An Undercity commandeered by the Regis Pontiff, "Terrace Gaun"-- a massive industrial plant in the form of a city, all of which sat under the looming Earth above, known as Lumanbell. Monolithic brutalist structures, slick and black. This was not a place to live in, but a city to work in, regardless of whether you like it or not. Entertainment, basic commodities-- and impossibility as children soaked themselves in the running rivers of oil-slick waters that sped down various drains or seams in the ground.
At the end of it all was a wall — a massive, mega-structure that housed nobles and the higher ranks in society. Flying cars, or cheaply made cargo ships that spread pollution over the local populace of Terrace Gaun.
Along with the exploitation of the lower class, due to the prioritization of higher-class citizens, or those of an artistic, scientific, or general higher pursuits, Terrace Gaun was notorious for being a haven for nobles and corporations to engage in illegal activities in the pursuit of "progress".
One day ago, beneath the Senate of the Regis Pontiff, someone leaked information about the discovery of a rare new humanoid species, which was held in a secret Bio-genus facility behind the great wall of Terrace Gaun, where they ran cruel experiments that bordered on torture Rumors seemed to have spread that the caretaker of said humanoid creature themselves were the ones to have leaked said information.
Maidakan Rox took notice, a rebel with a bounty of twenty million on her head. A young woman with bright pink, dyed hair, grey eyes, and a lithe body. A powerful sorceress.
Typically, the Regis Pontiff would have quelled any sign of rebellion within Terrace Gaun, but failed for the first time in their decades of existence because they could never have predicted that a mega-criminal like Maidakan herself would get involved — their job of union busting was, by all accounts, a bust.
And this union was going to raid the wall of Terrace Gaun, disguising it as a rescue effort to escort a newly discovered, tortured humanoid race and lead them to a better life. A noble goal that needed the chaos of the entire city-- the sacrifice of a whole city to get it done.
In Maidakan's words. "Fuck the Corps, fuck the overseers, fuck the Imperium! Fuck them all! When they see a lush planet filled with trees and marsh-- they suck it dry, leaving a desert in its remains! Slaughter communities across the Solar Cluster for their own gain! To get a few creds packed full into their pockets! Their greed should sicken us! So..." Maidakan laughed. "Today... we're gonna take it straight to the fucken senate! We're gonna kill 'em all! Who's with me!?"
Armor-clad soldiers and Guardian Mechs sat at a blockade leading to the wall of Terrace Gaun itself. They waited, guns at the ready, in a stalemate. The Rebel Union stood at attention, searching for an opening within the blockade as forces of the Regis Pontiff searched for an excuse to fire, as at the moment, this was simply declared as a protest; needless to say, they waited with bated breath for this to become a raid, blood-lusted.
Maidakan took in the polluted air of Terrace Gaun, and a smile spread across her face. "Ah... I love it..." She giggled. "Let's kill 'em all!" In the shape of a pistol, Maidakan pointed to the sky above, hermetic components within her Pauldron firing off on all cylinders as magic poured into the air around them. She shot the first shot; she started the war.
A glittering blade coalesced in the air, firing down onto a Guardian Mech staring her down, being stopped just inches away by their Flux Shields. In a split second, the blade split into a variety of splintering, floating needles, firing out at the nearby militia, the impact of each sending them to the ground, and those still up leveled their rifles to a rushing, rioting populace. They hopped over the blockade, Molotovs thrown, bypassing the Flux Shields of each, melting through the armor, flames spreading across the ever-forming battlefield.
And then, shots were fired on both sides. Those without guns and armor were slaughtered in an instant, cut through, shot in the head, or made into red mist from Guardian fire, gore splattering against the nearby buildings and streets.
A horrific screeching came out from one of the Guardian Mechs set on fire, the machine sent reeling and crashing into one of the nearby buildings, sputtering out, a corpse of a construct. A coffin for whoever was inside, now most likely turned into melted meat, stinking up their surroundings with the smell of burnt pork and iron.
The Armored Rebels that slipped past the blockade met the Regis Pontiff's guards with blades in hand, whilst Maidakan and her group held back, providing supporting fire for their frontline either through magic or weaponry explicitly used to bypass the Flux Shields of the soldiers there.
The remaining Guardians crashed through the blockade, shoving their way past their smaller compatriots, Flux Shields flickering wildly with red and blue lights as they sprayed into the crowd, running over whoever was in their way. Those caught in their way were sent flying into nearby structures and buildings, swatted into walls like flies, or bisected, with their remains left scattered across the ground, gasping for air, gasping for life, the life slowly leaving their eyes.
Unfortunately for the Pontiff's guard, they were losing both the battle and the war. In response, they called for their higher power, like a child tattling to their parental guardian.
