Chapter 139: Who Let the Dogs Out?
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Writers-Ablood
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As the ship warped, the blue sky of earth appeared, thrusters flared with streaks of pale light as Nulsis hurtled through the atmosphere. Inside the cramped cockpit of his Skiff, his fingers danced over the controls, but his mind was elsewhere. His eyes flashed as if still trapped in the memory of the grotto ambush.
The moment the reinforced gate had exploded and that shadowy figure had stepped through the dust, Nulsis had immediately known, he was being hunted.
It couldn't have been anyone else.
Judging from the speed and lightning abilities, it was a lightbearer. Nulsis had fought and escaped hundreds of them. But this one? This one was different. He could feel it in his bones, that pale light surrounding his blade was nothing he'd ever faced.
It seemed to call him, its dissonant whispers gnawed at Nulsis's heart.
"Not just a Guardian…" Nulsis growled under his breath. "Something far worse."
His ship buckled slightly as it entered the atmosphere, and rapidly dropped to lower altitude.
The Cosmodrome was approaching fast. He looked at his radar, the lightbearer was still chasing him.
Sure the light bearer was strong, but once he touched ground he'd vanish like smoke. No one could catch him, that's how it always was, and that how it would be.
His plan was simple, lose him in the terrain. Rocketyard had plenty of escape tunnels, ones he'd seen and used himself. And once this was over, Nulsis was determined to ask for more glimmer for the next trades.
The interface of the ship lit-up as Nulsis sent quick word to the House of Devils about his chase. But then, he paused.
His fingers drummed the keypad as his eyes seemed to flicker in hesitation. Eventually, he grit his teeth, and sent out another message. Just a few lines describing his pursuer. If he was caught and taken to the City, the Devils needed to know who was responsible.
Just then, the ship rattled again. The altitude was dropping once more, and he'd almost breached the clouds. His screens lit up.
Nulsis squinted. His stomach dropped. The radar was blaring alarms. Too many red markers. Too many signals.
"No… No no no." He cursed.
It had barely been five minutes since the pursuit. There was no communications network in the solar system capable of transmitting from deep space. How had the city gathered this many? Nuslsi's thoughts raced, had someone sold him out? Impossible.
A harrowing realization set in. Maybe him coming to the cosmodrome was already planned, maybe that figure had seen through him instantly, letting him slip away just to get caught by his people.
How insidious and terrifying....Nulsis shivered. He reached for the keypad again, the Devils needed to know this. They needed to know, that they were in danger.
Just then, the entire ship shook violently, Nulsis's ship tore through the clouds. His eyes widened. The entire plain below the dropsite was crawling with Guardians. Hundreds of them. Armed to the teeth. Some riding Sparrows, others already aiming upward.
"Lirsoveks.."
He twisted the throttle, veering hard, alarms screaming.
Instead of landing, he chose to crash. Sparks tore from the hull as the ship plowed into the rocky canyons and skidded across gravel, metal shearing from the belly.
Nulsis grabbed the throttle and the ship blasted ahead, surfing across stone.
Behind him, hundreds of sparrows raced, tracking him down.
Nulsis steered the ship into the edges of a canyon and bolted from the cockpit, scrambling into the snow and debris.
But the horde descended like mad dogs. Their lights erupted, supers flared, and a hail of bullets pinged around him, grenades exploded near his heels.
Nulsis ran. He ran the hardest he ever had. He ran without looking back. Terrifying tremors seemed to erupt behind him, the ground was shaking, every step he took was on uneven rock.
He didn't care, all his focus was on survival. Nulsis hurriedly slammed a button on his wrist and a jetpack assembled on his back, the next second he shot forwards, soaring ahead.
He looked over his shoulder, and still the chase was ongoing. Heck he could even see some of them shoot rockets that barely reached him. They were chasing him like he'd stolen their glimmer. Nothing made sense to him.
No, it'd be fair to say that these lightbearers had never acted on sense to begin with. All of them were crazy.
"Oi, you dog bastard. **** your mother, GET DOWN HERE." IEatPaint roared, shooting at Nulsis's heels.
Nulsis grit his teeth and took a sharp right, just then he felt warmth on his face, "Wha-"
Before he knew it, a golden gunshot had torn right through him, shattering his jetpack. Nulsis screamed, and crashed into the ground, rag dolling into the dirt.
