《The Sunstrider - removed all chapters due to KU policy. Book 3 chapters are ongoing》
Book Update: Published on Kindle!
Hello Everyone!
The book is officially live on Kindle and KU! Here is the link:
https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B0CH36H3W5
I would appreciate any ratings and reviews to help make this book a success. I would love to be able to devote my full time to creating more stories and adventures and your help is crucial to that. So, please head on over and leave a review, you have my full heart felt thanks!
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Book 2 is Live on Amazon / Kindle!
Hello everyone!
Thank you again for reading my stories. I am proud to announce that the book 2 is officially live on Amazon and Kindle:
https://www.royalroad.com/amazon/B0CVFJ3VZ6
I am still looking into other sites to publish the book as well, but until I do that, the book will still be available for free on KU. Which means, I''ll have to take down most of the chapters for B2 soon.
Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.
Also, I did want to mention that I did make small changes or corrections throughout the final product that is published. Nothing too major to change the story, but there is very minor clarifying things added. When I make changes to a single chapter based on errors caught by you all, I try to fix it right away and update here on RR, but when I do a full book re-read and changes, it is just too much to make changes to every chapter here, especially when I plan to remove those chapters soon anyhow.
Anyhow, I again want to thank you for all your support and contributions. Please rate and review both B1 and B2 as it helps me work toward bigger goals like getting an audible version produced.
Thanks!
Jacen DeLaney
B3 - Chapter 1
Chapter 1
Ducking under the police tape, Olivia and I met with Lucy, the ME. I can explain the acronym, but I''m sure you''ve all seen crime dramas before. Along with Lucy were a handful of Unis standing around waiting for orders.
The forensics team was already on the scene collecting evidence and taking pictures. So, with everyone getting to work, I decided to walk around and note a few things. As I pursued the apartment, I got a whiff of the blood and decided to pull out a bag of popcorn from my Item Box or dimensional spatial inventory to distract me from that oh-so-sweet, sweet smell.
"Lucy, what do we got?"
"Olivia, good to see you again. We should totally catch a movie sometime!"
"While that sounds great, can we focus?"
"Oh, sorry. We got blunt trauma to the face and head. Small circular indentations but no sign of the murder weapon. Also, there is bruising on her neck from what looks like someone gripped her powerfully."
One of the forensics personnel stepped up. "No signs of forced entry and only one set of fingerprints discovered so far, ma''am."
"Thank you, Kevin," Detective Olivia Blaine said, then looked over to find where I had wandered off to. "Jacik, do you care to weigh in on any theories about what has happened? You know, since you''re an official consultant now?" She definitely had sarcastic vibes in her tone. "Where the hell did you get popcorn?" She could see the steam rising out of it. "And how is it still hot?"
"Magic, remember?" I gave her the same sarcastic tone in return. And then replied to her first question. "And yes, I would love to weigh in. The neighbor did it. There, solved. Can we stop by the dry cleaners on the way back? I need to pick up a few suits."
"Solved? You care to explain this magnificent insight into murder?"
"Ugh¡ fine. All the pictures on the walls in the apartment are perfectly straight, except for the wall that shares a border between this apartment and the next-door neighbor. Then, if you notice this massive clock in the middle of the living room being worked on, you''ll notice that it has a rather large bell. The tenant was clearly working on the clock as a project; however, on her desk here, amidst her schematics, you''ll discover her hearing aids. The woman was deaf and obviously didn''t know how loud the bell was. The neighbor pounded on the wall, which caused the pictures to go askew, but when she didn''t stop, due to not hearing the pounding, the man then came over and pounded on the door.
"When she didn''t answer the door, he got even more angry and went to get a hammer. Now I know the forensic guys said there wasn''t any forced entry, and technically, they were right, but the divots in the door were not just old dents. They happen to be the exact same size as the head of a hammer, which will also match the blunt trauma to the victim''s face and head."
"Yeah, these markings could easily be from a hammer," Lucy inserted.
"Therefore, since the lock wasn''t broken, it is assumed that the victim finally heard the knocking due to the hammer on the door. She then went and unlocked the door then started to open it; however, as the door began to open, the neighbor kicked the door, which then slammed into the victim, breaking her nose and knocking her to the floor. He then got on top of her, held her by the throat, and hammered her face in. In his panic, he ran off and took the murder weapon with him."
"Aside from the skewed pictures on the wall, how do you know it was that neighbor? And why wouldn''t other neighbors come out when hearing the loud banging on the door?"
"Judging by the scent of the blood, I would estimate this occurred around eleven last night. But you''re right; that loud noise should''ve prompted other neighbors to report what happened, except that there are no other neighbors. If you go out and look, you''ll notice menus in all the boxes aside from this apartment and the one next door. On this floor, currently, these are the only two tenants. This crime scene might''ve gone on undiscovered for some time if it wasn''t for a delivery guy stumbling upon the crime scene."
Olivia, Lucy, and Kevin all went and examined the door, then the hallway, and then motioned for the unis to advance on the neighbor''s door. With guns drawn, they knocked loudly and yelled, "Police!"
The door slowly opened, and a hulking of a man slowly lowered the hammer knowing he was caught. He slowly got to his knees and placed his hands behind his head. While he was handcuffed and carted off, Olivia turned to me with what I was clearly able to read on her face. She had questions. "Yes?"
"How could you smell the time of death from the blood?"
"Judging by the wounds and coagulation, Jacik is probably right about the timeframe," Lucy stated.
"Told you, I''m a vampire."
"You also told me you do magic. The only believable thing about you is that you''re a nightclub owner and rich. Oh, and probably a con artist."
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"But he was right on this case, at least so far," Kevin interjected.
"If you want to definitively prove the timeline, you can check that camcorder over there," I said while pointing out a device aimed at the clock. "She liked to record her restoration of the clock."
~~~
No one had seen the small black device since it was propped up next to a black statue of an angel. Again, Olivia found herself amazed at the observational skills of her new partner. She still hated being shown up so easily like that. She had sarcastically called out to him for his input even before she had developed any theories. But not only did he respond with something intelligent, he solved the damn case with ease.
Reviewing the recordings also verified everything Jacik had said. There was pounding on the wall, then pounding on the door, then a lapse of time before even louder pounding. The woman got up and paused the recording here, which showed the time as 11:03 pm, then presumably went to answer the door, which evidence on the door and the victim clearly revealed what had occurred next. But how can someone smell the time of death from the stench of blood alone? Surely, he wasn''t a real vampire, right? Olivia shook her head at the nonsense.
"Your new partner is crazy good," Lucy said, breaking Olivia out of her troubling thoughts. "I can''t believe he got everything right down to the time of death. Girl, is he single? Cause, like, if so, can you put a good word in for me?"
Olivia chuckled at the absurdity of it all and then responded, "He''s a major player. While he might be single, he''s never alone." Olivia had seen Jacik''s wild side the few times she visited the club, but deep down, something held out hope that it was all smoke and mirrors¡ªa fa?ade of sorts. But every time that feeling tried to rise up, she squashed it down and told herself to focus on her work.
While this case was thrust upon her at the same moment this partnership was, she had already decided to figure out who and what Jacik was. She especially wanted to know where he had been for the past month. So, she would accept this partnership for now, but all for the sake of learning the truth.
~~~
Both Governor Johnson and Lieutenant Governor Jameson were behind bars due to a massive scandal involving The Mesa, the leader of the anti-hero faction, and a plot to steal hero powers and give them to others. The new Governor, Molly Tanner, was meeting with the hero teams Pantheon and Cosmic Trio about the scandal''s aftermath and the subsequent destruction that spanned hundreds of miles, including an entire mountain range turning into a crater.
"Everyone settle down," Molly stated with a firm and clear voice that brought S and A rank heroes to quiet down and then take their seats. She was a black woman who rose to her position due to her no-nonsense attitude and quick wits. In this country, leaders aren''t elected; they''re promoted based on points earned by accomplishments.
"Governor, all I''m saying is that this is over a month later, and we''ve already given our statements. Why are we here?" Captain Cosmo, also known as Derek, one of the most powerful people in the country, asked.
"First of all, I don''t care what happened a month ago. I wasn''t there. I am here now, and we will have this discussion. We will determine a plan moving forward. And we will discuss restructuring the teams because your city, Derek, is no more. We have to bring superheroes back into trust with the public, and right now, polling is at an all-time low over this fiasco. So now, I have to root out all corruption, which I am very aware of the prince''s involvement and that will be dealt with soon. But my job is to capture the man in black. While I understand he was the reason for defeating our mess, he still caused untold destruction and death. Now, tell me everything you know about him¡"
~~~
"Boss, you have a guest here looking for a favor. When will you be in?"
"I can drop by. Give me," I checked my watch, "twelve seconds."
Traveling extremely fast by running is normal. Vamp speed is stupid powerful. However, shadow traveling is so much faster. Getting used to melding with the shadows, getting my bearings, and teleporting to a shadow in real reality can take a while. However, I still have vamp speed and incredible cognitive speed. I''ve gotten it down to about twelve seconds, and I opened the door from the cellar to greet Darci, my alien club member disguised as an Asian gothic woman. Now, to be clear, in this world, none of the normal Earth countries I came from are the same. However, despite each country having different names, the skin colors are still the same, and for ease of translation, it is easier for me to use the terms for what I know best.
"Shadow travel again?" Darci asked in a whisper. She didn''t even have to lean into my ear because the club music was pushing the limits of appropriate decimal levels for our area, which is loud. My hearing was just that good. I gave her a smile in response and nodded my head into the crowd to indicate which person I was to meet with. "Over there, the black guy in a 10k suit," she said, this time in a normal voice.
"He''s handsome. Why are none of the girls flirting with him?"
"His bodyguard is why."
Then I noticed a woman in a tight red dress sitting back with a leg crossed over the other, sporting a scowl that would chill harden veterans. "Oh, I see. Fabulous."
"I know what you''re thinking, but I also don''t think this will work in your favor."
"Oh, ye of little faith," I replied with a smile and then sauntered over to the client.
As I approached, the woman got up and faced me directly, nose to chin, but we locked eyes. I sniffed her scent in the most obvious way possible and then broke the tension. "Oh, you''re feisty. Perhaps we can tangle later?"
"You''d have to be such a man that eclipses an S rank hero or," she shrugged, "a woman."
I knew she was trying to be condescending toward men, but I responded in the only way I knew how. No, I didn''t unleash the full extent of my aura, but I did unleash the full effect of my charm. Frankly, it was a manipulation of my aura mixed with a pinch of my intent to kill. Watering it down like that gave me a dangerous but seductive desire that no one thus far had been able to resist. This woman wasn''t an exception, even as deadly as she was.
She took several steps back at the sudden barrage of pheromones and aura pressure and tried to pull herself together to harden her resolve as a bodyguard but then her employer abruptly interrupted her struggle with a clear instruction. "Let him through; he''s the host, and I am his guest, who humbly seeks a favor." The bodyguard used her stumble backward as a measure to cover her shaken demeanor and fell back gracefully before bowing to allow me through. She was good. Strong even. I could use someone like that on my side. But business came first, and I sat across from the man who asked for my attention.
"Hello. What favor are you seeking?" I simply began with a wicked grin on my face.
B3 - Chapter 2
Chapter 2
"You don''t say?"
"I realize this is unorthodox, but I assure you these portals or gates to another dimension are real. What we know so far is that human weaponry is useless to the monsters inside. Only four of these gates have opened up so far, and the only people capable of fighting the monsters within are our Metas. In fact, we believe humans were given the power to become Metas for this very reason," Chairmen Adam King stated. He was the head of the department for Bio research. His company was BioLabs. Now, he was spearheading the research into the biology of monsters killed within the Dungeons and brought out for examination.
"How have the general population not heard of these so far?"
Each kingdom that has discovered these gates has agreed not to disclose anything yet until we all know more and can mitigate panic. However, while these gates do pop up randomly and, therefore, have been witnessed by the public, the government has taken great strides to secure, quarantine the area, and persuade people to keep quiet. Sometimes with money, sometimes with less savory means. We expect to go public within the month, but until then, corporations like mine have had early access due to scientific discoveries. For instance, my company has been in charge of studying the lifeforms found inside. We believe these lifeforms come from other worlds. We don''t know the purpose of why they are coming here, but we do know that if the final¡ uh¡ boss, I guess you can say, isn''t defeated within a week, the monsters break out and rampage."
"So, what is the favor you''re seeking?"
"Well, there are rumors that powerful artifacts and materials are being found within these gates, and in particular, a new power source. I want one of these Mana crystals, and I heard you''re great at obtaining things."
Interesting. Mana crystals? My magic pool of energy is called mana. My interest has been piqued. I obviously knew other worlds existed, but the idea that Earth is experiencing random portals to those worlds or at least to some kind of limited plane of existence filled with monsters screams of an intelligent, possibly malevolent, entity. What kind of entity? Aliens? And for what purpose? To make humans stronger for something else? Only one way to know: I''ll have to go inside one of these portals myself. For now, I''ll finish this deal and then do some poking around.
"That I am. Very well, I''ll take on this request for you. In return, you''ll owe me a favor whenever and for whatever I want. Refusal will not be an option. But don''t worry, I am, if nothing, fair."
We shook hands and exchanged contact information, and then I summoned some girls and drinks over for him and bid him farewell. I spent the rest of the night singing and entertaining the guests while I had Darci reach out to a few contacts of mine in the government and a few corporations I was sure would have dealings with these gates.
The next morning, I got a call from Oliva to meet her at a crime scene, and when I arrived, I was immediately on guard. Behind the police tape was the superhero, the Huntsman, being questioned by Oliva.
"I told you, I was nearby at a restaurant eating the entire time when this crime occurred; it wasn''t me," the Huntsman stated again for who knows how many times.
"The knife, claw, and gunshot wounds all match your style of combat," Lucy said while leaning over the final victim. There were four in total, with the first two being killed with several knife slashes and the third being raked from neck to waist. Then it appeared the fourth tried to flee and was gunned down. Upon closer inspection I could see several details, but it was the Huntsman that said it out loud.
"Yeah, I see that," the Huntsman replied. "The slashes from the knife indicate a right-handed individual made it, while the angle of the claw slashes was made with the left hand. I carry my blade in my right hand normally as well. Then it looks like the fourth ran and looked over his shoulder, and whoever the shooter was, he stashed his knife and quickly drew his pistol and shot him dead between the eyes. Only the angle of the bullet shows it entered the skull at forty-five degrees. So, he looked over his shoulder. I''d say the four victims all died within seconds of each other, maybe less. But it wasn''t me."
"Drone video doesn''t capture this alleyway, but it does capture the front of the alley where a person matching your build with a hood drawn over their head is seen walking into the alley. The security cameras also show you going to the restroom minutes prior to this incident, and then two minutes later, we see what looks like you but with a hooded jacket. Then, two minutes later, after the killings, you leave the restroom. Also, that restroom does have a window that opens, and while the distance is three blocks, that is nothing to someone who can travel as fast as you. Plus, you could''ve stashed the jacket somewhere. Unis are canvasing the area now," Oliva stated.
"But it wasn''t me. I''m a hero."
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"Well, since you are an active hero and I have nothing concrete yet, Article 2 Section 14 states you are to report to the Meta Association to be counseled by their legal team, placed on temporary suspension, and wait for future orders or summonses. You are free to go, for now, Huntsman."
The Huntsman began to walk off until he spotted me and approached. "I know you. You''re that club owner Comic Rush was raving on about." He then sniffed for a second, and I could see his eyes widen suddenly. "You have no scent?"
"I do have a scent."
"No, your clothes have a scent; you do not."
"That is very observant of you. I have a rare condition. I have no sweat glands, thus no musk. But I assure you, the ladies are driven wild anyway." Of course, I could simulate a musk with my aura, but I had no reason to use it all the time. I never would have imagined being detected like this as someone of interest. I should be more careful in the future.
"I''ll be watching you, Jacik."
So, he knows my name. I knew he came to the club every once in a while, but I didn''t expect him to know me personally unless Comic Rush had been saying a lot more about me than he let on. When the hero left, I walked up to Oliva and asked the obvious question. "So, we think he really did this?"
"I don''t know. He''s certainly capable, but he could be framed as well. Is there anything you can tell me about the scene that he didn''t?"
"You might want to check the Meta registry. I believe these four are all registered. Were their IDs on them?"
"Yes, and one moment," she replied and then keyed in their names. "Huh, you''re right. They''re all Metas. How did you know?"
Your arm has a green light still blinking. That''s your Meta detector, right? I assumed you saw it earlier, but since the Huntsman was here, you probably just passed it off as him. However, the light is still on, and he''s gone." I lied. I could smell the difference between them from humans now that I knew what to look for.
"Oh, yeah. That makes sense. Alright, let''s look into who these four were and why they were in this alley at 11:07 last night."
"You should start there," I said, pointing to a small stairwell leading to a basement door in the alley. "There was some moss growing there that looked to be disturbed by footprints. I can also see traces of moss on the bottom of their boots."
"Wow, you''re good at this," Lucy said. "He''s right; this is moss," she said while taking a sample and bagging it.
"You said you, not we. Are you not coming?"
"I would, but unfortunately, I have a prior engagement I cannot miss. But I''ll catch up with you in a few hours to help out further. See ya later!" I said as I waved over my shoulder, having already turned around to leave the area.
With vamp hearing, I heard her mumbling under her breath about unreliable partners. I chuckled at that. I climbed into my emerald green Jaguar F-type convertible with the top down. It was time to look into artifacts and gates.
~~~
"Dungeons?"
"Yes, that''s what we''re calling them," the nervous lab technician replied. "The environment inside changes. Sometimes, it is a cave system. Sometimes, it is open terrain as if in another world. Only there are never stars or even a sun. The sky is plain and bright. This leads us to believe that while it appears to be another world, it is, in fact, a closed system."
"Hence, dungeon," I replied. "Where did that term come from anyway?"
I had an inkling, but my experience with games and dungeons was more of fantasy raids on castles and strongholds like in World of Warcraft. These felt different to me.
"It isn''t widely popular, but some of the smaller communities of tabletop gamers have been playing this game called Dungeons and Monsters, which feature nexuses of pooled power that form into dungeons. Inside these dungeons are much like what we''re seeing in these gates."
Ah, there it was. A game in this world is similar to D&D in my world. I never played it, so I wasn''t familiar with the particulars, but I had occasionally heard about it, in the words of a wise Vulcan, fascinating. Okay, that was one word, but still, this had me very intrigued. I took out five one-hundred bills and handed them to the technician. "Thanks."
So far, I''ve learned that twenty gates have opened in this country alone. Not all gates were disclosed to all privileged in the secret. Also, worldwide, it is estimated that around a hundred and thirty gates have opened, and a ranking system has been devised to classify their level of strength. Unsurprisingly, the ranking system correlates to the Meta system.
Luckily, all gates opened so far haven''t exceeded B-rank. But in the very beginning, they were all D-rank. Then Cs started opening and now a few B. The trend is that they expect stronger ones to appear soon. This is troubling since the total number of A-ranks and S and above is less than two hundred heroes at this time.
I dialed up a contact I gave a favor to from the first week I opened my club. "Mr. Jones, I''m calling to collect on my favor."
~~~
"So, this is an artifact?" I asked while holding a dagger of exquisite design.
"Yes, it seems to emit a variant of powerful electromagnetic fields. We''re calling them mana fields," Mr. Jones said. He was the head of Research and Development for the Ministry of Technology within the government. I used a spell that I hadn''t used since the early days of Talip''etatu¡ªa spell I learned from the first Arch Wizard, Siegfried. We exchanged spells, and he gave me Identification.
Identify, I mentally spoke:
Identification: Success
Name: Poisoned Fang
Grade: C
Damage: 685
Durability: 97/100
Description: Inflict a debilitating
and Health draining effect
If I had some kind of game-like system that I could use to give me more details, I absolutely would, but alas, I don''t. But based on this result, I can connect a few dots. The grade is C, which correlates to the C-rank dungeon it came out of. Thus, there seems to be a direct connection between their grading system and this artifact. Fascinating indeed.
"Okay, Mr. Jones. Tell me about Mana Crystals."
B3 - Chapter 3
Chapter 3
Dungeons are obviously reported as quickly as they are discovered and leak preventive measures were put into place. With the announcement worldwide of these dungeons, protocols changed a bit. But the essentials were still being followed. They had instruments to measure the gate''s overall strength. They would assign a team to handle it. Then, once they entered, which they had a minute to do so after the first person passed through, it was up to that team. If they win, great. If they lose, monsters would spill out a week later.
That bit of information made things difficult for me. If I entered a dungeon without proper clearance, as many heroes did in the beginning, the minute timer would lock out anyone from entering afterward. Then, whether they succeeded or failed, there would be a mass contingency of heroes strong enough to thwart any kind of dungeon break or apprehend the rogue hero. The rogue hero would get a slap on the wrist and then reevaluated for their rank compared to the dungeon they conquered, but things would change eventually to prevent this at all costs. The resources found within were just that valuable. It became common practice to defeat everything but the boss, to allow the gathering of resources and artifacts first before the boss was defeated and the gate to close soon after.
So, while I could snag a gate from under the Association''s nose if I responded fast enough, I was sure to be greeted by cameras, Metas, and Police, along with who knows how many Royal or governmental authorities. This meant that I needed yet a third identity to ensure I could get into a dungeon. I had spells plenty for that; however, faking an actual Meta signature would be harder. Plus, I needed to fake a high-level Meta, or I wouldn''t be able to enter the real challenging dungeons. This also posed many problems. One, I can''t just be a random new S-rank Meta. I needed a full background history. Technically, the passing of the comet started this whole thing, but it wasn''t the continued passing of the comet that granted new powers. The theory introduced the changes in genetics that created the first Metas. However, the Meta gene could be transferred to offspring, and random new people might awaken the Meta gene randomly as if it was dormant for a while and something triggered its activation. I had to be one of those people, but I needed a new identification. So, I would turn to my main man, the Flower. I know, it''s a terrible name for a cyber hacker. But he was the one to establish my identity and history in this world.
~~~
"This is the first official meeting of Team Cosmic Pantheon," Radiant Jack stated. "While none of us expected to be merged like this, I fully expect professionalism on all levels." He pointedly stared at a few members of his original team.
Titan stood up and spoke. "That is correct. I don''t care about past grudges. We are together now, and we have a mission aside from keeping this city safe. There are now these gates opening up around the world. We will be pulled into handling those soon as well. But we also have a primary objective, and that is to find the man in black. He seems to embrace the persona of a vampire, but we all know that is bullocks. Our mission is to determine his identity and to what goal he is seeking. Just because he helped put down a threat of our own making doesn''t mean he is trustworthy. He did cause more deaths and destruction than was necessary."
Captain Cosmo stood next. "I know the three of us have been more than assholes to you and the hero community at large. For that, I''m truly sorry. I know you all don''t have reasons to trust us, but I want to make one thing clear. The power I witnessed that day has humbled me and my mates. We will recognize Titan as the team leader of this newly formed team and will humbly submit to his authority. Please use us in any way you deem fit," he said while bowing deeply to everyone. There were a few gasps, but mostly, the rest of the team remained skeptical. Only time would tell if the trio were genuine.
