Tactical Stealth Takedowns

"The guards. They're not moving." I whisper to The Voice as I peek at the security checkpoint from my hiding place.

"Impossible." The Voice asserts, "Every night the guards stationed at the final wall leave the checkpoint at regular intervals in order to patrol."

"Tell that to them then," I grumble, "It has been fifteen minutes already. I could try fast talking past them? I am still in these BL duds after all."

The Voice takes a moment to consider my proposition and unceremoniously shoots it down. "Belial Logistics is just the logistics sub-contractor for this warehouse compound." The Voice explains, "The owner of the building itself has left explicit instructions with the guards on whom to admit and whom to turn away. The guards will not listen to whatever story you feed them."

Well, that's a bust. Just as I was racking my brain for a solution to this conundrum, I suddenly hear a loud pounding noise erupting from the depths of the third and final container maze. The guards immediately rouse themselves upon hearing the noise as well and they file out from the checkpoint in order to investigate.

"There. I have engineered an accident involving one of the reach stackers. The way should be clear for you to pass." The Voice says.

"There's still one guard left at the checkpoint." I protest, "Can't you do something about him too?"

"You will have to improvise." The Voice flatly states.

...

I examine the guard remaining at the checkpoint. Just like cat man from the second perimeter wall, this guard looks largely human as well. The difference being that this guy has what looks like bird talons in place of regular hands. "Why do the demons here look so human?" I ask The Voice.

The Voice responds, "Demons that stay in The City generally make an effort to blend in, usually taking the forms of regular humans. The disguise is however imperfect, leaving behind the animal traits that you have been noticing."

"Then what about that weird halo that seems to exude from them? I thought only angels have halos?" I whisper as I begin to creep towards the guard.

"That is not a halo. You are seeing their spiritual field. Anyone who has trained their spirituality knows how to compress their soul into a solid core. By manipulating the pressure they place on their soul, they allow their spirit energy to invade the area around them, the same way air rushes out when an airplane door is opened in flight." The Voice rasps in one breath.

"Can anyone see that halo thingy?" I query.

"Only with specialized equipment. Spirituality is beyond the visual range of this world's natives."

Interesting. It also explains the single bright light I have been seeing in the chests of the demons. I continue creeping towards the guard. He is going to notice me soon.

"What do you plan on doing?" The Voice asks.

I don't bother to respond. Eagle Claw looks up and sees me right in front of him. His expression immediately slackens as he tries to overcome the disorienting effect of looking directly at me. In one swift motion, I slam the maglite across Eagle Claw's head and he obligingly collapses like a sack of bricks. His spirituality flickers for the barest moment before stabilizing.

I grab Eagle Claw by the armpits and drag him back to my former hiding place. Bundling him behind the tower of containers, I snatch up his sword. "From a maglite to a katana. Not a bad upgrade." I remark.

"Shin Gunto." The Voice rumbles distractedly.

"Huh? Wazzat?" I mutter as I examine the weapon. A wooden scabbard painted to look like leather. The metal hilt had also been painted blue to give the impression that it was wrapped in silk. I get the impression that this piece is not exactly a quality demonic weapon.

"Shin Gunto. The type of sword you just stole from the guard." The Voice elaborates disinterestedly, its attention clearly elsewhere.

"Hey. You sound out of it there. Everything alright?" I ask concernedly. I still need you to get me out of here Voice. Don't go running off into la la land before that.

"No. Something is wrong." The Voice's rasp sharpens with unease. "I detect that the layout of the final container maze has changed. The stackers must have moved the containers around while I was driving you here."

I begin my penetration of the final maze as The Voice rumbles its concern. "Still," I quip, "The maze shouldn't be too difficult to defeat right? There are only so may containers that can be moved around."

"Getting through the maze is not the problem." The Voice says tersely, "The layout of the maze has been manipulated to create a choke point ahead of you. Be very careful Transmigrator."

What? I immediately slow my pace and take an experimental peek from around the corner. Nothing so far. I press onwards, carefully checking every corner. A few turns later I see what The Voice was talking about. Ahead of me is a junction with two guards standing right in the middle of it. This is all far too suspicious.

"Did anyone know that I was coming tonight?" I hiss to The Voice. Things were escalating far too quickly for my taste.

"No. There has been nothing that could have alerted the guards to your presence or to this mission. Yet from the data that I have extracted from the guards' computers, I see last minute patrol changes and alterations as to how the containers are to be organized. I suspect the hand of Fate in this. " The Voice spits out, frustration self-evident.

So the guards don't actually know that I am here then? Well, as long as I get the timing right, getting past this choke point should be possible. Taking a deep breath, I draw the katana, no the shin gunto, from its scabbard and run towards the two guards blocking my path. The guards hear me before they see me and their hands close in on the hilts of their own swords. Their eyes narrow as they focus on the threat approaching them.

And it happens again. Both guards begin impotently spazzing out, unable to react to my presence. I take my sword in a double handed grip and swing it towards the neck of the first guard. It strikes cleanly, decapitating him in an instant. The second guard does not respond as his eyes desperately try to regain their focus. Taking another deep breath, I deliver a repeat performance to the second guard who falls to the ground in a bloody, headless heap.

"Behind you!" The Voice barks in alarm. I turn around and see a third guard that had been approaching me from the rear. Number Three was in the mid stride before his facial expression went completely blank. I rush at him in a panic and stab forward with the sword. The blade plunges through the glowing core in his chest and his entire body loses power at once.

Close. Too close. That was clearly an ambush. If it was not for The Voice's warnings and my "condition", I would have been chopped into pieces by those three guards. I wipe off the sweat that had gotten into my eyes with my arm. The spirituality of the fallen guards rapidly begins to fade. No way are those guys getting back up.

Remember. Its just a dream. Its all just a dream. No time to waste. The longer I stay here, the riskier it becomes.

I conquer the final stretch of the container maze without further incident and find myself standing before the steel shutters of the target warehouse.

"Use the fake employee pass on the sensor by the shutters." The Voice instructs. "I had crafted it as a universal key for all the security systems in this compound."

I obligingly waive the card in front of the sensor and the shutters begin to rise with a mechanical groan. My mission was soon to be over.