Hunter-Killers arrived not long after a loss, as the conflict had been declared. After the Blood War, this is all they were relegated to from henceforth, and until this very day. Amongst the Hunter-Killers that had been deployed, Artemis was one of them. All of them floating down from quadcopters rocketing overhead, immediately being shot at by Rebel ground troops, the bullets struggling to bypass, or even cause damage to their Flux Shields as they descended to the ground below.
The instant they touched ground, in the blink of an eye, it looked almost as if they disappeared as they charged through Rebel soldiers as if they were trucks or heavily armored vehicles in human skin.
A soldier is thrown into the air, a fist cracking their skull open against a nearby wall. Another is blown open by burst weapon fire, or cleaved like a hot knife through butter through the Sangilo's personalized combat knives. One of the Rebel soldiers was thrown into the air, the Hunter-Killer jumping in response, grabbing them by the legs before slamming them straight back into the ground, killing the man instantly as nearly 60 meters worth of falling force was brought onto the man.
Their only command was to clear out the city streets within a 91-meter radius from the site of conflict, and to capture alive, the criminal Maidakan Rox. Whether they were a civilian or a designated foe, they were to be executed immediately as long as they were not Maidakan Rox themselves.
The operation lasts until nightfall, and citizens within the vicinity run for the hills, attempting to create as much distance from the site of rebellion as possible.
Auto-Cannon fire shredded through people and buildings alike as Burst weaponry blew Rebels up from the inside out. A slaughter, no ifs, ands, or buts about it: this was not Artemis's first foray into riot-busting with her Hunter-Killer compatriots. She did as she was told, just as she did all those other times. She was hesitant on the inside, but once a weapon was pointed at her, she'd disappear in an instant, rendering someone into a broken pile of meat and bones.
A completely different tale to a one, all so similar, yet the name was almost identical: the Red Knight, the Red Night. An incident eight years ago, a noble who stood for the rights of others, a social activist, was killed by their own bodyguard, a Knight. Now that they're gone, look how much hasn't changed. What if they were here today? To witness this atrocity. Would they have been able to do anything?
Each one of these massive warriors, the size of a bear, or even bigger, was throwing people into nearby streetlights, hung up by their intestines, some of their heads split at three ends as they were thrown headfirst into iron guardrails. Legs mangled after being tossed around like a dead animal within the maw of a wolf.
The Hunter-Killers had almost cleared out the streets near Terrace Gaun's Wall after only an hour had passed, Maidakan now finally restrained by the Sangilo Warden overseeing this operation.
Artemis persisted in her search, checking every nook and cranny before finding herself with a sewage pipe, inspecting the walls with a cautious gaze. She was alerted to something farther inside, the rusted pipe itself shaking against the weight of her steps. Artemis pressed further, stopping as her gaze locked onto a young, black-haired woman holding what looked to be a child of an unknown race and affiliation. They dressed as if they were a nurse.
A command is a command, however, and Artemis leveled her Auto-Cannon at the two. The woman looked up at the soldier, fear in her eyes, but with an almost bizarre, obsessive gaze. "Determination." It was clear what this woman was determined to do, but Artemis couldn't help but pause at the sight.
Someone who seemed so weak, so fragile. No weapons, armor, and the like, so determined, hiding the child behind themselves as a mother would. "Get away from us! We didn't do anything wrong! Just let us go!"
The child spoke in an unknown tongue, and the woman turned and whispered comforting words into their almost fin-shaped ears. The boy's appearance was aquatic, like a Jenasi or a Newt, but much more human than either race, the only things giving away that they were another race at all being their webbed fingers, finned ears, and big, black eyes with a white pupil in the middle.
Artemis kept the Auto-Cannon leveled at the two, struggling to pull the trigger as the woman stood in the way between her and the child behind her.
As this was not her first time, it would not be her last either. Artemis put the weapon down, throwing it over her shoulder with a sigh. "Leave from the gate behind you." That's all she said, before turning around to leave, as it is not her first time quelling a riot. It was also not her first time sparing those in need. It was rare for her to do this. As she had recorded it in her own mind, this had been the third instance of her sparing those of the lower class.
It made her gut churn. She had no idea if what she had done was right, but she knew that they were of no threat to her or anyone else and that their deaths would have only been pointless. She may serve the Imperator, but she wanted there to be a point in the killing, at the very least.
Halfway down the pipe, she stopped in her place, as one of her kin stared from afar, and like a deer in headlights, they both froze. As if in slow motion, they both lowered themselves into a stance, and the other spoke, almost whispering to Artemis. "You are to slay them. Why have you neglected your duty?"
"There is no need to create a pointless death," Artemis responded, her entire body leaning forward, ready to sprint.
