Cyberknight: One Path (original novel)

Audrey stared at the jammed gun on the floor as the memories of her past flooded back into her mind. After Sniper's attack on Paris which killed millions, the French government did everything in its power to hunt down whoever was responsible. As a commando in training, Audrey was soon forced to begin service well before her training was over. Since crystal users weren't historically common in Europe due to how Horseman War limited the number of people he would grant access to the crystals, almost no one knew how powerful the cyberknights truly were. 

As a result, after tracking down some of Sniper's investors and allies, the French government began to send squads to either kill or capture these men for information. While initial success allowed the French to dig deeper into Sniper's plot, retaliation from the cyberknights was swift and brutal. By the time Audrey entered service at the age of 21, most of the French special forces fell to the unnatural abilities of their cyberknight opponents. 

As a prominent member of the cyberknights, Jerry became a target of the French Special Operation Executive. As such, Audrey and her squad were sent to take down Jerry as he was spotted inside a hotel in Geneva, Switzerland. However, they never expected to encounter Harry as they moved in to kill him in his sleep. 

On that fateful night, as Audrey and her squad smashed through the window into the 12th-floor corridor, they were unfortunate enough to come face to face with Harry as he was exiting his room. Initially, they thought he was a civilian but soon realized what danger they were in. 

[Harry] - "Echoing Verdict: Trial Through Liminal Space! "

It was the perfect set of unfortunate circumstances as they were positioned inside a place where Harry's ability was at maximum effectiveness. Shots ran loud, but nothing ever managed to move more than a few millimetres before being decimated by the ability's passive attack. 

[Harry] - "You are outmatched, agents. Between you and me, there is a monumental difference in offensive power. "

As a few of Audrey's squadmates moved forward, they were suddenly slashed into human salami before their brains could even perceive the pain. In a desperate move, Audrey's girlfriend, agent Amelie, launched a canister of nerve gas before her arm was abruptly amputated. Although the canister was quickly dispatched, the gas quickly spread through the hallway toward Harry, who acted quickly to contain the chaos. 

[Harry] - "Trial Access: 64-Space Inventory! "

With one touch with the gas molecules, Harry was able to instantly seal the substance into the confines of his ability. 

[Amelie] - "Audrey, I'll distract him. I want you to run as fast as possible and get out of here! "

[Audrey] - "What?! No, I won't leave you here! "

Yelled Audrey as she grabbed at her partner. 

[Amelie] - "We are dealing with forces we can't comprehend. I love you! Promise me, you'll quit this cursed job and pursue a life with purpose. "

Said Amelie as he turned around and pushed Audrey back. 

Amelie didn't know how Harry's ability worked but seeing how Audrey was not sliced made her smile. However, due to her turning around to do this action, half of her body was considered as performing a forward movement. Audrey could only helplessly watch as her partner lost half of her body in an instant. As Amelie fell to her death, the previous smile and hopeful look in her eyes stayed where her body was still intact. 

[Harry] - "Hey, you! Get outta here! "

Said Harry as he appeared before Audrey. 

However, Audrey didn't pay any mind to Harry as she was still in shock from the brutal scene that unfolded before her. The crimson-red blood that flowed from her dead partner reflected inside her eyes as she began to whimper in terror. 

[Audrey] - "Aaaaahhh... AAAAHHH! AAAAAHH! Get away! Get away from me, I don't want to die! "

Cried Audrey as she fell onto the ground. 

[Harry] - "This wasn't a fair fight. However, you tried to kill me and my brother. You are no longer a threat in my eyes, so I'm offering you a choice; Take your weapon and shoot me or turn around and run. "

Without hesitation, Audrey drew her pistol and aimed it at Harry's head. Despite her determination, her fingers simply couldn't find the strength to pull the trigger. 

[Harry] - "Choose wisely! If you shoot, then it means I will attack too. If you run, I promise I won't pursue or strike at you. "

Said Harry with an empathetic look in his eyes. 

At that moment, despite her mind telling her to do something stupid, Audrey instead allowed her instinct to take control. The sheer terror and shock were what saved her as she got up and sprinted out of the window and fell all the way down without any protective measures. Above, Harry started at Audrey's bloodied corpse on the pavement with visible shock on his face. With a respectful demeanour, Harry walked toward Amelie's corpse and closed her eyes. 

[Harry] - "Jerry! Jerry, we got some visitors, so it's time to ditch. "

Yelled Harry as he banged on Jerry's room door beside him. 

For Audrey, after making a miraculous recovery from her injuries, she was dishonourably discharged from the special forces as her commanders saw her actions as cowardly. She lived a life of relative obscurity, haunted by her experience for a few years before being forcefully conscripted into the Allied Forces by the French Government in exile. After all, she didn't see the Imperial-occupied France as her true home but neither did she see the Allied Forces as her home either. 

*Back to the present

As Harry released the nerve gas toward Audrey, she simply stared at the jammed rifle without a motion. 

