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Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 08-05-2015
Now this is a story all about how,
My life got face-fucked upside down,
And I’d like to take a minute
(Whatever that means here)
I’ll tell you how I became the Omniverse’s God Saviour Seer
On the island of Birka born and raised
On the sky cloud is where I spent most of my days,
Chillin’ out, traipsin’, runnin’ from school,
Dreaming of the day ahead when I would finally rule,
But then a couple little brats from my neighbourhood,
Thought they would mess with somethin' they barely understood,
So I found the devil fruit that unlocked my power,
It wasn’t long before Birka faced its final hour
I found some strong bros and I formed a crew
Their names were Ohm Satori Shura and Gedatsu,
If anything I could say these guys were weird,
But if I could make them work for me then I would be feared!
I went to see the old god and made him disappear,
It wasn’t long before I took over all of Skypiea,
I made an ark to fly me to Fairy Vearth,
But before I could I woke up in the Omniverse.
My life got face-fucked upside down,
And I’d like to take a minute
(Whatever that means here)
I’ll tell you how I became the Omniverse’s God Saviour Seer
On the island of Birka born and raised
On the sky cloud is where I spent most of my days,
Chillin’ out, traipsin’, runnin’ from school,
Dreaming of the day ahead when I would finally rule,
But then a couple little brats from my neighbourhood,
Thought they would mess with somethin' they barely understood,
So I found the devil fruit that unlocked my power,
It wasn’t long before Birka faced its final hour
I found some strong bros and I formed a crew
Their names were Ohm Satori Shura and Gedatsu,
If anything I could say these guys were weird,
But if I could make them work for me then I would be feared!
I went to see the old god and made him disappear,
It wasn’t long before I took over all of Skypiea,
I made an ark to fly me to Fairy Vearth,
But before I could I woke up in the Omniverse.
How long have I been here now? How long has passed since I entered this illusion? I don’t want to think about it. Time seems strange here. Though I feel as though I’ve been here for merely a few weeks, my servants tell me it has been over a year in the Omniverse calendar. How many souls are trapped here? Just how strong is my opponent?
All of these thoughts I cast aside. For a God knows better than to let himself be slowed down by doubt, waylaid by compromise. I am sure of my mind and that is enough.
The town is filled with dust. Like a ruin. Just how long have these people been here? I spit on the dusty ground as I dismount my dragon. The locals watch me from windows and swinging doors. Look upon me, then. Look upon glory and divinity. It may be the last chance you ever get.
The shack is marked with a sign – “Sheriff’s Office”. I push through the door and announce myself.
“God Enel is here to speak to the man who runs this place. Do not make me wait.”
The boy behind the desk looks little more than eighteen. He seems too scared to even say a word, and practically jumps out of his seat. After running out of the room and then back in, he looks like he’s about piss himself. “Th-the sheriff … can’t see you right now!”
“WHAAT?!” I storm forward slowly. “WHY!?”
The boy shrieks, hiding his face behind his hands. “He’s not here right now!”
I growl thunder. “That’s just too bad. And here I thought I would have a use for this place.”
And just then, a bell tinkles behind me. I turn to see who has interrupted me. It’s a man, tall and ropey, his mortal skin weathered and scarred by age and weakness. And yet he holds himself as though he were my equal. Who is he?
“Who are you?”
The man puts his hat on the desk. “Entitled question,” he states. “Considering you’re in my office.”
My irritation slowly gives way to vindication. “I see. You’re the sheriff of this place.” No wonder he held himself so arrogantly. Lording over this backwater must be his idea of accomplishment. I openly snicker. “Well then, let me introduce myself. I’m Enel. But you can call me God.”
“Well, Enel,” he said. “You can come through to my office.”
I frown and follow him.
His office is small, I would almost go so far as to say cramped. For the second time today I feel as though I’m being forced into inadequate holdings. The temptation to burn this whole place down and start fresh occurs again, more strongly.
“So,” he says. His voice is almost devoid of intonation. Is he trying not to offend me? “What is it you came for?”
I lean forward on the creaking chair, hands on my knees. “I came to speak to you about Omni.”
“Oh?”
I nod. “As you are a man of some … standing, in this town, I thought you might have a better idea than the rest of the mortals about how to find and reach Omni. Would that be accurate?”
The sheriff leans back in his chair. He seems to be thinking. “And what if I told you I did?”
I narrow my eyes. “Don’t play games with me. Answer the question.”
He leans forward and locks eyes with me. How can he be so brazen? I feel a shock of electricity run up my back at his impudence. “I think you owe this town a favour,” he says to me.
And I stand up. “Favour!? What the hell have I ever done to this town?”
“Exactly,” he says. “Nothing. This town owes you nothing and I owe you nothing.”
I can barely contain the sparks. I feel them running up and down my body. That’s it then. This place is going to be destroyed. But not before I get an answer out of this cur. “I am God,” I rumble. “I take what I please. Mortals bow before me!”
“And I’m Roland,” he burns, standing. “And we don’t give no help to outsiders unless they earn it.” Before I can continue, he interrupts. “Now I’ve heard about what you did up at Ganon’s Castle. I heard you killed him, took it over. And I want to tell you I’ve been waiting for you to come down here, stretching your muscles.” Suddenly he’s holding a revolver, and it’s aimed at my chest. “Don’t think that just ’cause you’re made of lightning you’re faster than me. I’m a prime, and I’ve been here longer than you, and I’ve put down more arrogant fools that you ever met in your life.
“So if you want to try and burn this town down, take a step.”
The electricity sparking up and down my body is the only sound for a moment. Then, slowly, it fades and all that’s left is the rattling of the windows in the wind.
I smile. “What do you want, Roland?”
Re: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 10-13-2015
I sit on top of the train, arms crossed. “So you say this can get you to Carrefore?”
“That’s the idea.” The foreman scratches his salty black beard. Disgusting. But I give him a pass for being old and presumably senile. “But right now it goes right by some caves. Ruins there, used to be inhabited by ghouls and things. Got driven out by worse things. Musta been a power plant or something back in the early days of the Omniverse, but nobody I know can remember back that far.”
“Fascinating.” I twiddle my eardrum. “Can you get me there?”
“Only so far as the ruins. Only one-way though. You have to find your own way back. Roland’s orders.”
I grumble. “Whatever.”
Saying that this kind of work is beneath me is a massive understatement. But this is the kind of game I have to play now in order to beat Omni at his own game. It’s still galls me, but I’m not the kind of God so prideful as to let it get in the way of what I need to do. I am the One True God, after all.
Just as I’m drifting off to the tranquillising thought of Omni’s body turning grey and lifeless in my grip, the train slows and I’m unceremoniously reminded that there’s a job to be done. I grumble, stepping out of the train. Out here in the wastes, the sand and sun sting my skin. I have to cover my face so I can even open my eyes. “Motherfucker,” I cough.
“Yah, it’s right here-ah!” yells the foreman through the storm. “Be seeing yah!”
And with that the train backs up, heading back to The Town with No Name.
Motherfucker. I can’t even see anything ahead of me. Something’s blocking out the sun, so I head towards that. It takes me five minutes before I’m anywhere close. I should have fried that stupid conductor and driven the train myself. Occasionally I walk past some kind of debris — bits of wood and metal, things that suggest this might have been a town at some point. It’s a lot of detail, I have to admit. The scope of Omni’s imagination is … perhaps ambitious. I’ve found myself beginning to wonder how much was created and how much became a result of things within the illusion. Clearly I’m not the only one here of my own mind. There must have been others. How long have they spent here? I grit my teeth as I press on through the sands. “Must I do … everything… myself?”
