Anamoly 003: Codename Lightseeker
Any object that emits radiation within frequencies of visible light for your species, attracts wisp-like entities. This phenomenon has been observed to obey a cycle of 40 hours appearing, and 40 hours not present. They are undetectable by any scientific instrumentation. The only evidence of their existence are the testimonies of the crew members who claim to have seen them. Strangely enough, species relying on other than radiation to ‘see’ are unable to interact with them.
If touched, the crew-member is dissolved into mist from point of contact which is then absorbed by the anomaly – this results in a marginal increase in size.
Precaution: if seen, do not touch, do not approach. Those relying on visual organs are to be alert during their on-cycle.
- Anomaly Log, Third Uncharted Zones Expedition, 7212 MGE, Archive File #P786D7G3S998
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Chapter 14: Slayer of Wyrms
The figures of Axe and Kariel soon disappeared as they crested the final mound before the peak. With my [Influx]-enhanced Truesight, however, their figures never left my vision. The battle had just begun, with several flea-like souls and minds flittering about the Firewyrm. Energy was coalesced, released, absorbed and deflected in a corona of colours.
Quito and I followed afterwards, Quito gasping as waves of pain emanated from his mind. Nonetheless, he clenched his jaw and pushed forwards. As we too crested the mound, a realisation dawned on me.
“We’ve been calling it wrong. Not a mountain. A volcano”
A wide basin was spread out before me like the impact crater of a meteor. The far ridge was silhouetted in black against the dark purple sky.
Though it was clearly dormant, its size made it no less intimidating. The ridge we stood on was several metres wide and a gentle slope led towards the centre of the crater.
‘The Colosseum does have a knack for theatre’
I couldn’t help but admit it grudgingly. This was a fitting arena for the climax of this hunt.
Speaking of the climax, I didn’t have much time to admire the surroundings before my attention was grasped away by the events unfolding. The Firewyrm was clearly in view for the first time and I sucked in a cold breath at its sight.
A hulking mass seemed to loom over me despite me looking down on it from above. Its sinuously muscled body was covered in scales that glinted with each movement. Four wings arched from its back, unfurling like the sails of a doomed ship, each lined with jagged bone spikes. Twin head twisted and writhed on the end of serpentine necks, maws bristling with enough teeth to put an armoury to shame.
Along with the roaring flame of its soul and the sharpness of its mind, its sight drew my breath away.
‘That lightshow earlier was nothing compared to the real thing’
I’d seen pictures before, even the odd clip that made it out to the net in the Uncharted Zones. But nothing compared to the sheer intensity of the real thing.
Several figures were darting around it, slashing with cold weapons along with bright muzzle flashes and the occasional red beam of plasma. But its scales seemed impenetrable, rejecting the attacks like a leaf does to a drop of water.
Its head roared in defiance, deafening despite its distance from us. It had stopped, and I noticed some of the figures increasing the intensity of the attacks. Their minds flickered as they took advantage of the beast’s brief pause in a flurry of blows.
But I could see they were wrong.
Confident in the fidelity of its scales, it stood proudly before them before flexing the great muscles of its back.
Four scaled wings unfurled properly for the first time, blanketing the basin in darkness. The size made it seem as though it moved in slow motion as they slowly raised before lowering down.
My eyes widened and I grabbed Quito to the floor, hoping we were out of range.
With a thunderous beat, it lifted off into the air in defiance of physics. A hurricane of wind rushed in all directions, sweeping up a cloud of dust that obscured the already dark stage.
Several of the figures fighting were caught off guard, thrown away and collapsing in unmoving heaps.
Flashes of sharp panic washed over their minds. I glanced at Axe and Kariel, but they were fine, crouching at the base of the slope.
The dust hovering in the air was soon cleared into swirling eddies by another tempestuous blast, revealing the Firewyrm hovering above. It was about eye level with Quito and eye, though it hadn’t seemed to have noticed us.
