Chapter 115 - Grand Exhibition (3) (Patreon)

<---Chapter 114 - Grand Exhibiton (2)   | Table of Contents | Chapter 116 - Premonition  --->

Three hours later...

Smoke and fire reigned in the city of Tenar, more so in the deep underground of the catacombs. Dozens of Ghosts squads fought tooth and nail to hold the line, struggling against ever-increasing waves of Nest guards desperately. Some of the Ghosts wavered a little, unsure about the situation as they defended the various chokepoints in the intricate maze-like layout of the second layer.

"We can't hold here much longer, Wez!" One of the Ghosts shouted over the din of pellet fire and random explosions, each and every reverberation traveling far and wide through the canal. The sewage water coursing through was starting to be stained with blood, the fallen bodies of both Nest and Ghosts alike being swept away in the never-ending tide.

"Not yet, five more minutes!" Wez urged, himself leaning his entire weight against a temporary barricade fashioned from scrap metal and anything else that could withstand more than a few pellet shots. He clutched his rifle tightly close to his chest as he could see the sweeping of arctech lanterns from the Nest guards flickering and reflecting off the walls further, the beams trying to illuminate their barricade. Only his squad had been assigned to guard the intersection here.

"WE DON'T HAVE FIVE MINUTES!" The Ghost roared, jabbing with his finger furiously at another injured Ghost who was desperately trying to pour a healing potion on a large gaping wound, the edges of the flesh seared with burning embers from a recent explosion. "That's our last health potion!"

"If you got time to worry about the potions, then you got time to worry about holding them back!" Wez shouted back, poking out from behind his cover to fire a few shots from his Aspis MK2 repeater. The pellets slammed into an exposed Nest guard, ripping through his leather armor and causing him to stagger off the pathway, falling into the surging tide with a loud splash. Three glints of reflective glass were enough to warn Wez to quickly duck back into cover. Sure enough, a hailstorm of pellets filled the air, pockmarking Wez's cover. Another Ghost from Wez's squad popped out, taking advantage of the attention focused on Wez and taking potshots, earning another pained scream echoing down the canal over the rushing water.

The five minutes felt like an eternity, Wez only cognizant of the sweat sticking to his clothes, his knight armor's originally cool and chilling feeling long gone, replaced by a warm plate that clung to his body, half of it already chipped or dented from stray pellets that managed to nick Wez. Still, the knight armor provided a much higher level of protection than was afforded by the Nest guards. However, it was far from enough to stem the ever-increasing tide of enemies trying to push through the catacomb.

Suddenly, a strange rumbling sound began to send tremors through the canal, Wez's cover vibrating heavily as he peeked out from his hiding spot once more to try and spot the source. His eyes widened as he watched an entire platoon of Versian soldiers armed to the teeth with arctech knight armor and rifles rivaling theirs, charging down towards their defensive position to bolster the attack of the Nest guards. Shit, the military is here too!

"Quick, tell them that the army is moving in now!" Wez urged the nearest Ghost to him, who hurriedly tuned the radio to the Ghosts’ channel, relaying the information.

"There's no way we'll be able to hold out much longer! It's already been more than five minutes!" The same complaining Ghost shouted. "We need to retreat now!"

Wez's heart palpitated as time slowed down from his perspective, his mind racing as he weighed his options. In a blink of an eye, he came to a decision, his expression determined. "Take the injured and retreat right now to Base 4. I'll stay behind and collapse the intersection entirely." He began to rummage through his pockets, looking for explosives while glancing around for a weak spot. His gaze landed on a big red X mark, left behind by the scouts and supply crew, who had already labeled the easiest way to cave in the canal.

"What?! Are you crazy? Then how will you retreat?"

"I'll figure that out. Go now, quick!" Wez urged, grabbing his repeater and firing haphazardly over the cover. The random suppressive fire forced the incoming Versian soldiers to quickly duck out of the way, taking cover behind the various pillars along the length of the catacomb tunnels. He retracted the repeater, swapping out an empty canister for a new one from his backpack next to his side on the ground.

