Gideon blinked, coming back to the organic cavity inside the Strider’s head, still held in place by a chord of black fibrous rope connected to the cortex and wrapped around his waist.


    There were rips in his EV suit and a rotting stench filled his nostrils and brought tears to his eyes as he gasped for air. The two tendrils that had latched onto his head retracted, revealing puncture wounds in the top of his helmet that he wasn’t sure the sealing foam would be able to patch up.


    That wasn’t the worst of his problems though. Both Harvester blades were gone, and the surface of the Psionic Cortex was rock hard and covered with dark resin.


    “Gideon?”


    “Yeah, I’m here!” he spat, barely able to breathe. “Need to kill this thing! Need to…”


    He could barely think let alone talk. Bullseye said something in reply, but the words were garbled and unintelligible. Unable to see and sensing the life flowing out of his body, Gideon summoned twin stalker talons and prepared to do something utterly stupid.


    Gideon slammed the blades together and triggered Shadow Smite, sending a shockwave outwards that tore through the inky black cord holding him against the cortex and thrusting him backwards. As he fell he used Phantom Step to reappear behind the Psionic Core, thrusting both daggers into the rock-hard surface and channeling as much ether as he could manage into Abyssal Strike.


    Sparks flew as the talons bit into the surface of the core, driving through the impossibly hard armor and into something softer within. The talons seemed to shimmer and shift, growing translucent for a moment and reflecting reality as they drove into the Psionic Cortex.


    Gideon used all his strength to hold himself aloft, even though his wrists and arms were throbbing and threatened to buckle at any moment.


    The only thing that stopped him from falling into the swirling pool of acidic goop down below was the fact that Phantom Step had drawn him to a position where he was slightly higher on the edge of the cortex rather than horizontal where his own Gravity Tether would have pulled his full weight against the daggers.


    He poured more and more ether into the attack, spending the precious substance and pressing his blades further forward until the surface of the cortex cracked and a shimmering orb of etheric light was revealed within.


    The entire chamber shook, and Gideon flailed about, clinking to the talons as the Striker let out a strange keening sound followed by a heavy boom. Ether seeped from the Strider’s cortex as the beast stumbled forward, and the chamber shook once more as the giant creature slammed against the ground.


    Gideon felt an influx of power like nothing else he’d experienced thus far. He recognized the feel of ether being harvested, but this felt so much more profound, almost like he was getting a contact high being this close to the source of so much potent etheric power.


    The chamber was filled with vivid emerald light as the ball of ether within the cortex dissipated, flowing into Gideon’s body.


    ITEMS LOOTED


    Royal Ether + 200


    Ether + 1500


    Harrow Core + 1


    Harvester Blade [recovered] +1


    Strider Resin + 5


    He pulled himself up on top of the spent cortex, stored the talons in his inventory and started sealing up the holes and tears in his suit with sealant. To Gideon’s relief the sealant seemed perfectly capable of repairing holes in his helmet as well as the suit. The natural healing factor in his echo had also taken care of the various bruises and cuts he’d sustained, and he was able to breath easily again now that the stench of the chamber had been locked out.


    He brought up an image of the Harrow Core on his HUD and examined it for a few moments. It was a small metal disc which looked like a tiny flying saucer but with webs of blue light spreading out all across its surface. Gideon made a note to explore that object further and as Bullseye about it when he wasn’t clinging on for dear life to a dead alien’s cortex.


    “Gideon?!”


    It was Mia’s voice.


    “Gideon, are you still in there?!”


    He smiled, laying back against the top of the sphere.


    “Yeah, I’m here. Just give me a minute to figure out how the hell to get out of here.”


    “Holy shit!” Red shouted. “You did it. You actually did it.”


    MISSION UPDATE: Wrecking Ball


    Infiltrate the enemy ranks and take out the Striders in order to blunt the Collective’s advance.


    REWARD: 10 Enhancement Points per Heavy Target


    ENEMY HEAVIES KILLED: 1/3


    Endurance +2


    Leadership +2


    Dodge +1


    Tactical Insight +2


    Gideon sighed.


    “What is it?” Mia asked.


    “I just realized we have to kill two more of these bastards.”


    “Well, if it helps, we’ve just located the others. Red and I managed to take out the rest of the Bloodborn, but I can see the other two Striders off to the northeast.”


    “How far away?” Gideon asked, getting to his feet.


    “Half a mile, maybe less.”