"Then be treated as a traitor."
"So be it." Artemis felt a pull in her gut, as if she had done something wrong, but in that split second of a decision, it was almost as if a weight had been lifted from her shoulders—relief, and regret. This was her out, this was her way in, not being forced to enact cruelties on others any longer, but that regret, that pulling feeling within her intestines knows... she'll die for going down this path.
"So be it," As she had said. So be it, indeed.
Both soldiers activated their speed implements, and to them, six seconds seemed like only one or two to those on the outside looking in. In the span of a blink, the other Hunter-Killer was dead, throat slit open, armor sliced through to let their intestines hang as they're held against the wall of the sewer pipe they're in.
Artemis gasped, holding her breath the entire time, finally snapping out of her stupor as the body of her comrade now lay limp before her, and she released the grip of their collar. Artemis sheathed her blade, taking out the Burst Pistol tucked into the belt of her armor, leveling it at the entrance of the pipe. A ping went off, violent, loud, and wild. If one dies, the others are called to it like vultures to carrion.
Artemis bit the bullet and exited the pipe to avoid dragging the young man and nurse into this conflict. She tepped out, dropping to a floor covered in mud and grime, feet sinking into it, a wet sticky pop following each time she had lifted her feet -- taken a step. Artemis felt fear in this moment, but it was inevitable; she just had to take down as many as she could and find an opening to escape.
"Sister! What ha--" Before they could speak, Artemis snapped to their hit, and before they could put up their Flux Shields, a burst round was shot straight into their helmet, blowing both their mask and skull open with a fleshy pop.
Artemis switched to her Auto-Cannon, leveling it at two approaching Hunter-Killers, hopping from roof to roof. She fired right under their feet, causing them to fall straight into the ground below. It was only to delay them as she boosted herself out from near the drainage pipe behind her, and behind a set of buildings, sprinting through various walls as she made her escape.
Quickly, she was interrupted in her escape, just as she entered another building. As she entered, a wall to her right was crashed through, and they tackled the Emoren warrior. Artemis kept to her feet, quickly activating her speed implement to give herself enough time to lash herself to the ceiling, flipping behind the soldier who managed to react, activating their own speed implement to shove Artemis away, creating distance between the two.
Artemis huffed, throwing a table at their fellow soldier, spinning around as they heard rubble crack beneath the boots of another Hunter-Killer approaching from behind, caught within her thermal vision as they were under the effects of a cloaking device.
Shields were up, but a shot was made, the explosion from the burst round coming from Artemis's pistol, causing the cloaked Hunter-Killer to flinch. In two seconds, she side-stepped the uncloaked hunter, that same Sangilo Soldier, keeping their implement activated, swung wide. Artemis ducked under the swing, slamming into them with her shoulder, sending them flying straight into the ceiling above.
"How is she doing that!?" They groaned.
The cloaked Sangilo answered for them shortly after. "It's why she had potential to be a Warden! Do not let your guard down!"
As they spoke to one another, Artemis lashed herself through the various holes she had made in a variety of different buildings, letting herself fall momentarily before lashing herself to the sky, only going airborne for a moment before landing back down onto one of the roofs. She was at a disadvantage in this position, but she needed to get away from being surrounded.
They were all now closing in on her. It was inevitable. It was the main reason she was resigned to having to fight and kill her comrades. The instant she showed hesitation, it meant death.
Artemis leveled her Auto-Cannon at one of the nearby buildings, blowing a hole into it, jumping in as one of her Hunter-Killer siblings tackled her to the ground. They spun, wrestling against each other, and before the man below her could react, she had slipped a knife right in the middle of their throat, just above the collarbone. Their knife was at the ready as well, but had only just barely dug its way into one of the shoulder guards of her armor. She was faster than they were.
She jumped back, another Hunter-Killer coming in to support their dead comrade, swinging away at Artemis to create space between the two. There was a second of pause before they clashed, speed against speed, time slowed for them to an unimaginable degree.
A kick from the Hunter-Killer, caught by Artemis, threw them up into the ceiling as they saw themselves, lashing themselves to the floor to make themselves fall quicker before charging straight back into Artemis, attempting to stab her. She parried their strike, the blade flicking out, allowing her to cut through their armor, managing to nick a bit of the flesh underneath.
A kick swung out to catch one of Artemis's legs. She raised her leg, blocking the attack, then shot out her leg to hit them straight in the gut, knocking them back.
Both of them exited their enhanced states, Artemis's Flux Capacity, stored in her Spinal Pauldron, whirring loudly and barely able to contain the heat she had stored up to this point. She'd be vulnerable, but it needed to be done.
