An intense storm brewed over Skywatch, turbulent clouds hung low on the horizon. The rain poured but unlike the mountain valleys in devil's lair there were no canals to drain the water. The lower district had drowned, its short rusted buildings submerged in water, only leaving a few rooftops afloat.

The fallen believed the rain to be a blessing, the city was in a peculiar disarray, unlike the previous occasions, for some odd reason, the last few days all their scavengers hadn't been brutally killed in the city. Although the Fallen were cautious, this had gone on for four days, they somewhat believed that whatever was stopping them had somehow left the city.

Naturally, there were still casualties, but it was still to an acceptable level when comparing to the last few years. To the fallen scavengers, it was a golden opportunity to try and harvest some scrap. Especially with the city flooded, the fallen believed they were untouchable.

An uneven terrain and flooded areas were unsurprisingly an advantage to the quadrupedal fallen, they could move at neck breaking speeds, wading through water at four limbs, similar to cheetahs and tigers.

The House of Devils was riled up, the city was a crucial vantage point for their war with the hive and the light bearers. This flood, they considered it retribution.

Three scavenger teams entered the perimeter of the lower district, they crawled through the old ventilation system, climbing through the intertwined air vents, coming out to the inner city.

Unbeknownst to them, a single hunter lurked in the shadows, under the looming storm clouds, hiding within the cracks and crevices, his figure only an afterimage illuminated by thunder claps.

Void's hand twitched, a single dagger appeared within his grip. His transmitter glowed, a faint voice sounded , "Three teams, a total of four vandals, seven dregs and a captain. We'll take care of the captain, in the north inner district, everyone else will be caught in the choke near the north east. Make sure you get the vandals before we come into contact, Tevis over."

"Understood, Void over."

He clutched the dagger, Void's eyes traced the scavengers rummaging through the lunar station scraps. But his body seemed frozen stiff. Each movement was with a purpose and his intention was to wait till the aforementioned choke points would separate his target from the others.

To Void, this bounty wasn't a test of his skill, but of patience and planning. If he simply leapt in to the fray, considering the Nightstalkers nearby, he would most likely survive and kill every single enemy.

However, the task was to keep his presence as faint as possible, to strike the opportune moment and finish the bounty. He channeled his breath, covertly moving through the roofs to keep a certain distance from the scavenging party.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

Void scanned the radar, the inner north choke was about two hundred meters away.

'Its time'

He stalked the team, like a panther ready to leap at his prey. Nudging ever so closer with each passing second.

Void squatted on a rooftop above the team, drenched in the rain but ready to attack at a moments notice, his bounty was only the Vandals.

"Ready", he whispered into his transmitter, as his message got through Void fished two small orbs from his kit and chucked them directly onto the ground.

The Fallen were immediately alarmed at the sound of two small beads hitting the floor behind them, their bodies jerked back to see, but nothing happened.

Void spun the dagger in his fingers, leaning slightly closer to the edge.

"Kriiki", A dreg cautiously crawled closer to beads, poking it with the barrel of his gun. To the fallen, the beads seemed, weird. They seemed to be drawn to it, but at the same time, they were apprehensive to try and approach it.

Void's hawkish gaze locked onto a Vandal, he waited.

'No matter how cautious, in the end, you'll give in to the temptation'. He knew the Fallen's weakness was loot, be it treasure or just some odd scrap. His beads fit that criteria perfectly.

One breath.... two breaths....Void exhaled slowly, it was as he predicted, the rest of the scavenging team had taken an interest in the beads, thinking it to be odd gems.

Just as the whole team had gathered within their radius, Void's eyes turned cold. His body jerked, almost leaping off the roof, as he triggered a faint light through his hands.

"Kriii", The fallen crowded over the beads felt it...an ominous energy for but a split second. The fallen captain felt his instincts roar, he immediately tried to step back, but it was futile. Within a blink of an eye, the beads erupted, engulfing the whole area in dense smoke.

'NOW', Void sprang forth from the rooftop, shooting like a bullet through the smoke, his trajectory directly stopped in front of a Vandal, but instead of dropping down, Void twisted his body, using his momentum to be directly above the fallen.

His body hung in mid air, for but a brief second, but to Void the time was more than enough. His senses ran wild, as if time itself had slowed down for him.

Void's hands jerked, his dagger moved swiftly, etching a fine line between the Vandal's neck and torso.

Void flipped in the air as he braced the ground right on his legs, the smoke perfectly covering his trail, it was not yet over, channeling his utmost strength, Void planted his foot on the ground and blitzed towards the second Vandal within a fraction of a second.

The dagger in his right hand slipped from his palms flying straight through the Vandal's knees, pinning the Eliksni to the ground, the Vandal croaked, words almost spilling out its mouth, but Void thrust his hand through its throat, instantly crushing the Vandal's wind pipe and ripping its head off the torso, Void dug his feet into the ground, his momentum carrying him through as he skid off outside of the smoke.

A thump was heard, as both heads dropped to the floor.

"KRRRKR" The scavengers howled, all immediately unholstered their weapons.

The fallen captain was incensed, unable to even understand what had happened within such a short time frame.

Void had brought down two Vandals and two remained, the scavengers were still within the smoke bomb, but he predicted it wouldn't hinder them for long.

He creased his brows. The bounty wasn't over yet.