he still has the old caravan that he used to make deliveries with. The ride may be slow, but it will be able to avoid the scrutiny of the Marauders by making them think we’re simple merchants.”

“Would it end up working too well though?” Raea wondered, “What if the Marauders are so convinced by the act that they try to shake us down for protection money?”

“I’m confident in Dr. Strange’s plan,” Tanin interjected, flashing a wink at Vincentzo. “Some of my contacts have spent months spying on Zel’Mier, so I’ve more or less discerned the Marauders’ patterns. While Marauders have set up outposts and checkpoints along the Z5 freeway, they have gotten complacent in recent weeks, thinking they have the entire state-kingdom wrapped around their finger.”

Vincentzo raised an eyebrow at the nickname Tanin had given him, “I am going to pretend that I know not where that nickname came from, but please, Sir Tanin, do continue…” 

“See, most of the Marauders’ operations in Zel’Mier are primarily centered around the Karia Valley region due to allegations that it’s the final bastion of the former regime loyalists,” The Archon continued, “Any trade caravans or logistics convoys travelling down the Z5 freeway are generally assumed to be sanctioned deliveries headed straight for Zel’Myas, and nine point nine times out of ten, the Marauders manning the checkpoints will just wave us through without a second thought.”

Vincentzo smirked and folded his arms once Tanin was done speaking, “Spoken like a true Archon; that was exactly what my court strategists informed me as well. In addition, Woose seems to have a preternatural streak of good luck, which should further improve our odds of slipping through Marauder checkpoints. By the time any of them grow suspicious, we would already have left the freeway and are well on our way into the Endless Caves through the Darkshadow Forest.”

“A sound strategy it is,” Uberman chorused, “I was originally proposing airborne insertion into Zel’Mier territory by way of either high-speed or stealth aircraft, but that's hardly foolproof against the Zel’Mier’s air defense grid. Walking through their front doors in disguise sounds like a more viable plan.”

Elwin turned her attention back to the task force as the crowd of press conference attendees began to disperse. “I take it you’ve all agreed on a course of action then? Because I, no, all of Khazan is counting on you all.” 

“That we did,” Vincentzo replied, “However, if you do not mind, I will be roping Woose Brain into this team.”

Elwin smiled at Vincentzo’s statement, “This was something we had gone over during the strategising process – it was decided that the task force selected for Operation Guillotine will use whatever means they think suits them best to get the job done, and any additional resources they may need for the mission, the Central Government of Khazan will provide.”

“If that's the case, then I have a proposal for Natsumi-chan,” Shinsuke said as he held out his right hand to the pigtailed girl. “Will you come along with us?” 

“W-wait! Are you serious!?” Natsumi went wild-eyed with shock and disbelief, staring at Shinsuke’s offered hand. “B-but… but why?”

Natsumi froze with fear at the comment. “Wha...what? Why me?”

“Back in Cretalia, you said you wanted to live up to the prophecy, to fulfill your destiny as Hyakkai-machi’s heroine,” Yagami replied with an understanding smile, “That was why you came along with me to Khazan City, right?” 

“Well… I didn’t exactly…” Natsumi’s breaths grew quicker and more shallow as anxiety set in, as the blue-haired girl began rubbing her thighs together and twisting the ends of her pigtails. “I don’t mean a hero in that sense… I… meant to conquer my fears, not save the world…” In stark contrast to Natsumi’s mulling the Shikigami trio appeared exhilarated, thinking that this was their chance to help their master fulfill her destiny, which was as much theirs as it was hers. 

“Just saying,” Shinsuke remarked, “This isn’t a draft, it’s an invitation. I shall not hold anything against you should you choose to decline.”

Natsumi clammed her lips as her eyes lingered on the blob, before wandering to the bat, and then finally the weasel. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes, before patting her cheeks twice and then taking hold of Shinsuke’s outstretched hand, her purple irises aglow with determination. 

“Alright, Shinsuke-san, I’m in,” She gave Shinsuke a firm handshake. “As much as I feel this is beyond me, I can’t bear the thought of those demons running amok in my town. I can’t allow that to happen!”

“Then that settles it,” Elwin said solemnly, “As of now, this marks H-24 hours of Operation Guillotine. You have exactly one day to prepare what you need, then you set off for Zel’Mier.”

 

Segment 57: The Promise

“Mrs. D’Larthi, if I may have a moment of your time please?” Raea called out to Elwin, racing after the sharply-dressed blonde as the First Lady VP left the auditorium under the escort of the Khazanian Presidential Secret Service. On sheer reflex, the Secret Service agents positioned themselves between Elwin and Raea, but were quick to stand down as soon as Elwin dismissed them with a wave of her hand.

“Yes, Ms. Shalhalla? Is something troubling you?” Elwin stopped and smiled.

The young redhead nodded nervously as she stepped forth, “I mean no offense, ma’am… I want to tell you that I feel nothing less than honoured to be selected for this operation. But… are you sure this is the best decision? I don’t mean to question your judgement… I know I’m not exactly a rookie, but compared to many of the other Sentinels here, I might as well be… so why me?” Raea glanced at the floor as she fiddled uneasily with the jacket lapels of her duty dress uniform.

“In this, child, you are correct,” Elwin replied in a voice that sounded almost motherly as she gave a knowing and reassuring smile, her blue eyes softening as she rested a hand on Raea’s right shoulder. “You may not have served on the SLJ that long, but think about how far you’ve come within that time – what I see in you is not who you are right now, but what you can potentially be; that’s why I think venturing beyond Khazan Prime will be a valuable experience for you to realise your potential.”

“Well… that’s mushy… Reminds me of my mom… Oh, sorry about that,” Raea stammered, a faint blush on her cheeks. “But yes, I can’t fault your logic,” The redhead composed herself as Elwin took her hand off her shoulder. 

Elwin gave a faint giggle at Raea’s comparison of her with her mother, “Then you should feel proud for having such a fine mother – she definitely raised you well, this much I can tell.”

Raea bowed reverently before Elwin, “Thank you, Mrs. D’Larthi, for having such faith in me. I will do my best!”

“You’re welcome, Ms. Shalhalla,” The blonde placed her hands together and nodded. “Do not worry, you are in good hands with Uberman, Tanin and the others; they have your back and will teach you well. Learn from them.”

Raea thanked Elwin one last time and excused herself from the First Lady’s presence, still feeling butterflies in her stomach as she shuffled down the hallways of the SLJ Headquarters, making her way towards the locker room to prepare her gear as well as everything else she might need for Operation Guillotine. So preoccupied were her thoughts that the redhead failed to pay attention to what’s in her way, and consequently almost bumped into a blonde-haired man with a five o’clock shadow in a leather jacket.

“Raea Shalhalla, I presume? If I heard your name correctly back there,” Michael Cortelloni had been waiting for a Sentinel involved in Operation Guillotine to pass by for a while now, and the redhead felt like the perfect Sentinel to approach. Her relative inexperience compared to the others made him think that she should be easier to persuade.

“Yes, that’s right,” Raea nodded, wondering what the man’s business with her was.

“The name’s Michael Cortelloni, not that it should matter,” Michael replied brusquely, “I heard that your team will be heading to Zel’Mier.”

“That’s right,” The redhead replied, “But why the interest?”

Cortelloni replied after a lengthy beat of silence, speaking with a perfect poker face, “I wish to travel with your team, at least right until we get near Zel’Myas. I possess skills and abilities that you will no doubt find useful.”

“You intend to volunteer?” Raea responded, “Well, Uberman didn’t exactly state a headcount limit for the team, so I think he’d welcome any help he can get.”

Michael Cortelloni smirked at the redhead’s statement, followed by venting a snort of disdain as he put on a pair of Aviator sunglasses, “Don’t get me wrong, missy. I’m not here to participate in your pointless heroics, and I don’t plan on risking my ass against the Drekis legions.”

“Then what’s the purpose of joining our team?” Raea wondered, as Michael began to turn away from her.

“Let’s just say our agendas happen to overlap, hence I propose an alliance of convenience,” Cortelloni said impassively as he began to walk off, “Your mission takes you close to Zel’Myas, and it happens so that there’s a certain Marauder there that I have a personal score to settle with; that is all you need to know. Don’t worry, I will pull my weight as long as I’m on your team, just let me know when and where your team will be gathering to set off for your mission.”

With that, the ex-Marauder was gone, and at the spot where he once stood Raea found a post-it stuck to the side of a vending machine with a phone number scribbled down on the paper with the name “Michael Cortelloni” written below, as well as a note, “P.S. CALL me”. Sighing, Raea peeled off the post-it, slipped it inside one of her jacket’s pockets and continued on her way to the locker room.

It was late afternoon when Raea was done preparing her gear, the Sentinel exiting the Sentinels HQ from the main entrance, changed out from her dress uniform into her casual wear – a simple number consisting of a cream-coloured off-shoulder sweater that revealed the straps of a lavender bralette and a denim pencil skirt, with her equipment all packed into a large duffel bag.

And there he stood, at the foot of the short flight of steps leading to the entrance was Timothy Shinestar in all his silver-haired, plaid flannel shirt-wearing glory, with a smile radiant as the midday sun. “Raea! I saw the live telecast of the press conference!” He remarked as Raea descended the steps to meet him. “I wanna say, I’m so happy for you, dear.”

“Uh… thanks?” Raea replied, feeling a little confused by Tim’s behaviour.

“Oh come on, Raea, don’t play coy with me!” Tim said jubilantly as he put his arm around Raea’s shoulders as they walked together to where Tim had parked his car. “Ever since you became a Sentinel, you said you wanted to be a hero who could protect the world; well, this is your big moment!”

The young swordsman’s tone took on a sudden, more sullen turn as he hung his head, “I just wished I could have a part in this though.”

Raea smiled in response as she gently brushed Tim’s cheek with her hand, “I know, the feeling’s mutual. I wished you could be by my side in this mission, but neither you nor I are ready for this.”

“Don’t say that, Raea,” Tim replied as the two of them got into Tim’s car and fastened their seatbelts as Shinestar started the engine, “I have faith in you.”

“You’re right, you needn’t worry about me,” Raea reassured as Tim charted a driving route towards Raea’s home, navigating the busy traffic of the Uptown Sector.

“With Uberman and Tanin watching your back, that’s all the reassurance I need to not become a nervous wreck,” The silver-haired young man smiled as he drove, slowing down as the traffic lights turned yellow before pulling to a stop as they went red.

During the traffic stop, Raea leaned over to the side to plant an affectionate kiss on Tim’s cheek, her spirits lifted by Tim’s encouragement, “Your time will come soon enough, Tim. Both you and I know that you’ll become a great hero too.”

Tim laughed, accelerating as the lights turned green, “It’s like you said, I should believe in myself because you never stopped believing in me.”

As Tim pulled up at the apartment block where Raea lives, the redhead’s mood took on a more serious turn as she said to Tim, “Oh, and one more thing please, Timothy. I need you to do me a favour.”

Tim raised an eyebrow, sensing something off due to Raea’s tone, “And what might that be?”

“Whatever you do, please keep Telissa out of this,” The redhead replied as she unbuckled her seatbelt.

“B-but why!?” Tim gasped in disbelief, his eyes going wide, “She’s spent years hunting Drekis!”

“I know this won’t be easy for you, it’s not easy for me either; but hear me out, please…” Raea started, her voice taking on an imploring tone, “If Telissa catches wind of Operation Guillotine, she will certainly force herself onto the team one way or another; as a Seeker, she is a contractor of the GDF, and it’s imperative that Operation Guillotine be conducted independently of the GDF.” Raea had banked on Telissa being preoccupied by visiting Robert in hospital that she’d miss the live telecast of the press conference, and now it rested on Tim to not spill the beans to the female Seeker.

“But why?” Timothy wondered, “To blue-ball Telissa of her quest for vengeance… it just feels… wrong.”

The redhead sighed, running her hand through her silky hair, “It’s due to politics… I know it’s not your cup of tea so I’ll keep this as simple as I can. As you may know, the GDF is the Democratic Systems Administration’s military and peacekeeping arm… despite their well-meaning vision, they have a bad rep across the galaxy for their oftentimes coercive foreign policies. If they have any reason to believe Khazan is incapable of handling the Drekis threat on their own, they will try all legal means to pressure the Central Government into signing the DSA bill of rights… It’s practically a form of soft annexation.”

“I understand… I think…” Tim nodded. The swordsman had a limited understanding of politics, but in his gut he understood the gravitas of it all due to the way Raea presented the situation. “I promise to reveal nothing… be careful and keep safe out there, okay? I’ll keep you in my prayers – may the Powers That Be guide you and your team.”

“I’ll be seeing you soon,” Raea gave Tim one last hug and a parting kiss before exiting his car and heading back to her apartment to get some rest before she would rendezvous with the rest of the task force to set off for Operation Guillotine.

Before he drove off, Tim looked at his heirloom sword that was resting in the back seat, still thinking of Raea and concerned for her safety, and to ease his mind, he found himself repeating what Raea said earlier, “...you’ll become a great hero too.”

 

Segment 58: Surprise Attack

“Telissa… please, hear me out!” Tim shouted as he ran after the blonde seeker who was storming out of the premises of the First Hospital of Khazan, following her on the streets. ‘Archons damn it, Tim! What have you gotten yourself into!?’ He thought. Despite his promise, he still wound up inadvertently spilling the beans to Telissa, and hated himself for it.

The young man couldn’t understand what possessed him to do so – perhaps his caring nature and sympathy towards Telissa got the better of him, or that her good looks charmed him into loosening his tongue. Regardless of the how’s and why’s, the genie was out of the bottle, and Tim would sell his soul to the devil if it meant he could put it back in.

“You’re not even factored into their plan!” Tim pleaded, trying desperately to come up with some kind of excuse – however flimsy they may be – as he caught up to Telissa and grabbed hold of her left wrist.

