Novel Full Chapter 139: The Ghost of Bastion Six
Chapter 139: Chapter 139: The Ghost of Bastion Six
Chapter 139: The Ghost of Bastion Six
The heavy titanium doors of the luxury guest suite slid shut.
CLUNK.
The locking mechanism engaged heavily, sealing the Eclipse Hunters inside the Lord Commander’s private castle. The room was breathtakingly opulent. Plush velvet carpets lined the floors, and a massive crystal chandelier hung from the high ceiling, casting a warm glow over the expensive mahogany furniture.
It was a beautiful room. But Aegon knew it was a gilded cage.
"Positions," Aegon whispered urgently over their secure mask comms.
"Cassian stationed two elite Vanguard Knights right outside our door. They are monitoring our heat signatures and listening to our audio. We need to build the perfect alibi."
Aegon pointed to the large dining table in the center of the suite.
"Bram, Lucien," Aegon ordered.
"Grab that deck of cards. Start playing. Be loud. Act like rowdy, arrogant mercenaries who just secured the biggest payday of their lives. Estella, Natalie, turn on the holographic entertainment system and complain about the room service."
Bram grinned and immediately sat down at the table. He slammed a heavy fist against the wood.
THUD.
"I raise you five hundred credits, you lightning-fast cheat!" Bram roared with booming laughter, his voice echoing perfectly into the hallway.
"You are just angry because you cannot read a bluff, big guy!" Lucien laughed back, shuffling the cards rapidly.
Cole and Lyra moved to the corner of the room, loudly clanking their mechanical tools together as if they were performing routine weapon maintenance.
The squad fell into their fake roles flawlessly. Anyone listening from the outside would think the Eclipse Hunters were simply relaxing and counting their newly earned money.
Draven stood in the shadows near the balcony. He watched his squad operate with absolute pride. They had grown into a terrifyingly efficient military unit.
It was time for him to do his part.
"Keep the noise up," Draven commanded softly. "I am leaving."
Draven closed his eyes. He reached into the depths of his System interface and activated his ultimate stealth ability.
[System Skill Activated: Blank Canvas.]
A chilling, invisible wave washed over Draven’s body. The physical effects were immediate and absolute. His pristine white coat and his tall frame became completely translucent.
His heartbeat silenced entirely. His body temperature rapidly dropped to match the exact ambient temperature of the room. His massive Level 98 mana signature completely vanished, erased from the physical plane.
Draven Mordis was no longer a human being. He was a ghost.
Draven walked silently toward the heavy titanium door. He did not make a single sound as his boots touched the velvet carpet. He reached out and gripped the electronic handle.
Using his SS-Rank Vector Manipulation, Draven carefully isolated the kinetic friction inside the door’s locking mechanism. He silently pushed the heavy metal door open exactly two inches.
Outside in the hallway, the two Vanguard Knights stood at rigid attention. Their high-tech visors scanned the corridor.
Draven slipped perfectly through the narrow two-inch gap. He manipulated the spatial vectors around his body, compressing his physical form just enough to slide through the crack without touching the metal frame.
CLICK.
Draven softly pulled the door shut behind him.
One of the Vanguard Knights shivered violently. He looked around the empty, well-lit hallway in confusion.
"Did you feel that?" the Knight asked his partner.
"The temperature just dropped."
"It is just the air conditioning from the Central Core," the second Knight replied dismissively.
"Focus on the door. Lord Cassian wants us to make sure these mercenaries do not wander around the castle."
Draven stood exactly one inch in front of the speaking guard. He looked directly into the man’s dark visor. The guard saw absolutely nothing.
Draven turned around and walked down the grand corridor.
The Central Core of Bastion Six was an absolute fortress. Draven navigated through a maze of heavily fortified hallways, avoiding roaming patrols of Vanguard Knights and automated security drones. He finally reached a massive, restricted maglev elevator located at the very center of the castle.
Draven stepped inside the empty glass elevator. He pulled out the glowing Platinum-tier access chip Cassian had given him.
He did not insert the chip with his hand. His hand would trigger the biometric sweat sensors. Instead, Draven used a microscopic telekinetic vector to slide the chip directly into the terminal slot.
BEEP.
[Identity Confirmed. Platinum Clearance Accepted. Descending to the Outer Vault.]
The elevator plummeted smoothly into the deep subterranean levels of the city. Through the glass, Draven watched the colossal, blinding blue fusion reactor humming with apocalyptic energy.
HUMMMM.
The massive reactor provided the perfect ambient noise to mask any slight vibrations. The elevator finally stopped.