‘Would I notice an ant on my boot?’
I couldn’t help but feel that way, its dominance was so overpowering. But it wasn’t done yet.
An unnatural silence had fallen over the basin broken only by the powerful beating of its wings, as though everyone was holding their breath for what came next.
In the hushed twilight, it hovered in the air with unchallenged sovereignty. I felt a suffocating feeling as a coalescence of energy akin to the kind that powers cities came into view of my Truesight. My Codex hungered to absorb it, but I resisted the impulse.
‘Not just yet’
An orange glow had begun to emanate from the throats of the Firewyrm, stretching the shadows long and deep and bathing the basin in an ominous red glow. It loomed above the frantic figures below like a celestial harbinger, each head craning backwards as a low, resonant hum reverberated through the stillness.
Then, with a cataclysmic roar, both jaws snapped open. Twin torrents of incandescent fire poured out with such force that the recoil forced the beast backwards as it adjusted its position with flaps of its colossal wings.
The flames spiralled together and fused into one, becoming bright enough to momentarily illuminate the entire basin. In that split-second it took for the blast to arrive; it seemed as though everything was still.
Axe and Kariel were still crouched at the edge of the basin. Several figures who had collapsed from the galeforce winds of the Firewyrm’s flight were in the process of righting themselves when the attack came their way, highlighting the fear in their face.
Others gritted their teeth and activated their most powerful defences. The snapshot felt like it lasted an eternity, searing the image into my mind like an ancient mural of a mythical adventure. But time is no lenient mistress, and its onward march resumed unimpeded.
Less than a millisecond had actually passed in that heightened state, and the beam impacted the crater with a catastrophic boom.
If I thought the roar of the release was deafening, its impact was something else entirely. The ground around its impact site rippled and surged, breaking up from the force of the attack. A shockwave blew across the basin with a loud crack that caused Quito and I to wince, even at our distance.
Then, the heat. The ground bubbled into streams of magma that shimmered with heat haze. But the attack wasn’t finished. The Firewyrm moved its heads and the several-metre wide beam of red-orange plasma tracked across the basin at a deceptively fast speed.
Luckily, it seemed that the recoil of the beam was such that even the powerful Firewyrm couldn’t quite keep it under control enough to aim it properly. Not that it mattered. Everything it touched and within a fairly large margin was vaporised into oblivion. Those lucky enough to avoid a direct hit were cooked by alive by sheer heat.
Several figures disappeared from my Truesight, obscured by the intense energy for a second and, when I recovered, only charcoaled heaps remained. Several others sported grim burns and clutched useless limbs. Only a fraction of those who fought were still at anywhere close to maximum capacity.
Axe and Kariel were covered in dust and rocks, but it seemed like they withstood most of the blast. The beam came close to their spot, but they made it out comparatively unscathed.
Nonetheless, excitement still pulsed from Kariel’s mind, though Axe’s was as serious as ever. Quito was wheezing still, his black eyes reflecting the red blast in an ominous look.
‘If all goes well, he’ll be the one to put down that beast’
I turned my attention back to the carnage. Soon enough, the blast petered out, returning the basin to the darkness. I blinked rapidly, adjusting from the bright light to the darkness and a sight reminiscent of a battlefield after an artillery bombardment came into view.
The basin had been completely upturned. Deep furrows marked its surface, whose bottoms glowed red with still-hot stone. The rivulets of magma were slowly cooling, but it retained its heat well, engulfing the basin in a dim orange-red glow.
The one responsible for this destruction didn’t seem completely unscathed itself. Its wing beats were weaker as it returned to the ground with a crash. Its twin heads were lowered, panting with mouths open, exposing its sharp teeth.
The orange glow exaggerated the beauty of its obsidian scales, glinting with each twitch of muscle.
My Truesight backed up my conjecture. Its mind was spilling thoughtstuff in the characteristic manner of the exhausted. Though its soul was unchanged, with [Influx] I could tell that the amount of energy it had was greatly depleted.