“Screw the plan!” Telissa hissed through gritted teeth as she wrested herself out of Tim’s grip and continued to walk down the streets – though it was clear to the swordsman that Telissa had no set destination in mind and was just wandering aimlessly. 

“One way or another, I will not let them blue-ball me! My score with Drekis is one that has to be settled!” Telissa felt her face grow hot as tears glistened in the corners of her eyes – she’d come to view Tim as a friend in the weeks they’d come to know each other, and the thought that he would willingly keep such an important piece of news from her and deny her of her shot at revenge was a betrayal that cut the Seeker to the bone.

“I… I’m sorry…” Tim murmured as he continued to shadow Telissa, also wrestling with his own conflicting feelings. Somehow, when he made that promise to Raea he knew it was going to lead him down this path – it was a catch-22 with no good choice, only the lesser of two evils. Regardless of his actions or lack thereof, he was going to hurt one or the other and live with the guilt.

“The worst part of it all, is that I’d come to view you as a friend!” Telissa ranted as she spun around to face Tim, sending a few sparkling droplets flying from her eyes in the process. “Someone whom I thought I could trust! I… I laid my heart bare… and you plunged a blade right in!”

“I don’t know how I am ever going to make up for this…,” Tim groaned, burying his face in his hands as the two continued to wander the Uptown Sector aimlessly, their roaming eventually bringing them to the automobile-free Chinatown district, with many narrow alleyways formed by a network of closely-packed buildings that evoked traditional Ming Dynasty architecture. “Regardless of what path I took, it was going to end up hurting either you, or Raea…”

“You can’t. So just… leave me be…” Telissa replied in a defeated tone as she pounded her fist against the wall of a nearby house that had been converted into a souvenir shop, though the establishment had closed at this current hour. “I just want to be alone with my thoughts… my wounds…” She muttered as she slumped down on a wooden stool.

“I… alright…” Tim replied in a sad tone, his head hanging as he turned around to walk away. However, the young swordsman had barely taken a few steps before he felt a vibration inside the scabbard that housed his heirloom sword, all the while a metallic, high-pitched ring filled the air. 

“Wait, what’s this?” Shinestar wondered as he unsheathed the sword out of curiosity. As soon as he did, his surroundings were immediately bathed in a turquoise-coloured glow that the blade now emitted, which matches the colour of his eyes’ irises, which appeared to pulse with the same light as the relic’s blade.

“Tim…?” Telissa asked, rising to her feet as she approached the silver-haired young man, snapped out of her melancholia by the unexpected turn of events. “What’s going on?”

“I… I don’t know,” Shinestar remarked, staring at the glowing blade as he waved it around gently, the metallic ringing taking on an almost musical quality. “It’s been in my possession my entire life… I’ve heard stories passed down from mom about the things it’s allegedly capable of… but this is the first time I’ve actually seen it behave like this!”

Telissa was about to lean in to study the sword up close, but stopped when she noticed something amiss in their surroundings. The female Seeker’s first clue was the wavering of their shadows; looking up, she soon found the cause – the lanterns hanging above them, strung up between the rooftops by a series of wires – were swaying, even though there was a lack of strong winds that could’ve caused them to move.

“Stay sharp, Tim!” Telissa warned, lifting her right index finger and placing it in front of her lips as a gesture for silence.

Timothy nodded, sword still in hand as the blonde scanned the roofs of the nearby Ming-styled buildings. As the duo fell silent, they began to hear it – the faint clinking noise of roof tiles, as if someone or something were walking on the rooftops.

As Telissa’s eyes scanned the surrounding rooftops, she continued to listen for the noises made by the roof tiles being disturbed – there were at least three distinct sets of noises, indicating multiple entities. As soon as the tiles stopped clinking, Telissa shouted a warning to Tim, “Shinestar, dodge!”

Tim’s body seemed to act on sheer reflex, bypassing his conscious mind as the swordsman found himself diving for the ground and rolling across the flagstoned road as an energy beam struck where he was standing a mere fraction of a second ago. His sword still emitting a turquoise glow, Tim darted behind a stone guardian lion statue for cover.

“We’ve got company!” Telissa held up her right arm, tapping the touchscreen of a small electronic device worn around her right wrist that Tim assumed was an extremely advanced smartwatch, but soon learned there was more to it than meets the eye as a series of translucent, glowing hexagon-shaped panels appeared all over the female Seeker’s body before materialising into an arsenal of weapons and a suit of powered armour – not the blocky and bulky type used by the Khazan Armed Forces with actuators and hydraulics, but rather the sleek and streamlined type that uses synthetic muscle fibres formed from carbon nanotubes that conforms to the curves and contours of Telissa’s body.

Telissa lifted her right hand in the air, gesturing for Timothy to stay put as her left hand darted to her hip, the magnetic clamps releasing her Seeker-issued sidearm, the EZ-123 heavy pistol. Cocking the pistol and releasing the safety, a LED display on the tail of the weapon’s slide first flashed the word ‘armed’ before displaying the ammo count. Pressing a button on her battlesuit’s right forearm, the same hexagonal panels appeared over the blonde’s face, materialising a headset and visor that covered the upper half of her face.

Sensor readouts and status messages flashed over her visor’s AR display, but what Telissa paid particular attention were the four humanoid silhouettes perched on the nearby rooftops that were revealed after the sensors in her armour performed a scanner sweep of the vicinity. “Sidearm, burst mode,” Telissa commanded, as her suit’s onboard computer remotely switched her EZ-123 from semi-auto to burst fire.

The female Seeker rolled out of the way of the enemy’s fire and took cover behind a snack peddler’s cart, before emerging from cover to unleash a pair of three-shot bursts at the nearest enemy, hitting it in the chest and clipping its left shoulder; the sparks produced by the bullet ricochets indicating that her shots failed to penetrate the enemy’s armour.

Realising that their target possess optics capable of piercing their stealth fields, the creatures decloaked themselves and jumped down from the rooftops onto the street.

“By the Archons, what are these things!?” Tim exclaimed as he finally caught sight of their attackers. The creatures possessed a vaguely humanoid silhouette, but that was as far as the semblances went. All of them bore hairless bodies and bald, bulbous heads and scaly yellowish skin marked with brown and green splotches and freakishly muscular physiques that would put any human bodybuilder to shame. Additionally, they wore armour and full-face masks with narrow slot visors made of a black chitin-like material with a gnarled appearance and carried what could only be beam rifles, although their almost-organic look gave them a bizarre appearance that made them unlike any gun Tim had ever seen.

“Tim, to me!” Telissa yelled as she laid down suppressive fire with her sidearm, emptying the magazine with several rapid bursts as Shinestar took the opportunity to sprint across the town square to Telissa’s side.

“They can easily flank us in the square, but the alleys can provide us with choke points,” Telissa said as she threw a smoke grenade into the middle of the town square. As the creatures began firing blindly into the smoke cloud, Telissa and Timothy broke into a sprint, narrowly avoiding a fusillade of energy beams that blew holes in the nearby walls as they made their way through the maze of small alleys between buildings.

Filled with bloodlust, the creatures took off in hot pursuit, winding their way through the alleyways after the duo, but as one of them turned around a corner, it would find itself staring down the barrel of Telissa’s LR-2X molecular disruptor. With a single pull of a trigger, a powerful burst of green energy erupted from the muzzle, not only piercing through the creature’s chest but completely obliterating its upper body.

The female Seeker dodged its comrades’ return fire as she ran down another alley with Tim, taking the momentary lull in the action to indulge the swordsman’s question. “Those things are Hunter-Killers; basically Deminite Commandos."

As the duo rounded another corner, a Hunter-Killer who’d been shadowing them from above by leaping from roof to roof fired what seemed to be an underbarrel grenade launcher on its weapon, unleashing an explosive projectile. The two managed to avoid a direct hit, but Telissa bore the brunt of the explosion’s blast radius, sending her flying and slamming into a nearby wall. Grunting, the blonde picked herself up and lifted her molecular disruptor to return fire, but another of the demonic commandos arrived to back up its comrade and fired its particle beam rifle, hitting Telissa square in the chest, sending her flying again and crashing into another wall with enough force to crack the surface.

The reinforced chestplate of her battlesuit had saved Telissa’s life, but the powerful impact left the female Seeker winded as she fell to her knees, dropping her main gun in the process; even with the nanites inside the nanotube layer turning their thermal dissipation function to maximum setting, the blonde could still fear searing heat upon her skin where the beam had struck. 

The two Hunter-Killers looked at each other and nodded before advancing towards Telissa, with one of the demon commandos giving her dropped molecular disruptor a kick to send it well out of the Seeker’s reach while the other levelled its DrekisTech rifle at her.

“Stay back, demon!” Tim yelled as he sprang into action, positioning himself between Telissa and the Hunter-Killers. The two Deminites faltered as the sword's turquoise light washed over them; there was something about the weapon that they instinctively sensed was anathema to them, even if Tim didn’t understand why.

Tim’s inexperience showed as the Hunter-Killer found his swings wild and telegraphable, allowing them to stay out of the reach of the young swordsman’s glowing weapon despite their fear of it. But Tim managed to score a lucky blow amidst his flurry of sword slashes, the tip of his weapon grazing against one of the demonic commandos’ protective masks, drawing a shower of sparks before it went flying off its face and skittering across the flagstones.

“By the Powers That Be…” Tim murmured in disbelief as his grip loosened around his weapon the moment he caught sight of the creature’s exposed face – devoid of any eyebrows or facial hair, with narrow red eyes that bore vertical slit pupils, ridges of bony spines where the eyebrows would’ve been, a flat nose with tiny slits for nostrils and a gaping lipless mouth full of needle-sharp teeth.

As Shinestar faltered at the sight of his unmasked adversary, whatever power that had suddenly entered the sword before now left it just as abruptly as the turquoise glow dimmed and then went out, leaving their surroundings illuminated only by the red glow of the Chinese lanterns that hung overhead.

The earlier fear the two Hunter-Killers had felt towards Timothy quickly evaporated, and as the young man was still mentally processing what had happened to his weapon, the Hunter-Killer who got unmasked struck Tim across the face with a backhand that knocked him to the ground. “You should’ve stayed out of this, Khazanian!” It growled angrily.

“You might live if you run away right now,” The other Hunter-Killer snickered.

Telissa grunted as she fought back against the pain and struggled to her feet, unclamping her sidearm from her left hip, levelling it at the two Hunter-Killers. The Seeker’s attempt to back up Timothy was thwarted by the arrival of the third Hunter-Killer leaping off the top of a nearby wall.

The blonde spun around with her pistol to acquire the new target, but the Deminite commando beat her to the draw by performing a rifle butt strike with its weapon, knocking away Telissa’s sidearm, before following up with a second strike that caught the Seeker across the jaw, knocking her to the ground. 

“Guh!” Telissa cried out in pain as the Hunter-Killer delivered a stomp to her belly, before finding herself staring up the barrel of its DrekisTech rifle.

“NO! Leave her!” Tim roared as he leapt back onto his feet, sword in hand, throwing himself at the unmasked Hunter-Killer with reckless abandon. The demon commando sneered as he blocked Tim’s overhead slash with his right arm’s vambrace; as his blade rebounded off the Hunter-Killer’s armour, the creature brought its left knee up and landed a powerful Spartan Kick to Shinestar’s midsection. 

The mighty blow forced the air out of Tim’s lungs and knocked him onto his back, leaving him in a coughing and gasping fit as he struggled to sit up. The young swordsman had barely even caught his breath before the Hunter-Killer brought its powerful foot on his chest and pointed his particle beam rifle at Tim’s forehead. “You chose poorly, Khazanian. Now die,” The demon commando flashed a sadistic grin as it rested its index finger against the trigger of its weapon. “Don’t worry though, the Seeker girl will join you shortly!”

“T-Telissa…” Shinestar groaned as he turned his head in Telissa’s direction, his hand clawing weakly at the air as if he might teleport over to her side as the duo found themselves in the same situation – pinned down under the enemy’s foot and held at gunpoint.

“Timothy… I’m sorry I dragged you into this…” Telissa glanced helplessly at Tim, realising that the silver-haired young man felt the same hopelessness as herself. However she looked at the situation, it was a zugzwang as the blonde felt a rising tide of mixed emotions. Her expression hardened as she glared back at the Hunter Killer who now had her dead to rights, as she spoke with all the venom she could muster in her voice, “Do it, scum. I swear I’ll drag your master to hell with me if that’s the last thing I do.”

“Brave words for someone who’s about to die,” The Hunter-Killer chuckled, a devilish grin cracking behind its mask.

‘How… Just how did it all come to this!?’ Tim thought as he squeezed his eyes shut, feeling his entire life flashing past him. The young man thought about all the dreams and aspirations he had that would never come to pass, the people he would leave behind in the world; but most of all, he thought about Raea, realising that he would never see her again, and that by dying he would let her down.

“I… I refuse…” Tim clenched his teeth as his fingers clawed at the flagstones. “I REFUSE TO ACCEPT THIS!” The young swordsman roared as the irises of his eyes lit up with the same turquoise glow emitted by his sword earlier, his voice now possessing a dual-toned quality, as if there were now two individuals speaking – Timothy’s normal voice, accompanied by a deeper, echoing voice.

 

Segment 59: Reversal

A turquoise-coloured wave of energy erupted from Timothy, sweeping through his surroundings as the Hunter-Killers who had him and Telissa pinned underfoot found themselves levitated off and thrown back like ragdolls. The young swordsman floated off the ground before standing back up, the heirloom sword flying back into his hand, once more aglow with the same light.

For a few seconds, Tim continued to float in place, the energy around him forming a bubble-like shield as the Hunter-Killers opened fire, only to have their beams curve harmlessly around the spherical barrier. The young swordsman could not understand the change that had overtaken him as his feet descended back onto solid ground. The world seen through his glowing eyes was devoid of colour, existing in shades of gray like an old TV – save for the Hunter-Killers, who bore red auras; and Telissa, who bore a gold aura.