Finally I see the structure the foreman was referencing. Its tall, and must cover an entire city block or more. The entrance has no doors — it’s dark inside.
“Piece of piss,” I say. I could have blown this place up with my old power, but I might have to do it piecemeal now. I sigh, and take a deep breath. “ANYONE HOME!?”
Nothing. I whack my staff against the entranceway. Nothing. Am I really going to have to take this place apart bit by bit?
I raise my staff above my head and begin to spin it. Lightning fills my body, arcing through the ring on my back and up, up into the spinning ring of light that is my weapon. So weak now but it yet holds a fraction of my power. A catalyst that I’ll need. It amplifies and contains the electricity for me as I amp it up. The pressure builds and the hairs on my body begin to stand up, despite their usual immunity to my electrical power. It’s a testament to the strength of this attack.
“Lightning STORM!” I yell as I thrust the staff forward, releasing the power out into the lobby of the abandoned building. It crashes and explodes, taking out the wall I’d aimed it at and the ceiling above. I grin, covering my face as the dust flows past me. Somewhere from deep within the building, a howl stirs.
Re: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Strazio Rockwell - 11-24-2015
From deep within the decaying ruins a mob of mutants stirred to life. Their bodies mangled and twisted beyond recognition. They were nothing more than a relic of the past, a forgotten mistake created within the Endless Dunes long ago. Enel’s attack shook the rafters and knocked a layer of detritus from the roof. Slowly the twisted mutants woke from their slumber. Hacking coughs and breathless howls signaled their awakening. Their twisted gaunt forms were nothing but vague reminders of the humanity they once possessed. Now their bones and flesh were gnarled monstrosities, sharp talons jutted from their bony fingers and bony teeth lined their maws. Clamoring and crawling, snarling and chattering the mutated monsters erupted from the cellar below.
Enel met the creatures with a withering fusillade of lighting bolts. He chuckled at the pathetic creatures and yelled, “bow before your god you wretches!”
Another wave of the mutants charged forth, pushing back against Enel’s onslaught. The sheer amount of creatures pouring from the deeper reaches of the building forced him to take a step back. Every monstrosity that he slayed was soon replaced by an equally repulsive beast. Enel scowled, this task was turning into quite the ordeal. A bolt of blue flame zipped past Enel’s head and carved a hole into one of the mutants. Not even a beat later a series of similar bolts of blue charged past the god. The flaming bullets left smoldering holes in their targets, the blue flame consuming flesh and bone alike. Enel raised his eyebrows and looked over his shoulder.
Behind him stood a small squad of what appeared to be robots. The humanoid figures carried smoking rifles and a sphere of light blue energy crackled around them. Their bodies were covered in grey plasteel plates. Sunken in their helmets bright red orbs sparkled in the sunlight, beneath their shiny exterior sat a simple targeting display. In the center of the robotic humans stood a tall slender figure. Her body was covered from head to toe with silver and gold armor. Atop her head sat a perpetually burning blue flame, almost as if her body was a torch for the blaze. In her right hand danced wisps of that familiar azure blaze, each tongue of the fire spreading eagerly out trying to find something to devour. He helmet held no slots for eyes, but she seemed to command the battlefield ordering her soldiers to move with only simple hand gestures.
The rank and file soldiers rushed forward, their movements tactical and precise. They had slain many of these creatures before and they certainly knew how to handle them. Enel watched as the knights set to work, turning down his own power in favor of letting them do the heavy lifting. The creatures seemed to ignore the cobalt bolts tearing into their flesh, fighting until their twisted bodies finally collapsed under the weight of injury. Eventually after what seemed like an eternity the deluge of mutants trickled down to a few stragglers. The leader of the outfit took a moment of silence, looking over the smoldering corpses of her enemies before addressing Enel.
“Greetings, I am Carmine of the Frigid Flame, and these are my knights.” She paused for a moment, seemingly eyeing Enel from top to bottom, “never thought I would have seen another human out here.”
Enel scowled and removed a finger from his nostril, “ah, well you see I am no mere human. I am Enel, the God of all creation.”
A pregnant moment of awkward silence was shared between the two. Carmine glanced away from the boisterous prime. Her knights were hard at work executing the survivors and setting the corpses ablaze with their signature fire. Enel raised an eyebrow and asked, “so, what’s the deal with the fire?”
Carmine raised her hand a ignited a small pyre in her right palm and spoke, “it is the only humane way to release these creatures from their tortured existence. The frigid flame is painless, its touch feels no more painful than the soothing kiss of a fall breeze upon your skin. Even these twisted monstrosities deserve a painless escape from their existence.”
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 03-12-2016
My face is blank. “Interesting,” I lie. I find her misplaced compassion wholly bizarre. The only thing wretched creatures like this understand is pain and death. To remove that … where was the fun?
“What are you doing out here?” I enquire with a finger. “Don’t suppose Roland dispatched you, too?”
“No,” she says in that strong but strangely echoed tone, etched with the accent of a faraway land. “We passed through The Town with No Name on our way through the desert, but we are simply purging those who wrack the wastes.”
I shrug. “Sounds good. I mean, if you’re all done here, there’s no point me wasting my time.” Then, just as I’m about to turn away, I remember something and click my fingers. “Say, how long have you been here?”
Her face is invisible beneath that overwrought helmet, but I can sense she is judging me. “Who knows. We have passed through many verses. We are on a pilgrimage as much as a mission of cleansing. What is your name?”
“Enel,” I say, waving away the errant question. “When you were travelling, did you encounter any link or leads to finding … the one they call Omni?”
“…. We did not.”
“Ksss.” Worth a try. “Well, I’ll let you get back to it then.”
What a waste of time. I whistle for Crispy the Dragon.
* * * * *
Back in town, I slam my palm down on Roland’s desk.
“Factory’s dead.”
He raises an eyebrow. “That was quick.”
“I’m made of lightning. Now can I get my reward, or do I have to demonstrate?”
He shoots me a look of disgust that I wouldn’t have tolerated from anyone else. “What you’re looking for is in the middle of the Dunes. It’s called the Dark Tower.”
“The Dark Tower… And what do I do when I get there?”
A shimmer of something crosses Roland’s eyes. He better not be hiding anything from me. “You’ll find out.”
I growl. “That’s it? I went all the way out is the wastelands and destroyed a factory so you could tell me I need to go find a tower? How about some directions?”
“I’m not done,” he says. “Out there in the wastes, there’s monsters worse than anything you’ve ever seen. One of them is named Jhen Mohran.”
He stands up. “Old Jhen has been part of the desert as long as we’ve been here, we think. He’s like a force of nature. And you can’t kill him. Not with your bare hands.”
I grimace. “Why not?”
Roland laughs. “Because he’s the size of a small town and he’ll eat you alive if you get close to him. No, you need a crew. Something that’ll let you take down the beast. Even then it’s no guarantee.”
I think upon his words. With my old powers, perhaps, but …
And then I think back to the crew who’d been destroying the factory. They seemed to have it together. Maybe I could come worse them into doing my bidding for me? Hell knows, this ‘Jhen Mohran’was as big a blight as anything if Roland was to be believed.
“And that’s it?” I say.
“And that’s it,” he says. “Unless you feel like doing so more jobs for me.”
I slide him a supercilious grin before I exit out the door.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 03-16-2016
“So all I have to do,” I tell Crispy, “Is get to the middle of the desert, kill this giant monster, and find the big tower. Then it should lead me straight to Omni, and then fame, and then glory, and also power.”