As he prepared to shoot again, he noticed that the rest of the squad was not moving, instead also fighting back. "What the hell are you idiots doing?" Wez shouted.

"We ain't leaving without you!" The other Ghosts wore grim faces, but their eyes burnt with fierce determination, ready to fight against the seemingly impossible odds to the end. With no time to chat, the squad rallied their morale together again, their spirits higher than ever as they let out a unified battlecry, firing as much ammunition as they could down the canal. Nearly a dozen soldiers were nicked by the sudden barrage, causing the rest of the Nest guards and Versian soldiers to retreat temporarily.

Suddenly, one of the Versian platoon leaders stepped out into the open, unafraid of the pellets at all. Wez focused all of his fire onto the men, but instead of the pellets injuring the platoon leader, point defense arcia bolts lanced out furiously, drawing green streaks across the canal. One of the green bolts shot right toward Wez, disintegrating the pellet along the way while vaporizing a gaping hole in Wez's cover, the resulting impact sending Wez tumbling backward.

The other Ghosts also tried to shoot back, but the point defense seemed to never end, a large fuel pack carried by two other Versian soldiers plugged into the platoon leader's armor. The connected tube churned rapidly and allowed the armor's engraving to be continuously lit, allowing a seemingly endless stream of green arcia bolts that streaked across the canal, the high energy incinerating and searing through anything.

Wez's vision faded in and out as he groaned, rolling on the floor. From his hazy sight, he could only watch as one of the Ghosts shot a pellet at the leader, earning an overwhelming point defense arcia bolt that singed his armor and sent the Ghost flying backward as well. Wez could feel someone grabbing his shoulder, trying to drag him away from the battle, but he could already hear the impending sounds of rushing metal Versian boots charging toward them. Even as his squadmates tried to retreat, Wez could already tell it was far too late for them, knowing that there was no hope of resistance anymore while he made his peace. Better to die free than to die a slave.

Before Wez closed his eyes, he surprisingly saw a familiar figure appear in front of him, making him almost think it was a hallucination. There's no way... there's no way that's the boss, right? He wouldn't come like this... Yet there was something he could feel with each step the familiar figure took in front of him, something that couldn't be replicated easily. It's him!

Without saying a word, Kyle grabbed Wez by the collar with one arm and tossed him unceremoniously down back towards the intersection to safety. "Retreat now!" Kyle waved his arm, his exosuit arm flaring into life as the engravings on it glowed with a brilliance unmatched. He charged towards the incoming Versian soldiers, a wide, confident grin plastered on his face.

None of the Versian soldiers could react in time when Kyle cleared the distance in just four short strides, his speed unfathomable as he stabbed forward with the Tattoo Knife headlong in his left hand, aimed right at the jugular of the platoon leader. With no time even for instinct to kick in, the jagged blade already skewered into the vocal cords of the leaders in a blink of an eye, Kyle swapping hands and reverse gripping the handle with his right and forcing it through. The strength of the exosuit arm whirred with power incarnate, the Tattoo Knife cleaving through the neck of the platoon leader like it was liquid.

Even before the soldiers fired a pellet at him, Kyle was already dancing through them, creating a chaotic battle as he used the soldiers themselves as a sponge to soak up the fired pellets. He was like a shadow, flitting through the platoon and inflicting terror among its ranks as he sliced limb from joint and head from the body, his motions swift and deadly. Each swing of the knife saw one more Versian soldier fall to the ground, the EXP System messages racking up in front of him, though he ignored them, mentally pushing them out of sight.

Within a minute, Kyle had already slaughtered close to twenty Versian soldiers and Nest guards alike, and he showed no sign of stopping, a veritable one-man army on his own in such an enclosed area. Each and every facet of the environment blended into his mind, able to calculate the most efficient path while every soldier was mentally imaged and predicted, his steps immaculate. Fear began to grip the hearts of the remaining soldiers, many of them fresh conscripts unwilling to fight against a seemingly impossible enemy, especially when their platoon leader was dead.

