Chapter 152: Kaviss The Broken
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Writers-Ablood
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[Tower, Last City]
The Vanguard room was quiet for once. The chatter of techs and footfalls of messengers had faded, replaced by momentary stillness.
Zavala stood at the center of the holo-table with an unreadable expression as the mission report finalized with a chime.
"Strike complete," Ikorra confirmed, her voice even. "Sepiks Prime is down."
Zavala gave a small nod. "Confirmed by multiple teams. It's done."
Cayde leaned back in his chair, boots kicked up. "Well, look at that. I knew the kids had it in 'em." He spun a coin through his fingers, glancing toward the screens showing post-strike telemetry. "Prime servitor of the Devils, wiped out by a bunch of new lights. That's gotta sting."
"More than sting," Ikorra murmured. She turned her gaze to the Cosmodrome's region map now shifting colors. Large zones once marked red were shifting to neutral blue. "With Sepiks gone, their command chain will suffer."
Zavala motioned to the regional overlay. "Which gives us the opportunity to press forward. I want outposts set up around the Steppes and Mothyards."
Ikorra stepped forward, eyes narrowing. "You're planning a full zone sweep?"
"Yes," Zavala confirmed. "We'll dig in. Push them back. The House of Devils has held too much of the Cosmodrome for too long. This is the turning point."
Zavala tapped the console again and began transmitting new directives. Patrol rotations, new bounties, he'd even planned to interrupt glimmer extraction operations by the Devils.
-
[Kings Watch]
Thunder echoed softly as a dim light flickered in a bunker below barren sands of Kings Watch.
Cables slithered like serpents through the metal corridors, connected to makeshift generators. Scavenged tech blinked. Modified Fallen architecture groaned as machines hummed in twisted harmony.
Aksis, Archon Prime of the Devil Splicers, stood unmoving at the center of the repurposed bunker. Red light glinted off the sharp edges of his body, limbs altered beyond anything the Fallen Houses had once considered sacred. His throne pulsed with ether-fed tubing.
A door hissed open. A lone Splicer High Priest entered, his body laced with glowing circuits. He knelt immediately, head low.
"Speak," Aksis ordered.
"As you expected, the City infiltrated Devils Lair" the splicer hesitated. "They took down Sepiks Prime."
Aksis didn't move. "Sepiks… fallen?"
"Yes, Archon. The Devils' Prime was destroyed at the foot of the lair. Its shell remains intact."
Aksis' clawed hand tightened around the throne's arm.
"So," he rumbled, "They could not protect their home, or their own Servitor without us. Weak. Predictable. I had warned them. Urged them to relocate."
The splicer remained kneeling.
Aksis stood, thoughts racing in his head. His towering frame cast jagged shadows across the walls. His voice dropped lower. "This is why they need me. The House of Devils clings to rusted faith and fractured hierarchy. Without Splicers, they are nothing."
He began pacing slowly, deliberate steps echoing through the chamber. "They mocked our progress. They Fear rebirth. But I will show them… I will make them see."
He stopped and turned. "Sepiks remains where it fell?"
"Yes, Archon. Unclaimed."
"Then retrieve it."
The priest hesitated. "There may be resistance from the house—"
"Then cut through it," Aksis snapped. "Bring the husk to me. I will rebuild it. Not as a servitor of the old faith—but as a herald of the new order. Shaped by Splicers. Loyal to me."
The priest nodded and scrambled away, his mechanical feet clicking over the floor.
Aksis turned back to the throne and stared into the flickering monitors. "They will kneel," he muttered. "All of them. Not just the Devils, the Winter, even the Kings. They will kneel… or burn."
He sat, and the cables surged again—feeding him power. All around him, the machines listened.
And in the shadows of King's Watch, a new power began to stir.
-
[Thieves Landing]
Void trudged up the ramp toward the Workshop, boots scraping against the rusted metal. Kaviss was slung over his back like a sack of scrap, tied at the ankles and wrists, his modified armor clicking with each step.
The Fallen captain was still out cold, breath shallow but steady.
