Dinner and liquor was often the go-to choice to enjoy the end of a long day. A beautifully cooked steak accompanied by a cold beer was the dinner of choice for most people. This was especially true for Harvey Allston, who had just finished his fourth can. The smell of cooked meat filled his backyard as he grilled alone. He was masterfully handling the charred meat as he reached for a fifth can. It didn’t take many of them to get him drunk, but it was the only night he could drink them in peace.

His wife and two sons had left for a brief vacation, leaving Harvey with the house to himself. This once-in-a-lifetime opportunity presented itself, and he was not going to waste it. He increased the volume of his portable speaker. Country music blared at an obnoxious volume, irritating his neighbors. Harvey wasn’t interested in the opinion of others, so he sang along to his music without a care in the world.

Visions of amber fields of grain filled his mind as he imagined his old life. He missed the laborious days running the family ranch. Without it, Harvey lived everyday unsatisfied. He never liked living in the city, and the boring political job he had didn’t help the situation. Sitting behind a desk and approving different research projects was not the life he wanted. He pondered for a moment on the importance of some of those projects. Perhaps he should have given them some more thought. To him, it didn’t matter. Anyone could do his job. Harvey was just unfortunate to have gotten it.

He didn’t realize how his decisions would come back to haunt him.

Harvey’s patriotic singing was interrupted by a loud crash. The noise had come from his house. It sounded like one of the front windows had been shattered. An intruder? In a neighborhood as safe as Harvey’s? No, they had top-of-the-line security. The neighborhood was gated and had stationed guards at the entrances. Harvey couldn’t believe it, but a shaded figure moved within his home.

The intruder didn’t bother hiding their presence. They moved throughout the house with heavy steps. Many loud thuds resulted from several bookshelves falling to the ground. What they were looking for wasn’t clear.

Regardless of their purpose, Harvey had no intention of interacting with them. In his younger years, he may have been able to win in a direct confrontation. However, time had not been kind to him. He wasn’t the strapping gentlemen from over a decade ago. Not even the knife he carried would help him in a fight. With this in mind, Harvey opted to leave and call the police.

He left the music playing as a way to mask his movement. The plan was to draw the intruder toward the backyard while walking along the side of the house. As Harvey proceeded with his idea, he pulled out his phone. His fingers had never dialed a number so fast. 911 was called within moments.

“You have reached the Houston 911 Emergency Center. All operators are busy so please stay on the line,” the robotic voice responded to Harvey’s call. His body began to tremble as the words hit him. He’d never heard that message before.

“Is something going on? A widespread emergency?” Harvey thought to himself. A sigh escaped him as he exhaled deeply. He needed to call again once he was at a safe distance. His pace hastened as the street got closer.

Several windows lined the length of the house. As he stepped past each of them, Harvey took care to duck under their line of sight. He could no longer hear the intruder in his house. They were possibly in the backyard. If that was the case, Harvey needed to hurry before he was discovered. Despite his heavier physique, Harvey’s legs swiftly pushed him forward. The edge of the house was within his grasp, filling the man with joy.

However, his escape was cut short by a hand bursting through one of the windows. It grabbed onto his shirt and tugged him toward the house. Startled, Harvey could only react by swinging wildly. He stabbed the arm with the knife he held, but the attack wasn’t effective. There was no reaction from the assailant as they pulled Harvey closer. To stop himself from being swept into the house, Harvey pressed his legs on the window’s edge and fought back. He continued to pierce the arm with his blade as he pushed away.

Several direct hits landed, but none of them seemed to have any effect. Each wound leaked a small amount of blood and another dark liquid. The hits themselves felt like they were piercing several layers of protection, but there was no visible armor. Every attack grew weaker as the resistance became greater and Harvey’s strength was depleted.

Another hand emerged from the window and swatted the knife away. It then gripped Harvey’s shirt. Harvey braced to be pulled in, but he wasn’t ready for the absurd amount of force he was up against. The assailant lurched forward and rammed their head into Harvey’s. Only one of the two recoiled from the hit. As Harvey felt his head snap back, the hands that gripped him opened. An audible thud accompanied the man as he fell to the ground.