Easy.
I ride out into the desert.
I ride for several hours.
As night falls, I begin to realise why Roland had wanted the train tracks finished.
It’s freezing cold, pitch black and even with the torch I’ve summoned I can barely see five feet in front of my face. I shiver in the darkness. The wind howls like a wild wolf and I try to imagine how far out the land stretches on each side of me. It’s like an ocean of sand. And I sit in the middle of it. I do not feel fear — I am above such human things — but without the entirety of my powers I begin to wonder what creatures live out here. It would not do to be caught unawares.
“Crispy,” I order my dragon. “Stand watch for daddy.”
He snorts. He’s not a smart one, is Crispy, but he is damn loyal.
On my ride this far I had been considering what Roland had said about a crew. Of course, my enforcers from the real world could possibly be brought here — and I’m sure they’d do the job well enough. I mean, they served a purpose for me. They were all strong. Compliant. And suitably proficient in haki. But they were a bit … off. Particularly Satori and his two brothers.
If I had a choice, would I summon a gang of weird dudes with vocal tics and questionable motives? Like hell I would. I’d probably summon a bunch of those Amazonian women from the island of women, Amazon Lily, as spoken of in legends. Those would be the sickest bodyguards! As strong as they were beautiful. Of course, women could never be as strong or able as men in real life, but this was a fantasy. With omnilium, I could make whatever I wanted!
And what if instead of just women, they were snake women? With huge breasts? And laser eyes? They could guide me through the desert by day, and by night they could wrap me in their scaly embraces. “Enel,” they would croon, “God Enel. Did you know snakes can swallow some things whole?”
God damn. I’m a god damn genius.
I begin to summon.
It takes way, way longer than I expect. I don’t even know how much time has passed, but it’s at least a few hours before I can feel the rainbow globe begin to soften. I can barely contain my excitement. Finally, two forms free themselves from the abyss. They come into the torchlight.
“Enel,” spoke the first, whose rusty scales shone with a copper-brown hue, “Would you like me to cook you some meat with my laser eyes?”
I grinned.
The second moved forward. She flicked her green hair towards me, green eyes and green scales just as I’d envisioned them. “Enel,” she moaned. “Would you like me to warm you with my body?”
I clapped my hands together. “Yes, girls. But first, tell me one thing. What am I?”
Their voices melded into one. “A genius, God Enel.”
“You’re goddamn right.”
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 09-02-2016
Holy Me. What time is it?
I moan and roll over, burying my face in Emerald’s bust. “Bht toim ij it?” I motorboat.
“Jusst passt eight o’ clock,” she hisses. “Lord, you’ll burn if you don’t summon a cloak.”
I look down upon my bed sheets. I find it highly annoying that they didn’t bring a change of clothes for me; I suppose I didn’t specify that when I summoned them, but it seems like common sense. I sigh.
A few minutes later, I have a new set of clothes and a white cloak that covers my neck with its golden-furred hem. It wouldn’t do to be mistaken for some commoner, even a very strong and well-courted one. I stand with my arms crossed while my attendants change my clothes and fasten my new cloak about my shoulders.
“Well then,” I boom. “No time like the present.”
We resume our journey. The snake women are fast enough to keep up with me on mount; just like myself, they’re naturally quick. I send them off to hunt for breakfast, but when they return almost an hour later it’s scorpions and sand ferrets they haul in tow. By the looks of it they’re as mutated as the freaks from the power station. I idly wonder where those ‘paladins’ are now, and what their leader, Carmine, looks like under that armour. It’s unbecoming of a female to keep herself covered up so. Not for long, anyway.
Disappointed in my new charges, I decide to summon my own breakfast. As punishment, they must eat what they caught. To my mild chagrin, they wolf it down as though it were my South Bird Eggs Benedict with Sahasrahlan Mayonnaise. I suppose lizards will be lizards. Crispy licks his lips as I feed him the scraps before discarding the plate.
Another day sets and no sign of any tower. No sign of anything. Even my Godly patience has limits. When I rise the morrow, I shall have to change my strategy.
My dreams are disturbed. The women with which I lie grow larger, more monstrous. I awake and I am up to my neck in the mouth of Copper, her mouth distended unnaturally. I struggle but my muscles are weak. It feels as though I’m sapped of my energy. I feel a great gaping hole beneath my feet and I begin to fall down into the depths of her cavernous stomach.
I awake with a shock. It’s still chilly though the morning sun has begun to rise. My charges look to me.
“What is it, my lord?” Copper asks of me with seemingly innocent eyes.
“Stay there,” I command. I stand up and take five paces before turning. I raise my hand.
“El Thor,” I rumble.
The beam from my hand erupts and envelops them in a blinding light. They scream as their scales blacken and burn in the heat. A second later and they are wiped from the surface of this desert. A black stain marks the place where my bedding once was.
I take my coat from the saddle on Crispy’s back and tuck it around my shoulders. You can never be too careful with women.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 09-02-2016
Try as I might, my mantra cannot pick up anything. It used to be such that I could listen to the conversations of citizens all across my country. Now it’s all I can do to see an attack coming a moment before it strikes. I must train more. I must unlock my powers if I’m to face Omni in one-on-one battle.
Out here in the desert I find myself reflecting. A lesser man might turn back, but I simply turn within to the machinations of my mind. A god is not simply powerful but wise, and I am the wisest of all. Even now I am mapping out the rules and limits of Omni’s game. No devil fruit is flawless, not even my own. It takes persistence and skill to mask its weaknesses as Omni has done. But we see, soon, whose virtues are the greater.
In the midst of the desert I find a branch. Desiccated and hollow. I come closer to find that it is a bone. I dismount and inspect it. It makes me wonder how many before me have travelled this path. For all it matters, I am the first. There will be no aid here. Of that I have come to be certain. After all, how could I ever defeat the one known as Omni if I cannot beat a simple desert?
I look back towards Crispy. He has come this far, but surely could not make it back alone. I beckon towards him. He comes towards me, his great length leaving a trail through the sands, and fixes upon me with those seemingly-ancient yellow eyes. Only I know the truth that he is a mere infant, and could not survive without me.
I do the merciful thing. I place my hand on his head and draw the omnilium from his body, siphoning it back to within myself. He writhes and screeches as his colour and lean muscles give way to grey wisps of desiccation.
Now, I am alone.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 09-02-2016
Days.
Weeks.
Months.
I do not know how long it has been.
For every moment I find a sign of life, a sign of something out here, there are endless moments for which there is merely. Sand. I find my mind endlessly replaying the odd moments of stimuli which have cropped up over the course of my journey. A broken egg shell. Animal bones. Dunes which seemed almost like giants’ footsteps. I wonder if this is what Omni enjoys watching. I’ll admit to revelling in watching heathens get their comeuppance, but surely this is not entertaining.
Time and time again I have battled my urge to turn back. To resummon Crispy. But that is exactly what Omni wants. And besides, I cannot turn back now. I have come too far.
So I dull my senses. Let time drift over me like the endless setting suns. Somewhere in the back of my mind I try to remember each step, each heavy breath, each time I have to stop to eat, and drink, and piss, and shit. I keep it all somewhere, so that when I reach Omni I can remember why I’m there. I can make him pay for the wasted weeks of my life.
For that time must come. No space is boundless. The end …
… Eventually …
… Comes.
The wind has changed. I feel it. I’m more aware than ever. I don’t need my mantra to sense some things.
