NOVEL NEXT Ch19.2 Xin: Unseen (Scene 2)
10:31, February 10, 2295
Terminal 1, Songnei Starport (松內星港), No. 340-9, Dunhua North Road, Songshan District, Taipei, Taiwan, Imperium of Dragons territory
Xin's fingers tapped nervously on the steering wheel as he drove toward Songnei Starport. His mind kept drifting to the woman beside him. He glanced at Lorna — the Psi Lynx agent — her profile lit by the sun through the window.
Maybe this is the beginning of something, he thought hopefully.
"And we're in. Songnei Starport. Not bad, right?" Xin pointed through the window toward the sprawling structure. The starport's central platform, suspended above sleek bridges and walkways, gleamed under the midday sun.
Suddenly, Lorna's stomach growled loudly. She clenched her fists, her blue eyes showing annoyance.
"Hungry?" Xin asked playfully as he glanced at her. He wondered if sharing a meal might create a connection between them.
"I had some breakfast on the plane this morning. But it wasn't really my taste," Lorna replied, avoiding eye contact as she pulled her hair into a ponytail using a rubber band from her coat pocket.
"You Alliance agents flew into the Imperium on a civilian plane?" Xin asked, raising an eyebrow. "That's risky. And unlikely."
"Okay, fine. It was actually a StarWhale shuttle piloted by my colleague, but I'm not supposed to tell you that," Lorna admitted, turning to face him.
Xin felt a small victory at getting her to reveal something classified. "I understand. Let me see," he reached for a small compartment beside him—the car's mini fridge.
"Hmm, fancy rice ball," She looked at the triangular package he offered her—an onigiri, its seaweed wrapper glistening.
"Go ahead, try it," Xin encouraged. The rice ball was a simple offering, but it held the comforting flavors of home. "You can give it back if you don't like it."
Lorna took the onigiri, her fingers briefly touching his. The contact sent a jolt through him. Unwrapping it, the smell of tuna filled the car. "Hmm. Reminds me of Boston somehow."
Her first bite was hesitant, but soon she relaxed.
"Never thought I'd enjoy something so terrestrial again," Lorna said between bites, her voice softer.
"Sometimes the simplest things—" Xin began, but stopped, caught by her blue eyes. He imagined them sharing more than just missions and danger.
"Are the most profound," she finished for him, with a faint smile.
"That they are," Xin agreed, his heart beating faster. He pressed a button on the steering wheel to let the car drive itself. "By the way, do you mind if I change? This prisoner outfit isn't comfortable." He grimaced at the gray jumpsuit he was wearing.
"Go ahead. I've seen plenty of guys naked. No big deal," Lorna replied casually, taking another bite.
Her comment pierced through Xin's romantic thoughts. Plenty of guys? The idea of Lorna with other men made him jealous. He pushed the feeling aside, reminding himself that he barely knew her.
"Thanks, just give me a minute," Xin said as he grabbed some black pants and threw his gray jumpsuit in the backseat. Then he ventured, "So, you've seen plenty of guys...?"
"Forget I said anything," Lorna waved off his question and looked at him, noticing his thin torso. "Wow, you're skinny."
Self-consciousness washed over him. During his military service, he'd always been the smallest in his unit. "Yeah. Malabsorption, the doctor said," Xin shrugged as he put on his pants, carefully putting the flash drive with the Moondust Crystal data in a pocket. "Been like this since I was a kid." He wished he had the build of the Bloodtroopers they'd escaped from.
"Here, you should eat some," Lorna offered him the half-eaten onigiri.
"It's alright, it's yours," Xin smiled politely and reached for a green hoodie in the backseat.
"No, you need it too," Lorna said seriously as she held the rice ball out to him. "Besides, I don't eat that much."
Xin's heart skipped as he looked into Lorna's blue eyes. Sharing food—her food—felt intimate. He nodded before taking a bite from the same spot where her lips had been.
Lorna smiled, and it was the most enchanting thing he had seen all morning. Xin allowed himself to believe that perhaps she felt it too—this strange connection.
"Thank you, Lorna," Xin said warmly as he put on his hoodie, feeling a slight blush on his cheeks.
"And thank you too, Xin," Lorna said, finishing the last bit of rice. "I feel better now."
