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You never realized you could still feel sorrow. Loss. Sadness. Not since the accident, the void explosion in the diner that had begun your whole adventure. You had assumed your transformation had destroyed those feelings, along with so many others. And yet, watching the man who had crafted so many bombs for you unravel, your cry of warning catches in your throat. After you were unmade and came to be once more, you noticed you stopped feeling empathy for those you killed. You assumed it was the transformation. That you simply couldn't care anymore. That that part of you had died. And yet, as your friend and his livestock meet their own brutal end, you start to scream at the oncoming nothing. He made you what you are. An invincible wall. A stalwart foe to all who would touch him. A man once more, and simultaneously more than any man who had ever been. The cybernaut was always fragile. He passes through the veil faster than any other. You barely have time to register his consumption before he's gone. You had helped your master construct his mighty fortresses. Helped him find the secret to air travel. Stood by his side no matter what. Protected him from every attempt made on his life. The shrikes try to attack their end, the fools. They don't realize the futility of trying to destroy nothing. You were there, every time! Had you not served him unflinchingly? Even when his orders sat wrong in your gullet? Had you not earned your place in his new world order? Why would he betray you like this now? You can see your master now. He glances at you, a look of sadness on his usually impassive face. You return the look and face the void, accepting your end. ----- The entry goes up on the blog. He looks at it with a feeling that sits heavy in his gut. A world of ideas rests in his mind, stories unfulfilled. It was just a work of fiction, nothing more. But he can't help but think that, right as the entry finished, he heard something. A whisper from a man made of shadows. A quiet plea from an implacable ally, who would stand by him to the end. "Thanks for the ride."
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THE RANGER A forest where the trees are so thick one can't walk any way but turned to the side is typically a poor place to wear a long trench coat with a tall collar and a wide-brimmed hat. That didn't stop Gerlicky from wearing them though. Both were made from a synthesized material he engineered himself. Though it looked much like leather, it was tougher, non-flammable, and able to resist a cut from the sharpest blade, but still able to pass through even the gnarliest branches and twigs without a snag. Both pieces of apparel were black in color with intricate designs stitched along the edges with teal thread.Gerlicky's boots, ammo pouch, and the glove on his right hand were made of the same durable material, but were much more generic in appearance. They were a natural leather color, save for wear, and had minimal aesthetic alterations. Everything Gerlicky wore had been made by design to be comfortable and always served their purpose.The dog tags were threatening to become a problem though. Gerlicky glanced down at the slivers of metal, slightly disturbed by the deep purple shimmer that never stopped dancing across the surface. I was almost as though the color were some sentient creature trying constantly to escape its gunmetal prison. And no matter how many times Gerlicky tried to tuck the tags under a fold of cloth somewhere, they always worked their way out into the open.As Gerlicky made his way through the trees he kept a tight grip on his firearm, Silence. Its design looked deceptively old-fashioned, but in truth it was a modern marvel. It was bolt-action sniper rifle most of the time, but Gerlicky had built it to be far more versatile. When required, two limbs sprung out to the sides of the barrel, making for a deadly accurate crossbow.With a lethal weapon and even more lethal aim, not a soul in the universe could rival Gerlicky for long-range assassination. Extremely useful qualities for a man who made his way as a bounty hunter.Gerlicky paused a moment as he walked into a small clearing in the trees. Standing in the middle, Gerlicky judged it was only about twenty feet in diameter. After propping Silence up against a nearby tree, he took a knee and ran the fingers of his left hand gingerly across the ground as he analyzed it. There were small patches where the vegetation had been corroded away by some form of toxin. Gerlicky allowed himself a slight, sinister grin. "Looks like I'm on the right track.""As are we."Gerlicky stood up quickly and, with lightning fast reflexes, retrieved a six-shooter from its holster and trained it on the new arrivals."My, aren't we a little jumpy today?"Standing before Gerlicky were three individuals, clearly mercenaries despite their generic-looking hunting outfits. They all wore vests and were toting machetes. One was bald, heavily built, and had a bushy moustache. The man to his left was lanky and had long brown hair. On the right, a man who was overweight, wore glasses and a hat, and clearly didn't know how to properly use a large knife.Gerlicky was about to ask how they managed to hack their way through the trees and approach without making a sound, but he saw the answer first. The long-haired man was carrying a