The door to the Workshop hissed open. Pahanin stepped out, balancing a crate full of metal bits and vials. He paused mid-step, his eyes narrowing into tiny slits the second he spotted the scene before him.
Void didn't flinch. "I can explain."
Pahanin sighed, shook his head, and softly took a step back.
Void took a step forward.
Pahanin's hand jolted to the panel, and the Workshop door snapped shut. Locks clattered into place.
Then, One, two, five—eight turns of mechanical latches echoed from the other side.
"Fine you dog!" Void sighed and let Kaviss slump onto the deck. He glanced at the door, then at the unconscious captain, then at the sky.
Obsidian flittered beside him his eye blinking gently. "Well?"
"Plan B," Void muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"You don't have a Plan B."
"I do now."
Void turned as he grabbed Kaviss by the cape and dragged him along, boots scraping against the dock again as he started the long march toward the edges of Thieves' Landing.
-
[Spiders Hideout]
Spider squinted.
He was lounging in his oversized throne-like chair in his darkened hideout, half-lit by scattered lamp posts and flickering monitors. His four arms were crossed—two on his belly, two resting on the sides.
His gaze shifted to the right, Viper stood across him. Spider looked to the left, an unconscious Fallen captain was tied up at his feet.
Spider's eye twitched. "So?"
Viper exhaled. "I can explain."
Spider gestured at the Fallen captain. "Go ahead."
"I assume you've already heard about the prime Servitor of the Devils?" Viper added.
"Of course. A vicious operation. To think the City managed to locate and destroy it so easily. You've left some of the other Houses in a panic." Spider chuckled.
Viper shrugged, "While the City targeted the Servitor, I went for the splicers."
"Seeing as you've dragged this one along, looks like your infiltration wasn't as successful as you'd hoped." Spider rubbed his chin.
"Unfortunately, you're right." Viper nodded, and shot spider an eerie glare "Almost as if they knew I was coming."
Spider's lips curled into a smile, "Please, I had nothing to do with this. You're far too erratic for me to have ears on."
"I know." Viper shook his head, "I guess whoever is leading the splicers is cautious. Far too cautious."
"Is that why you brought this guy here?" Spider raised a brow as he gestured to Kaviss.
"This one was inside an ether pod. Modified. Splicer tech. He was left behind." Viper answered flatly, "When I finally let him out the ether pod, he'd damn near lost his mind. He'll need healing."
Spider grunted. "And this concerns me?"
"As far as I'm concerned, he's the only link we have to the splicers. If you're willing to squander it, then I can't say much." Viper continued.
Spider leaned forward, frowning as he examined Kaviss more closely. His eyes gleamed. "Modified Splicer metal, deep bone fusions."
Viper nodded. "Can you cure him?"
"I'm not a medic." Spider scoffed and waved his hand as a grunt came scuttling towards him. "Follow me."
Spider paused and looked over his shoulder, a heavy sigh wheezed from Spider's throat. "And don't touch anything."
Spider waddled toward the back of the hideout as the grunt dragged Kaviss along towards a panel in the back. Spider tapped in a code.
With a hiss, the wall split open and revealed a hidden chamber. Inside stood an ether pod. Not just any pod—it was ornamented with polished gold tubing, engraved glyphs, and absurdly plush cushioning. The vents hissed a soft blue mist.
Viper stared. "That's… Extravagant? You've got unique taste."
Spider waved a hand. "Got it off a baron who thought it made him royalty. That bastard always had a knack for collecting shiny things."
The grunt gently placed Kaviss into the pod. The machinery responded immediately—tubes snaked out, latching onto the plugs in Kaviss's armor, then hissed as they began cycling ether through his system.
The captain stirred, but didn't wake.
Spider leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed. "He'll be out a while. Days, maybe. I'll let you know when he's awake."
Viper looked down at the captain. "That's what I'm counting on."
"You planning to break him? Like the other one?" Spider hummed.
Void smirked faintly and turned away. "Nope, we'll just have a small chat and hope he really does remember what the splicers are up to."
