Moscow, Russia

1:00 A.M. 10\13\2178

Ten thousand feet below the surface of the capital lies an Archon Codex station. Inside this facility lies a number of powerful Archons. One in particular plays a more significant role, once known as an "Sky Father" or "All Father", now designation O-Dyn lies upon a medical a medical table. Several technicians enter the room and proceed to draw labs and take vitals. Unfortunately for this Archon most everyone in this facility loathed this being. Him being responsible for once waging war on humanity once his fellow Archons were captured. Even after 150 years, the great grandchildren of his victims dedicate their lives to making him as uncomfortable as humanly possible. And there was no one better at that than the Moscow Branch, they were not delicate with any procedure, often inflicting deep wounds or injuries. But the most common were to be similar to brain trauma, often leaving their subject effectively brain dead, unable to process or move awhile being able to feel everything in which most staff did horrendous acts of abuse during this period before the injuries dissipate due to the Archon's innate ability to heal from practically any wound. This would often leave him with amnesia, making it even easier than the last time to manipulate his mind should the need arise. Standing at a whopping 7 and a half feet, covered in old language runes tattooed to his flesh and scars he stares at the floor as his twisted head slowly begins to realign, now having the ceiling in his line of sight. This hurt, but he was used to this by now. The door opens and the technicians leave spitting on him and the ground as they walk out, "cyka" they would call him. At least now he could get in uniform in peace.

''O-Dyn report to Directives on the double" a voiced coldly scolded him over his earpiece. the voice belonged to Minister Volkolva. A middle aged woman with more confirmed kills on her military record than most people have in attendance in their military career, cruel and sadistic as she is cunning. "I can't stand that bitch.." O-Dyn thought, "The second this Praetor is outta me I'm gonna rip that woman apart piece by piece". After a moment he replies "Aye Captain, incoming". Waving his hand a portal appears, after walking through he appears in the Directive.

A line of soldiers stand at attention in front of the Minister, arms folded she scowls at O-Dyn as he approaches. "You're late" "I'm here now so try unclenching your a-.." The soldiers immediately jump on him, assaulting him and finds himself on the receiving end of a knife inserted into the underside of his jaw locking it and holding his tongue in a still position. "You might want to hold that tongue, unless you want to lose that too. You'd think you learned the first time when I cut that disgusting looking eye out, but what can I expect from a lowly Archon dog?" After the room settles the briefing begins, the Minister explains how forces in the Texas region, as well as the embassy was assaulted by a powerful and unknown force. "Now that we've received our appropriate contracts to deploy a response investigation I'm deploying three teams. O-Dyn you'll be assigned two Codex handlers, one will possess some of your ranged magic and the other will make use of that pathetic spear...ginger?" "Gungnir, ma'am'' A swift slap across his face echoes throughout the room. "You will not interrupt me again, do you understand what I'm saying to you? Shut. Your. Fucking. Hole." She composed herself and repositions her wrist collar of her uniform before speaking again "Team two will consist of only 7oK-1. You are to observe undetected and report anything and everything, and that does not mean you litter the human gene pool with your disgusting...habits" She scowled at it, 7Ok1 or "Loki" was a mystery of genetic experimentation with human and Archon DNA, as expected the only things that hate them more than humanity are the subjects they're created from. They are viewed as abominations to the Archons with quite a few of these hybrids are attacked by their genetic donors, quite often to the point when such an event happens all DNA is collected, and the subject is cloned and revived from the remaining material. Personalities change after each revival but it matters quite little to the Archons. "Fives times...and it's still here mocking me by just existing" O-Dyn thought. after the briefing all units reported to the armory. Waiting at attention were his handlers, one older woman tall in stature and an athletic build, one younger woman barely 140 pounds wet, both had jet black hair green eyes and the same mole on their upper left lip. "Mia and Joceyln Pavolvo reporting sir" O-Dyn ignores this and approaches the quartermaster, surprisingly seeming happy to see him. After recieving his weopons (consisting of a custom Spaz-12 with 6 barrels gas powered automatic using 00 slugs, and a 30 round drum, as well as a large one handed axe made from Jotunn bones and flesh. As O-Dyn turns for the exit the quartermaster happily exclaims "Please go die cyka!" After a very long and silent car ride turned elevator ride, they find themselves at a heliport with transport readying for liftoff as they climb aboard. The quinjet roars to life as it slowly ascends then launches forward at mach 3 causing Jocelyn to vomit. She smile's at O-Dyn in an apologetic way but is met with an emotionless cold glare only to notice she's also relieved her stomach on him as well. She turns to Mia who stares silently while shaking her head in disappointment while also possessing the same gut material on her pauldrons as well. "This is going to be a long fucking ride.."

4:30 A.M.