"Alright, let''s get down to business. First on our docket is the Huntsman is now officially attached to the TPD as both a suspect and an investigator to clear his name. For the time being, he is off all official cases. To make things fully transparent, he also has a secret agenda¡"
~~~
Darci was wiping the counter when a fight broke out. Two bouncers went to break them up when the Meta detector went off, and one of the combatants started to glow blue. She hit the button for the closest Meta dampener and smiled when the glow faded, and the person dropped to their knees from the sudden loss of their powers. The bouncer approached the person and struck him across the jaw, knocking him out, and Darci disabled the dampener.
She tsk''d and was about to go back to cleaning the bar when Comet Rush appeared a hair before the alert went off again. "Are you licensed for that tech? Don''t lie now because I already know the answer."
She frowned and put her hands on her hips. "This tech? What''s illegal about it?"
"Meta tech is closely monitored and controlled. Black market tech is highly illegal."
"But these aren''t powered by fragments. Mr. Korleven himself develops this tech."
"You''re telling me that, aside from owning a club and dealing out favors with the rich and powerful, he''s also a genius tech guru? I have a hard time believing that."
"He''s also a vampire with an unbelievable charm that''s seduced half the city," she replied seriously but with a sarcastic tone, knowing Jacik''s propensity to make grandiose statements. The look on Comet Rush''s face was not what she was expecting to see.
"Oh? Tell me more."
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~~~
"So, yeah, this Jacik Korleven guy apparently tells people he''s a vampire and is working for the police as a consultant," Comet Rush stated.
"And he''s developed his own versions of Meta tech? Were you able to confirm that?" Radiant Jack asked.
He vanished for a second and reappeared, then dropped a sensor that resembled a hockey puck. "I took this when they weren''t looking. It was hard to spot."
Nebula walked over and examined the device. "I don''t detect any comet essence in this. Likely, he found a way to emit the same frequency somehow. Although it''s strange, there are weird symbols etched into it."
Radiant Jack looked over it. "Could it be¡ magic?"
"Anyhow," Titan steered the conversation back to the main point. "This is the image of the club owner and the man in black. They have distinctive differences; mainly, one looks younger, has no beard, and short brown hair. And while the club owner actually looks like a vampire, it was the other one that had a flash of red in his eyes and we could barely make out fangs when he spoke. They could be two different people, but we can''t rule out magic or unknown Meta powers. We also know he hangs around that detective who wears active Meta detecting equipment. However, it stands to reason that if he can mimic the detection equipment, then he can likely disguise himself from them as well." There were nods and mumbles about the room at that statement. "Let''s wait and see what the Huntsman digs up."
~~~
Radiant Jack couldn''t ignore the artifact that simulated a limited technology through what he was sure was some form of magic. Back in his lab, he had tried to get a full analysis of the artifact with the enhanced scanner for his supercomputer, but he wasn''t finding answers. So, against his better judgment, he decided to try a spell for identification. When becoming a Meta with magic-based abilities, he was granted knowledge. This knowledge was downloaded into his head and required either incantations to use or prewritten scripts that he could merely channel magic into. These runes looked similar to his prewritten scripts, however, his would burn up upon use. These didn''t look like the kind that would disintegrate.
His magical powers were based on Magical Forms, which of the five none of them were for Identification. However, the knowledge he received could allow for other spells but would take time to cast. Something his forms had no need of. This meant he actually had more options at his disposal, but in battle, he was still limited. For this reason, he barely utilized his other capabilities and was only now regretting that decision. To his knowledge, all Metas with magic based powers were of the same system. They all had easy-to-use forms but far too complicated additional spells they could use, which included script magic. Some of the lesser-rated mages did delve into scripts since it allowed them to create magic-based technology they could profit from, but anyone of his caliber usually forgoes that path since the development of their primary forms was far more valuable. Now, Jack was seeing the benefits of a path he had once forsaken.
When the identification spell was activated, the artifact suddenly turned red and crumbled to dust right before his eyes. The spell came back with a partial analysis:
Identification:
Enchantment Magic Detected:
Enchantments: Error
List: Unavailable
Status: Blocked
''Who the hell is this guy?'' Radiant Jack thought to himself.
~~~
Travis blurred at speeds he never thought humans capable of as he dashed across the rocky terrain. The team''s prey was a particularly nasty beast that had been stalking the surrounding woods of one of Jushen''s logging towns. The beast was called a Trogolite. It was as tall as a giant but hunched over and ran like a gorilla. Yet, it was more akin to a golem with its flesh being made of stone. There was soft tissue beneath the surface, but even magic weapons proved difficult to pierce.
Talip''etatu was a strange world, and the team loved it. Jessica''s magically enhanced whips were doing wonders at restraining the beast''s movements, but even with her monstrous strength as a half-vampire, she was still straining to hold the creature in place. Kenji coming out as an actual Oni was startling news, but with that revelation, he stopped holding back and unleashed his powers at full strength. This meant powerful blows from all angles at blinding speeds through a series of rapid teleportations. His fists caused cracks and fissures to open up on the creature, which would then allow for his blades to slip in and cause severe wounds.
Sophia, still the overpowered sniper, was now so physically enhanced that her hand-to-eye coordination could now fully keep up with her intensely focused mind. Her bullets almost seemed to bend as they found all the critical points Kenji opened up. Any normal Adventuring team would struggle with this kind of monster. But they were taking it down with practiced ease. Only beings like the Hero or the famed and hopefully extinct Jecani could do better. The Knights were indeed powerful. But they were built for battles against other humanoid species. Sure, they could also defeat monsters if need be, but their efficiency wouldn''t match what Travis''s team has been able to accomplish in such a short time in this world.
He was proud of how far they had come, and Travis had hoped to one day rise to the level of Jacik. Though, it was a hopeless dream. Jessica loved the place as well but really missed Jacik, as did Oden, their lovable giant dog. "Oden, go see if you can rip off a chunk of that stone armor on the chest, please. I''ll keep the arms restrained for as long as I can."
"Ruff, okay."
"You don''t have to say the word ruff. You''re a dog, just bark¡"
"But it''s funny."
"Only to you, buddy, now go."
Oden took off like a missile with a tank''s body. When he came within range, he leaped up and used his powerful claws to grip a section of stone that had been damaged, then used his hind legs to push backward, using his formidable strength and weight to rip the stone off. The creature howled with pain and, with a dose of adrenaline, moved its powerful arms forward, snapping the whip and holding both its hands. Right before the beast slammed its giant fists into Oden, the dog hardened his skin and fur, creating a protective shield, and took the blow.
Oden hit the ground hard on his side and bounced a few times before coming to a stop. He was dazed and bruised but otherwise, okay, plus he''d heal quickly. In less than a second, six armor-piercing explosive rounds punched into the chest and detonated.
"Good job, everyone, and good boy," Travis said in the voice used for all dogs. Although Oden could speak, he was still a dog and loved every minute of the extra attention as he bound up to Travis for some head scratches.
Later that day, after the harvesting was complete. Jessica sat on a hill watching the sunset with Oden. "You want to go see Jacik for a bit?"
Oden''s tail wagged at supersonic speeds. "Ooh yes, can we, can we?"
She chuckled. "Yeah, I think we should. It''ll be entertaining to see what shenanigans he''s gotten into this time."
B3 - Chapter 4
Chapter 4
I had two ways to acquire Mana Stones, or in this case, a single Mana Stone. One would be to go in myself and get it, but that came with many complications. Still, I would do those complications because I wanted to see inside of a portal. However, the second way was to try and acquire one from a company that has obtained them or a hero scheduled to participate in a dungeon run. The latter was the obvious choice since smuggling one out for a massive reward was too tempting for most people, including heroes.
I went out of the city for this since the primary hero team in this city is at odds with me. While there used to be other teams, they''ve all been reassigned to other areas now that the Cosmic Trio has officially joined Team Pantheon. With their merger, they could handle all cases easily enough for one city.
I went two cities over to find a hero by the name of Jared Stragonoth, also known as Grip. He''s a Rank B hero with telekinetic abilities. His signature move is to grab someone from a distance and squeeze until they pass out. In the case of monsters, he just chokes them to death or squeezes their internal organs. I chose him because of his mounting debts and past criminal record. He can easily pull a Mana Stone out of a wall while the rest of the party is engaged in battle and hide it until he clears the portal.
Paying the man, I slipped into a bathroom and donned a new disguise. I made myself into a pretty blonde boy, you know, the type. Blue eyes, wavy surfer hair, chiseled jawline, and shiny pearly whites. Then, I took out my Meta detector and played around with my aura until I was able to trigger the device. I''m pretty sure I got it right to reveal myself to be a high A ranker, but it wasn''t an exact science to what I was doing.
I sent a photo of my new face to my guy to hook me up with a new name and background history, then took another look at myself in the mirror. Now for my clothes¡ I had nothing but suits, armored robes, and a suit of armor fit for a King. Granted, I can conjure clothes from the shadow ability, but they always come out pitch black. Guess I''ll go shopping, all I need is some jeans and a T-shirt. Checking my phone I saw a new message telling me my new identity was done. I had him working on it for some time, and he just needed a photo. My new credentials popped up on my wrist phone. So, I''m a Ryan now. That''ll work.
An hour later, I was ready to walk into the Meta Association to register as a new Meta. But right before taking the stairs up to the door, one of my rings got an alert: "Huh? Someone''s trying to contact me." Finding another alley with no cameras or flying drones in the area, I saved my disguise into my ring of illusions and returned my looks to my real self. Then, I took my portable gate out and set it up.
Not even two seconds after activating the gate did a large dog leaped through and knocked me over, which is not easy to do, by the way, and began soaking my face with his wet tongue.
"Okay, Oden, get off me," I said while rubbing the sides of his face. Then Jessica walked through and laughed at me. "Funny, it''s nice to see you, too."
She helped me up and then hugged me. I got the sense she wanted to kiss me, but I had dog slobber all over me. Using a quick cleaning spell took care of that issue and then she attacked my lips with wild aggression.
"You two are gross; get a room," Oden said, but we ignored him only because our tongues were busy at the moment.
"You happy to see me, or is that banana in your pants?" She asked.
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I magically conjured and removed a banana from my pants. "Just a banana," I replied, grinning. Then she socked me in the arm. "Ouch, and anyway, what''s going on?"
"We wanted a break from hunting monsters every day and decided to come here and see what you''re up to."
This might be perfect timing. Well, not perfect exactly, but if I get her to register as a Meta, then she can join me as a new team, along with Oden. I''ll have her pretend part of her powers was to enhance her dog which in turn granted him new abilities and can speak. Plus, she''ll still have the vampire strength and speed that most Metas have. Which brings me to an issue I hadn''t thought of yet. What power should I showcase? I have laser vision, shadow powers, and, of course, tons of vampire-related abilities. But distancing myself from those should be considered. It''ll be weird for a new Meta to suddenly have several powers of people who died recently.
I could do magic, but that, too, may raise suspicions because magic users all use a specific type of system. Trying to fake that would be exhausting. Hmm¡ perhaps I could do Superstrength and moderate speed and agility? That''s common enough. But if I''m to be at least an A ranker, I need another primary ability as well. Oh, now that would be cool. I could do one of the earliest spells I learned and make it look like a solo power.
Lightning was always one of my favorite spells and one of the most powerful as well. Since I learned a lot more about magic, I have far greater control and can probably come up with several different uses for it. Shoot, I could probably fly with it. I can see it now, Ride the Bolt¡ yeah I can likely make that happen.
My only real problem will be with time management since I have a nightclub to run and a day job with the detective. Speaking of which, I really should get back to her. But right now, I need to get Jessica and Oden a place to stay and her papers in order. I took a quick snap of her face with my cell and sent a new message to my guy for false identities. "Okay, guys, for now, go stay in my penthouse, but please don''t be seen downstairs yet until I get you new IDs." I opened a portal straight to my suite. "But feel free to drink from my private bar, and Oden, you can have one of the steaks in the fridge if you''re hungry."
"I''m hungry."
"I just fed you before we came," Jessica replied.
"But he doesn''t know that."
"He does now¡"
"Not if you don''t tell him. Plus, no takebacks."
"That''s not how that phrase works."
"Is too."
"Is not."
"Guys! The portal is open, and it''s costing me power."
"Sorry," she replied while kissing me on the cheek and then dashing through. Oden bound off after her.
Why am I always attracted to the slightly unhinged, dangerous ones? Is it because I''m also unhinged and dangerous? Nah, can''t be. What stage was denial again?
Well, I will register tomorrow then. For now, I need to do some more shopping for Jessica and Oden. She''ll need a wrist phone, and Oden will need food and bowls. Plus I need to find another place for them to stay. If I plan on having them join me on portal runs, then I''ll need to keep them separate from this identity.
I switched back to my surfer boy identity and immediately felt eyes on me. I tried to look around like I was looking for my car, but really looking for who was watching me, but I didn''t see anyone. I focused on my vampire senses, but there were too many people walking on nearby sidewalks to pinpoint where I was feeling this. So, I walked to my second car, which was a run-down beater, to play the part, and I drove off.
I hadn''t planned on getting a new place for myself, but if I''m being followed, I might need to plan a little better. Plus, it would be a good idea anyway to have a few safehouses just in case. So, with that, I called up my realtor and got to work.
~~~
"Oden! He said one steak, not all four."
"I don''t know how to count."
"Even if that was the case, I know for a fact you can count to one. It is literally the first number. Plus, you can read now. I helped to teach you, and I even taught you math."
"You don''t know that. Maybe I was just pretending to learn."
"Oh, now you''re a liar too? What happened to that doggy honor code you went on about?"
"Rule 15 section 4 states, always feign ignorance when food is involved."
"Wait, you have rules and sections? What are the rest of the sections for rule 15?"
"Section 1 is blaming the other pet for whatever got chewed up. Section 2 blames the mailman for why the garden got torn up. Section 3 is¡"
"Ah ha! You can count! You''re busted, mister!"
"Ruh-roh¡ um, ah, ruff ruff. Now, puppy dog eyes."
"It''s not so effective when you say it out loud before doing it," Jessica said while glaring menacingly at Oden.
B3 - Chapter 5
Chapter 5
I met up with Olivia after a quick stop at the Bureau of Survey and Mapping. "Hello Detective! I''ve returned."
"Wish you hadn''t," she said back cheerily.
"But I brought you a lead."
"I already have a lead. I talked to a bartender in that building this morning, and after a little persuasion, he confessed that our dead guys were playing an illegal game of cards. They lost big time and now owe someone called The Fixer a lot of money. We''re searching for any information on who this Fixer is."
"I already know who he is."
"What? How?"
I just checked to see who owned the building. A Mr. Douglas owns it, and while I''ve personally never done business with him, I have heard of him. He''s got fingers in all sorts of unsavory pies if you know what I mean."
"What kind?"
"Aside from loaning out large amounts of cash for insane interest rates and breaking legs or murder if you can''t pay, he''s also into trafficking, smuggling, drugs, and running an assassination business. At least, that''s the unofficial word on the street. The reason you''ve never heard of him is because he''s not on anyone''s radar. He''s very good at appearing above board in all his dealings."
"Damn. Well, this sounds like it''s going to take a long while. I''ll start collecting everything we know about this guy."
The Huntsman spoke next. "I''ll do the leg work. I''m very good at staking out places and picking up on things others miss. Catch you guys later." And with that, he walked out.
"I don''t think he likes you," Olivia said.
"What''s not to like? I''m awesome. Anyway, I''ll reach out to a few contacts of mine who might be able to get me more information. I also have a few things to take care of, so I''ll call you if I find something. Keep me updated if you find anything?"
"Yeah, yeah, guess I''ll see you whenever," she replied while refilling her coffee cup before sitting down to start combing through the police databases.
I did reach out to a few contacts, but they said they''d need time to get back to me. So, I turned my attention to all the other things I needed to get done for Jessica. It ended up taking four days to arrange everything, but that was fine. It took that long for Jessica''s new identity to arrive. Later that day, I had her move into a nice small condo that allowed pets. I set up a hidden gate in a closet that would allow her to portal over to the safehouse I set up in another name, thanks to a favor someone owed me. Then I bought myself a house nearby as well. I''ll continue to set up other safehouses in the months to follow, but for now, this will get us by.
The next day, Jessica and I went down to register as Metas and be evaluated. To become heroes, we''ll have to attend a training course for several months and be certified. The reason is to help reduce collateral damage in the city when fighting villains. And I can''t believe I said that word. It seems so clich¨¦. However, with portals being the newest threat, the Meta Association is creating a new certification for Metas to primarily focus on dungeon diving. We''d still have to learn how to fight crime in the event we''re needed, but we won''t have to sign up as an official hero team.
Jessica, Oden, and I walked into the Meta Association and approached the security desk. After they confirmed we weren''t carrying weapons, they processed us through a series of Meta detectors, which lit up to confirm we were Metas, and then we made our way to the registration desk with newly printed guest passes taped to our shirts. They had questions about Oden, but Jessica said her power turned him into a mutated dog that could speak, which, when Oden did, the look of surprise on their faces was priceless. However, they eventually let us through.
"Welcome to the Meta Association," a brunette woman wearing a green business said. She smiled and appeared friendly, but I knew it was merely professionalism and not because she was genuinely happy. But not my place to pry, so I simply responded with a thank you. "Right, so how long have you known about being Metas?"
I guessed that she was subtly inquiring because it is a law that if you develop powers, you are to register within thirty days. "Just a couple of weeks ago, I accidentally shocked someone from a few feet away and thought it was some kind of weird static shock from the carpet, but then it happened a few more times until I figured out how to make it stop. Then, my girlfriend here was shocked when she touched me, and the next thing we knew, she developed her own powers."
"You''re saying you can grant other people powers?"
"No, nothing like that. At least, I don''t think so. No one else I shocked got powers. But I think she was awakening her powers on her own and maybe just got a jump start when she touched me. Or I could be completely wrong, and it was a coincidence. Either way, here we are."
"Okay, please complete these forms and return them when you''re done. Then, we''ll have you both tested.
The forms were on a digital pad and were rather quick to fill out. We tapped our wrist phones to it to fill out the basic Identification information. Then, we just had to describe our powers to the best of our knowledge. The forms would be updated after testing and training, which usually brought out the full potential of Meta''s abilities.
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In the next room, there was this palm device that would accurately read our Meta signature to place us in a category. I was shooting for a high A rank but went a little overboard, apparently, as gasps could be heard from the other side of the machine.
"Mr. Ryan Kent, your rating is showing as SS-Rank. Do you know what that means?" The tester exclaimed. He was a burly man with a large, thick black beard and would''ve looked like he was at home with an axe and a log if it wasn''t for the white lab coat he was wearing. "Please move over here, and Miss, you can place your palm on the scanner."
The tester and his assistant both gasped again when Jessica''s rating came back as S-Rank. They didn''t test Oden because he was supposedly a part of her power. And I never tweaked his aura to register as a Meta, anyway. The tester had us waiting in the next room while he reported us to his boss. Then, half an hour later, we were ushered into the training room with no less than nine testers who were all interested in the new recruits.
"Mr. Kent and Miss Raven, I apologize for not introducing myself earlier," the bearded man said. "I am Knox, an A-ranker and second to Branch Master Nathan Guidwell. While I am an A-ranker, my strength and durability are on par with the strongest SS-rankers. I just have low output energy due to not having a primary ability. But you''ll find no better tank on these dungeon runs. Which I understand is what you''re registering for, correct?"
"Yes," I answered for the both of us.
"Very well. We''ll put you through a series of tests to measure your strength, speed, agility, and durability. Then, we''ll move on to the power testing. I see here that your power is lightning. And Miss Raven''s is Healing Magic, and also has been able to enhance her dog."
"I''m Oden," Oden said. Knox''s eyes grew wide.
"Okay, well, that is confirmed, at least. Can you do this to more animals?"
"Maybe? When I did it with Oden, I felt this Bond form between us, but I haven''t been able to do it since to other animals," she replied with her rehearsed lie.
"Interesting. Well, let''s move to the strength test first."
We walked to a station with four different machines. One was similar to a benching machine but looked like an MRI machine with a bar in the center. Knox demonstrated it by lying underneath the bar and pushing upward and the amount of weight registered on the display screen showed numbers rising as he held it up until he started to struggle and finally let it drop. The final numbers showed 12.7 tons.
I took my place and held it up. I needed to place it around what Knox placed, but since I couldn''t see the screen, I had no idea how long to hold it. Since Knox held it for around three minutes, I tried to do the same. However, I forgot to count in Mississippis and had to start over, but then I forgot how long I was already doing it. By the time I counted out a fresh three minutes and let it go, my final result was 23.8 tons. Oops. To be honest, I wasn''t really struggling yet either, but I was definitely feeling the weight.
Knox whistled and shook his head. At least Jessica''s results were more honest at 6 tons. She''d had some very powerful blood, which increased her abilities and strength, but she was still only half-vampire.
Next was the impact machine, which was kind of like a punching machine but more sophisticated. It measured technique vs. impact and gave a score based on those variables. Both Jessica and I had great technique because we were trained; however, we downplayed our abilities because we were supposedly new Metas and didn''t have a false history of martial arts.
The next two machines measured leg strength and muscle stress. Remember Captain America holding down a helicopter? It was kind of like that. They wanted to see how strong our joints, muscles, ligaments, organs, and etcetera were. After the strength test, we moved on to the rest. It was a long day.
~~~
Nathan Guidwell tapped on the report of the two new recruits while Knox sat in a chair on the other side of his desk. "So, is this accurate?" He asked, even though he knew his equipment was infallible.
"Actually, I don''t think it is, at least for Ryan. I''m sure it is for the girl."
"Oh, what makes you say that?"
"Well, when I go through the testing, the strain is so intense that I struggle at the end, which, as you know, causes certain facial features. I''ve seen it in all those I''ve tested. You can visibly see the strained look and even their sweat. Ryan didn''t have any of those tells that he was truly pushing himself. It almost seemed like he was calculating when to stop so as to not seem so absurd, but he underestimated his calculations and performed better than he was shooting for. I saw the look of disappointment on his face. Usually, when I see that look, it is because they performed less than they thought they could after giving it their all."
"But since he didn''t give it his all and still had that look, you think he performed higher than he wanted to?"
"Precisely."
"Interesting. Let''s see, his strength is SS-Rank. Durability is SSS-Rank, and Agility is SSS-Rank, but while his initial acceleration speed is S-Rank, his top speed is B-Rank. However, his stamina and endurance are also SSS-Rank. And on top of all of this, he also has a main ability of Lightning powers. Are we sure he is only SS-Rank for his Signature?"
"It is what the readings stated. Although there have been cases where the applicant started with a weaker Meta Signature but, after developing their powers, their Signature grew a rank. There was even one Meta that went up by two ranks," Knox replied.
"That is rare, but undeniable that it can occur. We''ve never had one come through our Branch, though. This might be a good opportunity to study him and see if we can break the mystery of how that works. Now, what of the girl?"
"She''s also an interesting case. Her acceleration and top speed both place her at A-Rank, which is just below Speedsters, but she is very close. Her reaction speed is also high, which means her Agility is A-Rank too. Her Strength, Endurance, and Stamina are also A-Rank, but her Durability is C-Rank. However, we noticed that she has S-Rank regeneration. We''re not sure the Ryan since we could never penetrate his skin, so his rating is Unknown."
