A light hum was all the sound the team could hear from within the hummingbird. Although it was a small aircraft, it wasn’t all too cramped for the four, granted Liu was quite small, and Midnight could take up no space if necessary. There were no windows, or even any controls for that matter. The flight path was predetermined, and the aircraft was programmed to respond appropriately to a variety of scenarios. There was, however, a manual emergency ejection option, should something go wrong, although it was unheard of anyone ever using it.

They were about a minute away from the drop point, and currently there was no change in the target’s behavior. Kira quickly reiterated their plan, before making a few final checks to ensure everything was in order, as did Ronin. Liu appeared to be lost in thought, until Kira tapped her and gestured for her to prepare to exit the hummingbird. Upon arriving at the drop site, the hummingbird slowed to a hover for a few seconds, before opening its doors and lowering itself a few feet above the ground. The four quickly exited the aircraft, which departed as soon as it sensed they’d stepped away.

As they made their way through the wilderness, the team noticed signs of struggles. Most were likely due to turf wars among the retreating wildlife. Broken branches, uprooted plants, whatever was coming, the wildlife wanted no part of it. The eerie silence was broken by an update from their operator. It seemed their target stopped moving shortly after they were dropped off. They were advised to be on high alert as they proceeded to the campsite. Things were quiet the rest of the way, it appeared as though most of the wildlife had long since fled the areas around the entity.

Upon arrival at the campsite, the team made short work of setting up the basics, a small fire pit, and something akin to hammocks hung from high branches. Rarely did anyone sleep at ground level. Liu was traversing the treetops, making note of their surroundings and marking the best observation points. Kira was setting up a variety of magical traps along the outer perimeter, ranging from alert spells to pitfalls and vine snares. Ronin was setting up observation devices and small sentries. Most of the preparation was out of caution, since this was intended to be the ambush point, though they hadn’t yet received an update as to whether or not the entity started moving again.

Midnight made mental notes of everything the team did and took up a position overlooking the site, and the general direction the entity was meant to approach from. Since it’d stopped moving, it was currently about 17 miles from their location, hardly a threat from that distance one would think. Another update came through, they were advised to maintain their position till sundown. If it didn’t resume movement by then, sending a scout or waiting it out till the following day were additional options. Moving to its position was ill-advised as the unknown nature of the entity could prove problematic should it be an ambush predator.

Ronin: “Sounds like we’re in for another long haul, great.”

Kira: “It could be worse, we could be stuck in the marshlands again.”

Ronin: *smugly* “Way I remember, you were the only one having any problems in the swamps.”

Kira: “If you had a mosquito the size of your face stuck to you, you’d freak out too wouldn’t you?!” *sighs* “Forget it, it doesn’t matter. Liu! Midnight! We’re all set down here! Feel free to relax, it’s gonna be a long day!”

Liu wasted no time climbing down and over to her hammock. Midnight seemingly vanished and reappeared at ground level after a few seconds. Despite being a capable combatant, Liu was still fairly young, so it made sense she’d opt to rest rather than idle about. Ronin took some time and made crude seats out of a fallen log, where the three of them sat, taking a breather.

Midnight took this time to ask Kira and Ronin about their equipment, as well as their combat styles. Something all members had in common were their field suits. All members of S10 would receive a form fitted suit, outfitted with a PEF emitter, or Personal Environmental Field, by default. It’d regulate their body temperature and protect them from the elements. Beyond that, each field member could customize their suit to meet their personal needs and preferences.

Kira, being a mage, had her suit specialized for her magic use. It allowed her to use her magic more efficiently by alleviating the toll it takes on her through the use of several arcane runes embedded into it. It also empowered her spells without her having to exhaust as much of her mana. She preferred more lightweight apparel, so instead of any actual armor, her suit has a personal force field emitter as well. Most energy weapons, supersonic small arms fire, and even some ranged spells could be deflected by it, but it leaves her vulnerable to subsonic projectiles, explosives, close quarters combat, and an equally extensive list of spells. Due to its massive power draw, she doesn’t have many other features for her suit, though she makes up for it herself using her magic. She’s highly proficient with Enhancement magic, Nature magic, and adept with a variety of elements. It wasn’t uncommon for mages to be adept in multiple schools of magic, though the general thought process was the wider one spread their scope, the more diluted their capabilities would be. That said, despite Kira’s specialty being in support, it’d be foolish to disregard her in battle, as left unchecked she could very well unleash some devastating spells across a wide area.

