Issue 26: Meanwhile at New Ashbury
A new cult arises! What will the
Mavericks do?!—HeroNet General Update
At first, I had no idea what had
happened to Bulleteer. The danger he was in? I’ve never been one to explore the
spiritual side but that whole event made me a believer!—Tidalwave
Abbadon
was fishing. Trying to get my brother to reveal himself before he was ready.
Not that I couldn’t help my grandfather. This wasn’t the first time I had to
free a soul in peril. But this was the first time that I was genuinely afraid.
Golden Bulleteer’s ID had always been hidden. This changed everything. It
wasn’t just Meathook we had to deal with within the Duat. Every death realm had
a miasma to it. Due to Abbadon’s
influence. Unity didn’t realize until far too late just how much of its power
had been granted by the Red King of Flesh.—Sleeping in Starlight: Final Requiem
New Ashbury (Texas)
Downtown Plazas
24 hrs ago
Golden Bulleeter dodged the massive
metal globe. Made of brass and copper. A hardened core of duracrete completed
the ensemble.
It
had been so long since Earth herself had a problem that this alert had come as
a shock to the system. The battle hadn’t been homegrown in decades. The hulking
figure had two legs. The upper torso and arms were an amalgamation of a
scorpion. The head was a lion’s. Its black mane was pitted with sores. It spat
liquid venom on the duracrete.
“I kill. Karvax free!”
Figured he’d have a part in all
this. Karvax had never let up. Over the years he had sent raiding parties to
the outer reaches beyond Edenverse. The stark blue tattoos on the mutant’s arm
showcased that same iconography that Karvax favored. Aztec in nature. Bulleteer
motioned to Tidalwave, <<Get ready to knock this one into the
nets.>>
The city’s defense grid came alive.
Anti-grav shielding coiled about the mutant’s legs. Slowing his movement. Even
if major battles hadn’t occurred for ages? Union Hall and the Alliance would
never let anything happen to Earth if they could prevent it.
White Lily shouted, “Look ou---“ The words
died in her throat as a stream of Black Scrawl encircled Golden Bulleteer. He
felt his jaw being pried open. Yellowed callused fingers tossed the clear
liquid inside. Two blackened eyestalks peered down at him.
“Be
seeing you.”
Everything
went dark.
A
bright silver cord rose before his eyes. He blinked.
Sand
crunched between his bare feet. He was clothed in a simple kilt of white.
His
wedding band glittered hot against his finger. No smoke rose.
Abraham
Murphy turned. Endless sands. He shaded his eyes with his left hand. Peered up
into the semi-clouded sky. A seven-pointed star rose behind three moons. All
three were green. His mind screeched to a halt. The last thing he could recall
was the faint scent of white lilies. Where was his wife? His son. He traveled
across the dunes. His feet warmed with each step. He sprang back. Muscles tensed
as the sand shifted. Two figures rose.
Their eyes hollowed out. Soiled rags covered their bodies. Emaciated fingers
twitched. One pointed at Murphy. Accusation radiated from them.
“He
dares.”
“The
Duat does not welcome you. Outsider.”
A
white feather floated downwards. Only then did he realize the strange shape of
their heads. Pointed ears like a dog’s. Muzzles. Hands pulled at his arms. Time
slowed as he watched another figure rise from the sands.
Its
shape capped at each end with bronze.
*****
Di’axi motioned towards the clouds above
him.
The
Unseen sigils blazed a dark gold to his eyes. It had been countless years but
it was finally here. His purpose. He had always thought it would mean walking
the path set for Eliza Murphy. Matarn had shattered that notion. With the
induction into the Unseen Order. The mirror to the Arcane Order. One with the
purview over life. The other sought mastery over death. Not to defeat it. But
to rebalance it. The experience was still new enough that the Scholar was
amazed that Dexter Murphy had hidden his true strength for so long.
Now Eliza would have to bear the
brunt of the salvos until they could position Abbadon within Thoth’s diluted
form. Each of the twins shared a shard with the Highest. But only Dexter had
the shard meant for Abbadon’s original role. Di’axi recalled that moment that
Murphy had come forward with the truth.
Convergence was not meant to empower
Life.
It had been created to reset Death
to its designated mandate. To provide eternal rest for souls who desired it
after so many reincarnations. Abbadon had corrupted that system from its
inception. Di’axi shuddered. All those souls were lost to the expanse of space.
They still existed. Tethered to their mortal shells because of Abbadon’s
carelessness. His conceit.
Insanity. Pure Hubris.
If they hadn’t been enslaved to the
mass necromancy of “Living Stone.”
Now that he knew a sliver of the
deathscape? It terrified him. In Abbadon’s quest to unseat his brother and his
Maker? The Lord King of Flesh had
doomed trillions upon trillions to a cycle of enslavement that would take eons
to heal. Well beyond his expanded lifetime. Or that of every man, woman, and
child of the multiverse. Matarn’s voice pulled at the edge of his thoughts, <<Golden Bulleteer’s soul hangs by a
thread. Call in Eliza and her team. This is a ploy to bring Unseen Arbiter out
into the open. I have already summoned Anubis.>>
*****
I faced the Jackel. Anubis’
black-furred face tightened. “His soul will not merge with the Duat. The rites
upon his spirit are in flux with that realm.”
Within
Union Hall everyone was quiet. The faint signals of the medical pod changed as
it pumped additional nutrients into my grandfather’s comatose form. He was
still in his Bulleteer uniform. White Lily spoke up, “Whatever the plan is? I’m
going!”
