Advent of Astral Part 9: Defense

How wrong he was. Coming back in his armor he was met with a full wave of bullets quickly reacting, he summoned his sword, the Murasama. He would crouch down and block most of the bullets being fired at him with swings from his sword. With any hitting him bouncing off like rubber pellets.

As their magazines ran empty, they entered a state of panic, how could someone in the blink of an eye go from being a defenseless person to an absolute scary cyan monster? He would slowly walk forward, the full body armor gleaming, as he passed the guards he sliced them to bits. Astral would look up to the general. Pointing at him as the visor on his helmet turned red.

Seth would look annoyed and press the alarm button, smashing it to bits in anger that he hasn't felt since that fateful night, sending the base on full lockdown. Astral would bust the door down from the room he was in, escaping the kill chamber. Kicking it into the wall, leaving the imprint of the detached door in the wall. "Think that simple steel can stop me now? How foolish."

Astral would make his way down the hallway, looking for the way to the observation room. He wanted the man who tried to execute him, to serve his head to his family on a silver platter, he would kill anyone who attacked him. To start, a wave of three guards would come at him. Using his spears he would impale each one. Testing out different uses and ideas as he made his way down the hall. This rush of adrenaline from battle felt different than anything else he had experienced. Why does feel like the correct way to live?

Astral would be lost in his thoughts for a moment. Why was he doing this? 'I am a man of history, not violence.' A couple of guards would jump out at him and grab ahold of his legs before he came back to it. 'But why is it so fun? When has violence become so enjoyable?' He would grab the skull of one of the men and crush it like a grape as he throws the others into the wall killing them instantaneously.

He would look forward, seeing the carnage that he was causing. Was it worth all of this bloodshed. A quiet voice from deep inside of him would echo. 'Yes, continue onward.' He felt a rush of cold wind go down his spine. That voice. It's not natural, it isn't his. "Go away." He would speak out loud as the voice stopped. Two of the guards would look at Astral.

"Are you referring to us, we have orders to stop you." The first guard would speak.

"And good luck getting past us." The second would mock Astral.

"No, but you won't stop me from my goal. Why does this feel unnatural." Astral would look to the two guards. "I will spare you two if you answer me a question." The two guards would look confused. Both slowly nodding yes to him. "Does the will to kill become easier in time or is there always a voice telling you no?" Astral's voice became weak. "Do the voices of the dead call to you, and do they ever stop?"

"Aww, someone is having a hard time killing people. Spare us the grief." The first guard would pull out his pistol and open fire as the second did the same. The bullets would bounce right off of the armor.

"What is he?" The second spoke as something inside Astral clicked. "You are no longer human, but something worse." The two would reload their weapons as they got hit with a flash of light, seeing their bodies stand as their heads fell. Astral would be a bit more peppy. Going into the pocket dimension to clear his thoughts. With that coming a clairvoyance that the voice inside him is a sealed evil he must never let out.

"Thanks you two, you helped me without realizing it." Astral would walk over the bodies, feeling refreshed from the combat. "That felt different than before. It feels like it isn't fair to them." He would trot down the hall more focused on himself than his surroundings.

"Hey sir, stop rampaging through the facility." A scientist would peek out from cover. "You are ruining all of everyone's hard work if you keep doing this." Astral would turn to the defenseless individual.

"Oh really? How so, I have no intention at destroying any knowledge or people who hold it. I just want to stop everyone from attacking me." Astral would pull out his sidearm and fire a round shredding a guard charging at them.

"If you kill all the guards then the base will blow up. If Seth hits the nuke button you won't stand a chance." The scientist pleaded.

"How does it go off?" Astral would inquire, he wanted no one to be hurt outside of the ones who tried to hurt him.

"There is a button in the observatory. If it is hit by Seth the station will explode instantaneously." The scientist would cower as Astral fired another round, taking down another guard.

"Okay, I will try my best. I promise you, all of you will see your families." He looked to the hallway as many doors closed, they were trying to lead him somewhere. He would motion with his hand for the scientist to go far away. He complied as he sprint in the way Astral came from. He was busy mapping out the place in his head.

Another wave of guards came. He tested out each of his three axes on them. A great battle ax, a duo of one handed axes and a smaller double sided ax. Wielding the two smaller axes, he would chop through the wave of men like trees in the forest.

Each door would be closed as he went forward. Having to pry each and every one open would be more tedious and annoying than any actual trouble. He was focused on a new goal. If this was an entire experiment, what else could he learn about himself? What else was veiled by the mystery of this place. He would keep going down the hallways feeling lackluster without much progress.

Out of nowhere being shot at he would hop into cover. Making his mind click in action, he tested out his handgun, with each shot he felt the power it had. The guards fell and he moved forward. His thoughts only thinking about saving everyone possible. His weapons could be tested later but everyone else's lives depended on how hw can respond to the moment.

He found a wide open garage, perfect time to try target practice with his two rifles. The smaller caliber one was deadly accurate, having no recoil or bloom in a live fire situation. He hit every shot he needed. The men he was attacking would fall with ease. The sniper rifle was a murder machine. He fired one round, and it was able to go through three people. The explosions of his rounds turning people into puddles. A tank turret would slowly tilt towards Astral. He saw this and lit the tank up with his sniper. Unloading the six remaining rounds in the magazine turning the tank to swiss cheese. The room catching ablaze he would walk away successfully.

He smiled and put the two devices of murder away. Only a couple of swords to test. He marches his way to the command room dicing up everyone in his way. Between testing broadswords, short swords, a gladiolus and several other sword types. He found out he loved his Murasama too much. Finally finding the observatory after a long search. Once he made his way there. He sat outside the solid titanium door. Looking at it in question like it would stop him. Scratching at it playfully with his sword.

The general and the last nine men had their weapons pointed at the door, Seth's hand hovering over the self destruct button of the base. Anders stood in a corner away from them with a couple of other scientists. The door was sliced open in a perfect circle before any of them could even react. Being pushed over slowly all that could be seen would be a bright cyan blade poking through, the slabs of metal make a low thud as they unload their weapons into the now opened door.

What they didn't know is that Astral was behind them. He snuck in with the thud, they clearly didn't see this as he would be prepared to stop Seth's hand at all costs. With a slash of his sword and three shots from his handgun, the nine remaining enemies were dead. Seth's hand would be separated as he screamed in pain.

"Payback is a bitch." Astral would shove his handgun straight into the mouth of Seth and pull the trigger. Releasing the man to the place he truly belongs.