"So, her overall stats are decently high but not on par with most S-Rankers, yet she emits an S-Rank signature. His her healing magic that much more powerful?"
"We''re doing the power testing tomorrow, however, from what she explained. She has pure healing abilities. She doesn''t have a typical magic system that other Mages do. She''s also not limited to just healing but all supportive magic. She said she could cure diseases and more. Regenerate lost limbs and even create shields. But then she said she wished for a strengthing buff on Ryan once, and it worked."
"And that is all on top of her pet. Seems we have a very interesting couple here."
"It gets even more interesting than that. The dog, Oden, doesn''t just have enhanced strength, durability, and the ability to talk. But he can extend his fur to form metal needle-like strands that can pierce armor. This trio can be their own team if they want to be."
"I see. Very well, I look forward to their initial power testing tomorrow and the growth they display over the coming months. Train them well. We might just have a new power team in our city."
B3 - Chapter 6
Chapter 6
I still haven''t heard anything new from Olivia, but I did receive some information from a contact who said to look into Trevon Financials. I sent the message to the Detective to follow the money and then made my way back to the Meta Association. Before I did that, and when I was still in my Club owner persona, I felt that strange feeling of being watched. This time, it was when I exited my Club, and since it was an early morning, I looked in the direction I felt the feeling come from, and suddenly, the sensation left. Frowning, I decided to move on with the day. I wasn''t in my vampire persona, so I couldn''t overtly display powers. But I did take extra precautions when becoming my new alter ego.
I found Jessica and Oden already inside the Meta Association. While I arrived on time, they had arrived early and started their power assessment before me.
I watched as she performed several different healing, curing, and shielding magics. I was proud of how far she had come with magic. Of course, she could perform a lot more than that, but for this purpose, I wanted her to be a different type of healer who performed like a power and not actual magic. Since she could do wordless magic, the examiners eventually classified her power as not magic but just her natural Meta abilities. Which is what I was hoping the outcome would be.
My assessment was painfully ignorant. I had to act like I had little control but great possibility. However, since I hadn''t actually played around with all the creative ways to use lightning, it wasn''t hard to sell. I was even surprised to learn that they had pointers for me on how to focus my abilities in different ways. I even asked if certain things were possible, and they said¡ "Maybe, let''s try it."
It was nice working with people who were as passionate about discovering new powers and capabilities as I was. I even learned how to ride the lightning bolt, which one of the testers dubbed Embark the Arc. I have to say that is better than Ride the Bolt or Ride the Lightning, which I think is an 80s song. Still, it wasn''t great, but we''re limited when trying to create a rhyme scheme. How did my life come to this? All I wanted was a peaceful life, I said. Now, I accepted adventure and distractions. Distractions over reliving painful memories. But now I''m boiled down to poor rhymes when naming powers. And for what? Right, to see what is inside a portal.
Earth¡ um¡ Prime. My Earth¡ had stories about elves, dragons, dwarves, and even superheroes. Hell, we had stories of dungeons, portals, and so much more. My travels across the multiverse have revealed that all those things are true in one capacity or another. Why? How? Is this all conjecture based on imagination? Is this all created from imagination? Or did those elements of fantasy come to my Earth through dreams of other worlds that were actually real?
Maybe talented artists, storytellers, and screenwriters all had dreams of other worlds that were real and brought them to life in my world. Or, maybe some of those things once existed in my world before recorded history, but through verbal history, were passed down until they became recorded as myths and folklore. Who knows? But I have a chance to live out some of those fantasies. I would be remiss if I didn''t take advantage of that. Besides, what is the point of being immortal if you do not experience everything? Well, everything awesome, and not sick and deprived. I''m not a human monster.
Juggling my business, working with the Detective, and attending classes for supes was trying¡ªeven for one such as me who doesn''t sleep. But I am awesome, as I''ve stated, and clearly know what I''m doing.
"Three days!" Olivia shouted at me.
"I''m sorry; what about the last three days?"
"I haven''t heard a word from you! I''ve sent you messages, emails, hell, I''ve fucking sent officers to locate you, and no one could find you. Now you suddenly show up as if nothing has happened! The nerve!"
I admit I might''ve been too focused on other projects lately, but how did I miss messages from her? I checked my wrist phone and still didn''t see any notifications. "Look," I activated my wrist phone''s virtual display. I have no messages or emails. Wait a minute. I have no messages or emails from anybody. How did I not notice this?"
"Give me your phone," Olivia demanded.
I removed it and handed it to her. She placed it on a docking station and ran a scanning program. Two minutes later, she had the results. "You''ve been hacked. Someone went out of their way to cut you off from communications. That is not easy for this tech."
I ground my teeth to keep my anger in check. With a subtle growl in my voice, I asked, "Do we know who did it?"
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"No. The software is designed to check only, not attempt a backtrace. The reason is that backtraces tend to tip off whoever did it since they tend to be intelligent enough to know when we''re on to them. It is better to not tip our hand and try to locate them the harder way."
"I see." I picked my wrist phone off the docking station. "I''ll get to the bottom of this."
"Is that all you have to say?" She asked.
Clearly, there was something she was fishing for, but even after thousands of years of life, I still didn''t know what that was. So, I answered, "Yes¡" and gave a shoulder shrug. Yeah, she''s pissed. But less pissed now that she knows I didn''t do it on purpose. Maybe no matter how much time I have, understanding women will forever be beyond me. What hope do the rest of the men have?
I drove to my Club, rode the elevator to my penthouse, and then used a portal to travel to Jessica''s condo.
"Hey love, I wasn''t expecting you."
I kissed her and then responded, " I''m Sorry, something came up. Can I borrow your wrist phone?"
With a quick check that she also wasn''t being blocked, I dialed up my hacker friend. "Flower, I need your assistance." Since it was a video call and from a number he was aware of, he had accepted the call and knew who he was talking to.
"Jacik. What''s the problem?"
"My wrist phone seems to have been hacked. I need a trace and a new phone with updated security measures. I''ll double the fee and give you two favors."
"Brother, you got yourself a deal. Drop it off at this location," he texted the address, "and I''ll take care of everything. Your new device will be waiting for you at that location as well. Once I find the culprit, I''ll hit you up."
"Thanks," I said, then hung up. I can go a long time without feeding. But right now, the stress was building, and I needed the taste of blood to cure the rising headache. Tonight, it was time to don my vampire persona. I needed to eat.
"Jessica, I''m going to feed tonight. Do you want to join?"
"Yes, I''ve been hungry for a while but been on edge about how to navigate this new world. They have drones and all sorts of tech surveilling everything. I never used to need to feed, but ever since I did to gain power, my vampire half has been craving it more and more."
"I understand. Well, I happen to know a few places that are less monitored and more heavy with shady types. I''m sure we can find ourselves a good meal."
Later that night, I was no longer disguised, but Jessica was. Since she was new to this world, we kept her name and looks for her main identity, but now that she was acting as her true self, I needed to change her appearance just in case someone did, in fact, spot us. With our senses, the likelihood of that happening was low, but due to Metas, not impossible. Better safe than sorry.
We had a few options of approach. We could walk together as a couple through unsavory streets and hope to be mugged, but in this world, that was actually unlikely. Granted, crime still found a way to do business. Street muggings were not that common. Few places were bought off to not be survelled. And those places were not typically places where locals or tourists found themselves in. Besides, we weren''t predators pretending to be prey. No, we needed no ruse. We only needed to hunt.
I felt a nudge inside my mind. "Smog wants to hunt too."
I smiled and released Smog. "Okay, buddy, let''s hunt."
We came upon a warehouse with lights on, surrounded by dozens of other warehouses that were completely dark. There wasn''t any business being conducted outside, which piqued our interest. Even more so when we saw a few hidden guards, who, while hidden well enough not to be noticed by anyone passing by, weren''t on alert enough to care about why they were hidden. Like all typical guards, when nothing happens each night for weeks, months, or years on end, they become complacent.
"Smog, they''re yours. Make it quiet." Smog chirped and shrank into the ground. When the guards were swallowed whole, we dashed to the building and up the side of the sheet metal walls. It wasn''t hard; we just leapt to the roof. There was sun-pane glass for lighting, and it gave us a perfect view of what was going on inside.
"Good, I''m glad to see drugs, guns, and a couple of Metas playing around with their powers," I said.
"Why are you glad?"
"Besides that, we found our meals? Because I already had Smog eat people. Now come on, let''s dine."
"Let me have the two Metas. I need to grow stronger still."
I eyed her curiously but figured her performance during the Meta trials had left her feeling lacking. "Okay, they''re yours." I then extended a finger talon and used it to cut a hole in the glass. I used telekinesis to catch the loose piece and move it safely aside. Then, I pumped a whole lot of fog down through the hole and filled the place rapidly. The shouts below were not a concern for us as now it was feeding time.
Being a half-vampire meant that Jessica still lacked many of the vampiric abilities I had. However, feeding on my blood had granted her many of the basics, which included melding with the fog and transporting herself through it. Although she could only produce a light mist herself, she wasn''t restricted to only her mist. We both merged with the fog and passed through the small hole easily.
We emerged from many places at near instantaneous speeds, biting necks, slashing throats, and, in my case, ripping out hearts to drink directly from the glorious source. The two Metas that had moderate abilities didn''t even have a chance to respond when Jessica emerged from the fog and strung them up with her whip before plunging her teeth into their necks.
We were done in less than thirty seconds and vanished with the fog beneath the hangar doors through the cracks. The mostly bloodless bodies were left behind. I could''ve had Smog come clean them up, but somewhere deep inside, I wanted to send a message to anyone who discovered them that crime had consequences. But maybe the idealistic part of me should''ve taken a back seat to the realist part of me. Because if there is any law greater than Murphy''s, it is the law of unintended consequences.
B3 - Chapter 7
Chapter 7
"Do we know who the victims were?" Titan asked.
"Members of the Rico gang. Small-time thugs who were operating out of an abandoned warehouse," Radiant Jack replied.
"They had a cop on their payroll who reported the scene when he went to check in with them. We know this because this cop was on GIU''s radar for quite some time. The cop claimed to be doing rounds when he thought he saw blood and investigated, but all evidence shows that was impossible. Unfortunately, there is no surveillance in the area. However, blood spatter and early examination of the bodies show massive blood loss and even some hearts ripped out. There are fang marks."
"This is our vampire?" Nebula asked.
"Seems so," Titan answered.
"Still can''t believe vampires are real. Could it be a strange Meta mutation?" Dark Matter asked.
"No way to know until we capture him," Titan responded.
Comet Rush shook his head. "Something doesn''t add up. First, we know this guy is faster than me. He could easily snatch someone, drain them, and be gone before our cameras could see him. Why attack known criminals? If he clearly needs to drink blood, why is he choosing bad people? He also came to our aid recently and even risked his life to fight that woman. I know he also caused a lot of damage, and I understand why we need to bring him in, but what is his motive?"
"If we can answer that, we might be able to narrow down who he is quicker. Do we still think the club owner is our mystery vampire or merely related to him somehow?" Nebula asked.
"We have no proof either way, only a few circumstances where he was near certain events at the time. The Huntsman is still trailing him. If anyone can find evidence, it is him," Titan responded. "Captain Cosmo, can you lead the investigation at the warehouse?"
"I can do that. My powers might help reveal what exactly went down there."
Hours later, the team reconvened. Captain Cosmo held up his hand and projected a play-by-play of what had happened that night at the warehouse. It showed images of fog, fangs, and ferocity unmatched by any villain they had ever met. However, it was the fact that two of them were committing these acts of brutality that truly bothered them. There was no showmanship, no goals of gaining riches, just a simple, primal need to feed, and it was efficient. They wasted no time, got in, ate, and got out with hardly a trace. If it wasn''t for cosmic powers being able to replay what went down, all they''d have was speculation.
"Right, so there are two of them now. Unfortunately, we can''t make out genders, but we know one uses whips. Let''s update our dossier on this case and continue our nightly surveillance of the city. Eventually, we''ll catch wind of them, and when we do, we''ll bring down the full powers of this entire team," Titan commanded.
~~~
Although the investigation to determine whether the Huntsman was guilty or not was still ongoing, we had another body to investigate. The murder, thankfully, occurred after my powers testing, which I''ll get into in a moment. For now, I had a new murder to examine.
I arrived at an apartment complex, flashed my consultant''s badge, and joined Olivia at the scene. Lucy was there as well and bent over, examining the body. "We got a male, early twenties, non-Meta with multiple stab wounds to the chest, arm, and torso," she concluded.
The body was found in the garbage container outside the apartments. "No obvious blood trail and no spatter, which suggests they were transported from the location of death to the bin wrapped in something to contain the blood. That something is not with the body, which means they took it elsewhere," Olivia added.
I recently ate, but the blood was still tantalizing, even though it was hours old. It took a short moment to collect myself and move past the craving. Once I did, I noticed that while there wasn''t a blood trail to follow, there was a scent trail. Without a word, I walked off and was already at the front entrance to the apartment complex before Olivia and Lucy noticed I was gone. They shouted to wait for them but ultimately decided to run to catch up.
I followed the trail up to the fifth floor with bewildered looks behind me as to what I was tracking. Then we arrived at room 536, and I knew this was it. "There, a smidge of blood on the door frame. This is the place."
Olivia banged on the door twice, shouted, "Police!" and then started to kick it in. After five attempts, I held a hand up and took her place. With one kick, the entire door flew off its hinges and shot forward, bouncing off the bed and taking out the TV.
"Oops. You must''ve loosened it," I stated flatly.
She gave me a shocked stare but then moved in with her gun drawn. After clearing the room, we stopped in the kitchen, where a bloody knife was left in the sink, and a few stains were on the floor where an obvious rug used to be.
"Why did they take the rug after dumping the body?"
"Maybe someone might''ve recognized the rug and then knew which apartment it came from?" I shared my thoughts. "I mean, the location would''ve been discovered eventually, but the murderer is likely hoping to buy time for an escape."
"Well, let''s find out who owns this apartment and what vehicle they might be driving. Then we''ll get a search grid set up," Olivia stated. She then let the Uni''s in to secure the scene while she headed to the apartment''s office. As I walked with her down, I told her to give me a call if she needed me and that I had errands to run. She rolled her eyes but nodded. I don''t know why she gets upset with me leaving when it comes down to time-consuming grunt work. It''s not like I''m expected to know how to canvas the city¡
~~~
During the powers testing, Jessica and Oden unanimously voted for me to go first. Thanks, jerks. The first test was target practice and measuring of power. Three targets were set up, and I was to aim for the middle target. As befitting of my rank but also of my status as a noob, I opted for a lot of power but with a wide spread that damaged all three targets and everything in between. My damage was very good but not great, but that was the intent. Then I followed the simple directions on how to focus by Meta''s with similar powers to achieve a more pinpoint accuracy, and not so surprisingly, I blew away the middle target with ease. Following their guidance, I also quote-unquote learned how to redirect my lightning around targets as well as empower my body to move faster. To be honest, some of these lessons were actually teaching me because despite all my capable speed, I never once infused my cells with lightning.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
I had to practice outside the Meta Association, and with Jessica''s help, we got a good measurement at over Mach 9, which put me far higher than any known Speedster, including my former self as a vampire and not a hero. This was game-changing for me. But, within the Meta Association testing, I downplayed that speed significantly. I didn''t want to be known as being on the same par as speedsters. The best I strived for was initial burst speed and crappy top-end speed.
During the testing, I brought up the idea of riding the lightning. As in, was it possible and if so, how can I do it? I got a lot of "We don''t know, but if it were possible, it would have to be a visualization thing. They already knew that I could infuse my body with electricity, so it wasn''t inconceivable that I couldn''t affix myself to a bolt and ride it. If it were possible, it would require practice. And I''m glad, for once, that this endeavor was genuine. I had to actually practice something I''d never done before. Granted, a brute force spell could achieve the desired outcome, but then it would mean using brute force spells every time. That was simply too costly.
Learning how to do the spell the hard way meant I could achieve it with far less mana output, which, in turn, made it worthwhile to do over simply running like a speedster that I wasn''t supposed to be able to do. So, I threw myself into the studies each day and actually gained much from the instructors, so much in fact that they properly labeled me as an SS-Rank Meta.
Jessica''s training with Oden was a bit different. It wasn''t simply learning how to spread waves of healing or curing power, but focusing on deep wounds and applying specific targeted heals or cures. Over her time practicing healing, she got the sense that she had a unique power simply based on the people they brought to her who were at death''s door and, due to status, shouldn''t have been guinea pigs for her lessons.
Jessica furrowed her brows. "You mean to tell me this A-Ranker will die tonight if I don''t heal him?" She skeptically asked her trainer.
"Of course not. We obviously have other healers who can take care of this, but what better practice for you than someone so close to death? It should propel your confidence and healing ability if you can manage this amount of damage," her trainer stated.
"Well, if that is the reasoning, then I can always learn that reasoning later. For now, I''m exhausted and need a break. Please bring in your other healer because I am done for the night."
"This is a lesson with a grade score. You don''t want to fail, do you?"
"Please, I''ve healed this and worse over the past few weeks. If you wanted to fail me on this one now, then it would be you who was dishonest. So, I''m good. Have a good night," Jessica started to walk off when they desperately called out to her.
"Jessica, wait. We don''t have anyone currently that can heal this graveness of a wound tonight, and possibly the rest of the month. Please heal him, and we''ll give appropriate compensation for your grade and recommendations to any team or organization of your choosing."
Interesting, I thought to myself. Why did she try to lie? Was it to calm her nerves so as to give her confidence in healing someone at death''s door? Whatever the reason, it was unnecessary. Jessica has fought true monsters without fear. Jessica scoffed but began to heal the man. She took her time and examined the wounds, making a complete map of the man''s body using a scanning spell that was invisible to everyone but her. Then she got to work on curing, then mending bones, organs, tendons, and eventually muscles before finally erasing all traces of scaring on the skin. It was a flawless healing process, and in such a short time, she fully impressed her trainer.
I for one, wasn''t impressing my trainer as I fell on my face over and over again. Riding a lightning bolt was way harder than Barry Allen made it seem in the final season of The Flash. Granted, he was throwing it out like foot pads to run on where I was trying to stay on it and simply ride it, but I call bullshit. This might be impossible.
"Maybe the solution is to alternate the polarity of your lightning to toss out versus the lightning you maintain within your body. Kind of like magnets. Try and make it so you stick to the bolt-through magnetism," Knox stated with a rather insightful understanding of how electricity works.
I had to dig through memories from thousands of years ago when I was a grad student attending a science course. Thanks to my becoming a Sunstrider, my genes healed, and I became a more perfect version of a human but with supernatural gifts. This caused my memory to expand to everything I''ve ever seen and passively heard, including every lesson I had partially snored through. But the definition finally came to me.
"Electromagnetism is the process of creating magnetic fields by moving electric charges, or creating moving electric charges by changing magnetic fields around charges." ¨C Electricity, Lightning, and the World of Magnetism, written by Mrs. Codwell, PhD.
Of course. When solving complex magical theories, my greatest advantage with magic was always my knowledge and perfect recall of science and mathematics. Why was I trying to solve this problem without resourcing my vast knowledge trapped within my memories? I''ve become so relaxed about my overwhelming power and strength that I''ve become complacent with my thinking.
Perhaps I''ve become too complacent with everything. I have interests and a few small goals, but in the grand scheme of things, for an immortal, I think I''ve merely been seeking distractions for entertainment purposes only. I have Jessica and, to some extent, Olivia, as well as friends, but I haven''t tried to pursue a deeper connection with any of them. Why?
Even Smog, who''s been with me the longest at this point, I barely bring out and converse with. Why? Why, why, why¡ Why am I asking why? Is it because something has gone missing within me? What is this feeling that is suddenly rising within me? Am I crying? I feel wetness falling from my face.
"Ryan, are you okay?" Knox asked. "I know this is difficult¡" and he droned on for a bit as if talking to a child, which was the appearance I gave off for this persona, so I don''t fault him for that, but I stopped hearing his words. I was too lost in my own turmoil.
Aria. I believe that was when I last felt truly happy, even fulfilled. I miss my wife. I know she''s on a path to rebirth, but there is a strong chance I''ll never see her again. Is this the reason why I''ve been pushing myself to do many stupid things for the sake of doing them? Just so that I can distract myself from the emptiness within my heart? Probably. I started to sink into despair.
Then, something happened that I never could''ve imagined in all of eternity. I felt a faint and faraway voice whisper to me, "Husband, do not fret. I will find you again. Live free and wonderous. Be the man I once fell in love with. Take all that is yours, including women, friends, powers, and domain. Remember who you are¡ I love you," and then her voice was gone. I felt the Phoenix''s power within that message and wondered just how long have they been keeping tabs on me. Or even how without my knowledge. But none of that mattered now as I openly balled my eyes out at hearing Aria''s words. Knox was so confused.
That night, I summoned Smog and left him out. We chatted, he played with Oden, and I sent them on a discrete hunting mission. Then, I made love to Jessica in a way that I knew Aria was okay with. I have no desire to start a harem. But Aria had found a way to convey to me how to solve an age-old question. If your wife vanished and was presumed dead for years, and you moved on to another woman, then she suddenly came back, what would you do?
For a man, there is no good answer. For the two women, they have to solve that problem for you. I already know Jessica''s answer. She told me in the beginning. But now that I had Aria''s confirmation, I felt a weight fall off that I didn''t even know I was carrying. At least the one positive change would be no more one-night stands at the club. Even I can admit that it was a dark time for me.
The next day, I rode the bolt. Or, I guess we''re calling it Embark the Arc, which now I''m second-guessing, but whatever. I managed to keep myself attached to the bolt, which required projecting a positive charge in front of the bolt while maintaining a negative charge within myself. This would result in synchronization with the bolt and its attraction to the positive charge, which essentially pulled me along the bolt.
Honestly, I had to employ a few subtle magics to really make it work since that amount of electricity would otherwise seize up my muscles. After all, I''m not actually an Electric affinity Meta with such immunities. I''m a fraud with cheat-like powers pretending to be something I''m not. Any burning effect I felt during the process was almost completely healed instantly by my own supernatural healing, plus if it was at night, my skin became un-burnable. But even during the day, the small amount of damage my natural healing couldn''t take care of instantly, I simply enchanted one of my rings to siphon mana to instantly regenerate my body. This gave the effect that I was, in fact, immune to the lightning while taking a joy ride around the skies. And believe you me, flying like this was vastly different than with wings. This was closer to soaring on wind currents than flapping my way through them.
B3 - Chapter 8
Chapter 8
My phone rang shortly after my early morning training to be a Meta was over. "Jacik, we found our guy. It was the victim''s son. Drones and traffic cams have him leaving the city toward Nasvilla. We notified the sheriff''s office there and will be passing the case to them," Olivia said.
"Okay, good news then."
"Yes, and even better news."
"Oh?"
"We got a new body."
"Why is that better news?"
"Because this body fits the M.O. of a known serial killer called the Stalker. So, unless we got ourselves a copycat, the Meta Hunter is in town."
"A serial killer that hunts Metas? Why are we labeling him or her a serial killer instead of something like a villain or vigilante?"
"Because of the way they kill. It is ritualistic, and they take souvenirs. Um¡ ah right, they take the left ear of their victims."
"Agh, disgusting. Why take the ear?"
"Well, like fingerprints, ears are also unique," Olivia replied.