    “Got it. I’ll be out as soon as I can manage it.”


    It turned out as soon as he could manage it was roughly two minutes later after having carved his way through a wall of flesh and using Phantom Step to appear outside the hulking corpse. His EV suit was covered in gore and Mia had to help patch up some of the tears and punctures in the back of the suit that he couldn’t reach.


    Red looked a little worse for wear as well, but Mia seemed completely unharmed and her suit was unblemished. Meanwhile, Bullseye hovered nearby, wearing a confused expression.


    “What was that place, Gideon?” he asked.


    Gideon shrugged. “I was hoping you’d be able to tell me.”


    “I have no idea. I’m as new to this Harrow business as you are.”


    “What place?” Red asked.


    Gideon waved away the question. “I’ll tell you later.” He turned back to Bullseye. “What’s this Royal Ether stuff about, and the Strider Core?”


    “Again, I don’t know. They must be specific to the Collective and this particular species, the Stalkers. It will take a little time for the Artemis System to adapt to the new information and provide a viable explanation.”


    “Gideon?” Book broke in. “Gideon are you there?”


    “Yeah, we’re here. What’s up.”


    “Just looking for an update. The coms have been patchy. I’ve been trying to catch you for the past few minutes.”


    “Yeah, the Strider’s have some kind of psionic field or something which screws with communications.”


    “Striders? Was that one of the beasts that just died?”


    “Yeah, we killed one and now we’re heading off to take out the other two.”


    “Great. Keep me updated will you.”


    “Sure.”


    Mia stepped back and examined Gideon’s suit with a frown. “You look like a mess, but it should hold together for a little while longer.”


    Enjoying this book? Seek out the original to ensure the author gets credit.


    Gideon pointed northeast. “Okay, where did you say the next two were?”


    “Here,” Mia said, setting off on a run, “I’ll show you.”


    They moved behind enemy lines, past the Strider corpse toward a distant mass of soldiers and two large black figures in the distance. While they ran, Bullseye spoke, but his voice entered Gideon’s mind directly and he found that he could speak back purely by thought.


    Bullseye: That dark world you were taken to, those figures; it seems that you were conversing with leaders of the Collective.


    Gideon: How the hell are you speaking right into my mind like this?”


    Bullseye: I presume it is an after effect of the psionic field that creature was projecting. Perhaps our existing bond was kickstarted again during the fight?


    Gideon: Well, maybe give me some warning before you just start speaking directly into my mind like this.


    Bullseye: Very well, but what of the dark planet and those figures?


    Gideon: How the hell should I know. We’ll talk about it once we’ve finished the mission. Also, just so you know, I’m throwing you at the next Strider right away this time.


    Bullseye: What? No! I protest, you can’t—


    Gideon scooped up the turtle as he ran, aiming at the closest Strider and launching Bullseye toward the enemy as the AI screamed in protest. Red roared with laughter as the shielded turtle flew overhead.


    “Trigger the bomb!” Gideon called through the coms, realizing that the turtle might not remember in time.


    The resulting explosion confirmed that the message had gotten through. As before, it sent a potent shockwave outwards that disorientated and knocked back several of the Bloodborn standing around beneath the nearest Strider.


    Bullseye bounced back from the explosion, as Gideon and the others continued.


    “Same as before?” Red asked.


    “Yeah, I think so,” Gideon confirmed, waiting for the dust to settle so he could see a clear entry point into the body of the Strider. “But this time I’m not planning on hacking my way through.”


    As he said this, Gideon swerved to the right, heading in a path to intersect where Bullseye was about to land. Mia stopped, pulling out arrows and firing the charged projectiles at the heavily armored guards who were getting back to their feet and forming a protective ring around the Strider. Red charged straight toward the group, massive club in one hand.


    Gideon slowed a little, matching the turtle’s speed and catching Bullseye as he came into range.


    Gideon: Gonna need those laser eyes of yours bud. Need you to make a hole in the side of the Strider big enough for us to get through.


    Bullseye: I will try, but there is a great deal going on down here.


    Gideon: Just focus on making that hole and I’ll take care of the rest of it.


    Still running, he gently dropped Bullseye to the ground, like rolling a bowling ball. The moment the turtle was out of his grasp, Gideon triggered Shadow Charge, aiming right for the center of the knot of enemies Red was heading towards.