"I'm glad," Xin nodded as he put his Quantum Watch back on his left wrist. He noticed her eyes following the movement.
"Your Quantum Watch looks rather new," Lorna remarked with a polite smile. "Custom-made variant?"
"Curious?" Xin lifted his wrist, showing his Quantum Watch. The timepiece glowed with a green light, housed in a dark silver case. Its clear band revealed glowing green wires running through it.
"Hmm. Fancy," Lorna said, looking at the watch. "Probably a higher class model than mine."
Pride filled his chest at her words. "Yeah. Saved up a few month's salary for this one," Xin said as he continued. "You said you're heading for Terminal 7?"
"Yep. That's where my colleagues will be waiting," Lorna replied.
Suddenly, a loud noise echoed through the Starport. Lorna's eyes snapped to the horizon, her body tensing.
"Buddha's balls…" Xin's pulse raced as he watched the horrifying Radi-Mons emerge. Mutated hounds with gray skin and twisted bones dug up from the asphalt road in the distance, chasing pedestrians.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
"Bone Fiends," Lorna's voice cut through the chaos, calm and steady, "they're fast, but dumb." She pointed at a creature rushing toward their car.
Xin's mind raced. Fear clouded his thoughts, but Lorna's composure helped him focus. "So…do we fight it or –"
"Just drive over it," Lorna said coolly.
"Right," Xin clenched his jaw and pressed the pedal. The car lurched forward, crushing the Bone Fiend with a sickening crunch. Black liquid spread across the front of the car.
"See? Easy as pie," Lorna smiled and leaned back. "I'll cover any car wash fees for you."
"Appreciate it," Xin breathed out, trying to stay calm as they drove on. He wanted to seem as unfazed as she was.
More monsters appeared — giant bugs with hyena-like heads. Despite not being detected by Xin's car, their appearance made his hands shake on the wheel. These creatures walked on all fours, with front legs like mantis claws as they approached civilians.
"Skuggrs," she continued, unbothered by the bile-spitting creatures now flanking the Fiends around the terminal they passed. "Keep clear of their spray— it eats through armor like acid through paper."
Xin was amazed at how calm Lorna stayed. "How long have you been doing this job?"
"Almost eight years," Lorna replied casually as she pulled out a small vial from her coat. The blue liquid inside shimmered. She uncorked it and took a sip before continuing, "It's like sex, really. The first try scares the fuck out of you. Gets easier every time you do it. Eventually, you learn to enjoy it."
Xin felt hopeful at her words, though his thoughts were now filled with images of him and Lorna together. "You make it sound... enticing," he said hoarsely.
"I've found that most guys lose their fear once I tell them that," Lorna said before taking another sip from the vial and closing her eyes in pleasure. "Mmm, much better."
"Snack after the meal?" Xin asked, raising his eyebrow, eager to keep their conversation going.
"It's an old habit. Keeps me grounded." Lorna replied as she re-corked the vial and put it back in her coat.
Xin watched as a drop of the blue liquid landed on Lorna's finger. She licked it off, savoring every bit. The simple gesture sent his mind racing.
"A pretty niche choice of snack, for sure," he said, his voice slightly husky.
But before he could continue, Lorna pointed her finger toward the sky in the distance.
Xin looked where she was pointing and saw huge dark brown three-eyed octopuses emerging from behind buildings. Their tentacles moved with a sinister intelligence as they floated through the air.
"Krakens," Xin whispered, terrified. "I've seen one in the ZenFusion lab before. Dilinur had the BioScience guys dissect its brain last year. Some sort of field coordinator?"
"Exactly," Lorna confirmed. "They're cowards, but other Radi-Mons get smarter when they're nearby. If you can take one down, their control over the other monsters will be disrupted."
Before Xin could process this, a male voice with a Novian accent came through the speaker: "Team, do you copy? Terminal 7's a no go. Rally Point Echo has been compromised—"
"How compromised, Diego?" Lorna asked, focusing on the speaker between them.
"Crawling with Radi-Mons. I'm looking at the info sent by our NexLink satellites. The next rally point remains undetermined," Diego answered.
"How're Thomas and Emmanuel doing?" Lorna asked, staying calm despite their situation.
"They got separated. Still alive, though," Diego replied briefly. "Find cover and await new coordinates. I'm rerouting to a secure extraction site."