Ronin, naturally, was on the other half of the spectrum. He had a very low aptitude for magic, but he more than made up for it with his technical know-how and raw power. His suit was heavily on the technical side, although it did have minor enhancement runes embedded into it. With his larger build, also came a larger cell for his suit, allowing him to utilize a variation of the personal force field emitter, as well as other add-ons. Durable, yet light, specialized armor plating lined key parts of his limbs and his torso. His suit also had several reservoirs with varying kinds of nanites available for different use cases. With the use of a neural transmitter, he was able to pull from the reservoirs and alter his weapons, repair damage to his armor, and even cater to minor wounds should he need to. He didn’t necessarily command the nanites himself, most of the functions were pre-programmed, his neural transmitter just allowed him to interface with an AI. It would then designate the necessary nanites required for whatever he may need and enables the programming for said action. Overall, he was well equipped for Mid range and close range combat, and could take on much larger opponents if he needed to. His biggest threats were long range casters, or particularly fast targets. Any engagement that took too long could also prove problematic, but that was almost universal.

Liu, as they explained, was a bit of a wild card. She was significantly stronger than the average individual, which is increasingly odd given her size. In addition to her strength, she was also much more agile than the majority of her compatriots. To their knowledge, her suit was designed around her existing capabilities. Given her size there wasn’t much room for power usage, so enhancement runes were a given, but her suit composition was altered. It was super light, and could soften blows significantly, assuming she didn’t remain stationary when receiving them. It was also incredibly difficult to pierce. She was allowed some smaller nanite reservoirs, with remote activation as opposed to using a neural transmitter and an AI. Her weapons of choice were a set of claws, which he’d previously seen during their warm-up, and their altered form was the spear. In addition to these, she supposedly had several projectiles she could throw or fire using a modified version of her claws, but none of them had ever actually seen her use them in that manner. Her equipment aside, Liu was able to use a variety of spells on her own, ranging from enhancement, to several projectile based spells of varying elements and qualities. These were also seldom seen by them, but according to her data sheet, she could do it. Kira had a theory that she may be able to copy spells she witnesses somehow, but didn’t have any concrete evidence to back it up. She’s never been heard chanting, so most just assume she has an innate ability to use certain spells. That said, she’s not necessarily the most vulnerable, but without a force field emitter or “heavy” armor, she was technically the most at-risk of injury out of the three.

When it came time for Midnight to speak a bit regarding his abilities, he wasn’t entirely sure how to explain. It wasn’t that he couldn’t do much, but rather he had yet to fully discover the full extent of his abilities. It was apparent that the use of magic and energy to him was almost as natural as breathing would be to any living creature. The way he perceived technology, magic, and magical items was almost all the same to him, they just had different compositions or “energy” sources. He understood his composition, and also that he could alter his own composition at will using transmutation magic, although it could be tricky at times. He was capable of reverse engineering spells, weapons, and various kinds of intricate items through exposure or analysis, though how long it took would vary based on the complexity. It was also apparent that he was able to create new spells, though he was heavily limited by his current lack of knowledge and creativity. When asked about his actual perception of the world, he clarified that although his head appeared to have eyes, with full expressiveness, he didn’t necessarily “see” through those eyes. He could perceive the world around him in 360 degrees, as if from multiple points of view at once. He did note however, that during times of extreme stress, his focal point would be in the direction his head appears to be looking, as he’d found out during his test against the Paranther. As far as physical capabilities went, he’d yet to truly discover his limits. He had full control over all of his nanites, so in theory he’d be able to do and accommodate just about any action, it was simply limited by his current lack of knowledge and creativity.

A few hours had gone by, and still no change in the entity’s position. Kira and Ronin had taken some of the time to test Midnight’s ability to mimic their spells and weapons respectively. He’d caught on to Kira’s spells relatively easily. Attempting to replicate Ronin’s weapons was more difficult though, he’d struggled getting the energy levels balanced, and firing projectiles made of his own nanites would prove to be detrimental, as it took him longer to replace them than he’d like. Liu was still fast asleep, so they kept things to a minimum.