"Retreat and regroup! Retreat and regroup!" A frantic Versian recruit called out, his voice wavering in terror before Kyle locked onto him, using his free hand to fire a pellet from his Oriental Bloom handgun. The recruit's expression was locked in horror, a gaping hole searing through his left eye, the pellet bursting into a fleshy explosion that frightened anyone who saw it.

"I ain't going to die here in this shitty tunnel!" The survivors scattered like flies, running haphazardly down the canal in a disorderly retreat. Kyle shot a few more of them, racking his total kills to thirty, singlehandedly eradicating the attacking platoon. He sprinted back to the intersection, grabbing any dropped supplies the retreating Ghost squad had left behind and lugging them on his back.

Before he left the intersection, he took good aim with his handgun at the red X marked near the corner of the canal, the spot laden with explosives. With a single shot, he ignited the dormant combustible material, immediately destroying the support of the canals and collapsing it, blocking the entire pathway off, though the water current surged through the gaps in the rubble. [Sasha, report.]

[Sir, re-entering catacombs. There are too many enemies above.]

[Did Count Leon escape?]

[Yes, sir.]

[Good work. Meet at Base 1. Do not move too fast - make sure Nest knows your track. We're going to lure them to us so the other three bases can evacuate.] Kyle retreated back to the main base, which had already been slowly hollowed out. He had only thirty Ghosts left in the base, the rest being supply and logistic workers who had already retreated into the Rotten Chamber as their backup base. Dekar and Yona had already moved to another base, which was much closer to the Crueliz escape route. All Kyle had to do was stall Nest and the military for as long as he could to preserve as much manpower and supplies before retreating towards Desham.

"Sir, the route has already been set. We'll recuperate in the Rotten Chamber and then set off. We have already sent forward scouts to check the tunnels towards Desham once more, and they will liaise with our other cell planted there." Feldon gave his report with a salute. Each of the cities in Versia was already prepared by Sasha and Culo before Kyle had even arrived in Ocra, with each region having a designated cell leader, just like how Lisa had been appointed as leader for Tenar.

"Good. How are our defenses?" Kyle asked.

"We have set up enough roadblocks towards the fourth layer entrance room, and we've planted enough explosives to collapse the whole hideout if necessary." Feldon pointed out the barricades made from mattresses, makeshift crates filled to the brim with dirt dug from the dungeon, and leftover bedframes stacked haphazardly to funnel any attackers coming in. Each Ghost was armed with an Aspis MK2 repeater, having harvested enough poor arcia crystal to at least last a battle, Feldon himself armed with one as he led Kyle around the defensive setup. "I don't think that Nest is coming here anytime soon, though - with you collapsing that intersection and the other Ghost squads splitting up, it would take maybe a day for them to find us."

"Nest is coming. I'm bringing them here. All of you, prepare yourself. Make sure you're stocked up on ammunition, supplies, and potions. Anyone who is injured immediately retreats back into the fourth layer, understood?" Kyle raised his voice louder for the various Ghosts to hear. "We will not fall here - we will survive! And we will fight hard enough for our comrade to survive!"

"YES, SIR!" The Ghosts roared back in unison, preparing themselves for the imminent battle. Kyle had now practically ascended into a heroic figure for them, and the word of him selflessly saving Dekar's commandos and rescuing Wez's squad from certain doom had spread like wildfire. None of them had even the slightest doubt that Kyle would sacrifice them. With their morale at an all-time high, they even began to joke with each other, laughing about how Nest would fall into their trap. "Anyone who even steps into the central chamber is going to be annihilated!"

Surprisingly, Kyle, too, had the same mindset, though for a far different reason. Training these Ghosts was difficult and a sink on resources. Every action I take to protect them will increase the solidarity of the group, and in return, my activities will be less scrutinized. Kyle never lost sight of the objective: to steal everything that belonged to Harrison and make it his. The imminent war and the rebel movements were just simple cover-ups to his true motive, and any action that would work toward that goal without compromising himself, he would do, even if it meant acting as a selfless, righteous hero. Furthermore, once Versia was rid of Harrison, Kyle would then be able to naturally assume the same economic role, this time with ardent Versian supporters on his side. All part of the plan.

