Silent and empty, the dark waters reside without a trace of life in sound nor sight, shadows of the surface, a barren wasteland for the water itself was as fruitful of life as was the void in space.
Not a single soul watches over the water, not a single entity guards it, for there is nothing to guard, there is nothing to see. Just bubbleless water deep from the surface, so dark that the walls cannot be seen, for no light manages to be shed onto it. A true dark spot in the world, deprived of not just life but its source too.
Throughout the zone is nothing but darkness, for the blue hue of water is faint too, nearly impossible to distinguish as its deeper than navy, so intimate the landscape was with that of the cosmos yet deprived of any extraterrestrial worlds, rather it was more comparable to the night sky when shrouded in clouds to conceal the great beyond from the reaches of those on the planet’s surface. That was it, pure nothingness, only the understanding of a greater story beyond the clouds just as the understanding of a greater world beyond the surface.
But as dark clouds would color itself black with the sky, there was no indication of anything more, there was no confirmation nor answers to any prayers, for those dreams could only be surmised out of pure unfounded hope. As when looked upon from the bounded perspective deep down, all there seemed to be was an abyss and nothing more, nothing to tell of a greater plot.
It is only upon searching deeper that one can be grazed by another truth.
Deeper into the same unassuming, undisturbed water, an invisible vacuum of water in a globe contains the four sitting people all in a circle, the young woman with pink hair, the mature woman with amber hair, the senile man entirely depilated, and the pale man with white locks. All of them sit in a tight circle of only about five feet in diameter, the size of the blazing ball before it had vanished.
They all sit on what appears to be the water for there is no visible structure to support them yet just as there is no water between them there is more indication to assume that there is a structure indeed.
Beyond the four is the dark vacant aqua, for there is no sign of guards or watchers, no signs of potentially being located. The four are entirely alone in the exact spot that appeared desolate of life but now all the sudden contains it only upon a deeper search.
In the circle, Kokei turns her head and glances around at the near-black abyss before sighing wearily. She then faces back to the man in the leather jacket who had seemingly incinerated them all, and she inquires with clear fatigue in her voice, “Can we go now? Clearly nobody’s there, we don’t need to keep waiting here. Seriously, why do we even need to hide, can’t you just make some big bulldozer and we can just bolt out of here without a scratch?”
Across from Kokei, Meditat responds too with a sigh of exhaustion for it appears they have been in the sphere for quite some time now, and he shakes his head before dissatisfying realistically, “It’s not that simple, taking on a force of that scale directly opposing us won’t end well. But at least you’re right in that we should be in the clear, but before I relinquish the bubble I should make sure we all know the plan.”
Firstly Ekitai nods his head before enthusiastically recalling, “Yes! We go out there, sneak up behind their backs, and then blast them all three feet under! Then we celebrate with a good hike back to the pod and get up on outta here!”
Secondly Dana sighs in disenchantment and shakes her head at Ekitai. She then raises it back up and disappointedly corrects, “No, Ekitai, we’re not sneaking to attack them, we’re sneaking so we can sneak all the way to the pod! We have no idea what reinforcements could be after us if we decide to make a bold move like that, so we are simply getting out of here. Were you not listening?”
Ekitai then shrugs his shoulders before admitting innocently, “I thought that was a joke, or codeword, like a cipher. But fine, if you guys want to go the boring route then let’s do it, I mean we all know it’ll likely end with some cliche of us getting found out and needing to book it while getting shot at, who knows maybe one of us will step on a branch!”
After the blatant foreshadow, Ekitai raises his head to find that all three of the others are glaring straight at him silently, simply staring at him for several seconds in the circle.
To break the stillness, Meditat nods his head and concludes, “Now we should all be informed, thank you Dana. We should be able to start moving, remember to stay behind and follow my every move. There’s no telling what ambushes are waiting for us, so lay low and stay sile-,” before he abruptly begins dry coughing repeatedly, instinctively making a fist over his mouth as the three around him suddenly drop from primed to perplexed, Dana specifically solicitous as she reaches her hand out to him slowly.
Before her hand can reach him, he manages to stop with a gulp and shakes his head assuringly, to which Dana retracts it back to her side.
“Anyways, let’s get moving,” Meditat advances, completely disregarding the strange cough, to which Kokei and Ekitai both nod in preparation while Dana lags for another second as her hand remains held out, but she then retracts it back and nods too, understanding the more pressing matters in their situation.
