Destiny Among the Stars - Scifi - LitRPG - Adventure

Chapter 73 - No Shelter



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Once parked, they deployed the Peregrine into its outpost mode, expanding the cramped living space. Gear was stashed in every corner, and everyone was shaking off the dampness that had seeped into their suits.

We really need to figure out a way to do laundry in this thing. Someone's clothes were stinking up the whole vehicle, and everything was starting to get on Luca's nerves. He was tired, frustrated, and just needed a damn break.

Zoe pulled out a deck of cards. "Game time. Loser takes first watch."

"Not your weird-ass rules again," Ryan groaned.

"My rules require actual skill," Zoe shot back.

The card game lasted maybe five minutes before a shrill beep cut through the cabin. Red light flashing on the control panel.

Perimeter alarm.

Of course. One moment of peace and something had to go wrong.

Ryan hurried to the nearest monitor and brought up the external cameras. The screens showed pitch darkness, rain obscuring everything. He flicked on the infrared but couldn't see much beyond trees swaying in the storm.

"What the hell?" Ryan muttered. "I'm not seeing anything, but this weather's like trying to look through a waterfall."

"Light it up," Luca said, reaching for the floodlight controls. The beams cut through the darkness, illuminating churned mud and streaming rain. No movement.

That would've been too easy.

Ryan tapped his shoulder. "There. You see that?"

Luca zoomed in on the feed. Something small and dark darted between the trees. The movement was too deliberate, too quick. Too familiar.

Oh, come on!

"Varnathi," he said through gritted teeth. "From the portals."

These were spawned creatures, mobs with all the ruthless intelligence that implied. The System mechanics were in full swing now.

Zoe moved to another monitor. "Wasn't there a cluster of portals northeast of here? They must be spawning from those."

Great. That's just great.

The creatures moved between the trees in coordinated patterns, closing the distance. Even through the rain, Luca could make out high-tech weaponry across their shoulders.

They were heading straight for the Peregrine.

Emily stepped up beside him. "I told you this would happen once the System fully activated. We're in portal country now."

"I know," Luca said. "Doesn't mean I have to like it."

She gave a small sigh. "Just don't die on us. You're cute when you're cranky."

Zoe flipped her dagger into her palm with a grin. "He's cranky all the time. I'm hoping they get close enough for some real fun this time."

"Ryan, activate the shield," Luca said.

The barrier hummed to life around the Peregrine just as the first plasma bolts streaked through the darkness. They slammed into the shield with blinding flashes, each impact sending ripples across its surface.

Luca's gut clenched as he watched the energy readings fluctuate. The power levels began their inevitable decline.

Shit.

"The shield's failing!" Emily called out, already pulling on her armor. "It won't hold much longer!"

"Everyone gear up," Luca commanded. "We're going to have to fight them off the hard way."

Here we go again.

The rain hammered down as the ramp lowered. They moved out into the storm, the foerst floor churned to mud beneath their boots. The darkness was absolute beyond the Peregrine's spotlights.

Luca activated [Ghost Protocol].

A soft ripple shimmered across his scout suit as the camouflage system kicked in. Six and a half minutes of invisibility. Not perfect with this storm, but it would be enough.

Zoe vanished beside him, scaling the Peregrine's hull to settle into a prone position on the roof.

"Eyes on," she whispered through the comm, her sniper rifle already tracking targets.

Perfect. With that elevation and her skill, she'd thin their numbers before they reached effective range.

With [Heightened Awareness], the world shifted. He could feel them moving through the forest like pressure points against his consciousness. Four contacts weaving between trees on the left flank. Two more approachnig the center. The sensation crawled up his spine, turning darkness into movement.

"Multiple hostiles," he whispered. "They're all around us."

He turned his head. "Zoe. Target twenty meters of your two o'clock."

Her reply came sharp: "I see him."

A shot rang out, and a weasel's head exploded in a flash of blue plasma and steam. One down.

Luca moved through the forest like a ghost, water cascading off his armor. The Varnathi crouched behind a fallen log, weapon sweeping back and forth. Luca drew his tomahawk and let it fly.

The blade found the gap between helmet and chest plate, striking the exposed throat seal. The creature dropped without a sound.

"Five more incoming," Luca whispered, retrieving his weapon. "Right ridge, moving fast."

"Copy that."

Another Varnathi broke from cover. Luca's second throw took it clean through the armor joint under its arm. It was a perfect critical strike.