He hurriedly took out an arc shield, and deployed it. The next second he spammed the Devil's on their network as a last resort.
The sky went dark. Nulsis looked up, Waffles was hovering above him and a ball of lilac energy descended upon him. He cursed.
Then, he couldn't remember what happened next. Just that they'd cornered him near a rusted pipeline, he thought his time had come. He wouldn't leave alive.
But he was wrong, it was something much worse.
Nulsis couldn't believe no one among the hundred tried to kill him. No, they simply continued to beat him within an inch of his life. Until his limbs gave out. Until he gasped for breaths as he struggled in the dirt.
What kind of monster had devised this plan? As fists caved in his face, Nulsis could only curse at that shadowy figure in his heart.
-
[Cosmodrome]
Viper transmatted in at a distance, observing the situation.
"Shouldn't you...stop them?" Obsidian chimed in.
"Me?" Viper raised a brow, "I mean...I could."
"You sure they won't kill him?" Obsidian asked.
"Well, it's not likely." Viper rubbed his chin, he'd set the quest as to capture Nulsis, so he was sure the players never had the option to kill him.
"Right.." Obsidian pulsed, "I mean, they've been beating him for a while."
"Alright, alright. Fine." Viper sighed.
The shadows shifted, and he appeared behind the mob of players. Viper cleared his throat.
Nothing happened....
Seeing that they were too engrossed in the beating, Viper adjusted his voice and interrupted again.
This time the players turned, surprised but respectful. Viper strolled forward, calm and unhurried. Nulsis saw him and instantly recoiled.
TheOneWhoKnocks stepped aside, "He was fast, but we got his ass."
Thunderclappin chuckled, "We did get his ass."
Waffles raised a brow, "You mean I got him."
"My shot got the jetpacks down." Undecided clicked his tongue.
Viper nodded. " Nulsis is a scavenger for the House of Devils. Now, thanks to you, the Devils won't be stealing from us for a while."
The public event ticker chimed:
Mission Complete. XP scattered across HUDs.
A smaller notification for the faction blinked: VENOM Reputation Increased.
The rewards weren't crazy good, and nothing special was given out. But considering they'd just chased a Fallen enemy through half the cosmodrome and beat him to a pulp? The players were cheering and hollering.
Where else could they experience this tantalizing gameplay?
"Nulsis was a secret agent of multiple Fallen Houses. Capturing him brings us one step closer to reclaiming the Cosmodrome. Good job."
Whispers immediately spread around. The word secret agent was simply too enticing. Viper knew that.
As Viper grabbed Nulsis by the collar, he glanced over his shoulder. "You've all got skills, and it looks like I am still in need of a few associates. If you've got an inkling for this kind of work, find the workshop at Thieves' Landing."
At his words, TheOneWhoKnocks, Undecided, Gandalf, Waffles, BearSpray and IEatPaint smiled faintly. The others were simply not aware, but they'd already taken that step.
-
[Ishtar Sink, Venus]
Deep within the tangled jungles of Venus, in the still-burning heart of the House of Winter, the Winter's Lair, the air was tense. Monitors flickered. Low guttural clicks of spoken Eliksni echoed through the hall.
The Kell of Winter watched the screen for the third time. The screen replayed the grainy footage: A tremor echoed. The reinforced steel gate turned to slag. A figure walking through smoke, blade drawn, calm. The footage cut shortly after.
The Kell stood still. Then his claws tightened into fists.
"We found no network interference from Earth." one of the Splicers offered nervously. "Not coordinated. Not from the city.."
The Kell turned to him. "But a Guardian nonetheless?"
The Splicer hesitated. "Y-Yes, Kell."
"So they know," the Kell snarled. "Or someone does."
"Should we retaliate?"
"No," the Kell said. "That safe house wasn't meant to be found. And if word spreads that we lost it, we'll lose many scavengers here within the week. Strip it clean. At worst, the Kings will pull out of negotiations."
Another splicer interjected, "Shall we bury it? Digitally?"
The Kell stared at the flickering screen. The silhouette burned into the frame. Calm, confident, and terrifying. Not something that had come for supplies. Something that had come with purpose.
"Erase everything. Scrub the backup nodes. Wipe it from our system."
The splicers nodded and scattered.