    The spill triggered and Gideon was thrown forward, slamming his blades into the ground and driving back the nine or so Bloodborn. He was glad to see that the ability worked even with mismatched blades, seeing as he had only one of the longer Harvester swords left and had to use the talon dagger in his left hand.


    He immediately used Blade Flurry to trigger a two-second burst of furious strikes and slashes. Even with the mismatched weapons the attack was devastatingly effective.


    While most of the strikes hit armor or the face of the thick wall shields held by the defenders, Gideon found that he could control the flow of the blade attack, steering it like pushing a surfboard through the water from behind. There were also vulnerabilities that his class naturally pinpointed, weak points in armor that he focused on throughout the attack.


    In this way he was able to kill two of the Bloodborn defenders by simply overwhelming them with blade strikes and pressing his attack at vulnerable points. The attack also had a bonus effect of increasing aggro among the other defenders so that when he ducked out of range of a series of retaliatory attacks, none of the Bloodborn noticed Red crashing in from the side, slamming the end of his club into the face of a Stalker like a jousting knight.


    Chitinous armor shattered as Red smashed through the Stalker’s head. He immediately followed up with a Piledriver, picking up one of the other defenders before they knew what was going on and driving the brute into the ground like the proverbial sack of potatoes.


    At the same time, arrows began to appear, knocking the defenders off balance as Mia struck them with the venomous projectiles. Each target that was hit seemed to move slower and their attacks were significantly dulled. The arrows also did damage over time, draining the enemy of their strength and vitality.


    Gideon used Red’s interruption to move away from the knot of defenders, kiting them a short distance as Mia and Red continued their attacks. He saw a burst of laser light shoot from Bullseye’s tiny form and hit the side of the Strider’s head, boring a hole into the existing wound and leaving a charred corridor which Gideon hoped would be large enough for him to get into.


    Gideon: Okay, you can stop shooting now!


    Bullseye: Very well.


    Gideon: I’m gonna grab you again and take you with me, okay?


    Bullseye: Take me where exactly?”


    Gideon could tell by the AI’s tone of voice the Bullseye suspected the truth.


    Gideon: Has your bomb ability cooled down yet?


    Bullseye: Five seconds remaining.


    Gideon: Good. Hold on.


    He stashed his weapons and grabbed Bullseye up off the ground, still running to keep ahead of the mob of Bloodborn who were only now turning away from Gideon to face Red and Mia.


    Gideon focused on the wound in the side of the Strider, waiting for the beast to turn so that he’d have a clear path forward. The moment the opening came he triggered his charge ability, blinking through the space between and appearing in the gaping wound with Bullseye still under one arm.


    The ground was charred and sticky, and the edges of the wound were already beginning to close as the Strider’s tremendous bulk pressed down against the opening.


    Gideon: I’m gonna throw you in there and then I want you to trigger the bomb!


    Bullseye: What? No, you can’t be serious.


    Gideon: It’s the quickest way to end this.


    Bullseye: I am not a weapon to be thrown about willy nilly.


    Gideon: You kind of are, actually. We both are.


    Bullseye: Only in a—


    Gideon: Just do it! Unless you want to be swallowed up by this damned thing.


    He threw the turtle toward the furthest end of the fleshy corridor realizing only as he released the AI that he’d already used his charge to get up here and the resulting explosion he was about to be caught up in would likely tear him limb from limb.


    “Shit!”


    He turned, triggering Dusk Veil just as Bullseye’s Shell Shock Blitz ability triggered and the Strider’s head was engulfed in a ball of explosive etheric power. Even with the huge evasion increase, Gideon was still knocked backwards as the explosion pulped the interior of the Strider’s skull and sent him hurtling out of the side of the beast’s head like a bullet out of a gun barrel.


    As he flew through the air, Gideon was only vaguely aware of the turtle hurtling past him a foot or so away a moment before he hit the ground and started tumbling end over end.


    It felt like he’d been thrown into a clothes drier which had been turned to heavy spin. His bones cracked and muscles strained as he eventually came to a stop, air once more leaking from his suit given the fresh cuts he’d endured and a combination of Grit and his own echo’s healing abilities preventing him from passing out altogether.


    He turned around, looking back to see the Strider corpse slumb to the ground, crushing the two remaining Bloodborn fighting beneath it as Red just managed to jump clear at the last second.


    MISSION UPDATE: Wrecking Ball


    Infiltrate the enemy ranks and take out the Striders in order to blunt the Collective’s advance.