It took a while for Tim to realise that the change to his sense of sight did more than just apply a strange filter over his vision; it changed his perception of time itself as the enemies appeared to move in slow motion. The swordsman’s body reacted accordingly, acting ahead of his conscious thoughts to dodge the incoming energy beams.

“Tim, what’s come over you?” Telissa wondered; from her perspective, Tim instead appeared to have gained super speed as he evaded one energy beam after another from the Hunter-Killers’ guns with superhuman fluidity and clockwork-like precision.

Shinestar used his glowing sword to deflect an incoming particle beam, turning the Hunter-Killer’s own attack against its comrade as the deflected beam struck the left shoulder of the Hunter-Killer that previously had Telissa pinned under its foot, a small explosion deforming its armour as it groaned and staggered.

In the blink of an eye, Timothy closed the gap between himself and the unmasked Hunter-Killer, his movement so fast they barely register to the unaided eye; with a single swing of his glowing sword, the swordsman split the creature in two at the waist, before following-up with a vertical split to quarter the Deminite commando.

‘I’m not about to just sit here like some distressed damsel waiting to be rescued!’ Telissa thought as she acted in synchronicity with Tim. While the Hunter-Killer was still recovering from getting its comrade’s shot deflected at it, a katar-like blade slid out of the vambrace on Telissa’s right arm. With a swift strike, the blonde drove her melee weapon deep into the Deminite’s neck, her blade finding its mark in an unarmoured spot.

The Seeker ripped her blade out of the Hunter-Killer’s neck, before wresting away its particle beam rifle and finished off the creature by turning its own weapon against it, blowing a large hole in its chest, another in its abdomen and finally blasting its head clean off.

The last Hunter-Killer left, still recovering from the shock, lifted its DrekisTech rifle to shoot at Telissa, but the Seeker beat the Deminite commando to the draw by firing a grappling hook gun mounted on her left vambrace, launching a spike that embedded itself in the side of the creature’s weapon. For a moment, it looked as if Telissa would try to yank the weapon away from the Hunter-Killer – instead, the blonde revealed her ace in the hole; a powerful electrical surge ran down the towline and passed into the Hunter-Killer’s weapon.

The results were immediate and devastating – the electrical surge overloaded the energy cells in his DrekisTech rifle, destroying it in a fiery explosion as the creature roared and fell to its knees, its body doused in flames. Despite the catastrophic injuries it had suffered, the Deminite commando wasn’t ready to go down without a fight as it drew a black-bladed sword resembling a falchion and sprang back onto its feet.

Its body on fire and sword in hand, the Hunter-Killer threw itself at Tim, performing a wide swing with its demonic falchion in an attempt to behead the young swordsman, only to have him parry its strike with ease. As the Hunter-Killer raised its sword to make another strike, Timothy countered by stabbing the creature in the gut, driving his sword through its midsection.

“So it’s true…” The demon commando wheezed with its dying breath, “...That the Sarachus bloodline lives on…” With that, the Hunter-Killer died as Tim performed an uppercut slash with his sword still embedded in the creature’s midsection, splitting it from belly to collar.

“Sarachus bloodline? What does he mean by that?” Tim wondered, catching his breath as his aura faded and the glow of his sword dimmed and then extinguished, staring blankly into space. The mention of the name “Sarachus” stirred something within Tim, although the silver-haired young man couldn’t figure out why.

“He mentioned a name… Sarachus… claimed that I descended from that lineage…” Shinestar remarked as Telissa approached him, the blonde having retrieved her equipment and stowed them away in her suit. “He seems to know something about me that I am unaware of…”

“Sorry, never heard of that name,” Telissa remarked as she deactivated her battlesuit, her armour and weapons dissolving into glowing hexagonal panels that faded away, leaving the female Seeker in her regular clothes. “Anyway, Drekis thrives on misinformation and deceit, and his lackeys are no exception. So take it from me – don’t dwell on those words.”

“Yeah, you’re right,” Tim muttered as he sheathed his sword, staring at the remains of the slain Hunter-Killers as they degraded into piles of black dust that quickly dispersed into nothingness. “And I’m sorry, from the bottom of my heart for what I did back there,” he said as he hung his head.

“Look, that little life-or-death situation we ran into back there had me thinking…” Telissa replied as she rested her hand on Tim’s shoulder, “Made me realise that I really can’t hold it against you; given how you were forced into this dilemma,” The female Seeker remarked begrudgingly. 

“Anyway, you said earlier that these Hunter-Killers were commandos of the Drekis legions?” Tim asked.

“That’s right, and you’ve seen firsthand how vicious they can be,” Telissa replied, “They’re less common than Deminite Soldiers and other lesser minions, but they’re stronger and more resilient, and more importantly, more intelligent than other lesser minions. These qualities, alongside their ability to generate stealth fields, is the reason Drekis primarily uses them as spies, saboteurs and assassins… but even then, I doubt they could’ve infiltrated Khazan City under their own power.”

Timothy gasped at Telissa’s revelation, his eyes widening in disbelief, “What’s that supposed to mean? Are you insinuating that someone planted these creatures in Khazan City!?”

Telissa nodded grimly, “It’s likely that Discordant Scions helped these fiends get into Khazan City.”

“Discordant Scions? What’s that?” Tim wondered, his consternation growing.

“Cultists and agents of Drekis, to put it simply – recruited from the populace of a planet marked for invasion by the Drekis Empire,” Telissa explained, “Before Drekis creates his hive-fortresses to spawn his demonic legions, he recruits the Discordant Scions to lay the groundwork of his invasion plans – given how long he’s been on Khazan, it’s likely these fanatical followers of Drekis have infiltrated all levels of Khazanian society.”

This unsettling revelation made Tim feel physically unwell, destroying to whatever illusion of security he’d previously clung to – although part of him still hoped that once the authorities are alerted to the presence of these collaborators in their midst, they would be swiftly handled by the Sentinels, Maniacal Heroes and Khazanian Security Services. But the damage would’ve already been done.

“So do you think…” Shinestar gulped, adjusting the bandanna around his collar, “Do you think Drekis has insiders spying upon the Sentinels and even the Central Government?”

“I cannot rule out this possibility,” The blonde gave an exasperated sigh as she ran her hand through her hair. “Drekis isn’t exactly picky about who he recruits as his agents – regardless of what walk of life they come from, as long as they can swayed by temptations of power and wealth or promises of revenge against a society that wronged them, Drekis will have ways to make them do his work for him.”

Tim’s breathing grew heavy as he broke out in cold sweat, his mind racing with thoughts of Raea and the others who set off to carry out Operation Guillotine, “Then that means… that means Operation Guillotine might’ve been compromised! Drekis might’ve already caught wind of the plan and have a trap prepared!”

“I wouldn’t know for sure… it sounds hyperbolic if you ask me,” Telissa remarked, folding her arms, “But with an enemy like Drekis you have to be constantly prepared for the worst. See, Drekis has the power to see through the eyes of his thralls, even if a minion has no idea what is going on, Drekis sees what it sees and will plan accordingly.”

“Then we need to warn them of the danger! They could be marching straight into an enemy ambush!” Tim exclaimed as he pulled out his phone and used a car-tracking app to remotely autopilot his car to their current location, before charting a route for the Khazan Grand Aerospace Port.

“What are you doing?” Telissa asked.

“I’m flying for Zel’Mier! I have to catch up to Raea!” Tim replied, the urgency laid bare in his voice.

“You’re not going to get any flights like that… not legally at any rate,” Telissa replied, “But here’s where I come in – with my help, we can stow away on the earliest available airship to make our way to Zel’Mier.”  

“I know it’s illegal, but frankly at this point? I don’t care,” The swordsman remarked.

“Now you’re talking my language, I’m in on this,” The female Seeker chorused.

 

Segment 60: Infiltrating Zel’Mier

In the hours that had transpired, Uberman’s task force first travelled to Araelis from air by means of Vincentzo Maiinverno’s royal shuttle. From there, the archmage got the group acquainted with Woose Brain, who revealed the vehicle he had prepared – a L1000 Atlas long hauler by Titan Motors, a 5-ton, 6x6 truck used for long-distance cargo deliveries.

The sun had already set as they crossed the border of Araelis into Zel’Mier, heading in the direction of Zel’Myas along the Z5 freeway, which was the primary motorway used by those looking to travel from Araelgrad to Zel’Myas by land. The freeway was surprisingly busy at this hour, their transport easily blending in with the stream of logistics transports that headed in and out of the capital.

Yagami Shinsuke sat in the front cab, dressed in an old weathered parka with the hood raised and collar pulled up to his nose Kenny-style to hide his features, while Woose sat next to Shinsuke in the driver’s seat, clad in a brown plaid flannel shirt, faded blue denim overalls, a black ballcap and fake beard – the duo disguising themselves as workers from a nondescript logistics company, one of many that plied the trade road between Zel’Mier and Araelis.

In the rear sat Vincentzo, Captain Khazan, Tanin, Natsumi and her Shikigami, Uberman and Michael, their presence masked by a combination of Vincentzo’s illusion spells and electronic countermeasure devices that are designed to jam any technological scanners or sensors that the Marauders may employ. 

It wasn’t long before the caravan arrived at a military checkpoint manned by the Marauders, consisting of a deployable roadblock, with military humvees outfitted with .50 cal machine gun turrets parked on either side of the road, and patrolled by two squads of Marauder splatter punks and former Zel’Mier Armed Forces soldiers who had defected to the Marauders.

Obeying the checkpoint’s sign that stated for motorists to slow their vehicle and dim the headlights without demand, Woose pulled up at the checkpoint. As he did, a stern-looking female soldier in the Zel’Mier Army uniform and a brown beret with a rank insignia on her sleeve indicating her position as a Staff Sergeant went up to the side window, shining her flashlight into the front cab to get a better look inside. 

Woose and Shinsuke were about to show her the forged documents that would identify them as delivery drivers headed to Zel’Myas, but the sergeant suddenly stepped away and waved impatiently at her subordinates to open the roadblock’s gates to let them pass – Tanin’s words from back at the press conference proving prophetic in hindsight; that the Marauders would simply let them pass the checkpoints along the Z5 without a second thought, assuming that they were simply making deliveries to the capital city.

“See what I told ya? So far, so good,” Tanin cheerfully remarked from the back as the truck arrived at another checkpoint, only to have the Marauders and military defectors manning said checkpoint wave them through without ceremony – proving that what happened earlier wasn’t a fluke, but a pattern. “It’s a slow ride for sure, but you can’t deny it’s worth the wait.” 

Raea held up a tablet and surveyed the drone footage being shown on the screen, “Only be one more checkpoint, and it should be smooth sailing for the rest of the way until we reach the outskirts of Zel’Myas. Then we can proceed through the Darkshadow Forest.”

Shirai Natsumi shuffled where she sat, trying to position herself closer to Captain Khazan in order to put distance between herself and the Shikigami trio while wondering, “Why couldn’t we take the nearest branch road at this point and leave the freeway, wouldn’t it be faster this way?”

“Absolutely not, lass; haste only makes waste here,” Vincentzo replied, “The main reason our gambit works is because we’re heading down the Z5 at a steady speed, so the Marauders assume we’re just another delivery caravan headed for the capital.”

“Vincentzo’s right,” Captain Khazan added, “The Marauders may be greedy and impulsive, but they are far from stupid. They assume all deliveries to Zel’Myas to come from either the Z5 freeway, or by means of the Transcontinental Railroad. But any heavy vehicle taking the country roads, especially within the Karia Valley and Great Lakes region will be subject to far more intense scrutiny.”

Tanin nodded, “Aye, those are the regions of Zel’Mier where the Marauders have yet to gain full control over – trade caravans plying the roads there are viewed by splatter punks as either fair game for extortion; or worse, suspected to be running errands for the loyalists. One way or another, any confrontations with the Marauders will prematurely blow our cover and compromise this mission.” 

The truck slowed down and pulled to a stop as they reached another checkpoint. “This should be the last one,” Raea whispered as a Marauder splatter punk – a heavily-built bearded man with tattooed arms sporting a fauxhawk and dressed in a plate carrier vest over a drab olive T-shirt and multicam combat trousers – stepped out of a small shack by the roadside, but as with the last two checkpoints, he too simply waved them through without ceremony.

As the caravan continued on its way, Vincentzo crossed his arms and closed his eyes. “So, once we reach the Darkshadow Forest what’s going to be your plan of attack?”

“Considering none of us here have any exact idea on where Drekis might be, what he looks like, or the exact strength of the minions guarding his lair, I would appreciate any inputs you might provide,” Uberman replied, noticing the archmage’s desire to take charge of the situation from the tone of his voice. “We’ll be staying flexible and adapting to the situation as the events unfold.”

“You might as well say we’re basically going in blind,” Maiinverno snorted, “I suggest that when we enter the Endless Caves, we split into two, no, three subgroups – this will allow us to cover more ground. Provided we have a way of maintaining contact with one another, of course. You can leave the minions to me, I can deal with them without problem.”

From his position in the driver’s seat, Woose glanced towards the rear to interject, “You had my help back there, ’Centzo.”

“Don’t be daft, Woose,” Vincentzo retorted, “I could’ve handled those darkspawn myself; you merely expedited what would’ve been a foregone conclusion.”

“Uh, that’s not how I remembered it, sire,” Woose replied matter-of-fact, “I recall that thing they call a Hive Guard having you on the back foot, and you were about to get your face pounded into the dirt.”

“Ugh,” Vincentzo’s left eyelid twitched as he gnashed his teeth, impatiently changing the subject, “Just… just keep your eyes on the road, will you!? It would be an unspeakable embarrassment for our mission to belly flop over a road accident!”