device strapped to his back. Known by most as a "sonic vacuum", it was capable of dampening any and all sound in the immediate vicinity when activated.Regardless of who they were or how they approached unnoticed mattered little. Their body language alone was enough to tell they had malicious intent and Gerlicky wasn't one to mince words; people who did often wound up "minced" themselves in his experience. Without a word Gerlicky fired off three rounds from his revolver, each bullet placed between the eyes of his aggressors. Confusion danced across Gerlicky's face when the bullets disappeared without hitting home."Please," said one of the men with a chuckle. He shook his head in disappointment. "You'll have to do better than that, mate."Gerlicky was more than happy to oblige. He fired off another three rounds, twice as quickly as the previous attempt, but at such a pace it was impossible to see a difference. This time, Gerlicky noticed the shimmer."High-Velocity Projectile Disintegration Field Emitters," the man said with a grin as he tapped the device on his belt. "Most of me boys can't stand the big words though, so we just call them those shield thingies. Quite a shame that you wasted all your shots on them so carelessly."Gerlicky remained stiff as a statue, never taking the gun's sights off the man. "What do you want?""It's quite simple really. We've been tracking you for weeks. Would've taken a lot longer if you hadn't stopped to talk to tall, dark, and gruesome a couple days ago. You sure have some ugly friends.""I'd never met him before," Gerlicky retorted. "Now I'm only going to ask one more time. What do you want with me?""Oh it's not what I want with you. It's what our employer wants with you which, quite frankly, I don't know nor care." A couple moments of silence passed before he continued, "Now you have two options. Option one: come quietly and we won't have to chop you up into mince meat. Option two: you make the slightest move for that ammo pouch of yours and--""I'm all out of ammo," Gerlicky said."Well, now isn't that just too bad? I guess you'll--""I don't need any."Gerlicky pulled the trigger more times in the following second than is humanly possible. A torrent of shadowy ammunition spewed from the revolver's barrel striking the bearded man right between the eyes. The bullets broke on impact and shadows smothered his face completely before reaching out and spreading to the other two men as well, all happening in a matter of seconds. The three would-be attackers tried to claw the darkness from their faces, but their attempts were futile. The shadows clung tight until all three had been suffocated into unconsciousness before falling to the forest floor."Amateurs," Gerlicky grumbled. He walked over to where the limp bodies lay and retrieved their machetes. Holding them in both hands, he broke them all over his knee and tossed the wooden handles away. He held his left hand over them a moment and watched as it began to glow. After a few moments, his hand had become a white-hot mass of plasma. He cupped his hand around the underside of the blades and slowly moved down their length. Before long, he had a large handful of soft, glowing metal to work with. He moved it about in his hand, slag dripping between his fingers as they made slow, precise rolls and pinches. After about a minute of this, Gerlicky's hand stopped glowing and returned to flesh and blood. He opened his fist to reveal a handful of brand new revolver ammunition, still glowing red with heat. Gerlicky reloaded his sidearm and placed the rest in his ammo pouch."Time to go." Gerlicky picked up Silence and resumed his journey through the trees. *** At long last Gerlicky reached the forest's edge and spied his goal. Just a little way beyond the forest was a rise upon which the ruins of a relatively small castle was perched. It was here that the so-called Venom Shrikes had been hiding for the past few weeks.Gerlicky wasn't the only one to have finally found them.About a half-dozen more of those mercenaries were standing out front of the castle shooting wildly into the air at three creatures with wings of pure shadow. No matter how well-placed their aim was, not a single merc could land a shot. The Venom Shrikes were swooping and diving like mad and spitting daggers of caustic venom at their foes to keep them off their feet.If the Venom Shrikes weren't human anymore, they at least were at some point, Gerlicky decided. Aside from the glowing spit and shadowy wings, each shrike was covered in large, craggy, tough scales, almost like feathers made of rock. Their eyes all glowed colors that seemed to change as the acted. Most notably, every time one of the shrikes went into a power dive their eyes glowed a vicious red color. Aside from that, they were mostly humanoid in appearance.Gerlicky lay prone on the ground and watched the skirmish through Silence's scope for while. He took mental notes of how the Venom Shrikes reacted to every attack made against them. This would be easy, Gerlicky noted.Too easy.There was no wind, not enough distance for significant fall-off, and the shrikes moved predictably. Gerlicky much preferred something that at least resembled a challenge. He could snipe the white hair of his choosing off an old man's beard during a blizzard if he so chose. This was going to be like shooting fish in a barrel full of