"Whatever you say" Spider rolled his eyes, not believing a word.
As the door to the chamber hissed closed, a thought struck Viper as he spoke up, "Ah if he does wake up, he might try escaping. Don't let that happen."
"Hah." Spider grumbled, "I am not some amateur. If he dares to even step outside this base the entire shore would hunt him down."
"Good." Viper reached back into a pouch and chucked an engram towards spider.
"This is?" Spider caught it somewhat hesitantly.
"Payment." Viper replied, "Data collected on the splicer technology. We took everything the Devils had left."
"And what exactly am I supposed to do with this?" Spider was confused, he couldn't just sell it to the market. It'd be shooting himself in the foot. Besides, he wasn't prepared to permanently offend the Devils for a short term profit.
"We've got a workshop don't we?" Viper smiled, "Get me the materials, I'll give your syndicate an edge."
Spider sighed, "Mankind is truly a shrewd inventor. Handing me a supply order and naming it a payment. Aren't you ashamed?"
"So you don't want it?" Viper leaned towards the engram to take it back.
Spider jolted with unnatural agility as he pocketed the engram, "I never said that!"
=
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The Vanguard room was quiet for once. The chatter of techs and footfalls of messengers had faded, replaced by momentary stillness.
Zavala stood at the center of the holo-table with an unreadable expression as the mission report finalized with a chime.
"Strike complete," Ikorra confirmed, her voice even. "Sepiks Prime is down."
Zavala gave a small nod. "Confirmed by multiple teams. It's done."
Cayde leaned back in his chair, boots kicked up. "Well, look at that. I knew the kids had it in 'em." He spun a coin through his fingers, glancing toward the screens showing post-strike telemetry. "Prime servitor of the Devils, wiped out by a bunch of new lights. That's gotta sting."
"More than sting," Ikorra murmured. She turned her gaze to the Cosmodrome's region map now shifting colors. Large zones once marked red were shifting to neutral blue. "With Sepiks gone, their command chain will suffer."
Zavala motioned to the regional overlay. "Which gives us the opportunity to press forward. I want outposts set up around the Steppes and Mothyards."
Ikorra stepped forward, eyes narrowing. "You're planning a full zone sweep?"
"Yes," Zavala confirmed. "We'll dig in. Push them back. The House of Devils has held too much of the Cosmodrome for too long. This is the turning point."
Zavala tapped the console again and began transmitting new directives. Patrol rotations, new bounties, he'd even planned to interrupt glimmer extraction operations by the Devils.
-
[Kings Watch]
Thunder echoed softly as a dim light flickered in a bunker below barren sands of Kings Watch.
Cables slithered like serpents through the metal corridors, connected to makeshift generators. Scavenged tech blinked. Modified Fallen architecture groaned as machines hummed in twisted harmony.
Aksis, Archon Prime of the Devil Splicers, stood unmoving at the center of the repurposed bunker. Red light glinted off the sharp edges of his body, limbs altered beyond anything the Fallen Houses had once considered sacred. His throne pulsed with ether-fed tubing.
A door hissed open. A lone Splicer High Priest entered, his body laced with glowing circuits. He knelt immediately, head low.
"Speak," Aksis ordered.
"As you expected, the City infiltrated Devils Lair" the splicer hesitated. "They took down Sepiks Prime."
Aksis didn't move. "Sepiks… fallen?"
"Yes, Archon. The Devils' Prime was destroyed at the foot of the lair. Its shell remains intact."
Aksis' clawed hand tightened around the throne's arm.
"So," he rumbled, "They could not protect their home, or their own Servitor without us. Weak. Predictable. I had warned them. Urged them to relocate."
The splicer remained kneeling.
Aksis stood, thoughts racing in his head. His towering frame cast jagged shadows across the walls. His voice dropped lower. "This is why they need me. The House of Devils clings to rusted faith and fractured hierarchy. Without Splicers, they are nothing."
He began pacing slowly, deliberate steps echoing through the chamber. "They mocked our progress. They Fear rebirth. But I will show them… I will make them see."