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Danny charged down the Peregrine's ramp, heavy armor gleaming as he raised his warhammer overhead. "Come on, you vermin!" he bellowed. "Let's see what you've got!"

The massive weapon crashed down on a Varnathi, launching the creature backward into the mud. Reckless as always, but devastatingly effective.

"Danny, careful!" Joey shouted from near the vehicle. "That armor isn't invincible!"

Danny's laugh boomed over the comms. "Don't worry, bro! Just keep that shield handy!"

He's going to get himself killed one of these days, Luca thought.

Emily moved in Danny's wake, her twin blasters firing in bursts. Each shot found its mark. "Watch your six," she called out, ducking under a return volley before putting two bolts center mass into another Varnathi.

"Nice shooting, Em," Zoe's voice crackled from her rooftop perch. "Keep them bunched up for me."

Luca worked his way behind the enemy formation. He spotted a gap in the Varnathi's armor at the neck joint and struck precisely. The tomahawk's energy blade found its mark.

The enemy squad was thinning rapidly, but they fought with desperate fury. More plasma bolts streaked through the darkness, and then Danny's triumphant roar turned into a grunt of pain.

The bolt caught him center mass, spinning him sideways. His heavy armor absorbed most of the energy, but white-hot plasma found the joint at his thigh, burning through the protective plating. He staggered, dropped to one knee, his warhammer clattering to the muddy ground.

"Shit!" Danny gasped. "Joey, need a hand here!"

Joey was already moving, his shield flaring to life. "Hold on, I got you. Maybe next time, don't rush the guys with plasma weapons?"

"Noted," Danny muttered. "Just patch me up before my leg goes numb."

Above them, Zoe shifted position. "Covering you. They're spreading out, using the trees."

She fired, once, twice, clean hits, but the Varnathi were smarter this time. They were flanking, weaving between thick trunks and disappearing behind wet brush.

"I can't see shit," Ryan growled. He dropped behind cover and activated [Power Surge]. The weapon glowed faint blue. "Screw it. Flashbang's coming."

Zoe answered first. "Do it!"

Ryan lobbed the charge. It detonated mid-air, bathing the forest in a burst of cold light. For half a heartbeat, the trees lit up like daylight, and the remaining weasels were caught mid-sprint.

Emily and Chris both opened fire. Two went down, plasma bursts punching through armor.

Another tried to circle right, toward Joey and Danny.

Not happening.

Luca slipped out of the brush and struck the Varnathi at the shoulder joint where armor plates met. The tomahawk found the gap, and a flash of electricity arced through the vulnerable connection. The creature crumpled.

"Cap's still got it," Emily muttered.

Joey was dragging Danny toward cover now. "I swear to God, Danny, one day you're going to actually listen to me."

Danny wheezed out a chuckle. "Not today."

Emily moved up, taking point. "Three left. Zoe?"

"One's hiding," Zoe replied. "Sniper-type. Smart. Keeps switching angles."

Luca ducked behind a tree, rain sluicing down his helmet. He toggled [Target Lock Assist], his HUD flashing to life, zeroing in on movement behind a fallen tree. There. A glimmer of muzzle flash.

"Got you," he whispered.

He hurled his tomahawk, and it sailed through the air. A second later, it struck the Varnathi's visor, the energy blade finding the weak point where the face shield met the helmet. The creature dropped instantly.

"Nice throw," Zoe said.

Emily broke into a sprint as the Varnathi took cover among the trees. It turned, weapon raised, and fired, but it was too late.

She bent back mid-run, the plasma bolt searing just inches above her face.

And then she snapped upright.

Her arm came up in one fluid motion, and her plasma blade flared to life, slicing cleanly through the Varnathi's neck.

The head tumbled free, bounced once in the mud, and Emily didn't even slow down. She slid to a stop and kicked it hard, the wet thunk of boot to skull echoing as it launched across the clearing like a lopsided football.

Danny's smile was huge. "Guess I owe you one, Em. Might even make you dinner after this," he grunted through their comms. Luca almost choked out a laugh; Danny couldn't cook for shit.

"Oh, now there's an offer," she replied, flashing him a grin.

As the last few weasels tried to regroup, Luca slipped out from behind, silently taking out one straggler after another. With Zoe watching his back from the rooftop, they cleaned up nicely.

The weasels' bodies dissolved into black wisps that drifted away in the rain, leaving only churned mud and splashes of blood.