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‘I don’t think it’s got it in itself for another attack like that one’
Such a turn of events was welcome news, but I cautioned myself.
‘It’s still no less dangerous without its claws. And those scales are still unbroken, despite all those attacks landing in it. Perhaps my sword...'
I still didn't know the limits of the strange red blade of my sword. If it could pierce those black scales, it could be a game changer. I could only hope that Kariel was as adept at aiming as he claimed to be and that Quito was up his task of accelerating the shot enough to cause real damage.
I turned my head to face the white-pelted beast in question.
“We should get down and into position closer now while its tired and hasn’t noticed us”
Quito responded with a tired nod and we made our way down the slope. By this time, the dust had cleared from the air, coating the ground in a thin layer of ash. As we slid down, I kept my Truesight firmly on the Firewyrm at the centre of the basin, ready for any sudden movements.
Luckily, it was still being harassed by the remnants of the groups ahead of us and we made it to Kariel and Axe without any problems.
“Good that you’re unharmed”, I said first. “The Firewyrm’s definitely tired after that attack: I doubt it can do another of that calibre without completely exhausting itself. Now’s our best chance to take it out while it’s still focused on the left-overs of the other group”.
“I was thinking the same thing”, Axe agreed looking from Kariel at Quito. “You sure you’re up for it? I can probably get you a chance but you’ll only have one. If it misses, I doubt we’ll be able to handle the massive enraged reptile ourselves”.
Despite his haggard look, his eyes were firm and his will was still strong. That purple telekinetic aura around his mind seemed to have recovered somewhat and writhed in response to its wielders anticipation.
“It is not necessarily that I am up for it, but rather that we have no other choice. Tired or not, none of us are taking out that beast without a powerful enough attack. Unless you all have been hiding a nuke somewhere, this is our best shot”.
Axe nodded, the grime on his face now added to by a layer of soot and ash.
“I say we go for it”, Kariel grunted. “There may still be others behind us, so we may not have a lot of time either”.
He wasn’t wrong. There was nothing to suggest that we were the last to arrive.
‘And there’s that strange armoured fellow from before. Who knows what his stake is in all this, but even though he left in the opposite direction with his group he might still come back’
There were simply too many variables to have a foolproof plan. The best we could do was to be as flexible as possible. It seemed Axe agreed with me as he spoke up:
“No point worrying about things out of our control. We need to be adaptable enough that we can deal with wild cards as they come.”
He fixed his gaze on me, long hair matting his forehead.
“You and I will frontline this time. Kariel needs to be by Quito for the final shot.”
I nodded and Axe then turned to the others.
“You two, take the shot whenever you feel like it. The decision is in your hands. But if you decide to retreat, signal us and we will too.”
Kariel gave a mock salute while Quito merely nodded weakly.
“You got it boss”
“Yes”
We all turned back to look at the battle ongoing. Unsurprisingly, the Firewyrm was still unscathed, though its movements were undeniably more sluggish than before.
‘Perhaps its size can work against it...’
A kernel of a plan began to sprout in my mind as I looked at Axe.
“Lets go”, he said gruffly charging towards the fight. I followed a few seconds after, exchanging a nod with the two left behind.
But I quickly put them out of my mind. This was no time for extraneous thoughts. Unlike my previous battles where I had effectively been in control from the beginning, I was truly throwing caution to the wind.
‘Feels more familiar this way’
The Uncharted Zones were never truly peaceful, and there’s no such thing as safety. If anything, my stay in the Colosseum has been more secure than any time I’ve spent outside. Enough that charging into the maws of the beast gave me a little homesickness.
'Guess I might fit in here better than I thought...'
Axe’s figure quickly left me in the dust, surging onwards with bounding leaps. His psyker ability was activated to maximum output, wreathing his arms and legs in lightning that I could have sworn I saw even in my normal vision.
