There weren't always dragons in the valley. They were fanciful creatures of old that amazed and inspired the stories in our youth. During playtime, we would pretend to ride dragons against the forces of evil. These fantastic beasts would unleash their fiery breath upon the forces of darkness and blaze a path forward into the light. The ashes of our enemies lay scattered about the ground. These were the illusions of innocence created by children who didn't understand a more objective and colder reality.
It was like I was reliving my childhood. Again, I see the blood and ashes of my enemies upon the ground. Yet, there is no childhood fantasy to spare me from the horror I see. My sister Janice lay still and unmoving. The infiltrators took her life before I could save her. I killed the enemy too quickly. So much for the Oberkrom Titan. Perhaps, I have lived up to my name since I survived. Looking across the field, I see my sister Sam tending to our mom. Maybe there's a chance for our family to leave and live another day.
The Prime Minister directed his forces to collect our bodies, dead or alive. It appears he did not appreciate the near-successful assassinations of his family. He was the one that got away. In this battle, however, we won this round with heavy losses. We only had minutes to escape, and that wasn't enough to spare the bodies of my sister and mother. My baby sister Janice was beyond repair or resurrection. As I approached my sister Sam, I noticed our mother. She was unresponsive after being shot in the side. According to Sam, mom was stable but barely holding on to her life.
The sound of rotor blades grew ever louder. I can see now that it was one of the Dreg commanders responding to the remote alarms. Maybe Gigas is onboard. Mom said he was in radio silence and would not be able to be contacted. In the distance, there was a guttural scream. Samantha and I turned towards its location and faced the angry growing light of fire bombarding the landscape.
Tabby Oberkrom
The DRAGON, and the death that followed, revealed its presence across the Dreg Valley of Sorrows. The Prime Minister intended for his congregation to route the rebellious Dreg threat. The Acheron Dynasty employed the latest D.R.A.G.O.N. (Defense Response Advanced Guiding Ordinance Naval Platform) to eliminate our people. It is now supposed to be an evolving AI-driven multi-purpose platform. The DRAGON can travel underwater, on land, in air, or outer space.
Armed with many proton-disrupting emitters, conventional weaponry, and liquid cubic boron nitride segmented armor, there were few battlefronts this beast couldn't approach. It is a formidable weapon. Ridden by an archangel, however, raised the platform's capabilities from problematic to nearly unstoppable. Fortunately for free sentient species everywhere, the DRAGON remained unhelmed. My father, Gigas Oberkrom, killed the last archangel to grace its unholy appearance on Zeelis. During storytime, my mother once told us that father used the last of his soul to destroy those beasts. It was the last time she saw any other emotion on our father's face.
We cannot survive what's coming on our own. The DRAGON approached. Its red eyes glowed from over a mile away. As they came closer, fear and bile rose from within me. I kept my composure. I needed to complete my assessment of the situation and see to my remaining sister and mother. To my disappointment, my fear did not lessen as it approached.
Samantha Oberkrom
Dozens of infiltrators, military vehicles, and body parts lay across our property. We had warnings but not enough time to escape before the soldiers came. Mommy and I laid waste to most of the soldiers, but too many of them were there. I wasn't able to keep the soldiers away from Janice. I saw Tabby race towards her but didn't notice the others approaching our vector as I continued to hammer those on the approach with the cannon fire.
I didn't even register the approach of death on my six. Tabby, though, must have seen it coming a mile away. She redirected the KNINE monstrosities toward mommy and me for our protection. Those beasts were TOO quiet. I didn't know they were there until I heard those metal teeth close upon the soldiers' meat. I'll never forget their cries of shock.
Even with the extra support, it wasn't enough to stop the horror. While mommy and I were cutting down the approaching vehicles, a stealth-arm infiltrator got close enough to discharge their weapon. Multiple rounds of modified radiated darts struck mom in her side. They must have been poison because she dropped lifeless to the ground soon after the darts hit her. I did everything I could to keep her alive and stable.
The least I can do now is keep her alive and get her to the local hospital. I can get mom past this if I can just make it there.
