by Alex Knight
The shuttle pulled a hard turn, then drifted to the edge of the platform. The wrong side of the platform, as it happened.
“We can’t get through,” Kaiden said, eyes locked on the mosh pit of combat separating them from the shuttle.
“I got this.” Titus stepped forward without warning. “Been wanting to try this bad boy out.”
“Wait, what’re you–”
“No time,” Zelda said, dragging Kaiden along with her as she followed Titus.
“Shield Charge!” Titus bellowed a battle cry and plunged forward. As he did, his shield flared a bright white and his legs began to pump at a furious pace.
He slammed into the thick of the fighting like a wrecking ball through a building. Soldiers were bowled over or tossed aside as Titus pushed through like they weren’t even there. The wake of his charge left just enough of a gap for Kaiden and Zelda to follow.
Titus only stopped running when he slammed into the side of the Borrelly with a resounding thunk.
“Get in!” Lieutenant Ellenton swung the ship around, the ramp already extended.
Titus leapt first, followed by Zelda, and then Kaiden.
Kaiden had just enough time to grab a handrail before the shuttle blasted off, leaving them with a shrinking view of the battle below.
Chapter Twenty
“He’s moving deeper into the building. Probably knows we’re tracking him,” Lieutenant Ellenton said as the shuttle covered the distance to the assassin’s skyscraper in a matter of seconds. “If he gets out of range, the shuttle will lose him.”
“Can you drop us off near him?” Kaiden said, working his way to the cockpit and talking through the comms.
“No need if I can take him down first.”
The entirety of the Borrelly vibrated as the lieutenant opened up with a barrage of laser fire. The rounds streaked into the assassin’s half-built skyscraper and exploded in a fiery storm of sparks and scrap. A glowing red dot projected onto the windshield tracked the movement of the assassin inside the building. When the smoke cleared from the lasers, he was still moving.
The lieutenant cursed, then unleashed another barrage.
Metal crumbled and blew apart, fires burst to life, and great chunks of the building’s exterior were blasted away. The dot kept moving.
It manifested into a figure as a man leapt from the empty skyscraper, clearing an impossibly long jump, and landed in the neighboring tower. He ran along a balcony for a dozen steps or more.
“There’s your shot!” Kaiden leaned forward, expecting at any moment to see the assassin caught in another burst of lasers. None was forthcoming.
“What are you waiting for?”
“Civilians,” the lieutenant said, and even as she spoke, near a hundred blue and white dots appeared on the windshield as the shuttle’s scanners located them inside the skyscraper.
“The last building was mostly abandoned, still under construction. This one is full of players and NPCs. Even on Nassau, I can’t fire on civilians. NextGen would have a fit.”
She dogged the assassin’s movements as she spoke, trailing him along the outside of the building.
Zelda's voice spoke softly in his ear over the party comms line. “Did you get a good look at the assassin as he jumped?” she asked.
“No, why?” Kaiden whispered back.
“I’m pretty sure I saw a red streak of hair.”
“And?”
“The assassin that killed Bernstein–”
“Had a red streak of hair!” Kaiden said. “You don’t think this is the same guy?”
“Only one way to find out.”
Luckily, Ellenton hadn’t noticed their exchange. She was still lamenting her inability to continuing firing. “So heavy artillery won’t work. We’re going to have to try something else.”
“Lieutenant! Will my Burst Arrow ability penetrate through the building?” Zelda shouted into the channel as she pulled herself onto the still-extended rear loading ramp.
“Probably not?”
“Good enough for me.”
She opened fire and an energy spear burst from the barrel of her hammer. It struck the balcony right next to the assassin, staggering him to one side.
She fired again, but he dodged it, rolling beneath.
Kaiden was wondering how Zelda had charge to use this new ability, then he remembered she could now generate charge passively while in combat. A useful trick. Perhaps having two blast wardens wouldn’t be such a bad thing.
