Novel Full Chapter 142: The Lethal Gift
Chapter 142: Chapter 142: The Lethal Gift
Chapter 142: The Lethal Gift
The pristine, reinforced corridors of the Central Core felt completely different to Draven Mordis.
He walked at the head of the Eclipse Hunters. His white military coat drifted silently behind him. His featureless white mask hid a calm, calculating smile. He was no longer just a talented Awakener. He was a Level 100 Warlord.
Draven focused his mind. He silently tested the terrifying limits of his newly awakened power.
[System Skill Active: Seed of Valor - Event Horizon.]
He did not need to snap his fingers or raise his hands. An invisible, conceptual sphere of pure Warlord authority expanded exactly fifty meters in every single direction around his body. The sheer sensory feedback flooding into his brain was staggering, yet his mind processed it with flawless clarity.
Within this fifty-meter radius, Draven was an undeniable god of physics.
He could feel the exact kinetic momentum of a water droplet falling from a steam pipe three floors below him. He could sense the spatial coordinates of the Vanguard Knights standing guard behind the thick titanium walls. He could feel the rapid, nervous heartbeats of the Cultist spies lurking in the command center ahead.
If Draven wanted to, he could compress the spatial vectors inside this fifty-meter dome and instantly teleport behind them. He could freeze the temporal vectors of their bodies and stop their time entirely.
It was complete, terrifying perfection.
The squad stopped in front of the heavy steel doors leading into the Bastion Six command center.
"Stay sharp," Draven ordered his squad over the secure comms. "Cassian is a snake. Follow my lead entirely."
HISS.
The heavy steel doors slid open.
Cassian Stillbane stood at the head of a massive, glowing holographic table. The traitor wore a lavish military uniform and a welcoming, triumphant smile. Four high-ranking aides stood quietly in the shadows near the walls.
Thanks to his domain, Draven could feel the dark, corrupted mana lingering underneath the collars of those aides. They were Cultists.
"Welcome, Eclipse Hunters," Cassian greeted warmly, spreading his arms wide.
"Please, step inside. Today is the day we make history."
Draven walked into the expansive room. Aegon, Nyx, and the rest of the squad filed in behind him, standing in perfect, disciplined formation.
"The Festival of Lights has already begun down in the civilian sectors," Cassian explained, gesturing toward the massive, dark graphene glass windows at the back of the room.
"Millions of people are distracted. My brother, Gunther, is currently preparing his Vanguard Knights for the ceremonial parade. In less than an hour, the defense grid will fall."
Cassian walked around the holographic table. He picked up a secure metal lockbox and carried it directly to Draven.
"Before we proceed, I have a gift for you," Cassian said smoothly.
Cassian opened the box. Resting on dark foam were ten sleek, silver metallic collars. The heavy metal devices hummed with intricate, glowing blue circuitry.
"What are these?" Draven asked coldly.
"Vanguard-grade stealth suppressors," Cassian lied without missing a single beat.
"My brother’s personal guards utilize hyper-sensitive mana scanners. Even with your skills, you will trip the alarms the moment you enter his private wing. These collars will mask your mana signatures entirely. You must wear them tightly around your necks to complete the mission."
Draven reached out. His gloved hand brushed against the cold silver metal of the top collar.
[System Alert: Kinetic Micro-Explosives Detected.]
[Warning: Lethal chemical detonators present inside the devices.]
Draven did not flinch. His heart rate did not elevate. Behind his white mask, his eyes narrowed into deadly, calculated slits.
’Explosives,’ Draven thought.
The entire puzzle instantly snapped together in his Warlord mind. Cassian did not trust them. Cassian never planned to let them walk away with the Bastion Vault core or the millions of credits. The traitor needed scapegoats.
’You want us to kill your brother, and then you plan to detonate these collars the moment the job is done,’ Draven realized internally.
’Vicious as always! Framing the guys who are helping you kill your own brother. It is a good plan! i like this guy! Unlike Neville he can think!’
Draven looked at the smug, arrogant smile on Cassian’s face.
’If it wasn’t for us, he may have succeeded in his devilish plans,’ Draven mocked silently.
’But in front of me, he is just a blind toddler playing with matches.’
"A very generous gift," Draven said aloud, his voice perfectly level.
Draven did not refuse the collars. Refusing them would break his cover. Instead, Draven exerted his will upon the invisible fifty-meter domain surrounding his body.
WHIRRR.
Inside the Event Horizon, Draven isolated the exact spatial coordinates of the chemical detonators hidden deep inside the ten silver collars. Without moving a single muscle, Draven completely zeroed out their kinetic potential.
He permanently severed the remote connection between the detonators and Cassian’s terminal. He turned the lethal micro-bombs into completely harmless, inert pieces of metal. He disarmed the traitor’s grand trap right in front of his face, and Cassian suspected nothing.
Draven picked up the first collar. He snapped it securely around his own neck.
CLICK.
Cassian’s smile widened with sheer, greedy delight. The sacrificial lamb had just placed his head willingly onto the chopping block.
"Put them on," Draven ordered his squad.
Aegon stepped forward and took a collar. He locked it around his neck without a single second of hesitation.
Nyx, Bram, Lucien, and the rest of the team followed suit. They trusted their Captain implicitly. If Draven told them to wear the silver devices, they knew they were safe.
"Excellent," Cassian praised, clapping his hands together.
"You are truly the ultimate professionals. Come with me. Let me show you the kingdom you are helping me secure."
Cassian walked past the holographic table and approached the dark graphene glass wall. He pressed his hand against a biometric panel.
BEEP.
The massive glass panels slid open, leading out onto a colossal, fortified titanium balcony.
Draven and his squad stepped out into the humid, subterranean air. The view was utterly breathtaking.
Ten kilometers beneath the surface of the Earth, Bastion Six was throwing the greatest celebration of the decade. The artificial fusion sky above them glowed with deep, vibrant hues of twilight purple and gold.
Down below, the colossal central avenues were packed with millions of cheering citizens. Massive, towering holographic dragons twisted and danced through the air between the kilometer-tall skyscrapers.
Entire fleets of glowing, anti-gravity lotus lanterns floated gracefully upward, filling the cavernous megacity with warm, beautiful light.
Loud, rhythmic music thumped from giant mechanical floats parading through the main streets. Children sat on their parents’ shoulders, pointing at the brilliant displays of harmless light magic sparking in the air.
It was a vision of pure, thriving humanity. The city was completely oblivious to the horrific nightmare waiting in the deep shadows.
Draven looked down at the massive crowds. He knew that hidden beneath the grates and the transit rails, the Cult of the Eternal Eclipse was already in position. They were waiting like starving wolves.
"Look at them," Cassian sneered, leaning heavily against the balcony railing.
"Cheering for a Lord Commander who has done nothing but stagnate this city. They are weak. They have forgotten the terror of the true world."
Cassian turned toward a heavy security terminal built directly into the balcony wall. The screen displayed the current status of the Bastion Six defense grid. A massive green icon confirmed the outer shields were fully active.
Cassian placed his palm flat against the terminal screen.
"It is time to wake them up," Cassian declared, his voice trembling with sheer fanaticism.
Draven stood silently on the balcony. He felt the terrifying weight of his Event Horizon humming around him. His squad stood ready, their eyes locked on the sprawling city below.
Cassian pressed down on the terminal.
BZZZZT.
A massive, echoing mechanical groan vibrated through the entire megacity. The glowing green icon on the terminal violently shifted to a flashing, warning red.
The heavy energy shields protecting the lower industrial sectors simply flickered and died.
The Festival of Lights was over. The slaughter was about to begin.