Havok Bringer

I sat in the empty room alone for a while after Jax left. My escort guards had also left and never returned. I was sitting there, alone, falling deeper into my anger and frustration. The worst part is that I could understand why Jax felt like he needed to do this. I had failed so many times since meeting him. Kinthragor captured me, and in my blind stupidity and lack of experience leading a group, coupled with my lack of combat experience, I nearly got everyone killed. I took on this mantle of Captain, not because I felt like it was my duty, but because I felt forced into it. After all, I had the armor and the ship, why not just assume I could be a leader?

I shook my head in frustration. No, fuck that. I was done second-guessing myself. Maybe I wasn't a great captain, but I damn sure did everything I could to keep my friends safe, and that's what all these people were…friends.

Yeah, I fucked up…a lot. Yeah, I could have handled several things differently, and I was haunted by the fact that Claire died because I couldn't save her. The heroic thing to say here is that I would have taken her place, but that isn't true. I wouldn't have taken her place. I am the reason that so many more people have been saved. Claire made a sacrifice; she knew what she was getting into, knew as much as the rest of us anyway. It weighed on me every day. It was hard to think about the fact that I lost a friend, and my decisions probably led to her death, but it was done. My job now was to save as many people as I could, but the reality was that I would probably lose more friends, starting today.

I stood up as the door in front of me buzzed and opened with a click. A large Boutelerien guard walked through dressed in black combat fatigues, a Council insignia on his right shoulder. He was nearly a head taller than me and holding a plasma rifle across his chest. I took a second to identify him.

Capital Security Specialist

Level: 42

I noted that he was a decently high level. Definitely Chaff, since it seemed like the Council only employed Chaff for the security forces. He motioned for me to walk through the door. I did as instructed, and the guard fell in behind me.

"Where we going now?" I asked as I walked down the dimly lit hallway.

"First fight is about to begin. Ambassador Karis has requested your presence in his viewing chamber." The guard replied.

I continued walking, the guard directing me down one hallway after another. Finally, after a while, we entered what I thought was an elevator, until it started moving horizontally at what seemed like a blinding pace. Suddenly, we came to a stop, and I felt the thing starting to move vertically.

"Cool…" I muttered. I knew we had things like this on Earth before the Drop. The ThyssenKrupp Multi system was an example that stood out to me. It was a lift system that could move horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. I had learned about it in college and always wanted to ride in it.

The guard looked down at me and scoffed. "Humans. You are in the Galactic capital, surrounded by technology you could never imagine, and a lift impresses you. No wonder your species is considered to be no more than livestock."

I shrugged and brushed off his disdain. "I tend to appreciate the little things." I turned to face the guard, stepping toward him and looking up with contempt. "You could take a lesson from that, you know. For example, from your perspective, we humans are little things that could all change very soon, though. Let's see if your perspective changes then."

The guard shoved his rifle into my chest in warning. "Face front, human."

I took a deep breath and, closing my eyes, I groaned and grimaced, stretching my neck side to side. "I'm not really a big fan of you people using the term human in a derogatory manner."

The guard chuckled and raised the butt of his rifle, rearing back to strike me in the head. A flash of pain pierced my head suddenly as the voice returned.

"Accept pain or inflict pain?" the voice asked. I quickly registered that the voice was communicating more efficiently with each new message. I didn't take the time to consider. I was done playing the victim here.

"Inflict pain," I said.

My arms warped from the elbow down, a wave of black rippled, causing the binds to snap and fall to the ground. A look of panic crossed the guard's face as he realized I was free. Before he could bring the butt of his weapon down on my head, my right hand shot up, grabbing the wrist of his lead hand.

I smiled up at him. "Don't overlook the little things; they could be the reason you have a real bad day."

You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.

Realizing what was happening, the guard opened his mouth to activate his internal comm system, no doubt preparing to inform the entire security force of what was happening. My left hand shot up, fingers pointed forward, violently making contact with his throat. The guard dropped his rifle and brought his hands to his throat, gagging and gasping for air; he fell to his knees.

I looked down as veins began bulging from his neck and forehead. "Seems like the roles are reversed now, doesn't it?" The guard reached forward, grabbing a handful of my shirt. He wasn't being aggressive, though. No, he was begging. A pang of humanity hit me in my core. I could still save him, maybe. I had crushed his windpipe, assuming his anatomy was similar to that of a human. If the elevator stopped soon, I could try to find help. I reached down and grabbed his arm as a pain pierced my head once again.

"Mercy loses wars."