While he was truly irked at the farce of an exosuit, he wondered whether or not Harrison really had an exosuit to display. Perhaps the reason why it was a fake was because he actually did not have anything to show. Kyle knew he wouldn't know until he captured Harrison himself, but he suppressed his anger at being tricked deep into his heart, not letting it cloud his current decision. He focused on arming himself with the necessary gear, unveiling a second railgun much like Sasha's. Unfortunately for Kyle, most of the specialized projectiles had been handed to Sasha for the operation, leaving him only two explosive rounds to use. They were difficult to make, and Kyle was required to handcraft them himself.

Soon, within ten minutes, Sasha had entered the base, panting and huffing, her arms and legs clearly wounded with some pellets lodged inside her muscles and bones. Despite her prowess, it was near impossible to evade a hailstorm of pellets aimed at her by entire squads and platoons chasing her through the city. She collapsed onto the ground near the entrance, Kyle and Feldon immediately rushing up to carry her out. "Feldon, get two Ghosts to move her to the Rotten Chamber and get her healed immediately."

[Sir, I-I can still fight!] Sasha grunted telepathically as she struggled to move, but her limbs were already immobilized by the pellets still embedded inside. Kyle grabbed her arm firmly, making sure she couldn't get up.

"You've done well enough. Go rest. This isn't the final fight, and it's far from the heights you wanted to see. Don't sacrifice yourself needlessly." Kyle nodded, with the two Ghosts immediately treating her wounds with healing potions before moving her down to the fourth layer.

"Shit, if Sasha is here, it means Nest is not far behind!" Feldon exclaimed, adjusting his Aspis MK1 armored helmet and fastening the straps. The jokes and small talk had died down, with a solemn, grim atmosphere now taking hold of the remaining Ghosts. They only numbered thirty in total, including Feldon and Kyle, but they all knew that they may be facing a force ten times their size.

"No sweat, no sweat at all." Feldon continued mumbling to himself as he took up position behind a barricade facing the main entrance tunnel. They had barricaded every other entrance to the base, leaving only the tunnel from which Sasha had arrived through as the sole funnel point from which Nest could potentially attack. "All I got to do is just pull the trigger the moment I see any human figure pop up from that entrance. Easy. Just fire as many pellets as you can, nothing can wrong, Feldon, nothing can wrong."

Kyle had to listen to Feldon's inane mumbling and was about to berate him when a sudden eerie tremor started to rock the entire central chamber, the vibrations intensifying over time as it approached. The barricades rattled violently, the Ghosts swiveling their head around in confusion to try and find the source of the tremors. Kyle himself did not truly understand what was happening. Is this an earthquake? Or-

Before he could react, a sudden burst of dirt and rubble erupted from the top of the ceiling of the central chamber, the rocks tumbling onto the ground and crushing two Ghosts that were unfortunate enough to be right below, dying instantly. Within seconds, five ropes were thrown down from the hole, Nest guards rappelling down quickly and entering the very center of the base, right behind the barricades that had been set up.

Kyle moved quickly, his handgun shooting down the Nest guards as they came in, but there was a clear limit to how fast he could shoot. More than three dozen Nest guards fell in, immediately attacking the nearest Ghosts that were all universally caught off-guard.

Some of the Ghosts further away swiveled their rifles to aim at the rappelling Nest guards, but another deafening explosion rocked the chamber, the main entrance tunnel bursting apart wider with the rubble being flung out by the shockwave. The enlarged entrance suddenly saw another three dozen Versian soldiers enter, the entire central chamber devolving into a mad firefight.

"Shit, shit, shit!" Feldon cursed as he fired as quickly as he could, holding down the trigger and running the poor arcia crystal mounted on the repeater dry, killing three Versian soldiers in one fell swoop. Elsewhere, Kyle immediately grabbed the five ropes and bunched them up into both hands.