“So, Mr. Cortelloni,” Uberman addressed the esper who had been sitting in perfect silence and stillness in a corner, “I take it that once we reach the outskirts of Zel’Myas you’ll be splitting off from our team to pursue your own agenda in the capital?”

Michael kept his eyes on the floor even as he spoke, his arms folded, “I have an old score to settle with The Marauders – but considering it involves wreaking havoc on them, I guess you might say I’m contributing to your efforts to liberate Zel’Mier, if that helps you sleep better.”

“You’re a man of exceptional talent, and it’s a pity you aren’t thinking of using said talents for more noble causes,” Captain Khazan chorused, “You should know that the Drekis Empire is the enemy of every Khazanian – yourself included.”

“You could say the same for me as well,” Cortelloni snorted, glowering at Trent, “I’ve spent too many years being used and discarded like a tool, stabbed in the back, and pushed around like a slave to not view everyone as either an enemy or a potential one.”

“Oh well,” Natsumi sighed as she brought her knees up and wrapped her arms around them, “I’m surrounded by such a lively bunch,” she remarked sarcastically in Japanese, her quips understandable only to Shinsuke.

 

Segment 61: Shadowing the Prey

Unbeknownst to Raea and the rest of the task force, when they launched the drone to scout ahead, they had drawn the attention of a Marauder, as Gabriel Demonchild soared through the skies above, following the drone back to its source, his eyes scanning the cargo convoy headed in the direction of Zel’Myas, one vehicle at a time. 

Gabriel’s eyes lingered on a particular truck at the front, his demonic sight penetrating the roof of the vehicle to see a young mother and her child seated at the front, while a man took the wheel; in the rear, the truck was packed with numerous boxes. This was clearly not the truck the drone was launched from.

It was then that the demonic spirit his body was hosting stirred, sending empathic signals to Gabriel. “What are you trying to tell me?” Gabriel mumbled to himself as he felt the empathic transmissions, an instinctive urge to turn his sight to another truck that was trailing ten metres behind. 

Gabriel’s eyes glowed a baleful yellow as he cast his demonic vision over the vehicle, and at once his eyes widened at the glowing silhouettes that appeared within its metallic shell. “Well, what have we here? You sure have a thing for picking up clues I would’ve otherwise missed,” he said to the evil spirit inside his body. A heavily-armoured cyborg and three Shikigami certainly do not look like the usual passengers that might hitch a ride to Zel’Myas. 

As far as Gabriel was concerned, there could only be two possibilities; the truck’s passengers were either illegal stowaways being smuggled into the capital, or they were part of a Sentinels task force sent to try and liberate Zel’Myas from Marauder control. And the demonhost leaned strongly towards the latter, as he retrieved his phone to call Toc Darkone. 

The line connected after two rings, as Toc Darkone answered the call. “Speak,” The Marauder leader’s voice came out low and chilling.

“Gabriel Demonchild here, boss,” Gabriel spoke over the phone, “You’re not gonna believe this, but it turned out Morlos’ suspicions were right about how the Sentinels would try to infiltrate Zel’Myas.”

“And where did you find them?” Toc asked.

“They’re making their way down the Z5 freeway, disguised as a trade caravan making deliveries to the capital,” The demonhost replied, “And somehow, they've made it past every checkpoint.”

Toc Darkone gave a brief, icy chuckle before speaking, “Of course they would; it’s a clever move on their part, figuring that our guard would be at the lowest where we believe we have total control.” 

“Well boss, I can fix that,” Gabriel chorused, “I can call in the air force, have them dispatch an attack drone and blow them to kingdom come.” The demonhost cackled at the suggestion, as the evil spirit hosted inside his body expressed its sadistic glee. 

“No, you will do no such thing,” Toc retorted. 

“But boss, why not?” Gabriel wondered, bemused by Toc Darkone’s decision.

“I will admit that it is tempting to simply bomb them into oblivion, but this will inadvertently destroy the infrastructure along the Z5 and disrupt the supply chain to Zel’Myas, which will lead to undesirable ripple effects,” Toc said with a calm finality in his voice, “Besides, I have more uses for them alive than dead.”

“So you plan to set up a trap for them so that you can take them in alive? Simply diabolical, boss. I like the sound of that,” The Marauder demonhost remarked.

“That’s right, Gabriel. Let these fools think their plan is going along smoothly – for that to happen, you are to do nothing but continue to shadow them from a distance,” The Marauder leader replied impassively, “Morlos, Razor and Klart will keep in contact with you, keep me updated on their movements, and strike only at my signal, is that clear?” 

“Clear as crystal, boss,” Gabriel replied as he continued to shadow the disguised Sentinel caravan from a high altitude, and with that Toc Darkone hung up. 

 

Segment 62: Making Camp

The team continued down the Z5 freeway for several more kilometres after clearing the final Marauder checkpoint, before taking a country road that splits off from the main motorway that cuts through a section of the Darkshadow Forest that lay just beyond the city limits of Zel’Myas. After continuing down said trail for another kilometre and a half, Woose pulled the truck to a halt at an abandoned homestead that had since been partially reclaimed by the woods.

“Here’s where we continue on foot,” Uberman remarked as they alighted from the truck. The faint whirring of rotors sounded in the distance as the sensors in the cyborg’s suit picked up the presence of a Marauder aircraft on a routine patrol flight, but the foliage of the Darkshadow Forest prevented the crew of the passing helicopter from spotting the team from the air.

“About time, too!” Woose chorused as he got out of his civilian disguise, tossing away the cap before grabbing at his overalls and flannel shirt and tearing them off with a comical “rip” sound to reveal his pink gi underneath.

“You wore a full martial arts gi under all that? How?” Vincentzo asked in disbelief, scratching his head. 

“Okay, now here comes the hard part,” Woose remarked as he rubbed his chin, taking a deep breath to steel himself, before proceeding to tear off his fake beard that he had plastered into his face with industrial-strength mounting tape, making another comical ripping noise in the process. “OWWIE!” The pugilist yelped as the fake facial hair came off noisily.

Michael Cortelloni said nothing, except to fold his arms and snort derisively at Woose’s antics. “Task force my ass, I feel like I just travelled with a circus,” he muttered under his breath.

“Last of all, I came prepared this time round!” Woose held up his right hand, index finger raised. Reaching under the driver seat, the pink-clad martial artist retrieved a bright red and blue mask with yellow goggled view ports for the eyes and fancy forehead ornamentations, giving it a Kamen Rider-ish appearance. 

With much fanfare, Woose slipped the mask over his head and adjusted it to fit before doing a Tokusatsu pose-down, declaring in a voice that has dropped by a half octave in pitch, “Have no fear, POWAAA!!!-Man is here!” And just like that, Woose Brain shifted into his POWAAA!!!-Man persona. 

“I… I know that mask,” Natsumi chimed in, “That’s from that Saturday Tokusatsu show, Gunmetal Brawler X.”

Woose laughed nervously and scratched his covered head, “Well yeah, I was intending to design my own costume, but due to time and resource constraints, Gunmetal Brawler X would have to do as a temporary placeholder.”

Leaving the abandoned homestead, the group headed deeper into the Darkshadow Forest, their surroundings growing even darker as the canopy of the treetops blocked out what little light came from the moon and stars. “Save for the flora, this whole place looks pretty dead to me,” Raea remarked as she scanned her surroundings through the thermal scope of her ion pulse blaster, but found no heat signatures nearby – human or animal.

“There’s a reason the Marauders do not establish garrisons here,” Uberman replied as he took the lead, using the beam of a headlight built into his mech suit’s helmet to illuminate the path ahead. “According to the locals, the Darkshadow Forest is known to play tricks on sentient minds at night – so make sure we stay within sight of one another at all times, and don’t get distracted by any unusual sounds.”

“Nobody knows for sure why either,” Woose chimed in, speaking from his experience as someone who once lived in Zel’Mier, “But one popular folklore states that the Darkshadow Forest is a Genius Loci, said to be a long-forgotten nature Archon who turned her body into a forest to protect the land. Another one claimed that this forest is the kingdom of Dark Fairies, and their rangers kidnap anyone who intrudes upon their domain, so that they are never seen again.”

Captain Khazan scanned his surroundings with caution, his superhuman senses easily piercing the darkness that appeared to swallow Uberman’s head beam. It wasn’t long ago when the caped crusader was in the Darkshadow Forest; when he and Amy Coleman pursued The Unsubtle through the woods when they foiled the Marauders’ attempts to extort the villagers of Karia.

In the day, the forest was a green paradise – a lush woodland, alive with relaxing birdsongs where one could take a leisurely hike, and served as a valuable resource for the surrounding rural communities; villagers often supplemented their meals with game, fish and wild berries, herbs and mushrooms.

But once the sun went down, the place took on a completely opposite character, and it was then that the true nature of the Darkshadow Forest revealed itself – the place felt grim and foreboding, devoid of the usual sounds of nocturnal animals’ activities such as the chirping of crickets or hooting of owls. Local myths and superstitions aside, the Captain could see how the silence alone might play tricks on someone’s mind.

“Uberman, can’t you turn up the juice on that head lamp of yours?” Vincentzo asked; when he failed to get a quick response from the cyborg the archmage took matters in his own hands as he chanted a curt incantation and raised his right palm towards the sky, conjuring a football-sized sphere of pure radiance above his head that bathed their surroundings with a warm yellow glow, “That takes care of it.”

“Wait, wouldn’t that give our position away?” Woose asked, wondering if a passing Marauder aircraft might notice the light and investigate. 

“If the Marauders wish to come, then let them,” Cortelloni snorted, welcoming the prospect of whooping the tar out of some Marauders.

“I think it’s for the better if we set up camp here first,” Uberman chimed in as he scanned the forest beyond the illumination range of his head beam with advanced optics.

“Are you sure that’s a good idea, Uberman?” Natsumi asked, her voice quivering with worry and anxiety, as she twisted the ends of her pigtails, her eyes darting back and forth to study her surroundings, “We might get ambushed by monsters or demons or God knows what!”

“Relax, I’ve run multiple scans of our vicinity and all sensor readings have come up negative for potential threats,” The cyborg reassured the young bluette, “While the Darkshadow Forest has some dangerous native fauna, they are nothing that we can’t handle. My plan is that we get ourselves a few hours of rest, and we’ll have an easier time navigating this terrain when we’re well-rested and have the early light of dawn to light our path.” 

“This place is far too quiet,” Vincentzo interjected, crossing his arms, “I find it hard to believe that the enemy isn’t preparing a trap for us.”

“If it offers you any solace, I can take the first watch,” Shinsuke offered, “With my enhanced senses, I’d be able to detect incoming enemies before they can close in to ambush us.”

With that, the group found a small clearing and quickly fashioned a crude dugout with a canopy of dried leaves and twigs for cover. Tanin on the other hand, simply levitated onto a nearby sturdy branch and laid down against it like a roosting bird.  

“Well, it’s nice to have your kind of confidence,” Raea commented as she looked up at Tanin who was resting on the tree branch without a care in the world.

“Heh, envious huh?” Tanin grinned as he turned his head to look at Raea as he folded his hands behind him to rest his head against them. “If you’ve had as much field experience and overcome as many trials and challenges as I have, the ability to be at complete ease no matter where you are is something that comes naturally. If anything shows up looking for trouble, I’ll gladly put them in their place.”

 

Segment 63: Shadowed Assault

‘The fools, they have no idea what they just got into…’ Gabriel thought as he observed the group from the treetops for at least another hour, a smirk forming on his face. The demonhost knew one thing the heroes didn’t – that those who fall asleep in the Darkshadow Forest tend to sleep deep; and this was the main reason the locals warned against spending the night in the Darkshadow Forest – when one falls asleep in these woods, they are left to the mercy of whoever or whatever might want to make sure they never wake up again.

“It seems they have fallen asleep, boss,” Gabriel made another call to Toc Darkone, whispering into the mouthpiece, “This is a perfect opportunity to strike.”

“Stand by; Morlos, Razor and Klart are inbound by air,” Came Toc’s reply over the phone, “When you have visual of their Stormhawk transport, it will be the cue for the four of you to make a coordinated assault.”

“Yes boss, as you order,” Gabriel replied before hanging up.

The first one on the team to sense something amiss was Yagami – even in his sleep, the Sentinel’s enhanced senses could pick up various environmental cues; the rustling of leaves, the body heat of his comrades, or the presence of unusual odours. But for the first time since making camp in the Darkshadow Forest, he felt his senses brought back down to the level of normal humans. The sudden inability to feel the body heat of his nearby comrades proved to be jarring enough to jolt him awake with a gasp.

“What’s wrong?” Tanin asked, instantly becoming alert at the change in Shinsuke’s behaviour as the Sentinel went around waking the rest of the group.

“I couldn’t feel my hyper senses just now,” Shinsuke replied. Now fully awake, the Sentinel was able to feel his enhanced senses return, feeling massive displacements in the air heading in their direction; it was a clue that a large body was flying towards them!

“Incoming hostile aircraft!” Uberman noticed a blip on his armour’s radar, confirming what Yagami’s senses picked up a moment earlier; this was quickly followed by the droning of aircraft rotors and the white beam of a searchlight filtering through the canopy.

“Fan out!” The Sentinels leader ordered, and the group spread out in the nick of time as gunfire shredded the treetops. Glancing up to the sky, the cyborg caught sight of a large aircraft with four ducted fan propellers fly past, its chin-mounted GAU-12 autocannon blazing; judging from from the shape and armaments, it was a V-AC42 “Stormhawk”, a quad-engine tiltrotor aircraft that served as a multirole fire support gunship and troop transport.

Although considered obsolete by the Khazan Armed Forces – having long retired the Stormhawk from active service in favour of the more modern and efficient Hymenoptera-series, they continue to see widespread use in neighbouring state-kingdom’s air forces, such as in Zel’Mier; this particular one being formerly in service with the Zel’Mier Air Force before being repurposed for Marauder use. But obsolete doesn’t mean ineffective.

