Chapter 31: Chapter 31
With the sudden, unexpected turn of events, Yelena could do nothing but stay frozen in her defensive stance. She widened her eyes in shock, watching Jimmy crash to the ground, a soldier releasing his limp body.
Her mind raced, filled with nothing but regret. How could she have let her guard down? Had she gone soft? The thought was a bitter poison.
Thoughts flew through her mind as she watched, her teeth clenched so tightly in anger she felt her jaw might break. The soldiers held their weapons aimed at her, ready to engage at any minute.
"It’ll be in your best interest if you cooperate,"
the red badged soldier said, walking to Yelena’s front. His tone and character were now completely different, stripped of the calm politeness from moments before.
Seeing him stand in front of her, Yelena snapped out of her defensive stance and stood normally, her blood boiling. She stared at him, her eyes filled with pure bloodlust, a deadly and serious look on her face.
"If they die, you and every soldier on this planet won’t live to see the next sunrise." Yelena’s voice was ice cold and sharp, an expression that screamed terror.
"Empty threats are all i see,"
the badged soldier mocked, standing directly in front of her.
He reached for the armored piece covering his neck, and then, with both hands, slowly took off his helmet.
Beneath the helmet was a face scarred with what looked like ritualistic carvings. A sinister smile played on his lips, and his left eye glowed with an eerie yellow light. He looked straight into Yelena’s eyes.
"Rest assured, they’ll be fine,"
he said, his voice now a low, menacing rasp.
"But eventually, they’ll soon come to their inevitable fates."
His smile widened.
"In the meantime, let’s give you maggots a proper welcome before we carry on with your deaths."
The now unmasked soldier, standing tall and bold, spoke with an air of complete confidence.
In that moment, Yelena began to feel her vision fail. The soldier in front of her started to become a blurry figure, his features dissolving into a blue haze.
She suddenly felt dizzy, and her body slowly staggered backward a few times before she fell to one knee. She blinked, trying to clear her vision, a growing sense of alarm bubbling inside her.
Unknown to her, the badged soldier had released an unseen toxic gas while clicking on his wrist a minute ago.
Seeing her condition, he walked toward her, every step a confident stride. Yelena, on her knees, head bowed, was trying to keep herself going, but she slowly felt her body wasn’t responding to her.
She was losing control with every passing second. After a few seconds, she saw the soldier’s boots appear in front of her, confirming that the scarred faced individual was already close and looking down on her.
"It’s specifically engineered to paralyze the nervous system of superhumans like you,"
the soldier said, his voice laced with smug satisfaction.
"It’s something truly divine, never made before, and gives us an edge against your kind, thanks to the High Monarch."
The scarred faced soldier said, stretching out both arms in a gestural pose.
His words instantly struck a nerve in Yelena. Her eyes widened. The name he mentioned at the end of his speech grabbed her full attention, and she came to a quick realization, finding a burst of strength to lift her head and look at him.
"I see you’ve now realized it. No need to fight the pain, let it do its work."
The soldier said with a sinister smile, his arms stretched out as if he were being worshipped.
"You’re... you’re the Monarch’s Harald," Yelena stuttered, looking up at him with a serious and knowing look.
"Yes. yes, I am."
He replied with a sinister grin on his face as he looked down at her.
Just a few seconds after his response, Yelena felt completely flat on the ground. Her body had finally surrendered to the toxic gas as she slowly went unconscious.
Seeing her finally fall to the ground, he lowered his arms and walked away from her unconscious body. He took off his armored suit piece by piece.
"Three minutes and twenty six seconds. I’m impressed."
He said to himself, a smug look on his face.
"She’s much tougher than the others. They all went out instantly immediately after coming in contact with NX-7."
He added as he finally took off the last piece of his suit, revealing a slender and tall stature.
Beneath the suit, he wore a maroon dress shirt under a dark red and purple, gold accented vest with black pants that fitted his look perfectly.
Finally shedding the suit, he walked up to the unconscious Eric and Jimmy and looked at them in silence. A heavy gaze of disgust was printed on his face as he looked down on them, his arms folded behind his back.
After a few moments of staring, he swayed his hands in the air, giving a silent and clear command for Eric, Jimmy, and Yelena to be taken away from the scene. The soldiers, having seen his gesture, immediately obeyed.
Seeing them carry out the task, he walked away from the scene, going further and further until he reached a comfortable spot.
He brought out a thick, flat, but rounded device from his pocket and placed it on the floor, slowly moving back afterward as he awaits something.
A huge light flashed, followed by a hologram of an unseen figure being displayed in real time.
Seeing the hologram appear, he went straight to one knee and bowed.
"Brygo, your call tells me you have news."
A deep, male voice crackled from the hologram.
"Yes, my Liege. I bring you good news."
He replied, his voice calm and soft as he bowed.
"As predicted, Kaldala failed, and Eric came here, to Solaris."
"And do you have him contained?"
The voice said, a deep crackling from the hologram.
"Yes. He has been captured, alongside his allies."
The scarred faced individual, Brygo, replied. Sweat was dripping down his forehead.
"Kill him."
The voice spoke once more, his words echoed with nerve wreaking authority as the holographic image fell back into the device before completely shutting down and going silent.
"As you wish, my Liege."
Brygo said, still bowed in high respect, his posture concentrated and unwavering even after knowing the call was over.