gunpowder.Ordinarily Gerlicky wouldn't have thought twice about blowing every merc's head clean off. Something stirred inside him though and made him hesitate. He couldn't explain why, but he didn't want to kill them. Was he losing his nerve? Gerlicky shook his head, trying to clear it. He'd figure it out later.Gerlicky silently loaded several concussion rounds into his rifle. He fired and when they struck home they exploded with just enough force to knock the mercenaries off their feet and render them unconscious. Gerlicky flicked a switch on Silence for crossbow mode. Before the Venom Shrikes even had a chance to determine what happened to the mercs, they found themselves each struck by a paralyzing arrow. Gerlicky watched with satisfaction as all three struck the ground.Paleo watched as a cloaked figure holding a nasty-looking rifle strode up the rise straight for him. The toxin that had paralyzed himself and his comrades hadn't been too strong, so he was at least capable of speaking. "Wolveon," he whispered. "Can you hit this guy with a vertigo shot?""Hit him? I can't even see him," Wolveon whispered back. He tried to turn his head, but to no avail."Whispering is pointless," Gerlicky said. "I could hear you fifty yards away even if you didn't say a word.""Then perhaps we should just skip the introductions," the third shrike snarled. A quick shot of purple-colored venom followed a scream from his mouth and struck Gerlicky square in the throat.Gerlicky opened his mouth as though to say something, but no words issued forth. My, aren't you clever now . . . Grimoire is it?Grimoire frowned. "He's a telepath."Close enough. Either way, I wasn't lying before when I said I could hear you even when you're silent. Gerlicky walked over to Paleo and gave him a kick for good measure. And you'd be wise to keep that mouth of yours shut, shrike. Temporarily blind or not, I could still put a bullet between your eyes so fast it would leave you reeling if only you weren't so dead.Paleo wiggled his fingers as he felt the paralyzation beginning wearing off. "Tell us what you want with us already. Else I'm liable to get a bit upset."Gerlicky cleared his throat. Apparently the venom that had disabled his vocal cords wore off sooner than it was intended to judging by Grimoire's thoughts. "I care not what happens to you, only that I get paid.""By who?" Wolveon demanded.As if in response, a large creature soared into view from behind the cover of the tree tops. It looked like something from one of Gerlicky's nightmares. But then, nobody currently present was exactly an image of beauty anyways. It looked like an oversized grizzly bear with giant bat wings, a head covered in spikes, scaly tentacles sprouting everywhere from its midsection, and it was black all over with glowing red eyes.When the creature landed, Gerlicky spied somebody mounted atop the creature. He was incredibly heavily armored, so much so that even sitting up straight should have been near impossible. Twisted metal thorns covered the shoulder pads and armor on his back. His eyes also shared the same red glow as the creature he rode. A large glaive was nested amidst the thorns on his back. It didn't look incredibly out of the ordinary, save for the inky black liquid perpetually dripping from the blade that seemed to emanate from nowhere at all. Gerlicky turned his head back toward the immobilized shrikes still lying on the ground. "He's the one you have to worry about."The new arrival dismounted. As he did, the glow disappeared from both his eyes and the creature's. Gerlicky watched as the monster bolted off for the forest. As it did, shadows seemed to melt away. The creature began to shrink down and the more grotesque feature disappeared. Just before it disappeared beyond the edge of the forest, it had fully separated into a bear, swarm of bats, and maybe a few other animals as well.If Gerlicky had any questions, he chose to keep them to himself. "You are surprisingly punctual.""When my master said I'd be here as soon as the shrikes were ready for collection he meant it."Gerlicky crossed his arms. "Just who are you anyways?""I am the general of my master's army."Gerlicky didn't like to be played with. He decided he'd just pluck "The General's" name from his mind. Or at least, he tried."Please, it isn't that easy, ranger," the general said. You don't honestly believe that you're the only telepath in the world, do you?Gerlicky quickly shielded his mind, but it was too late. The General had gotten what he wanted."Careful, Gerlicky. Somebody might find out something you don't want them to someday."Gerlicky snarled. "Yeah, well you left a little something behind while you went poking around, Sumiki.""Believe me, ranger. You can't learn anything from me that I don't let you.""I have a wonderful idea," Paleo interrupted. "How about you two just choke on your egos and die already?""They'll be able to move again in about five seconds," Gerlicky warned. "If you intend to contain them somehow for transport, you might want to do it now.""Oh, I've got that well covered," Sumiki said, waving a gauntlet toward the shrikes.Gerlicky watched as all three Venom Shrikes rose to their feet and, clearly against their will, walked towards Sumiki. Gerlicky felt no mental energies coming from Sumiki, so it clearly wasn't mind control. The General was using a different power entirely to control their