The doors hissed open. Draven stepped out into the Outer Vault.
The room was completely constructed from impenetrable black titan-stone. The Platinum chip granted him access to this outer ring, but the true prize was locked behind the Inner Vault defenses.
Standing between Draven and the central pedestal was a terrifying gauntlet of Level 200 security measures.
A dense grid of hundreds of red laser tripwires covered the entire corridor. The floor was lined with hyper-sensitive kinetic pressure plates. A single ounce of displaced weight would immediately trigger the automated turret defense systems and alert Cassian Stillbane.
Draven looked at the deadly grid. A confident smile formed beneath his invisible mask.
’A traditional thief would call this impossible,’ Draven thought. ’But I am not a thief.’
Draven activated his Vector Manipulation. He isolated his own gravitational vector.
Draven’s boots lifted exactly three inches off the solid stone floor. He was completely weightless. He floated forward into the deadly grid, entirely bypassing the kinetic pressure plates.
As he approached the dense web of red laser tripwires, Draven did not try to contort his body to dodge them. He simply grabbed the directional vectors of the light photons themselves.
The red lasers violently bent and curved around Draven’s invisible body, forming a perfect, hollow tunnel of light for him to float through. He moved through the absolute peak of Bastion Six’s security like a man taking a casual stroll in a park.
Draven reached the end of the corridor. He deactivated his flight and landed softly on the safe zone of the Inner Vault.
In the dead center of the circular black room stood a heavy obsidian pedestal. Resting on top of the pedestal was an ancient, highly advanced stasis field.
And inside that stasis field was the prize.
It was a Magic Core. But it was not round or smooth like a beast core. It was a massive, jagged piece of crystallized spatial energy. It pulsed with a deep, cosmic blue light, casting eerie shadows across the dark Vault. It hummed with an ancient, terrifying power that felt completely alien to the human world.
Draven could feel the sheer density of the mana radiating from behind the glass. It was a piece of the cosmos. It was exactly what he needed.
Draven stepped up to the pedestal. He placed his hands hovering just an inch over the stasis glass.
Using his vectors, he latched onto the kinetic locking mechanisms hidden deep inside the obsidian pillar. He rotated the internal gears simultaneously, completely bypassing the electronic alarms.
CLINK.
The stasis field silently powered down. The thick glass dome retracted into the pedestal.
The ancient Magic Core was completely exposed.
Draven reached out and grabbed the jagged crystal. The moment his bare skin touched the cosmic energy, a massive, violent shockwave of pure, unadulterated mana surged directly up his arm. His veins glowed blue for a fraction of a second. The sheer power of the artifact was intoxicating.
[System Alert: High-Tier Spatial Energy Detected.]
Draven did not hesitate. He immediately deposited the massive Magic Core into his spatial ring. The Vault plunged into darkness.
His heist was absolutely flawless.
Draven turned around and floated back through the bent laser grid. He took the maglev elevator back up to the guest wing. He slipped through the two-inch gap in the titanium door and stepped back into his luxurious suite.
"I fold," Bram groaned loudly from the dining table, tossing his cards down.
Draven walked to the center of the living room. He dropped [Blank Canvas].
His white coat and his physical form suddenly materialized out of thin air. The squad immediately stopped their fake celebrations. They dropped their cards and their tools, turning their full attention to their Captain.
Draven tapped his spatial ring.
VWOOM!
The massive, jagged Magic Core materialized in his hand. The deep, cosmic blue light instantly illuminated the entire suite, casting long shadows against the velvet walls. The ambient mana in the room skyrocketed, making the air feel incredibly heavy and difficult to breathe.
Aegon stared at the ancient crystal in sheer awe.
"By the Lords," Aegon whispered, taking a step back from the sheer pressure.
"You actually stole it right out from under his nose."
"Cassian will not notice it is missing until he checks the physical pedestal himself," Draven stated coldly, gripping the humming core.
"The automated logs still say the Vault is secure. Our alibi is perfect."
Draven looked at the digital clock on the wall. The sun would rise in a few hours. The Festival of Lights was about to begin, and the Cult would soon march upon the city.
Draven sat down directly in the center of the velvet carpet. He crossed his legs, placing the pulsing cosmic crystal in his lap.
"Lock the doors," Draven ordered his squad, his Warlord aura flaring violently.
"Clear the center of the room and form a defensive perimeter around me. If anyone tries to enter this suite before dawn, kill them immediately."
Aegon gripped his spear. Bram raised his heavy shield. Nyx drew her obsidian daggers.
"It is time," Draven declared, closing his eyes.