"Still gross. So, is our serial killer a Meta?"
"We don''t believe so, but we also don''t know for sure. His or her identity is still unknown."
"Why don''t you believe so? They are killing Metas."
"This isn''t widely known, so I appreciate it if you don''t spread this around. But, most Meta powers have some kind of physical effect on a person. Even mental powers leave scarring on the brain. Since all eleven victims so far have had no evidence of Meta powers or traces of Meta residue left behind, we''re running on the theory that our perp is not a Meta. It is possible, due to the choice of victims, that they have a "Hunter''s Mentality." Like they see dangerous Metas as a challenge to take down."
"So, eleven victims, and they were all strong Metas?"
"Yes, ten A rankers and one S rank so far."
I let loose a whistle. "Wow, that is impressive. Tell me everything."
She replied with a digital file sent directly to my wrist phone. "Read that over and meet me at the office," she said and then hung up.
The toxicology report shows a tranquilizer strong enough to drop elephants, but the delivery method is unknown. But believed to be inhaled as no puncture marks were found. However, the method of killing is strapping the victim naked to a cross with ratchet straps and drilling a hole through their bulletproof skin. Then, they use a stiletto to pierce the heart and leave the blade inside. Afterward, the body is drained of blood before being cut into many segments. No religious indications as of yet. The cross was left on a table with the body.
The stiletto is a custom-forged dagger with the word "Stalker" stamped into the cross guard. I guess that''s where the name came from. Then I read about the eleven victims and was impressed at the audacity it was to hunt them as a possible human. They believe the killer is at least fifty due to the number of years they''ve been active. They are sure it is a male, but in the small chance that they are a Meta themselves, then a female could be the killer, but the likelihood is we''re looking for a white male in their fifties.
I pulled up to the station, parked in the fire lane, and tossed my keys to a Uni that was about to head into work. "Hey, park that for me."
The cop was stunned at the demand and was about to pop off until I tossed him a money clip. Seeing the amount and then understanding who I was, he smiled and said, "Yes, sir." I love a little bribery, especially with cops.
Inside, I found Olivia hard at work at her desk. On a whim, I conjured some roses. Since the feeding the other night, I was flush with Mana, so a brute force spell was okay. "Hello, detective," I said with my best charming voice. And handed her the roses. "These are for the prettiest cop in this place."
"Oh? Was it from Tatum?"
"Ah, no."
"Pitt?"
"No¡"
"Gylenhaal, Pine, Hemsworth?" She fired off.
"No, no, and no," I replied irritatingly. And how was everything different about this world except for their actors?
The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.
"Then I don''t want them," she said while tossing them into the trash. It felt like a stake to the heart. Something I do have experience with. "Now, tell me you have some insight you''d like to drop on me with this case?"
"Where is the body? Give me some time with it, and I''ll have some answers for you." She cocked an eyebrow at me. "Honest. Show me the body, and I promise you your insight."
"Fine, come with me." She stood up and started walking toward the morgue. I followed, and when we arrived two floors down¡ªI didn''t know we had more floors beneath us¡ªwe finally arrived at the morgue.
"Hi, Lucy," Olivia said as we entered.
"Oh, hello, Olivia and Jacik. How can I help?"
"He wants to see the body."
"Sure," Lucy replied and then walked over to the cold storage units. Opening one up and pulling back the sheet revealed our victim. In less than a blink of an eye, I moved in front of both women and used compulsion on them.
"Stand still and remember nothing for the next five minutes," I said. Both women froze, and their eyes glazed over as if in a trance. Good. It is one thing to tell them I do magic and them not believe me. It is another to do a little necromancy right in front of a couple of disbelievers.
Necromancy is something I studied and learned during the era of peace when I was king. I had successfully pulled a soul back into a body; that was how I created Rex, but necromancy was different. The soul has long since passed on. I can''t restore the dead after their soul departed. However, I can revive a body that maintains memories for a short period. I can also revive a body for a long period of time, but that requires fully wiping its memories, including those encoded into its RNA. Otherwise, the memories try to override my commands, and eventually, the magic breaks down.
Casting the spell, I watched as the head suddenly jolted awake. It had no will, so it just lay there waiting for instructions. My spell also compels it to obey me and it would for a while. The longer I tried to maintain the corpse, however, the more the memories would start to fight me. While it wouldn''t be will that moves it to fight me, it would be more instinct. But at the beginning of the spell, I had the most sway over the corpse.
"Describe the killer to me." Since I''m working with memories only, I can''t ask questions that the victim wouldn''t know or be able to infer based on pieces of data. They can only describe what they''ve seen, smelled, heard, or felt.
"Tall, brown skin, male, had an iLaden accent. Long hair, black. Wore a plain white mask. Trimmed nails. Three freckles on the right hand. Tattoo on the left hand. Three horizontal stripes across a coffin. Wore a green army jacket, a plain black shirt, and black jeans. Black boots. Laced military style."
That was very detailed. This Meta, from my files, was also ex-military. So, bonus on his observational skills.
"Describe how he took you."
"Box on the porch. Opened, and a gas hit me."
"And how did he kill you."
"Took a diamond-coated drill bit, one and one-quarter inch. Placed it in an industrial-size drill press. Pulled lever. Broke skin. Then stabbed heart with a shiny pointy object."
Figures he wouldn''t know the proper name of the dagger used. He only had vague glimpses of it. "Tell me everything the killer said to you."
"You are a strong one. However, even the strong ones fall prey to a trap. Now, you''re no more than a wounded animal ready to be put down. I now place this relic into thine body as a monument to the Great Theesties. May he forever rest with the nourishment of this blessing."
I dismissed the spell. My five minutes were almost up with the ladies. So, almost everything they profiled was wrong. I had more questions than answers, but enough answers to put us on the right track. Now, though, how do I give this information?
The women came to as if nothing had happened, and I started my examination of the body. "Considering the body was prone, strapped to a cross, on a table, the angle of the hole was perfectly ninety degrees. This suggests a table drill press. Obviously, a diamond-coated drill was used. The stiletto makes it a little difficult to determine the drill bit size, but my best estimate puts it at one and one-quarter inches.
"The marks left by the stiletto seem to suggest the killer was tall, possibly above six feet." At least that is the minimum I would say is tall. I''m sure our dead guy here would agree. "Furthermore, I don''t think we should rule out religious motivations. It has nothing to do with the cross, but I sense this has something to do with the Great Theesties." I actually had no idea who that was and wished I could''ve researched that before I said it, but I was hoping one of them would know and shed light on who that was.
"Seriously? What makes you say that?" Olivia asked.
Dammit. That wasn''t the response I was hoping for. So, based on context clues, I shot my best BS shot. "Ritually speaking, leaving a body with the weapon used to kill it gives the Great Theesties the tool needed to consume the corpse. This also explains why the corpse was drained of blood and diced into segments. Kind of like stabbing a piece of meat." They didn''t look convinced. "Look, I know this is a long shot, but in the iLaden religious sect, they do leave their sacrifices of animals the same way."
I had no knowledge of that at all¡ªI totally made that up. But the power of context clues won over as Lucy GAIL searched it. What is GAIL, you ask? Well, it is like Google, but it stands for Global Association of Interconnected Language. Essentially, it is a one-stop search engine for all languages on this Earth.
"Jacik is correct. The method of killing does align with the religion of the Great Theesties. The only reason I can see for using a cross was to properly strap down a humanoid," Lucy said, indicating that Metas were of humanoid proportions, "in order to better restrain them. From the Tox Report and the estimated time of death, the victim was likely awake during the process. This also aligns with what that religion does to animals. It''s sickening."
"If you can tell me where the body was found, and if there is any video footage of the general area, I''ll point out our killer. I''m sure I can spot him."
"Him? So, you''re sure it is a guy?" Olivia asked.
"It isn''t just the height. It is the methodical nature of the hunt, plus the use of power tools, that indicates a male. Yes, I cannot say for certain, but I have a pretty good idea of who I''m looking for. Give me the resources, and I''ll find your killer."
Olivia was never onboard with me being a partner with her. I got the sense she didn''t like having a partner at all. However, her Captain made me her partner and at some point, she started seeing me that way, especially when I flaked on her. But one thing she did know was that I had a knack for being right. It wasn''t just my contacts and money, but deep down inside, she knew I had some supernatural instinct that she couldn''t ignore. I was, after all, three for three so far.
"Olivia, Jacik is right, forensically speaking. Trust him. I have good vibes about him and his intuition," Lucy said.
"Fine. Come with me," she said again. This time heading to the tech department.
B3 - Chapter 9
Chapter 9
Aerial surveillance of the area and the time of the victim''s last known whereabouts before he turned up dead revealed a busy street next to a series of stores. Hundreds of people passed by; however, at some point, our guy received a package, took it inside, and then went missing sometime later. While our victim was an elite Hero, a lot of them maintained normal jobs. This one owned a store for chocolates.
After several minutes of watching, I spotted the guy who matched the description. "There, him," I said, pointing at a guy casually walking along the street. He''ll go into our victim''s store. Just watch."
I was right, and Olivia looked at me strangely. "How did you know?"
"The way his body moved, the way his eyes are set."
"You know what hunters look like? Have you ever gone hunting before?"
"Yes, a lot. Big game, too."
"Why am I not surprised? Anything you haven''t done?" I thought about that. When Aria and I ran the kingdom raising our kids, we would take vacations to various Earth timelines, and we did a lot of dangerous stuff. We even traveled to the Moon and Mars. Magic kept us alive, of course.
"Not a whole lot that I can think of. I''ve been to space."
Olivia and the two techies stared at me wide-eyed. I just shrugged and changed the topic. "Anyway, we''ll let the techies here figure out who this guy is. Any new updates on the Huntsman case?" I asked.
"The Huntsman is still staking out Mr. Douglas and putting together his entire organization. The last word he sent us was he thinks he figured out who the real killer is. Or at least what he is. It seems we have a shapeshifting Meta assassin. But even he is having trouble connecting the assassin to Mr. Douglas. And we need that in order to bring them all down. Or we need other evidence to bring them down separately."
"Makes sense. When I get some free time, I''ll lean on my contacts as well. For now, I need to check in on my club. I haven''t been there for a few nights now. Good night."
"Night. Boys," she turned to the techies, "let me know right away when you get an identity."
~~~
On the drive back to the club, I again felt that odd sensation of being watched. So, after arriving in my penthouse room, I changed into my vampire persona and used a gate to travel about a mile away, exiting into an empty alley. I ducked behind a dumpster just in time to avoid the drone passing by, leapt onto the roof, and headed back toward my club.
Using my best stealth skills and magic, I silently moved about the taller buildings until I spotted a figure hiding on a roof overlooking my club. Using telescopic vision, I zoomed in and¡ "No way, of course it is. So much for staking out Mr. Douglas," I said quietly to myself. So, the Huntsman is spying on me. He likely has everything he needs already to expose Mr. Douglas and his shapeshifting doppelganger. So, he is likely stalling to track me. Maybe it wasn''t the best of ideas to go and tell people I was a vampire. I just thought it was funny seeing their faces, but now that certain Heroes know of a real vampire on the loose, well, hindsight is 20/20.
Hmm¡ I have an idea. I opened a small portal into my private room and then used illusion magic. Since I use illusions all the time for my disguises, I''m very adept at that form of magic. I made a copy of my club owner persona and had him walk over with a fake bottle of whiskey and glass and then settle in on the couch with a laptop. All of this is perfectly viewable from the balcony window. Only my bedroom is not visible since I always keep the curtains closed and warded.
I also put more magic into the illusion to simulate heat, just in case the Huntsman was using various tech in his mask to see on different spectrums. Now, I just need him to spot the vampire me at the same time. I put on my Oni-vamp mask, withdrew my wings, and took to the skies. I made sure my shadow would pass over my stalker to get his attention and look up.
I flew away from this area and then over to the docks by the river. I knew of at least one smuggling operation there by Mr. Douglas and needed to give a reason for my sudden appearance. So, I figured killing some bad guys would be a valid reason. I knew I had the Huntsman''s attention when half the city''s drones suddenly changed position and began to follow me. But I looked back and spotted him leaping from rooftop to rooftop in an effort to catch up. I also spotted in the street a white and blue blur. I see; he called in the cavalry. Comic Rush, oh, and now two more streaks in the sky. I guess that''s a few of the new team members.
The question is, should I let them confront me now? What do I gain from it? I don''t want to outright kill them. Technically they''re heroes just doing their job. I began to hear lots of sirens as well. Geez seems I stirred the hornet''s nest with that stunt. Perhaps I''ll crash in on the bad guys, summon Jessica, we''ll get started, and when the good guys show up, we''ll make our departure into the shadows using my shadow powers. The heroes get the bad guys and save anybody being smuggled, and I get them to see us far away from Jacik, the club owner.
The first part of the plan went well. Jessica arrived through the portal, and I handed her a mask to hide her face. Then, just to be safe, I cast several powerful spells on her: one for protection and several for boosting her speed, agility, strength, and durability¡ªessentially artificially enhancing her to close to my levels.
The second part of the plan didn''t go well. For starters, my portal fizzled out on its own. That was when I felt a magical barrier go up that prevented certain forms of instantaneous travel. I couldn''t even access my shadow powers. My other magic seemed to work fine as I tested a light spell, but my guess was either Radiant Jack threw something up or one of the former members of the Cosmic Trio did something. Whatever it was, it was powerful.
I quickly relayed the situation to Jessica, and the two of us got to work on killing the bad guys. We also found two shipping containers full of people. But then the Heroes arrived and we became surrounded by their entire team.
"Surrender now, vampires!" Titan commanded. "You''re confined within this special barrier. There is no means for escape and nowhere to run!"
That rubbed me the wrong way. They''re implying I''m a coward or something.
Jessica and I were standing on top of a shipping container, dressed in black, with cloaks billowing in the wind from the open hangar. Our hoods partially shrouded our masks. I laughed softly at first, more of a gentle chuckle, really. But slowly, the laugh grew louder and more maniacal, all the way to the point of being hysterical, before suddenly cutting off with a sigh.
"Run away? From you? Run where? WHY WOULD I RUN!" I shouted that last part with my lycerion-enhanced voice. The power of my voice was backed by considerable power, shaking the hangar and causing everyone to freeze in place for a few moments. I let the silence stand as raindrops began to fall from the sky, pelting the roof. My power caused the air temperature to drop by ten degrees. "I told you all to leave me alone. I even did your job for you. Saved these people, and yet, you still want to fight me? THEN BRING IT!"
It was about twenty minutes until sunset, and while most of my nighttime powers now work during the day thanks to my age, certain things like my durability and strength all increase at night. Even my skin, hair, and eyes change at night unless I disguise myself. As long as we hold out until then, then this fight will become winnable. Or at least, my power should be strong enough to break the barrier for an escape. Although, now, I didn''t feel like fleeing.
I summoned Smog, and he took on his Lycerion form but kept his size small enough to remain on the shipping container. Then I smacked my hand on the roof of the container and cast a brute force spell to teleport the container and the one next to it, full of people, to the farthest place away from here and next to the barrier. We landed softly on the ground.
This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.
"Did you just kill those people!" Captain Cosmo shouted, then turned to his teammates. We''ll try and take them alive, but if that proves impossible, kill them." Then, at once, they all attacked in unison.
Why ask a question and then not let me answer? Rude. I threw up my barrier to intercept a blast from Captain Cosmo, Dark Matter, and Radiant Jack. The combined firepower overwhelmed my barrier, but it held long enough to absorb their entire attack. Then, five bullets appeared in front of me, and I reflexively snatched them out of the air, but then they exploded in my hands. While my bones were too strong to break, the flesh of my hand was shredded, and I had shrapnel stuck in my palms. It stung, too, huh¡ silver. This guy had vampire bullets. Too bad I wasn''t a normal vampire as my healing power forced out the foreign objects and then healed the wounds.
I was on the move, along with Jessica, as Comet Rush made blitz attacks. It took everything we had to dodge, block, and avoid the other attacks simultaneously. I mentally signaled for Jessica to take the speedster on as they were both closer to the same speed. She whipped him in the face and got his attention. I faced off with the rest as both Titan and Captain Cosmo attacked from two sides. Then I noticed a fog spreading out beneath my feet and realized Nebula was up to something.
I shrank into the fog, just barely missing a strike from Titan, and reappeared behind Nebula. I struck her hard enough to knock her out but didn''t have any time to pause as the Huntsman came in hot, firing his pistol while closing the gap. This time, I just batted the bullets away, and then my foe tossed his gun aside and switched to blades and claws.
The Huntsman threw more than a dozen slashes in just a few seconds, utilizing his body''s enhanced agility and flexibility, but between the two of us, I had centuries more combat experience. Still, I was surprised when I grabbed his wrist and twisted it behind his back to see him leap and somersault over my head while racking my face with his free hand. He tore my mask off and sliced open my face from chin to scalp. I healed before he landed, but it sure pissed me off.
I saw Smog dodging in and out of the ground while Dark Matter fired off powerful blasts using his dark matter weapon. His black beams were powerful enough to hurt Smog, so my familiar was being extra cautious in his attacks.
I used my speed to catch the Huntsman in the chest as he landed and struck him hard enough to hear his rib crack before launching him through the hangar''s metal walls. Then Titan was on me again, and this time, he struck with so much power that the concrete shattered beneath my feet as I blocked it with my forearms. Then, I was struck in the back by a silver-white light, and the cosmic energy scorched my flesh and muscles, causing a near-silent scream to escape my lips.
Titan caught me in a bear hug and squeezed for all he was worth. I actually felt my bones creak, but my healing factor kicked into overdrive, and I was finally able to resist. For long moments, I focused on trying to break his grip on me while he focused on trying to contain me. I heard a yelp off in the distance, and I felt Smog''s injured form. He scored a critical hit on Dark Matter but took a blast up close. He was going to need to rest inside of me, and I mentally recalled him.
Then I took another powerful blow, but this time to the back of my head, as Captain Cosmo punched me hard with a cosmic-coated fist. My head spun, and I saw stars. Finally, I had enough and summoned a great deal of power, which caused a miniature explosion around my body. Enough to break Titan''s grip. Then I unleashed point-blank, heat vision to Titan''s chest. The strength of the twin beams shot him out of the hangar''s open bay door and into a nearby crane, which promptly toppled over.
I spun just in time to see a powerful silver-white beam heading for me again. This time, I met the beam with heat vision. But my power wasn''t enough, so I also pointed a finger and unleashed some magic. I may have gone a little overboard because my beam cut right through his attack and struck Captain Cosmo in the shoulder, which then went through the shoulder, taking his right arm with it. He fell to the floor in pain before passing out. I was about to toss out a heal when a green light enveloped him. That, I guessed, was Renovate''s power. She was sweating from the overuse of her powers helping out the team.
Sundown finally came, and I felt my powers increase. My body shifted, growing black glossy scales. My hair became needle-like but still flowed like hair. Just a bit more pointy. My eyes glowed an eery green. However, I wasn''t the only one who changed forms. The Huntsman came rushing in on all fours through the hole he created. He resembled more of a beast than a man now, and with it, his speed, strength, and savagery all increased tenfold. But so did his instincts, and when he got within twenty feet of me, he suddenly slid to a stop. Fear was evident in his gaze.
At that moment, the Huntsman knew he wasn''t the predator but the prey. Titan didn''t get that memo as he stomped back into the hangar. His uniform had a nice hole in the center of his chest, but his skin, although slightly red, was unscathed. He was beyond pissed.
Then, I felt another power descend onto me. A purple haze coated me, and suddenly, I felt immense pressure. Gravity was turned up far beyond what the mages on Earth 2 had done. These gravitational forces actually caused my legs to buckle, and I dropped to my hands and knees.
Behind me, a silver-white light suddenly flashed very brightly, and then Captain Cosmo floated off the ground, fully healed. I don''t think it was Renovate that did that, but more of an aspect of his powers. Radiant Jack also appeared in view, and his hands glowed with the same purple energy of the gravity holding me down. This was bad.
Looking over, I saw Jessica wounded but holding her own against the speedster. They were moving too fast for anyone else to keep up, but it didn''t matter; I had all the others'' attention anyway.
I had magically boosted Jessica earlier, but now, I realized I should have boosted myself. However, when I went to attempt to use my magic, I found my access blocked. Whatever this field was, it was more than just increased gravity. I growled. Frustration is getting the better of me.
"Cosmo! I need you to boost my magic. I can''t hold him for much longer," Radiant Jack called desperately. Cosmo flew over to him, and with a touch of his hand on Jack''s back, he transferred tremendous power. The gravity started to rise, and I struggled to keep my face from smacking the floor.
I felt Smog inside of me push as much of his power as he could to boost my strength, and since he once took on dragons, that power wasn''t minor. I slowly and defiantly rose to my feet. I mentally went through my list of supernatural powers. Like the laser vision, powers gained through drinking blood became supernatural. It wasn''t Meta power or magic.
I could control blood and shadows, but that isn''t working currently. I have laser vision, but aside from that, most of my abilities are physical. I had wings and changed skin, hair, and eyes, and the only other powers were visual enhancements, like dragon vision. Well, laser vision it is, then.
I unleashed a beam of energy toward Radiant Jack only to be intercepted by a magical barrier of his own. Fine. If I can''t do that, then I''ll just have to force my magical power out. His field-blocking access can only handle so much, I''m sure. I just need to exceed its capacity.
I summoned nearly all my mana reserves, but I didn''t want to go full nuclear like last time. I just wanted to break this field and move freely again. So, with strain and control, I pushed out my energy until I felt the connection again. Then, I began to shape the magical power into an anti-gravity spell. Once the pressure eased off my body, I pushed off the shattered concrete and shot through the purple field, shattering it to pieces. The backlash struck Radiant Jack like a lightning rod, which then passed through him and into Captain Cosmo. Both cried out in pain before tumbling out of the air.
Before I could do anything, I took a Titan-sized fist to the face and felt my nose break. I spun around multiple times as I flew backward, making yet another person-sized hole in the hangar wall. I bounced off the concrete before coming to a halt on the side of another shipping container. By the time I pulled myself free, I found two more fists closing in on my chest.
"Not this time!" I shouted and sprung forward, grabbing both his wrists and pulling. I used his tremendous speed, weight, and my pull to introduce his face to my knee as I jumped forward. Since he broke my nose, it was only fair to break his. He landed on his feet but stumbled backward. I moved in and hit him with several body shots. He tried to fight back, but I dodged his blows and kept pummelling his chest, face, and stomach. He was taller than me, but that didn''t stop me from lifting him off the ground and then tossing him into the barrier that surrounded the entire area.
~~~
Comet Rush finally knocked out Jessica, and while he was curious about what she looked like beneath the mask, his perception was so high that it took no time to realize his allies were in serious trouble. So, he rushed through the hole and desperately tried to close in on the vampire before he could switch his focus. He nearly caught him, too, right as he threw Titan, but a fist to his face faster than even he could see was all the confirmation he needed that he was too late.
As Comet Rush felt his body start the long journey of being punched away by superhuman strength, a hand caught his foot, and the next thing he knew, his face was crashing into the pavement. Blood and teeth erupted from his mouth, and then one of his legs was suddenly pulverized. He wasn''t knocked unconscious, but he wished he had been. However, he now got to witness the rest of his allies get blitz-attacked, and in seconds, it was all over. The barrier above shattering meant Radiant Jack was either dead or unconscious.