The Matriarch
Linda Oberkrom lay on the ground. She was unable to move. Linda could sense her daughter Sam patching up the hole in her body, but it didn't feel like a bullet or laser wound. Having suffered damages like those in the past, she knew she wasn't succumbing to those injuries. This was different on a whole new level. The radiated darts didn't paralyze her. She was conscious. Something was preventing her from moving. Poison?
The realization of that dreadful question fell upon her. The answer was a statement she made to her girls before the firefight occurred:
Acheron was coming for her. Dear God. And she knew without a doubt his endgame.
Prime Minister Acheron Birsha
Planetary government, and now, the entire population of Zeelis citizens will support Acheron's efforts to kill off the Dregs. No one would condone the actions of those terrorists now. No one will support their efforts.
Acheron's father taught him well about politics. Now that the fool is dead, civilization would rise to greater heights with him in charge. Following his flight from assassination, Acheron sent word to have military police and his publicity agency to the family compound. The bodies were still fresh from the Dregs' murder spree. There would be plenty of fodder for the media highlights. The police would make sure the dogs had their fill.
With the "tragedy" experienced by the new prime minister, his charity knew no bounds. Undesirables lining the capital city of Zeelis were volunteering in droves for the new social work programs. They would be experiencing a new day in their lives. After all, they were only giving up their humanity poverty, and homelessness.
The phone in Acheron's pocket started to vibrate. There must be an update to the recovery op. Acheron became frustrated with the interruption. He hated when these inconveniences disturbed his train of thought. The person who was contacting him would pay for this slight.
"Of course, sir," responded the officer. The suit is prepped and ready for transport. Vital signs are green. The daughters will be eliminated or distracted by design. Update to follow."
Acheron stated he understood the message. The officer terminated the communication, and Acheron proceeded with his stroll. There were worlds to conquer, but he had a house to clean up before pursuing his manifest destiny. Fate, life, and mortality would not stand in the way of his dreams for a better world.
Zeelis Breaking News
The Intro
Do you know about @PsyberX?
Unless you've been hiding under a rock, PsyberX is the newest project to grace the cities of the Zeelis homeworld. It promises a release of bodily pains, problems, and everything else wrong in between. We are nearing the completion of the trial phase. The Psyber X project has experienced minor setbacks, but every great effort goes through them. Cleanup won't even impact the incinerators. Society will not miss the failed test candidates.
NFT Updates
The Nanotech Force Transfer (NFT) card industry has a new development for today's citizens. The military, by popular demand, has been working diligently to create civilian versions of the technology, allowing everyday living to be a tad bit easier.
The new Advanced Segnities, Inc is a company created by military and civilian contractors to bring domestic NFTs to your doorstep. Using advanced nanotechnology, you place an NFT meeting your need onto a pre-designated area of your skin. Proprietary nanotech filaments analyze your nerve pathways to determine your electrical impulses' strength, frequency, and amplitude. Once analysis is complete, it releases an optimal signal that mimics the neurotransmitters required to stimulate commands or movements. If you think about acting, that action gets performed by a paired device that moves for you.
Do you want your robotic assistant to cook your breakfast without uttering a word? No problem! Need to carry out an authorized assassination of a pesky boss? Well, give up your life and join the military! Advanced Segnities, Inc claims that this specific technological path isn't cleared for the civilian community...yet.
Demons under the Sun
Zeelis Military forbids all travel, medical, and humanitarian services in the area until further notice. All non-Zeelis military personnel within site are deemed hostile and a part of terrorist activities.
The notorious terrorist Gigas Oberkrom is reportedly within the area with his family. Collection and dispersion operations are underway. Reports are that the terrorist cell assassinated all lifeforms within the Prime Minister's household. Gigas Oberkrom is allegedly responsible for destroying the last Dragon and its host archangel.