The sun sets to my left, illuminating a great flat expanse that seems to lead down. I am on course. I step forward. Down. Down into Its arena.
Even in the scorching middays it took to get here, I don’t remember sweating this much. I’m … suddenly acutely aware of how soft the sand is beneath my feet. I imagine how far down it must go. As I take my steps I watch the soft grains rise up between my toes and tread carefully.
All the time it’s taken for me to reach this point no longer matters. I’m entirely fixated in the moment. My eyes are focused entirely on that point ahead of me.
That far-off, black ridge.
As I step toward it it grows larger. At first I think this is because I am getting closer to it. But as the ridge grows taller, I realise it is also getting closer to me.
I stop dead in my tracks.
It continues to grow closer.
I whip my staff out from its place upon my back. It’s been waiting, months, just for this exact moment. Moving helps release the pent-up energy. I channel it upwards into the staff and lightning streaks out.
It’s like the ridges of a mountain are moving towards me. The closer it gets the larger I realise it is. And the more of it there is. It continues to rise up, up, wider, wider. My staff spins furiously. The ridge emerges. What at first looks like an outcrop of land, a small platform attached to the mountains is … is …
A head. Eyes. Tusks. Teeth. Each one bigger than me.
I scream and unleash the torrent of lightning. The beast’s howl is louder than any thunderstorm. I can feel the sand beneath my feet vibrating.
“No!”
I fire bolt after bolt forward, carefully aiming for its face. It’s so far off I can’t aim for the eyes or anything more definite.
It lives … so it can DIE!
It rises up, further still, out of the sand. Its mouth is open. It’s diving for me!
Even with my speed, it takes everything I have to get out of the way. I can barely feel the sand beneath my feet as I kick off it. Every hair on my body stands on end as I feel the largest force I have ever felt pass beside me. I scrabble and kick against the tumulting sands as yet more of its body passes me by. Then it’s done.
My heart hammers. I’ve pissed myself – a natural reaction of the brain which happens to everyone, and a matter of little consequence. I keep my focus as best as I can, turning to see the creature’s wake and still hopping to avoid being sucked down into the sandy pit it has left behind it.
It gets further away before turning in a wide arc and fixing its trajectory on me. I channel more electricity into my arms and fire. Fire. Fire. Ohshitit’scomingtowardsmeagainrunrunrun.
But this time it turns! Damn stupid beast! I feel its earthquake footstep closing in on me. So I do what I must.
I stop, plant my feet, and backflip as high as I can. As I do so, I twist – allowing me to see the creature as its head closes in – and place my hands out in front of me. I touch its iron-wrought skin just long enough to flip forward off my hands. Its forward momentum would flatten a less skilful acrobat, but I cartwheel upwards into the sky above its body.
And fall upon its back.
My pants are ripped from the fall and my leg hurts but it’s not my greatest concern. Before the creature has a chance to dive, I must slay it. I grab onto the ridge at my side and pour my electricity through it. I channel my hate, my fury, my sheer unbridled power into its body with everything I have.
It gives out a roar. I know I’ve hurt it. Clarity fills me. I pour yet more of my electricity into its form.
Then my stomach jumps into my teeth. The ‘land’ drops beneath me. I’m falling. As I do so, I catch a glimpse of its gigantic tail submerging into the sand. It sucks me down behind it and even as I scrabble, the ocean of gold closes around me. My legs are buried. I choke on the cloud of blinding, scorching sand and scream in defiance, punching one hand out. Upwards towards freedom.
The tremors begin to fade. For a moment I feel nothing. Is it over? Was that the trial? I can live, I can escape, I can finally reach Omni …
The sand rumbles again. I can feel it coming from below. My breath stops in my chest.
It erupts from the sand, its jaws close around me and the sunset gives way to darkness.
Something pierces me. Crushes me. I’m too weak to scream.
In the depths of its belly, I die.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 03-28-2017
The first thing I am aware of is a sharp jabbing in my ribs. I grimace in pain and hear a voice. Maybe several voices. What are they speaking? I can’t make it out.
“Mama noo, jibi abe.”
“Wata nano, ketch ibi kobi!”
I force myself to open my eyes to the blinding sun. After a few seconds I can begin to make out … hooded figures. Glowing eyes.
“Utini!”
I scrabble backwards across the sand and point a sparking finger at them. “Get back!” I growl. “Scabs!”
They jump back. It’s then I notice how particularly short they are, and how ….
“Hey, that’s my staff!” I exclaim.
The nearest one looks down at what its holding, and back to me. “Ya!” it squeaks, and jabs it menacingly in the air in my direction.
“You dog …!” I reach for the staff, but my legs won’t find the floor. I reach upwards, and manage only to sprawl over myself like I’m disabled. “Kuh …!” I’m fucking thirsty. And tired.
What happened to me?
The Nexus. Its white, vast expanse.
Blood …
I remember blood on myself.
Walking, holding the claret in my chest with one hand while the other dragged my staff behind me.
The last familiar point. The gate.
The sun hit me and the unnaturally-still and cool air of the Nexus gave way to the blistering heat. That heat I had grown so familiar to.
I began my walk towards The Town With No Name. Too tired to summon a mount. It wasn’t far, I was sure. But perhaps farther than I expected.
It took longer and longer. Until finally I wondered if I had taken a wrong turn. I had to sit down. To catch my breath.
When was this? How long had I lain in the sands?
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 04-06-2017
As I ponder this, the little creature with my staff starts legging it. “Oi!” say I, blearily pointing my palm in its direction. A blast of electricity as finely-aimed as a morning piss shoots out of my hand and arcs across the beast’s body, sending him flying into the sands with burnt robes. I struggle to my feet as the remaining two creatures babble and look up at me, scared. I grin.
“The staff,” I say, holding out my hand.
One of the remaining two, clearly more shrewd than its face-down compadre, walks over to the fallen staff, picks it up, and brings it to me. It bows its head down, kneels, and places the staff above its head. I snatch it up.
“Good boy.” I smirk.
The one I zapped seems to be still alive. He wakes up, and turns to gaze upward at me.
Heh. “Got anything to say?”
It takes a step toward me, and I regard it with increasing amusement and curiosity. As it approaches, it stoops into the sand and sinks onto its knees, just like its compadre. They hum in worship.
Finally. “Finally! Someone who recognises me as the god I am!” I grin and hold my staff over them before raising it. “Rise, minions. Take me to your fort.”
“Ajaba, utano. Ijib ijib ijib!” The wisest one stands, nodding feverishly before motioning to me, bowing with deferential motions as it does so. “Ijibi!”
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 05-28-2017
Quote:Shattered Sands takes place in-between the last post and this post.
I was tired, now I’m shattered. I lean on my staff and turn to the first of my disciples. “This home of yours better be close by.”
“Ujabo.”
I’m going to take that as a yes. If it’s not a yes, I’m going to do some more stabbing.
We trudge through the sands for far too long until – finally – we come across a large vehicle in the distance. They point it out excitedly. This is their home.
Shit. I should’ve just headed for that nameless town.
As we approach, swarms of them spill out to greet the newcomers and assess me. My disciples run forward.
They point to me and spill words in hushed tones. Cries of what sound like awe and doubt go through the rapidly-assembling crowd. Finally, the first of my followers turns to me and kneels. Then the next two. Then the ones behind.
I grin. I could certainly use some more cannon fodder.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 05-29-2017
They’re called ‘jawas’, and despite appearances, their home is actually surprisingly advanced for such crude beings. But it’s horribly cobbled-together. I don’t think there’s more than a square foot that comes from the same source of tech.