bodies, rendering anyone's mental shielding or will a useless defense against it."Now then," Sumiki said, "Let's see what twisted creation we can make of you." He moved his hands in and out, up and down, around in circles, and as he did the Venom Shrikes pulled together. Thick shadows covered them and their bodies began to merge and grow. The sight of it was so disgusting as to be almost beautiful. When Sumiki finished, a gargantuan creature that could only best be described as an obsidian dragon stood before him. "Thanks again," Sumiki said to Gerlicky as he climbed on the dragon's back."Hold on just one moment!" Gerlicky shouted angrily. "I was told you were to deliver my pay!""I have not forgotten your reward," Sumiki replied calmly. "You are being extended an invitation to join my master's forces.""Forget it! I work alone.""Your being tasked to bring down the Venom Shrikes was not a job," Sumiki said. "It was a test to make sure you had what it takes. I could have easily brought them down myself. You weren't needed for that.""Then you can just continue not needing me." Gerlicky turned and began to walk away."Not so fast!"Gerlicky's limbs froze. Try as he could, he was unable to move. Then, despite his efforts otherwise, he turned around and began to walk back towards Sumiki. "Let go of me! Or so help me I'll--""You'll what?" Sumiki asked. "Shoot me? Not a chance. If I so chose..."With one sweep quick sweep of his arm Gerlicky was pointing his revolver at his own forehead."...I could have you shoot yourself right now. Or perhaps..."Gerlicky's arm swung downwards."...you could fire a few rounds into your own leg? Maybe a little suffering would convince you."Gerlicky hissed through his teeth. "You ugly, sick-minded--""Now now, we can't have you behaving so poorly when we arrive," Sumiki said. "You'd be wise to watch your mouth." He then forced Gerlicky to climb aboard the dragon and take a seat."You'd be wise to watch your back..."Monster and riders rose into the sky, the last glimpse of sunlight fading behind them. Where they were headed, not even Sumiki knew. He navigated by gut feeling alone and, somehow, that always brought him back to his master.Lord Takuma.---Is this one perhaps the longest now? I don't really know. I don't have time to check either, I gotta post this and then bolt off to work.I have one more short story in mind, but it'll have to wait. "Steak Boy Goes to Brickfair" is now my top priority. :DCriticism is appreciated, as per usual. I do my best to respond to each and every post I get.You can find out more about this series here. (Now there seems to be TWO completely unrelated items there...) «Takuma Nuva»
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THE CYBERNAUT Soran ran down what felt like the hundredth corridor that night. The facility was huge and he knew that he wasn't going to find a place to hide; there were security cameras everywhere.That's okay, Soran thought to himself. I'm not looking for a way out.A dead end. Soran turned around and watched as three security guards came running around the corner and closed in on him."You've got nowhere left to run! It's over!""I guess you're right." Soran held his arms out in front of him, his limp hands palm-down. "I surrender.""Wise decision," said one of the guards as he pulled out a pair of handcuffs.The guards never stood a chance. Soran closed his hands into fists and two long, prehensile, braided cords shot out from under the sleeves of his shirt. They wrapped themselves around the approaching guard and slammed him against the wall. As the other two guards removed their sidearms from their holsters, they found them wrenched from their grip before they even had a chance to fire a round. Before they could react they had their legs whipped out from underneath them. One of the guards hit his head on the floor and passed out immediately. The remaining one stood up and poised himself, ready for a fist fight."Poor decision," Soran said. He lashed out a cord, winding it around his victim's neck and raising him several inches off the floor. "My reach is far greater."The guard wheezed and tugged at the cord, desperately trying to free himself before he was strangled to death. "Who.... are.... you?"Soran's other cord snaked up around the man until the USB-tipped end was staring him straight in the face. "Names are overrated. Especially for those people who will never need to utter it again." At that, the guard finally slipped into unconsciousness and Soran tossed him rather unceremoniously into a pile with his colleagues. *** The server room was a veritable gold mine for anyone looking to find the company's dirty little secrets and today Soran was going to strike it rich. He hid in the darkness of the rafters, studying the patterns of the guards patrolling below. When he finally decided upon his angle of approach, he wasted no time.The brawl was short and decisive. Soran swung down on braided cord and kicked a guard straight through a third story window, scoring an easy incapacitation. The second guard was dispatched easily as well. Soran snagged the rifle from his hands and swung it in a huge arc, hitting the guard square in the head causing him too to pass out. By the time the other four guards showed up, Soran was ready for them. With one cord he rounded the guards up into a tight bundle, pinning their arms to the sides and