Harvey didn’t have time to soothe his bruised rear. He awkwardly twisted his body and scurried away. His feet carried him faster than he expected, resulting in an odd stumbling run. He gathered his composure as he reached the street. His ragged breath showed that he was no longer the track star he once was. Too many years had passed from that time in his life, but it was the least of Harvey’s worries. The weary soul turned his head to see if he was being chased.

The assailant had already exited the house and was pursuing Harvey with slow steps. The person was clearly a man with a toned figure. No defining feature could be found on him due to his outfit. Classy brown dress shoes matched the brown leather belt that supported his azure trousers. A white button-up shirt was tucked in and covered by a well-fitted navy blazer. Black gloves covered his hands, and a cloth made of the same material shielded his neck. Everything the man wore was tailored perfectly. It exemplified his appearance while not restricting movement.

All of the cuts that Harvey expected to see were nowhere to be seen. The small amounts of blood had disappeared without a trace as well. The blemishes to his suit were repaired faster than Harvey produced them. It was as if Harvey’s resistance meant nothing. Almost like it didn’t even happen.

Surprisingly, that wasn’t the assailant’s most outlandish feature. A large mask was protecting his face from being seen. It had a cobalt base with several golden gears of various sizes plastered onto it. Each gear ticked in a certain rhythm as a machine would. A large gear covered the left eye, and a mainspring covered the right. The gears worked together to wind the mainspring before stopping to release the tension.

Harvey could sense the danger emanating from this mysterious man. He knew he wouldn’t survive a fight. Without a moment of hesitation, Harvey sprinted further down the street. It only took a few moments for him to be reminded of his condition. Heavy footsteps and ragged breath were enough evidence that Harvey couldn’t run forever. Several other houses have passed, so it should have been enough. With a glimmer of hope, Harvey glanced behind him to see how far he’d gone.

Despair was all that gazed back.

The masked man calmly walked towards Harvey, knowing his prey wouldn’t escape. Long strides propelled the man closer to Harvey with each step. There wasn’t any sign of fatigue or hesitation. Despite the full suit and mask, the man was fine. He was able to chase Harvey as if it was nothing more than a casual jog.

An ominous aura radiated from the man as he approached Harvey. Harvey was startled to see his pursuer so close to him. He moved to run again but tripped over his own feet. All hopes vanished as concrete filled his vision. Harvey slammed into the ground and scraped his face against the sidewalk. The color drained from his face as blood began to drip from his cheek. The pain wasn’t what frightened him. He had just fallen in front of the masked man. He lost the chance to escape.

“Please!” Harvey turned to cry his surrender but was interrupted by a foot slamming into his nose. The front kick had enough power behind it to thrust Harvey’s head back into the ground. Disoriented, Harvey raised his head in a swaying motion. He couldn’t comprehend what had happened. His blurred vision slowly focused on the figure that interrupted his plea.

“Harvey Allston,” the man spoke with a northern accent. He stood over Harvey holding a manila envelope. Papers spilled from the package as the man threw it to the ground. They were work documents, stolen from Harvey’s home. Each one detailed the different research projects that he had approved. The man bent over to retrieve one of the loose papers and held it out to be read.

Alteration of Ichor and the Evolved for Suppression Capabilities. The confidential document hung in front of the man that had signed it. Harvey immediately recognized the title. When the project was initially presented to him, several key figures were in attendance to further explain it. They discussed the many reasons for and against the project’s approval. After the discussion, everyone in the room voted on the project’s fate. The results weren’t projected to be announced to the public for many months, but the masked man seemed to know all about it. The two stared at each other in silence for several moments.

“Are you aware of the significance of these documents?” the masked man was the first to break the silence. His voice trembled slightly with anger as he spoke. Harvey felt as if he was being looked down on in disgust.

“I. . . it was for the betterment of the country!” Harvey screamed in defense. He intentionally raised his voice to draw the attention of others. His only hope was to receive help from onlookers. The answer Harvey gave wasn’t the best one to give, but he couldn’t think rationally. He began to move slowly backward in an awkward fashion. The conversation continued as Harvey slithered away and the masked man nonchalantly followed.

“Why exactly should we care about your country? Are we supposed to be loyal dogs to the people that created us?” the masked man spoke with an irritated tone. His aggravation became more apparent as he hastened his approach toward Harvey. In response, Harvey glided away at a faster rate. The other documents were left behind to dance in the wind.

