Joy Pursuit: Steel Dragon [Sci-Fi Fantasy | Horror | Action]

thump…

thump…

Thump…

Thump…

THUMP!

THUMP!

THUMP!

A heartbeat echoed into the abyss above the skies.

But deep below, under the rising rain and the Inverse sea, we find two figures taking refuge from the shadow-laden rain. Sey pressed her head against one of the windows inside a Stolkglider that had been abandoned amidst the chaos and rain. Her star-speckled pupils stared out into the darkness beyond the moist glass. She ran a finger under the seams of her wet uniform, tracing the contours of her body before clenching her fists. A grimace stretched across her face as she wallowed in her miserable uncertainty.

Lucien wasn't faring much better; his amber eyes, tired and lost, rested grimly on the lifeless form of Sorroz that lay on the cold, lonely floor of the Stolkglider.

The old ranger's face was pale and sunken; he'd died less than an hour ago, yet the abyssal condensation had perplexingly drained him dry amidst the rising rain.

Lucien brushed his long lavender hair aside. His narrow face caught the dim light, every feature etched in soft shadow. He closed his eyes, letting the eerily silent rain lull his senses against the fading terror.

Tap…

Tap…

Tap…?!

Sey and Lucien were jolted from their pained indifference by a faint sound—someone tapping, or rather knocking, on the door of the Stolkglider. They exchanged a quiet nod and slowly reached for their M.K. blades, uncertain whether it was a fellow ranger…or the residual echo of an ally turned beast.

Crrrmmp—swwwsh?!

There was a faint racket outside the door, the sound of someone faintly calling out for them suddenly brimming with clarity as a deep and inhuman voice cried out against the rising rain.

"Please kill me!" the voice cried out as the thundering sound of heavy boots pressed past the door, the two rangers stepping away from the sound as a dark figure awkwardly stumbled into the storage area of the Stolkglider. A tall, soaked man stood rattling a chain, his arm entangled in an iron-woven line that vanished into the darkness behind him.

"Come on! Don't jam on me!" he said, yanking hard against something in the dark.

"Kill meh—E…" a weak voice cried out, abruptly cut off as it was shoved into the Stolkglider with a sudden burst of motion. The man wobbled back, yet his balance never wavered as he used his shifting weight to strike an absurd pose as he took in the room.

"LIVING PEOPLE!" the man exclaimed loudly. Garnering an annoyed look from Lucien before his brain processed who the man before them was.

Lucien stared at the man still posing, mouth agape, while Sey blinked in confusion. "Commandant Draell?!"

"In the flesh!" Draell flashed an exuberant grin, straightening up before turning back toward the stone casket awkwardly lodged in the shadows behind him. His smile was almost immediately replaced with an annoyed grimace as he gave the chain another frustrated yank.

Sey stared at the strange ranger in confusion. "Sir, why are you here? Weren't you stationed at Post 33?"

"Sure was! But things got messy—and boring…" he mumbled as he managed to drag the old stone casket into the storage bay. He turned to face them with an out-of-place smile. "By the way, kiddos! Can this old wyvern still fly?" He put a hand on the steel walls of the Stolkglider.

Lucien stepped up. "It can… but—" he glanced into the dark just beyond the Stolkglider. "It's impossible to navigate in this weather…"

"Why?!" Draell asked, pausing to close his eyes and nod solemnly toward the dead Sorroz.

You were literally outside 2 seconds ago? Are you fucking insane? "Uh—well, the storm and all?" Lucien awkwardly answered.

"It's only a little rain—we'll be fine! Aren't these old clanks built for space travel?"

Sey tilted her head, thinking it over. "Technically, yes… but it'd be like trying to fly through mud. "

Lucien scoffed, "Besides, there's nowhere to go anyway."

Draell grinned. "Wrong! There's Skolas!" he declared proudly, striding past them toward the cockpit.

"Huh? We're not even needed up there? It should be safe." Lucien asked, hurrying after him.

Draell reached the ladder that led up to the cockpit. "Because the abyss has devoured Elysium! And for a beast to swallow the sky, hell, it's gonna be a crazy hunt!" He grabbed the rungs and began to climb.