Shortly thereafter, a message came through from their operator. Although they still couldn’t identify what the entity was, they did discover that it was emitting some kind of signal, likely since it’d stopped moving. Uncertain as to what or who it’s intended for, they’d decided a change of plan was in order, and they were to engage immediately.

Ronin: “You’ve got to be kidding me, it’s been hours and now you tell us?”

Kira: “Suck it up, Midnight, can you use flight magic on yourself and Ronin?”

Midnight: “Shouldn’t be a problem.”

Kira: “Great, I’ll grab Liu. We’ll get there faster above the treeline.”

Ronin: “Are you sure about this? It’s 17 miles, and we have no idea what that thing is?”

Kira: “We’ll worry about that later, it’ll be worse if more of those things show up. Let’s move.”

Kira quickly casts flight on herself, and hovers over Liu's hammock. She was startled awake, but went along with it, no questions asked. Midnight used flight on himself, and used a variation of the spell to make Ronin weightless. Much to his protests, he then hoisted him onto his back and took off, following Kira’s lead. At their pace, they’d arrive in about 8 minutes. Their operator had apologized profusely. Every method of observation they were trying was failing, and the signal the entity was emitting was almost undetectable. To make matters worse, they’d concluded it was being sent beyond the planet’s atmosphere. Whatever the case may be, they needed to act fast.

About 2 minutes from the target, they received an update from their operator. Six smaller entities were dispatched from the target and were quickly heading in their direction. It was advised they find a clearing and prepare to fight. Kira quickly sought out an opening and put Liu on the ground. Midnight followed suit and dispelled the magic from Ronin as he was set down.

Operator: “30 seconds till contact.”

Kira: “Alright everybody, guards up” *Casts enhancement magic on Ronin and Liu*

Ronin: *Readying his energy rifle* “Remember newbie, it’s a sprint, not a marathon.”

Midnight nodded as he prepared to engage, Liu similarly preparing to rush whatever appeared. Heavy footsteps could be heard as the entities approached, just as the sounds approached the treeline, they split up to either side of the team before lunging out of the greenery.

At first glance, the entities appeared to be nightstalkers, though unlike any they’d seen before. They’re flesh was translucent, revealing dense, gray colored muscle tissue beneath and a glowing red orb of sorts deep within their torsos. They wasted no time as they quickly moved to surround the 4 of them. Ronin had fired off several shots, striking two with energy blasts, though it appeared ineffective. Kira, who was in the air, chanted swiftly in an attempt to ensnare them, managing to immobilize one. Liu and Midnight moved to close quarters against the two closest to them, Liu digging her claws into one’s shoulder, and Midnight attempting to pin the creature down, and pierced the creature's body using a second set of arms.

Ronin, having drawn the attention of the pair he’d blasted, shifted his rifle into an ax, and drew his sidearm. He fired shots at the farther one and moved to swing at the one charging him, managing to cut its face and keep it at bay. Kira doubled down on the immobilized stalker, executing it by impaling it on all sides with the roots that had ensnared it. Then casting a barrage of ice shards on the stalker that had been lunging at her from the ground, slowing it down. By then, Midnight had made short work of the stalker he’d pinned down, though its body was difficult to pierce through, he was able to destroy its core. Looking over, Liu, who’s claws had gotten stuck in the stalker, was pulsing waves of electricity into it repeatedly, until it stopped moving. Not far off, as one of the stalkers lunges towards Ronin’s head, he ducks down and empties his sidearm into its torso, holstering and shifting his ax into its war-hammer mode, its body falling to the ground limp. The second stalker charges him yet again, he swings for its head, but misses. Using the momentum, he rolls out of its way, quickly preparing counter strikes as it skids to a stop behind him. He sweeps low, knocking it off its feet, then heaves his hammer up high and slams it down square on its chest, shattering its core from the outside. As he looked up, he could see Kira wrapping up the remaining stalker and impaling it similarly to the first one she’d dealt with.

A moment passes as silence befalls the team once again. They examine the stalkers more closely now. Aside from the translucent flesh and gray muscle coloration, their blood, assuming it’s blood at all, was blue, and some of their features appeared robotic, mechanical in nature, despite the biological feel.

Ronin: “Don’t see those every day.”

Kira: “No time to sit around admiring our handiwork, we need to get moving.”

Liu and Midnight nod, as a familiar voice chimes back in:

Operator: “Heads up, the entity’s started moving your way, and there’s another individual entity closing in on your position, not as large, but bigger than the previous six. Six minutes, and 20 seconds respectively.”