The Kell moved to the observation port, gazing out into the wild jungles of Venus. Somewhere out there, Ishtar Academy lay dormant—its secrets guarded inside.
He was anxious. Had this figure come because it had sniffed their plans? No, that couldn't be.
"We don't need more attention. Not now," he muttered under his breath.
-
[Devil's Lair, Cosmodrome]
Aksis stared at the broken communicator in silence, the news having reached him moments before.
'Captured.'
His lower limbs clanked as he paced. The others in the chamber dared not speak.
Aksis's voice was low. "Nulsis. Captured. By… hundreds?"
A young captain nodded. "It was undetected Kell, no communications on their network. The city still holds no relays."
"Then who was it?"
"We do not know. But it rallied many Lightbearers. Quickly."
Aksis's optics narrowed. "Impossible. Nulsis was hiding on Venus. How did they track him here?"
The captain hesitated. "It was coordinated, maybe the City built a hidden network."
"No. Impossible." Aksis stopped pacing. "The Cosmodrome is ours. We know everything they do. This just means, there's more than the Vanguard to worry about."
He tapped the arm of his throne, processors whirring.
"Nulsis sent messages before his capture." A splicer raised his voice.
Aksis turned his eyes towards him.
The splicer continued, and sent the messages to be displayed on the screens, "He mentioned a cloaked figure chasing him from Venus. He must be the mastermind."
Another splicer stepped forward. "We have no records of this figure. No one knows anything."
"What did our scouts see?" Aksis replied.
A Fallen captain hitched, kneeling as he replied, "We saw them surround Nulsis. At the end, the shadow came and took him away."
"Find out who he is. We must know." Aksis growled, and slammed his fist into the throne's arm rest.
There were simply too many variables surrounding the city. First the Nightstalker, and now this shadow.
"Contact the House of Winter. Ask them how one of their safe houses was breached. Ask them what they saw. Find everything."
The others nodded and scattered.
Alone again, Aksis growled low.
With Nulsis gone, the smuggling routes would be exposed. Supplies. Gear. Intelligence. All vulnerable.
"We must adapt," he muttered.
The Kings would need reassurance. And new channels would need to be forged.
=
Like the story? Leave a comment! Let me know your thoughts! If you want to support me on my journey, read ahead on my Patreon!
patreon.com/Writers_Ablood
The moment the reinforced gate had exploded and that shadowy figure had stepped through the dust, Nulsis had immediately known, he was being hunted.
It couldn't have been anyone else.
Judging from the speed and lightning abilities, it was a lightbearer. Nulsis had fought and escaped hundreds of them. But this one? This one was different. He could feel it in his bones, that pale light surrounding his blade was nothing he'd ever faced.
It seemed to call him, its dissonant whispers gnawed at Nulsis's heart.
"Not just a Guardian…" Nulsis growled under his breath. "Something far worse."
His ship buckled slightly as it entered the atmosphere, and rapidly dropped to lower altitude.
The Cosmodrome was approaching fast. He looked at his radar, the lightbearer was still chasing him.
Sure the light bearer was strong, but once he touched ground he'd vanish like smoke. No one could catch him, that's how it always was, and that how it would be.
His plan was simple, lose him in the terrain. Rocketyard had plenty of escape tunnels, ones he'd seen and used himself. And once this was over, Nulsis was determined to ask for more glimmer for the next trades.
The interface of the ship lit-up as Nulsis sent quick word to the House of Devils about his chase. But then, he paused.
His fingers drummed the keypad as his eyes seemed to flicker in hesitation. Eventually, he grit his teeth, and sent out another message. Just a few lines describing his pursuer. If he was caught and taken to the City, the Devils needed to know who was responsible.
Just then, the ship rattled again. The altitude was dropping once more, and he'd almost breached the clouds. His screens lit up.
Nulsis squinted. His stomach dropped. The radar was blaring alarms. Too many red markers. Too many signals.
"No… No no no." He cursed.
It had barely been five minutes since the pursuit. There was no communications network in the solar system capable of transmitting from deep space. How had the city gathered this many? Nuslsi's thoughts raced, had someone sold him out? Impossible.
A harrowing realization set in. Maybe him coming to the cosmodrome was already planned, maybe that figure had seen through him instantly, letting him slip away just to get caught by his people.
