Reborn- Apocalypse 2

by L. M. Kerr

  "And there is nothing else?" Despite that, even they seemed unable to find out anything beyond the bare minimum about their target.

  A man that went by the identity of 'Emissary Heron' who not only brutally murdered one of their own Emissaries but also killed an important member of the Nightrunners, sparking tensions.

  The Director Prime of the Nightrunners had already contacted him, irate beyond belief. He was threatening a full-scale escalation if he didn't get answers.

  Sylvester hadn't budged an inch, but had given his own explanation. The murderer hadn't just killed one of the Nightrunners, but also one of Arcadia's own, and they were seriously looking into it. They would freely send over all reports on incidents that could be related to the murderer, in return for a preemptive ceasefire.

  Commander Kenneth's report had stated that Leila was planning on leaving Arcadia and betraying them to the Nightrunners, but with her and Number 14 dead, Sylvester decided to quash that issue and ignore it.

  That problem was already resolved with their deaths. What he needed now was to find the man that dared to impersonate his own high-ranking subordinate and abuse their name. Such a man was a dangerous threat that could not be allowed to roam freely.

  The only frustrating thing…

  It was as if the man appeared out of thin air. They found almost literally nothing, even when using multiple Abilities that could look a bit into the past and future, or scan fate.

  Even worse, all of his actions left essentially no trail. He gave out no clues or hints, and, in general, covered his tracks near perfectly. They had basically nothing on him, except for what he willingly left out in the public.

  'Why is everyone so damn needy… If you had to die, Number 14, couldn't you have just died somewhere else..?' The Captain-Commander silently cursed in his heart, but kept up a relatively emotionless facade.

  "Well…" The obese Head Emissary, a man that went by the title Head Emissary Candle, shifted as he spoke.

  "There is one other thing I have, if neither Head Emissary Lion nor Head Emissary Quill has anything else to add."

  The other two Head Emissaries shrugged.

  Sylvester waved him on.

  "After finding out that he was first seen, in disguise, emerging from the Stardust Cluster, I dispatched a team to seek out the group he first came with. As part of our initiative to cool tensions with the Nightrunners, my team is also working with them." Head Emissary Candle began, nodding his head.

  "Who did the Nightrunners send?" Sylvester cut in, his eyes cool.

  "Ah, Number 10 was dispatched, as well as some of their Cell Captains and a few information specialists. I sent Commander Hatchel and Emissary Antler, as well as one of our Truthseekers." The obese Emissary returned, waiting politely for a moment before continuing,

  "Currently, we have located the group he came over with, a team calling themselves the Stardust Coalition. They have settled down in the territory of the Godfather Organization." Head Emissary Candle finished.

  "Are there any members of the Godfather Organization with them? What responses did you get? Did your men draw the attention of the Godfather Organization?" When he heard where they were, the Captain-Commander rubbed at his forehead, feeling another headache coming on.

  First the Nightrunners got involved, and now it seemed the Godfather Organization might get involved as well. With their Head restored to health, he could no longer discount their future potential. This situation was expanding far more so than he had wanted…

  "I'm not too certain on the specifics yet, Captain-Commander, but my men have been instructed to work within the realm of the Godfather Organization's rules. It's a simple questioning session, there will be no violence. The Nightrunners have agreed as well." Head Emissary Candle quickly replied.

  "And if they refuse questioning?" The Captain-Commander stared at the Head Emissary, unblinking.

  The obese man's eyes narrowed.

  "We will deal with that when the time comes. For now…" The man tapped on his Head Emissary Emblem, finishing quietly,

  "My men are making first contact as we speak."

  .. .. .. .. .. ..

  The southern portion of the Godfather Organization's territory was known to the locals as 'The South.' The fact that it was to the north of most of the Main Cluster was conveniently ignored by its inhabitants.

  This particular area of the Main Cluster was heavily patrolled by the Godfather Organization and highly regulated. Their territory covered a huge swath, but when it came to keeping their land safe, they were the best of the Big 3.