In the air, the Stormhawk circled around, looking to attempt another strafing run with its guns, but Uberman, Raea and Vincentzo returned fire with concussion blasts, gunfire and magic spells. Raea managed to get a shot in with her ion pulse blaster, as her energy gun scored a hit on one of the aircraft’s rotors. The Stormhawk lurched and wobbled as the stricken engine spewed smoke and flames, but it managed to remain airborne despite the damage.

The damaged aircraft gave up trying to fire on the heroes’ position, instead lowering its tail ramp to reveal its passenger hold, and a trio of Marauders leapt out from the Stormhawk to commence an attack on the heroes. Leading this Marauder assault was Morlos, the dark mage descending from the skies like the Wrath of God as lightning-like arcs of green eldritch energy danced around his form as he muttered a vile incantation.

Caught off guard by Morlo’s spell, Shinsuke screamed in pain as the energy arcs surrounded his body, his nerve endings feeling like they were on fire. The agonising pain quickly passed, and in its place the Sentinel felt completely numb as his limbs became paralysed, rooting him to the ground as his body refused to obey his commands.

Chuckling, Razor descended next as the burly Marauder delivered an aerial knee drop to the back of the Sentinel’s head, knocking him out cold. With one Sentinel down, Razor ducked into the undergrowth, looking for another opening to exploit.

“Finally!” Timing his move with his fellow Marauders, Gabriel swooped down from the treetops, a guttural roar escaping his throat as the demon inside him took over the host, his body engulfed in fire and sulphurous smoke before emerging as a towering devil archetype with red skin, horns and leathery wings, his claws raking against Uberman’s armour, drawing a shower of sparks as it left scratch marks against the plating and forced the cyborg back. The demonhost flew into a frenzy as he swiped at Uberman over and over with his claws, trailing flames and sulphurous smoke with every blow, but rage makes for a poor tactician as Uberman was able to telegraph his moves and dodge or block them with great precision and near-perfect timing, while sporadically throwing out cross-counters, landing punches to Gabriel’s face. “Your counterattacks only stimulate me, Uberman!” Gabriel taunted.

Michael Cortelloni rolled across the ground, narrowly avoiding getting turned to paste under the boots of Klart the Firebane as the muscular barbarian-like Marauder crashed through the canopy and landed feet-first where Michael had been standing seconds ago, sending a tremor through the ground and leaving a small crater in the dirt where he landed. With a powerful swing of his massive zweihander known as Killian’s Bane, Klart sliced through the trunk of a large tree like it were made of cardboard, sending it toppling in the direction of Michael. 

The ex-Marauder raised a hand and halted the tree in mid-fall with his telekinesis, before telekinetically swinging it like a giant baseball bat at Gabriel, the massive tree trunk smashing into the demonhost’s torso and knocking him away from Uberman, sending him crashing into the tree line with a grunt of pain. But in doing so, Michael left himself open to a follow-up assault from Klart as the barbarian smacked the former mobster across the head with the flat side of Killian’s Bane. “Son of… a bitch…” Cortelloni groaned before passing out, slumping face-first onto the grass.

Gabriel Demonchild recovered from being struck by the tree, rising to his feet near Shirai Natsumi, who jumped back with a shriek of terror – her unnaturally powerful vocals turned her scream into a sonic cannon that sent the demonhost reeling, clutching at his head in pain as he crumpled to his knees.

“Kuro-kun, Midori-chan, now’s the chance!” Natsumi signalled to two of her Shikigami companions – the green snare and black void – to attack the currently incapacitated Gabriel. But before they could make their move, a wide-area ice blast spell from Morlos halted the girl and her companions in place, trapping them inside blocks of ice.

Morlos lifted his head to the treetops to see Tanin leaping down from the canopy, Chrysilium in hand as he performed a plunge strike with his sword, looking to drive his weapon through the dark mage – but the Marauder sorcerer was quick to leap out of the way as Tanin’s weapon stabbed empty ground where Morlos had once stood. Muttering an ominous incantation, arcs of green lightning danced between Morlos’ fingertips as the master of forbidden arts levelled his hands at Tanin, unleashing a crackling beam of eldritch energy that passed right through the Archon of Light.

“An afterimage!” Morlos gasped as Tanin’s smiling visage faded away.

“That’s right!” Tanin’s voice called out from Morlos’ right as he turned his head in the direction of Tanin’s voice just in time to witness the Archon swinging Chrysilium towards his neck!

“What? An afterimage too!?” Tanin exclaimed as his weapon sliced through an immaterial phantom that soon faded into nothingness. “Copycat! Learn to have some originality, will you?” As Tanin’s eyes scanned the trees in an attempt to track Morlos’ movements, from the edge of his peripheral vision the Archon of Light would spot Klart barrelling towards him, Killian’s Bane poised to strike.

Tanin barely got Chrysilium up in time to parry Klart’s crushing blow, their blades clashing with a loud clang and a shower of sparks. The Archon grunted, teeth clenching as the barbarian-like Marauder engaged him in a blade-shoving match, his heels digging into the ground as Klart attempted to force the Archon back, while an aura enveloped their respective weapons due to the clashing energies between Chrysilium and Killian’s Bane. ‘By the Powers, he’s strong!’ Tanin thought as his arms trembled and he felt his knees buckle as his heels were dug into the ground as Klart was able to push the edge of Killian’s Bane closer towards Tanin’s face. 

For a full minute, the Archon of Light and the Firebane attempted to put-muscle each other in their blade-shoving match, but the two sword masters found themselves caught in a deadlock as every time one managed to push his blade in by an inch, the other would push them back an inch seconds later, all while metal screeched and sparks flew. But about a minute and a half into their struggle, it was Dragoon T who finally managed to gain leverage as Tanin forced his opponent’s sword to the side just enough that the blade was no longer in front of Klart’s face.

It was at this point that Tanin cocked his head back to deliver a thunderous headbutt to Klart’s face, the Archon’s forehead connecting with the bridge of the barbarian’s nose with a satisfying crack. Klart grunted as he staggered back with a bloodied nose, and Tanin followed up by spinning around to deliver a high roundhouse kick, the heel of his foot slamming into Klart’s temple, knocking the musclebound Marauder to the ground.

Raising Chrysilium high above his head, Tanin prepared to finish off Klart when Morlos emerged from the shadows of the surrounding trees and wrapped his arms around the Archon’s neck, putting him in a sleeper hold. “You should’ve tied up all loose ends before moving on, Dragoon T!” Morlos taunted as he chanted another incantation, his hands now giving off wisps of sickly-green smoke that assailed Tanin’s nostrils with a foul, rancid stench.

“What foul sorcery is this!?” Tanin cursed as he felt his entire body sting and burn; the Archon of Light felt as though every inch of his skin was being swarmed by bugs, spiders and centipedes, biting and stinging him all over. The distraction left him open to a counterattack from a recovered Klart, who smashed the pommel of Killian’s Bane onto Tanin’s temple with a dull crack, before seizing the Archon by the throat and lifting him into the air to deliver a powerful choke slam.

“That was really low-” a rattled Tanin tried to complain about the underhandedness of being double-teamed by Morlos and Klart, but was quickly silenced by a kick to the face from the Firebane as the Archon slumped unconscious onto the dirt with Chrysilium resting beside him.

“How did everything go south all of a sudden!?” Raea wondered as she discarded her civilian disguise – the concealing long-sleeved ankle-length dress and puffy bonnet went flying into the air to reveal a form-fitting suit of powered armour underneath that bore a similar design as Telissa’s. Tapping on a panel on her armoured forearm, a communication headset and a protective mask extended from the collar of her battlesuit, covering the redhead’s nose and mouth. The Sentinel raised her ion pulse blaster and opened fire in rapid volleys at Razor as he darted from tree to tree.

Raea spun around as she noticed a flash of red in the corner of her field of vision, only to find Gabriel Demonchild bearing down on her. Before she could do anything, the demonhost tackled the redheaded Sentinel to the ground, standing menacingly over her as he extended a claw-tipped hand towards the uncovered upper half of her face.

But before any harm could be done to Raea, Uberman intervened by firing a well-aimed concussion beam from his forearm blasters, knocking the demonhost away – Gabriel flew back several yards before spreading out his wings and digging his claws into the ground, leaving gouge marks on the dirt as he skidded to a halt. “You’ll pay for that!” he growled.

“Marauders! Justice shall be served tonight!” Captain Khazan declared as he stepped up next to Uberman, pointing at Gabriel Demonchild. “For the crimes you and your ilk have carried out against the people of this state-kingdom, be prepared to-” Trent’s justice speech was cut short as Razor returned to the fray, whipping a length of steel chains around Captain Khazan’s neck and pulling him over. With a sadistic chuckle, Razor wound another loop of steel chain around the Captain’s neck and pulled it tighter, choking the caped crusader.

With a grunt, Captain Khazan backed up towards a nearby tree, slamming Razor so hard against it that the tree’s trunk splintered, but the Marauder maintained a firm grip on the Sentinel, and countered by delivering a stiff knee to the back of of the Captain’s knee joints, causing Captain Khazan’s knees to buckle as he crumpled onto one knee. “The more you struggle, the tighter it gets,” Razor chuckled in his gravelly voice.

In the ensuing pandemonium caused by Razor’s ambush on Captain Khazan, Gabriel made his attack on Uberman as he flew towards the cyborg in his demonic form, slashing at him with a flaming claw. Uberman blocked the claw strike, but Gabriel’s other hand shot out to seize the power-armoured Sentinel by his suit’s faceplate. Wisps of sulphurous smoke began to rise as Gabriel enveloped Uberman in hellfire, a glowing orange inverted pentagram materialising under the SLJ leader’s feet. “Say your prayers, Uberman!” The demonhost cackled as he increased the intensity of the hellfire, only to have his finisher interrupted by a timely lightning bolt spell from Vincentzo Maiinverno. As Gabriel staggered from the spell, Uberman followed up with a Spartan kick to the demonhost’s midsection to send him flying.

“You’re mine, wizard!” Klart roared as he charged towards Vincentzo, looking to cut him down with a swing of his zweihander, but was intercepted by a flying kick by POWAAA!!!-Man, causing the Firebane to stagger, planting Killian’s Bane into the dirt to help regain his footing before glaring at Woose, his eyes giving off a deathly red glow. “You’ll pay for your meddling!” Klart roared as he lifted Killian’s Bane once more to strike at POWAAA!!!-Man, only to have the pink-clad martial artist beat him to the draw!

POWAAA!!!-Man sailed through the air towards Klart, his legs cycling like pistons as he performed a Bicycle Kick combo while punctuating every kick with a Bruce Lee-inspired scream. Klart took over a dozen kicks in a few seconds, but to Woose’s surprise, the barbarian-like Marauder managed to stand up to his stinky feet.

“You’re tougher than you look, I’ll give you that,” Klart rumbled as he rubbed his cheek with the back of his hand.

“Oh, you ain’t seen everything yet!” Woose announced in a jubilant tone as he got into a horse stance and gave the exposed ponytail coming out from the back of his mask a flip to pay tribute to the kung-fu master Huang Feihong. “Now let me show you the essence of POWAAA!!! Style Kenpo!”

“You just made that up, didn’t you!? I don’t recall that style of yours ever having a name!” Vincentzo shouted as he overheard Woose.

“I thought I needed a catchy name, so I thought of one in the spur of the moment, hehe,” POWAAA!!!-Man remarked with a sheepish laugh as Klart stood by the side awkwardly, watching the banter between the pugilist and the archmage.

“Alright, back to the action! Watch this!” Woose shouted as he took off in another mighty leap accompanied by a whooping war cry, but this time Morlos Gao intercepted the pink-clad pugilist with a spell, as a green beam of energy struck POWAAA!!!-Man in mid-jump. The martial artist dropped from the air like a lead balloon, still frozen in his flying kick pose.

“Woose!” Vincentzo yelled. “You cretinous knaves just signed your own death warrant!” The archmage spat as a magical aura enveloped his body; placing his hands together while chanting an incantation, a blue-white magical circle materialised before Vincentzo’s palms as he unleashed a missile storm spell, sending a large salvo of magic missiles at Morlos, who chuckled as he cast a shielding spell that creates an iridescent bubble-like sphere around the dark wizard that reflected the incoming magic missiles, causing them to bounce off and fly around wildly to blow up nearby trees and leave craters in the ground. 

“Tch, don’t think I don’t have a counterspell for that!” Vincentzo performed the mudras for a spell that by his reckoning should be able to dispel Morlos’ protective barrier, but the dark mage disengaged from their battle by casting a shadow meld spell, his physical form slinking away into the surrounding shadows. “Hey, come back here and finish this, you wretched son of a harlot!” The archmage cursed.

Captain Khazan continued to struggle against being strangled by Razor’s chains, but despite Razor’s mechanically-advantageous position over the caped crusader, against the Marauder’s expectations Captain Khazan began to power his way out as he slowly rose to his feet, gripping tightly at the chains constricting his neck. “Impossible!” Razor’s eyes grew wild with shock and disbelief behind his shades, “You should’ve been choked into unconsciousness by now!”

“Need a hand, Razor?” Morlos snickered as he rematerialised from the shadows, his right hand surrounded by crackling green arcs of energy. Without another word, the dark mage grasped Captain Khazan’s face in his right hand, and in a matter of seconds the caped crusader ceased his struggling and slumped face-first onto the dirt in a deep sleep.

  “Thanks, I guess,” the dark-skinned Marauder remarked as he uncoiled his chains from Captain Khazan’s neck. “Guess the drinks will be on-” before Razor could finish his sentence, a bolt from an ion pulse blaster caught him in the chest, sending the Marauder assassin flying back into the treeline.