Liu’s head snaps in the direction of the oncoming entity, audibly growling as she takes on a quadrupedal fight stance.

Ronin: “I got a bad feeling about this…” *shifting back to his rifle*

Kira: “Liu, Midnight, back away from the treeline!”

Midnight slipped back, but Liu stayed in place. A set of bright red eyes could be seen approaching from the darkness, heavy thudding could be heard as it closed in on them. The moment it left cover, Liu rushed it with a burst of speed. She threw herself at it, twisting her body and landing a spinning kick square on the side of its head, causing it to recoil to her left. Skidding to a stop, she again audibly growled at the creature. It let out an ear piercing roar, which sounded like that of a Paranther, but with a mechanical aspect to it. Its appearance resembled a paranther, but it shared the translucent skin and gray muscle tissues the nightstalkers had, along with bright red accents, heavy gray fur around its neck and back, and its spikes appeared to be metallic in nature.

Ronin opened fire, aiming to blind it with energy blasts, though once again they appeared to be ineffective. Noting Kira’s chanting, it immediately discharged red bolts of electricity at her, as it turned to swing at Liu. She quickly stepped back to avoid it, then immediately counter attacked, leaving minor cuts on its thick skin. Kira quickly repositioned and readied to immobilize it again, as Ronin swapped to projectile munitions and fired several rounds at its head, striking with two. Enraged, it disregarded Liu and charged in Ronin and Kira’s direction. Liu gave chase, and Midnight moved to intersect it, purposely getting directly in its path.

As it closed in on Midnight, it swatted at him, striking the left side of his body causing him to slide off to the side, the nanites in his body absorbing energy from the impact. Ronin took the opening and began pulling additional nanites to convert his rifle into a heavy railgun. Midnight, having redirected the previous blow, rushed up to its face and uppercut its chin, releasing the stored energy, causing it to rear up and topple onto its side. A cluster of roots burst from the ground, binding its limbs and creating an opening. Liu rushed to its underside, unleashing a flurry of slashes, clawing away parts of its flesh and dense muscle tissues, revealing a faint glow on the left side of its torso. As she did the creature writhed and struggled against the roots, they likely wouldn’t hold much longer. Midnight heard a shout from behind him:

Ronin: “Get her outta there, Now!”

Midnight quickly grabbed Liu, despite her resistance, and fled behind Ronin, who’s railgun appeared to be finished ramping up. As soon as they’d gotten behind him, Ronin fired directly into its chest, aiming toward the faint red glow. On impact, its body bloated to its sides, breaking free of the roots holding it down, sliding back until it crashed into a tree where it lay motionless. Ronin breathed a sigh of relief as his equipment reverted back and he was able to stand back up.

Kira: “Can we get an ETA on the target?”

Operator: “Four minutes and closing.”

Kira took to the skies, searching above the treeline, she could see a trail of fallen trees behind a cloud of dust approaching. On the ground, faint vibrations could be felt from the ground by the others. She spotted a clearing a few hundred meters from the target, and hastily informed the team to prepare to move. Similarly to before, Kira swept up Liu, and Midnight once again dragged a weightless Ronin along for the ride. The team rushed towards the clearing, noting the change of direction of their target as it veered off its previous course to give chase.

As the team approached the clearing, about 200 meters from the target, a barrage of light beams shot out from the massive dust cloud towards them. The team took evasive action, Kira took to the trees diving in and out, taking cover as she approached the clearing. Midnight encapsulated Ronin in a shield and sent him flying towards the clearing as he drew fire towards himself in the sky, attempting to analyze the beams as he narrowly avoided them. Though he’d gathered enough information, a stray beam did catch him by surprise, after which several more connected, blasting him out of the sky and onto the ground just outside of the forest.

Once the barrage of beams had stopped, the team noticed the entity was making a beeline towards Midnight, and quickly moved to position themselves to strike once it exited the forest. Meanwhile, as the dust settled over him, Midnight stood in the small crater his landing had caused, taking note and beginning passive repairs on his damaged nanites. He then immediately put distance between himself and the forest as the entity approached and was nearly in sight. As the massive dust cloud entered the clearing, it halted for a moment, and as the dust began to settle, an unsettling blend of crunching and metallic whirring followed, as the entity came into view. As if it were hiding its true size all along.