  Captain Simon of the Saru Group, now the leader of the Stardust Coalition, was currently standing atop a rooftop with a concerned expression on his face. The midmorning light lit up the world around him, the everpresent skyscrapers crowding the area.

  Behind him were several of the other leaders in the Coalition, including Sharpshooter Mike, Swiss Artillery Noah, and the various high-level figures of the organizations back in their home Cluster.

  Notably absent, however, was Officer Martin of the Godfather Organization.

  After the Coalition travelled to the Main Cluster, they established their own base like Micheal had suggested, in the territory of the Godfather Organization. They then sent back messages informing their home groups of their success.

  Most of the people that had stayed behind in the Stardust Cluster had no intentions of moving forward. They felt safe, and powerful, where they were, and would only leave when they felt they needed to, or were strong enough to easily survive.

  After all… the Morenkai seemed to spawn infinitely and the more Points you got, the stronger you typically got as you gained more Abilities. Many saw this as a reason to take things slow.

  Still, with a safely established stronghold to travel to, the Stardust Cluster now had a transportation line to expand into the Main Cluster, and to send members of each major force for those that wanted to move forward.

  After they fully settled down and laid a solid foundation, several of the members of the Coalition intended on taking it further, planning to leave the First Layer altogether, to adventure forth into the Second.

  Right now, however…

  All of the leaders of the Coalition, Simon included, were sweating nervously, for a rather simple reason.

  Standing in front of them was a small army of powerful experts.

  A full 24 leather-armor clad warriors, decked out with a variety of weapons, as well as a half dozen or so black robed figures. All of them were glaring at the Coalition leaders with purpose.

  "So you are the leader of this Coalition?" At the head of the force stood a trio of figures. The speaker was one of the trio, a gentle looking man wearing a full set of white plate armor, instead of leather. He had black hair and, of all things, a flower in that hair, matching his affable face.

  He was the reason the Coalition leaders were up here in the first place, instead of finishing their morning meditation or breakfast. The man had called out to them with a voice that carried throughout the entire skyscraper, asking for their presence. Such a mysterious power wasn't something the leaders could ignore.

  "Yes, and you are?" Captain Simon grunted out a response, crossing his arms stiffly. He kept his voice respectful but confident, showing a lack of arrogance, but also no weakness.

  "I am Commander Hatchel and this is my comrade, Emissary Antler." The Commander waved at a masked man that stood next to him. Emissary Antler practically had no force of presence, and looked rather normal, save for the blue mask he wore.

  "We are members of the Angels Arcadia." He gave Captain Simon a small nod as he finished speaking.

  Simon nodded back. Just by looking at the men and women present, he could tell that even the weakest among them were B Rankers. Every person here was strong and tough, especially the trio that he was facing.

  "And I…" The third figure of the trio spoke out loud, waving a hand casually. It was a small, black haired woman wearing a black robe, and a
white, enamel mask that had a golden '10' carved into it. Her hair flowed behind the mask and over her robe, all the way down to her lower back. She had light brown skin, visible from her neck and hands.

  "…am known as Number 10, of the Nightrunners." Her voice was warm and pleasant to listen to, carrying a friendly demeanor.

  When the various leaders of the Coalition found out they were facing important figures from the Big 3, many of them grew pale-faced. This had come out of nowhere for most of them. None of them had any intentions on stirring the pot or drawing any kind of attention like this. They all knew, from their years of experience here, that attention like that could be deadly.

  "We don't mean you any harm. In fact, we are here because we have found out that a dangerous criminal infiltrated your group and put you all at risk." Her voice was filled with what sounded like genuine concern.

  "A man that goes by the name 'Emissary Heron.'"

  That name caused all of the Coalition members to freeze up in shock, exchanging glances. Most of them looked stunned.