The assassin turned hard, then disappeared into the building through an open doorway. His figure faded back into the red dot as the shuttle tracked him through the walls.
“I’ll put you down here,” Ellenton said. “Follow him in while I cover the exits.”
She maneuvered the shuttle closer to the building, slowing to let them out. As she did, the assassin reappeared from the doorway and flung a disc-shaped piece of metal.
“Hold on!” The lieutenant slammed her joystick hard to the side and the Borrelly rolled to the left, attempting to dodge whatever the assassin had thrown. She pulled away, but even as Kaiden watched, the object followed them. Whatever it was bounced from the forward-starboard wing, then slapped down and stuck fast.
Clunk.
For a moment, nothing happened.
“Did it bounce off?” Titus asked from the back, moving to peer out a side window.
“Magnetic EMP mine,” Lieutenant Ellenton said, dread in her voice. “This is going to hurt.”
A blast of light and electricity tore through the shuttle. The energy snapped and crackled across the hull, filling the windshield and side windows with a burning light.
The control console hissed and popped, then started spewing smoke into the cabin. They dropped several feet as the engines stuttered before fighting their way back online.
“We’re going to lose power any moment. I’ll put her down on the balcony,” Lieutenant Ellenton growled through gritted teeth. “Just make sure you get this punk.”
Console still smoking, she punched the throttle and the Borrelly plunged forward, directly into the skyscraper.
They slammed down onto the balcony and slid several feet. Kaiden just had time to see the outer wall of the building rush up before the windshield buckled in a spiderweb of cracks.
The shuttle jerked to a stop, throwing everyone to the floor, and the electric hum of the Borrelly’s systems wound down to silence.
“I’ll work on getting the shuttle flying again. Might be able to force a system reboot once the cooldown wears off.” She turned her eyes to the building ahead of them. “I updated your maps with the tracking data from the shuttle’s computer. Go get him.”
Kaiden jumped from the shuttle’s ramp, hitting the balcony with a heavy thud. A heavier thud followed: Titus. Then Zelda landed too. His map recalibrated, white lines reforming to show the environment of the skyscraper they’d crashed into, and a red dot appeared, already on the move. The assassin. A quick nod to each other and they were running.
The building appeared to be the corporate office for some sort of manufacturing firm. NPCs walked the halls here and there, no doubt programmed to look busy.
Nonetheless, they reacted to the wardens bursting through their hallways. Some even wanted to help, pointing after the assassin or shouting encouragement.
But from the looks of his minimap, it didn’t look like they would catch him. He had a huge head start.
They burst through a set of double doors and out into what appeared to be the main atrium, a massive open space with glass windows rising for stories and stories on either side. Ahead, Kaiden caught the first glimpse of their quarry. It wasn’t a promising one.
“He’s getting away,” Kaiden shouted, trying to run faster as the assassin reached a spiral staircase on the far side of the central fountain.
Zelda was right behind him, almost stepping on his heels as they ran, but Titus’ green dot was far behind them.
“These NPC guys won’t get o
ut of my way,” he shouted through the party comms. “Just go on without me.”
We need to be faster somehow, or we'll never catch him.
And then a thought struck Kaiden.
Can I pick a spec right now?
Still running, he brought up his character sheet. The option to pick a spec was still flashing at the bottom.
Lieutenant Sola had seemed supernaturally fast back on Mochinki Station. That might just be what I need to catch this guy. But I’ll be locking myself into the enhanced warden specialization. There’s no going back.
An energy arrow zipped past Kaiden and exploded against the staircase, sending the assassin sprawling. For a moment, Kaiden thought the man might not get back up. But no such luck.
Two more smaller beams followed as Zelda used her normal attack. They went wide, and the assassin rounded the corner out of sight. The red dot denoting him on Kaiden’s minimap disappeared. He’d run out of range.
“We’ll never catch him like this” Zelda said.