"But the infected should be heading to the Vivathecca!? How would they even get up there?"

"Through the thunder, I heard them—three howls! A Cerberus in the Inverted Sea!" He pulled himself up into the cockpit, the chain around his wrist somehow stretching across the entire room and up into the control chamber above. "They rose like the rain!"

Lucien and Sey exchanged confused glances—just as the Stolkglider shuddered to life.

Lucien's eyes grew wide. "Sweet Symbols, he's serious?!"

The Stolkglider groaned, lurching sideways and slamming the two rangers into each other as it crashed into something unseen in the dark.

Sey braced herself as her balance was offset by the jagged motions of a clearly inexperienced Draell fumbling with the controls above.

"Hey! You two! Where are the lights on this thing?" Draell shouted cheerfully from the cockpit above.

"S-Sir, wait!" Sey shouted, clinging tightly as the glider jolted once more.

CRRRUNCH!

The two clung to whatever they could as the splintering echo of wood grinding against the armored hull thundered through the storm.

Click~

A burst of light flooded the world beyond the windows, the Stolkglider's floodlights slicing cleanly through the gloom.

"Whoa! I got it!" Draell shouted with a laugh. "Hope you two don't mind joining me on the hunt!" His voice was bright with glee as supply crates rattled and crashed across the bay.

"Wait—SIR!" Lucien protested, but the glider jerked violently. He lost his footing and hit the floor hard just as the vessel surged upward—rising into the Inverted Sea.

thump…

thump…

The L. Cerberus erupted from the frigid waters, arms flailing violently as it unleashed a guttural roar. Waves crashed against its form, seawater cascading off its heaving body. The S. Cerberus was almost immediately there with its counterpart as it melted its own body into it as a mess of black flesh and silvery scales that bubbled on the surging surface of the water.

Thump…

Vidrago struggled atop his pile of rubble as huge waves began to fill the plaza. Struggling to keep seawater out of his eyes, he held tight against the rising abyss.

Thump…

The M. Cerberus had joined its counterparts, digging its claws deep into the mess of flesh that they'd coalesced into. The fell beast bared its fangs as it let out a weave of black tendrils that shot out and embedded themselves all around the central mass. The three beasts rose together, towering over the rising water.

THUMP!

From the tangle of flesh, the L. Cerberus tore free from the melded flesh, leaping onto the second floor with a wet, splattering crash. It twisted back, hackles raised, and hissed at the rhythmic thrum pulsing through the water.

There—under the black water—a faint crimson glow shimmered in the abyss.

The L. Cerberus let out an enraged roar before it dove into the murky waters, disappearing into the frigid abyss.

THUMP!

A FOUL, pained screech erupted from below. The L. Cerberus shot back into the air, its claws wrapped tight around a jagged crimson growth—a thorn-like mass rammed clean through its body. It howled in agony as abyssal Kyyr crackled across the sky, a flash of pink lightning exploding through the thorn, violently ripping the beast free.

THUMP!!!

A crimson blossom entwined in Abyss.

It unfurled in waves of crimson folds like the delicate petals of a massive rose that revealed a malformed beast trapped between a crimson glow and a pale marrowbrand. Raising his head defiantly, was Berserkrios?

Steam hissed from his body, clashing with the abyssal condensation that clung to the air. The skeletal frame of Berserkrios twitched, spasming weakly as crimson scales crept across his form, struggling to mend the damage as best they could.

Serfet lay still among the blooming crystal petals—fragile, cold, and deathly quiet. The Coarseblood knelt beside him, lifting the broken form with care, drawing him into a trembling embrace as if to shield him from the rising dark.

The other two Cerberuses crashed down onto the crimson platform. The S. Cerberus cowered beside the M. Cerberus, whose jaws clattered against each other with rhythmic unease, its eyeless gaze locked on the Coarseblood.

The L. Cerberus jumped down, joining its counterparts. It was wounded, its burnt flesh leaving a spiraling scar that marred its chest. The three hissed and clattered the fangs among themselves as they assessed the hybrid form of the Coarseblood.