In my Truesight, he appeared like an engine of war, designed for the sole purpose of destruction. The subspace energy characteristic of psykers pulsed and writhed like the beating heart of some eldritch beast. With each stride, his momentum grew until it reached a peak. Approaching the side of the beast, he crouched down before propelling himself upwards, leaving craters in the ground.
He slammed his fist into the side of the beast as a boom sounded out across the basin. The other figures paused their attacks, glancing at the newcomer in shock as he did what they had failed all this time.
It was small, barely visible, but the glow of the magma beneath highlighted the imperfection. A thin crack in one of the scales. The enormous beast was rocked to one side by the sheer force of the blow, righting itself with a flex of its wings and an annoyed snort.
Axe was thrown back but managed to land on his feet. The two heads of the beast turned to look warily at the new threat as a new emotion surged in its alien mind.
‘Rage’
With a roar, it raised a colossal foreleg, sharp talons gleaming in orange magma-light before slamming it down on the offending insect.
Axe threw himself to one side, barely dodging the blow. But he couldn’t take a breather just yet.
Another blow came down, faster and stronger than the previous one and Axe was even closer to being flattened.
He rolled underneath the beast in the hopes that it couldn’t reach him, but that appeared to be the wrong move.
I barely had the time to shout a warning before the beast simply collapsed down, burying Axe under its immense weight.
It then bared its teeth as a mocking grin adorned both heads. Its celebration was short lived, however, as low thud resounded across the basin. I couldn’t read its expression, but its mind was an open book as incredulity flashed across its thoughts.
Another thud and the Firewyrm raised to the air once more with a powerful beat of its wings, shrieking down at the ground below. The other figures around took this opportunity to resume their attacks with renewed vigour, the single cracked scale evidence of the mortality of the beast they fought.
The creator of this evidence was currently gripping onto the underbelly of the Firewyrm launching powerful punches and kicks at it. Though, with the lack of leverage, he could do little damage compared to his previous blow.
The beast twisted and writhed in the air, but Axe had a firm grip. He rained down blows continuously, damage no doubt accumulating deep within.
Eventually, it crashed down from the air, panting.
‘It’s exhausted. Now’s our chance!’
I dashed towards it, raising my sword ready to attack. Axe saw me approaching and I exchanged a look. He jumped down onto the ground and knelt on one knee.
'What's he...?'
Realisation dawned on me as a chaotic grin spread on my face.
‘Madman. It just might work though’
If Kariel and Quito wanted a distraction, they’d get one. Utilising the momentary distraction caused by the renewed attacks of the other figures, Axe was unharmed. But it wouldn’t last long.
I accelerated, for the first time directing a sliver of energy using [Efflux] to increase my speed even further. Axe’s figure approached in the distance and I counted down the steps.
My heart raced in my chest as my muscles pumped. I felt the lactic acid build, but I pushed through the stinging pain.
‘3...’
‘2...’
‘1...’
‘Now!’
I jumped upwards, launching myself several metres forwards. I extended my right foot towards Axe's clenched together hands.
As my foot landed on it, Axe threw his hands up with a powerful roar. His psyker sigils writhed with lightning in my Truesight, enhancing his strength to the peak.
I felt myself get launched into the air at a breakneck speed. The roars of the beast and the clashes of battle were drowned out by the rushing of wind in my ears. I squinted, barely keeping my eyes open as tears streamed down my cheeks.
But Truesight was all I needed. The figure of the beast was highlighted, rippling with energy even in its depleted form. Its soul, easily the largest of any around and its mind was enraged by the fact that a mere insect had sullied one such as itself.
I was still rising into the air, above the top of the Firewyrm and in its blind spot. I raised my sword, ready to slash down as I began to slow. Soon, I was dropping rapidly, my rate of descent only accelerating. But I had no time to regret my decisions.
A few others had noticed my strategy and several potshots flew past, but none were accurate enough to hit me directly.
The figure of the beast grew in my vision and I grinned wildly.