I shook the pain from my head and realized the voice was right. I had heard from the guard's own mouth. I was considered less than him just because of my species. Would mercy change that? Maybe one day it could. Maybe one day, when humanity had a fighting chance, we could afford to be merciful. Not today, though, no, today there would be no mercy. My arms began to resonate with power as the entity sensed my killing intent. I tightened my grip on the guard's forearm and looked into his eyes.

"You should have respected the little things."

His eyes went wide as I increased the strength of my grip, feeling his skin and bones break beneath the enhanced strength of my Level P-50 strength. He tried to scream, but it came out as no more than a gurgle.

My arms were practically thrumming with power as I moved to his left side, took one step back, jerked his left arm toward me, and conversely struck him in the temple with a knee. The guard's head snapped down onto his shoulder, and I heard the sickly sound of his neck breaking.

Adrenaline surged through me as I looked down at the crumpled corpse of the dead guard. The entity was correct. Mercy loses wars, and for the remainder of this war, I would show none. I would be the bringer of pain and suffering, I would be the end of bloodlines, I would bring havoc to my enemies, and apparently, I would relish in the sight of their defeat.

I turned as the lift slowed to a halt and the doors slid open. Standing calmly on the other side was a figure I had never seen. Tall and lithe, skin so onyx black that the figure almost seemed to be a void in physical form, I could somehow still make out all of its features, though. Yellow eyes burned in the sockets of the nearly 7-foot-tall Havokium man, and a shock of white hair was slicked back on its head. The figure wore a red silk-like robe, outlined in gold, that seemed to flutter slightly even though there didn't appear to be any fan-like apparatus visible in the room.

???

???

Identification Unsuccessful due to level disparity.

"Andrew," the figure looked down at the broken body of the guard in the lift behind me and smirked. I considered utilizing multiple guards, but I was assured this one would be enough. I should have considered that you would be more powerful by now." The being moved its eyes from the body of the guard to my still pulsating arms. "I see the gift has served you well."

I looked down at my arms, surprised at the being's words. "How…"
The being stepped closer, and a pain stronger and sharper than I had ever felt shot through my head, causing me to lose strength and slump to one knee. My vision blurred and faded before I gained focus and seemed to be sliding through space at blinding speed.

In a split second, the passing galaxy ground to a halt, and I abruptly found myself standing in the middle of a wide-open, never-ending field of lush grass. I saw a lone figure standing in front of me.

I had trouble processing exactly what I was looking at. The figure was a flat orange color but didn't seem able to mimic a humanoid shape very well. Its outline seemed to be flowing and fluctuating at random as I looked at it. It had no discernible features, but that didn't give me pause. I felt something, something peaceful, when I looked at the being. I felt like I knew it. I tried to identify the figure, but nothing happened in response.

"Do not be afraid, Andrew. I am not your enemy," the figure raised its hand toward me.

I looked down and noticed I wasn't wearing my combat armor; surprisingly, I was wearing the clothes I had been wearing the day I touched the Orb back on Earth.

"Wh…what is this? Where am I?"

"You are nowhere, Andrew. I have recently been reawakened, and while I have been able to communicate more efficiently, I fear I have not yet gathered the energy to effectively communicate the dangers that you are currently faced with. Since the threat continues escalating, I thought it only wise to bring you to a place where we can speak more efficiently."

My eyes went wide at the realization of who exactly I was speaking with. This being in front of me was no stranger; in fact, it was a part of me now. This was the Gift, the entity I had to subdue within the white void. The Juxtaposition of the entity I saw within the void and the being before me now was striking. The entity within the void was wild, unrecognizable as anything other than a cloud of thorns, lashing out in every direction. I could feel the anger and regret within it. I could feel it trying to get to me, almost like it wanted to take control. The figure standing before me had none of that. It was the literal definition of peace.

"H-how?"

"It is very taxing on me at my…at our… current level of power. I am, after all, bound to you." The figure stepped closer and blanketed me in an overwhelming feeling of peace. "It is time I show you who I am and show you who it is that you are currently engaging with," the figure raised his hand, gesturing my eyes up to the night sky above us. "Out there."

The sky split and opened up to a view of me in the lift on one knee, the being that I assumed was Jax's backer standing in front of me, looking down with disdain.

"We are beyond time. Do not be concerned with that for now. I have a limited amount of energy and cannot keep you here long, but while you are here, time will pass so slowly out there that it will seem to have stopped. We are, after all, in your own internal dimension."

I looked back down at the figure. "Who are you? I mean, besides the entity that I experienced within the white void. Who are you?"

"I am Ses."