    REWARD: 10 Enhancement Points per Heavy Target


    ENEMY HEAVIES KILLED: 2/3


    ITEMS LOOTED


    Royal Ether + 200


    Ether + 1700


    Harrow Core + 1


    Strider Resin + 3


    Bloodborn Sentinel Sheild +1


    Endurance +1


    Tactical Insight +1


    Leadership +1


    Pushing himself to his feet, Gideon limped over to Mia and, once more, she started patching up his EV suit.


    “At this point you’re more sealant than suit,” she joked, grabbing his hand so that she could use some of his own sealant to finish the job.


    “Yeah, and you haven’t even taken a scratch yet.”


    She shrugged. “Benefits of fighting from range.” She turned to look at the final Strider standing off in the distance surrounded by soldiers of all kinds. “I don’t think that’s gonne be any guarantee this time though. The last Strider’s right in the thick of it.”


    Once she’d finished patching him up, she turned her attention to Red. He’d taken a few blows to the back and sides and had a huge gash in his suit on the right leg.


    Gideon looked out at the final Strider as Bullseye came hovering over.


    “Must be a thousand Stalkers around that last one,” Gideon mused. “We’ll need to clear a path through.”


    “I presume you are unable to jump as you did before?”


    Gideon shook his head. “Shadow Charge has a max range, even if I dial up the ether. It wouldn’t get me half way towards the Stalker and I’d be standing right in the middle of an army of enemy soldiers.”


    Red walked up, squinting as he looked over the battlefield.


    “Could we sneak around back?”


    Gideon shook his head. “The Strider is right in the middle of the main charge and Big Boy’s moved too far ahead.”


    As they watched, the group saw fire begin peppering the front ranks of the enemy army from the lunar station. Large guns placed behind concrete barricades shot explosive shells and large caliber rounds into the throng of black armored aliens as the Stalkers returned fire with their rifles.


    An exchange of conventional fire and glowing green bursts shot from left to right as the Strider charged up its main weapons and fired a volley of etherically charged orbs at the base. While Gideon and the others watched the green orbs exploded against a dome shield that covered the lunar station, sending energy rippling outward along the glossy, transparent surface of the ward.


    “Gideon?!” Book called out. “What’s your progress?”


    He sounded desperate and Gideon thought he could hear Commander Moynahan in the backround as he spoke, shouting something.


    “Just killed the second Stalker,” Gideon replied. “But the third one is surrounded. We need some way of clearing a path through.”


    While he spoke, the Strider fired another volley of the etherically charged projectiles. It hit the base shield once more but this time one of the gun emplacements directly outside the building was also struck. Concrete and metal were torn apart as the lethal blast did its work.


    “We felt that one!” Book shouted. “Need you to take down that Strider. NOW!”


    The huge alien tank fired again, this time shooting a pair of smaller guns in addition to the larger ones extending from its front. The resulting explosions caused Book to cut out.


    “How are we gonna do this?” Mia asked.


    “There’s too many,” Red argued. “Even if we don’t die it will take us too long to get to the damned thing. And look up top there.”


    He pointed to what looked like sniper units clinging to the head of the Strider. They were fixed in place, guns trained on the lunar base as they picked off enemies one by one.


    “We’re gonna have to fight our way through a pile of enemies and avoid getting picked off by the damned snipers.”


    Gideon smiled, an idea formulating in his mind as he bent down and picked up Bullseye.


    “What is it?” Mia asked.


    Gideon turned to her, still grinning.


    “Bullseye, that bubble of yours, would it keep you alive if I stashed you in my inventory for a few minutes?”


    The turtle blinked, looking as disturbed as it was possible for a turtle to look. Before he had a chance to respond, Gideon slipped the bubbled turtle into his inventory, waiting a few seconds, and then drew him out again.


    “Well?” he asked.


    Bullseye was still blinking.


    “Bullseye?!” Gideon barked. “Can you survive in there?”


    “Yes! Perhaps. Though it may be—”


    “Good enough,” Gideon said, dropping the turtle back into his inventory as he checked his ether stores.


    He turned to Mia. “I’m gonna try and stealth my way to that thing and then drop the bomb.”


    She turned to face the Strider. “You’ll need to get past hundreds of Stalkers and avoid the snipers.”


    Gideon nodded. “Here’s hoping I don’t run out of ether then.”


    He turned and ran, triggering Shadow Veil and vanishing from sight.