leaving them unable to fire their weapons . The other cord he sent across the room, plugging the USB tip into it's appropriate port on a computer tower. Soran then pulled a surge of electricity from the machine and sent it coursing through the guards' bodies. Screams of agonizing pain filled the room until the last of them had finally fainted. Soran retrieved his cord, letting the guards slump to the floor.Now then, time to get what I came here for.Soran turned his attention to the cord still plugged into the computer. He closed his eyes and focused all his willpower down that single cord. In a few moments, he began to glow a brilliant blue color. Then, with a blinding flash, he disappeared. *** On the surface, a psychic interacting with its subject is just a couple of brains emitting patterns through nodes and synapses. But for the psychic, once their astral form has been projected into the other's mind, it's as though the psychic has entered a whole new world, both wonderful and terrifying. So too it was with Soran as he coursed through the computer's inner workings.Everywhere Soran traveled were bright blue hallways covered in ever-changing white text. He was attempting to navigate his way to the database. There he would find everything he needed to send this company down the tubes once and for all. No more extortion. No more blackmail. No more bribes. Just one less corrupt entity in the industry.It is said that there is strength in numbers. Soran knew how true this was; he was especially fond of ones and zeros. All along the way Soran kept running into anti-virus software blips, but ones were his sword and zeros his shield. Soran had yet to meet a system that could best him.Finally, Soran reached the hard drive. It was obvious that the operator never ran a defragmentation on it. Information was scattered everywhere, broken and in total disorganization.Looks like I've got my work cut out for me. Guess I better start looking... *** Soran ran as fast as he could. He had a whole suite of protection software on his tail and they were quickly closing the distance. He ducked his head and wove back and forth, trying to dodge the onslaught of fire bearing down on him. He slowed only for a moment, unable to resist tossing a timed charge into the system32 block.With one last desperate leap, Soran dove into the output port, narrowly escaping with his life.The server room lit up with a flash again as Soran rematerialized in front of the computer."I should develop some kind of stealth software," Soran said as he reached over and unplugged himself from the USB port. He tapped a couple icons on a display screen that was grafted into his lower right arm. The data packet was secured and Soran allowed himself the slightest grin of accomplishment."That was quite an impressive display."Soran jumped to his feet, startled by the sudden voice, and prepared to defend himself. "Where are you? Come on out, I dare you!"A dark figure emerged from the shadows. He wore light armor, dark silver in color with an eerie red glow that danced slowly amongst the details. Every movement of his limbs was trailed with wisps of black smoke and his eyes glowed red."So tell me, what's your name? Dataman? Hax Walker? Or how about The USB Dongle Goblin?"Soran was not amused by the attempted humor. "I set foot where no man has set before, where no man could even dream of setting foot. I have discovered a new frontier within that which we are all already familiar with. I wield this power and use it to expose corruption and tear down the reputation of any money-grabbing and power-hungry organization that has ever wronged those I care for." Soran whipped his USB cords through the air menacingly before poising them for a possible strike. "I have taken the next giant leap for mankind. I am The Cybernaut."The shadowy figure looked unimpressed. "Touching monologue. You almost had me convinced.""Yeah, well, you still haven't told me who you are," Soran countered, still not letting his guard down."My name is Xaeraz, if it really matters. I've come to make you an offer.""What kind of offer?"Xaeraz strode forward, undaunted by Soran's intimidating stance. "You say you fight corruption. So do I and others. Join us.""I work alone.""Because alone is all you've ever been since you were touched by The Void."Soran eased up ever so slightly. "What do you know about that?""I know you're not the only one. I'm living proof of that, if you can even call it a life anymore.""If you have answers, I want them," Soran demanded.Xaeraz grunted. "Come with me and my master can entertain your inquisition. In the meantime..." Xaeraz produced what looked like a couple of blank dogtags. He placed them around Soran's neck and, as he did so, small flames appeared and burned Soran's name and title into the black metal.Soran fingered the dog tags and looked them over, intrigued by the deep purple glow they emitted. What purpose they served, Soran wasn't sure. But when they were placed around his neck he had felt a surge of power. "Where can I meet this master of yours?"Xaeraz walked past Soran and looked over the computers lining the wall. "It's quite an impressive power you wield, I'll give you that. Tell me, have you ever traveled wirelessly to another system?""It can't be done," Soran replied. "I've tried it before, but I don't have that kind of power.""Now you do," Xaeraz said. "And I must say, I'm looking forward to experiencing it first-hand."Soran shook his head. "You wish. I can only project myself into a system, no visitors.""Oh, I beg to differ," Xaeraz said with a devilish grin. He walked over to Soran and placed a hand on his shoulder. Slowly Xaeraz's form melted into the fabric of Soran's hoodie until the shadowy messenger had completely disappeared from view.Come, Cybernaut. Let's find out what it's really like to 'surf the web'. We just might find my Lord along the way...