When Flux is expelled from one's Spinal Pauldron, all cybernetics that require Flux to function are completely rendered useless. But due to this heat expenditure, an adrenal capsule is released onto a Hunter-Killer's body, putting them in an enhanced, enraged state—a perpetual cycle of death.
Artemis threw a chair into the Hunter-Killer's head, throwing them off. As a reaction, they attempted to slip out of the way, rushing into the next room, but were caught before they could fully escape, being thrown to the ground, falling into the floor below as Artemis screamed with a bloodcurdling rage. The Hunter-Killer brought their Burst Pistol up to Artemis's mask, and just before they fired, she angled her head out of the way just as the shot came out.
A chunk of her mask was blown off, removing some of the helmet's optical enhancements, but that was the least of her worries. She spun her leg around the Hunter-Killer's gun arm, snapping it back into an arm bar, and breaking it with a sickening pop from the bone.
The soldier groaned, attempting to get back up to their feet as their throat was slit just like their partner before them.
Artemis grabbed the body of the newly dead Hunter-Killer, using it as a shield-- a shot coming from an Auto-Cannon cut through the air, blowing the Spinal Pauldron off the already dead Hunter-Killer's back, gore spraying across the walls as an open cavity was formed right below the ribcage as the bone keeping the two ends of the body together went slack.
Artemis's blood had cooled, and now that the use of her speed implement had returned, she rushed to cover as another shot from the Auto-Cannon cut through the air, punching through a nearby wall.
The wall behind Artemis was then blown open, and another Sangilo Warrior ambushed her, grabbing her from behind. She lashed herself to the ceiling in response, then immediately to the broken wall next to her, using the momentum to throw the Hunter-Killer of her back, causing them both to spiral into a garbage can in the middle of an alleyway, causing all of the filth inside to explode out onto the surrounding concrete below.
Artemis, brought nearly to her limit, pulled herself out from the trash anyway, limping out, creating distance from her assailant as they recovered from the fall. Artemis, using a technique that uses the heat they have accumulated to give them additional momentum, rocketed forward as the Hunter-Killer rose to their feet, being launched over to the next building as she collided with the soldier.
Artemis staggered, spinning back around as she rushed over to a nearby mote, away from the sewers—the only river in Terrace Gaun.
Once again, she was interrupted, a voice screaming out from the chaos, standing above the various buildings of Terrace Gaun, looking down at her as the sun shone against their back as if they were a divine messenger incarnate, but in fact, all they were was a portent of doom.
"Sister!" A pause as Artemis spun around to look at the silhouette of this figure. The Warden, Apollo, Artemis's blood brother, stood. "How has it come to this...? You ending up at the end of my blade?"
Artemis's breath hitched. "I just want to survive..."
"You would rather survive, humiliated, than die with honor for the Imperator? Why would you betray us so?"
"I hesitated!" Artemis gasped at her own words, feeling pained at what she had done. "I... I hesitated! I could not kill... and I knew my death was soon to come from that alone... but I chose to fight rather than... rather than be slaughtered! That is a pointless death! Pointless deaths were had today!" Artemis screamed, voice cracking under the pressure.
"You say that the deaths today... were pointless?"
"Yes! All of it! That is why I refused to kill! I did not need more pointless deaths on my hands!"
"You say that there are pointless deaths under the Numen Imperator!?" Apollo scoffed. "Then you truly have committed treason, dear sister..." He sighed longingly. "And out of your group... you had the most potential. It's a shame to snuff out such a promising prospect."
Artemis leveled her Burst Pistol at her brother, firing into his Flux Shields, each bullet failing to meet their mark as he launched himself from the building he was standing on, speeding up towards Artemis.
Just as Apollo made impact with the ground, Artemis jumped out of the way, and into the mote just as his Auto-Cannon was leveled at her chest, punching straight through her own Flux Shields, blowing a cavity into her armor's chestplate. She flew past the railings leading to the mote, falling straight into the river below.
From the upper section of her chest, and up to her neck, was a gash, caused by the shrapnel coming from Apollo's Auto-Cannon. Blood rushed out from the wound, staining her crimson. Artemis gasped for air, holding a hand up to the bleeding wound, carried off by the grimy waters of Terrace Gaun.
Soon enough, her vision faded, and all of her senses dulled. A striking numbness spread across her body, and needles pricked at her skull before everything became cold... so abysmally cold... then warm.
She didn't dream as she died for the first time in her life.
It was a miracle she was even revived. Still, by the time she had woken up again, she was already restrained, locked in a headless Iron Maiden, leaving only her head exposed as she was sent off into space to the Lactos Prison, built into the side of an asteroid that orbits Luma Sanctus.
The same prison, Maidakan, was in.