I can’t stand it. I want to do something about it right now, but I’m exhausted.
“Bed!” I bark at Number One, Two and Three, and they babble enthusiastically, leading me towards a dark chamber.
… It’s a store room, filled with canisters of gasoline and other components. I snarl.
“Fuck this.”
I exit the sandcrawler and float upwards to the top of it. There, I work on summoning a bedchamber that’s at least reasonable. I’m far too tired to focus on anything truly worthy of myself, but I at least summon a nice feather-pillow bed, enclosed in a small dome-shaped room that’s fixed to the top of the sandcrawler. I crawl into my nice, dark tomb and collapse into exhaustion.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 06-08-2017
It’s a mutually beneficial exchange.
I power their machines, fuelling the sandcrawler with my powers. We’ve already rigged up a huge rechargeable battery.
I protect them from larger predators. The wastes are harsh, and Jhen Mohran has many smaller cousins. They make good practice for the confrontation to come.
In exchange, they work for me.
I stand atop the sandcrawler, at my throne. I’ve already modified the roof to be my mobile canopy; a lavish bedroom that looks out at the stars, and a throne affixed to the head of the vehicle where I can sit and give orders. A small hatch leads down to the vehicle proper. My right-hand jawa, One, is standing above it now, barking orders at the worker drones.
Before us, a cliffside looms. I can see several gaps in the rock, and as we approach, the glint of glass. I grin. “Better get down, One,” I rumble.
He understands, ducking into the hatch. As always, he lingers for a moment to watch the sparks build around my body. He thinks I don’t see. But God sees all.
Every night I meditate, and I feel my power returning to me. It is still a foul business, that I must lower myself to mortal methods. As far back as I can remember, even before the awakening of my true power, I have always had the ability to sense the things around me – a natural extension of my godlike will – and so to have it removed was heretical. I understand that Omni wishes to put all of his … ‘participants’ … on a level playing field for his … game. But one shouldn’t handicap the naturally gifted in order to give weaklings a chance. There will always be those who are strong, and those who are weak. It is the natural order of things. Even here, that order reasserts itself given enough time. Case in point.
I relax into the ritual, letting my instincts take hold. The first sniper bullet comes, and I duck under it. Thus begins the first stage of the dance.
I pound one of the drums on my back with my Nonosama Bo. The beat rings out, and I feel my pulse stir. I spin the staff before hitting the drum on the opposite side. More bullets come, and as they do, I step around them, feeling the flow of my enemies’ intents and continuing to charge my power. The jawas begin to hoot and cry from within their armored fortress, and the tribal sounds lend a primal edge to my ritual. I’m enjoying this. Being involved with my subjects directly, for the first time in a long time. It is humbling, but … freeing.
Finally we’re close enough to see the attackers individually. It’s time.
I lead the gathered electricity out through the conduit of my staff, in a great beam. For effect, I form the lightning into the shape of a dragon’s head. They must be made to fear me as God.
They’ve only a moment to appreciate my glory before the dragon’s head crashes into the cliffside, exploding and taking out a huge chunk of it. As the rubble falls I spy four of five humans falling to their probable deaths.
The hole into the bandit’s lair is now open. I spin my staff before returning it to my side and taking off towards the entrance.
The lair is disgusting. Even I don’t know how long they’ve been here, but it looks like too long. The stone walls are lit by torches, and in the dim light I can see rubbish, bones, scraps of meat and …. Is that … fecal matter? I keep my feet floating a good few inches above the ground.
I could fry them all to hell, but I’ve become rather fond of a good beating lately. It’s … electrifying to let them come at me with their sabers and knives, waiting for the moment before they strike to dodge. One of them tries to feint me; it’s adorable. For his trouble, I break his neck with an elbow.
They come at me in their droves. Dozens turn into over a hundred corpses. When it’s over, I’m panting and my body feels tingly and numb. I’ve ended up somewhere in the bowels of the den. I may have gotten a little carried away.
I spin up my staff again, digging deep for one more Lightning Storm in order to break a hole back out through the wall. By this point I’m covered in dirt, and I’m more than happy to step out and let the jawas swarm in.
They’ll take anything of value. Generators, oil, scrap metal and food. Nothing I’d touch, of course, but the jawas will eat anything and they’ll trade what they don’t eat. More omnilium for me. More power. The best part? I don’t even have to deal with the local populace. The jawas don’t try to make conversation with me either. It’s mutually beneficial, as I said.
But though the last few weeks have seen my life take on a routine of sorts, I’ve not forgotten my ultimate goal. Hell, it’s all I can do to stay away from it. Marching into the desert showed me that I couldn’t approach this as I might have normally. If playing Omni’s game is what he wants, that’s what he’ll get. For now.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 06-10-2017
Our travels take us all across the region, and I find myself eagerly anticipating my return to civilization. It’s information I seek, and I’m not getting much from the jawas.
The sandcrawler stops some way out of a large city, and I’ve left even before it rolls to a stop. The buildings here are somewhat rustic-looking, in a charming way, with stone that matches the colour of the dusty ground, and open windows that channel the wind. I fly until I reach somewhere looking rather more commercial, and then drop down, seizing the attention of the closest person I see, some man.
“You there! Information. Where can I find information?”
He staggers, but a snap of my fingers brings him back to attention. “There’s … there’s a library on this street,” he says, pointing.
I turn and fly over, no time to waste. Before long I come across a large building, more modern-looking than the others, with a pillared entrance and a sign in front saying “Carrefore Public Library”. I storm in.
I’ve never seen any building quite like it. For the first time, I consider that perhaps I am in some alien world – that Omni might be a rival god, perhaps. That or he has some serious imagination. There’s a woman sitting behind a desk and a gated entrance. I raise an eyebrow before addressing the female.
“Ey, woman. I wish to access your stores of information. Do you need some …” I rotate my wrist, wishing to get past the formalities, “Greasing or something?”
She blinks. “Greasing?”
“Money. Do I need to pay you to access your stores of information.” God, do I have to explain everything?
She displays the slightest of head tilts. “No, this is a free library. You just need to sign up.”
How laborious. I sigh before taking the form and filling it in, answering a number of mundane questions before handing it back to her.
She scans the paper briefly before looking up at me. “You don’t have a surname? Just ‘Enel’?”
“Enel, yes. You’ve not heard of me?”
She continues. “And it says here your race is … God?”
I spread my arms wide, letting her view my bare chest. “Need any more proof?”
She looks at me with a completely blank face. Then says, “We’ll need to take a picture. For your card.”
“Naturally.” Fusty old slut.
She pulls out a very odd-looking Picture Dial before snapping my shot. A few minutes later she hands me an odd, smooth square of something that shows my name and picture. “The hell is this?”
“Your … library card? You’ll need it to use our services.”
“Right. And what exactly are those?”
“Books,” she says dryly. “We have computers where you can use the Dataverse, printing, photocopy--”
“Hang on, hang on. What the fuck is the Dataverse?”
She sighs and turns her head away from me, most disrespectfully. I grit my teeth. If I didn’t need their information, I’d be burning this place to the ground. Maybe I will if they don’t have what I need. “Donny,” she calls, and a skinny pimpled motherfucker with shoulder-length brown hair approaches. “Could you show this … gentleman how to use the computers?”
“Right this way, sir,” he squeaks in about eight different intonations.