All Comet Rush could think of was, what was that appearance? It wasn''t anything like he''d ever seen before. It was almost alien. Truly monstrous and terrifying. They grossly underestimated their chances of winning.
B3 - Chapter 10
Chapter 10
I moved at incredible speed when I reentered the hangar. My goal was first to take out Renovate with a single decisive blow. Just to knock her out and prevent any further healing. I needed to end this fight. Next, I rushed Dark Matter, who had been healed and was trying to wake Nebula. He didn''t even get to turn his head before I connected it to my fist.
Nebula stirred, but another quick jab put her back into slumber land. I''m sure she was a powerful fighter, but her powers were not well matched against me. Then I turned and saw Radiant Jack back on his feet and casting several spells to protect Captain Cosmo as he lay on his back while transferring power to the Huntsman. I watched the animal man''s body grow in size as his costume tore itself off his body, leaving barely enough shreds to cover his torso.
I pointed a finger and fired off a blast of pure magical power. It tore through Radiant Jack''s new barrier and struck him in his chest. This time I controlled the power so as not to kill the hero, just to put him out of the fight. Before I could move on to Captain Cosmo, the Huntsman stepped in front and roared. "THIS TIME, I WILL NOT BACK DOWN!"
Then I saw Titan, bruised and battered, come flying back into the hangar. "Come on, go down already," I mumbled to myself. With two very large, extremely strong opponents left and Captain Cosmo recovering, I utilized one more power. My werewolf transformation. My bones shifted, my face contorted and elongated, and I grew in size and power. I didn''t gain much hair due to my unique skin, but I gained enough to be recognizable.
"Woah, is this guy also a werewolf?" Titan asked.
"Believe that makes him a hybrid," Cosmo replied weakly.
Not allowing any more discussion, I moved in for the attack. The Huntsman''s instincts allowed him to sort of keep up, but Titan''s skin wasn''t so impenetrable anymore. So, he tried to keep his distance and started to utilize his energy attacks for the first time in this fight.
I clashed with the Huntsman at one point, and we both locked jaws on each other''s necks. His claws dug into my side, and I slid mine into his chest and ripped out a rib bone. He opened his jaw to scream in pain, and I used that moment to lift him up and slam him back down, cracking the stone floor. I bit back down, drinking enough of his blood to put him out.
During that time, I felt my back grow hot from the constant energy blast Titan was putting out, but I ignored it the best I could until I was free to deal with him. I waved my hand, and his energy transformed into thousands of motes of harmless light. I shifted out of my werewolf form and even re-engaged my ring of illusions to bring my appearance back to normal.
"Enough of that," I said.
"I''m going to kill you for this," Titan replied.
"I didn''t kill anyone on your team, and you attacked me first. If anyone should be saying that line, it is me. Yet I won''t."
"You, a vampire, are claiming the moral high ground?" Pathetic."
"What is pathetic is an entire team of A and S rank heroes losing to two vampires."
He growled and then slammed his fists together, shouted real loud, and then unleashed all his power. His muscles grew tighter, his chest thicker, and his body taller. I felt the waves of energy pouring off of him. But since I could feel my shadow powers were back, I simply waved my hand and opened a shadow portal beneath his feet. The sudden loss of solid ground surprised him, and he didn''t even think to fly as he fell through the portal and into darkness. I left him in my void dimension for the moment and turned to Captain Cosmo, who had managed to rise to a seated position. "I surrender," he said. I''m too drained to continue. But can you tell me exactly what you are?"
"I''m a Sunstrider," I answered him honestly. "I come from another world along with my companion." I moved to her and saw that she was still alive. "I told you guys before, but I do not wish to fight the heroes. I am not a villain. Yes, I care little about leaving actual villains and evil men alive, but society is better off without them."
"To satisfy your need to feed?"
"That is part of it, yes."
"And what happens when you run out of bad people? You''ll start to hurt innocent people."
"I doubt I would ever run out of evil people. But to answer your question truthfully, no. I have other worlds I can travel to for food. There is always more evil to feed off of. Just because I became what I am, doesn''t mean I have to change who I am. Now that I''ve drank some of the blood from your teammates, I''ll grow even stronger. This is how my powers work. The next time we fight, if we fight, you all won''t last five minutes. Be warned." With that, I opened a shadow, and Jessica and I sank into the floor, disappearing into the darkness. As we vanished, another hole opened up above us and deposited Titan to land face-first on the cracked stone floor.
"Where did he go!" Titan roared. Captain Cosmo just shook his head and laid back down to rest.
~~~
After dropping Jessica off at her place, placing a healing spell on her, and feeding Oden, I left a note and then portaled to my place. I dismissed my vampire illusion so as to activate the club owner persona and then took a bath. I hadn''t struggled that much in a fight in a long time. I was exhausted, sore, and hungry. Sure, I took a little bit of blood from them, but not nearly enough to replenish what I had used. But taking care of my needs would have to wait. My wrist phone buzzed, and I activated the video chat.
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"Hey Jacik, I need¡ are you naked taking a shower?" Olivia asked.
"Well, I wouldn''t be clothed taking a shower, would I?"
"Just deactivate the camera, please¡" she growled. I complied. "Now, I need you down at the docks. Team Pantheon just had a major clash with what they are saying was a couple of vampires. They lost the fight. But we''re needed because of the dead smugglers and the two containers filled with people. Oh, and as for the vampires, one of them wouldn''t have been you, would it? Since you know, you keep claiming you are one¡"
"No," I laughed. "I was just teasing you. I only do magic," I said with a grin. "But for real? Actual vampires? What is this world coming to?"
"Who knows? Likely, it was just a very powerful Meta or a couple of Metas that used vampire-like abilities. But the fact that they beat Pantheon is not a good look for the city or the Meta Association. Expect big changes soon. Anyway, we''ll talk more once you get here."
I got out of the shower, dressed, and then snagged a bottle of bourbon on the way down to my car in the underground garage. A little drinking and driving wouldn''t be the worst thing I did today.
Twenty minutes later, I arrived at the docks. I flashed my consultant''s badge and was let inside the crime scene. "Ah, about time you arrive," Oliva said.
"Wow, this is some crime scene." The devastation left in the wake of such a battle surprised even me, and I was the one doing most of it. Tunnel vision can occur to even the best of us. I didn''t even know there were fires spread around, most being put out by the fire department as we speak. "Did the heroes survive?"
"Yes, but most are in critical condition. Renovate said it''ll take a week to pull everyone back from the brink, but she''s confident. The Meta Association will also likely send another healer to help out. They''ve all been transported to the Association''s hospital for Metas."
"So, these dead smugglers, do we know anything about them?" I asked.
"Not yet, but records show this is one of the properties owned by a shell corporation that we flagged as being owned by Mr. Douglas. So, we''ll need to comb through any records that survived this battle. I think the office was left undamaged, thankfully." We headed in that direction but were stopped by the firefighters.
"Sorry, ma''am. But the structure of the building is not safe at the moment. So, we can''t let you enter."
"I need in that office, before everything comes crashing down on it!" Olivia raised her voice angrily.
"We''re bringing in equipment to stabilize the building. Once that''s done, it will be safe to enter, but until then, it''s out of my hands," he said with a shrug. Olivia cursed under her breath.
"Hey, the office is in that corner right there. Maybe they have Wi-Fi. If so, we just need to get close enough, and then we should be able to hack and remotely access the computer. Granted, this doesn''t help if they have paper files, but it''s worth a try."
"Good thinking," she said as we walked around the firefighters and approached the south side. She scanned the building and picked up a decent signal despite the wall being metal. Then she patched in the tech department. "Hey, I need a hack on this Wi-Fi. Then, download everything for analysis." It took six minutes to get everything. "Okay, we''re done here for now. Lucy will examine the corpses and have them transported to the morgue. As for the people in the containers, they were civilians kidnapped off the streets, mostly children. Their families are currently being notified, and they''re being transported to the hospital for check-ups. Let''s head back to the station."
"Alright, meet you there." On the drive, Jessica called. I explained what happened and expressed how thankful I was that she was feeling better, and I also thanked her for the help. Keeping Comet Rush off of me for as long as she did truly made the difference in that fight. She then went on to tell me she had received a call from the Meta Association to report to the private Meta hospital. I knew what they likely wanted, but hearing her confirm it turned my stomach a little. "Jessica, be safe. I know you''ll use your disguise illusion, but be aware of your scent or anything else that could tip them off that you''re the same person."
"I know. I''m not an amateur. I''ll be pleasant and sweet when healing them, despite how much they deserved that beating," she replied with an evil grin on her face. I had a feeling the "healing" wouldn''t be so pleasant.
I arrived at the police station and waited for Olivia to arrive. She had to park in the back, so it took longer to get to her desk than the route I took. So, being me, I took the time to change her wallpaper to a picture of my handsome face being kissed by a photoshopped picture of her. Then turned her screen off before she arrived. I walked over to make two coffees as she settled in.
I returned as she was removing her jacket, and I handed her a cup. She started to drink while waking her computer up, and when she saw my surprise, she spewed coffee all over her screen and desk. "Dammit, Jacik!" Her colleagues behind her broke out in a fit of laughter.
"Really, Olivia? I had no idea you loved me so much. I am touched."
The only response, aside from a string of curses, was a furious tapping on her mouse as she tried to change the wallpaper back. Then she stormed off and didn''t bother telling me when she''d be back. Okay, guess I''ll find something else to do. Checking the time, I noticed it was getting late, so I decided to head home.
Jessica would be up late due to the emergency healing they wanted her to do, but I could still take Oden for a walk. This meant changing into my Meta disguise. "Hey, buddy," I said as I walked through the portal.
"Oh, good, I need to pee," Oden said.
"That''s why I''m here. Let''s go for a walk." We headed out the front door and across the street to the park. I didn''t bother with a leash since he was more than well-trained. But that didn''t stop some stupid Karen from saying something.
"Look, lady. It''s ten at night. Why are you even out here?"
"That doesn''t matter. I am out here, and with a dog that big, it isn''t safe to be off-leash," she retorted.
"My voice is my leash."
"I''m calling the cops." She tapped on her wrist phone and started speaking to an officer. "There''s a man at the park with a very large dog off-leash. Yes. And the dog is wild and aggressive. Right. Okay, get here quick."
"Wow, lady, lie much?"
"You''re going to jail, and your dog is going to the pound!"
When the cop car pulled up, two cops got out and walked over. One had their hand on their gun but didn''t draw it since Oden was sitting nicely next to me. "What seems to be the problem? We heard the dog was off-leash being aggressive."
"She lied about me," Oden said. "She said I was being a bad dog. I am a good dog."
"What the hell? Did he just talk?" The first cop said while pulling his gun."
"I wouldn''t do that, officer. For starters, your bullets won''t work on him, but it will piss him off. But more importantly, it''ll piss me off," I said while letting a few sparks of electricity flow between my fingers. Then, I flashed my Meta Hero badge. "Oden is a Meta dog. Fully registered and, as you can see, a good boy. He doesn''t need a leash, nor does he misbehave. That woman lied to you, clearly. And I do believe that is a crime."
"I¡ I¡" The woman said, stunned.
The cop put his gun away slowly, then nodded to his partner. "Book her." Oden and I chuckled as they drove off with the woman in the backseat.
"Since we established I am a good boy, I get a treat, right?" I chuckled and removed a biscuit from my Item Box.
B3 - Chapter 11
Chapter 11
"Branch Master, care to explain to me why the best team within three provinces got their asses handed to them?" Governor Molly Tanner asked with a bit of venom in her voice. "For King''s sake, you got multiple S-rankers on that team!''
"I''ve seen the replays from each of their masks. The male called himself a Sunstrider and he''s from another world, or so he claims. However, what is evident is his power. He''s a master of magic but also has the speed and strength of a triple S-ranker. Then, he also has incredible healing, so when he does take wounds, they vanish nearly instantly. This threat is simply too much."
"That''s your official answer?" She replied with a cock of an eyebrow.
"Unfortunately."
"Then perhaps we need to bring in the Syndicate. Specifically, we need the one they call The Forgotten and the one called the Witch."
"Ma''am, we don''t work with criminals, especially not those two psychopaths. The Forgotten would never even be known if his online profile didn''t exist. If he were ever to delete that, then everyone would forget him automatically. It''s even said he can make you forget he''s there while you''re looking right at him."
"Yes, and the Witch has been known to remove powers with her curses. If anyone has a chance, according to your official stance, then it would be them."
"They''d never agree to work with us."
"They would if I put in the request. My family has generational wealth. They won''t turn down us."
"This is risky. The last time they did a job in this town, we ended up with the great fire of 82. Besides, this Sunstrider hasn''t done anything outright evil. Unless you count killing criminals evil, wouldn''t it be better if we left him alone?"
"Sure, if you want the King to charge us both with treason and execute us. We have laws for a reason, and while we generally don''t care for most of them, there are some that cannot be ignored."
Nathan, the Branch Master for the Meta Association, just shook his head with a defeated sigh leaving his lips. He was never for politics because of hypocrisy just like this. But he also knew there was nothing he could do about it as well.
~~~
Thanks to the extra help with healing, team Pantheon was back on their feet and deep into another meeting. "Like I said, we now have recorded evidence that the Club owner and our vampire are not the same person," Radiant Jack replied to Titan''s question.
"But that doesn''t mean he has nothing to do with them. That man was going around talking about vampires before those two vampires showed up. That''s not just a coincidence," Titan argued back.
"Jacik may not be the vampire we fought against, but he certainly smells like them, which is to say, they all have no scent," The Huntsman interjected.
"Ooh, right, maybe there are three vampires or Sunstriders, whatever that is," Nebula said.
Renovate, who rarely speaks in meetings, spoke next, and it left everyone pondering: "But we know the two we fought do drink blood. Has anyone ever seen this Jacik person drink blood?"
"I haven''t seen him, and I''ve been stalking him the longest. But maybe one of those bottles in his private bar is blood instead of alcohol."
"Like Tru Blood?" Captain Cosmo asked the Huntsman, shocking everyone. "What? I have a life outside of being awesome."
"First, I doubt there is a large enough secret population of vampires that they would have a need for manufactured blood. And secondly, if they did, why would two out of the possible three vampires still be hunting criminals for blood? Also, you need special equipment to keep blood fresh," Dark Matter chimed in on the discussion.
"He''s got a good point," Titan replied. "So, instead of tailing this club owner, let''s reach out to Cyberpunk and see if he could sneak some microbots into the club. Maybe bug his suite, the club, and some of Jacik''s clothes. Then perhaps we can solve this mystery."
"Solving the mystery is one thing," Cosmo said, "but what do we do about them afterward?"
"Shit¡" Radiant Jack suddenly cursed. "Check your messages." The team did, and then they all swore.
"That governor is insane to bring in those two mass murderers. Aside from being wanted on every continent, if the King found out about this, we''re all dead," Radiant Jack responded.
"I''m not so sure about that," Cosmo replied. "It is rumored that the Syndicate has gotten away with their crimes because they work for the royal family."
"What?" Nearly everyone said simultaneously.
"I''ve not heard that," Dark Matter said while sitting back down in his chair. He had been standing since first reading the message. "We''ve been on the same team since basic training. When did you hear of that?"
"The yearly Captain''s meeting. There were a few of us brought in on some secrets, and connecting the dots suggested the royal family was either directly involved or had influence with the Syndicate."
"Yeah, he''s right. I was brought in on that, too. We weren''t supposed to talk about it with anyone, including our teams, but Captain Cosmo is right to bring it up now. We''re in uncharted territory and we all need to be united on this. We might end up having to fight those two and I hate to say this, but also team up with the vampires."
"You don''t think we can take those psychos?" Nebula asked.
"No," Captain Cosmo replied absolutely. "But it gets worse. The Syndicate never just sends in those requested for a job. They always have more operatives in play. It is how they get away with everything they have so far. We''re sure to have at least six of them, if not more, show up."
"And any that they send for this job will be on the same level as the Witch and The Forgotten. Their whole organization is full of very dangerous Metas. Powers that are as twisted as they are monsters. If we took them on, we''d have to unleash our full might, and that will wipe out the city. We''ll be at a great disadvantage," Titan followed up.
"So, why are the higher-ups requesting help from the Syndicate in the first place? Do they think they''ll do the job and just leave?" Nebula asked.
"Probably, yeah. But we know it is never that simple. We also know exactly how strong this Sunstrider is. I''m afraid the Syndicate will burn the city in an effort to win, which places us against them automatically. But we''ll likely get the order to stand down and not interfere," Cosmo told the group."
"That''s bullshit. No way we''ll follow that order," the Huntsman scoffed.
"Agreed," Titan responded. "Let''s formulate a plan. We need to pull up everything on every member of the Syndicate we believe will be sent here, and then we''ll need a plan to deal with each one. Let''s get to work, team. Oh, and Huntsman, go clear your name already. I know you have everything you need." Titan turned and headed for the main computer. Then he began his research as everyone else also headed to their stations to do the same.
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~~~
"Okay, class, focus up," Knox shouted. Jessica, Oden, and I were taking courses on normal hero work and dungeon dives. There were six other students ranging from C rank to A rank. "Today, we''ll be doing our first dungeon dive. You''ll be splitting into pairs of two and joining an experienced team. They''ll take the lead on everything, but they will expect you to participate. But under no circumstances are you to do anything without being ordered to. Do you copy?"
Everyone nodded their heads. Then, without another word, Knox left the room. We all looked at each other before scrambling out of our seats to follow him. Pilling into a van, we were dropped off at one of four locations, with two people exiting at each one. Jessica, Oden and I got out at the last one, which was an A-rank dungeon. The team we''d be joining was already there waiting for us.
"Ah, so our newbie S-rankers finally decided to join us," a large, short man with a massive beard down to his belly gruffed. "I''m the leader of this team. My name is Lightning Max. I hear you have lightning-based powers, too. Pay attention to what a real lightning user can do," he said while slapping me on the back. He was strong, too, but I think he expected to send me stumbling because his eyes widened when I didn''t budge. "Guess that''s why you''re an SS-ranker," he grumbled.
"Sorry for my husband," an equally short woman replied, stepping up next to Max. "He''s a bit uncouth around new people. My name is Sally, but my hero''s name is Scarlet Thread. Max is the lightning axe-wielding maniac. I do crowd control. Then Jasper and Jackal do ranged damage. Finally, we have Bubbles for our support. She can heal some but does mostly shields." One by one, Sally introduced her team and pointed to them. They all wore various kinds of armor that had a mix of medieval and army tactical. The most impressive piece of gear, though, was Max''s axe. It was larger than the man himself and just as wide, being that it was a double-bladed axe.
"I''m Ryan, and this is Jessica and Oden."
"Ooh, such a magnificent dog!" Bubbles exclaimed.
"Yes, I am a magnificent dog! My hero''s name is Awesomeness!"
"Whaa¡" She squeaked in reply. "You can talk? Oh! That is wonderful!"
"Yes, I am wonderful. My full name is Oden, the Wonderful Magnificent Awesomeness and most fearest dog!"
"Oden, that doesn''t even make sense," I scolded him.
"Does, too. And that is why I deserve treats," he sniffed and raised his nose at me. "Well?" I shook my head but tossed him a biscuit. It was better than having him nag me all day.
"I''m sure you all have been briefed on the types of monsters, terrains, and traps that are expected to show up. Pay close attention to every detail, and if you see something, speak up right away. We don''t want you acting on your own, but you are free to speak as long as it pertains to the dungeon dive. It is very dangerous in there and we need lines of communication open. Got it?" Max asked, but it sounded more like a demand.
"Yep, got it," I replied. Jessica nodded along.
"Alright. When I place my hand on the portal''s opening, all of you will have one minute to do the same before the portal becomes locked. Once inside, put up your guards. We don''t know what to expect yet. Bubbles will place shields on us now before we enter, but even as strong as her shields are, this is still an A-rank gate. This means there are some elite monsters with power strong enough to one-shot those shields. That is why I go in first since I''m tougher than everyone else," Max told us as he stepped up to the gate. He nodded at Bubbles, who promptly cast her magic. Then Max placed his hand on the portal and vanished. We all took turns doing the same, with Bubbles going in last.
Once inside, we were met by strong winds and icy terrain. The sky was cloudy, but rays from the two suns spilled through. "So, these dungeons are really on another world?"
"Not exactly. This world is likely all simulated with magic. We don''t know how or why, but we know that if you destroy the Dungeon Core at the end, the world starts to collapse within an hour. Once that happens, you''ll see everything start to deconstruct. You don''t want to be caught left inside when it fully collapses, believe me," Sally replied. "Now, pay attention and follow orders. And remember, if you see something we don''t, speak up."
We were at the bottom of a hill that rose to a tree line. To our right was a path through the hill that opened up into a valley. It was obvious which direction we were supposed to go, and so that was where Max started hiking. His wife followed behind him, and then the two ranged damage dealers. I was last at the rear with the two Supports between me and the others. I was to be their support in case of an ambush. Oden walked by my side, sniffing the snow and occasionally eating it.
About five minutes later, we ran into our first set of monsters. There were three ice giants with large spears, as well as six white wolves with two heads each. They were also three times larger than normal wolves.
"Ah, good! Odin smiles upon us this day!" Max shouted. Then channeled lightning into his axe as the wolves burst forth to engage us. Then, I noticed that the wolves were partially made of ice. It was hard to see through the blinding white snow that coated the white fur, but the underneath side of the wolves was solid ice.
"Why am I smiling upon them?" Oden asked. No one paid any attention to him since the battle had officially started.
Like water, lightning travels easily through ice, often even better. Max took a single step forward and appeared ten feet in front of him, swinging his axe like a baseball bat. The blade bit deep into the chest of the first wolf, and then the beast exploded as a lightning dragon pierced through the body and struck the next wolf. From there, a fork of lightning sprung out into three more wolves. The first two struck were killed instantly, while the last three were left writhing on their sides, stunned.
Suddenly, those three were wrapped in scarlet threads that bit deeply into the ice and flesh as they struggled to get free. Jasper drew upon his energy bow before firing off an arrow made of pure yellow energy. The arrow struck the first downed wolf, and thousands of little lights suddenly erupted from the body from all directions, killing the beast instantly.
Meanwhile, Jackal had raised his hands above his head and conjured a black ball of fire, then ripped the ball into two and then shot them at the other two downed wolves. They became fully engulfed in flames that never went out, even after they died. The snow around the burning corpses turned to blackened ash.
The three ice giants shouted something in monster, and then one of them thrust his spear forward, and the final wolf, which was even larger, stood up and howled. An invisible sound attack rippled through our team, causing our shields to flicker and, in some cases, crack. Then the twin heads opened their mouths and fired off two breath attacks. The ice beams struck Max''s shield and instantly formed an ice layer over his shield, encasing him inside several feet of ice. The ice shot around him and also struck Sally''s shield along with Jasper''s, doing the same thing before the beams exhausted themselves.
Max tried striking the ice with his lightning-empowered axe but found it magically reinforced. The best he could do was chip it. But each blow began to form ice on his axe until it merged with the ice shield and stuck.
Jackal conjured a single fist of black fire and slowly tried to free Jasper without leaving too many flames to endanger his friend. But the work was slow going. I heard the ice giants moving closer to us and knew we needed to do something quick. "Can I help free everyone?"