Houston, Texas

Touchdown was a success, the crew leave the quinjet and immediately hear the Minister in on comms. "Approach the Embassy via a direct path, linking to HUD now. You are to eliminate any and all forces that identify as hostile. Once inside access the security console and report back. Also, O-Dyn can't really die as easily as you two Codexers can, so be wary of innocent casualties because I don't pay those fines, I'll just let them kill you after your trial. Saves money and sends a message." "Which is, ma'am?" "You can always be replaced, over and out." The group all stare at the ground in silence before O-Dyn starts following the GPS. The city before them lie in ruin, destroyed buildings, totaled cars, and large amount of dead lay still all over. Crows caw all around them, as if telling them "You'll be next". O-Dyn stops briefly as stares at the birds, the birds squawking as if in response to him looking at them, and it appeared they didn't appreciate it. "Do you like birds, sir?" "Not anymore, no" She frowns at this as they continue, the birds of her home town were very nice, in fact several people she knew domesticated quite a few in the time she lived there. She went on to talk about her childhood experiences, occasionally turning to Mia for confirmation who grunted or nodded in reply meanwhile staring at O-Dyn with hate-filled daggers in her gaze. After a hour passes they spot the Embassy in the distance, dark and empty in appearance. The dead soldiers line the entrance of the building, showing that they may have fought until the very end. "Judging by these wounds it would appear these soldiers died from some type of explosive trauma" He leans in examining the wounds and finds a green like substance burned into the wounds, with some of the excess material leaking from mortal wound locations turning organs and flesh into a thick paste and rancid odor. But this smell was familiar. He slowly stands up and looks around putting all the pieces of the puzzle before the Minister breaks the silence. "alpha squad come in, enemy forces approaching from the southwest. Two targets confirmed. One quinjet, and ah..O-Dyn? I hope you're ready because HE'S here. "Everyone inside now!" "What's happening?" Mia grabs Jocelyn and sprints behind O-Dyn, who's clearing rubble and cars as if he's playing hopscotch. They soon approach the door, Mia catches her breath as she sets her sister down. "Mia who's here?'' "BlackJack, the Americans very own Archon, and if I'm not mistaken he's the same person my father hired to kill that traitor Codexer you thought you we're going to escape with after you killed HIS father. Maybe I should hire him to take your other eye, eh? Now shut your mouths and proceed to the security room." As the squad approaches the door, O-Dyn uses the hand of the first officer present to unlock the door. Surprisingly, this was the cleanest area since they've arrived, as they walk in they begin investigating the logs and security footage. It shows everything normal one instant and then next a large green flash of light redesigns the surrounding area to a hellscape. Soldiers running around on fire, civilians laughing manically while they attack everything that moves, the security systems kick in and seal the building leaving the rest to die from the hazards outside. in the distance stands a figure of average height and odd clothing pointing to the camera directly. The recording ends as the live feed resumes and in that instant the figure who was standing in the distance is now staring directly into the camera lens, right at Alpha team. He was very lanky, with a gaunt face and jester like appearance. But the most noticeable aspect of his appearance was his eyes. They were all back except for a tiny yellow dot in the middle, causing Jocelyn to gasp in fear. This triggered a response from the clown as his smile widened far beyond what was normal, he then proceeded to smush his face into the camera as the glass from the monitor in front of them starts to warp and begins slowly popping his head out laughing and giggling as it spins freely in circles while the rest of his form descends from the screen almost like a spider hanging from a web. Jocelyn screams but is interrupted by Mia's laughter, as she turns to face her sister, Mia grabs Jocelyn by the throat picking her up off the ground and begins strangling her. O-Dyn attempts to intervene but is interrupted mid stride by a hot flash of green gas that singes his faces and drops him to his knees. As Jocelyn looks down she sees BlackJack, impaling Mia through the throat with a single stab from an elongated ornate dagger tears filled in her lifeless eyes. And as she follows the path of the blade with her eyes, she finds herself suffering the same fate of her sister hysterically laughing as the blood drips from her mouth to the blade and unto the floor before going limp. A loud whoosh knocks O-Dyn and the floor changes beneath him, this new surface he finds himself on is familiar..dirt? "Oh no, not again.." Just as O-Dyn's vision returns he finds himself in a new area, striped black and white tarp lines the room as a light green fog floats around the room, the smell of popcorn, blood, and petting zoo filling the air as an eerie song chimes slowly with brief intermissions of random jumbled words followed immediately by applause. "Oh yes, again" the room goes dim and all the sound evacuates the area. In the middle of the room stands Jocelyn, juggling her and Mia's head as they start singing in tandem to the previous song, awhile laughing at O-Dyn and mocking him for being unable to spare them of the Hell they find themselves in. Suddenly Jocelyn's corpse stops moving all together, in a position as if someone had barley any strength to even stand to begin with. Then a loud wet squelch and ripping sound fills the room as Jocelyn begins the contort and break as though a large creature were trying to break free from inside her. She jolts her head up suddenly smiling so wide the muscles and skin begin to rip. And a deformed and ominous voice calls out from what was Jocelyn's mouth. I found youuuu..run, hide, cry, bleed your blood for mee, swing, stab, cut you, CUT YOOOOUUUUUUUU. Jocelyn explodes revealing BlackJack in a twisted stance as he unwinds his limbs and runs at O-Dyn. "...Dyn...I..emoved...our...traints, you're free to..ill this sonofabi..." The communicator cut out but the message was clear, he can go all out. "I fucking hate clowns" As lightning and ice form in a sphere like catalyst around his person, singeing and freezing the ground simultaneously. This makes BlackJack laugh and smile harder as he full on crab runs towards O-Dyn. "Swing swing swing, chop chop chop!!"

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

To be continued in the next chapter