With his exosuit arm helping out, he yanked the rope as hard as he could, causing the rappelling Nest guards to get swung violently on the ropes. Those further up on the rope had their faces smacked against the hole, knocking them out. Kyle tugged the rope again as hard as he could, finally causing the five ropes to snap, sending a few Nest guards plummeting downwards to their deaths.

Before Kyle could recover, a sudden black shadow jabbed towards him, the sharp pointy tip of a diamond-shaped arm shield nearly cutting into his arm. He deftly dodged, spinning around with a devastating roundhouse kick, only to miss the kick as the shadow ducked low, the shadow's shin slamming into Kyle's one, attempting to sweep Kyle off his feet.

Unfortunately, the kick had no effect, Kyle still standing strong as he grappled with the shadow, finally recognizing the sleek black metallic armor. It's Nox! Taking two steps back, nearby Ghosts began to fire at Nox, showering in a violent barrage.

Nox's arm shields blocked his face while the rest of his body armor's engraving began to light up, seemingly soaking the pellet damage to no effect. The pellets that hit his armor all collapsed onto the floor like a waterfall, scattering like marbles. Nox grinned as he lowered his arm shields, only for his eyes to widen as Kyle aimed a second railgun at him, the explosive projectile already zooming towards him.

Nox did not avoid the hit; instead, he shielded himself once again and blocked the projectile with his armshields. The projectile burst into a brilliant ball of flame, but it was soon dissipated into streaks of smoke, Nox's armor seemingly left untouched save for the engravings flickering on his armor, their brilliance unsteady as the energy concentrated onto his arm shields.

He rushed forward with a blinding speed, his movement hard even for Kyle's keen eyes to catch as he tried to jab at Kyle once more with the tip of the armshield.

Kyle was forced to use the railgun's shaft to block the hit, the sparkles along the edge of the barrel dazzling from the friction, but unlike the first attack by Nox, he suddenly found himself lifted off the ground and thrown backward by an extreme force, the arm shield engraving's arcia energy expelling rapidly. Kyle's vision swirled as he flipped in midair, landing back onto the ground with his two feet slamming hard into the rock, carving two lines as Kyle's body was still moving backward, the force of the hit inconceivable.

He watched as Nox deflected yet another pellet stream, the energy from the pellets seemingly absorbed harmlessly by the armor and channeled towards the arm shields. He's converting the kinetic energy absorbed for his own use! Kyle quickly raised his railgun in response to a third strike by Nox, using the sturdy railgun as a short staff to parry the incoming hits.

Kyle landed a few counter hits in, but it clearly did no perceivable damage to the armour. Instead, Kyle found himself on the back foot, having to block stronger and stronger hits as Nox reused every attack he received, each jab and strike by the arm shield getting stronger and stronger.

A momentary lapse in calculation saw Kyle dodge a jab by the skin of his teeth, the tip of the arm shield stabbing past his ear. Unexpectedly, before Kyle could move to the side, a hidden jagged edge emerged from around the shield, one of the edges slicing Kyle's earlobe.

What?! Kyle had never received a debuff before, but he had no time to think, with Nox capitalizing on the shock to push his advantage, delivering a kick to Kyle’s left knee to cripple him.

However, Kyle’s legs barely buckled, allowing Kyle to quickly backpedal and make some distance while the wound on his cheek and earlobe began to bubble with a greenish liquid, seeping into Kyle’s bloodstream.

Necklace of Healing! The green aura surged around the wound and enveloped the green poison, but there was no notification of debuff removal. Already Kyle could feel his body being slightly more sluggish, slower to react. The sounds of battle and rage were already noticeably far degraded compared to his usual sense and spatial awareness. He dodged and weaved through the next three Nox attacks, using the antidote vial between exchanges and splashing it onto his earlobe.

"That won't be enough to cure the poison - you're going to need at least ten of that." Nox grinned under his faceplate, knowing he had Kyle cornered. "You're not going anywhere!"

