"I hate this!"
The night air is unusually warm and beneath this vantage point, KnightShadow can hear gears click and whirl as Zandraxi warriors move equipment and various weaponry to and fro. Sentries stand guard scanning for morphon-powered humans. Some walk patrols, their alien-alloyed frames catching glints of moonlight as they pass. The air hangs heavy with an almost palpable mix of oil and electrical burning.
KnightShadow akwardly shifts position, his dark kevlar-meshed trench draped over clumsy, glinting metal. It is hot and uncomfortable. His "disguise", a mix of various parts of vanquished invaders, is bulky, restrictive, and of no tactical value. Despite this, it has allowed him access to the heart of the Zandraxi forward position. For all their technological prowess, they are not particularly bright.
Tonight finds him stalking one of several Zandraxi advance teams, sent in to establish firebases and probe the city defenses. Word on the street is many of the Worlds' greatest heroes are engaged in some sort of league "war"; a wargames-type excercise designed to test and strengthen Earths' greatest Defenders. This vacumn of available firepower has left many of Earths' less "strategic" cities vunerable to attack. It has fallen to individual heroes, like KnightShadow and others, to fill in the gaps. The Zandraxi have heard this also, and are anxious to take advantage.
KnightShadow sizes up the force, noting positions and capabilities like a GrandMaster analyzes a chessboard. When the moment for perfect optimal damage presents itself, he strikes. With a surgical precision that contradicts his metal-clad frame, he takes out a platoon before they even register the threat. Servos whirl and screech as metal is ripped and shredded. The lone warrior fires bolts of energy, shattering external defenses from behind and rendering much needed weapons and equipment useless. A group of Obliterators move into action, but find nothing but termination.
Zandraxi technicians, backed by Cyberguys, make a feeble attempt at counter-offensive. Their attack is two-dimensional and easily repelled. They are not warriors, and it shows. KnightShadow plows through them like a man wading through a stream. Several Immortals attempt to out-flank him. KnightShadow feigns a dodge, then moves directly towards them. In an instant, he is in their midst, cutting through them with deceptive ease. A sudden blast catches him momentarily off-balance.
Exterminators; their merciless brutality is the closest thing these invaders have to Human emotion. They move swiftly to lock him down behind machinery with supressing fire. KnightShadow pulls off the robotic costume layered upon him. "Stupid junk!" he exclaims, as purple energy crackles to life around him. He calls it "Nemesis". It is a morphon-induced ability to modify his powers to counter any assault upon him. A translucent field forms around him as he moves forward. Tonight, these Exterminators will themselves, be exterminated.
When all is said and done, the battle is ended almost as quickly as it began. Wires burn and melted slag bubbles in molten puddles. Once impressive weapons of destruction lie in smoldering heaps. Rising smoke obscures the moonlit surroundings and the once mechanical hum of power boosters and invaders is replaced by soft, almost soothing, sounds of burning debris. As he evaluates the fruits of his labors, KnightShadow understands this was just a pawn removed from the bigger board. There are still countless other pieces still in play; the Zandraxi, supercriminals looking for opportunities to advance their own agendas, dimensional invaders, and of course, Legion. While many of the heroes engage in training battles to co-ordinate their abilities, The War continues. He will fight in the trenches until these threats are dealt with. Until ALL threats are dealt with.
"I hate this", KnightShadow murmurs to himself as he moves on to the next battle.
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