How insidious and terrifying....Nulsis shivered. He reached for the keypad again, the Devils needed to know this. They needed to know, that they were in danger.
Just then, the entire ship shook violently, Nulsis's ship tore through the clouds. His eyes widened. The entire plain below the dropsite was crawling with Guardians. Hundreds of them. Armed to the teeth. Some riding Sparrows, others already aiming upward.
"Lirsoveks.."
He twisted the throttle, veering hard, alarms screaming.
Instead of landing, he chose to crash. Sparks tore from the hull as the ship plowed into the rocky canyons and skidded across gravel, metal shearing from the belly.
Nulsis grabbed the throttle and the ship blasted ahead, surfing across stone.
Behind him, hundreds of sparrows raced, tracking him down.
Nulsis steered the ship into the edges of a canyon and bolted from the cockpit, scrambling into the snow and debris.
But the horde descended like mad dogs. Their lights erupted, supers flared, and a hail of bullets pinged around him, grenades exploded near his heels.
Nulsis ran. He ran the hardest he ever had. He ran without looking back. Terrifying tremors seemed to erupt behind him, the ground was shaking, every step he took was on uneven rock.
He didn't care, all his focus was on survival. Nulsis hurriedly slammed a button on his wrist and a jetpack assembled on his back, the next second he shot forwards, soaring ahead.
He looked over his shoulder, and still the chase was ongoing. Heck he could even see some of them shoot rockets that barely reached him. They were chasing him like he'd stolen their glimmer. Nothing made sense to him.
No, it'd be fair to say that these lightbearers had never acted on sense to begin with. All of them were crazy.
"Oi, you dog bastard. **** your mother, GET DOWN HERE." IEatPaint roared, shooting at Nulsis's heels.
Nulsis grit his teeth and took a sharp right, just then he felt warmth on his face, "Wha-"
Before he knew it, a golden gunshot had torn right through him, shattering his jetpack. Nulsis screamed, and crashed into the ground, rag dolling into the dirt.
He hurriedly took out an arc shield, and deployed it. The next second he spammed the Devil's on their network as a last resort.
The sky went dark. Nulsis looked up, Waffles was hovering above him and a ball of lilac energy descended upon him. He cursed.
Then, he couldn't remember what happened next. Just that they'd cornered him near a rusted pipeline, he thought his time had come. He wouldn't leave alive.
But he was wrong, it was something much worse.
Nulsis couldn't believe no one among the hundred tried to kill him. No, they simply continued to beat him within an inch of his life. Until his limbs gave out. Until he gasped for breaths as he struggled in the dirt.
What kind of monster had devised this plan? As fists caved in his face, Nulsis could only curse at that shadowy figure in his heart.
-
[Cosmodrome]
Viper transmatted in at a distance, observing the situation.
"Shouldn't you...stop them?" Obsidian chimed in.
"Me?" Viper raised a brow, "I mean...I could."
"You sure they won't kill him?" Obsidian asked.
"Well, it's not likely." Viper rubbed his chin, he'd set the quest as to capture Nulsis, so he was sure the players never had the option to kill him.
"Right.." Obsidian pulsed, "I mean, they've been beating him for a while."
"Alright, alright. Fine." Viper sighed.
The shadows shifted, and he appeared behind the mob of players. Viper cleared his throat.
Nothing happened....
Seeing that they were too engrossed in the beating, Viper adjusted his voice and interrupted again.
This time the players turned, surprised but respectful. Viper strolled forward, calm and unhurried. Nulsis saw him and instantly recoiled.
TheOneWhoKnocks stepped aside, "He was fast, but we got his ass."
Thunderclappin chuckled, "We did get his ass."
Waffles raised a brow, "You mean I got him."
"My shot got the jetpacks down." Undecided clicked his tongue.
Viper nodded. " Nulsis is a scavenger for the House of Devils. Now, thanks to you, the Devils won't be stealing from us for a while."
The public event ticker chimed:
Mission Complete. XP scattered across HUDs.
A smaller notification for the faction blinked: VENOM Reputation Increased.
The rewards weren't crazy good, and nothing special was given out. But considering they'd just chased a Fallen enemy through half the cosmodrome and beat him to a pulp? The players were cheering and hollering.
Where else could they experience this tantalizing gameplay?