‘Watch this, Duke of the Colosseum’
With a silent message to my victim-to-be, I reached my destination. The back of one of the necks. The scales there were clearly tough, but I had wagered on success. If not in myself, then in the red bladed sword I wielded.
‘Thank you too, anonymous sponsor’
I slashed down and as the edge of my blade collided with its scales, a jarring vibration travelled up my arms. My hands threatened to let go, but I grit my teeth through the pain and held on.
Just when I felt the dregs of my momentum disappear, a thin crack appeared, seeming like water to a man dying of thirst.
I capitalised, forcing my worn and torn muscles to increase their force. [Efflux] activated and with that extra push, the crack widened and the blade slid through scales into flesh.
I felt more than heard the roar of agony from the beast. As close as I was, the vibrations shook my vision. It keeled backwards, raising both heads and lifting both forelegs to swat at the gnat that dared bite it.
But that was the wrong decision. With gravity on my side, I yanked on the blade, sliding down the back of its neck. Hot blood surged from the wound, covering my hands and face as the cries of the beast turned from shouts of anger to shrieks of pain.
I retracted my sword with moderate effort, embedded as it was deep within fascia, and jumped down, rolling to absorb the impact.
I attempted to stand, but my body was more battered than I thought and I collapsed to one knee.
‘Dislocated both shoulders. Luckily I don’t feel any broken bones’
Now that the adrenaline was wearing off, the pain was setting in. A bone deep ache pulsed from my shoulders down my arms and the sting of lactic acid had evolved into the piercing feeling of torn muscles.
I barely registered Axe appearing to my side as he took me away from the beast, carrying me over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
I looked at the beast over his shoulders in satisfaction of my handiwork. It fought more frantically now, none of that previous majesty as its own blood coated its body. One of its heads was slower to respond, glassy eyed and dropping as though its neck was failing to support its own weight.
Axe quickly set me down and checked me over briefly.
“Nothing major”, he sighed in relief and attempted to clap me on the shoulders before restraining himself at the last minute. A rare grin adorned his face.
“Hell of an attack that was, been a while since I’ve seen something so cinematic”.
I groaned in pain.
“Doesn’t quite feel so cinematic though”
“Not now, but you’ll be surprised how many watch these Hunts. If you weren’t famous before, after that attack you will be for sure”
‘One good thing came out of this at least. A step closer to finding that Vault and getting out of this place’
“Its not over yet, though”, I grunted and forced myself upright with a grimace. “It’s still kicking. That blow’s not enough to take it down”.
I found myself admiring it for its tenacity, to fight so fiercely even when outnumbered and heavily injured, when an earth-shaking bang resounded from my far right. It was followed by a sonic boom that was deafening even to my ears, already dulled by the various blasts and explosions thus far.
I barely had time to turn my head towards the sound when I saw something pass through my Truesight like the payload from a railgun. It crackled with familiar violet energy, but it was gone before I could examine it any further.
‘That’s...’
My eyes widened at the realisation. I turned my head quickly to look at the Firewyrm just in time. The spear hit the beast squarely in the size of one head, passing straight through and into the second with unstoppable momentum. It erupted from the other side, emerging like a killer whale breaching the surface.
Its flight arced as the purple energy receded in my Truesight, impaling the slope on the far side of the basin.
The mind of the beast was frozen in its last moments of rage and pain, not even having time to feel surprise before it ceased functioning. Its soul flickered weakly as if defying the astral winds that threatened to extinguish it.
Staggering on its feet, its limbs twitched in all directions, wings unfurling and contracting with each spasm.
But to no avail. Just as its soul was extinguished succumbing to the pull of the dark, its body too collapsed to the ground in a colossal, unmoving heap.
Silence once again returned to the peak of that dormant volcano, and I closed my tired eyes.
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[SYSTEM STATUS: OFF]
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[REACTOR CORES: UNSPOOLED]
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[TIME UNTIL RE-INITIALISATION: 3 CYCLES]