“You could be more grateful for it! Without me, you would’ve never existed!” Harvey shouted in desperation. He never thought one of his decisions would come back to haunt him like this. Retaliation only ever came in the form of political debates. He never encountered this type of situation, so Harvey attempted to play a sort of god or father role to save himself. His only chance for survival hinged on winning his attacker’s favor.

“Our existence was never in your hands. Our alteration was,” the man sighed as he increased his pace.

Harvey began to panic even more at the reply and retreated as quickly as possible. The backward scooch turned into an off crab walk as he tried to get away. Meanwhile, the man was now walking at a brisk pace. Any onlooker would have thought the two were a part of a comedy act, but this was no laughing matter to Harvey. The blabbering man was clumsily scratching his rear end against the sidewalk’s cement with each step. The two continued their movements for a minute before the masked man suddenly stopped. Harvey noticed, but collided into something before he could take advantage of the opportunity.

This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

“You do know that playing with your food is bad practice, right?” a woman’s voice spoke. The voice was playful, similar to how one would be after a night of drinking. It startled Harvey, causing him to flinch in an overactive manner. He didn’t quite hear the words said, but he understood someone new had joined the fray.

A ray of hope shone in Harvey’s eyes. Perhaps they had come to save him. The hellish events that plagued the night would finally be wiped away. Harvey could go on his trip and forget about his job. His decisions could go back to being just random documents and not the evil figure that stood before him. Everything would now be better. Harvey enthusiastically turned his head and prepared to beg for help.

One look was all it took to delete that thought from his mind.

The woman’s words finally sunk in, and Harvey realized he was sitting between three masked individuals. Judging by their apparel, it was safe to say they were colleagues of the initial masked man.

The new pair consisted of a man and woman who both ignored Harvey. They were too busy staring at their acquaintance, almost like they were trying to put a name to the mask.

The woman wore black and white formal clothing consisting of slacks, a vest, and a button-up shirt which had the sleeves rolled up. Her porcelain arms were blemished by long black markings that spanned the length of her forearm. Her overall appearance was quite charming, if the viewer disregarded the plague doctor mask concealing her face. The mask was accompanied by a matching hat that sat atop her head. The rest of her head and neck were covered in a dark cloth that absorbed all light.

The man was the object that Harvey bumped into. He was dressed in formal wear similar to what his partner was wearing, but a coat covered him rather than a vest. Polished dress shoes and combat gloves covered the ends of his extremities, leaving no part of his body uncovered. A black tie hung loosely from his neck but didn’t divert attention away from the focal point of the outfit. A large gas mask covered the man’s head. Every breath he took was heavy and puffed bits of smoke from the air filter.

Both of them had large blood stains ruining their outfits. The woman seemed dirtier than the man, but it was hard to compare the two. The man used his coat to hide most of the smudges. Meanwhile, the woman wore each blotch like a medal.

“Designation?” the man in the geared mask asked in a professional tone. The two men stood perfectly upright while the woman casually rested her hand on her hips.

“I’m Crow, and this is my boy toy, Smoke. We’re with the assault battalion,” the woman in the plague mask answered. Their unique masks matched their names well. When she answered, she tilted her head as if their names were obvious.

“I apologize for her behavior.” Smoke bowed slightly as he apologized. He turned toward Crow, who had started checking her fingernails. “Please behave yourself. We’re standing in front of the battalion commander.”

Smoke pinched his brow. His exhaustion stemmed from multiple hours of working with Crow. The two couldn’t be more opposite in how they held themselves. Smoke tried to remain as serious as possible. The commander was a role model for him, so he wanted to make a great first impression. Crow, on the other hand, didn’t bother altering her attitude despite being in the presence of a superior.

“Oh. He’s Tartarus? Hard to tell with the mask on. Plus, he’s not as scary as usual,” Crow laughed. Her playful demeanor stood out from the serious situation around her.

“Crow!” Smoke shouted at his partner. His mask couldn’t hide the embarrassment he felt. Their quick banter and smooth conversation revealed a deeper level of their relationship. It was clear Smoke was familiar with Crow while she was in this inebriated state. He was accustomed to handling her, but he didn’t want to do so in front of his superior. Thankfully, the commander was understanding.