Nearby, Vidrago clung to one of the massive crimson petals, hauling himself up with trembling arms. A wild grin split his face as he spotted the Coarseblood, battered but still rising—crimson scales blooming slowly across his frame.

"There he is…" he muttered weakly.

The Coarseblood didn't linger. It launched itself from the plaza in a burst of motion, crimson scales fluttering from its frame like embers. Digging his exposed bone into a stone wall, he stared upward, scanning the chamber as the Cerberuses hissed below and began their pursuit.

Within the throne of the Coarseblood Vaal was once again mid-meltdown.

"Come on! Let's just leave—we're on the fucking edge here!" Vaal shouted.

The Coarseblood smirked—or rather, Ezzeks did, having just finished taking in the situation through their shared memory. "Have you forgotten who I am!" he said, just as the S. Cerberus launched a shrieking glob in his direction.

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Ezzeks twisted, dodging with sharp precision while still cradling Serfet's cold body in one arm. "I am Ezzeks! Dragon God of HEROES!" he roared, spinning in place as crimson scales flared with energy.

Vaal rolled his eyes, "Not anymore! Just drop the dead guy and let's get out of here while we can! Those things are clearly after me—err—us!"

Ezzeks leapt up to the next floor, deftly dodging the incoming strikes from two of the Cerberuses. "Fix our body!" Ezzeks commanded, scaling the atrium with relentless momentum.

"Huh? More? Do it yourself!" Vaal complained as Ezzeks dodged the weaving strikes of the M. Cereberus's tendrils.

"I am no Calamity Spawn!" Ezzeks growled. "You must mend our wounded frame—and I swear, I shall guide us to victory!"

"Victory? From fucking what? I don't want to die, you pompous—"

Esoteric lightning crackled through the air as the L. Cerberus exploded into motion, striking Ezzeks in the back! The Coarseblood staggered, a guttural growl escaping as the electric surge burned down his spine. Still, he held firm, shielding Serfet's cold body with everything he had.

Vaal recoiled inside the throne, feeling the sting of thunder ripple through his mind as his body convulsed.

Ezzeks shook his spine as he clambered onto the 7th floor. Pain rippled through him—only to be followed by bladed tendrils lashing up from below, piercing both his legs. Ezzeks hissed as he clenched all his muscles before rolling violently. The force ripped the tendrils as he struggled to his feet.

"Steel yourself for the hunt!" Ezzeks howled.

Vaal grimaced, "Fine, fine! Just focus on whatever you're doing!"

Crimson scales blossomed throughout more of his frame, easing the pain and wear of the beastly frame. "Worry not! My essence is not within an old title or some strange power—it's in what I do!" He spotted the group of people right above on the 8th floor.

Ezzeks launched upward, landing hard near the stunned survivors. Without a word, he gently laid Serfet down before them.

"Serfet?!" Xizu cried out, her words twisting into a horrified cry.

Ezzeks didn't linger. He quickly swerved back to the edge, spotting the Cerberuses that were clambering towards him. "Abyssal dredge…" he muttered, a low hum of esoteric Kyyr began to hum around the Coarseblood. It glowed—bright and fragrant, the air filling with the unexpected scent of lavender that swept across the atrium.

Vaal felt the rising Kyyr. Where the hell is he getting all this energy?!

Ezzeks jumped off the edge, aiming straight for the M. Cerberus that was the furthest below. A crimson flash streaked through the air as he collided with the flailing beast, his one good claw tearing through its flesh in a spray of black sludge.

The M. Cerberus shrieked in pain, its body melting into a lumpy black mass that coiled around Ezzeks's arm. It began to crawl upward, writhing and reforming—jaws materializing around his neck.

It stopped.

A ripple of Kyyr surged through Ezzeks's body, causing the black mass to shudder. Its oily skin suddenly caught in the pull of something deeper, heavier. Unnatural gravity began to drag it back, peeling the vile mass away from the Coarseblood.

"Nidorous beast! You really thought that'd work?!" Ezzeks let out a gravelly laugh. His claws pulled the mass forward as an unseen force tore the Cerberus off his arm before sending it splattering against a nearby wall.