Finally. I follow him to a series of desks, upon which sit raised rectangles of smooth, black glass. There’s some sort of input device beneath it; a loose panel with a bunch of buttons, and a black oval attached to a wire. He moves the oval and the glass suddenly changes colours, displaying a bunch of icons and logos. I try not to show my surprise. What is this?
“Sir, does your world have the Internet?” he asks, devoid of any intonation.
“Internet?” What the fuck is going on?
“The Internet is a communications tool used the world over where people can come together to share ideas and information,” he continues, as though he says this one hundred times per day. “The Dataverse is the Omniverse’s version of the Internet.”
“So I can climb into this thing?” I ask, pointing at the glass window. “It’s a portal?”
“Err … no … sort of,” he says. “This is just a screen. You can look at the Dataverse on this, but not enter.”
“But I could enter, if the window was large enough?”
“Uhh … yes?” he says, but he sounds unsure even of himself.
I push my hand against the ‘screen’ to test it. Instead of passing through, my hand simply pushes it over. It sparks and I jump back. Damn thing seems to be vulnerable to my power.
“Your portal is broken,” I say.
Donny takes a step back, voice rising. “I am sorry sir but you will have to leave.” His voice still sounds like he’s reading from a script, even though he might be about to piss himself.
Man, fuck the library.
A few minutes later, the library is a burning wreck and everybody inside is dead. I fly back to the sandcrawlers, whistling to the tune of sirens. It doesn’t matter. I got what I needed. All I need to do is summon one of my own ‘computers’ and I’ll be able to connect to the ‘Dataverse’ and find all the information I need.
I land on the sandcrawler and bang my foot. “Let’s get moving, people!”
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 06-10-2017
Back on the road, I focus on summoning my own ‘Computer’. It isn’t long before I have my own screen and control-panel. I’d wished for something that let me search for information, and the first thing that pops up on the screen is a hot lady asking me what I want to know.
“Hmm. Tell me, ‘computer’-woman, what is the Omniverse?”
A list of underlined phrases pop up. I press my finger against the screen to access one and it flickers before changing, the background of the screen switching instantaneously from a welcoming blue to a forboding black.
I read. It’s some nutjob’s theories about Omni and the Omniverse. Holy Me, is this a cult?
Not a bad idea, actually.
Despite the religious tone, it’s got a helpful amount of information on the locations that the other gates in the place I arrived in lead to. Apparently, this ‘world’ is made up of many worlds, each with their own biomes and civilizations. And if this ‘Nealapph’ is to be believed, the Omniverse has existed for over a decade.
Well then. That settles it.
I’m up against a rival god.
I smirk. Of course, Omni would have been jealous of my powers. This world was a sucker-punch, a surprise attack. And from that, I can infer that in a real fight, I’d win.
Right now, I’m at a disadvantage. He’s made the world very difficult to escape. But not impossible. Not for me.
I wonder if Roland encountered Omni and found his own power wanting. To be sure, the Rival God has some power, if he was able to construct such a world. He’s also done a pretty good job of obscuring the limits of his strength. Truth be told, I don’t know what else he can do. But I’ll find out.
I consider writing an email to this ‘Nealapph’ individual before deciding against it. I don’t really like the idea of relying on someone else’s power, and by the sounds of it, this guy is trying to form a rival faction to mine. I mean sure, my faction so far only consists of myself, a bunch of jawas, and a town of redheads that may-or-may-not hate my guts, but it’s still way better than his, because it has a genuine God at the head. This guy acts like a God, but isn’t really.
Arrogant prick.
I spend a while reading from various sites about the Omniverse before I burn myself out. I lay back on my bed and shut my eyes.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 06-12-2017
If there’s one thing the various sites were in agreement upon, it’s that omnilium is power. I hadn’t really been taking notice, but now, when I think about it, I can sense the amount of omnilium on my person.
It’s … not much.
And so the next thing I ask the computer, when I get up, is:
“How do I make omnilium?”
There’s one caption, sponsored, that’s lit up and covers half the screen.
Dante’s Abyss – Do you have what it takes to survive!?
I press the screen, calling up more information. It’s some kind of survival tournament. Big cash prizes.
I think for a second. Entering a tournament is beneath me. Gods don’t need to prove themselves to anyone.
Or … they shouldn’t need to.
But I can’t risk a repeat of what had happened before. I need more power, more forces, and for all of that I need omnilium. When I face Jhen Mohran again, I want to eat him.
Signups in major cities across the Omniverse!
Carrefore is a little hot right now.
A little hot … I crack me up.
The Town With No Name it is, then.
Quote:To Dante’s Abyss!
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 07-16-2017
Back where I started, at the Town With No Name. Right on the bandstand I started on. Oh, and there’s …!
“Pigtails!”
It’s the hyperkinetic neon-redhead who signed me up for the competition. Except she looks far less hyperkinetic now. Positively hypokinetic. In fact, she looks like she might throw up.
“G-God E-E-Enel!” she splutters. “That’s-” She looks around. “Wow, I forgot you’d be coming back here! Congratulations on getting so far in the competition.”
“Hmph.” I can’t hide my demeanour. “Did you know some of the competitors were doping?” I round on her, leaning on my staff.
She holds her hands out, taking a step back. “I-it’s true that items were permitted for this competition. If you had read the small print-”
My lip curls. “More cheats. I can smell the lies coming off your breath.”
She takes a step back and topples from the bandstand. Clearly she was so afraid, she forgot where she was! My anger can’t hold up under such stupidity. I laugh, even turning to the other, male Syntech assistant, who joins in with me. “SHE FUCKING FELL OVER!” I bellow, hooting and widening my eyes at him. His laughter burgeons even over mine.
I can hear the pigtail woman’s pained sobs. She probably really hurt herself!
Man … it’s the simple things in life. I clap my new laughing companion on the back and make to leave. It’s just then that someone else steps through the portal.
“Uh …. God …. Enel?” I hear a robot say.
I turn and it’s not a robot, just a human being with a robot’s job and voice. A courier. “The one and only,” I dryly respond.
He hands me a box. “Package for you. Prize for collecting the second-most objects in the competition.” My, it’s like listening to someone imitate a zombie.
I take the package and he vanishes back through the portal. I glance around before unwrapping it. There’s a small crowd of onlookers. “Get out of here, scram!” I yell, before opening the box and peeking in.
A fucking … a fucking …
“Oi!” I yell at my previously-gay companion. “The fuck is this?!”
He looks over, into the box, and snorts for one millionth of a second before catching himself. His face writhes like there are snakes beneath it and he responds. “It’s ….” He clutches himself suddenly before rearing up, the snakes wriggling as though trying to get free. “It’s a … a ballgag, sir.”
He turns tail and runs, at that point. Screaming. Screaming with laughter.
Come on. It’s not that funny. God.
I turn back to the box, taking the ballgag out. There’s a note.
Only lightly-used. Kisses - KJ
I nearly drop it. What the fuck? I stuff it back into the box and deep, deep down into my subconscious.
I need booze. I need booze and I need it now.
I make my way over to the nearest tavern, checking twitter as I do so. Where the hell are these guys!?
“Barkeep!” I call out as I step in. “Bring me whatever you have that’s most expensive, and get everyone else a round of whatever they’re drinking. God Enel’s in town, and he’s feeling generous!”
A cheer goes up from the whole room. Now that’s more like it. Soon, folks are going to know my name around here!
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 08-09-2017
I take the pint of brownish-looking ale that’s thrust before me and I eye it suspiciously. Eh, fuck it. I chug the disgusting-looking liquid fast enough that I don’t have to taste it. Phew! I let out a belch.