"Yes, go for it," Bubbles replied while she cast another round of shields on everyone. Just in time, too, because Jackal''s shield took a direct hit from a thrown spear and became lodged in the bubble. Luckily, unlike real bubbles, her shields didn''t just pop when pierced. It behaved more like bulletproof glass. However, the spear was emitting a frosty mist that started to chill Jackal''s movements. He responded by engulfing the spear''s head in black flames, effectively ending the chilling effect. Eventually, the spear burned to ash, allowing the rest to fall to the snow-covered ground.
I channeled lightning into my body and became a bolt that traveled up and over the party and down into the magical ice. Instead of relying on lightning, I used a disruption spell to destabilize the magic within the ice. To everyone else''s eyes, it just looked like I struck it with an intense bolt of lightning. I freed each person within seconds and even caught another thrown spear out of the sky. I twisted with the spear to re-throw it back at its sender.
The spear struck the ice giant in the chest and picked him up off of the ground to travel a good thirty feet in the opposite direction of us. The two other ice giants looked at their fallen comrade and then tried to run. The alpha wolf stayed behind to allow its master''s retreat.
"Good one, Ryan," Max said with unusual praise. "Have you picked a hero name yet?" He asked mid-combat as he used another lightning-empowered step to move him rapidly into the range of the alpha wolf. But before he could attack, he saw Oden move so quickly that he looked like a blur. Oden crashed into the alpha ice wolf and tore into the monster like wet tissue paper. It wasn''t even a contest. It was like a dog got ahold of a snake and was tossing it back and forth so violently it became nothing but a bloody mess. "Holy beard of Odin, what the hell?"
Oden stopped, cocked his head at Max, then asked: "What beard?"
Bubbles sent some healing waves to help with stamina and told Jessica to help in any way she could, as well after the fight had ended. They would eventually catch up with the two ice giants that fled as the dungeon would require them to, but for now, it was time to get everyone back to one hundred percent. So, Jessica used her rejuvenating spell to not only replenish all energy but also boost their power levels to two hundred percent. Everyone felt like they suddenly became Superman.
"You can give buffs?" Sally asked.
"Um, yes," Jessica replied.
"Why didn''t you do that in the beginning?"
"You said don''t do anything unless told to so. Bubbles said to help, so I did?" She said with a quizzical expression.
"Okay, point taken. Perhaps we should''ve gotten a better sense of what you two and that mutt could do. Your files clearly didn''t give us everything."
"Yes, let''s do that. We''ll make camp here. Grill up some food and discuss a new strategy. Then we''ll get going after that. Jackal, mind making us a fire?" Max asked. Unlike normal fire that needed wood, Jasper could make a spot of black fire for heat without anything but his magic.
"Food? I want food," Oden demanded.
B3 - Chapter 12
Chapter 12
Darci was busy washing glasses while Jacik was off pretending to be a hero named Ryan. What a dumb Earth name, she thought, before refocusing on her tasks. They still had a few hours before opening. She nodded to one of her employees as the guy placed new bottles behind the bar. "Dave, remember to bring up another keg as well, please."
"Yes, ma''am," he replied before heading into the basement. Suddenly, her wrist phone started softly beeping. Most of the tech installed in this Club wasn''t Jacik''s; it was hers. She had been hiding among the humans for such a long time only because of the sophisticated alien tech she brought with her. Granted, Jacik''s magic tech did add an extra layer of security, but his tech was designed against Metas. Hers was designed against spying and surveillance.
"What do we have here? The dots indicated spy drones had been detected, but she was having a hard time locating them. So, instead, she triggered a device that sent invisible rays of light over every inch of the Club.
Outside, Cyberpunk suddenly lost contact with all his spy bots. "What the hell?"
"What happened?" Radian Jack asked.
"Something fried my bots. That should be impossible. I''ll have to use larger ones with shielding. Let''s try the wasps." The side of the van had three holes open up, and three wasp-like drones flew out. They made entry into the Club through an open vent and then immediately traveled to the elevator. Once on the elevator, the drone''s wings spread out, and each drone became flat. Then, they used micro legs to move up between the elevator doors and the wall. The goal was to get above the elevator and fly upwards. Suddenly, another light struck the drones, but this time, little shields intercepted the lights. "I detected some kind of attack on the drones, but they''re still operational. But this Club does know they''re there. This might not work according to plan."
"As long as you can plant some of the bugs, then you can put them into passive listening mode, and that should negate any active scans they have, right?"
"Yeah, that''s correct."
"Then, make sure to plant a few obvious bugs to be found. That way, they don''t look for the rest."
"On it, the drones are about to¡" he suddenly stopped. "What the hell? I lost connection to these, too. Sorry boss, but whatever kind of security they got in there, it is leagues above my tech."
"Can you hack anything?"
"I can''t even detect anything. Just who is this Jacik guy?" Cyberpunk asked.
"I do not know."
Inside the Club, Darci held all three crushed drones in her tentacles. She placed them on a tray to be studied later and then withdrew her tentacles back into her mouth. Next, she walked over to the covered window, moved the curtain slightly, and eyed the van sitting suspiciously outside the Club across the street. "Tsk tsk, Metas. You have no idea what you''re in for." She tapped a button on her wrist phone, which was disguised as a human wrist phone but was really a quantum computer, and a bot of her own rose out of the roof of the Club. This one was the size of a bird but was completely invisible. It hovered silently down to the van, landed on the roof without a sound, and merged into the van. It infiltrated every piece of technology, gathering data and infecting it with a super virus. Even Radiant Jack''s helmet was infected.
Every monitor, phone screen, and visor suddenly displayed a laughing skull. Next, the screens went dead, sparks and fires ignited about the place, and Radiant Jack was forced to remove his helmet, revealing his face. But things were about to get much worse for him. On every television and broadcast, a video of the van''s interior showed Radiant Jack''s real face.
Stories and scores of information broke the internet as his secret identity became known to the world.
"See, you don''t like it when your secrets are leaked. That should teach you from sticking your noses where it doesn''t belong," Darci said to no one but herself. Her smug grin stretched impossibly wide.
~~~
"Alright, we got a good estimation of your capabilities. Ryan, go ahead and scout ahead. But do not engage without us. Be aware of any flying monsters as well," Max told me. I nodded and lept into the skies, summoning my bolt of lightning. "Keep the comms channel open and clear everyone. Ryan will relay anything he spots."
As I flew ahead, the rest of the team began their trek once more through the snow. Oden took up the rear to guard the healers. Plus, he liked that I had given the bag of biscuits to Bubbles to occasionally keep him happy. But she said he had to behave and be vigilant in spotting or sniffing out threats if he wanted treats.
Using Dragon Vision and Esoteric Vision, I spotted several traps beneath the snow and ice. I relayed the information and marked it on our shared map, which was integrated into each of our wristphones. The team took their time disabling the traps and then moved on. "Hey guys, I found our missing ice giants. Now they have friends."
"How many and where?" Max asked.
"About forty and just up the bend, they have an ice fort set up. Is this typical dungeon behaver?"
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"Only in A and above. Their intelligence level rises. If we had killed those two before they ran off, then we''d likely only run into packs, but now they''ve had a chance to rally," Sally responded. "Any other threats with them?"
"No more wolves, but they have some kind of monster in a cage. Hold up, they have ten cages full of monsters. Let''s see, slimes, goblins, and something that looks like giant ants but with whip-like tails."
"Low-level monsters, but in swarms, they become a serious threat. But even if we kill them all, the ice giants expect us to be injured and tired, if not down several people. Then they have their fortification to fight us with. They have a clever leader. Probably the dungeon boss and they are typically S-rank," Sally informed us.
"Normally, a team like ours would take this very slow. Lure the swarm into a trap of our own. Then spend a day recovering before engaging the fort," Jasper explained on comms.
"But," Max continued, "we have the two of you. Between your buffs, healing, and attack power, I say we wrap this up and be home by lunch. This could''ve been a two-day dungeon, but our enemies were generous in gathering in one place for us, HA HA HA," he barked out a laugh.
"Honey, we''re supposed to teach them the right way, not encourage them to develop bad habits."
"Bah, they''ll end up forming their own elite team of S-rankers, and stunts like this will be the norm for them. Besides, it is too damn cold here," he bristled against the chilling wind. "Move out."
While they still had half a mile to trek through the snow, I hovered high above with my wings. I used illusion magic to make it look like I was still using lightning, but hovering in place on an electrically charged bolt wasn''t easy. If you haven''t guessed, those things like to move quickly.
I began to weave several spells that wouldn''t trigger until I wanted them to. Mostly stuff to make my lightning easier to use without having to force brute the spells. But I also wanted to refill my mana pool without drinking blood. I noticed this place was filled with magic. I could feel the mana all around, which gave me an idea for siphoning the mana from every kill since the monsters housed the greatest portions of that mana.
"Should I stay up here and just drop bolts of lightning on the monsters as they rush toward you guys?"
"Yes, that''s a great idea. We''re at the bend now. Wow, that''s their fort?" Max asked as he looked up the hill around the bend. At the top was a structure three times larger than the twenty-foot ice giants. The fort was pure ice, sparkling in the sun, with jagged crystalized edges all over. The large gate opened and all ten cage doors opened to unleash a wave of monsters to rush down the hill.
I opened with a plethora of lightning bolts, easily staggering, killing, and destroying swaths of monsters. But the cages were large and held hundreds of monsters each. Jasper drew his bow, aimed in an arc to the center, and let loose a large golden arrow. In mid-flight, the arrow split into hundreds of arrows, and with each strike, the arrows exploded into laser-like golden beams, slicing apart enemies by the droves.
Jackal''s black flames created a barrier of black fire that ignited any monster that ran through the flickering flames, which caused trails of smoke and a trail of fire to spread further. Some monsters leaped over the wall of flames, and that was when Max stepped in, channeling new amethyst lightning that spread in a wide pattern to strike every foe. The lightning didn''t cause damage due to the widespread of the power, but it did aggro them to focus their attention on Max. Also, it caused minor muscle spams, which made it difficult to run and attack.
This made it easier for Sally to ensnare them with scarlet threads. Oden attacked on command and tore through them with devasting destruction. The two support kept up the shields and heals, as needed, along with refreshing buffs as needed. It only took four minutes to completely wipe out the horde of monsters.
Only Oden really took any damage, but that was mostly due to his reckless nature and his belief in his durability. Still, the wounds were more scratches than anything, and the heals were not really needed, thanks to his regeneration. But the healers wanted to feel special, so Oden thanked them and got some head pats before asking for his treats. That manipulative pooch, I thought to myself.
Music began to play, along with horn blasts. The ice giants were hyping themselves up with drum beats and warcries. "Wow, boss music," I spoke over the comms.
"You have to be blowing through power, Ryan. Come on down. We''ll engage on the ground," Max ordered.
"Okay, but what if I land on the other side of the fort, and we hit this from two sides?"
"There''s no telling what kind of threats might be on that side. We can''t leave you alone, even knowing how powerful you are. This is our career on the line after all," Sally responded in Max''s stead.
"Okay, I understand. On my way." A moment later I landed with a heavy thud, kicking up snow in my wake, as I dropped out of the sky.
"Look, all you''ve seen so far is a few spear throws from the ice giants. But they have far more devastating magic. When they believe they''re in a position of strength, they''ll use it to the fullest extent. Don''t expect only ice-based magic, either. They are actually masters of all elemental magics," Jasper told us. "Also, we do not want to engage them in a melee fight. Their physical strength is on par with the likes of Titan, even though they''re A-ranked monsters."
Titan put away his axe and pulled out a tower shield from thin air. I was stunned. I knew I could do that, but I had never seen anyone else use something similar. "How did you¡?"
"Oh? A double S-ranker hasn''t gained access to the Tempest Zone? We lightning users are not like normal magic wielders. Yes, we''ll call our powers magic for the simplicity. Hell, even Jackal''s power is considered magic by most, but the truth is, we''re not mages. We''re elementalists aligned to an aspect of whatever element. The Tempest Zone is a space where items can be stored and imbued with lightning. That is how my axe can freely channel my power. Not just any weapon or item can do that. It has to bathe in the power of the Tempest Zone. This here is my Tempest Sheild. And it can absorb most forms of magic thrown at it. I plan on tanking as much as I can and relying on Bubbles to shield you all from the rest. Your job will be unleashing everything you have at range. We aim to bring down that fortress and, with it, the ice giants. Got it?"
"Got it," I said while faking a gulp. But what he said was fascinating. But I don''t think my fakery of lightning magic could do something like that. This was a Meta-based power. I''d need to drink his blood and hope to gain that power. But as with many of my victims, I could either gain their power or some physical trait instead. It didn''t matter. I would never drink their blood. Really. Honest. Okay, I cross my heart and hope to die. Fair?
The drumbeats continued, as did the horn blasts and the chants. Yet, I could see one particular ice giant, standing a head taller than the rest, continue to glare at us in disdain. Clearly, his attempts to intimidate us went unnoticed by the rest of my team as they continued to talk amongst themselves about the next steps of the plan.
"So, we''re all in agreement now?"
"Yes, I just wanted the good boy to have a roll," Bubbles said while giving Oden another treat and patting his head.
"You''re spoiling him," Jessica admonished.
"All good boys need to be spoiled," Bubbles retorted.
Oden agreed by pushing his snout further into Bubble''s legs to illicit even more head pats. I rolled my eyes.
B3 - Chapter 13
Chapter 13
Max initiated the plan by channeling his lightning into his shield, which suddenly expanded with a static outer layer effect that spread a good twenty feet on all sides that wasn''t facing the ground. As expected, the enemy responded with a shower of elemental attacks. Bubbles, along with Jessica, focused on creating barriers of forward-facing shields. This allowed for stronger one-directional manifestations, and between the two of them, they could create layers.
The ranged dealers, along with my lightning, struck the fortress with such power that the crystalized edges broke. Eventually, the walls began to crack, and the ice giants, seeing the inevitable, hopped off the walls and charged toward us. I activated one of my preset spells and created a dome of lightning to wall them off. Then, I activated my second spell, which unleashed a chaos of lightning within the dome. Each strike was weak, but there were thousands of them.
"Yeah!" Max shouted. "That is amazing!" When the spells ended, the ice giants weren''t dead, but neither were they in any shape to continue their attacks. Max''s team, along with Oden, finished them off quickly. Only the dungeon boss remained inside the crumbling fortress. All around were glistening shards, and I realized these were Mana Crystals. Hundreds of them, if not thousands.
"Looks like we hit the jackpot. Collect all the loot, and then we''ll confront the final boss," Sally ordered. Everyone got to work, and Sally offered me an energy potion. "I can''t imagine that level of spell not eating up much of your power." I wasn''t sure if this would do anything for me, but I was curious. I took it and thanked her. "Those are expensive, but you''re lucky, pretty boy; we just made a lot of money with this haul."
As we approached the giant gate, a roar from within reverberated within our very chests. It was deep and guttural. Like the boss knew we were there, and he was pissed. I used the Inspection spell on the potion and saw that it did indeed replenish Mana or other forms of magic. Interesting. I chugged it fully expecting only a minor bump to the ocean that was my Mana, which currently I was only at thirty-four percent. Yet the well of Mana I gained rapidly filled me to nearly seventy percent. That was like¡ eating a hundred humans or more. Seriously? I need to find out how to get more of these. I doubt I could replace drinking blood with mana potions since there is a very different need for blood than just Mana, but I was curious if it could extend that need.
Max pushed the gate open and then led the way inside. We took up our positions before the ice giant leader. He was even more formidable up close. I could see with both sets of vision that he was coated in magical defenses.
"Max," I spoke softly but loud enough for him to hear. "I can see multiple layers of magical defenses on him."
"Really? That''s good to know. So, he''ll be tough to take down. I give you permission to act as you need during this fight. I''ve seen your power. I judge you not just strong but mindful of battle tactics. But, kid, do not die. That''s an order."
I winced a little at the kid reference, but I couldn''t blame him due to my illusion of appearance. Still, I smiled and cracked my neck. Good, if I can cut loose, then I will.
~~~
"Where is Jacik?" Oliva asked Lucy, who had just arrived with a report on a new victim.
"I don''t know. The last he said to either of us was he had business out of town. He''s not responding to your messages?"
"No, and I can never track his device. Somehow, he''s circumvented the built-in police trackers."
"Well, this case is pretty clear cut. You don''t really need his help with that," Lucy replied.
"I know, but this whole breaking news with the unmasking of Radiant Jack happening just outside of his Club has the whole world in an uproar. I need to find out what is happening. Both the Meta Association and the RBI are trying to obtain warrants to search the Club but somehow are being denied."
"Who can deny the Royal Beauru of Investigations a warrant?"
"Technically, the Senet Judges can. They have the authority to override most Royal requests."
"Jacik has that kind of pull?"
"That''s one way of looking at it. But it could be that the judges simply find the evidence to be lacking to warrant a, uh, warrant."
"Do we know which Judge denied the warrant?"
"All of them."
"Wow," Lucy replied, stunned. "I wonder what team Pantheon is doing at this very moment¡"
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~~~
"Team, quiet down, please," Titan commanded. "As of right now, Radiant Jack is off the team pending a review of illegal off-the-books operations with Cyberpunk that resulted in his identity being revealed."
"A plan we all came up with together, I might add," the Huntsman interjected while looking pissed.
"Yes, that is true, but we cannot afford for more of us to go down for this, so this is an order: everyone is to keep quiet and pretend we know nothing." A few grumbles reverberated around the room, but no one put forth an objection. "Now, while we still don''t know for sure Mr. Korleven''s connection to the vampires, we do have enough coincidences to conclude some kind of involvement. However, we also know he wasn''t present at the Club during this unfortunate event. Which means one of two things."
"Let me guess," Comet Rush cut in. "Either his tech alone could pull off both defense and offense to combat the cyber intrusions, or someone else in the club directed the attack?"
"That is correct. This brings me to his second in command at the Club, the Club Manager, Darci Traxcillion. She has a history going back to early childhood, but some digging shows a lack of evidence that she grew up where it says she did. No one remembers her, and there are no photo records of her attending school. The only photo evidence is on her social media page and while they do look authentic, we also know whatever technology is being employed at that Club is beyond our own understanding."
"So, we need to dig deeper and unravel this whole conspiracy, heh?" the Huntsman asked.
"That is correct," Titan confirmed while glancing over at Radiant Jack''s fried helmet. "We will see what we can dig out of that helmet and also attempt to trace the first actual known origin of when Darci came to be here. Then we can try and figure out what her real name is and where she really came from."
~~~
Darci watched with great interest in the team meeting of Pantheon. Then she pressed a button, and her supervirus spread to every visor, helmet, and computer system, which then connected to the Meta Association servers. For now, she wouldn''t crash everything, just monitor, but she had no intentions of allowing her identity to be exposed. In the process, she would protect Jacik as well. He was a good boss, after all. But there was one thing she would do. She set up a program to gather data, lots of data.
~~~
Two individuals stood on the roof of a skyscraper some distance away from the Club Eternal Night. Behind them, spanning every rooftop, hidden in the shadows, were dozens of Syndicate members. "He''s not there," the Witch stated.
"No, he''s not. We should remove Pantheon first, then. A threat as great as our target needs our full attention," Forgotten replied.
"I agree. We don''t need interruptions."
~~~
Max held up his shield as the ice giant boss brought his considerably large axe down upon him. He grunted under the strain, the reverberations traveling through his arms causing him considerable pain. Sally''s scarlet threads did little to hold back the giant as the boss rampaged through them like yarn.
Jasper''s multitude of golden arrows kept pelting the giant, but the defenses defused each one of them. He had to switch to more kinetic-based arrows, which barely penetrated the icy flesh. However, the Jackal had much better luck as his black flames refused to be defused. They hadn''t exactly reached the ice giant yet, but the constant attack on the defenses was eroding it quickly. I attempted to aid with that endeavor through a constant stream of lightning attacks.
The boss lifted his axe upward for another swing but surprised Max by kicking him instead. The dwarf man went flying backward like a rocket, slamming into what remained of the ice fortress. I heard the loud crunch and hoped it was ice and not his back.
I dashed in when I saw an opening, infused my fist with lightning, and struck the side of his hip in a leaping Superman punch. Putting perhaps a bit more strength into the blow than should be expected of me, I connected with an ice-shattering blow. A large chunk of his hip blasted into a shower of ice dust as his body was bent sideways at the sudden force before shooting off into another partially broken chunk of fortress. This time, though, the boss went through it and bounced several times across the frozen ground.
"Holy shit!" Jasper exclaimed in shock. "Just how much strength do you have?"
"That''s a future SS-ranker for ya," the Jackal responded.
"Cut the chatter," Sally commanded. "He''s not dead yet."
The ice giant slowly started to regenerate, and it was the perfect time to press the attack. The team did just that, minus Sally, who checked on her husband and poured a healing potion down his throat. Both Bubbles and Jessica were also nearby casting healing spells, so Max was recovering quickly.
With most of the magical defenses destroyed, Jackal, Jasper, and I sent a constant stream of spells and attacks until the boss was finally defeated.
As Max raised himself up, a laugh followed by a lungful of blood spat onto the ice was heard. "That was a tough fight. But maybe Ryan, you should lead with that." Then, everyone had a good chuckle.
I nodded and let them pat me on the back. The dungeon timer began to count down to its destruction and so we got to work on looting the corpse. The boss''s monster core was the real prize, but there were many valuable rewards including enchanted items to be had. As a rule, trainees were not entitled to the loot, but Max allowed Jessica and me to pick an item. Jessica picked a healing rod called Hope''s Blessing. It boosted all healing magic by twenty percent and was a B-rank item. She wasn''t sure if her type of magic would be compatible with the rod, but she was eager to find out.
I didn''t really need anything since my own gear could be enchanted by myself and would easily surpass anything here, but it would be weird if I didn''t take anything. So, I chose a gauntlet that was meant to enhance attack magic by fifteen percent. It was an A-rank item despite being less potent than the rod, but it worked on any attack-type magic. I also got a few A-rank mana potions as well. The rest of the loot was given to the team and they would divide up the crystals mined earlier, but as a parting gift, they also gave us a small sack full as well.
When we exited the dungeon, everyone''s wrist phones started chirping, including mine. Then we started playing a recent news clip that showed the city in flames and most of the heroes from Team Pantheon dead in the streets.
"What the hell happened?" Max spat in anger, shock, and sorrow. He was a true hero that looked up to the Pantheon. My thoughts echoed his question, but perhaps only the shock.
B3 - Chapter 14
Chapter 14
13 hours earlier¡
"This is Channel 9''s Samantha reporting in from our chopper. The Bayor''s Manor has been attacked. Early reports indicate a female clad in a black cloak turned the building into ash as it funneled upward into the sky. Then Captain Cosmo shot into the air, snatching the woman with him, only to be struck by some kind of spell that sent him sprawling through downtown, reducing twelve buildings to rubble. Fires have sprung up in several areas, and the death count continues to rise.
"Was this the home base of the Pantheon? More of team Pantheon are now being seen exiting what remains of the building, and an unknown figure¡ I''m sorry I don''t remember what I was saying. Oh, no! It appears two members of the Pantheon are lying on the ground in a pool of blood. It is difficult to des¡"
"Samantha? Oh, dear, it appears our chopper has exploded. It is unsafe to continue reporting on this ongoing event. However, we here at Channel 9 urgently convey to evacuate the area or go to ground. Underground shelters or even a basement. Our prayers are with those who have fallen already."