Military sources confirm that all forces are on high alert to capture this terrorist, dead or alive. The new Prime Minister, Acheron Birsha, is safe and puts his life's importance and majesty below the rest of Zeelis' citizenry. While he has every right to be whisked away to safety, he has chosen to remain and put his life on the line by continuing his humanitarian efforts. Let's support our new Prime Minister and his efforts to make this planet glorious again!
The Ending
Thank you for joining us on today's broad spectrum cast. Regular programming will now resume on all standard and implanted devices. And remember!
Even Angels Can Fall
Lieutenant Gigas Oberkrom surveyed the devastation. The skies were dark with ash and earth.
Civilians and Dreg forces alike had no warning before the onslaught. They had spent the last two weeks fortifying the settlement from attack and the elements. It was supposed to keep them safe. It should have kept his people alive a bit longer against the Prime Minister's forces. They wanted total control. We just wanted a life for ourselves separate and independent of the Zeelis government.
Looking at things now, you wouldn't think anyone lived their lives here. How odd is it that one day you are praising the support of everyone in their efforts, and now there is nothing but rubble and torment? The fates are certainly testing us this day. Some comfort within me remains that the founders of Zeelis are the gods of the Dreg Society he's been a part of all his life.
Death came for them like a thief in the night.
After a long day of toil, the town settled for the night and celebrated their success. No one knew it was coming because a dragon was only something they spoke of in fairy tales before that night.
It started with a horrific scream in the sky. Fiery eyes lit up the landscape along the Valley of Sorrows.
Now known as the DRAGON platform, we first thought it was a mythical serpent gliding through the air. We couldn't believe what we were seeing at first. We knew it wasn't natural when it drastically sped up, with no apparent change in its movement. The alarms sounded, and the sirens blared:
Its segmented dark body gleaned under the full moon. And then what seemed like its belly opened, exposing the ground beneath it in angry red light. And from that light came the fuel of nightmares we immediately recognized. The DRAGON scattered pulse detectors, metastasizing zips, steel rain, and electron yield envelopers (EYEs) across the skies. It was a front-wave approach. They meant to cleanse out this compound and halt the resistance. Shock troops weren't too far off. After the initial ranged attack, it made sense to send troops on the ground to clear everyone out.
| Weapon | Function |
|---|---|
| Pulse Detectors | Cybernetic enhancement, which tracks the heart rates of nearby enemies for 20 seconds. |
| Metastasizing Zips | Extremely quick small gnat-like cyber organic bots bioengineered to infect enemies with rapid tissue decay. |
| Electron yield envelopers | Airborne deployable sentry that detects enemy location. 25 seconds duration. |
| Steel Rain | Drone deployed shrapnel gravity bomb made from the scrap of disabled and damaged industrial bots. It causes immediate physical damage to players in the blast radius and slight lingering radioactive damage for 10 seconds to the blast field. |
| High Altitude Resonance Enhancement (HARE) | Detailed enemy location airborne drone notes location and direction regardless of perks and killstreaks. |
| Enhanced Black Death | Nanotech machinery targeting individuals, tagged by pulse detectors, EYEs, and HAREs. Upon application, it rapidly sheers the DNA bonds of the target to inflect rapid tissue decay and spread to the next host. |
We didn't have enough time. Everyone in the compound raced to armor up and helm assigned battle-station positions, but the first wave of the attack had already proceeded. The DRAGON platform had readouts on personnel positions and those with enhancements. It released so many weapons on staggered timers that the enemy saw everyone everywhere. When the steel rain fell, there was no way to prevent them. Half of my forces burned to the ground almost immediately. When the black plague fell, the DRAGON in the sky cried out in triumph. My friends and family died before they could pull the trigger. We were devastated. However, we weren't green either.
In the distance, the shock troopers (STs) advanced. There's no way they could hide, given the DRAGON's approach. My men, women, and non-human allies prepared to engage. We knew this might be the end, and we chambered our weapons.
Blessed are the lives of my people. They act not for tomorrow but this moment. We focused all our life, skills, and energies on this battle. Yet, the fates of these heroes were clear as their bodies came alight with the activation of their NFTs. Gigas strapped the remaining functional jet pack upon his back and gripped his hammer tightly.