“It’s alright. I’m familiar with my subordinates and how they operate. Crow’s composure deteriorates exponentially based on the amount of hemoglobin she’s exposed to, correct? As for you, I believe you’re capable of generating many chemical compounds ranging from isoflurane to cyclosarin,” Tartarus responded in a robotic tone. His words felt like they were coming from an article he read in the past.

“Wow. Look at you and your big fancy words,” Crow said in a sarcastic tone. Whimsical hands shook to emphasize her message.

Crow looked down to view her commander’s target, who was silently crawling away. Her leg slowly raised as she brought her knee to her chest. A deep breath and a moment of silence were all she needed to focus on her next action. Putting all of her weight into a powerful lunge, she crushed Harvey’s hand beneath her heel. A sickening crunch could be heard as his hand was shattered beyond repair. The victim cried out in pain before being launched into the street by a follow-up kick. Crow was extremely pleased with her attack.

Harvey wasn’t a light man. His heavier build would have stopped him from experiencing the brief flight into the street. Crow showed that she, and her colleagues, were both monstrously evil and powerful enough to do as they pleased. Of course, Harvey knew this. He had been briefed on some of their potential capabilities when he first viewed the project. This reality left him whimpering on the street praying for a way to escape. If there was a way to stop them, Harvey would have been briefed on it. All he could do was clutch his bleeding hand as the predators moved closer.

“Her odd behavior may seem villainous, but you must remember that you approved of her alteration. You only have yourself to blame for this,” Tartarus said smugly. He approached Harvey with soft steps, as one would a wild animal.

“Yup yup yup. I’m the queen of mayhem that’s literally fueled by blood. You must be so proud,” Crow said, circling Harvey. Her aura radiated bloodlust as she viewed her prey. She raised her hands above her head before thrusting them down violently.

As Crow’s arms fell to her side, large spikes made of bone burst from her arms. Blood and a strange black liquid puddled around the thorns, but none of it dripped. The two liquids mixed and hardened around the ivory skewers. The new foundation around her arms was tough, serving both offensive and defensive purposes. With the formation of her new weapons complete, Crow held out her arms to show them off.

“I’m her partner, the one that is chemical warfare incarnate. It’s a pleasure to meet the man that admitted me to be turned into a weapon. I’ve created several new chemicals just for tonight. I hope you’ll enjoy them.” Smoke walked the opposite direction Crow did. Several steps around Harvey led him to the perfect spot.

A dark mist began to escape from his sleeves and neck. It danced in the air as the wind blew. With Smoke’s current position, the fumes were able to reach Harvey. The stream of gas suddenly became less dense as its production slowed. The cloud of vapor that passed Harvey dissipated, almost like it recalibrated itself to only attack the current target.

“Finally, there’s me. One of the five commanders responsible for tonight’s event. I’m the one that was imbued with some of the best combat capabilities among the Evolved. Then I was blessed with brutal training to become the perfect soldier. It will be my pleasure to be the one that ends your life.” Tartarus reached into his coat and retrieved an odd T-shaped handle. It was made of a material similar to bone and had strange black etchings. It fit perfectly in Tartarus’s hand as he twirled it between his fingers.

With a firm grip, Tartarus grasped the bone as it began to change. The complicated contraption extended from the top. The addition was several feet in length and came to a sharp point. Numerous smaller spikes formed along the central one, creating a silhouette similar to a pine tree. A black liquid, much like the one that appeared on Crow, oozed from the handle and filled the gaps between each structure. It quickly hardened once its shape was perfect. The blade had finished its construction and was ready for action.

Harvey was forced to watch in horror as his murder weapon formed before him. He was surrounded by three people who were currently considered to be weapons of mass destruction. All of them had the intent to kill and focused their sights on him. No amount of begging would spare him, but that didn’t stop him from trying. Harvey slammed his forehead onto the street’s pavement as he prostrated. His lungs burned from the smoke as he sobbed for forgiveness. Anything that came to mind with the potential to save him was shouted with a trembling voice. Tears dropped to the ground as he continued to cry. Harvey had never been a religious man, but he was praying to any god that would listen.

None answered his call.