Ronin: “What the hell is that thing!?”

Bellowing a loud semi-mechanical roar as it stretched and flexed its body, the creature stood hunched, yet upright on its hind legs and sported the same translucent skin and gray muscle tissues as the previous creatures. Its head was sharklike in shape and structure, though it had armor-like plating, and two rows of spines towards its back, spreading into dorsal fin-like shapes as they ran down its back and disappeared towards its tail. Its arms nearly reached the ground in that position, and although the upper arms were lean, the forearms were heavily armored, and equipped with razor sharp claws. Unlike the arms, its legs were thick, but relatively short, and were flat at the bottom. The tail appeared to be armor plated as well, while being long and likely powerful enough to aid its movement.

As the team took a moment to briefly compose themselves, the creature leaned forward onto all fours, its fin-like protrusions splitting open as it began to bombard the clearing with beams of light. “Scatter!” Kira yelled, as the team quickly spread and evaded the downpour. The creature once again looked towards Midnight, who appeared to have entered a trance-like state. Amidst the chaos, the team’s operator chimed in.

Operator: “We’re picking up another signal coming from the entity.”

Kira: “Another one broadcast to space?”

Operator: “Unlikely, it’s got a much larger range, we can’t make heads or tails of it but it seems to be some kind of message in a variety of off-world languages.”

Ronin: “I’d ask who it’s for,” *looking at Midnight* “but I think we’ve got a pretty good guess.”

Kira quickly moved to reach Midnight’s position. As she did she tried to communicate with him to no avail. Nothing she said was getting through, and physically shaking him as Ronin had suggested wasn’t working either. Liu arrived shortly after, and took a more direct approach. Digging her claws into his torso, she discharged multiple jolts of electricity into his body, causing him to recoil and go on the defensive. A bit much, though he seemed mostly fine, and was responding again. Though there wasn’t much time to chat, as the disruption of communication appeared to have angered the creature, which immediately resumed its bombardment over the field.

Kira: “We’ve gotta do something about these beams or we’ll never get any breathing room!”

Midnight: “Give me a moment, I’ve got an idea. In the meantime prepare to counter.”

It took her a moment to shift gears, but Kira nodded and fell back. Ronin continued to put distance between himself and the hulking monstrosity, meanwhile Liu was rushing ever closer, dodging and weaving through the hellstorm. Midnight took back to the skies above the creature, erecting a magic barrier around himself, and preparing a series of spells overhead. As the barrage of beams pelted his barrier, they’d reflect off, an occasional few striking the creature, inflicting minor wounds on its softer tissue, and chipping small bits of its plating. Finalizing his spell preparations, Midnight noted that the soft tissue wounds on the creature were regenerating at an alarming rate.

Once he was ready to launch his counterattack, Midnight signaled the others and let his spell loose. A series of magic circles sprouted above the creature, and poured a concentrated array of beams all across its head, neck, and down its back. Small explosions chained as they struck within its split dorsal fin-like protrusions, effectively disabling its long range capabilities. This caused the creature to flinch as it fell to its knees. At that moment, Ronin began firing high power, explosive rounds at its face. Cracking and chipping away at its armor plating with several well placed shots. Kira was quick to chain entanglement spells, sprouting roots around the creature's arms and legs, even its tail, as they began wrapping around the massive entity.

By this point, Liu had made her way onto the creature's upper arms, and noted its regenerative abilities as her attacks made little headway. That said, she’d dug her claws in deep, and began freezing large portions of the creature's shoulder, cutting away at it faster than it could regenerate. The real problem arose when she struck bone, it wasn’t ordinary bone, it was dense, solid metal. Despite her best efforts, she couldn’t even put a scratch on the material. That, combined with the constant regeneration of the tissues surrounding the area, put a halt on her initial plans. Ronin, having noticed, advised her to fall back for now, informing the others. As he did, the creature appeared to have recovered from its daze, and began to struggle against its constraints. Having already regenerated its eyes several times, it purposely dug its head into the ground. As it did it gnawed at the roots pinning its arms to the ground and tore through them with ease. Noting the immediate danger, Midnight quickly dove to Liu, grabbing her and falling back as the beast pushed hard against the ground, rearing itself back up and tearing free from its restraints. It roared as it refocused its attention on the four of them.