"Nulsis was a secret agent of multiple Fallen Houses. Capturing him brings us one step closer to reclaiming the Cosmodrome. Good job."
Whispers immediately spread around. The word secret agent was simply too enticing. Viper knew that.
As Viper grabbed Nulsis by the collar, he glanced over his shoulder. "You've all got skills, and it looks like I am still in need of a few associates. If you've got an inkling for this kind of work, find the workshop at Thieves' Landing."
At his words, TheOneWhoKnocks, Undecided, Gandalf, Waffles, BearSpray and IEatPaint smiled faintly. The others were simply not aware, but they'd already taken that step.
-
[Ishtar Sink, Venus]
Deep within the tangled jungles of Venus, in the still-burning heart of the House of Winter, the Winter's Lair, the air was tense. Monitors flickered. Low guttural clicks of spoken Eliksni echoed through the hall.
The Kell of Winter watched the screen for the third time. The screen replayed the grainy footage: A tremor echoed. The reinforced steel gate turned to slag. A figure walking through smoke, blade drawn, calm. The footage cut shortly after.
The Kell stood still. Then his claws tightened into fists.
"We found no network interference from Earth." one of the Splicers offered nervously. "Not coordinated. Not from the city.."
The Kell turned to him. "But a Guardian nonetheless?"
The Splicer hesitated. "Y-Yes, Kell."
"So they know," the Kell snarled. "Or someone does."
"Should we retaliate?"
"No," the Kell said. "That safe house wasn't meant to be found. And if word spreads that we lost it, we'll lose many scavengers here within the week. Strip it clean. At worst, the Kings will pull out of negotiations."
Another splicer interjected, "Shall we bury it? Digitally?"
The Kell stared at the flickering screen. The silhouette burned into the frame. Calm, confident, and terrifying. Not something that had come for supplies. Something that had come with purpose.
"Erase everything. Scrub the backup nodes. Wipe it from our system."
The splicers nodded and scattered.
The Kell moved to the observation port, gazing out into the wild jungles of Venus. Somewhere out there, Ishtar Academy lay dormant—its secrets guarded inside.
He was anxious. Had this figure come because it had sniffed their plans? No, that couldn't be.
"We don't need more attention. Not now," he muttered under his breath.
-
[Devil's Lair, Cosmodrome]
Aksis stared at the broken communicator in silence, the news having reached him moments before.
'Captured.'
His lower limbs clanked as he paced. The others in the chamber dared not speak.
Aksis's voice was low. "Nulsis. Captured. By… hundreds?"
A young captain nodded. "It was undetected Kell, no communications on their network. The city still holds no relays."
"Then who was it?"
"We do not know. But it rallied many Lightbearers. Quickly."
Aksis's optics narrowed. "Impossible. Nulsis was hiding on Venus. How did they track him here?"
The captain hesitated. "It was coordinated, maybe the City built a hidden network."
"No. Impossible." Aksis stopped pacing. "The Cosmodrome is ours. We know everything they do. This just means, there's more than the Vanguard to worry about."
He tapped the arm of his throne, processors whirring.
"Nulsis sent messages before his capture." A splicer raised his voice.
Aksis turned his eyes towards him.
The splicer continued, and sent the messages to be displayed on the screens, "He mentioned a cloaked figure chasing him from Venus. He must be the mastermind."
Another splicer stepped forward. "We have no records of this figure. No one knows anything."
"What did our scouts see?" Aksis replied.
A Fallen captain hitched, kneeling as he replied, "We saw them surround Nulsis. At the end, the shadow came and took him away."
"Find out who he is. We must know." Aksis growled, and slammed his fist into the throne's arm rest.
There were simply too many variables surrounding the city. First the Nightstalker, and now this shadow.
"Contact the House of Winter. Ask them how one of their safe houses was breached. Ask them what they saw. Find everything."
The others nodded and scattered.
Alone again, Aksis growled low.
With Nulsis gone, the smuggling routes would be exposed. Supplies. Gear. Intelligence. All vulnerable.
"We must adapt," he muttered.
The Kings would need reassurance. And new channels would need to be forged.
=
Like the story? Leave a comment! Let me know your thoughts! If you want to support me on my journey, read ahead on my Patreon!
patreon.com/Writers_Ablood
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