Vengeance, Berserker Rage, Soul Absorb, and Dying Wishes granted them the abilities they may have to take with them to the grave. The activation of their NFTs coated them in supernatural light. The time was now. The Dreg army rallied and screamed to the heavens as they began their suicide run. It was as if two waves came crashing against each other. The Dreg forces pummeled the initial waves of infiltrators as they unleashed the GOML auto shotguns.
The appearance of shock on the Zeelis troops was priceless. The Dregs perforated the bodies of the Zeelis troops with the shotgun's depleted uranium shells. Each blast pushed them against approaching troopers making the scene appear like a gory version of dominos falling. Gigas knew it was too good to be true when the screams from the DRAGON spread across the landscape. The DRAGON flew above Gigas' people unleashing a stream of blue fire at the west flank of the battle.
The eyes of the Archangel turned towards Gigas.
The Commander dropped himself to one knee as he raised his blood-soaked arms into the air activating his final Thunderstorm NFT. White-blinding light coated his body as the sky began to crackle with electricity. The energy coalesced into three mortars focused upon the unarmored segment between the DRAGON's head and the first joint.
Taken unawares of the possible attack against it, the DRAGON ceased its barrage upon the Dreg forces. Instead, against the wishes of its rider, it focused on the source of the continuing electrical attack. It was time for Gigas' part in the play, but he wailed inside at the thought of his Commander's death. The Thunderstorm was an Overlord weapon meant for quick use and release, but the Commander endured the pain. When the DRAGON came upon him, his body was already burning with the effort of maintaining the NFT.
Gigas' jetpack flared to life as the DRAGON changed its source. He rocketed towards the Archangel, trying to regain control of the beast while activating his Hammer of the Gods. The hammer crackled with electricity as it struck the archangel behind its neck. He landed hard behind the angel, continuing to hammer it until Gigas lost consciousness from the feedback of the attack. In a weakened state, he dropped the hammer. No weapons remained, but that didn't matter. Gigas got the job done. The angel was moving uncontrollably with the damage Gigas inflicted.
The damage caused a break in the link between rider and beast. The three of them began to fall towards the Earth. Gigas jumped off the DRAGON and activated the jetpack with its remaining fuel. The jetpack cut off before he landed on the ground, turning a soft landing into a hard drop that would bruise and not break. Gigas recognized that dying fire of battle as he saw his remaining people put the remaining Zeelis soldiers to sleep. Dreg soldiers hastily approached the dragon and its Angel to begin the recovery operation to propel his people forward again.
And Death was No More
Consciousness returned to Linda without mercy. In one instant, she heard her daughter's cries in the distance. Samantha was weeping. She begged for mommy to wake up, but mommy was already awake.
Linda just couldn't move. In all her horror, she could do nothing to prevent the infiltrators from tearing her daughter apart. Equally so, she could not stop the berserker rage the Titan displayed at the sight of her sister's demise.
Samantha was hell-bent on stabilizing her mom. She would not fail in this endeavor. Once all signs pointed toward her mother's survival, Janice realized the extent of her mom's injuries. She was sedated and poisoned. In other words, the Prime Minister was prepping her for collection. Upon this realization, however, Sam had a clarity of thought.
Sam knew the end was near. There was no need for Tabitha to delay or care about collateral damage. Where Tabby the Titan was concerned, this was the best possible scenario. Her vengeance knew no bounds.
Linda searched for the other memories of those events, but she could recall nothing else. Her world fell to black. She could remember only so much in her present state as she couldn't feel her body. She awakened in a world of white that knew no sound. Moving her head as far as possible, Linda noticed she was in a laboratory environment. Behind her, she recognized the sounds of flurried activity. Linda guessed that regaining her consciousness was accidental. A voice soon revealed itself in the background that was all too familiar to her.