Nox’s fighting style was unique, using the sharp edges of the arm shield and the hidden blade to slice and dice as he continued to throw punch after punch at Kyle, no longer trying to kick Kyle’s legs in close-quarter combat. His speed was unmatched, able to throw two attacks for every one attack Kyle tried to retaliate with.

Just as Kyle swung the railgun at Nox’s head, Nox ducked and crouched to the floor before launching his foot up towards Kyle’s chest. Kyle quickly pulled back his railgun to block the hit, but another retractable blade was hidden in Nox’s shoe, firing outwards and lodging itself into Kyle’s right shoulder between the gaps of the armor.

Kyle’s mind began to falter, his thought process beginning to diminish as his combat stats began to plummet. But Kyle immediately grabbed Nox’s leg before performing a body throw and slamming Nox into the ground. The impact was absorbed right into Nox’s armor, dissipating as Nox immediately twisted his body to deliver yet another kick with his free leg, forcing Kyle to let go of Nox and dodge in anticipation of yet another hidden blade. Sure enough, the hidden blade was fired, nearly missing Kyle’s nose as he avoided it in time.

"Enough." Kyle suddenly spoke with a clear tone, the air around him changing rapidly. Penchant for Violence! His body suddenly surged with strength, overwhelming the Debilitating Poison and allowing him to temporarily overpower Nox. The sudden change in power caught Nox off-guard, with Kyle able to lunge forward and pin him down to the ground with a frontal slam, preventing Nox from using his speed to dodge any more hits.

"Seems like you never learn anything!" Nox activated another hidden blade on his armour, this one jabbing deep into Kyle's flesh.

"You're going to need more than that to stop me." Kyle lunged forward with his right exosuit arm, grabbing Nox's armored helmet and ripping it off, the helmet sailing back towards the interior hallway of the hideout, revealing Nox's face and his red hair. Without hesitating, Kyle nocked back his right arm, sending all of his strength into a single punch that crushed Nox's nose and frontal teeth in one hit, his jaw bending inwards.

However, before Kyle could deliver yet another heavy-handed blow, the armor of Nox suddenly began to glow hot red, scalding Kyle’s skin and forcing Kyle to get off. Nox quickly recovered, but his eyes were bloodshot as, his nose was completely caved in, with half of his teeth missing, and blood flowing freely from his mouth.

Nox panted visibly, with the engraving on the armor beginning to die down. That must have taken a lot of arcia energy out of him. Kyle prepared to counterattack, but instead of Nox facing Kyle head-on, Nox began to retreat behind the other Nest guards, who were still locked in a tense firefight with the other Ghosts. Casualties were beginning to mount on both sides, more so for the side of Nest than the Ghosts due to the difference in equipment.

Kyle tried to chase, knowing that if he captured Nox, it would prove to be a valuable asset like Yona. Unfortunately, Nox had disappeared as fast as he had entered the battlefield. Kyle turned his attention to the still-increasing tide of Nest and Versian soldiers storming the base. "Fall back to the second layer!"

The Ghosts retreated into the hallway, using the tight and narrow corridors to funnel the attacking enemies. The Versian soldiers were not dumb however, using deployed explosives to blow holes through the walls and allow them to flank the roadblocks. Kyle fought hard in the rooms, preventing the Versians from backstabbing the Ghosts, while Feldon let out a battle roar, laying down a sustained pellet fire that mowed down anyone stupid enough to expose themselves in the hallway.

The bodies of Nest guards and Versian soldiers began to pile up significantly, so much so that the Ghosts were beginning to use them as the barricade itself. Blood, meat, and organs flowed freely in rivers that snaked their way through the hallway, imprints of military boots and spent pellets scattered around. Kyle himself was covered from head to toe with stains of blood, the effect of the Penchant of Violence having worn out long ago.

Yet, despite the clearly insurmountable odds, they were able to continuously hold out for what seemed to be an hour, with Kyle doing the bulk of the killing. Already, two hundred soldiers had fallen at his hands alone, the EXP stacking up tremendously.