~~~
"Who is attacking us?" the Huntsman asked his remaining teammates. After the building had suddenly been turned into ash, two people could be seen. Captain Cosmo went after one and the others started to move after the other when suddenly they all forgot what they were doing. Despite the man dressed in black being right in front of their eyes, no one could remember his presence. Renovate was the first to suddenly die from a blade through the side of her head. Then Dark Matter took a blade through the eye socket.
Comet Rush moved at super speed and dashed out of the building while the Huntsman tuned all his senses into discovering anyone invisible nearby. Nebula sank into a cloud of fog only to be sucked into a magic bottle and locked away. They heard the words "She thought of that one and already had a plan for her," but then forgot it immediately.
Titan, careful of his allies, began to blast anywhere and everywhere with his yellow beams of energy, but then a punch to the gut doubled him over, and he coughed blood.
For a moment, Titan saw the man who had attacked him. "My power may be to make you forget, but my strength is rated SSS. I also have a neat little trick that lets me bypass flesh and attack the organs directly. So, you can probably imagine how much damage you''ve taken by the pain you''re feeling right now." Then Titan forgot what he heard as the man suddenly vanished in his eyes.
A sudden blow to the side of his head, and brain matter leaked out of every hole as he fell to the ground dead. Comet Rush didn''t know what had happened to Titan, but he figured whoever had done it had to be standing over his body right then, so he came in at full speed and punched where he thought the enemy would be, only to hit the air. However, there was a sudden push on his back, and that added to his considerable momentum, and he became an unstoppable bullet that was sent through miles of the city. Not only did he turn anyone he hit into a bloody paste, but he crashed through so many buildings that when he finally stopped, he was a broken mess, barely clinging to life.
Captain Cosmo went all out against the Witch. His energy beams burned more of the city than even the Witch caused, but her magic was unbridled. She smacked aside his attacks and unleashed her own devastating power upon the city. Eventually, she appeared behind him as he attacked an illusion, and she stuck her hand into the back of his head and locked away his powers. Then he fell out of the sky and was impaled on a stop sign.
The Huntsman could smell something, but then it would suddenly vanish from his memory. This discrepancy between his brain and his senses caused his body to suddenly act on instinct instead of relying on intellect. He became a blur of slashing claws whenever the Forgotten got close. While the Forgotten had SSS-rank strength, his durability was not on par. He took more than a few wounds before he decided to back off and try something different. He calmly kept his distance while walking in a circle around the Huntsman and placing a circular object on the ground until there were eight total. Then he activated the eight devices, and a static net suddenly appeared over the hero, which then tightened and flattened. The net forced the feral hero to his hands and knees and then eventually to his belly. Any struggle caused unbearable pain, even for someone such as him.
Then the Forgotten walked over, removed ten long spikes from his cloak, and began to impale the Huntsman. He put one through the head, one through his heart, and the rest through all his major organs, as well as a few in the arms and legs. Then, with a flick of the wrist, the net vanished, and the devices sprung up and floated back over to him, where he promptly tucked them away.
If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.
~~~
"This is Channel 9''s Alex reporting. The attack seems to have ended, and in the aftermath, only one member of the Pantheon seems to be alive but is in critical condition. More than a quarter of the city is destroyed and burning. Early estimates are in the hundreds for civilian casualties, but that number is sure to rise. May God have mercy on us all."
~~~
Darci slammed her fists on the bar top as she watched the news with the rest of the city. Her compiled data had only just turned up information on the Syndicate and the dealings with the Governor. She immediately redirected the evidence gathering to focus on everything related to this matter, and after a few hours, she had compiled enough footage of private meetings with both team Pantheon and the Governor''s office to expose the truth. Then, she uploaded everything to hundreds of online sites and even hijacked many news station broadcasts. She would make the world see the truth.
~~~
"Alright, team," Max stated after the shock wore off. "We need to report in right away. I''m sure we''ll be tasked to help with the aftermath. Let''s get moving now!"
They were definitely tasked with search and rescue and clearing rubble that emergency vehicles couldn''t access. Jacik messaged Darci to let her know they were done with the Dungeon and were busy with the city''s destruction. They were busy for days, and in between their work, they all got a little rest and caught up with current events.
"I can''t believe it," Max stated.
"The Governor called in the Syndicate, and this was the result. All because of the supposed vampire?" Sally asked.
"I thought that vampire business on the news was a hoax. But if the government and the Meta Association were that scared that they would be okay with this¡" Bubbles waved her hand at the debris for miles on end. "What the hell are we even fighting for?"
"What is the Syndicate?" I asked. I had some knowledge, but I learned a lot more from the released recordings.
"The Syndicate is essentially the organization that trains villains. Sure, occasionally, a Meta becomes powerful and goes on a crime spree, and even some become strong enough to fight off many heroes. But most of them are untrained and clumsy. The Syndicate turns would be mediocre bad guys into true villains. They''re all dangerous, but among them, there are always a couple truly diabolical. For instance, the recordings indicated that the Forgotten was hired, yet no one remembered if he was even here. Yet, there is evidence of an invisible enemy, and he''s responsible for the most deaths of the Pantheon."
Jessica patted Oden''s head while they listened to the explanation. "I wouldn''t forget him. I''m like an elephant. I never forget. Can I have a treat for not forgetting?"
"You weren''t even here during the fight," Jessica admonished Oden. Oden drooped his head and gave her the sad puppy dog eyes. "No way, buster, you''re not getting a treat for that. I will give you a treat for all the hard work you''ve done rescuing people, though."
"Okay!" He suddenly looked much more happy.
"Back on topic¡" I stated while looking at them flatly. "Do we know how many members of this Syndicate there are?"
"Ha, no," Max laughed. "Oh, I''m sure someone has a decent list of suspected and known members, but they recruit as often as we do, I''m sure. In fact, the sheer number of A-rankers and above that they got likely means they have a way of tracking down new powerful Metas and turning them before we do."
"That''s disturbing. And on top of all of that, we got these bloody dungeons popping up everywhere now," Jasper remarked with a flippant flick of his wrist. "I''m glad we got this gig, though; I would hate to be out there wearing costumes and fighting crime."
"I don''t mind fighting crime," the Jackal responded.
"We know you don''t; you''re just as mad as those Syndicate people. Did you know this guy got a court order that restricts him to the dungeons because of how much destruction his black flames cause?"
"Whatever, those pricks just don''t understand my dedication to burning out evil."
The group laughed a good hearty laugh. It was much needed, considering what we had all witnessed over the last several days. We continued for the rest of the week before I was able to take a nice long break. I gave Olivia a call to let her know I was back and gave my condolence for learning her parents were killed in the attack.
The Governor, Mr. Nathan Guildwell of the Meta Association, and more than a dozen other officials who were found to have connections to this tragedy were arrested and brought before a Royal Magistrate. The city got a new emergency Governor, and more than two hundred hero teams were brought in to restore order and peace.
For now, the Syndicate seemed to have gone into hiding, but they knew their mission wasn''t done. I knew their mission was done either since I was still alive. I set about reinforcing the Club with even more powerful enchantments and had a nice long conversation with Darci.
"So, this whole time I''ve been getting new identities from some random hacker, you could''ve done it for me?"
"Technically? Yes. But I''m terrible with background details. Like you, I didn''t grow up here."
"Fair point. So, when I bought this place and put in enchantments, you also merged your ship with the building''s defenses. Obviously, this will be the next target when the time comes."
"I know what you''re thinking. Between my defenses and your enchantments, it''ll hold out long enough for me to teleport the entire building to another dimension. Don''t worry."
"Fine, but I will worry about fighting those two. If they could do that much damage, even I might be in trouble."
"Darling, you just need a drink and relax. Stress, worry, and doubt will be the end of you. Just remember you are strong, and that will carry you through. Plus, you got friends."
I smiled. "You''re right. Top-shelf whiskey, please."
Note
Here is an update. I''ve been working on story building the next arc. The current arc is pretty much set in stone and I''ll get those chapters released soon, but the transition to the next arc does affect the current arc, so until I lock down how I exactly want to go, I''ve been holding off on releasing the chapters in case I need to make changes. Sorry for the inconveniences.
The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.
How for the extra characters to reach the 500 minimum..................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................................
Update
Sorry for the long gap. A lot has happened, and I don''t want to get into it fully. My dog died in a tragic accident, and my kids and I went through a long period of grieving and distractions. I tried to ignore writing during that time and drank a lot while catching up on movies and TV shows. However, eventually, my passion came back when I started dreaming of my characters and future storylines. This actually created something wonderful. I''ve been struggling with how to end book 3 and transition to book 4. The issue was I feel close to finishing this arc, but I''m only halfway through the book. Yet I want the next book to be in a new world and thousands of years later. So, I need to stretch the story in book 3 and touch on the new world by the end, which will be before the thousands of years in the future of book 4. But then I had a major idea during a dream that would bridge the gap between books 3 and 4 to explain some of what happened during that time. It would be a sort of side book, written in 1st person point of view but from a brand new character. This character due to tragedy will put together a group of killers and they''ll be known as the Death Troupe. One of those members will be The Sunstrider. So, now I''m working on characters, world building, story, and everything else necessary for a new book. Then once I''m good with that, I''ll figure out how to get to that point in the best way, while still setting up for the next Sunstrider book as well.
Unauthorized reproduction: this story has been taken without approval. Report sightings.
This is probably my biggest project yet, and I''m wanting to get it right before pushing more chapters out. But my timeline is hopefully within the next month to get new chapters posted. My other projects will continue soon afterward too. Oh, and book 4 will deal with an alien invasion. Spoil alert!
You all are the best,
Jacen DeLaney
Sunstrider B3 - Chapter 15
Chapter 15
The city cleanup continued for quite some time, as did the reconstruction. However, dungeon portals kept opening, and despite the Meta Association''s damaged reputation, we still had a job to do. I could just disappear and not do it, but I was still interested in what was on the other side. An A-ranked portal was great, but I wanted to see inside an S-ranked one.
I likely would''ve bugged out of this universe a while ago if it weren''t for these portals. Superheroes are fascinating, and it has been a breath of fresh air not dealing with vampires and mages. Still, this city is paying the consequences of my actions, and that payment has been with blood. But it isn''t fair to say that only the portals keep me here. A small part of it is my ego. Okay, possibly a more significant portion than I''d like to admit. But payback for all the needless deaths is high on my priority. I will make the syndicate pay.
"Smog thinks no more innocent deaths."
"Hey, buddy. I agree. I''ll make sure everything nearby is vacant when I reveal myself for the attack. We''ll be ready."
I fed Smog, the murderer who had gotten away and was living nearby, being a menace to his neighbors. "I know you prefer cheeseburgers, but if Oden smells that on you, he''ll complain about why he didn''t get any."
"Smog doesn''t understand how Oden always knows. Smog doesn''t even leave your body."
"I think it is like a seventh sense or something."
"Smog doesn''t know sixth sense."
"Oh, well, that is how dogs know when danger is nearby or bad weather. So, the seventh is somehow related to when other animals get head pats, food, or treats when they''re not around. It''s a dog thing."
"Smog wants seventh sense."
"Ah, well, I don''t know how to grant that to you, ya know?"
"Smog thinks magic."
Uh¡ could I grant a hypothetical seventh sense that is totally unproven to a being that is technically missing two senses already? Smog can''t smell or taste things. He doesn''t technically eat, either. He more or less absorbs by breaking down everything and adding it to his substance. So why does Smog like cheeseburgers over people? Who knows. Maybe it is texture. I mean, I love the taste of onions, but that crunch reminds me of squashing bugs. Therefore, I can''t handle the texture. Now, onion powder is a great alternative. The smell when simmering spaghetti sauce with a butt load of onion and garlic powder is fantastic. Uh, where was I?
Right, magical senses. "I''ll have to think about that Smog. Brute force spells are mostly mental ideas without understanding of how, but I''m not sure how to create the mental idea correctly. I wouldn''t want you to get a ping of knowing whenever anyone ever eats food or gets a treat. You wouldn''t be able to sleep. You understand?"
"Smog thinks that would be bad. Smog wants you to wait."
"Love you, Smog."
Hours later, I was heading into the police station when I noticed everyone sort of staring but trying to look like they weren''t staring. I turned my mind towards their surface thoughts and got a lot of "he''s here" and "can''t believe the order was given to arrest him."
Interesting Smog. It looks like I might be going to prison. Wonder what for.
Smog thinks because you claim you vampire.
You''re a vampire, not you. And perhaps you''re right. Good thing I actually looked up the lore and what they think vampires are. I''ll lean into that.
"Hello Detective!" I announced as I arrived at her desk.
"Good, you''re here. Come with me," she stated without a smile on her face. I frowned but followed her to the interrogation room. "Have a seat, we need to talk."
"Okay, what is this about? Am I breaking a beauty law for being too handsome or something?"
"On one hand, we have or had a witness that claimed to have seen you the night of the vampire attacks on the warehouse. So, we know you weren''t one of those two. However, the powers at be, believe you have knowledge of or are directly working for them. Your claims of being a vampire are too coincidental before their arrival to be coincidental."
"Have you ever stopped to think that the two that attacked the warehouse might not be vampires?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well, there are no movies or shows about vampires. Only obscure books and mythology. So, I understand why people don''t have common knowledge about vampires, but if you read those texts, you''ll see that while vampires do bite their victims, they don''t drink blood. They drink the soul''s life energy to sustain themselves. They can''t go out in the light of the sun, and they don''t have super strength or speed. But they do use magic and have enchanted eyes. Now, you know that to be true of me, but none of those qualities apply to the two monsters you saw in that warehouse. Right?"
"I had not considered that. You also have people who obtained mutations and powers, granting them the status of Meta. You know I am not a Meta, but we don''t know if those two are Metas or not. But wouldn''t it seem more likely that they are instead of some mythical creature? Even if I claim to be said mythical creature?"Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work!
"You have a point. However, I have orders to arrest you. You will have to go to Jail and await trial. I will talk to the Chief and look into these ancient texts and modern lore to see if you''re telling the truth."
"What crime am I being charged with?"
"That, unfortunately, is not a necessity when a Royal member gives the order to have someone arrested. It is a Royal privilege to have someone arrested for no crime. However, they will appear in Court and have to give special testimony as to why they believe you should be locked up, and if they don''t have a good reason, only the Court can overrule them. But it isn''t bad to have other powerful figures stand in defense of you, which includes the Chief. And despite this outcome, she is still rather fond of you."
"Oh, I bet," I said with a charming grin. Olivia rolled her eyes. Now that I think about it. Suppose I could get myself thrown into prison. In that case, I''d have access to speak to the former Governor since that is where he''s currently residing. Maybe I can figure out more about the Syndicate from him. Now, I just need to figure out how to go to prison.
~~~
Comet Rush, now dressed in off-duty civilian clothes, left the hospital. He knew Radiant Jack''s identity was leaked a day before the Syndicate attacked their HQ. He was also keenly aware he was the last surviving member, at least if the news reports were accurate. He was only mildly glad that his body healed faster than usual, which allowed him to leave the hospital early. Still, the memory of his dead teammates squashed any of that happiness.
As he walked with his hands in his pockets and a hood over his face because he knew his identity would be public knowledge by now, he felt an object connect with the back of his neck. His brain overclocked instantly, slowing his perception of time to an almost standstill. In a flash, he removed his right hand and reached around to grab the offending object, which turned out to be a bullet. He hadn''t heard a gunshot or a sonic boom, which meant subsonic and a rather good suppressor. Silencers were movie lies, after all. Now, in this moment of standstill, he turned and walked over to the hooded man and got a good look at his face, which looked to have attempted to turn his head the moment he shot. The gun was tucked under an armpit so as to be hidden from view when the shot was fired. "So, you tried to take a hidden shot and turn immediately to avoid suspicion and walk away, as everyone else would be focusing on the dead guy with blood spattered everywhere and brain matter, too. Now, what do I do with you?" His speech was too fast to comprehend for his subject.
Comet Rush thought a hundred scenarios in less than a thousandth of a second and decided that because he''s out of uniform, he should just play it off for now. He tossed the bullet roughly on the same trajectory as where his head would''ve been but aimed for a metal road sign. Then he resumed his position and started to duck before resuming standard time. The bullet tinged loudly, prompting the other citizens to look around to see the cause of the noise, even as Comet Rush completed bending over to retie his shoe.
"Was that a gunshot?" One pedestrian asked.
"What is that?" Another spoke up while pointing at the sign.
"Is that a bullet? Did someone just fire a gun?" A third person asked, and others started to panic a little. Everyone looking around noticed the hooded man and his panicked expression, and then he tried to run. "Get him!" the fellow citizen yelled.
Comet Rush let the citizens take action even as he saw one big fellow dive to tackle the suspect. The gun was pulled from the hoodie''s pocket but clattered to the ground from the sudden tackle of the bigger man. Great, I was being watched, and people, for whatever reason, are now trying to target me, whether for fame or vengeance. I need to get out of here quickly. He thought to himself as he once again slipped into speed time and raced off to a safe house, now that all attention was focused on his would-be assassin.
~~~
Arakiel was a lowly watcher Angel. His job was observation, reporting, and sometimes tracking interesting subjects. The fiasco with the death of a local Nephilim some hundreds of years ago was an interesting note. Still, the culprit, seemingly with Djinn powers, had left the Earth worlds. His presence went primarily unnoticed if he ever came back, so it was assumed he never returned. But now, the Nephilim known as Higarru had suddenly died on another Earth world. Since then, it has been a directive to analyze all of Earth''s realities and find this murderer. Which they believed was a Sunstrider. Part of the Sunstrider''s power included a Nephilim, so one would think it would be easy to track. But Arakiel knew it wouldn''t be. Sunstriders were an abomination of many monster species, even if that included some Holy ones as well. The signature would be there but buried deep under the hundreds or even thousands of monsters. This one, in particular, was believed to be very powerful by this point in time if he still lived.
This fact is why Arakiel was reluctant to approach the Grand Chamber to report to Micheal himself. Arakiel believed he had located the monster known as a Sunstrider in a world that had little to do with angels or even vampires, especially Sunstriders. The spectrum of belief regarding the divine went from very strong to very weak. This world was on the extra weak side due to their belief in Superheroes. But he was one hundred percent sure he had located his target. Okay, ninety percent sure¡ Maybe sixty-four percent, but it was a very good chance that this was the man.
Arakiel, dressed in a Holy Robe made of pure golden light, knocked on the massive double doors that blocked the entry into the Grand Chamber, where the council of Archangels presided. Although most of the Archangels were never present due to attending to their duties, Michael was always present. However, when he was granted entry, he found himself before the entire council fully present. If fear or anxiety were a thing among Angels, he would''ve been locked in place, unable to move. As it were, he only felt a curious, mild nervousness and a slight doubt about his findings. Something he didn''t fully know how to process, but nonetheless, he pressed on and bowed before giving tithing to the Court.
"Speak, Arakiel. Give us your report," Gabriel stated in place of Michael. "We have another pressing matter to take care of."
"Yes, of course. I believe I have located the Nephilim killer known as the Sunstrider. His signature is very weak, which, as you know, indicates he is very powerful for all the monsters that reside within him, but I do know which Earth world he is on."
An eruption of chatter broke out amongst the Archangels aside from Michael. It went on for a dozen minutes before Michael''s eyes flickered with a golden light, which silenced everyone in the room. "I have heard all the complaints and defenses for not getting involved. I acknowledge that there does exist a few beings in this multi-verse that contain the potential to rival our power. The Sunstrider is one such being. However, allowing him to grow in that power only adds risk to us. It may also be true that he is powerful enough to defeat one of us and gain our power directly. A Nephilim doesn''t even compare. Therefore, I have decided that we will destroy this Sunstrider. But his death will be at my hands alone. I will personally dispatch this threat."
The chamber erupted with chatter once again, but Michael had made up his mind. "Enough. I will not go alone. Though my power is more than sufficient, I know the Sunstrider has friends and tricks. I will take a representative of the Djinn with me. His contract will be to aid in the death of the Sunstrider by making sure no one else interferes. That is all." Michael stood up and left the chamber for the first time in eons.
B3 - Chapter 16
Chapter 16
Spending a night in jail wasn''t so bad. Although they confiscated my personal effects, including my wrist phone, I still ordered food delivery every hour. My guards were more than happy to take my food for themselves until the fourth time when the orders started to pile up on their desks. They demanded that I cancel the orders, believing I had set it up in advance. But in reality, I was just using magic to communicate with Jessica and have her place the orders for me.
Eventually, they gave me the food, which brought goodwill among my fellow jailmates. The next day, dressed in my best suit, I was brought before a Judge. This wouldn''t be a full trial, only a hearing, but there was a way to get them to toss me into prison without waiting months. All I''d have to do is threaten the Royal Official and the Judge.
The downside to this whole plan is that I''d never go back to a carefree club owner and never work with Olivia again, solving crimes. But I could still hit up an S-rank dungeon since I can simply change my appearance. But, ultimately, my life is done here. Sure, I could make a new identity and change locations, and to be honest, I should just do that now. But I hate leaving things unfinished, especially after so many deaths. And I really should do something about my ''habitual wake of destruction wherever I go'' thing, followed by my need to ''set things right in the aftermath'' thing.
Maybe this is how movie vampires always end up alone in a dark castle in some random mountains after a few centuries of terror, wasting away for hundreds of years only killing the occasional nosy intruder. They just give up on life and reside to find peace in solitude. Actually, that could be a nice outcome. I''d have time to do research and experiment with magic and technology. I''m pretty good now, but there are still many secrets of the universe to uncover. Better yet, I could go live on Mars and plant signs for the passing probes with greetings from future Elon Musk. Maybe leave some empty beer cans for the Mars Rover to find. Well, that''s all for later. For now, I need to make a mockery of the court.
~~~
"Yes, your Honor, I do intend to represent myself. I acknowledge what that means."
"Very well. The prosecution has already given their opening statement; you may now proceed to give your opening statement as well."
"Thank you, your Honor. I¡¯d like to start by saying you''re all a bunch of idiots for associating me with those two bloodthirsty Meta¡¯s."
"Stop one moment. I will not tolerate name-calling in my court. Do not do it again."
"Okay, let me state it another way. That pathetic person calling themselves a Royal, not name calling, just a description, is an incompetent fool for not knowing even the basics of Vampires in the lore of this world. Okay, that last part may have been a little name-calling."
"Last warning, Mr. Korleven, I will have you charged with contempt if you keep this up."
I glanced at the Royal Official; the man was shot at about five feet tall. He had shoulder-length curly hair with bangs and a mustache that curled upward. His chin was enormous and round, but his head was very narrow. If it weren''t for the hair to almost balance it out, he''d look like a real egg-head. He also wore a long red coat with a white fluffy collar as if he desired to look like the King. The best part was that his face now matched his clothes, as he was seething with anger.
"Got it, your Honor. The evidence I submitted to the court will show what a vampire is known for and how it differs from those bloodsuckers. When I say I am a vampire it is because I am like the ones known in your lore. And that means I can do this." I raised my hand toward the Royal douche and summoned his heart out of his chest. The heart kept beating, but the man suddenly felt pain and clutched at his chest.