There is a calm that generally precedes a storm. Linda's case was no different. The voice didn't identify itself, but she knew who it was. Before she could utter a word, the sensation within her limbs came back to life in a fire of pins and needles. Someone screwed up. She could move again. Linda had regained the vitality and strength in her body before those radiated darts percolated her body. She forced her arms against her left restrain and broke it. She struggled against the restraint in her right arm as she cried out in glory at her eventual release. And that's when the shock set in. Electricity poured through her as the voice cried out in laughter at the trap set against Linda.
She was never free. It was just a another trap from Acheron. Birsha's perversion still knew no bounds. Once again, Linda realized she would fade into the black. To what end, she had no idea.
Archangel Dreams
Linda had been so careful while Tabitha Titan Oberkrom grew within her belly. Her village helped her get the healthiest foods and earliest kills so that Mommy Oberkrom's first child grew as healthy as possible. Linda never knew what it would be like to have a child. She'd read about it, but Linda never thought she would live long enough to experience it.
It was around this time that Gigas purchased their first set of KNINEs. They were infiltrator-level metallic monstrosities meant for destruction rather than protection. However, Gigas had them waiting at both vulnerable entry points to the nursery. So long as you spoke the code, there was a reasonable level of confidence you could get past with your life and limb intact. Gigas was such a romantic back then.
After Tabitha, came Janice and then Samantha. In between skirmishes, battles, and assassination plots, the Oberkrom family had each other. It's a good reason that...
A heads up display appear centered in her field of view. A prompt began scrolling before her with words that deepened her already confused state.
Linda struggled to remember. She knew her last memory was in the white room. Someone said something before Linda passed out. Afterward, Linda awoke from the most vivid dreams of her life. It had been so long since she dreamt about the earlier days. The thoughts of her time carrying her daughters brought her such a profound sense of peace of sorrow. The dreams were so vivid.
Linda tried to recollect the thoughts of Sam and Janice. Her heart ached for them now that she knew they were...something? Linda couldn't remember if her daughters were dead or alive. Something was missing in her mind. She had an older daughter too. Titan? Maybe she was someone else's? Linda wondered when she'd see her husband Gigas again. Was she married, or was that part of the dream too?
Little by little, a sense of dread overcame Linda. She felt that her memories were fleeing her. Every time she grasped on to some part of her past, she wondered if she was grasping at something. As the Zhuzai systems slowly eliminated superficial memories from Linda's brain, she began to express contempt and anger against those she once called her family.
The Archangel Linda Oberkrom raised its wings towards the sky. Sensors revealed information about the world unknown to the normal sentient being.
The archangel knew it was a superior design to the Oberkrom class sentients that came before it. Outside of that understanding, its purpose was now to acquire the family members, constituents, and allies of the rebel Commander Gigas Oberkrom. Programming did not allow for mercy apart from the biological collection. If necessary, destroy, but make every effort to collect the samples needed for research and recovery.
Its DRAGON awaited, hovering silently just outside the angel's domicile. There were no secondary commands. Eliminate all sentient life that obstructs its goal. After all, it was only the Dreg society in harm's way. No one deemed their life above Level 5 anyway. In all actuality, it's their fault for being born into such a terrorist society.
The new archangel jumped towards the sky and began her flight towards the beast. She started a life of happiness and heartbreak when she met Gigas. Now, she will seek his death and those of her children.
In Closing
Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay
I look forward to providing more in the future. Thank you for reading and following on throughout my blogging journey.
PsyberX is Royal Reptile Studio's property and has granted their permission to write this article. This article was also published on Vocal.Media's for their fantasy contest under my IRL name Felix Martinez. If my article gets approved, I will edit this one and include a link.
If you like this article, please consider upvoting, commenting, or following @Scholaris!
Amazing post Scholaris, the creative writing is amazing, I want to see the Psyber-X Origins Movie now! Knine beasts with metal teach is a scary cyberpunk future yet sounds exciting !1UP !PGM !CTP !PIMP !PIMP !LUV
Thank you for the kind words. I'm not sure what it is about @psyberx. The words have been flowing quite easily since they introduced us to this world. I am looking at improving my writing for a steadier about of stories in the future.