---Well, there you have it. Two down and some unknown number left to go. I'm actually surprised at how much shorter this one is than The Bodyguard.Anyways, I wouldn't expect the next one to be out quite as quickly. I have yet to figure out what the next one will be and I may take a break anyways so that I can enter the Library Summer Olympics.As always, criticism is much appreciated. I do my best to respond to each and every post I get.You can find out more about this series here. (I have no idea why a six year old blog entry is showing in the results for that tag.) «Takuma Nuva»
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THE BODYGUARD "Hey, you there?"Xaeraz snapped to attention. He'd been staring off into the distance for a while."Why are you so tense, my friend? Relax! Enjoy the evening for what it's worth."Xaeraz scanned the room for what felt like the hundredth time that night. He never did care for classy restaurants. The atmosphere was too stuffy for him and the band was playing a piece that only served to make him more drowsy."I don't like it," Xaeraz finally said. "We should have kept moving like I suggested."The man from across the table gave Xaeraz a playful jab in the arm. "You're overreacting! Why do you take this job so serious? It's not like anything is actually going to happen!"Xaeraz picked a butter pat out of a dish on the table and began to turn it over and over in his hand anxiously. "Every minute we waste sitting here is a minute closer to the rendezvous point we could have been."The man took a sip from his glass before relaxing back into the booth. "Everybody has to eat. Do you intend to starve me? I don't think my colleagues would appreciate that.""It's called grab-a-burger-and-go," Xaeraz retorted. "Look, 'Mr. Smith'. I've got one last shot at this job and you're my ticket. Only one thing matters to me and that's getting you and whatever is in that briefcase from point A to point B without any trouble."Mr. Smith scoffed. "The briefcase?" he asked. He reached over to where the briefcase was sitting in the booth and gave it a pat. "This thing is little more than a decoy! Nothing in there but a tracking device. The information you're escorting is right up here." Mr. Smith tapped the side of his head with his finger a couple times."The less I know the better," Xaeraz said sharply. He glanced about the restaurant once more. "I've just got a bad feeling about this place. As soon as that waitress brings your food, we're getting a doggy bag for it and leaving.""Oh come on! You're even more uptight than my old man ever was! What you need is--"Mr. Smith paused mid-sentence as three men in suits approached the booth. One of them produced a revolver from his suit coat. "Hands where I can see them. Not a word, gentlemen."Xaeraz and Mr. Smith held their hands up above the table and glanced at each other. Mr. Smith was clearly shaken, but Xaeraz seemed little more than annoyed."So I worry too much do I?" Xaeraz sneered.Mr. Smith just continued to stare silently at the barrel of the gun being pointed towards him."What? Talking all night and now you have nothing to say?""I don't think this is the best time for this," Mr. Smith hissed."All right, both of you, can it," the gun-toting man said. "Unless you want to be seeing Saint Peter tonight.""Would you please try not to tick them off?" Mr. Smith said, exasperated."You've been ticking me off all day; you're one to talk," Xaeraz said."I said shut up! Both of you, on your feet and mov--"It was exactly the opening Xaeraz had been waiting for. Distracted by the argument, the would-be kidnappers were unprepared for Xaeraz's first move. A quick flick at the ankle and a small spike protruded from Xaeraz's boot. He jabbed it into the gun-wielder's leg, creating an opening for him to stand up and knock the gun into the air. As the other two men moved in to grab their aggressor, Xaeraz took hold of the flower vase that had served as the table's centerpiece and cast it into their faces. Momentarily subdued, Xaeraz had enough time to pull his own handgun out of its holster and bring it to bear. By this point, most of the other patrons in the dining room had taken notice of the brawl going on. When they saw Xaeraz pull out his gun, the restaurant erupted into a sea of screams and panicked people running over and into each other.What happened next would haunt Xaeraz for the rest of his life. In the middle of the restaurant, an enormous, gaping void appeared. It was black as could be and dark tendrils of crackling energy shot out and danced about the room.Mr. Smith slowly stood up from his seat. "What in heaven's name is that?"Xaeraz's gun was still trained on the suited men, but his attention and theirs was completely absorbed by the alien appearance.A tendril of energy found its way to one of the kidnappers and there was a momentary scream of anguish before