“Got anything stronger, barkeep? Anything transparent?”
The unkempt-looking barkeep wiggles a bottle. “Tequila?”
“Give it.” I snatch the bottle without much resistance and chug away. Damn, that’s the shit! I can feel my toes going numb. After a third of the bottle is done, I slam it back down on the counter. “Now let’s party!”
Frankly, partying with these inbreds isn’t exactly what I had in mind. Every now and then, I check twitter. I realise that it’s not … the best avenue for private communication. I can find a bunch of tweets with my name on, and congratulations, but none from anyone I give a shit about. A bunch of nerds are planning on coming out here to meet me. Oh, great.
Right on cue, a bunch of cosplayers come through the door. Covered in weird silvery armour, visored helmets and … oh wait, those aren’t cosplayers, those are …!
“Enel.” I recognise their leader. Why does her appearance make my blood run cold?
“Aren’t you …?” I try to remember the name. “Claud … i … a? Of the uh … blue fire guys.”
Her next statement is an announcement, not a response. “I am Carmine, of the Paladins of the Frigid Flame.” That was it. But why does she look so … intent? We barely spoke the last time we met.
Confirming my suspicions outright, she reaches to a sheath at her side and very slowly draws a blade. I say ‘blade’ – it’s more of a number of blades, intertwined together and wreathed in sparkling blue flame. It looks more ornamental than functional, but I can appreciate that. Gotta give the peasants something to fear.
I kick up from my barstool angrily. “For what do you disturb my revelry, Carmine?! I just got out of a long competition and had to kill a lot of people to earn this money. Now I just want to relax and spend it on a few drinks.”
Her voice comes slightly flanged through the visor. I wonder what she looks like under there? She’s got the curves, but I bet she’s got some kinda alien face. Shit, I didn’t pay any attention to what she was saying. Something about a blood sport? She takes a step forward. “… Did you forget!?”
“What now?”
I hear a hiss of air through the visor. From the way she punctuates each word, it’s as if she’s repeating herself or talking down to me. “The library! In Carrefore! You burned it down!” She turns to the rest of the room. “Listen, all of you! I have no quarrel with you. Leave this bar and we’ll have no problem.”
The barkeep is shouting. “Take it outside, take it outside!”
I cross my arms. “Yeah, Carmine.” The guys behind me don’t seem exactly brave, but they’re drunk enough and know they like me more than the guys in metal armour. “Fight me outside, like a man.”
“Very well.” She sheathes her sword. “We will take this away from civilization, as you request. But you will not esc-”
I lob a stool at the back of her head, and pandemonium erupts. Most of the bar tries to exit through the back, but a few braver ones leap forward to’ard the knights. I try to leave them out of the cone of lightning I send in Carmine’s direction. It engulfs her and the knights behind her, and I maintain it for as long as I’m able. The drunkards on my side only buy me a second before they’re ablaze and then – just gone.
Shit. I cut off my stream to dodge blue flames from the left and right. A pincer movement – they’re organised. Darting backwards, I toss a couple bolts into their midst, and it connects nicely. But the ones I’ve shocked are quick to recuperate, and they close in now.
Mantra.
Flames from the fore, left, right, and above!
I flip backwards but not fast enough. The whole bar is on fire now. Fuckin’ ironic, don’t you think?
I burst out through the back door, practically breaking through the already-open frame in my haste to escape. My eyebrows, pants and shoes are all on fire, and I dive into the sand, rolling, to put them out.
“Damn it …!” I curse back at the figure who now emerges from the flaming establishment, accompanied by her followers. “You’ve pissed me off, bitch!”
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 08-11-2017
The name’s Shura. And apparently, I interest Omni enough to become a Prime.
I won’t bore you with the story of how I got here. I’m sure it’s the same as every other person to show up in the Nexus. I headed to Coruscant afterwards. Found myself a patron of the Empire.
Crazy technology, has this Empire. I knew right away that this wasn’t just the surface world, or some other part of the sky. Omni wasn’t lyin’. This wasn’t Skykansas.
‘Course, with me being here, I had to guess that my boss Enel had arrived well ahead of me. A few scans of the Dataverse confirmed that. He’d made the dumb mistake of getting on the wrong side of the Empire, right away. Killin’ stormtroopers? “God”. That’s what every fresh-faced Prime does. Me? I did the smart thing. I joined ‘em straight away. I always find the winning side.
Bein’ an Imperial’s got its perks, of course, but it has its downsides too. Obligations, for sure. Coruscant’s a dirty place. Once you get down to the real city, the bowels, it’s a cesspool the likes o’ which I ain’t never fuckin’ seen. Frankly, it makes my stomach turn. I learned a lot since comin’ here, I ain’t too proud to admit that.
But it’s what you do to make a living. The prideful get to die. I get to live comfy. That’s the difference between me and the real villains like Enel. I see things as they are. I know my limits.
Things were going peachy. I had my bird (not a girl – an actual bird, Fuza. She breathes fire, does what she’s told and I get a flying mount – it works.) I had my apartment. I had a broad two nights a week, courtesy of the Empire’s wage packet.
Until that dipshit Gedatsu came along.
I got the call on my Den Den Mushi. It was my boss, SS-371. All these stormtroopers have weird-ass names.
“Shura, is that you?”
“Boss,” I acknowledged.
“You know Enel?”
My blood ran cold. It took me a second to regain my composure. Of course, I knew this day had come. I’d thought about what I was gonna say.
“Enel?”
Play it dumb. I didn’t know what they knew.
“Man named Gedatsu just rolled into town. We caught him after he … forgot to breathe and passed out at the fountain.”
I bit my tongue. Typical Gedatsu. He wasn’t a terrible fighter, but he smoked way too much sky-weed. Man would forget his own eyeballs if they weren’t attached to him. Why him? Why not Ohm, for fuck’s sake? I’d even take one of those fat brothers over fuckin’ Gedatsu.
God dammit.
SS-371 – I privately thought of him as “Essess” – continued. “He says you and him worked for Enel back in your homeworld. Told us all about Skypiea. How Enel was the ruler back there. How come you never told us of your connection?”
I bit my tongue so hard it practically drew blood. I wanted to knock something over. “I didn’t … think it was relevant.” I smiled, keeping my tone neutral despite my overwhelming rage. Fuza was behind me, and cawed with concern. I shushed the overgrown bird, covering the receiver before continuing into the stony silence on the other end. “The past is the past, right?”
“You know the Empire values its information. Report in at once.”
“Kacha,” said the Den-Den Mushi, imitating the sound of the phone being put down.
And that is how I ended up on a mission to the Dunes, to reconnect with my old boss, Enel. Meanwhile, Gedatsu gets to stay at Coruscant, so they can assess his loyalty. Is he? That’s like asking if a snail is loyal to the guy who picks him up. Probably, unless it’s a real dumb snail, which Gedatsu is. So who the fuck knows?
I’m flying to the Town With No Name on Fuza’s back. I’ve avoided the Dunes as much as possible, out of fear of running into Enel, but I could only run away from the inevitable for so long.
And of course, there are flames on the horizon. I sigh and circle in.
RE: Operation Desert Storm <Void Quest — Gate in the Dunes> - Enel - 11-09-2017
Carmine says nothing to my taunt, which pisses me off still further. I snarl, “Fight me one on one! Cowardly whore!”
“You gave up any semblance of honor when you threw a barstool at the back of my head.”
“I don’t follow the rules,” I snap back, lightning-quick. “You should be showing respect, I’m a fucking deity!”