“I have an idea!” Kaiden shouted back. “Double back and help Titus. I got this.”
Chapter Twenty-One
As soon as Kaiden selected the enhanced specialization, his shield morphed from its original round shape to that of a medieval kite shield. Its pointed lower half stretched past his waist, while the top half was broader, covering his chest.
The edges of his vision glowed as a visor materialized in front of his eyes. He couldn’t get a good look at it while running, but it looked to be a band of slim glass that curved in front of his eyes. A compact blue circle formed on the inside of the visor, not unlike a scope on a ranged weapon in many shooter games he’d played. The blue circle moved as his eyes did, and Kaiden assumed it was some sort of lock-on or tracking feature.
A flood of text poured into his vision.
Enhanced warden specialization chosen!
Enhanced wardens are a unique support class able to quickly process strategic information, using speed to scout ahead, deliver vital intel and escape deadly situations. Your new enhanced visor now allows you to focus on players, NPCs and items to learn additional information about them and their abilities. Increased sensory knowledge has doubled the area size of your minimap.
Still running, Kaiden saw his minimap zoom out, expanding the area shown to him, and the red dot of the assassin blinked back onto it. His quarry was still ahead of him, but at least Kaiden could keep track of him better. What’s more, a blocky yellow arrow appeared beside the assassin’s red dot, indicating what direction he was travelling in. It must have been a new feature from his improved visor and it was certainly handy.
Yet all the extra intel in the world didn’t change the fact that the assassin was simply faster than him.
But there was a stat for that.
Remembering the description from his stats page, the dexterity stat would increase his base movement speed. Kaiden doubted it was a one-to-one ratio, but surely fifteen points would make a difference. Plus, with the hammer he’d looted and his new class, a dexterity-focused build made sense.
Kaiden mentally added all his available points into dexterity.
The effect was immediate. Suddenly, his legs began to push a little harder, his body seemed a touch lighter. Kaiden felt more balanced, more in control of his movements, able to more easily dodge the NPCs that occasionally blocked his path. He was definitely faster, but it still wasn’t enough; the red dot that was the assassin continued to move closer to the edge of Kaiden’s expanded minimap. Soon he’d escape entirely.
I need more speed! I thought enhanced were supposed to be fast.
Then he noticed one last notification.
Ability Unlocked!
Burst of Speed: Energy is channeled to your leg implants, increasing current movement speed by 100% for 10 seconds. Cost: 30 charge. Cooldown: 1 minute.
Now, that’s what I’m talking about! Except…
Kaiden’s eyes flicked down to his charge bar. The assassin hadn’t given him any chance to build charge. Throwing an EMP mine at the Borrelly hadn’t exactly been an attack he’d had any chance of blocking.
Kaiden rounded another flight of stairs and found himself on the top floor of the building. The red dot halted on his minimap, losing the directional arrow. The assassin had stopped – but why? Kaiden ran on through the sliding door in front of him and emerged into a glass-ceilinged cafe.
Patrons were on their feet, looking to a commotion at the far side of the room, steaming mugs and plates of cakes forgotten.
The assassin was being held up by a security officer for the building. Kaiden used his new visor to get some info on the guard, locking the blue circle reticle onto him.
Marsten (NPC)
Security Officer
Status: Neutral
Level: 5
Even as Kaiden made to catch up, the assassin knocked Marsten in the forehead with the butt of his rifle. He stumbled backward, apparently stunned. The assassin threw a glance over his shoulder, saw Kaiden approaching, and started to run again, heading for a set of stairs marked ‘Shuttle pads this way’.
An idea struck Kaiden then. He needed charge. But he didn’t need the assassin to attack him. He just needed somebody to attack him.
“Officer, shoot my shield!”
The stun effect wore off and Marsten turned, a look of confusion on his face.
“What?” he said, then his eyes went wide as he took in Kaiden’s warden armor. “I mean, yes, sir!”