  Captain Simon, conversely, only widened his eyes slightly. His face gave away nothing, his stature calm and steady.

  "I'll explain to you a bit about him, and then we'll ask you all a few simple questions and be out of your hair. Again, we don't want to cause you any trouble. We are just trying to catch a criminal." The woman took a few steps forward as she spoke, until she was standing directly in front of all of them.

  "Is he not a member of Arcadia? If what you say is true, why would you seek us out, instead of them?" Captain Simon nodded at the other two leaders, cutting in with solid logic.

  The Emissary with no force of presence spoke up then, his voice cutting and quick-paced as he answered Simon.

  "That man is no Emissary. He is an impersonator that abused the authority of the Angels Arcadia. And, even worse than that…" Emissary Antler's voice was full of scorn,

  "He is a vile murderer."

  .. .. .. .. .. ..

  "Man, I sure do love murder." Micheal smiled cheerfully as he looked at what was in his hands.

  "Diiie!" A smartphone flashed out, a few sounds effects echoing off as he played a game on it.

  He was currently leaning inside a skyscraper's roof shed, playing on his phone.

  He wasn't playing on it because he wanted to, but rather, because it was the most optimal way to search for his targets.

  His Soul was undergoing a continuous stream of stress from his rapid and large usage of energy. While he could restore that energy using various medicines to keep searching, from time to time, he needed to take short breaks to relax.

  If he didn't, he would build up a splitting headache and be forced to rest for hours to help his Soul calm down. He was abusing his poor Soul to the extremes as he searched, using it for things he normally would be unable to do at his current Soul stat. As a result, he needed to take precautions.

  Playing a video game on a smartphone was the best option he had in regards to something that could engage and relax his Soul, allowing it to calm down.

  He could've also meditated, but at this point he felt too tense to easily focus. The time it would take to fully calm down would be a waste when he could just open his smartphone and play a few rounds of Swords n Smashin' or other random games.

  The smartphones from the Shop could download many offline, completed games as long as one was willing to spend the Points.

  Micheal focused back on his game as he felt cool energy begin to emanate from his Soul.

  'Just 5 more minutes and then I'll go…'

  .

  Chapter 36

  "Is that… it is!" Micheal's voice was full of excitement as he looked out before him, his eyes zeroed in on something far away.

  "I've found them!"

  After resting his Soul and allowing himself to recover, Micheal had once again gone out searching. He was constantly going back and forth between large tracts of land, going over the same areas.

  It was frustratingly inefficient, but on such short notice, and with no allies nearby, it was the best method he had available. Maintaining secrecy was one of his most important goals at the present moment, even if it meant he couldn't do things like hire other people to help him search.

  Thankfully, his identity was decently obscured and, even better:

  He had an Aura Nullification Necklace.

  The unique Artifact was something he always kept on him now. While it did protect and shield his mind and Soul, he was most grateful for something else.

  The necklace helped hide his energy signature, and his presence in general, from anything seeking it out.

  The Monster Class Morenkai had lost his trail partially as a result of this. However… Morenkai weren't the only beings that could search for him in similar manners.

  There were dozens of powerful and unique Abilities related to scanning or searching for people or things. Any one of those could give clues away as to who he is or was, or what his powers were. With the Aura Nullification Necklace, the vast majority of those would become ineffective.

  That all made his life much easier, and meant he could spend his hard-earned Points on more important things.

  After Micheal searched for around 30 more minutes, he had come upon his present situation.

  He held his binoculars up to his face as he gazed them through, breathing slowly. He was currently around 100 meters up above the nearest skyscraper, slowly falling down towards its roof.

  Out about 7 skyscrapers over, Micheal could make out two groups of people currently in a faceoff. One group was much larger than the other one, with more than a dozen armed men and women, while the other group had only 5 figures present.

  Micheal recognized the leader of the large group instantly. It was a man of Middle Eastern descent, wearing a set of loose, white leather pants and a brown vest, with long brown hair that was wrapped up in a bun. He held a long, metallic saber in his hand.