[Audrey] - "I was afraid of what people thought of me if they knew my real name. Back in France, they labelled me as a traitor and coward all because I didn't throw my life away in some pointless struggle. Cut-Throat... that's something I wanted to do to myself a long time ago... Even I don't understand why I still keep going... Until now. "

Whispered Audrey as the nerve gas approached her. 

Audrey slowly extended her arms and raised her stare at Harry through the lime-coloured gas. 

[Audrey] - "I was wondering why I froze when I heard your ability's name initially. It's truly a small world, isn't it? Yesterday, I was lost and helpless but today, I was suddenly given a clear purpose. "

The crystals on Audrey's arms abruptly glowed with a furious blue shine. 

[Audrey] - "I'm here to fight a fair fight. Your ability haunted me and ruined my life. However, today I'm no longer a stranger to this nightmare. You, me, we are standing on equal footing today. I won't run this time, I will fight this battle I ran away from all these years! Trial Access: Blue Shine Over The Guillotine Blade! "

Yelled Audrey as her voice echoed through the basement. 

In an instant, all the gas became stationary in the air before a force took hold of Harry's body. 

[Harry] - "UGH! What the hell is this?! "

Said Harry as he struggled to move his body. 

[Audrey] - "My ability might lack offensive power, but I certainly can reach you with it! "

[Harry] - "So what? If you want to do a staring contest, I've already won. Say, how much oxygen will you have now that you are surrounded by gas? "

Said Harry in a mocking tone. 

Audrey ground her teeth in frustration as she realized that there was nothing she could do with her ability against Harry. 

[Senju] - "You seemed to have forgotten someone, you bastard! "

Yelled Senju as he swung his sword backward. 

Harry's eyes widened as he received a powerful slash on his previous cut, which was enough to reach some of his major blood vessels and lungs. Immediately, blood began to pour onto the floor as Harry tried in vain to find a way to stop the bleeding from his chest and mouth. 

[Audrey] - "Now, will you bleed out before I run out of oxygen or will it be the contrary? "

Said Audrey with a satisfied grin. 

Harry gasped for air as the crimson liquid pooled relentlessly inside his mouth. Will he expire from blood loss before Audrey expires from lack of oxygen?

Meanwhile, upstairs, McCree smashed another plate alongside the others he could find on the ground. As Jerry's spikes blocked his path to the cupboards, McCree shifted into the dining room where he fired onto the table and chairs before breaking them with his limbs. Although Jerry was beyond confused at that point as to McCree's intentions, he remained vigilant and decided to take away all the assets inside the room. 

[Jerry] - "What the hell are you planning, cowboy? My ability doesn't care if you break stuff, I'll easily repair and recycle everything you broke. "

Said Jerry from inside the walls.

[McCree] - "Ain't that the point, ya damn fool? Each plate is broken into 30 to 50 pieces on average. With 54 plates so far, we should be around 2500 shards just by the number of plates. Alongside this, the wood spikes I broke, the tables, chairs, cupboards, lights, and most importantly, heavy electronics like fridges and ovens. "

Said McCree while counting his fingers. 

[Jerry] - "HUH? WHAT? Have you lost your mind? What does all this shit mean? "

Yelled Jerry, flabbergasted.

McCree spun his pistol on his finger while his eyes darted around the walls. 

[McCree] - "If yer too damn stupid to understand, why don't ya try to kill me, partner? "

Said McCree in a confident voice before suddenly firing a shot into a wall. 

This time, by tracking Jerry's voice, McCree landed a critical shot as his bullet tore through Jerry's left shoulder. 

[Jerry] - "Fuck! Mother fucker! Ya stupid fuckhead! "

Sweared Jerry as he held his shoulder in agony. 

Without hesitation, McCree unloaded another 11 shots into the wall while Jerry ran for his life through the walls before being forced out of hiding. As Jerry fell onto the ground before McCree, he raised his eyes only to see the shiny end of a gun barrel pointed at him. 

[McCree] - "End of the road, partner. "

[Jerry] - "Ya fucking Texans... All about that stupid gun and muscle, but no brain or culture like us Californians. "

[McCree] - "Yeah, yeah, ask your estrogen-filled superheroes or ChatGPT to save your ass from this hard and true steel bullet. I wonder if calling for my cancellation on X will save your head from becomin' fertilizer for my farm. "

Said McCree as he cogged the firing ping on his weapon. 

Suddenly, a wall pushed McCree away before squeezing him between another wall. 

[Jerry] - "Maybe not, but I am a fan of the "good" movies. They do actually tell a lesson and I learned that the big fucking brute never sees it coming until it's too late. "

Said Jerry as he stood up confidently. 

However, to Jerry's surprise, McCree abruptly punched through the wall with his bare fist. Before long, the wall cracked before McCree pushed it away from his body like wet concrete. 