“You must be the leader of this lot huh?” Raea remarked, her voice modulated behind the battle mask covering her face, “That means you’re the priority target!” The redhead fired a rapid volley with her ion pulse blaster, but the bolts bounced harmlessly off the dark mage’s barrier, who stood there taking Raea’s barrage without a word. Raea’s eyes narrowed as she activated her suit’s energy sheath, surrounding her gauntleted right arm in arcs of violet lightning as she engaged her suit’s flight boosters, looking to leap towards Morlos to deliver an electrified Superman Punch.

But before Raea could attempt a CQC bout with Morlos, her suit’s audio receptors picked up a swish coming from the treeline as Razor whipped a length of steel chain towards Raea in an attempt to snare her, but the young Sentinel already saw the Marauder’s attack coming and responded accordingly with her honed combat instincts as she leaned to the side to allow the chain to slip right past her, before grabbing the chain in her free hand. With a sharp yank, Raea used the mechanical assistance from her suit’s synthetic muscle fibres to enhance her strength and send Razor flying towards her, before punching him across the jaw with her electrified right fist, sending out a pulse of electricity and a cracking sound resembling a thunderclap on impact.

Before Razor could recover from the literally thunderous strike, Raea performed a quick-draw on her ion pulse blaster and fired point-blank into his chest. With a grunt of pain, the Marauder thug was sent flying back metres and crashing right back into the treeline. Catching her breath, Raea turned her attention back to Morlos, only to find that the dark wizard had disengaged from the encounter and was nowhere to be seen.

“You’re going down, pleb!” Vincentzo yelled as in the meantime the archmage had engaged Klart the Firebane, unleashing a continuous jet of blue flames on the barbarian-like Marauder, who clenched his teeth and planted Killian’s Bane into the ground to stay upright in a clash of might versus magic.

“Did you think my moniker ‘Firebane’ is for fun?” Klart forced a mocking smile even as the torrent of flames threatened to sweep him off his feet and push him back. Vincentzo’s eyes widened at Klart’s remark, noticing how despite blasting at him for a good half-minute with his Sapphire Blaze spell, the Marauder’s body remained unmarred, not a single hair was singed, and even his armour and attire barely appear scorched by the magical conflagration. “No fire, mundane or mythical, can ever touch me!”

“I know not what unholy powers have anointed you, but do not take me for a one-trick pony!” Vincentzo retorted as he cancelled his Sapphire Blaze spell and began to chant another incantation. “Ereshkigal! Take this fiend to your realm of death! Necro-” before Vincentzo could finish the incantation for his Necro Lance spell, Morlos once more returned to the fray as the dark mage rematerialised from the shadows to confront Vincentzo. Torn between two targets, archmage suffered from a brief lapse in his decision-making, creating a short window of inaction for Klart to capitalise on as the Marauder bull-rushed the blonde, ramming into Vincentzo like an armoured truck and knocking the air right out of his lungs.

“Son of… a flea-bitten dog…” Vincentzo coughed and groaned as he struggled to pick himself back up, but with great callousness Klart wound up with his right leg and delivered a punt kick to the archmage’s head, knocking him out cold.

Meanwhile, Uberman and Gabriel Demonchild’s battle had reached a crescendo as they took to the skies to engage in an aerial jousting, making one high-speed pass after another at each other, sending shockwaves through the air with every strike that was decisively defended against, at the cyborg and the demonhost went at each other in a nail-biting back-and-forth where neither side appeared to gain an upper hand. Circling around, the two accelerated once more to make another joust, but Uberman had figured out Gabriel’s attack pattern and had devised a countermeasure.

As Gabriel flew towards Uberman to rake at him with his hellfire claws, Uberman performed an evasive barrel roll to allow the demonhost to slip right past him. “Schachmatt,” Uberman said in German, which meant “checkmate” as he spun around and discharged a double concussion blast from his forearm cannons at Gabriel’s exposed back, hitting the demonhost square between his wings and eliciting a pained howl as he plummeted towards the ground.

Increasing the power output of his armour’s flight repulsors, Uberman accelerated after the falling Gabriel, who turned around just in time to witness the cyborg grab hold of his face in a vice grip and fly towards the ground at full speed. The earth shook as Uberman ran Gabriel through the ground like a plough, flattening columns of trees and gouging a trench in their wake. As the dust settled, Uberman was left standing over a battered and bloody Gabriel, who had reverted back to his human form. “Had enough, Marauder?” Uberman asked as he powered up his forearm cannon, but the demonhost responded with peals of mocking laughter.

“What’s so funny?” The cyborg demanded, before coils of green eldritch energy snaked out of the nearby treeline to ensnare Uberman’s armoured frame. In an instant, sparks flew from his circuits and warning messages flashed across his suit’s HUD.

“My systems are crashing!” Uberman exclaimed as one by one his Uber Mech Armour’s systems began to undergo emergency shutdowns, and the last thing he remembered was his entire HUD going black as a dialogue box displaying a countdown timer for when his suit will be able to perform a systems reboot. The glow from the optics behind his faceplate faded and then extinguished altogether as the cyborg slumped motionless onto his knees.

Uberman dived down to where Daemonchild fell, intent on finishing what was started, as he found Gabriel on his hands and knees, crawling towards his sword. Grabbing hold of Daemonchild by the left arm, the armoured Sentinel proceeded to scoop him off the ground and turn him around to deliver another punch, knocking him to the ground with a right cross to the face. “Had enough?” Uberman asked as Gabriel looked up at him with a bloodied face courtesy of the beating he’d received from Uberman, but the winged Marauder just responded with a chuckle. “What’s so funny?” the SLJ leader asked. And this was when Morlos intercepted Uberman with a spell, sending a cord of green energy that snaked around the armoured Sentinel.

“Well, and what’s it going to be now?” Morlos gave a low, chilling laugh as he turned to face Raea, who at this point was the only member of the Sentinels task force still standing.

“Ugh, damn you, Marauder,” Raea retracted her power suit’s battle mask to reveal her grimacing countenance before tossing her ion pulse blaster to the ground. “I’ll surrender – you may have won this battle, but not the war. The SLJ, they’ll send backup and then you’ll regret this,” despite her hopeless situation, Raea wasn’t about to give these Marauder thugs the satisfaction of watching her grovel, so the redhead tried her best to put up a brave face.

“Wanna bet, princess?” Razor taunted, causing Raea to freeze as she felt the Marauder’s hot breath on the nape of her neck. Before the young Sentinel could say or do anything, the muscular baldhead delivered a chop to the base of her neck, knocking Raea unconscious with a single blow. “Well, that’s a wrap – let’s call for extraction and report back to Mr. Darkone,” the Marauder said as he straightened his sports sunglasses and scooped Raea up from the ground, slinging her over his left shoulder in a one-armed fireman’s carry.

 

Segment 64: Welcome to Zel’Myas

“Ugh… my head,” Raea’s vision swims back into focus as she regains consciousness. Blinking her eyes, the redhead sat up to assess her surroundings, finding herself in a rather spartan-looking prison cell that she shared with the rest of the team. Vincentzo was sitting cross-legged next to a bed behind her upon which lay Woose, who had his face planted into the mattress and butt sticking up towards the ceiling while snoring loudly, Michael Cortelloni was lying face-up in one corner of the cell, and in another corner lay Shirai Natsumi, her Shikigami companions and Yagami Shinsuke. And to the far wall Captain Khazan was sprawled on top of the downed Uberman. The first thing Raea noticed was that instead of metal bars, they were kept inside the cell by a force field. Inching cautiously towards the field, part of the female Sentinel wanted to put the strength to the test as she reached out to touch it, but then Vincentzo called out to her.

“Don’t bother,” the archmage remarked, his arms crossed and bearing a look of anger and disappointment. “I’ve tried while you were still out, seems like this field is pretty resistant to both magic and physical force, and it can only be turned off by scanning a pass card at the terminal, so it’s not like one can just telekinetically fling a switch or something.” Looking around, there were in fact several layers of protective barriers over the cell – having originally been built to detain the criminals and political dissidents of Zel’Mier, this beyond maximum security – or Supermax – facility was designed to prevent escapes through means both magical and technological, be they phasing, teleportation, dimensional travel or trying to break out through brute force.

It wasn’t long before Captain Khazan and the others regained their senses. “Where are we?” Woose asked, yawning loudly as he stretched himself out. 

“A prison – what else?” Cortelloni snorted. “Seems your plan didn’t go so smoothly after all… talk about dramatic irony,” the ex-mobster gave a sardonic smile. Where the Sentinels have always been the ones throwing Marauders and other villains and criminals into jail, in an ironic turn of events it was the Sentinels’ turn to find themselves in a prison cell, and said irony was enough to elicit a chuckle from the former Ragemaster.

“What’s with Uberman? Is he… dead or something?” Natsumi asked, a look of worry and concern on her face as she gave Uberman a few nudges and pokes, but the cyborg didn’t even so much as stir. It was at this point that the systems in Uberman’s armour made a recovery, allowing him to perform a full reboot. Without warning, the armoured Sentinel’s optics flickered before glowing brightly, drawing a yelp of surprise from Natsumi and her Shikigami as they jumped back, and in the heat of the moment ended up huddling together, and upon realizing this turn of events the girl shrieked even louder as she jumped further back to put some space between herself and the magical creatures.

Repulsors and turbines whined, while the hydraulics and servos groaned and whirred as the operating system performed a series of diagnostics to determine the functionality of the many subsystems within the suit. “All systems fully operational,” a synthesized female voice spoke from within the armour before Uberman sat up, speaking in his regular voice. “That felt like reliving the sensation of dying and being brought back to life,” the armoured Sentinel commented. Unknown to the others, he was conscious and aware of his surroundings the whole time but was trapped and unable to do anything about it while the Uber Mech Armour’s operating system crashed. It was akin to reliving the traumatic experience of his death as a mere mortal and rebirth as Uberman nearly a century ago. 

“Welcome to the cells of Trovol Supermax, Uberman,” a husky male voice drew Uberman's attention to a cell directly facing theirs, and standing at the edge of the containment field was an older man with gray hair and a matching mustache dressed in a beige shirt, gray waistcoat and matching slacks with a black necktie, whom the cyborg immediately recognised as the former commissioner of the Zel’Myas Police Department, Lee Joonseo. Sharing the same cell with him were several other police officers and soldiers – loyalists of the Zel’Mier government who were imprisoned by the Marauder-backed insurrectionists in the wake of their successful coup. 

“I remember the last time we met, I said I looked forward to seeing you again… but this isn’t quite the reunion I was hoping for,” Joonseo remarked bitterly as he let loose a sardonic chuckle. 

“Is that so? Then we are near the center of the city,” Captain Khazan added.

“Has anyone approached you to interrogate us about our business while I was out?” Shinsuke asked.

“No, and it’s not like it would matter anyway,” Tanin responded, “As far as the Marauder narrative is concerned, we’re just heroes trying to liberate Zel’Mier from Marauder occupation.”

“But we’re still alive,” Michael added in a grim tone. “If they didn’t want something from us, what’s stopping them from simply killing us?” 

“My best guess is, they probably wanted to get a message across to all of Khazan,” Raea chorused. “Like, think about it... They’ve got two of the Sentinels’ leadership council and the ARCHON OF LIGHT as hostages – it’s as powerful a message as it gets to the Central Government and independent state-kingdoms. They’re likely going to present us as bargaining chips to push the Central Government to recognise the sovereignty of Zel’Mier as a Marauder state.”

“You're pretty wise for your age, girl; I’ll give you that,” The former Commissioner Lee noted, finding that Raea couldn’t have put it more eloquently. 

“That… That’s horrible!” Natsumi gasped, the pigtailed girl freaking out at the thought of being a hostage of the Marauders.

“Either way, it’s not as if we can do anything in our current state. We can only wait and see what happens,” Vincentzo said in a frustrated voice, the archmage clearly not used to being in a position of helplessness.

“What are you planning in there!?” A Marauder thug — a large, bald man with a long and thick black beard, tribal tattoos adorning his muscular arms, and dressed in a drab olive vest and green combat trousers stormed up to their cell. “You better be not up to any monkey business, or else I might have to pick one of you to make an example of,” the bearded Marauder grinned as he gestured towards a crude-looking wooden chair fitted with leather straps and metal shackles. Next to the chair was a table, on which various tools were laid out; knives, pliers, saws, even a sledgehammer. But the dried blood caking the instruments left little room for doubt that they were used as implements of torture. 

“What a scary dude… just what is his deal anyway?” Natsumi wondered. 

“That's Igor Belyakov, but everyone calls him ‘The Beard’ around here,” Joonseo explained, one of the most notorious prisoners to be incarcerated within the premises of Trovol; a twisted serial killer with over a dozen known victims, and serving multiple life sentences on his numerous counts of murder, necrophilia, cannibalism and animal abuse. “When the insurrectionists took the facility, the Marauders sprung him from solitary confinement because they found his penchant for cold-blooded torture useful for extracting information out of imprisoned loyalists.”

“Alright… you can spare me the details of those,” Natsumi remarked, her face turning pale as she gagged, but ultimately managed to hold back the urge to throw up. Mustering up whatever courage she could, the girl stole a peek in Belyakov’s direction, noting how even the ZMPD turncoats appeared uncomfortable when talking to The Beard, preferring to keep their conversation as brief as possible. Apparently, even the rest of The Marauders found Igor repulsive to the point that they avoided him unless they had a need for his ‘services’.

“Gloat while you still can, you can’t keep us in here forever,” Michael snorted, folding his arms across his chest as Igor leered at them one last time before turning away.

 

Segment 65: Road to Zel’Myas

At around the same time Uberman’s group had split off from the main road leading to Zel’Myas to embark on their mission to search for the entrance to Drekis’ fort in the Dark Shadow Forest, Tim and Telissa had arrived in Zel’Mier via aerial transport that took them through the Vizeon Republic. However, as soon as they crossed the borders of Zel’Mier it didn’t take long for Marauders to see through their cover – the resulting turn of events leading to Telissa stealing a Marauder’s hoverbike, leading to the duo being the target of a high-speed chase down the Z5 Expressway.