Kira: “This is ridiculous, there’s no way of telling if and where this thing's core is, and that regen isn’t making it any easier.”

Ronin: “Relax, keep your head on straight. I’ve still got one more trick up my sleeve, but I need you guys to restrain it again, and spread its arms apart this time. It’s gonna take some time, and we only have one shot, but if this works we’ll get its arms clean off.

Midnight: “How much time?”

Ronin: “A couple minutes, I also need you to keep it relatively still. I suggest going for its legs if possible, get it back on the ground.”

Kira: “We’ll see what we can do.”

Liu nodded and rushed off, garnering the creature's attention as she rushed back in. Kira and Midnight followed suit. As Liu rushed directly, Kira and Midnight flanked the creature, pelting it with ice magic in attempts to slow it down, generally aiming for its joints. As they did, the creature swung its arm down at Liu, and although she avoided it, the sheer wind pressure from the impact sent her spiraling off course. It then turned and slashed at Midnight, who dispersed himself into the air to avoid the blow, reforming his body seconds later. Using its momentum, the creature rotated its body, and brought its fist down onto the ground narrowly missing Kira. Its tail swept the ground around it as he did, though Liu had already reached its legs, and Midnight was able to fly overtop of it.

As Liu began to tear at the regions surrounding its knees, Kira and Midnight began attempting to restrain it. Though current attempts were unsuccessful as the creature recognized their intentions, and would bite and claw away at the roots before they could take hold. Midnight looked to Kira, and suggested that she aid Liu, that he’d keep its attention and restrain it. She didn’t hesitate to dive in and began supporting Liu by continuing to keep its joints frozen and she tore into them.

In the meantime, Midnight taunted the creature by firing all manner of projectiles at its face, actively avoiding its claws as it swatted at him. He even went as far as brushing off a direct impact, and using its force to strike down directly on its head, causing it to wobble for a brief moment. Ronin chimed in, alerting the team he was nearly ready, and just needed them to get it into position. Midnight quickly drew its attention towards Ronin’s direction, and started preparing multiple spells to quickly entangle and stretch its arms apart.

As the creature turned, Kira quickly set up an array of barriers to aid Liu’s movement, who’d actively been assaulting the creature’s legs, revealing several weak points. Once it was in position, the two made short work of severing key tendons, causing it to lose its balance, lowering its arms to the ground to catch itself. Upon touching the ground, Midnight’s spells activated, ensnaring each of its arms and quickly dragging them apart to prevent it from breaking free. Kira quickly froze its damaged tendons, then grabbed Liu and erected a barrier around herself.

Kira: “Do it! NOW!”

A blinding red glow came into view, as immense waves of heat surged past either side of Midnight. Two rays of bright red energy pierced through the creatures’ shoulders. Its ear piercing cries could be heard for miles as the rays widened vertically, severing its arms from its body. The force of the restraints launched each arm far from its main body, crashing loudly across the field as they skid to a stop. As the rays dissipated, an eerie silence fell upon the field. The monster's cries had ceased, with its body knelt down, yet still upright. A familiar voice broke the silence:

Operator: “Come in, do you hear me? What’s the situation looking like?”

Kira: “We’re here, and still in one piece. Right Liu?”

Liu: *nods*

Ronin: “Speak for yourself, that thing almost took my arms off too, my shoulders are killing me.”

Kira: “Good maybe next time you’ll actually warn the newbie before firing with him directly down-range from you!”

Ronin: “Do you honestly think I’d fire without taking his position into account, we barely had time to spare. Besides, he’s perfectly fine, right newbie?”

A long pause followed. Ronin asked again, but there was no response. The team, now carefully observing him in the air, noted that although he was hovering, his body appeared to be limp. Kira quickly flew up to check on him, and upon closer inspection, her fears were realized. At that moment, Ronin and Liu made a startling realization of their own.

Ronin: “KIRA, LOOK OUT!”

As Kira turned to face the creature, she felt something coil and constrict around her entire body. Liu quickly sprung back into action, rushing towards them. From the wounds where its arms had been severed, the creature had sprouted six tendril-like growths, one of which had quickly taken hold of Kira, the rest were readying to fend off Liu and Ronin’s attacks. With one of its left tendrils winding up Kira, the remaining two began to whip down at Liu, sweeping and slamming into the ground as she closed the distance. Its remaining three tendrils were fending off Ronin’s energy projectiles, and although the rounds were effective at damaging and severing portions of its tendrils, their rate of regeneration was able to keep up with his assault.