"Aaah! I can''t feel my heart beating! I then lit the heart on fire, and the man also burst into flames, screaming and running around in agony before falling to the ground dead.
The courtroom stunned into silence before the Judge shouted for the guards to shackle me with Meta cuffs. This also motivated the audience to flee the courtroom. Olivia was present, and she took out her pistol while the other guards surrounded me with weapons and a pair of blue glowing cuffs. I held my hands behind my back in surrender and let them cuff me. I glanced over at Olivia and smiled sadly at her, and I saw her mouth the words, "What the hell have you done?" I didn''t bother to answer her and turned back to the Judge.
"I rest my case, your Honor."
"You are to be sent directly to prison. You will be outfitted with a Meta damping collar and you will never see freedom ever again. Remove this man from my court now!" The Judge yelled while slamming his gavel repeatedly. The man was pissed and afraid at the same time, and desperately hoping to resolve the issue without further casualties. I decided with this outcome that I didn''t need to threaten him next.
Due to the Meta-dampening collars and the entire prison being outfitted with dampeners covering every square inch of the place, Metas, and regular criminals were intermixed and treated the same, at least by the guards. The inmates, however, tended to treat Metas like scum and always found ways to beat or shank them when they could. Significantly, few ever rose above the violence to positions of power themselves since it meant they had to powerful fighters, and most never had extensive training without the aid of powers. Being powerless was a massive vulnerability for former Metas.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.
As I walked into Gen Pop dressed in a new orange jumper, I got eager looks from the other inmates for fresh meat. I smiled at them predatorily before being pushed into my new cell. There were two bunk beds, one on each side of the cell, and a toilet and a sink in the center against the back wall. There was a shelf with books and even a board game. Two others were already in the cell, and one had a Meta collar on as well. He was an average-height brown man with patches of his hair missing. He had dark bruises on his face and a swollen lip. The other man was a six-foot-five black man with rippling muscles all over his body. He was bald but had a sizeable tangled beard. I also noticed the scars all over his body, which weren''t fresh.
"Mmm¡ looks like I got a new toy to play with," the black man said as he cracked his neck. I noticed both men had stuff on the two bottom beds, and knowing my way above average weight would not be suitable for the top bunk, I''d need one to move to the top.
"Look, I may not look it, but I¡¯m very heavy. So, I will need you to move your shit to the top bunk on that side of the room. This side is mine," I told the big man.
"Ha, the little worm has teeth. Guess I¡¯ll have to remove them before I stick all ten inches of me into that mouth of yours."
"You think because I have this collar on, I am powerless? Besides the fact that I can beat you easily with pure strength, let me teach you a little about real power," I said as my eyes shifted to a red glowing hue.
His screams echoed throughout Cell Block C, and when the guards came rushing to my new cell, they found the man sobbing in pain on the ground. His entire body was covered in sweat and blood as each of the scars had reopened all at the same time. More curious was that the other Meta now appeared to have been fully healed and was just staring at his flesh as he marveled in relief from the pain. While I was busy brushing off the big man''s personal items and secretly disinfecting everything with magic. Then I plopped onto the mattress and smiled at the guards.
"We need a transfer to the infirmary and a medical member here right away," one guard said, speaking into a radio. They hesitated to ask what happened and decided it was best not to know. I had a feeling they would question both my cellmates soon, though. I doubt they would overlook the possibility of a Meta who still had powers. Which meant I needed to locate the former governor soon.
Since it was lights out, my plan would have to wait till tomorrow, but I could stall for time by chatting with my last remaining cellmate. "Hey, how are you feeling? My name is Jacik, what''s yours?"
"Uh¡ Seiko. What just happened?"
"I keep telling these fools that I¡¯m not a Meta. That my powers are not affected by these dampeners, but they don¡¯t believe me. However, as long as they continue to believe their version of the truth, I can help keep you safe while I¡¯m in here."
"I see. How do I explain any of this?"
My eyes furrowed. That is a good question. I should think more before impulsively acting. So, I thought about it now. It seems the best, or the only way is to shift the power source to something else. I had no items on me and was thoroughly searched before being sent in here, but that doesn''t mean it was impossible to slip something in. However, I could have Seiko take the blame in a way that doesn''t harm him.
"Okay, Seiko, here''s the plan."
~~~
"Hey Doc, what¡¯s the verdict?"
"Hey Steve," the Doc replied with a smile at her husband, the Warden of this prison. "Not sure what happened exactly. He¡¯s got massive bruising and tears in places that we typically get with rape victims, but it¡¯s worse. Like he went through a hundred of these unsavory events all at once. His body was so racked with pain that even his old wounds burst open, and he lost twenty percent of his water weight in his sweat."
"Is he talking about what happened yet?"
"He¡¯s done nothing but mutter gibberish and whimper. I think his mind is broken."
"What about, uh¡" Steve paused for a moment while referencing his inmate list. "Seiko? Did he say what happened?"
"Seiko had this device on him. He said it was a single-use artifact. It appears to be dead now," she replied while picking up a black metal cube with silver engravings on each side. He wasn''t sure what the engravings were since they were layered circles with overlapping and strange symbols interspersed throughout.
"What does it do?"
"Did do. And apparently this," she pointed to both her patients in the two observation rooms. "It seemed to have transferred every wound, scar, trauma, and pain for Seiko¡¯s entire life all in an instant to Roger."
"Where did he get that?"
"He said he made a deal with another inmate to acquire it, but he refuses to say who. He said he was afraid to use it, but when Roger threatened the new cellmate with the same thing he went through, he activated the device and pointed it at Roger, and it did that."
"Hmm¡ I¡¯ll have to do a thorough investigation, but something seems fishy. I saw the video of what that Jacik guy did during his hearing."
"I know, I saw it with you, but he does have a collar and this place is so heavily warded, not even Meta¡¯s could fly over this facility without falling out of the sky."
"True enough, love. Well, I¡¯ll get to the bottom of this eventually. When you¡¯re satisfied with Seiko, have him escorted back to his cell. Maybe now, with this, I can get the comity to approve cameras facing every cell. Prisoners shouldn''t have the right to privacy."
"This is where I disagree with you. While I know it would help prevent most of the rape and abuse that goes on, it still violates their privacy, especially with a toilet in each cell."
"But they don''t have privacy. Guards and other cellmates can see them."
"But there is no recording that could potentially be leaked to the public either. And you know if a rape ever got out on the net, it would be a nightmare for the prisons."
"True enough, I just hate these ethical dilemmas," Steve replied.
"That''s why I love you. For a Warden, you still care about the charges under your watch. You know, if we can figure out how this device works and how to recharge it, we could let all the rape victims get their revenge."
"Martha, you are so devilishly devious," Steve chuckled in response. "But let''s refrain from that idea for now. See you after work."
B3 - Chapter 17
Chapter 17
Walking into the lunch room, I noticed many collard inmates had gathered together, but not precisely for protection. More simply being outcasts. Usually, these Metas would never be here if it weren''t for their powers going to their heads, which meant they weren''t the type to be criminals or survive with criminals without powers. Before I could make my way over to them, I was stopped by several non-meta inmates. One thing I can say, at least for this world, is that racists didn''t run the prisons.
While this particular gang had all sorts of skin colors, they had one thing in common. They were all large, muscular, and covered in scars and tattoos. Oh, and now that they''re evilly grinning at me, missing teeth can be added to that list. I sighed. I just got my food too¡
"Look, guys, I''m not as easy to beat as my fellow Metas. It may sound foolish to boast, but my power was remembering all fighting styles and being able to perform them instantly. I may be without my power now, but I still retain all that knowledge."
Several burst out with laughter and a few with sneers. "It doesn''t matter when there are nine of us," the apparent leader of this group stated.
"Winds howl at dusk, a shrieking cry
The tinge of copper and rust
Mix with the stench of fear in the night sky
The anticipation of blood, oh my, the lust."
The looks of confusion on their faces turned to worry when I grinned and showed fangs. But bravado won over, and they attacked not exactly in unison. And I kept my speed to human, albeit ninja levels, while dodging each of their strikes even as I maneuvered my tray to balance my food and water without spilling. I kicked a kneecap in the wrong direction more than a few times. I stomped on a few feet with surprising heft and introduced my knees to a few stomachs, causing blood and other unseemly contents to spew out of their mouths. In the end, we had a bunch of dudes groaning or pathetically crying on the ground while I took their table all to myself, along with their food. I could feel the stares but happily ignored them.
After lunch, they brought us out to the yard. I expected the exercise equipment and the bleachers for those who wanted to sit in the sun and read, and I was not surprised there, but seeing the basketball court and soccer field lifted my eyebrows a bit up my forehead. More surprisingly, there was a gazebo off in the distance with one particular inmate lounging inside, drinking tea or perhaps something more potent. He had many inmates guarding him and more than a few guards on the wall overlooking him. Well, I guess I found the former governor. Of course, he''d have wealth and connections enough to keep him safe while inside, I thought to myself.
I knew I could easily handle the inmates on the ground. I also knew I could dodge rubber bullets or shrug them off if I simply didn''t care about appearances. But having alarms going off and a substantial guard intervention would make interrogating someone a bit of a bother. I need a more subtle approach. So, for now, I took up a spot on the bleachers and leaned back to observe everyone.
~~~
"Of course, that jackass had to go off to prison without warning me first. There is an urgent request for an S-rank dungeon and half¡"
"Huh?" Oden asked while tilting his head to the side.
"Sorry, a third of our members for our team is missing. That''s it. I''m going to try contacting him telepathically. I''m not the best at it, but I''ll give it my all!" Jessica shouted while pumping a fist heroically.
"Ask master to bring me treats!"
"Oden, I just gave you a treat!"
"But what about Second treat? Luncheon? Afternoon biscuits? Third treat? Meat hour?"
"Not now, Oden, I need to focus," she said with a twinge of annoyance in her tone. Mentally, she reached out. Jacik? Can you hear me?
I''m here, what''s up?
We have a request for an S-rank dungeon. Do you think you could spare some time?A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.
Uh¡ yeah, tonight should be fine, but I''ll have to find a way to make a clone of me that won''t dissipate after I cross a portal opening.
I''m sure the Great Wizard of Ode can think of something.
You mean Oz, right?
What is an Oz?
Oh, right. You''re not from my earth either. Nevermind. Yes, I''ll find a way. See you tonight.
"Hey! You didn''t mention my treats," Oden huffed.
"You could hear us?"
"Duh? Your mind shouted so loudly that every psychic probably heard you." Jessica paled at his words, with only rose-tinted cheeks granting her any bit of color.
~~~
I guess word got around because I wasn''t hassled at all during outside time. But I knew that wouldn''t last. There is always someone who will try to make a name for themselves. That time came during shower time after dark. My rings were not confiscated because I tweaked the illusion ring to make them invisible. So, when the scalding hot water mixed with something that clung to my skin hit me in the back, I was not burned at all because my skin was charcoal, black, and scaly. Not that they could see that. I was also not taken by surprise. I could hear his heart beating, but I decided to see what he''d do exactly. I thought a shiv, but I guess they went with something more creative. I stood under the cold water and turned to look at my assailant. "You didn''t think this out thoroughly, did you?"
In an instant, the water was turned off, I was dry, dressed, and had a hand on his throat. I stared into his scared little eyes and used compel on him. "Forget everything about tonight. Now go discreetly, stab the person who sent you here. Take this," I said while handing him a simple dagger from my Item Box. Then I let him go and watched him walk off as if nothing happened. This ought to serve as a nice little distraction for tonight. Now, I need to enchant an object that can act as a power source to maintain an illusion for eight hours or more.
I chose my bed frame while secretly hiding a gem inside to use as the power source. I made the engravings extra tiny and on the side of the bars not easily visible. I also coated them with my blood for extra strength to the spells. I wanted an illusion and a physical body that could take simple directions from the guards if needed. Including allowing a beating on my dummy, should the occasion arise. I doubted it would, but I prefer precaution to negligence.
~~~
I whistled while looking at the S-rank portal. This was by far the largest I''ve ever seen. It was also red, which I don''t remember the significance of, but I figured it wouldn''t matter. I pet Oden on the head and nodded to Jessica. Then I nodded to the Guild''s representative. "We got this, sir," I said with my best surfer dude smile. The representative wasn''t entirely convinced since another S-rank team had already been confirmed to have failed, and I was a good ten years younger than them, at least by current appearances.
Jessica slapped me on the back hard and gave a forced smile to the guard. "Let''s just go." Once inside, we let our illusions drop and halted all pretenses of using fake Meta powers. Since we were unsupervised, we could utilize all of our abilities now.
I whistled at the expansive cracked obsidian terrain paved with spots of lava and occasional lava rivers. We''ve done a snow environment dungeon before, but this was on another level. The heat was even warm to me, which I could typically shrug off most temperature ranges.
Oden''s panting quickly reminded me to cast several temperature-regulating spells on all of us. I even conjured some water for him to drink. "Well, let''s get¡" My words were cut off as three arrows from such a long range entered my field of vision, causing my brain to overclock. The arrows slowed, and I quickly caught all three out of the air. I zeroed in on the ones who shot them from over a mile distance, standing on the side of a volcano. They resembled dark elves but with glowing lava-like veins all over their skin. Their eyes were also a deep crimson red. I allowed my eyes to glow red as well, and I saw a hint of fear appear in their expression, and then they vanished like smoke.
"I didn''t even notice the arrows until right before you moved to catch them. Incredible," Jessica said.
"Arrows? Did they have meat skewered on them?"
"You were meant to be the meat Oden."
A look of confusion crossed his expression before realization dawned on him. "Oh, that''s not good. I will destroy whoever shot those arrows," he finished with a growl.
I shook my head and started walking toward the volcano. "I''ll lead; you two follow behind me, but as good as my senses are, feel free to warn me if you sense anything I don''t." The mile-long walk should''ve been easy due to how fast we all could move, but not even ten steps, and we were assaulted by thousands of arrows, fireballs, lava worms, fire spirits, red goblins, ogres, and bats.
When I realized I was burning through mana way too quickly, I switched to my more supernatural predatory gifts and feasted on whatever I could sink my teeth into. By the end of the trek, I was completely immune to fire and lava. So was Jessica. Oden''s werewolf side of his DNA also allowed him to acclimate to the conditions with each burnt corpse he devoured as well.
We saw thousands of round rocks about five feet tall covering the entire mountainside at the volcano''s base. Volcano elves stepped out from behind each one even as the rocks shifted, revealing arms, legs, tails, and beady little obsidian heads.
"Shit¡" Jessica stared in wonderment. "So this is the power of an S-rank portal. No wonder the other team failed."
"Yeah, this is a bit insane. And I bet there is something even nastier at the top of this volcano too. Well, time to keep score. Loser makes dinner."
"Hey, that isn''t fair to Oden, he doesn''t have thumbs," Jessica said while trying to keep a snort out of her laughter.
"I will not lose! I have four legs and can run faster," he said, then took off without warning. The hunt was officially on.
B3 - Chapter 18
Chapter 18
I didn''t move after Oden rushed off shouting his battle cry of "For the biscuits!" and turned my thoughts inward. Smog, you still don''t want to come out and play?
Smog says no. Smog no like fire.
Okay, I understand, but I can put protection spells on you.
Smog, no fire.
It seems he''s not budging on this one.
"Smog doesn''t want to come out still?" Jessica asked.
"Yeppers. He fears only one thing." The ping of arrows and bursts of lava rocks bouncing off my mana shield reminded me it was time to fight. At the start of this thing, I had dropped my superhero illusion, but now I thought unleashing my true form would be fitting for a gratuitous killing.
"Wuaahhh¡ geez Jacik, you startled me. I almost forgot you looked like that at night."
I snapped my fingers, dropped her illusion, and then smiled at her sudden, shocked cry. "Guess you forgot your appearance has changed a bit too." Her hair was pure white, and her skin matched my charcoal gray. However, she didn''t have the tiny scales. Her eyes usually glowed red when hungry or angry but were a cool glowing amethyst hue now. Jessica observed her nails, which were pitch black and nearly two inches long with quite a sharp point. She practiced retracting them like a cat, and I was amazed at how easy it was for her. Mine is too much effort and requires some pain to reduce their size. "Well, let''s get to it. Otherwise, Oden might beat us."
"Ha, no way in hell."
Unlike Smog''s gaseous form, my fog was more like smoke, and I didn''t mind the fire. As it stretched over the mountainside, I vanished into it and began to kill my enemies systematically. At first, it was just using my talons, but I found the rock creatures to be highly resistant, and when I chipped a nail, I withdrew a Warhammer from my Item Box and channeled some mana into the enchantments to activate its magic. Now, the weapon would hold up to my formidable strength as I pulverized enemies into dust and mist.
I found that blood in the air was gravitating towards me as if it had a life of its own. The blood would seep into my skin and just vanish. This is strange. I used to manipulate blood with magic to get a similar effect, but now it''s just doing it independently.
Despite the speed at which we were murdering these foes, three hours passed, and we barely made it halfway up. Jessica appeared next to me, a little out of breath. "Are these guys regenerating or respawning somehow? I feel like there is no end to them."
"I''m starting to get that feeling as well. Tell you what, go grab Oden and take to the sky. I''m going to try something."
"Something awesome or something stupid?"
"Probably that last one," I replied. Jessica blurred across the battlefield, snatched up Oden with a yelp, and took to the skies with the most amazing black angel wings with purple energy on the tips of the feathers. I shook my head and flew into the sky with my much more significant, scarier-looking wings.
Alright, I''ve done this before, but now I wanted to up the ante. I took my time building up the power in my right hand while also casting several magical focusing lenses in front of me. The lenses would help focus my power, like turning the sun into a laser beam, and amplify the magic by magnitudes. The plan was simple: I wanted to scorch the entire face of this mountainside and turn it into slag. The execution was anything but simple.
After my atomic beam sliced right through the volcano and then cut upward to split the mountain in half, the roar of whatever creature from inside shook the foundations of the dungeon right before the volcano exploded lava, rock, and ash everywhere. The lava didn''t go upward like typical volcanos due to the new opening I gave it, and also due to that, the two halves burst violently outward, sending chunks of rock the size of houses across the landscape.
But I remember most of the sound. I went deaf, then healed, and went deaf again. If my heart was beating, I''m sure the concussive force would''ve stopped it. As it were, I was struggling to stay airborne. I turned to find Jessica tumbling wildly out of the air, and Oden, some distance away, was sparling chaotically. Time froze as I pushed my speed to the limit to catch them.The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.
By the time we touched down, the rumbling finally died, but a new rumbling took its place. Oden was up already and growling, and I turned to check at what when I saw something I never thought possible. It was a lava dragon larger than even the largest dragon back in Talip''etatu. "This is nuts. No way this is S-rank. Nothing short of a team of triple S-rankers." Then I noticed one of the wings was missing, and a large gash across its shoulder left the dragon''s left arm dangling. It seems my attack did severe damage.
"Yeah, if we get back, I''m going to wring their necks on this one."
"Don''t bother. While they lost one good team, they incidentally sent us, and I''m sure we''ll get back just fine."
"You gonna blow up the volcano again?"
"Ha. No. You were right on that. Here, hold my beer," I replied while pulling a beer out of my Item box and handing it to her. She shook her head, opened the can, and downed the contents in one go while muttering something about men under her breath.
"That¡ nevermind." Then I was off flying low to the ground, dodging large boulders along the way. As I neared the mountain''s base, or what was left of it, I spotted three lava elves with arrows notched being aimed at Jessica and Oden. The first elf fired, and Within two feet of the arrow leaving the bow, I caught it, closed the distance, and stuck the arrow through an eye socket and deep into the brain. Spinning around the dead elf, I summoned a sword into my right hand and cleaved the next elf in half before unleashing eyebeams about ten feet away at the third.
After using the power, I got a mental pang and mentally checked my mana reserves. I was nearly empty. Usually, the supernatural powers I gained through feeding didn''t rely on my mana supply. That was generally for magic alone. However, it seemed my eyebeams did tap into mana, and I had received a bit of pain as a reminder that I needed to refill the tank soon. Running on fumes was dangerous, especially since I had a five-hundred-ish-foot tall dragon to slay still.
I need to learn restraint. That atomic beam was far too powerful, I thought to myself.
Smog, I know you hate fire. But if you could attack the dragon from behind while I take on the head, I''d really appreciate it, buddy, especially since you''re not safe inside me if I get caught up in that dragon''s breath with low magic to shield me from.
Grrr¡ Smog says fine. Smog will do it. He exited through my boot and into the ground, carefully avoiding lava streams, and approached the beast''s tail. I took to the sky once more and aimed for the dragon''s throat. Swapping the sword for an eight-foot axe with a blade about half my height and nearly as heavy and with another ping of pain, I channeled what little mana I had left into the hilt''s runes.
I was surprised that the dragon saw me coming, considering how small I was to it and how fast I could travel. It''s like a cracked-crazed fly buzzing around your head. Not my head because I have super perception and speed, but your head. You might get glimpses of it, but you''d find tracking extremely difficult. Yet this dragon easily kept track of me. His one good arm that moved quickly swept horizontally toward me, and I barely flew above his talons in a barrel roll. I nearly got caught up in the wind currents of the displaced air.
Completing my maneuver, I flew under the arm and slashed upward along the chest and neck. The scale plates were thick and tough as titanium, but the magic-infused axe cleaved through with some effort. The chest wound wasn''t deep enough to cause any meaningful damage, but the neck sprung a rather large blood leak that my body was eager to soak up.
The neck damage was enough to slow the dragon, and I couldn''t fly around fast enough to continue the attack. The dragon took a step back and went to bite me or perhaps shoot fire at me, and I was forced to veer away, at least until I found out which was which.
Smog grew to his largest size and engulfed about a third of the tail, and though it took nearly a minute for the damage to be noticed when it did, the dragon cried out in pain, jerked suddenly to the left, and tripped over a chuck of leftover mountain and crashed hard to the ground. The tail had a sickly green appearance, and gleaming white bone could be seen through patches of decaying flesh. Black veins of various toxins were also spreading up the tail through the bloodstream.
I wanted more fresh blood before it became tainted, so I replaced my axe with a ten-foot spear with, you guessed it, a spearhead far too large to be practical. Only someone with super strength would even entertain such a weapon. I plummeted out of the sky like a meteor and drove the spear deep into the side of the neck, so much so that I was waist-deep inside the wound. With my lower half sticking out of the wound, I soaked up as much blood as I could.
Then suddenly, I felt a deep gash in my side nearly rip me in half as I was forcibly carved out of the dragon''s neck and tossed rag dog style hundreds of feet away at speeds that would''ve made my vamp speed envious. I struck the cracked, scorched earth, bounced, skidded, and cartwheeled dozens more feet before stopping.
I looked down and realized half of my stomach was split open by a good foot, and I couldn''t heal until I was brought back together correctly. So, painfully, I pulled my body back together and breathed a sigh of relief when I healed. "Ugh¡ that hurt."
Jessica and Oden arrived at my side, and she extended a hand to help me up even as Oden''s licking mouth threatened to keep me pinned down. Once freed and on my feet, I saw the dragon thrashing as more and more of his scaly flesh was being eroded from the inside out.
I noticed my mana was nearly fully topped off. That was some potent blood. Then, my body exploded in pain, and I blacked out.