"Understood. Stay on this frequency," Lorna acknowledged as she watched the battle outside the car. Imperium security and Bloodtroopers began fighting Bone Fiends and Skuggrs around them as Xin's car entered Terminal 3.
"Keep driving, Xin," she ordered firmly.
"Will do," he replied as he gripped the steering wheel tighter, thinking of possible escape routes.
But then, Lorna's gaze fixed on a huge figure rampaging across a plaza in the distance. "Skarn," she muttered with hatred, her body shaking with anger.
Xin followed her gaze and felt his breath catch. The five-meter monster dominated the terminal floor, its massive body gleaming with a wet sheen under the emergency lights. Skarn's elongated skull had jagged, bony protrusions, and his huge mouth revealed rows of sharp teeth. His glowing orange eyes burned with intelligence amid the plates of his face. Metal tubes and wires stuck out from his neck and shoulders, pulsing ominously.
Most terrifying were his massive arms — huge muscular limbs ending in enormous clawed hands that tore through concrete pillars like paper. The monster moved with purpose on powerful reptilian legs, his muscular tail sweeping debris and bodies as he advanced. From his waist, five black tentacles writhed independently, lashing out as Skarn tore through the terminal, leaving only destruction behind.
"Xin, we have to split up." Lorna said as she sat up, her eyes fixed on Skarn's destruction. "Find Thomas and Emmanuel. I'll go after that fucker."
"You're going after that large Radi-Mon alone?" Xin's heart pounded as he processed her words. The thought of being separated from her filled him with fear, not just for himself, but for her.
"Skarn is not just any Radi-Mon. He's a Primarch. The one that lords over all of them," Lorna unfastened her seat belt. "In his weakened state, I could take him down."
Xin studied the monster through the windshield, his mind noting details despite his fear. "He's received cybernetic enhancements. ZenFusion's tech, it looks like." He recognized the design of the implants, similar to prototypes he'd seen in the research labs.
"Possibly. But I don't give a damn," Lorna said.
Panic rushed through Xin. He couldn't let her go alone—not against that monster. He desperately wanted to protect her, to prove his worth.
"Well then. I'll see you on the flip side –" she started to get up.
"Wait!" he blurted out as he reached into the car's door storage for his own 10mm Magnum. The gun was more angular than Lorna's, with a bulkier barrel featuring what looked like a sensor and a box underneath. "You see this? My personal modified 10mm has an AI-assisted targeting system. I taught myself weapon modding after work. Calibrated the sights, too."
Lorna stared at the pistol, frowning impatiently. "And?"
"I'm not the best shooter around, but with this, I can be of use," He gripped his gun tightly. The green tint of the weapon caught the sunlight, its AI system humming softly. "Let me help you with the fight!"
He held it up before Lorna, his face set with determination. He imagined fighting alongside her, their skills complementing each other—he, the tech specialist with his enhanced weapon; she, the psionic warrior with her abilities. Together, they would be formidable.
But it was not enough.
"Xin, it's nice of you to try," Lorna sighed, turning away. "But Skarn is way above your league."
The car's interior grew darker, contrasting with the chaos outside, where Skuggrs moved through the smoky dusk.
Xin gripped his pistol tighter, his jaw set stubbornly. The hope that they could be partners, equals, began to fade. "But I can—"
"No, Xin," she interrupted firmly. "Your presence would distract me. Find Thomas and Emmanuel instead."
Her words hit him hard. Was he just a liability to her? A distraction?
"You can—" Xin began, but his words failed against the resolve on her face.
"Yes, I can handle myself," Lorna finished for him, her icy eyes darkening with subtle anger. "I always do."
Xin swallowed hard, the bitter taste of rejection washing away the sweetness of their shared moment.
Without waiting for a response, she stepped out of the vehicle. "We'll talk later."
"No problem, Lorna. Stay safe," he whispered, mostly to himself, his hands now shaking as he watched her walk away. Her trench coat spread behind her like wings. Xin watched, his throat tight, as she walked into the battlefield.
With a heavy heart and a loaded gun, Xin drove away. Perhaps to Lorna, he was just another civilian to protect, not a partner to value.
In the distance, amid screams and destruction, Lorna advanced toward her target, a lone hunter pursuing the beast. And Xin felt smaller than he ever had in his life.