* * * * *
Oh, God (the actual one, if he exists). There he is. Fightin’ some shiny metal bastards I’d swear are from the Empire if I weren’t an Imperial myself.
I gnaw my nails. If I don’t step in now, and they banish him, I lose credibility with the Empire.
… On the other hand, if I do step in, I risk having my ass kicked and going down with him.
It’s been a while since I was in a fight. T’be honest I’ve not fought a single person my own strength in … a long time. In the Omniverse? Not once. But …
They look like they’re all from the same world. There’s no way they’re all Primes. Nah, the ringleader is probably a Prime, and the rest – they’re all secondaries. I can take ‘em. Maybe. Probably. With Enel’s help.
Fuck sake. There’s no time to decide – they’re going in.
I grimace. “Let’s go, Fuza!”
She screeches.
* * * * *
My hand crackles with electricity as I assume my full power. I could run, but … no. No, after losing to Tearen, my blood is already boiling. Somebody is going to die, and if it’s me, I’m taking somebody else with me.
A flash of red and purple feathers.
I blink. It takes a second, but all the Blue Flame Knights turn as well. All but one, who’s missing.
One of them erupts, “What the hell just-!”
A body crashes down in front of them. I look up.
I smile.
Finally.
Finally, someone who gets it.
“Enel!” cries Shura, my long-lost ally. Clad in full aviator gear, goggles and all, pencil moustache blowing in the wind. Call me gay but right now he’s a beautiful sight for my half-drunken eyes. And his bird! I never thought I’d see that giant purple monstrosity ever again. What was its name? It doesn’t matter!
“You beautiful bastard!” I cry. “You came home!”
“Well o’ course I did, lord,” he says. “Just arrived here in the Omniverse, and I came to find you as soon as I could!”
“Hahahaha!” I turn back to Carmine, barely containing my sneer. “Looks like the odds just evened, eh?”
Carmine turns her gaze from Shura to I, and speaks. “Take care of the flying bird man.”
Hm. There’s a dozen or so knights, but Shura should be able to keep them busy. “Good save, Shura! Now kill them all!”
Shura says nothing, but twirls his lance. Atta lad.
* * * * *
Great. Just fuckin’ great. Enel thinks I can fight twelve guys with swords and flamethrowers. The one guy was a fluke! I caught him off guard! What does he think I am, a god?! Or is he one o’ those dipshits that think Primes equate to a hundred men?
What am I sayin’? This is Enel, o’ course he believes that shit!
Luckily I got the power o’ flight an’ these guys don’t. “Fuza, back away!” I instruct her, and the beautiful beast flaps her wings to carry me backward. Meanwhile I stand forward, thrustin’ my lance at the clustered group o’ dudes. Nice little modification I made – lets me shoot flames as well as heat up the lance. I do just that, and they scatter like bugs. One of ‘em’s trying not to hit his leader, so I focus in on him. Haha, sucker.
* * * * *
One of Carmine’s men nearly jumps into her, dodging out of the way of Shura’s flame, and that distraction gives me a great opening. I jump forward, fingers tingling, and reach for her face.
But the damn bitch seems to know I’m coming, and flips sideways just as I do. Now it’s me who’s dodging the heat of Shura’s flamethrower. Son of a bitch!
I keep my eyes on Carmine as I roar. “Take it elsewhere, that nearly took my eyebrows off, Shura!”
“Right you are, boss Enel!”
He might be a Prime, but he’s not anywhere near my level. Carmine seems to wait for her troops and Shura to leave. I suppose that’s fine … I want the pleasure of beating her in a one-on-one fight.
I spin my staff. “So tell me, Carmine, what do you fear?”
“I fear much.”
I smile. Then she disappears. Eh!?
Mantra.
The barrel of a gun, smashing into the back of my head.
I spin just in time to stop it with my hand. “Ggh!” How did she …?!
Mantra.
Another gun, coming from her other hand …!
Her other hand comes up, but I’m faster. I thrust my fist up into her abdomen, charged with electricity. “Eat this, bi-”
She still shoots me. I draw back, chest bleeding. Should have known. This woman has grit.
All the better to see her broken at my feet.
* * * * *
This isn’t good. I’d been hoping to get these guys caught in Enel’s spray of electricity, use him to my advantage, but instead he’s isolated me. Not much I can do. Frankly, I probably would’a gotten caught in his electricity as well.
Fire or electricity … neither sound like good options. Where’s Ohm with that big dog when you need ‘im?
My best option – my only one – is to back away and take potshots. Any time they get close, I swoop up take refuge out of range. Still, Fuza doesn’t like this. Poor bird’s dodging blue flame left and right. Keep it together, girl.
* * * * *
Carmine’s fast. It’s not that I couldn’t move faster if I wanted to – it’s that I can’t keep up with where the hell she is. Damn it’s frustrating!
So I opt for the simple approach. Power. I wait for her to attack.
Ping, ping.
I dodge bullets. Not that kind of attack, dammit!
Mantra.
She closes from above.
That’s the one.
I let electricity surge out in every direction. Try dodging that, bitch.
I hear her cry. Oh, that’s music to my ears. I spin my staff and round on her. My swipe only grazes her, but I still feel it connect satisfyingly with bone. I must say, I don’t get in fights with many women, but it’s … invigorating. I’m actually rather aroused.
Mantra.
Bullet from the left.
Bullet from the right.
Bullets from every-which way!
Huh?!
I twirl in the air to dodge, but flaming blue bullets graze me despite my best attempts. That bitch took my idea and corrupted it! But does she really think she can beat me at big attacks?
I spot her moving and unleash a massive cone of electricity. I spark it for a second, catching a foot, then fire it again in another direction. It’s a bit random and a waste of energy, but I won’t let her run the battlefield. She’s not crying out but I know I’m catching her.
Mantra.
Blue flames!
I jump back as the flames engulf me. It doesn’t hurt at all. Stupid, really. Pain is a tool of fear. Fear lets you control your opponent. Why give that up?
I blast electricity through the cloud. I can take this flame, but can she take my electricity?
We’ll see who’s stronger.
We battle back and forth like this for some time, and I can see her weakening. Meanwhile, I feel great. I don’t feel any pain at all. I even have energy to spare! When this is done, I’ll spend a good hour torturing her back at the sandcrawler. Oh, the things I’ll do …
So apparent is this that I laugh. “Why do it, Carmine? You cripple yourself.”
She grunts. “The blue flame?”
“Indeed. I mean, I get your moral qualms … as foolish as they are. I suppose mortals have their laws and rules. But this is a fight.” I clench my fist. “You were supposed to take every advantage you could get. You didn’t. That’s why I’ve won, Carmine.”
She says nothing, but fires a bullet.
I sigh.
But something weird starts happening.
She starts speeding up.
I don’t know what it is. But, all of a sudden, her bullets hit faster. They’re harder to dodge. I begin to take more grazes. Then hits. I cough and there’s blood.
“What is this!?”
Carmine walks towards me. “You spoke of fear. You disdain fear. See it as a weakness.”
I grin. “Yes. As God, I fear nothing.”
“Oh, but you should.”
Her body glows. I blink.
Then the world goes blue. I look up and there’s a star. A comet. It’s coming towards me.
I run.
But it’s too big. Too fast.
It comes crashing down.
As it explodes, and the world goes white, I feel nothing. No pain.
But … I can’t move. I look down and begin to realise how badly burned I am.
I hear her steps.
“Fear is a tool. And without it, we are fools.”
I groan.