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Wow, Felix! This was epic! What a story... I wasn't expecting that ending though... I wonder if Linda is forever changed now or whether she can revert back to her former self and prevent the deaths of the rest of her family? Love that you have found a space within PsyberX to write. Keep it up...its fab! As regards their progress, I am pleased to hear that they will be using Unreal Engine. !LUV !ALIVE
Thank you, Sam. That means a lot to me. Linda's live, like any other, always changes. The story I wrote actually ended up being two parts. I had to split it as the original was just too long.
No matter what happens, the fate of Gigas is tragic. I just hope that his faith can be one day redeemed.
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Im anxious to see the next generation of gameplay, because this WAS NOT it for me.. If the game is going to be a web-plug-in using java script or something.. I guess I understand... but this gameplay was/is trash..
Need more FUD so my bags are cheaper to fill up! Go post about this opinion of yours, it is true afterall. If this was going to beat Fortnite as the next generation of gameplay it would be another story with our token market and likely not launched on Hive yet as a next generation play to earn shooter game, I will accept something less than AAA and top of the line to get pew pew'n.
The value added to Hive already with Psyber-X onboarding and the psyberswaps.com bridge to Avalanche has surpassed most Hive games that are playable. Game also has stopped Unity and utilizing Unreal now, so lets hope the next gameplay video impresses!
dad used to say.. "Hope in one hand, and shit in the other.." This game looked horrible on unity engine.. if that was the case..
I need to reconnect with the guy who showed that these folks were asset flipping.
In the beginning we blogged openly about the Unity assets as the team was very small and building this game would have been impossible otherwise yet funding rolling in has allowed expansion, add the decentralized nature of the project and the founders vote on much of what the game does and they deliver, maybe you want to also say how bad the most advanced bridge on Hive looks at https://psyberswaps.com/ or just ignore facts that they are delivering and adding value to Hive while you poop in your hand! (I know which will fill up first, do you?)
I just tried to use psyberswap on hive-keychain-mobile ... and it dosnt work at all... much advancement.
on keychain mobile correct it does not, just noticed as I do the blockchain stuff on the PC and will get on the team to making it compatible.
Thank you for your comment. I'm not a gamer so I don't feel I have the knowledge to support or contradict your statement. I would love for some more detail though if you wouldn't mind. I can always use a learning opportunity.
My expectations of this game, however, are rudimentary from a programming perspective. Project management is more my thing. I for one didn't expect gameplay to be legendary at the start. My opinion is that you produce what you can afford, but must definitely improve the platform to the level expected as it moves forward.
I'm really wishing I could reconnect with the guy who accused these folks (and had proof) that they stole other people's assets (or paid cheap price for copy and paste content) and then tried to say it was a game that they built.
I thought the guy was bullshitting until I saw how absolutely horrible the "gameplay" footage was.
It's not FUD.. it's an opinion about laziness.
Actually, I remember that conversation. It’s on record in their post following their AMA session on discord. I can’t remember that guy you reference though but the conversation was lengthy and detailed.
wow. great story. lots of action there. 🙂
Thank you very much. I hope to give more content in the future. There are so many ways to go with these stories.
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This reads like a saga! A full-on, mind-bending, action-pumping fantasy, sci-fi epic movie! hahahahahaha
Each scene was like exploring a new cave, filled with intrigue and drama and POLITICS! hahahaha always the politics that we can relate to! the promise of a new world met with the reality of a worse one! I loved also seeing the perspective of the scene from different angles... very cool to meet your characters that way!
I hope this does really well on Vocal - but if not, I hope that our dreemers can give you some encouragement too!
Thank you for entering this into dreemport! I'm not sure our dreemers are used to a 22 minute read 😆 but I think they will be well pleased with how worthwhile the time spent will be! hehehehe
Goodnight my friend
Thanks, Dreem. Sorry for the long read. The story kind of took on a life of its own. It's kind of weird, in a way. Looking back at the writing it seemed like I was mimicking other books I read in how the story got presented. Anyway, I appreciate the opportunity to submit it to your group.