  'The Arabian General Asim.' The man was a legend among legends for most humans, a warrior that was regarded as one of the most elite close-combat fighters.

  The leader of the smaller, 5 man group, was likewise instantly recognizable.

  A mountain of a man with short blonde hair, wearing a set of dark red armor, with a large spear tied into place on his back.

  That could only be the famed Wonder King, Vladimir.

  Micheal stored his binocular as he shot forward at maximum speed, the ornate robe he wore as a disguise flapping in the wind. He glided forward gracefully, but with as little obvious motion as possible, trying to maintain a low-key figure.

  It took him only a few seconds to reach a skyscraper that was around 3 bridge's worth of distance away. Upon the skyscraper was a single Morenkai, shambling about.

  Micheal dashed across the skyscraper, keeping as low as possible. He ignored the Morenkai as he ran up and then threw himself over the edge.

  The Morenkai had noticed his presence and was in the process of turning around to chase him when it realized what he had done. It stood frozen for a moment, almost as if it couldn't believe its senses.

  Micheal's Life Orbs raced around and caught him as he began to fly between skyscrapers, quickly maneuvering himself and leaving the Morenkai behind.

  In no time at all, he managed to fly over to the skyscraper the two groups were meeting at.

  'Yes! They aren't battling yet!' When Micheal reached the skyscraper the two groups were at, he could hear voices talking. That meant he still had a chance.

  His original plan had been to prevent them from meeting entirely. If he could've found either group alone, he planned on distracting them by claiming he was a member of the Purgatory Church and going on a spiel trying to recruit them.

  Whether or not either group believed him wouldn't matter, since all he needed to do was mess up their timeline so that they missed each other.

  Unfortunately…

  He simply didn't know where either group emerged from or where they would meet each o
ther at. All he knew was that they met in this general area and that they become mortal enemies.

  The lack of information was frustrating, but he had to work with what he had.

  When he managed to get within full earshot of the two groups, however, his heart dropped.

  For… now he could understand what they were saying.

  "…and why should we do anything for you? Who made you God, arbiter of our lives?" One deep voice spoke out loud.

  "Do you think I won't kill you all as you stand, here and now?" Another replied back, full of heated emotion and a hint of hatred.

  'Damn it.' He mentally swore as he heard the leaders of the two groups arguing. He could feel the tension in the air, as if a battle was about to break out.

  He was too late.

  He sighed deeply.

  'Very well. Plan A is no go. Time for Plan B.'

  He adjusted his fancy robe and plain mask, making sure they were tightly attached. Hiding his identity would be rather important here.

  He pulled out the Heaton Sniper Rifle he'd purchased at the Open Market. He looked at it a moment before nodding and slung it around his back, putting on the strap that connected it.

  He then tapped on his Spatial Ring again, withdrawing three sleek-looking, round, black objects. Right after that, he opened his Shop screen, making a couple of purchases.

  He sighed again after he finished preparing.

  'Time to be the villain.'

  .. .. .. .. .. ..

  "You're telling me that none of them know anything at all about Heron?!" Number 10's voice was incredulous as she stared at the Truthseeker sent by the Angels Arcadia.

  "Yes, Madam Fury." The Truthseeker replied, using Number 10's nickname. The Truthseeker was dressed like the rest of the Arcadia warriors, in white leather armor with a blade and a gun. His job wasn't to stand out, but to blend in. His plain appearance, with short black hair and an average face, helped.

  "We've talked to all of their leaders, and not one of them has lied." Commander Hatchel sighed, his set of armor heaving as he stood up.

  They were currently in the middle of a small meeting, within one of the open lounge rooms in the skyscraper they'd found the Stardust Coalition at. Commander Hatchel, the secretive Truthseeker Arcadia had sent, and Emissary Antler all sat or stood at one side of a long wooden table, while Number 10 sat alone on the other side.