Luca exhaled slowly, surveying his crew. They were soaked, caked in mud, but standing together, weapons lowered. They'd done it. My team. In the corner of his HUD, the familiar notification flashed.

[+144,051 XP]
[+54,000 credits]
[Skill Upgrade: Close Quarters Proficiency Level 10 --> Mastery Level 11]
[Ability Upgrade: Reflex Shot Level 1 --> Level 2]

"Joey, Chris, get Danny inside," Luca said, watching as Joey helped his brother toward the ramp. Danny was limping, grinning like a dumbass.

"You earned it," Luca called after him. "Even if you still owe Em dinner."

Danny flipped him off without turning around.

Ryan jogged up beside him. "You think that's all of them?"

"For now," Luca said. "Let's sweep what we can before their stuff fades."

Together they moved through the clearing, collecting loot boxes as they glowed faintly in the downpour. Ryan cracked open a box, whistling low.

[Item Acquired: Centauri Juggernaut Mk-64 Titan Striders]

Luca raised an eyebrow. "Looks like Danny's luck hasn't run out yet. His last greaves were toast after that plasma hit."

Ryan laughed. "He's going to need them..." He grabbed another box.

[Item Acquired: Water Purification Pills (x2)]

"Always handy," he muttered.

They moved to the next loot box, and Luca lifted its lid to reveal energy cells.

[Item Acquired: Power Cells (x5)]

Score.

As they reached the last box, Luca frowned, pulling out an unusual device, heavy and metallic.

[Item Acquired: Centauri PC-64 Inferno Maw Chainsaw]

What the fuck..?

He grinned. "Ryan, look at this." He held up the Plasma Chainsaw.

Ryan let out a low chuckle. "Oh, Danny's going to love this. Or hate it. Hard to tell, really."

Luca nodded. "He's been clinging to that Warhammer like it's a lucky charm. But this could give him some serious extra power."

They finished gathering loot and headed back inside, finally out of the damn rain.

Back in the Peregrine, they stripped out of their soaked armor. Joey was already working on Danny's leg, applying burn ointment to the plasma wound.

Luca leaned against the frame of the bed. My bed. Though apparently, it was Danny's now.

"If that bolt had been a couple inches closer, I'd be out of luck in more ways than one," Danny said.

"Quit squirming," Joey said. "You're lucky the armor took the worst of it."

Zoe punched Danny's shoulder. "Only you would joke about nearly getting your junk vaporized. Seriously, dumbass."

Danny grinned. "Gotta keep things interesting, right?"

"More like suicidal," Ryan muttered. "What the hell were you thinking, charging out like that?"

"Hey, someone had to take the hits," Danny said. "Better me than you guys."

Emily handed him a cup of water. "Maybe next time, try not to get shot. You're tough, Danny, but you're not indestructible."

He took the cup with a nod. "Yeah. I know."

Luca leaned against the bed frame. "We need to be smarter. The Peregrine's shields held for a few shots, but that won't be enough next time."

Ryan nodded. "This gear isn't cutting it. Our armor's obsolete compared to what we're up against."

"Exactly," Luca agreed. "If we want to make it to the signal and beyond, we're going to need full sets of higher-tier gear. More portals, more runs. We don't have a choice."

Emily rested her hand on his shoulder. "Then that's what we'll do. We don't back down."

Zoe smiled. "Guess that means no rest for the weary."

Danny chuckled from the bed. "That's the spirit. We've been through worse back on Sol. Just means we have to work smarter."

"At least there's good news, Danny," Luca said, holding up the gleaming greaves and the plasma chainsaw. "Looks like the loot gods were on your side tonight."

Danny's eyes lit up as he reached for the greaves.

"These'll work," he muttered. "My Rhea greaves are cooked anyway. A chainsaw, huh? Getting real subtle with these upgrades."

Ryan chuckled. "Better than getting your balls shot off, don't you think?"

Danny grinned, eyeing the weapon with suspicion. "I don't know, guys. The warhammer and I have history. But..." He glanced at Zoe. "I guess I could give it a whirl."

"Think of it as a trial run," Zoe added. "If you hate it, I'm sure you'll let us know."

Danny held up the chainsaw, turning it over in his hands. With a flick of his thumb, the plasma edge screeched to life, casting a faint blue light across the cabin. His grin widened as he tested its weight. "Alright, alright. Guess I'll give it a shot."

"We'll take turns keeping watch," Luca said. "Chris, you've got first shift. I'll follow. Let's get some rest while we can."


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