Vaal wavered in his focus as he felt the surge of strange energy. Is that—?! "How the hell are you doing that?"

Ezzeks dodged an incoming lightning strike with surprising grace as he tumbled further down, burning shrapnel falling into the murky water below as he caught himself with his crimson-tipped bone that erupted from his missing hand. "The resounding echo of my name still rings true!" he bellowed.

"Huh? A-are you using Divinity?" Vaal stammered.

Ezzeks smirked, his snout cracking, "Surprised, ha!? My name rings true even in the darkest corners of the SED! Nevertheless, Gather your jealousy and cast it aside—so you can fix this damned nub already!"

Vaal let out a resigned breath. "I can't. The main body was grown by Berserkrios. He uses the concept of bone as his catalyst."

Ezzeks narrowly dodged another thunderous crash of rippling abyssal Kyyr. "Then grow something over it! A fucking hook! A mace! I do not care—just give me something I can work with!"

The L. Cerberus emerged from a cloud of sparkling dust as it rushed Ezzeks with another lightning-shrouded charge.

CCCCRRRRRSH—THRRRM!

The Cerberus tore through the 3rd floor like paper, its Kyyr shredding the support beams as it barreled forward. Ezzeks dodged as the atrium groaned under the sudden shift in weight.

Above, the group that was waiting for news from the rangers on the 98th floor felt the weight shift. Xizu held onto her unconscious, dear brother tighter as the structure began to creak—floors sagging under the growing collapse.

"You fucking egg!" Ezzeks roared, bursting from the rubble. With a thunderous swing, he punched the L. Cerberus square in the snout, the impact crushing bone and snapping its head back. It staggered back—lightning spraying from its ruptured body like a fountain. Ezzeks stepped back, but he pulsed Kyyr through his hand as he contorted his claws and raised his hand.

Before the L. Cerberus could properly recover, its feet left the ground as its body was raised into the air by an esoteric force! It let out a wrath-filled growl before it was hurled upward, smashing through the ceiling of the 3rd floor—stone and steel shredding in its wake—until it crashed into the 5th floor above with a deafening, bone-rattling—

BOOM!

"VAAL!" Ezzeks roared, slamming both hands into the ground.

"You don't have to scream—we share the same fucking brain!" Vaal screamed back, already pulsing his vile Kyyr into the ground. Crimson spires erupted from the floor, instantly shattering as they strained to brace the collapsing levels above.

THHHHRRMMMM!

"It's not enough!" Ezzeks growled, tearing his arms free just as—

CRRRRRRRRKK!

A bladed tendril pierced through his gut, grinding into the left side. The Coarseblood howled, pain rippling up his spine. But he caught the tendril with one claw, Kyyr pulsing from his grip. With a brutal snarl, he slashed the air, Kyyr twisting around his will—dragging an unseen M. Cerberus through a wall below. It crashed through stone and steel, yanked like a ragdoll by his fury.

While he let the wound heal, he looked up. "We must evacuate those people!" Ezzeks roared, already scrambling toward the far end of the atrium. Behind him, the floors groaned and splintered, the collapse climbing upward as the structure began to give way from below.

Above, the group was overwhelmed. With Serfet unresponsive and the sisters still knocked out cold—they were running out of time.

Aria swallowed her nerves, the abyssal haze, and quaking ground causing her to stumble as she rushed to her sisters. She dropped to her knees beside her sisters, bracing herself as she awkwardly hoisted Alice into her arms.

Lisk'Ha rushed over and steadied her. "I got Holly!" she shouted over the tower's thunderous groan.

Aria nodded, even as the ceiling above cracked, a fine dust cascading down. Every step was a struggle—carrying a whole person amidst the shifting terrain and the unsettling Kyyr was ripping into her mind and body. The noxious abyssal condensation twisted through her mind. Her judgment clouded in shifting lines of thoughts and errors, but she pushed through it as best she could.

"Ugh…" Lisk'Ha grunted, struggling to stay upright. Her protective gear kept the worst of the abyssal poison at bay, but the shifting ground made every step treacherous. She glanced toward Xizu—hunched over Serfet's body, sobbing uncontrollably. "This is bad…" she muttered as she joined Aria on their awkward journey to more stable ground.