the man fell to the floor, reduced to a pile of ash."We've gotta get out of here!" Mr. Smith said.Unfortunately, Mr. Smith's suggestion was too little and far too late. The void erupted without warning, casting everyone against the wall. Xaeraz slipped into unconsciousness. *** Xaeraz sat up abruptly, gasping for air. His head was throbbing so hard he could barely see, not that he would have seen much. How long he was out was anyone's guess, but the air was still thick with ash and other bits of floating debris. He looked down and found his legs pinned under a support beam. He gave it a push and it gave way with surprising ease."Mr. Smith?!" Xaeraz called out.The dining room was in ruins. Everywhere he looked were the limp bodies of unfortunates who didn't make it out in time. Whether they were dead, dying, or just unconscious, Xaeraz didn't know. He'd have to call for an ambulance as soon as he got to a phone. First though, he had to find Smith, assuming he was still alive, and get out before anything else bad happened.Xaeraz heard a distinct cough. He climbed over broken pieces of furniture and slowly made his way over to the source of the sound. As luck would have it, there lay Mr. Smith. His tuxedo was torn, he had a large lump on his forehead, and he was covered in ash and wooden shards. Thankfully though, he was relatively unharmed."Come on, we have to get out of here." Xaeraz offered his hand.Mister Smith cleared his eyes, but as soon as he could see, he let out a shout of shock. "Get back! Don't touch me!""What's the matter with you, Smith?" Xaeraz asked. "It's me! Just grab my--" Xaeraz stopped, stunned by what he saw. "--hand?"Xaeraz turned his hand over and back. It was scorched black and shadowy wisps trailed behind its every movement. He looked around and found a broken piece of mirror. What he saw in his reflection would have been enough to drive a weak mind to the breaking point. He was a scorched black all over, the only real color being the deep red glow coming from his eyes. His teeth had become fanged and where his hair should be there were only tendrils of shadow.Mr. Smith tried to back away, but Xaeraz pulled him from the rubble."What happened to you?""Come on," Xaeraz said. "We need to get out of sight before somebody shows up.""For your sake or mine?" *** Mr. Smith limped his way from alley to alley. He didn't care if that monster was really Xaeraz as it had claimed, he wanted nothing to do with it. The two of them had had a little spat before Smith took off. Xaeraz insisted on completing his mission and bringing Mr. Smith to the rendezvous point, but Mr. Smith wanted nothing more to do with the hired guard."I don't give a flying rat's rear-end about his precious job," Mr. Smith muttered to himself. "More likely he wants to kill me. Either way, I'm not showing up with that thing in tow."Truthfully, Mr. Smith wasn't sure he even believed what he had seen. An dark void? His bodyguard turned into a creature that look like it had come from The Pits themselves?"A bump to the head will do just about anything to a man's mind," he tried to convince himself. It was best, he decided, to not mention anything to his superiors about what had really happened, lest they think him insane."There was a gas leak," Mr. Smith told himself. "My escort simply died in the explosion.""Well then, I guess this will be easy."Mr. Smith looked up to see himself surrounded by about ten street thugs."Well, looks like the pretty boys tried to get to you before we did and paid the price for it," one thug said. "I thought this would be too easy as it is with your city-slicker bodyguard, but now... well, it's just not even funny.""Leave me alone!" Mr. Smith sobbed. "I don't know anything! The briefcase was destroyed! I'm just a courier!""Now, you see, we know that ain't true," the thug replied as he and his gang began to close in on the terrified man. "And even if it is, we know somebody will be willing to pay big money to get you back. I intend to collect on that."Just as the thugs reached in to grab Smith, they were sent reeling as a mass of black tentacles shot from the remains of Mr. Smith's coat.The thugs picked themselves up. One of them spit at the ground. "What kind of freak are you!?"Mr. Smith screamed in horror as the tentacles shot out from his coat and accumulated in the center of the alley. They shifted about rapidly, shaping themselves into the form of Xaeraz.A couple of the thugs were scared enough by what they had just witnessed and ran off. The ones that stayed began to grab old pipes, pieces of wood, anything they could use as a weapon against the creature that stood before them. What they never realized is how incredibly outmatched they were. Xaeraz stomped a foot, sending a cloud of black smoke forth and effectively blinding the thugs. Unable to see their opponent, they were quickly dispatched as shadowy fists and dark tendrils pierced the fog and rendered them unconscious. When there was only one left, Xaeraz rushed forth and lifted the thug by the throat. The poor thug found himself staring into Xaeraz's gaping maw. As bright waves of energy were pulled from the thug's eyes and into Xaeraz's mouth, a final, terrified shriek filled the dark alley before the thug finally fell limp to the ground.Xaeraz's eyes glowed brighter for a moment as he finished absorbing the energy. After a brief pause, he pointed down the road. "They've got people waiting in ambush all along the path we were going to take," Xaeraz said. "But the Seventeenth Avenue bridge is clear. If we take that path, we may make it to the rendezvous point in time, but we'll have to hurry.""I thought I told you to stay away from me!"Xaeraz turned and regarded Mr. Smith with a cold expression. "I'm not letting you out of my sight." He grabbed Mr. Smith by the neck of his shirt and lifted him to his feet.Mr. Smith was shaking like a leaf in a hurricane. He looked around him at the alley full of unconscious bodies. "What did you do to them? How did you do that?""Don't know. Don't care. We're getting you out of here.""'We'? 