I nodded, “The rest of the Mavericks
can watch over us.” Sir Avalon stepped forward. His blue, white, and gold armor
rattled. “I’ll provide the magical bridge needed. Anubis will go with you.”
Robin tipped his red cap. Reset the leather bracers on his forearms. The quick
patter of paws showcased the patrol route of the King’s Corgis. Their alert
barks filled the room.
<<No bad smells. Find the
Bullet! We keep everyone safe from Living Stone incursion!>>
“Out of Body experiences can be
quite disorienting.”
I eyed Robin. My frown deepened,
“Ain’t that the truth.”
Doctor Impossible took up a lotus
position in the middle of the chamber.
“I formed a life barrier. It will
make it easier for you to orient once….”
Eddie interjected, “Let’s get going.
The longer he’s in there…”
Arthon finished, “The harder it will
be to reconnect him to his body.”
I changed into my Typherian burial
setup. White Lily asked, “How will that help?”
I replied, “It’s already touched
different realms of spiritual flows. Human, Typherian, and Bardaxian. It will
be a beacon he can link with. Besides…” I added silently on a private com link.
<<Your
wedding ring will be the strongest signal but this burial suit can augment your
spirit signal while inside. I don’t get all of it myself. I got a message from
Di’axi a few minutes ago.>>
I didn’t realize it at the time but
the Ur-Flow I was linked to? I could only tap into the Life Aspect. Captain
Overwatch could link to the Twilight, the In-between Ur-Flow. While my brother?
Well, dear reader? He had always been linked. Even before I was. Which was why
he had to act through proxies. My brother had always known. It was why he was
tasked with the heavier burden. I was the bait. Without one the other cannot
exist. All traps needed bait. Evil, though it denied it, was naked before the
Light.
I
flexed my fingers, “Let’s ignite the Duat.”
All manner of souls traveled within
its borders. Anubis bared his fangs, “I will show you the rites. Arbiter of the
Sands.” Those golden eyes pulled me under. Information beyond my ken flowed
behind those ancient orbs.
The hot rays of the sun blazed
through my body. Below us mummified Anubis scouts circled. My grandfather was
nowhere to be found. Lily pointed, “Let’s start with them!”
*****
Abraham Murphy stared.
The Hourglass filled with silver
feathers. The tips blackened. Shadowed figures milled about. Some prayed in
languages he had no reference for. Not all the shapes were humanoid either. Countless
scores pressed up against the glass.
“Where
is my feather!” Other voices cried out.
“Momma!”
“My
son. Where is my son?!”
“By
the order of Pharaoh Ati’shumah….”
“Judgement
be upon your head…”
The
word struck a cord within Murphy.
He
clung to that word as another voice said, “Where is it? I know it bears my mark….”
Abraham’s
blood chilled. That same sing-song voice. Those yellowed fingers. Murphy moved
away from the Hourglass. He rubbed his wedding band with his thumb. A soothing
tone filled his soul.
Do not touch the feather.
The
warning coiled within him. He nodded.
How
do I….
Two
orbs, gray as stormclouds, rose before him.
Follow. He did as the voice demanded. He knew that voice. It spoke
to him in the tone of his father. He traveled deeper into the Duat.
*****
Meathook paced within the cell. The
flesh golem mimicked his every command. He used its massive tail to tap on the
glass rhythmically. These Union Hall security officers thought it a mere mutant.
It was a doorway into Eden. One left by dear Nyx. So long ago. Thoth’s initial battle
with Earth had been a delightful distraction. They had so many toys to play with.
The trick was in how one could use them. Not for mere butchery.
Terror.
That was where the power lie. To
break these heroes? One only had to make them face their mortality. On the
other side? The glory of the Red King. Their flesh remade. Their souls forfeit.
Abbadon knew that Thoth was the form they desired. That wouldn’t do at all.
Meathook knew better. The Shadow within Eliza Murphy must be revealed. Only then
would Abbadon have all he needed. Meathook forced the golem to press its
disfigured face against the glass. The sounds from its throat were a pathetic sort
of mewling that would send the guards racing to their superiors. What horrors
had that poor man been subjected to! Not realizing it was merely an
amalgamation of flesh, blood, and bone. No soul to be found.
Meathook forced its lips back, “London
bridge is falling down! MY FAIR LADY!”
Let the King of Thieves ponder that.
Was this a countryman? A former thug?
Meathook forced the clawed arms to
paw at the glass as one of the short fat dogs trotted past. It was square. Its
dull brown eyes locked onto the flesh golem. It snarled. Much like a living piece
of bread. Useless creatures. Meathook spat at the canine.
Its little nub of a tail quivered.
It yapped. The noise brought additional four-footed nuisances. One was white. A
red sash around its waist. Defenders.
Equally disgusting.
A red haired female joined them. Typherian.
Meathook made the golem run its tongue
against the glass. “Pretty jewel. Bits of Red. Shall you be the one to bear the
mark?” It was all nonsense. Meathook prided itself on mockery. It stilled when
one final entity made itself known. The J’kua.
Aether. That pale gray skin. Those
large black eyes. With the rings of gray for irises.
How interesting. Meathook smiled.
The emotion danced across the misshapen face.
Aether asked, “How did Karvax
recruit you?”
*****
“Snowball” growled. There was
nothing within this scorpion monster. It was a flesh construct. He warned
Aether. The J’kua clasped his hands behind his back. His fingers danced where
only the dogs could see.
Thank you. Can you seek the tether?
Snowball tapped the floor twice with
his tail.
Yes.
The hunt was on. Watson would be
thrilled. The old Basset’s skills would come in handy.
Issue 25: Here
Issue 27: Here
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