Nearby, Mera had fallen on her side, the ground beneath her caving under her feet. "No!" she shouted as she crawled out of the shifting floor, panic pushing her out. Scrambling onto a firmer patch, she lifted her head—only to come face-to-face with a trembling Xizu, still kneeling beside Serfet, her voice lost to grief.

Mera held back her tears, swallowing her despair as she made her way to Xizu. "I…I got him…" she whispered, placing trembling hands on Serfet's cold body. She ran her fingers along his wet clothes—his skin was cold like wet stone.

How familiar.

To feel the fading warmth of another person under the pulsing abyss. Tears streamed down her cheeks as she gently pried Serfet from Xizu's grasp and hoisted him into her arms. He was too heavy. Too still. Had the cold already claimed him? His head lolled lifelessly against her shoulder, his damp hair brushing against her skin.

She bit down on a sob. "Not again… please…"

The horrid wails of the Cerberus below were muffled against the groaning of the atrium. The ground shifted beneath her. Mera staggered, then steadied herself against the weight of his world.

Xizu rose to her feet, movements slow and heavy. She looked exhausted—drained physically and emotionally. In the shifting shadows, Mera could barely make out her eyes.

Xizu knelt one last time, brushing Serfet's hair from his face with shaking fingers. She pressed her forehead briefly to his. Then, without a word, she placed a trembling hand on Mera's shoulder. And then she left.

Her steps wavered at first, but she forced herself forward, not as a sister, but as a mother. She quickened her pace as she met with Aria, who was struggling to carry Alice.

Mera looked down at the eerily dreamy face of Serfet—but there was no time to mourn. She stumbled forward, every step shaky under the weight of his world, her tears flowing freely. And yet, through the haze of grief, a fragile glimmer lit her eyes. She held him tightly, as if by will alone she could shield him, and pressed on toward whatever safety remained.

The atrium shuddered as from below a crimson figure surged into view. Ezzeks appeared before Mera, striding past her and Serfet without a glance, plunging his arm into the floor. Crimson scales erupted, spiraling upward and wrapping around the struggling group. With a groaning, organic motion, the growths retracted—carrying them across the crumbling floor.

But Ezzeks did not linger. He felt the numbing Kyyr of the L. Cerberus. Without hesitation, the Coarseblood rushed to the atrium's edge, casting one last look back at teary-eyed Mera.

"There is always hope," he roared, his voice ringing like steel. "Let your courage shine against all odds!" And then he vanished—diving back into the darkness. Landing somewhere low as a flash of esoteric lightning illuminated the atrium in a sickly pink afterglow.

Mera stood stunned, her breath ragged. His words were absurd, impossible… and yet they stirred something in her chest. Painful optimism. Blind expectation. A fragile solace in the words of the crimson-white beast. Tightening her grip on Serfet, she pressed on—through dread, through ruin—toward the store beyond.

Chittering.

She came to a horrified stop.

There.

From the darkness of the store, a sickening noise emanated from the shadows. Chills rippled down her spine as she came face-to-face with the garbled form of one of the foul anomalies that had once stolen her small happiness. But—she held the words of the Coarseblood like a blade.

I am not helpless…

Gently, she lowered Serfet to the floor. As her breath steadied, a faint crackle echoed from her fingertips—fleeting Kyyr blooming into white crystalline claws.

The Caused began to crouch, its body tightening as it readied to pounce on its newfound prey. It—

Crrrggh…

Its empty, bulging eyes twitched with confusion as it found itself staring up at the towering figure of Mera. She lifted her foot, a crystalline heel forming beneath it.

And then—

CRUNCH!

Bone and pulp split under fearful eyes.

The headless Caused blindly swung at the air, getting tangled amidst its thrashing in a mangled mess of clothing. Mera stared at the beast, her crimson-pink gaze simmering with disgust. Spiraling tongues writhed beneath her sole. She flicked its flesh off her shoes and dragged her feet against the carpet, leaving behind a trailing stain of victory.