“Have they given up already?” Tim wondered from his position of riding pillion behind Telissa, the young swordsman stealing a glance behind his shoulder to see that there were no more Marauder bikers pursuing them. Instead, now there were three Marauder vehicles hot on their tail – two technicals outfitted with DShKM heavy machine gun turrets, and a former Zel’Mier Army humvee. “I spoke too soon!” he exclaimed as the Marauder splatter punks manning the 12.7x108mm machine guns opened fire.

“Tch!” Telissa hissed as she steered the hoverbike left and right, moving in a serpentine as gunfire ricocheted off the tarmac, inches away from the bike’s antigrav drives. “We need to shake them off somehow!” The Seeker replied over the thrumming of the antigrav drives and gunfire from the Marauder machine guns.

“Hey, Tim, how good are you at handling guns?” Telissa asked.

“I’ve handled .22’s for vermin shooting during my time on the Shalhallas’ farm, why?” Tim wondered.

“Well… good enough!” The blonde remarked. “Use my molecular disruptor rifle and return fire, we’ll blow them right off the road!” Telissa took one hand off the handlebars to unsling her LR-2X molecular disruptor from her back and passed it to Tim.

Tim carefully examined Telissa’s LR-2X; it was designed vaguely similar to an anti-materiel rifle, only more boxy in its appearance; but it had all the features of a rifle – a butt stock with built-in recoil dampeners, a padded cheek rest to make bracing the weapon more comfortable, and Picatinny rails for mounting of optics and other accessories.

“If you can handle a varmint rifle, you can handle a LR-2X!” Telissa commented, “GDF technology is idiot-proof like that! Just mind the recoil!”

“Right…” Tim remarked as he braced the molecular disruptor, resting the butt of its stock against his shoulder and sighting down the scope mounted on the upper receiver’s rail – it was an AI-assisted smart scope with multiple optic options, laser rangefinder and other high-tech features. Tim set one of the Marauder technicals within the scope’s holographic aiming reticle shaped like a green triangle.

True to the blonde Seeker’s words, despite the alien nature of the weapon, everything from its ergonomics to features felt familiar to Tim as he lined up a Marauder technical in his aiming reticle, breathed in and pulled the trigger. The silver-haired youth felt a powerful recoil as the gun emitted a radiant green beam of energy that struck the enemy vehicle on its hood, exploding the engine. Engulfed in flames, the Marauder truck careened off the road where it skidded to a halt. “That’s a powerful gun, but it kicks like a mule!”

“Not bad, not bad for someone handling a LR-2X for the first time,” Telissa remarked with an approving smile. “Could you kindly take out the other one before we get perforated?” The blonde asked in a playful tone as the remaining technical continued to open fire on their bike.

  “There’s trouble on the road; they got backup!” Tim shouted as a third Marauder vehicle joined the fray, as a former Zel’Mier Armed Forces armoured humvee pulled up alongside the Marauder technical. The gunner’s hatch on the roof of the humvee opened up and the bald Marauder referred to by The Unsubtle as “Sunglasses” emerged, manning a pintle-mounted Daewoo K4 grenade machinegun. The burly splatter punk made a threatening gesture, slicing a finger across his neck before opening fire.

“Hang on, this is gonna be rough!” Telissa warned as she accelerated the hoverbike and made a series of tight serpentines to evade the high explosive rounds, almost losing control of the vehicle at one point, but her skillful piloting saw the duo through as they sped triumphantly out of the smoke cloud produced by the explosions. “YEE-HAW!” The female Seeker cheered as she drew her EZ-123 and fired two rounds into the air, both to celebrate getting past by the skin of their teeth and to taunt their adversary.

Tim opened fire at Sunglasses’ humvee with the molecular disruptor; the driver’s reflexes were fast as he swerved to avoid taking a direct hit from the beam weapon, but not fast enough as the LR-2X’s beam sheared through the side of the humvee and blew off one of its rear wheels, causing the armoured vehicle to go into an uncontrollable spin, crashing into the remaining technical and causing it to flip over, before itself running off the round and grounding itself in a nearby ditch.

“Impressive work, Tim! Ever considered a career with the Seekers?” Telissa teased as she stole one last glance behind them to witness Sunglasses exiting the damaged humvee to fire his M-60 at them, but by then they were already too far away for his bullets to hit them.

“If only Raea could see this!” Tim glowed at Telissa’s compliments. “I believe this should be the last of the Marauder pursuers,” he added. True to Shinestar’s words, the remainder of the ride proved uneventful as for the next hour they cruised down the Z5 without further incident, only sporadically passing civilian automobiles and delivery trucks, but no Marauders. The sight of a truck abandoned by the roadside made Tim signal for Telissa to stop as they pulled up behind the vehicle to investigate.

“It matches the description of the vehicle Raea spoke of…” Tim remarked as he first inspected the truck’s exterior, followed by the driver’s seat, resting his hand on the dashboard. He’d remembered the events of the day before when driving Raea home after the Sentinels press conference, and off-hand his girlfriend had mentioned how one of Vincentzo’s associates will use an old delivery truck to smuggle the team into Zel’Mier from the borders of the Vizeon Republic under the guise of being a trade caravan.

“Doesn’t look like an attack by Drekis’ legions,” Telissa said as she herself inspected the truck, “The vehicle is completely untouched, it’s as if it was just abandoned by the roadside.”

“Doesn’t look like a Marauder raid either,” Shinestar added, checking the rear cab of the vehicle, and finding no signs of it being ransacked of its contents. “I… I have a feeling that the Marauders might’ve somehow captured them.”

“Where would you reckon those thugs took them?” Telissa asked, folding her arms over her chest.

A moment of uneasy silence hung over the air before Tim finally answered with a gulp, “Only one place… and that would be none other than the Marauders’ seat of power – the capital city, Zel’Myas.”

The blonde’s eyes widened at Tim’s reply. “Whoa! We’d basically be marching into the belly of the beast in going there!”

Tim appeared downcast, hanging his head as he twisted a corner of his plaid flannel shirt. “But they’re in grave danger… I… gotta do something! Plus, with them on our side we’d have far better odds in your mission of locating and infiltrating Drekis’ home base.”

“Still, we’re going to need a plan to get in there,” Telissa interjected, taken aback by Timothy’s proposal of going to Zel’Myas, “Or are you thinking of just waltzing right in?”

“I think I have a plan then,” another woman’s voice chimed in from nearby. 

Acting on pure instinct, Telissa drew her sidearm with a fluid, practiced movement and spun around to face the source of the voice – and found herself face-to-face with an attractive, pale woman with long white hair tied back in a ponytail and red-irised eyes who appeared to be perhaps a few years older than herself, dressed in black longcoat over a white blouse and red necktie with a red plaid skirt and navy-coloured waistcoat with an integrated corset, black stockings and dark brown combat boots.

“Who are you?” Telissa demanded as she activated her EZ-123’s laser sight, painting a glowing green dot on the strange woman’s chest. The blonde’s eyes wandered briefly to the sheathed katana hanging off the woman’s waist and continued, “State your business, and keep your hands where I can see them!”

The white-haired lady gave a mirthless smile as she raised her hands, “For a moment I thought you might be Marauders extorting innocent civilians, but I’m glad to see I was wrong. The name’s Veda Lexine – from the Maniacal Heroes, and it happens that hunting Marauders is what I do around here.”

“You’re in luck then, Mr. Shinestar has a bone to pick with the Marauders, because they kidnapped his friends,” Telissa chorused as she lowered her weapon before returning it to the magnetic clamps on her powered suit and giving her head a slight tilt towards Tim’s direction, while Tim smiled sheepishly and waved.

“And where do you fit in all this?” Veda asked as she lowered her hands.

“I’m Telissa Ravan, a Seeker – Tim is my friend and ally, and our goals align, so wherever he goes, I follow along,” The blond replied.

Veda closed her eyes and nodded sagaciously, a faint smile on her lips, “Ah, heard of your organisation – you’re the contractors the Galactic Defense Force call in to handle outlaws who escape to worlds outside of their jurisdiction.” The white-haired swordswoman stood there in silence with her eyes closed for a few moments, and just as Tim was trying to figure out whether she was in deep thought or dozing off, Veda suddenly opened her eyes to look at Telissa and Tim.

“If you’re thinking of heading to Zel’Myas to give the Marauders a kick in the head, come with me,” she said in a calm, authoritative tone. “I’ve spent weeks studying Marauder movements in and out of the capital, so I know how to get into Zel’Myas without causing a ruckus.”

 

Segment 66: Search and Rescue

Closely following behind Veda Lexine, Timothy and Telissa carefully plodded through the woodlands bordering the outskirts of Zel’Myas. Tim could only wonder if Veda was a ninja of some kind due to a katana being her weapon of choice, along with her silent and nimble movements. The trio evaded searchlights, tripmines, pressure plate sensors and infrared cameras as they skirted perimeter fences, eventually arriving at the suburbs on the city’s southern edge. Veda suddenly raised a hand to signal to the others, and at the swordswoman’s cue all three of them ducked behind the shrubs to avoid a low-flying former Zel’Mier Armed Forces – now Marauder – Mi-17 helicopter on a patrol flight.

As the droning of the helicopter’s rotors faded into the distance, the trio emerged from their hiding place. “We must double our pace,” Veda said in a grim tone as she looked up to the sky – at their current hour, the moon was fading from view, while the first rays of the sun were starting to peek over the distant horizon, “For it would be nigh-impossible to sneak into Zel’Myas without the cover of darkness.”

“It’s like you know the ins and outs of the Marauders’ security…” Tim murmured as the trio stalked through the southern suburbs. There were relatively few Marauder checkpoints, and all three of them proved athletic enough to sneak past them. “You said you’ve been studying them for a long time, but that alone can’t explain your degree of familiarity.”

“I don’t hold it against you for being skeptical,” Veda whispered back with a cryptic half-smile; it was hardly out of her expectations – after all, someone with this much familiarity with the Marauders could, from the perspective of normal people, only either have a vast network of informants… or a double agent. The trio ducked into the shadows once more to avoid a patrolling sky bike as Veda continued their hushed conversation, “In this world, it’s better to question everything than to believe everything.”

“It sounds like this is more than just a solo endeavour,” Telissa added.

“In this you are right, Ms. Ravan,” Veda replied, “The Maniacals have a large network of informants all over Ze’Mier, including inside Zel’Myas itself – there are those in the civilian populace who refuse to suffer the Marauder occupation in silence, as well as elements of its military and police who are coerced into becoming turncoats against their will… they serve as the Maniacal Heroes’ eyes and ears throughout Zel’Mier.”

As a military 3-tonner pulled to a stop at a road crossing, the trio stealthily crept on board before it resumed its way, hiding amongst the shipment of small arms and ammunition carried in its rear. The truck soon rolled up to a security checkpoint, but from the muffled conversation the trio could hear between the Marauder splatter punks driving the truck and the military turncoats manning the post, the vehicle was allowed through with minimal fuss.

Hitching a ride on the Marauder truck, the trio arrived at a minor supply depot for the former Zel’Mier Armed Forces; a fortified compound housing several warehouses, an administration block and a guard barracks. They waited for the truck’s driver and security escorts to leave the truck, before sneaking out of the vehicle and silently making their way through the compound. Their task was aided in no small part by Telissa’s technology – the onboard computer in her powered combat suit boasted some of the GDF’s top-tier technology, and with it the blonde had no issue bypassing electronic locks to open security doors, or to hack CCTV networks to momentarily disable them.

As they bypassed the last set of gates to leave the compound’s outer perimeter, Veda led them along a drainage canal until they arrived at the outlet of an underground storm drain system. “By navigating the storm sewer network of Zel’Myas, you will be able to reach the sub-basement of the Trovol Supermax,” the swordswoman remarked as Tim and Telissa followed her through the winding maze of subterranean drainage tunnels.

“It should be right around here,” Veda nodded as the trio eventually stopped at a metal grating that blocked them from accessing a particular branch of the drainage tunnels – a cursory inspection revealed that the bars of this grating were thicker and more durable than the other gratings they’d passed by.

“Once you go past this grating, it will be where our paths split,” the white-haired swordswoman said in a pensive tone. “What you do once you’re reunited with your friends is your business, but for me… I have a different battle to fight with the Marauders.” With that, Veda rested her hand on the grip of her katana.

“I understand, Ms. Lexine,” Tim replied, his eyes aglow with resolve as he unsheathed his heirloom sword, “And I wish you all the luck in Khazan.” With his hotblooded declaration, the young swordsman gave his weapon two mighty swings, cleaving through the grating’s metal bars with the ease of a hot knife slicing butter as the severed bars hit the floor with a clang.

“That’s a fine blade you have there,” Veda remarked, casting an admiring gaze on Tim’s weapon, taking in the exquisite design of the hilt and the superb workmanship of the blade. “However, it’s best that you make haste,” the swordswoman’s tone hardened as her ears picked up several sets of footsteps making their way down the tunnel, drawing her katana as she turned around to face the source of the sounds as they drew closer and closer.

A Marauder splatter punk dressed in an ALICE tactical rig over a khaki T-shirt, CYB combat trousers and Castro cap and armed with a Barrett REC7 battle came around the corner, and with him were two turncoat SWAT officers from the ZMPD, dressed in SWAT fatigues and plate carrier vests with balaclavas and helmets and armed with H&K MP7A2 PDWs. “The hell!?” The Castro-cap Marauder who appeared to be leading the patrol team gasped before all three of them simultaneously raised their weapons and took aim at the trio.

Telissa too, had her molecular disruptor rifle unslung and poised to fire as a Mexican standoff ensued between the trio and the Marauder patrol, but Veda simply gave a calm smile as she rested a hand on the barrel of Telissa’s weapon. “Go on ahead, you two – leave them to me,” the Maniacal Heroine said coolly as she slid her katana out of its scabbard by a few inches.