[McCree] - "However, as a generality, the villain always loses. "

Said McCree as he raised his pistol and fired a shot at Jerry. 

Jerry quickly raised the floor to protect himself but the wood immediately shattered before sending a shower of splinters onto his face. 

[Jerry] - "What the hell! How... what the hell is happening to my ability? "

Said Jerry in a panic as he sent a row of spikes at McCree. 

To his absolute horror, the spikes simply shattered upon reaching McCree as their structures were filled to the brim with holes and imperfections. At that moment, Jerry understood partially what was going on as he collected how McCree and Oltevin were protected inside the pantry when McCree used his ability. With one look at one of the spikes, Jerry noticed a fragment of plate floating in the air while a large deformation in the shape of a plate was embedded in the spike's structure. 

[Jerry] - "You! You broke these plates... You were trying to clog my ability with yours! "

Said Jerry while pointing at McCree.

[McCree] - "Hehe! Ain't this a tragedy? Who knew I just so happen to counter your bullshit so well. Now, it's time to pay for all these people you killed. "

Said McCree as he raised his gun at Jerry.

[Jerry] - "Don't underestimate me, I'm not a one-trick pony like you, you fucking dollar store Clint Eastwood. "

Said Jerry while looking down.

[McCree] - "At least, I ain't the one joining the Lincoln-Kennedy club. "

Said McCree in a cold voice before pulling the trigger. 

In a flash, the bullet simply stopped before reaching Jerry's head as he raised his eyes to meet McCree. Unwavered, McCree pulled his trigger time after time until the chamber ran empty. In shock, McCree backed off slightly as somehow, all the bullets, real steel or created from his ability were levitating before Jerry's face. 

[Jerry] - "Guilt Extension: Entity 13! "

Said Jerry in a calm voice while his eyes remained fixated on McCree. 

As soon as the bullet began falling down, McCree felt a tightening sensation around his neck. 

[Jerry] - "I'm a cyberknight with years of experience. Your bird brain thought you could kill me with one simple trick. How fucking naive! "

Suddenly, McCree was pushed onto the ground by an invisible force which began to choke the life out of him. McCree failed to immediately try to pry the invisible hands away from his neck as the impact his head made against the ground clouded his judgement. When he finally began to resist, his strength was already fading from his arms due to lack of oxygen. 

[Jerry] - "You seemed to love leaving one-liners before you finish your opponents, don't you? Well, I got one for you: "

Jerry remained silent for a few seconds as McCree's bulging eyes fixated on him.

[Jerry] - "Silence is most suitable for a fool's funeral because no one wants to laugh at a dead joke. "

Said Jerry before leaving McCree to be choked to death on the ground. 

During this time, unbeknownst to Jerry, Oltevin, despite his severe stab wounds, broke free from Jerry's spikes. With blood leaking all over his body, Oltevin still mustered the strength to pull apart the spikes around him and move toward Jerry's voice. There was unwavering determination in his eyes as he knew McCree was in danger from Jerry's words. In his mind, he ignored the pain in his body and pushed forward, no longer fearing death as he did before. As he reached the wall, he saw in his memory how his best friend in Wagner died. 

[Oltevin] - "Not again... Never again! I'm not letting another comrade die! "

Said Oltevin under his breath. 

To be continued...

*EXTRA

- Profile: Jerry

- Real Name: Jerry Gem Miner

- Ability 1: [Holmes' Murder Castle]: "An ability which allows Jerry to take control of a building, house or complex of any size. Once active, Jerry will have total control over all inanimate objects inside the building and the structure itself. For example, Jerry can manipulate the space and the layout of the interior or even create objects out of the available materials which constitute the building. However, despite how Jerry could use his ability without visual contact, any precise movement or action would still require Jerry's personal input to be properly executed. "

- ABILITY STATS:

Power - C

Speed granted - D

Speed of the ability - D

Range - E to A (depending on the structure manipulated)

Durability granted - C

Durability of the ability - A

Precision - E to B (depending on Jerry's personal input)

Potential - A

- Ability 2: [Entity 13]: "An automatic ability which can act without Jerry's personal control as it carries fragments of the consciousness of Jerry's deceased brother. However, this ability will still obey Jerry if he shouts a direct order. The ability itself is shaped like Jerry's dead brother but invisible to the naked eye. In terms of power, this ability is capable of mimicking its opponent in terms of physical strength and speed. So in a sense, if you were to fight this ability, you would be basically fighting yourself. However, in terms of durability, this ability has no limit as it is practically indestructible, being able to match in terms of durability against any attack independently of the limits of Jerry's crystals. "

- ABILITY STATS:

Power - E to C (depending on the physical strength of its opponent)

Speed granted - E

Speed of the ability - None to S (depending on the opponent)

Range - S

Durability granted - S+ (nearly invincible)

Durability of the ability - S

Precision - None/B (ability can act independently or be controlled)

Potential - E