Assembled, Meditat waves his right hand, suddenly right in front of them a burst of azureus flames appear, fizzling seemingly out of nowhere as though there was an invisible surface being burned up. The fire spreads around them in a sphere, not appearing to burn anything for even past the flames is the same water, yet oddly enough the effect itself insinuates the presence of an object that had been constructed.
Soon the flames converge behind them into the final point before dissipating, and suddenly the group no longer is able to sit as instead they remain upright floating in the water, Kokei’s legs paddling with no more support.
After the last of the blue fire vanishes into the darkness, Meditat is the first to make a move as he begins swimming straight up, gliding with a faint blue trail.
Taking notice, the three follow close behind him, first Ekitai before then Kokei and finally Dana, all of them focused on their paramount task after the short briefing.
Only after swimming up for a few seconds, the leader reaches the surface of the abyss they had taken refuge under, and upon emerging out of the water he finds himself surrounded by tall trees sprouting out of small patches over the water, for it appears that he’s in a swamp.
Only keeping his head above water, Meditat pivots his head to observe the area he sprouted from, his blue eyes sharp as he seeks for potential activity in the thick swamp, where the density of trees coupled with the heavy barriers of leaves conceal much past, making it more difficult to get a sense for the greater region. Sunlight does pass through the leaves luckily to provide better light especially compared to below the surface, shining cyan light on his pale head and the segment of his locks not submerged.
During the search from mostly underwater however, his vision drifts to a cluster of beings in the distance, who upon closer inspection appear entirely human, not only the upper half but with legs too. But while examining the group, it’s also noted that they’re wearing ragged clothing, for only the women even had rags over their torso, wrapped around over one shoulder, while the men had exposed chests. They all also seem to wear copious amounts of necklaces below expressive hair styles, all unique from another. What is more concerning however is that each of them carries an item, specifically weapons, with some wielding spears, others axes, and some even bows with quivers strapped to their back.
The cluster appear to be in conversation with themselves, not noticing the spy in the distance, but instead discussing amongst each other on a plot of land underneath one of the many trees.
After establishing the initial scene, Meditat begins swimming in their direction silently, returning his head below the surface now that he’s marked his first destination as well as the hazards along the way. He only stays a few inches below the surface however, keeping close when the ascendance is required, staying the highest up compared to the trio behind him who are still trailing albeit a few feet deeper.
All of them swim together, Kokei’s feet paddling while the others simply glide through the murky depths, led by Meditat whose head remains straight forward with open unwavering eyes.
Eventually Meditat then curves his trajectory with an upward angle, and he bursts out through the surface, to which the three behind him follow the same action.
In only a minor ripple, Meditat emerges from the dark void and out into the swamp, where he lands on a patch of grass in a landing that’s entirely devoid of sound. His knees bend in the landing and remain bent to keep his body low, and right after landing he begins to silently sneak forwards.
Behind him, three more ripples which are much greater form, and out of all of them appear Ekitai, Kokei, and Dana, splashing out and landing on the wet grass as well with a few quiet grunts as well as the sound of the grass being squished. It’s noticeably louder than the leader’s entrance, but still quiet enough to not siren. Kokei remains low as does Dana, although while Ekitai does indeed bend his legs, he still sticks out like a sore thumb due in part to both his greater stature coupled with his body’s feeble flexibility.
Leading the mission, Meditat silently roams the swamp, and without moving his head his eyes slide to the right.
To the right of the group, another cluster of similarly dressed and armed individuals stand, both men and women, appearing tribal, especially with their culturally flamboyant attire. They all chatter quietly to each other, although they also appear to be surveying the swamp with studious eyes as if seeking a disturbance, for they are on guard.
Those with bows keep an arrow against the string at all times, primed to fire at a moment’s notice, while those with spears and axes grip them tightly and hold them in front of themselves to throw when necessary.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
While they do seem to have a relationship with each other, they are also visibly aggressive and predatory based on their intricate movements and constant observations, hunters working in the field. Their careful and precise movements also give the impression of expertise, for only their heads swivel constantly upon every sound they can register, but their bodies remain facing one direction only to move if a target is confirmed.
One of the more burly hunters glances in the direction of the four, a sharp glare seeking for prey with a large axe gripped tightly in his hand.