She rushed back to Serfet's side, dropping to her knees with a sharp gasp. Without hesitation, she tore away the wet clothes clinging to his frigid body, her fingers stiff with panic. Cold. So cold. She grabbed whatever she could find—shirts, scarves, a blanket half-buried under a display—and piled them over him, trying to trap what little warmth he had to spare.

I trained for this! I-I can help. I can help. I can help! She trembled. Compress. Breathe. Compress. Her palms were unsure as she slammed into his rigid body.

"Please…" she whispered, voice cracking. "Don't do this to me. Not again."

The air in the store reeked of damp stone and rot. But all she could focus on was Serfet's face. His fading color. The awful stillness in his limbs.

Please…

She kept going.

Dodging another lightning strike, Ezzeks managed to land once more at the center of his crimson blossom. The petals of scale and blood groaned under his weight. Around him, the M. Cerberus and L. Cerberus prowled, circling like vultures.

Within, Vaal had finished coating all their wounds in his crimson sheen, letting him address Ezzeks. "Why'd you tell the girl that?" he muttered. "The guy was already dead."

Ezzeks kept his attention on the Cerberus. "Why?" he echoed, a small smirk forming on his cracked snout. "Because she needed it, of course! Did you not see the subtle edge in her eyes?"

"...What?"

Ezzeks let out a short, amused exhale. "That is why I exist. Why I was born. My grace—as both man and beast! The very reason I once carried the title Dragon God of Heroes. It's only natural to give courage in the dark!" He shifted his stance, pulsing his Kyyr in short, jagged bursts. Crimson light spidered through his fraying scales like veins of magma, each one humming with purpose.

Vaal's voice slithered in low and bitter. "You speak in wishful thinking and ideals…" he spoke with spite. "If only you remembered."

Ezzeks raised his mangled arm, the crimson hook at its tip gleaming with residual Kyyr. "Whatever fate led us here, I know I stood by my ideals. So! Dear Vaal, let us share our venom after these beasts have been felled." His gaze fell upon the Retrocosmic Intrusions beyond the shattered glass—the Inverted Sea. "...Do you remember old Wayth's Special?"

Vaal paused. His voice dropped to a rare, almost tender tone. "I was blessed enough to witness it personally."

Ezzeks laughed—a proud, rumbling sound that echoed between their hearts. "Wahaha! That checks! With two monsters like you two on a hunt, no beast lasted long enough to see either of your true might."

Vaal snorted. "Couldn't I say the same about you?"

"Hmph. I liked to pace myself." Ezzeks said, his smirk returning as his shimmering Coarseblood frame cracked. "Let me show you what I learned from the old King."

Vaal rolled his shut eyes, "Whatever you're planning, make sure it hits all three. You noticed, right? One of the abyssals is missing?"

"Of course! I've also noticed that they're dead-set on killing us. Any clue why?"

"Fuck if I know… but whatever they did, it really pissed them off."

Ezzeks's senses flared up as a lightning strike rippled through the air, jumping in arcs through the rising rain. The crimson blossom exploded as waves crashed into the stores on the second floor.

"Let's not waste any more time. Let the hunt start anew!" Ezzeks roared—and without another word, he dove into the churning black, vanishing beneath the waves.

The two active Cerberuses hesitated at the water's edge. The cold, frigid water lapping at their talons and rising unnaturally up their legs. Dropping low, they prowled in circles, frills fluttering as they snapped and barked at one another in agitated tones. The M. Cerberus began to twitch as it lashed out at the water, only for the L. Cerberus to let out a loud hiss. They were born of this cold—molded in its murk. And yet, something stirred below that gave even them pause.

Uncertainty. And the ripping jaws of something with teeth sharper than theirs.

A floor above, hunched in the narrow curve of an emergency stairwell, Vidrago sat wringing cold water from his long hair. The flickering backup lights cast his soaked silhouette in jittering motion along the metal walls. He let out an annoyed sigh. As long as I can get some of his sweet blood…this'll be so worth it… A crooked grin stretched across his face, his heartbeat on overdrive as the numbing miasma of the abyss undulated across his mind and body. I know you'll crush them, Gira… I can tell. You'll become just like me.