The Castro-cap Marauder snorted at Veda’s gesture of defiance as he spoke into a radio clipped to the shoulder strap of his ALICE rig, “This is Echo-6 to Zero-1, tell Morlos Gao we found some vermin trying to sneak into Trovol through the sewers,” before addressing the two turncoat cops under him, “Alright boys, shoot first and don’t bother with questions.”

And in the blink of an eye, Veda Lexine was gone from Tim and Telissa’s side; the three Marauders felt a gust of wind blow down the tunnel, and found Veda standing at the other end of the tunnel behind them, with her katana fully drawn. The swordswoman gave a mirthless smile as she performed a flourish with her weapon, her coat flapping behind her as she slid the katana back into its sheath and gave her bangs a flip.

“You bitch!” The splatter punk and his subordinates spun around to face Veda, “Shoot to ki-” before he could even finish his order, the three men’s eyes suddenly glazed over and their bodies turned limp, slumping to the floor in a vegetative state with a groan.

“Smooth as silk,” Telissa remarked, a glowing praise evident in her tone of voice as she slung her LR-2X behind her back.

“How did you…?” Tim wondered, agape at Veda’s performance. There were no open wounds on the men’s bodies, yet all of them were definitely subdued in a single stroke by the swordswoman.

“That’s the power of the Shen Si Jian,” Veda explained, “The phantom blade which cuts not flesh and blood, but the mind and soul.” The white-haired anti-heroine raised an eyebrow as the Castro-cap Marauder’s radio crackled, followed by a voice speaking on the other side.

“Echo-6, report… Echo-6, please come in,” the voice on the radio spoke with growing urgency. “Echo-6, what the fuck is going on down there!?”

“Oh no, this can’t be good…” Veda sighed, though her voice showed more frustration than fear or worry. “They’re no doubt going to send more teams down to investigate, I suggest the two of you keep moving.”

“Wait, Veda… you can’t be serious!” Tim tried to protest as he ran over to Veda’s side. “You can’t take them all on by yourself, let me help… let us help!”

This was when Telissa clamped a hand firmly on Tim’s shoulder, dragging him back firmly. “Come on, Shinestar! We haven’t got time to waste, she’s got her mission, and we’ve got ours!”

“But…” Tim muttered as he looked back to steal one more glance at Veda, who was picking up one of the turncoat officers’ MP7’s to dual-wield her katana in one hand and gun in the other.

“You’ll only endanger both missions by staying behind, Tim! Trust Ms. Lexine on this!” The blonde chastised, and Tim stopped protesting at this point as he and Telissa proceeded past the broken grating, heading towards the maintenance tunnels underneath the Trovol Supermax.

“Well then, Shinestar-san and Ravan-san,” Veda said in Khazan-accented Japanese as Tim and Telissa’s footsteps faded from earshot, “I too wish you all the luck in Khazan.”

 

Segment 67: The Great Escape

Even before their run-in with the Marauder patrol in the sewers, unbeknownst to Timothy and Telissa, Morlos Gao had already learned of their infiltration into Zel’Myas. “All within my calculations,” the dark mage remarked as he watched security cam footage of Tim and Telissa making their way through the Trovol complex’s sub-basement from the guard room. The only thing that he hadn’t banked on was the audacious manner in which they would do so. As Morlos continued to watch the footage, he took a particular interest in the sword the silver-haired youth was wielding. There was a certain feeling of familiarity whenever he laid his eyes upon it, although he could not understand why. Perhaps it had something to do with Drekis himself?

Accompanying Tim was Telissa, and Morlos instantly recognised her as a Seeker from the particular model of battle suit she was outfitted with – not just any Seeker, but THE Seeker who had a personal score to settle with His Eminence. The dark mage had no idea how they managed to get this deep into Zel’Myas, but not that it mattered – nearly every available Marauder asset was being mobilised at this point. It didn’t matter if Timothy managed to free Uberman and his task force, on Toc Darkone’s orders, Morlos would make sure that Zel’Myas would become their grave.

Meanwhile in the cell block where Uberman and the others were being held, alarms were blaring all over the prison complex, and a call for all Marauders to be at arms was being broadcast across the PA system. “What’s with the sudden uproar?” Vincentzo queried on the situation as he got up from the lotus position he was sitting in to get a better look at his surroundings.

“I think the prison complex has come under attack,” Captain Khazan replied, noting how there had been an entire contingent of SWAT turncoats guarding their cell, but within seconds of the alarms going off, all of them had run off to handle whatever emergency situation was currently going on within the premises, leaving only two splatter punks to stand guard – both equipped with ZMPD plate carrier vests, but with Marauder ‘customisations’ – namely the words “fuck the” scribbled in yellow paint above the “POLICE” stencils, and armed with laser rifles.

“Who do you think is behind the attack? Another raid by the loyalists? Perhaps an SLJ rescue team?” The first splatter punk, a wiry-looking man with a shaved head and a diagonal scar running over his right eye, asked.

“Who cares?” his comrade, a dark-skinned man with dreadlocked black hair and a beard shrugged, “This is one of the most well-guarded facilities in Zel’Mier, it’ll all be over before we know it.”

The two splatter punks froze as they heard gunfire past the door, dashing their hopes that the situation would be swiftly taken care of. It was evident now that whoever was attacking the Trovol complex was headed to the cell block where Uberman and his team were being held!

With a hiss of frustration, the two Marauders readied their weapons and faced the door. “The moment they bust in, shoot,” the scar-faced Marauder remarked, and his dreadlocked partner nodded.

What they didn’t count on was for the door to be sent flying off its hinges, with the scar-faced Marauder rolling out of the way to save himself from being hit by the heavy security door. The other splatter punk however, wasn’t as lucky as the flying door hit him dead-on, knocking him senseless as he slumped to the floor next to the ruined security door.

“Shit!” The Marauder thug rose to one knee to train his laser rifle on Telissa as the female Seeker burst forth from the smoke like a bat out of hell, disarming the splatter punk with a swift kick that knocked the laser rifle out of his hands. Rising to his feet, the Marauder tugged his sidearm – a Sig Sauer P226 – from its holster, but the Seeker grabbed hold of his wrist with one hand and the barrel of his pistol with the other, before twisting it out of his grip and tossing it away.

Staggered from the disarmament move, the splatter punk cursed and drew a karambit to engage Telissa in a CQC brawl, slashing at the Seeker, who telegraphed and dodged his wild swings, before blocking his strike and using her free hand to deliver a hand thrust to his throat, followed by a punch to the kidney, before lifting the Marauder up and throwing him to the floor with an ura nage; as a finisher, Telissa lifted her foot and delivered a stomp to the splatter punk’s face, knocking him out cold.

“Telissa?” Raea exclaimed, surprised to see the Seeker, but her surprise quickly made way for joy and relief as she saw Tim step into the cell block behind Telissa. “Tim! Look out!” The redhead’s relief was short-lived as she saw a large shadow looming behind Timothy, and pointed urgently at what was behind the young swordsman.

Tim spun around just in time to witness the facility’s self-styled interrogator and torture technician, Igor Belyakov, bearing down on him with a bloody sledgehammer poised to cave his skull in. The young swordsman evaded in the nick of time as the musclebound thug brought his sledgehammer down with a dull thud as the powerful blow made an indent in the floor.

Igor spun around as Tim readied his sword, the young swordsman parrying the roundhouse swing from the Marauder's sledgehammer with his still-sheathed sword; thanks to the lessons he’d picked up from sparring with Raul, the silver-haired youth learned to roll with impact instead of resisting it, and as such was able to resist getting his weapon knocked from his grip.

Telissa turned her attention from her defeated opponent to Tim’s duel with Igor, raising her LR-2X and setting The Beard in its sights, “Tim, stand aside!”

“No, Telissa!” Tim insisted, shaking his head, “I got this!”

“Oh sure, you gotta impress your girl afterall,” the blonde bounty hunter huffed, rolling her eyes at Tim’s chivalrous attitude.

As Tim reeled back from blocking Igor’s roundhouse swing, the burly Marauder was misled into thinking he’d overwhelmed Tim’s defenses, and moved in for a finishing combo – intending to knock the young man onto his back with a kick, and then bash his skull in with an overhead smash from his sledgehammer, but as he performed his kick, Tim blocked it with his sword’s sheath.

The young swordsman countered by wheeling around in a half-spin to deliver a horse kick to Belyakov’s midsection, eliciting a grunt of pain as the musclebound Marauder staggered back and doubled over. With a resounding war cry, Tim delivered an elbow strike to Igor’s bearded jaw, before raising his sword high and bringing its pommel crashing down on the Marauder thug’s temple. Igor’s eyes went blank as a trickle of blood ran down the side of his head before slumping to the floor, his sledgehammer clattering next to him.

“Raea! I’m glad you’re safe!” the swordsman exclaimed, stepping over his downed adversary and to run towards the cell where his girlfriend was being held with the others. As Tim approached the containment field however, Raea’s eyes once again widened in shock as the redhead pointed once more behind him. Acting on Raea’s cue, Tim spun around only to find himself staring face-to-face with Igor Belyakov, staring right back at the swordsman with still-empty white eyes, a diabolical grin plastered across his face as he stood poised to slash at his throat with a bonesaw clutched in his right hand. 

The sound of a gunshot – or rather three gunshots fired in such rapid succession they sounded like one – cut through the air, and The Beard froze in mid-swing, his grip on the bonesaw going slack as the rest of his body went limp. The musclebound Marauder’s surgical instrument-turned-weapon clattered to the floor moments before Igor himself collapsed like a sack of potatoes. Looking up, Tim caught sight of Telissa holding her EZ-123, a thin wisp of smoke rising from its muzzle.

Tim looked at the downed Igor, then back at Telissa, before nervously rubbing the back of his head, “Thanks, Telissa.”

“This could’ve gone a lot more smoothly if you allowed me to step in,” Telissa clucked, shaking her head as she aimed her pistol down at where Igor lay and fired another triple-shot burst to do a pulse check. “...no pulse,” the blonde remarked at the lack of movement from Igor, noting that the threat had been successfully neutralised.

“Should’ve just let me end this in a jiffy,” the blonde shook her head in minor frustration as she lowered her pistol to conduct what she referred to as a ‘pulse check’, firing another triple-shot burst into the body to confirm a lack of a pulse, before putting away her weapon upon a successful confirmation of the threat’s neutralisation. 

“How about we save the reunion for another time and just get us out of here pronto?” Michael Cortelloni interjected. “Sides, I don’t think it’s possible to kiss and hug through that energy field anyway,” the ex-mobster snorted.

“A pass card grants access to a control terminal that disables the force fields, one of those goons should have it,” Vincentzo added, pointing out how to disable the energy field that so far has kept the heroes penned in.

“What the wizard said, yes,” Joonseo seconded, confirming that Vincentzo was correct.

“You mean this?” Tim asked as he searched the splatter punk that Telissa had earlier subdued, finding it housed in a transparent plastic pass holder hanging around the man’s neck, which the swordsman yanked off before bringing it to the force field.

“No doubt about this, I’m getting a positive ID match on my scans,” Uberman nodded, taking note that the card bore the insignia of the ZMPD and the serial numbers for Trovol prison. As a matter of fact, Uberman had remembered being in Zel’Myas – albeit long before the Marauder takeover and had personally witnessed the system in operation when handing villains over to the police. “Use the console at the far end of the hall,” the armoured Sentinel instructed Tim to make his way to the control terminal. Scanning the pass card on a card reader, Tim was quickly able to gain access to the cell door controls, and from there everything on the interface was self-explanatory as with a few deft keystrokes the security barrier flickered, then faded into nothing.

“Tim! When we’re out of this I am SO putting in a recommendation to the Sentinels for you!” Raea was the first to run out of the cell, throwing herself into Tim’s arms.

“Let us out of here too! I need to free the rest of the loyalists who are still being held elsewhere in the facility,” Joonseo added, to which Tim nodded as he used the console to deactivate the containment field. As the commissioner and his men were released, the young swordsman tossed the key card to the older cop, who deftly caught it in his right hand with a confident nod.

“Time to pay back these creeps,” one of the loyalist soldiers – an army lieutenant colonel – remarked as he directed his fellow soldiers and police officers to confiscate the Marauders’ weapons and armour, then moving on to search the room for any other arms and equipment that they could use. 

“These Marauder thugs sure are cocky to actually not lock our weapons and gear away, huh?” Tanin chimed in as he walked over to a table in the middle of the hall where Chrysilium and the other weapons and equipment belonging to the group were laid out on top. From the Archon’s guess, it was probably intended to taunt them, to put their weapons right within their sight but knowing there’s nothing they can do to get them back.

“They’d been arrogant, thinking they could keep us in like that,” Shinsuke remarked.

“And now, it’s coming back to bite them in the ass,” Cortelloni added, picking up his revolver from the table. The time to stage a daring escape is now at hand.

“Well, I'd say that I could sure use your help in freeing my men from their cells, but I think whatever you guys were after in Zel'Mier for is probably even more important,” Commissioner Lee remarked as a loyalist officer handed him a Mossberg 590A1 shotgun and a SWAT tactical vest. “So go on and do whatever you need to do, and don't worry about these old bones here,” he continued as he strapped on the armoured vest before checking his weapon, ensuring the chamber was clear before loading 12-gauge shells into its tube magazine and giving the shotgun a pump to chamber a shell. 

“May the Powers That Be guide you all, good luck!” Joonseo and his small band of loyalists from the police and military assembled and gave Uberman and his team a salute, before leaving to go about their objective of finding and freeing other loyalists that were being held in the Trovol Supermax.

“And I wish you all the same too,” Uberman replied as the two groups split off on their own objectives. 

 

To Be Continued...