'We' nothing! I'm going alone!""You don't have a say in the matter," Xaeraz said coldly. Before Mr. Smith could react, Xaeraz had melded back into the man's suit, unseen by all who would look upon it.Now move... *** Xaeraz stood in the dark street and watched as the coward scrambled into the hotel lobby that served as a rendezvous point. In a couple minutes, an armored truck would arrive to collect Mr. Smith and take him to his final destination. Xaeraz didn't intend to be around when that happened. He'd finished the assignment and now he was leaving, pay or not.Just as Xaeraz was about to go, a strange feeling came over him. He felt.... stronger somehow. It was as if the dark energy that now coursed through his body had been excited by something."You saved his life."Xaeraz spun around, ready to incapacitate his sudden visitor with a shadowy claw if they tried anything. However, what was supposed to be a claw had instead become a large blade. Regardless, he found his makeshift weapon caught in the grasp of a huge metal gauntlet."Who are you?" Xaeraz asked.The being that stood before Xaeraz was about a head taller and unbelievably heavily armored. A black hood hid all of the figure's facial features, save for the dim purple glow of his eyes. Eyes which continued to stare past Xaeraz toward the hotel."Not even so much as a thanks," the dark being continued. "Apparently his life isn't worth that much to him." His head turned to regard Xaeraz.Xaeraz dissipated the shadowy blade, freeing himself from the gauntlet's hold. "Doesn't matter. My job was to deliver him alive, not teach manners." He shoved his way past the armored figure. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I need to get help. I'm not exactly feeling right if you haven't figured it out.""Help? From who? Do you really believe you can just walk into a hospital somewhere and they'll know how to cure you? You don't even have the slightest clue what just happened! The most anyone will do for you is lock you away as their lab rat. They'll want to run tests and experiments, try to find out what you've become for no other reason than to satisfy their own greedy curiosity."Xaeraz hated to admit it, but it was probably true. He was now capable of doing things unheard of before. There was no chance he'd be allowed to just walk away, even if he could be cured. He'd be lucky if anyone even wanted to cure him before dissecting to study the pieces. "And just what do you propose?""I could use a man of your rather unique... capabilities.""What's the job?""The 'job', as you so crudely put it, would be a permanent position serving as my personal guard."Xaeraz was, at the very least, interested. "What kind of pay are we talking here?"The tall, shadowed figure took a step closer. "I now know more about you than you probably know yourself. I offer you knowledge, control, a place of sanctuary where there will be no need to be ashamed of what you've become. But most importantly, a chance to change the world. A chance to make people like Mr. Smith appreciate the things that matter most. Make them realize just how precious their lives are to them."Xaeraz took a last glance toward the hotel where Mr. Smith sat. He didn't have a lot of choices left anymore. Nobody was going to hire some shadowy demon as a protection service and answers were something he craved right now. "Tell me more."The dark being held out an armored hand. "Come with me and we shall talk."Xaeraz placed his hand in that of his new employer's and, in an eruption of blood-red flames, the two of them disappeared.---Well, there you have it. The first of several short stories leading up to the epic itself. I was going to wait until I had more done, but I wanted to show that I'm actually serious about doing this. There've been times in the past where it was all dreamin', schemin', and no actual doin'. Not this time.Criticism is much appreciated, especially the kind that will help improve my writing skills.You can find out more about this series here. «Takuma Nuva»
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Beware the shadow stones. That speak of the coming void. That devour us all. That whisper at night. That demand all construction cease. That destruction begin. Beware They come.
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I told you guys I was gonna do it. Wanna see Xaeraz kick some butt? Then readreadread. ●TN●
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To write an awesome piece of fiction about an evil overlord and his 19 minions while making sure they all get enough "screen time" and include an engaging plot with some sort of epic twist that wows the reader(s). *cracks knuckles* ●TN●