He drew his blaster with a sharp, practiced movement, and fired. The laser washed over Kaiden’s raised shield in a burst of light and his charge bar filled by twelve units.
“Two more!” Kaiden angled his shield as he passed Marsten, still sprinting.
The shots hit and Kaiden’s charge bar filled to thirty-six percent.
“Much obliged!” Kaiden yelled. Ahead, the assassin disappeared up the staircase to the shuttle pads.
Now things get interesting.
Kaiden activated Burst of Speed. At once, he felt the muscles in his legs twinge as though shocked with electricity. It was like an adrenaline rush, only doubly so. He lurched forward, almost toppling over at the sudden acceleration. The room flew past in a blur. He was practically flying up the stairs.
He whooped. “Now this is fun!”
The distance between him and the assassin on the minimap was quickly closing. A neon-lit doorway indicated the shuttle pad area was just ahead, its sliding door still closing from the last person to run through. But just as Kaiden slid through the gap in the closing doors out onto the roof of the complex, the red dot on his minimap blinked off.
“What the—"
Kaiden skidded to a halt. A countdown timer in the corner of his screen informed him Burst of Speed had four seconds of time. Plenty to reach the assassin, if he was still there.
Only…the rooftop was empty, save for a couple of transit shuttles and one slender black craft.
No! Where did he go? He can’t have just died or vanished!
Yes, he probably could, now Kaiden thought on it. This was an assassin, after all, and he likely had a cloaking ability. From his experience in games, such things usually meant that an ambush was about to—
His minimap flashed as the red dot reappeared, this time behind him.
Kaiden spun, crouching low, shield raised. A laser bolt slammed into the upper portion of his shield, sending painful vibrations up his arm. His charge bar rushed to fill to eighty out of one hundred. Clearly, that shot had been very powerful. It might even have killed him if it had hit his body.
Looking up, Kaiden saw the flickering outline of a man as the assassin finished decloaking. The red streak in his hair stood out sharply against his otherwise black combat gear and he held a long-barreled sniper rifle. Now close enough to focus on the player, Kaiden finally got a name.
Jax
Class: Assassin
Faction: Unknown
Level: 15
Kaiden balked at the level. Ja
x was nine levels higher than he was. How on earth was he ever going to bring his health down low enough to use the Shackle ability?
Smoke trailed from Jax’s rifle, but for some reason he remained there, unmoving. Kaiden moved his reticle onto Jax to see if he could figure out why.
Player has recently used Kill Shot.
Kill Shot: You carefully take aim for a precision attack with your equipped ranged weapon. Successful hits will be guaranteed critical damage and headshots deal quadruple base damage. Recoil from the weapon will stun you for 3.5 seconds. Cast time: 5 seconds.
So, Jax was stunned, but not for long. Certainly not long enough for him to win this fight alone.
“Zelda, Titus, where are you guys?” Kaiden asked over their party comms.
“Ellenton got the Borelly back online,” Zelda answered. “We’re tracking your position. Keep him busy.”
“Right,” Kaiden said, not entirely sure how.
Jax had recovered from his recoil debuff and was taking aim again.
With nothing else for it, Kaiden stood and used Hammer Toss, flinging his hammer toward Jax. As his weapon flew forward, Kaiden began to run, following behind it. The attack missed, clattering against the door he’d just run through, but it did force Jax to sidestep, his shot going wide.
Kaiden made it into melee range as his hammer returned to his hand. Still with sixty charge left, he thrust forward using Shield Bash, hoping to stun Jax again.
But Jax was far too nimble. Kaiden looked positively clumsy as the assassin slipped around the oncoming shield. His dexterity and dodge chance were probably of a comically high value compared to Kaiden’s own.
Then he felt a cold jab at his neck, like an icy needle. Something hissed and Kaiden’s health bar flashed, then drained down by two percent. Hardly anything at all, really. But the true effect became apparent as combat text flashed in the corner of his vision.