Noting Liu’s rapid approach, the creature quickly wound up and threw Kira in Ronin’s direction, sending her flying at blinding speeds. With so little time, Ronin opted to try and break her fall. His suit puffed up a bit right as she crashed into him, sending the pair barreling backwards. It then spiked at the ground around its legs, effectively preventing Liu from getting any closer, though she slashed at and tore through several of them as she dodged the attacks. With Midnight so far up, she wouldn’t be able to reach him on her own. Putting distance between herself and the creature, Liu noticed that it didn’t bother giving chase, and instead returned to its seemingly idle state, with its tendrils surrounding Midnight to prevent any disruptions.

Quickly regrouping with her team, she noticed Kira was unconscious on the ground, and looked at Ronin with a concerned expression.

Ronin: “She’ll be fine, not injured at least, just out cold. Hopefully she’ll be awake soon, in the meantime we’ll need to snap the newbie back outta that trance he’s in. I’ve got a plan, but I need you to distract it.”

Liu nodded, and after a brief look at Kira, ran off to re-engage. Ronin tucked Kira behind some cover, then moved to keep her out of the line of fire. As Liu approached, several tendrils sprung back to life, although this time, their movements were slow, and sluggish. Unable to keep up with her swift movement, and seemingly fed up with her interference, the creature mobilized all of its tendrils, leaving Midnight exposed. It began to cut off Liu’s potential escape routes, and was attempting to capture her by any means necessary.

Once Midnight was no longer obstructed, Ronin wasted no time taking aim and firing. A small explosion pushed Midnight towards the creature, but successfully knocked him out of his trance. Unfortunately, before he was able to get his bearings, he was immobilized by six, slim, electrified tendrils. It appeared as though the entity had grown tired of delaying, what was now the inevitable.

Its previous tendrils had all split in half, and began secreting a gel-like substance. This allowed it to continue fending off Liu, while being able to capture Midnight. The gel appeared to have become problematic for Liu as well. Her claws progressively lost effectiveness, and got caught mid-slice, leading to her capture. With both Liu and Midnight immobilized, it then turned its head towards Ronin’s general direction, and opened its jaw. He quickly scrambled to move out of the way, as after a brief moment of build up, a bright, white beam of energy seared across the field, decimating everything it came into contact with, and blowing anything else in the vicinity away. It raised both Liu and Midnight up to its face. Liu, who was still struggling to break free, was electrocuted until she fell unconscious, then tossed aside. Visibly angered, Midnight sprouted a second and third set of arms, and attempted to free himself. It was to no avail, as they were quickly bound by the creatures' emptied tendrils.

The creature’s jaw opened once more, as it held Midnight’s body directly in front of it. He’d realized there was a single opportunity, a small window of time wherein he might still be able to stop it. Accepting his fate, he’d stopped resisting, and waited. The blinding white light shone briefly once again, as the bright white beam of energy swallowed him up, disintegrating the tendrils holding him hostage. In that brief moment, he pooled together every functioning nanite he could, absorbing as much of the energy as possible, and reflecting it back towards the monster. As the beam blew his body away, the reflected beam struck the creature’s neck and chest, making its way down the front of its entire body. Most of the beam’s energy was lost after the entity’s chest was destroyed, and the remaining portions of Midnight’s body plummeted to the ground shortly after it’d finished expelling the energy it absorbed.

Barely conscious, he looked back at the creature, which was collapsing to the ground. For the first time, an audible voice could be heard emanating from its body. It spoke, in a deep, guttural tone: “You…won’t be allowed…to live…she’ll come for you…” Its voice trailed off as all signs of life disappeared. Midnight’s vision weakened substantially over the following seconds, and after a brief moment of resistance, everything went dark. As the seconds passed, he could feel his body growing weaker, progressively losing the rest of his senses. For a moment he thought he could hear Kira’s voice, pleading with him to wake back up, before rushing off. As his remaining senses began to fade, a familiar feeling began to wash over him. Was this it? Had he already fulfilled his purpose? Or did he simply fail? It felt as though time itself had come to a complete stop, as if he’d have an eternity to ponder his own questions, with little more than the darkness, and the echo of a familiar voice.