The waves of Versian and Nest soldiers never seemed to stop coming, like lambs to the slaughter. Despite the ease of the defense, Kyle felt that something was inherently wrong. Harrison wouldn't do something so stupid as throw this much fodder into a grinder. There must be something bigger at play here...

In the central chamber, a black fog-like cloud began to descend from the hole in the ceiling. It floated downwards gently, an unknown device from above pumping out fumes that continuously sank below. As it hit the ground, it surged out in all directions, slowly filling up the chamber and crawling toward the hallways.

"Gas masks, now!" Kyle urged, the Ghosts quickly donning the masks, having been well-trained. Unfortunately, Kyle watched as the black gas surged past the Versian and Nest soldiers alike, the gas lapping up at them.

"Huh..? What is this fo- URK!" None of them could react fast enough, assuming it was smoke from a normal fire. However, as they inhaled the smoke, their eyes began to water uncontrollably, while their skin began to wrinkle up, the folds on their cheeks scrounging up so hard until it began to bleed profusely. Their throats began to sear with pain as they stared at their shriveling hands in horror, as though all the water and life were being sucked out of them.

This is My Turf! Kyle immediately stepped into the hallway, using the invisible barrier to block as much of the smoke as possible, but it was useless - the smoke, too, began to seep into the adjoining rooms bit by bit, circumventing his barrier as the Ghosts stepped back warily, unsure of what to do next. "FELDON, GET EVERYONE OUT NOW!" Kyle roared.

It was a race against time, Feldon hurriedly leading the retreat back to the fourth layer entrance. There was no time for decorum; each Ghost immediately sprinted down the cramped tunnel regardless of how many scrapes and bruises they earned from the jagged walls. Kyle carefully stepped back, keeping track of his Turf barrier before reaching the end of the hallway. He noticed Nox's helmet on the ground, quickly picking it up.

Kyle didn't have time to cheer about the prize, moving as fast as he could back to the entrance of the fourth-layer tunnel. The black smoke seemed to suck the humidity out of anything that it touched - rations, walls, and wood all began to shrivel up rapidly, the water content completely lost. Placing his hand on a nearby wall engraving, he sent a surge of arcia energy, zig-zagging down a pre-engraved line that led right to the central chamber, illuminating the bodies of the fallen from below.

Within a split second, a thunderous blast erupted from the central chamber, each of the rooms in sequence being blown up by arranged explosives. Screams and shrieks of horror erupted from the hole above the ceiling as the black fog was pushed upwards, no doubt enveloping whoever deployed the gas. Kyle, too, sprinted down the tunnel, but not before collapsing the tunnel behind him, creating a pile of rubble that stemmed from the flow of the dangerous black fog. However, the resulting explosion instead pushed the black fog out harder, the velocity increasing through the gaps and seams of the debris.

As soon as he reached the large corridor that led to the Rotten Chamber, he ordered the Ghosts to run away as fast as possible before he took aim with his railgun at the tunnel, blowing it up with his last projectile. The explosion blasted apart the rubble and collapsed the tunnel even further, the heat melting some of the stone into slag that sealed up most of the gap. Kyle could still see some black fog leaking, its effect already apparently on the rapidly shriveling bioluminescent algae. "Retreat to the Rotten Chamber, we've done all we could. Tell Lisa, Dekar, and Yona to evacuate immediately before the gas hits them as well!"

Far above the chaos in the catacombs, in the Versian Parliament Presidential Office, Mornero clenched his fist in anger once more, the plan to capture the rebels clearly failing. "It's clear that the rebels know more about our capabilities than we do - we can't even round up the rats in our own backyard! If the information they have gets out to Count Leon, then we'll be at a clear disadvantage."

"Then the solution is simple." Harrison calmly spoke, his anger from before already calmed as though he had accepted the change in events. "Have the general mobilization concentrate at Ocra. We strike first."

<---Chapter 114 - Grand Exhibiton (2)   | Table of Contents | Chapter 116 - Premonition  --->