Upon noticing the man’s gaze moving to his direction, Meditat squints more closely, seemingly intrigued before he blinks twice in front of Ekitai.
In the distance, Meditat stares past the trees and leaves to see that straight ahead of himself is the crimson devil, glaring straight back at him with radiating red eyes, its dark cape waving in the wind as it tightly grips its dark viking axe that blazes with red flames.
It menacingly stares straight forward as the wind rustles the thick chains around its neck, which clang like a bell, a bell indicating that dismissal had come.
Alone, it stands in Meditat’s way, straight in the center of his perspective, the eraser emblem on its chest venting red light as well as the streaks that pour all over his body like glowing trails of blood.
Unable to move, unable to look away, all Meditat can do is stare at the devil, gaze at him blankly as his body feels heavy, so heavy that it’s as though it was digging itself into the ground, his muscles unable to lift his legs.
A sudden jerk pulls Meditat to the side, dragging him behind one of the trees and out of the devil’s sight.
“Medit!” anxiously whispers the voice of Dana, and upon blinking twice Meditat finds his back against the tree, facing directly at the speaker.
Taken aback, Meditat quickly glances around to find that to his right stands both Ekitai and Kokei, hiding behind another tree right next to his to try taking cover from the hunters.
He then turns his head to glimpse back at where the devil stood, however upon facing that direction all his eyes claim is the sight of the man in the tribal robes wielding a normal hunting axe, standing among the other similarly dressed and armed hunters.
After confirming that what he saw was not reality, he lets out a brief sigh, but not before Dana follows up in whispers, “What happened? You just froze up, they almost saw you! Are you okay?”
Now facing forward with reviving confidence, Meditat nods his head and assures in a responsible whisper, “Yes, I’m fine, sorry about that. Let’s keep going.”
After recovering from the hallucination, Meditat glances at both Kokei and Ekitai, and gives them a firm nod. He then turns the other way in the direction he had previously been moving down, and resumes his steady strides, creeping down the swamp once more in front of the group, continuing with the expectation of neglecting what had transpired.
Dana quietly sighs to herself and shakes her head, and she follows first right behind the leader. She keeps her knees bent, her body entirely in her human form to avoid letting any shine from her metallic components expose their position.
At the back, Ekitai begins creeping forwards behind the two ahead, his strides exaggerated in a comical fashion, making long distances with every step although every step has enough drama that negates its tacticality.
He whisperingly comments, “It’s so moist here,” before continuing on, passing the words to his close friend before following.
Behind Ekitai, Kokei shakes her head, disregarding Ekitai’s unnecessary commentary in favor of keeping quiet.
One step forward is taken of Kokei’s white shoe, which raises off of the wet grass, lifts up in the air appropriately which exposes the bottom tread of the shoe, and descends back down about as quickly yet further ahead of where it started, landing down towards a patch of grass where a frail branch sits.
The shoe steps on the branch, which snaps on impact, releasing a crunchy crackling sound.
That snap echoes past Ekitai, who pauses in place and exhales through his nose.
That snap echoes past Dana, who stops and instinctively spins her head back towards the source.
That snap echoes past Meditat, who freezes in the exact stance midway through making another silent step, and his eyes silently expand between his white locks resting on the side of his face which also stop waving from his movements.
That snap echoes past the tribal cluster, who glance towards the source with sharpened gazes, immediately alarmed.
Straight across from the stare of the entire group of armed men and women awkwardly stands the young woman with the flashy white cupcake hoodie and vivid pink hair, completely distinct from the brown trees and green leaves.
She slowly turns her head to make eye contact with wide pink irises with shimmer as she shivers, completely silent while between trees, not covered by either.
First to take action, the burly man raises his axe, aimed at the young woman caught red handed, and in a deep and assertive voice he demands, “Young woman, please stop where you are and hold your hands where I can see them! You have the right to remain silent, anything you say can be held up against you in a court of law! Seize her!”
Next to the man, two of the women begin striding in formal marches towards the target, both of them holding spears with which they hold upright without wavering with the stances of royal guards and the speech of a police officer.
Startled still, Kokei’s legs remain unmoving as she stands straight in the line of sight of the approaching tribal women, armed with stern, professional gazes.
Kokei simply stares back with petrified eyes, but that is until a translucent cable attaches to the upper edge of her chest and straightens. For the second the cable is deployed, it jerks her body forward, to which she shrieks in bewilderment.