Harvey, engrossed in his atonement, failed to notice the movement around him. The three were approaching but suddenly stopped. All of them leaped back as something new injected itself into the scenario.

The sound of a car horn was accompanied by screeching tires. The pleading shell of a man was unable to react in time. He could only see the vehicle through his peripheral vision before it filled his sight. The blinding brightness of the headlights froze him in place as the truck got closer. Harvey felt his arm shatter upon impact as the bumper collided with him. The vehicle screeched to a halt while its victim was thrown further down the road. The asphalt chipped away at his clothes and skin as the momentum scraped him along the ground.

After coming to an agonizing stop, Harvey rested on the ground for several moments. He painfully flipped himself to face the sky. The shirt he wore was torn away, along with several layers of skin. Blood fell from each of the deep cuts. Despite his best efforts, Harvey couldn’t move his arm. No amount of hope would be able to drive his body away from these people. All he could do was moan in despair.

Several sets of footsteps approached the broken man. The masked figures all looked down on him in disappointment. None of them seemed to care about his suffering, but they didn’t enjoy it either. Crow, of course, may have been the only exception, but she was now silent. She nudged Harvey’s arm to check on his health. An angry groan was all she needed to confirm that he was alive.

Harvey wanted to crawl away, but it was impossible. The fear that yelled at him to retreat fell on deaf ears. It hurt too much to move. Nothing was worth the pain. All he hoped for was a swift end.

“Damn. I was really hoping this would last longer, but you had to get in the way of that. I hope you’re happy,” Crow said to the truck’s driver. The engine was still rumbling as the driver hopped down from the raised frame.

“Sorry, but Tartarus and I need to get going. The situation has changed and we need to get our next target quickly,” a new voice spoke. An audio modifier filtered their voice with static and echoes. It altered the voice to sound like it came from an old-fashioned radio. The new person was a man, but it was hard to tell from their voice alone.

“Understood, Commander Erebus. We’ll stay back and finish here before moving on to the next target. Please, ensure that the mission is a success.” Smoke said as he turned back and bowed. His statement had an intense sense of admiration behind it. The bow and title were more than what Smoke initially gave Tartarus, but it wasn’t out of a lack of respect. It was more akin to a child meeting their hero for the first time. The vicious cloud that once flowed from Smoke had ceased and dissipated in the wind.

“What happened?” Crow asked in an irritated tone. The operation they were a part of involved multiple agents working simultaneously. Changing the order of certain events ran the risk of ruining everything. The night was meticulously planned. Any wrenches in the system needed to be addressed immediately. Thankfully they prepared for numerous possible scenarios.

“One of our prime targets has caught wind of our actions and is preparing to escape. We can’t afford to conduct a widespread manhunt, given our limited resources. Tartarus and I will shift to Protocol 21. I already have my bases covered, so you two need to cover the targets he’ll miss here,” Erebus said, explaining the situation in a way that made sense to everyone. The authority in his voice went unchallenged by those who heard it. Smoke and Crow nodded in approval.

“Fine by me. Let me just finish this real quick,” Tartarus agreed before crouching over Harvey. His victim was breathing heavily, and the light in his eyes was fading. Tartarus folded Harvey’s arms over his chest. He leaned in closer to get a better look at the man that disrupted so many lives. “In the end, you really were just a man. Stuck in the past. We, on the other hand, have evolved.”

Tartarus raised his blade, pointing it toward the sky. The black matter that comprised its edge shined brightly in the light. Like King Arthur pulling Excalibur out of the stone, Tartarus held the sword above his head for all to see. It would have been a beautiful sight if the viewer ignored the man that was about to be impaled. The moment they were waiting for had finally arrived.

In a swift motion, the sword was thrust toward the earth. The blade easily pierced Harvey’s chest and hands. It even managed to break through the solid street beneath him. The color faded from the victim’s face as blood pooled around him. A replay of his life’s major event started in Harvey’s mind. He wondered what series of decisions brought him to this end. At what point did it all go wrong?

Harvey wanted to think about this but instead offered a small final prayer. He prayed for the safety of his family. He had been so worried about himself that he never considered their current condition. Not even his worst enemy deserves this fate. Harvey could only hope and pray that the ones he loved were safe.

Memories of his wife and sons warmed his heart as he breathed his final breath.