Up ahead Meditat breaks into a sprint, a cable protruding from his back shoulder to carry Kokei like wolves dragging a sled. Behind him follows Dana and Ekitai also running, Dana’s arms now transformed golden and Ekitai now wielding his revolver as both of them are prepared for combat upon confrontation. Behind those two, Kokei is pulled forward, gripping the cable while yelling fearfully, her white shoes dragging through the mushy ground.
Calmly watching the attempted escape, the burly tribal man sighs and aims his axe towards the head of the group before commanding, “They are making a run for it, make haste and restrain them!”
Upon the order, the remainder of the cluster charges past him and in the direction of the four, breathing heavily as they hold their bows steadily, keeping their arrows low at first as they need an initial thrust.
While the casters sprint off, the man with the axe declares boldly, “You have the right to an attorney, if you cannot afford one then one will be appointed to you!”
Glancing back while dashing–exhausting a faint blue trail–Meditat faces the front line of archers chasing them, all of their bows holding an arrow as they were already primed to fire.
Without stopping, the archers at the front raise their bows up straight, and as their string is already held back, they simply release and fire a speedy volley of arrows which soar in the air with sharp copper tips that shine from the fragmented light seeping through the curtain of leaves as it makes its way towards its target.
Not taking a moment to slow down, Meditat waves his right hand to his side and projects a translucent blue wall which is immediately struck by the volley of arrows, suspending them against the wall before it’s then relinquished, allowing the arrows to collapse after having lost its momentum.
Far back from the front lines of the chase, the burly leader takes a deep breath, and begins spinning his axe. The axe spins faster and faster as his natural brown eyes trail Meditat, and while stalking him they then flash bright green inhumanly.
Standing in place while eyeing the runaways, he hurles the axe at his target with all its built up momentum, and right after being thrown the axe shines the same bright green as its wielder’s eyes.
Flying through the air at high speeds, the axe gleams bright green to the point where none of its individual characteristics are discernable, but rather it only maintains its basic shape.
From within the axe, three more congruent shapes slip in space to the left, duplications of the former weapon which drift several feet away from each other yet stick to the same course. After the furthest axe no longer is moving away from the origin, all four axes then revert back to the original design, the intricate wooden handle and sharpened stone heads, but now with four of them rather than one in a barrage.
Witnessing the action and recognizing that the new barrage of axes was creating a row long enough to not only cut him but the entire group, one for each of them, as now all of them are targets instead of only him.
Acting hastily, Meditat waves his hand again, and by act of prioritization he projects a wall next to Kokei all the way at the back–who has started running while being dragged by the cable–, which swiftly extends towards him, shielding Ekitai and then Dana before then making its way towards him.
Already the three duplicates land into the projected wall before it completes its growth as the original lands on Meditat’s shoulder, its sharp blade impacting his body for a moment before then bouncing off his shoulder and landing on the ground.
He grunts in pain from the force of the strike, placing his hand over his shoulder, although it’s noticeably intact as it hasn’t even been pierced in the slightest, protected by the elegant design of his protective armor.
After gripping his shoulder for a second, he lets go and continues sprinting forwards, abandoning the projection to allow the other three duplicates to crash on the mushy grass too.
Keeping chase even after the strike, Meditat grunts bothered before alarmingly denoting, “The leader is an Exhuman, seems to have some sort of cloning ability, but if we keep our distance we should be fine! Keep running!”
He pants heavily while leading the group past trees in the swamp as arrows fly past them from the archers, missing their targets completely as they either fly off into the distance or into the trees.
None of the four stop as Meditat relinquishes the cable holding Kokei, allowing her to run on her own as she already had been. She remains beside Ekitai, keeping pace while gasping for air repeatedly, running for her life as more arrows fly past them, some grazing right past her body to which she squirms.
All four of the group sprint down the swamp, passing trees repeatedly while being chased by the forces hunting them down, all consuming their energy to carry their legs as fast as they can. Meditat leads the pact right in front of Dana who stays only a few feet ahead of both Ekitai and Kokei, the group close together and trying their best to stick close to the leader.
They run past another tree, becoming invisible to their pursuers for only a brief moment, but it is well known to all of them that the moment they step past cover they’d be met with more hostile force neverending until either they make their escape or they fail just that.
Regardless, the group would inevitably come to a stop.
It was only a matter of if it was to draw in more breaths, or while taking their last.