He stopped and turned. "Sepiks remains where it fell?"
"Yes, Archon. Unclaimed."
"Then retrieve it."
The priest hesitated. "There may be resistance from the house—"
"Then cut through it," Aksis snapped. "Bring the husk to me. I will rebuild it. Not as a servitor of the old faith—but as a herald of the new order. Shaped by Splicers. Loyal to me."
The priest nodded and scrambled away, his mechanical feet clicking over the floor.
Aksis turned back to the throne and stared into the flickering monitors. "They will kneel," he muttered. "All of them. Not just the Devils, the Winter, even the Kings. They will kneel… or burn."
He sat, and the cables surged again—feeding him power. All around him, the machines listened.
And in the shadows of King's Watch, a new power began to stir.
-
[Thieves Landing]
Void trudged up the ramp toward the Workshop, boots scraping against the rusted metal. Kaviss was slung over his back like a sack of scrap, tied at the ankles and wrists, his modified armor clicking with each step.
The Fallen captain was still out cold, breath shallow but steady.
The door to the Workshop hissed open. Pahanin stepped out, balancing a crate full of metal bits and vials. He paused mid-step, his eyes narrowing into tiny slits the second he spotted the scene before him.
Void didn't flinch. "I can explain."
Pahanin sighed, shook his head, and softly took a step back.
Void took a step forward.
Pahanin's hand jolted to the panel, and the Workshop door snapped shut. Locks clattered into place.
Then, One, two, five—eight turns of mechanical latches echoed from the other side.
"Fine you dog!" Void sighed and let Kaviss slump onto the deck. He glanced at the door, then at the unconscious captain, then at the sky.
Obsidian flittered beside him his eye blinking gently. "Well?"
"Plan B," Void muttered, pinching the bridge of his nose.
"You don't have a Plan B."
"I do now."
Void turned as he grabbed Kaviss by the cape and dragged him along, boots scraping against the dock again as he started the long march toward the edges of Thieves' Landing.
-
[Spiders Hideout]
Spider squinted.
He was lounging in his oversized throne-like chair in his darkened hideout, half-lit by scattered lamp posts and flickering monitors. His four arms were crossed—two on his belly, two resting on the sides.
His gaze shifted to the right, Viper stood across him. Spider looked to the left, an unconscious Fallen captain was tied up at his feet.
Spider's eye twitched. "So?"
Viper exhaled. "I can explain."
Spider gestured at the Fallen captain. "Go ahead."
"I assume you've already heard about the prime Servitor of the Devils?" Viper added.
"Of course. A vicious operation. To think the City managed to locate and destroy it so easily. You've left some of the other Houses in a panic." Spider chuckled.
Viper shrugged, "While the City targeted the Servitor, I went for the splicers."
"Seeing as you've dragged this one along, looks like your infiltration wasn't as successful as you'd hoped." Spider rubbed his chin.
"Unfortunately, you're right." Viper nodded, and shot spider an eerie glare "Almost as if they knew I was coming."
Spider's lips curled into a smile, "Please, I had nothing to do with this. You're far too erratic for me to have ears on."
"I know." Viper shook his head, "I guess whoever is leading the splicers is cautious. Far too cautious."
"Is that why you brought this guy here?" Spider raised a brow as he gestured to Kaviss.
"This one was inside an ether pod. Modified. Splicer tech. He was left behind." Viper answered flatly, "When I finally let him out the ether pod, he'd damn near lost his mind. He'll need healing."
Spider grunted. "And this concerns me?"
"As far as I'm concerned, he's the only link we have to the splicers. If you're willing to squander it, then I can't say much." Viper continued.
Spider leaned forward, frowning as he examined Kaviss more closely. His eyes gleamed. "Modified Splicer metal, deep bone fusions."
Viper nodded. "Can you cure him?"
"I'm not a medic." Spider scoffed and waved his hand as a grunt came scuttling towards him. "Follow me."
Spider paused and looked over his shoulder, a heavy sigh wheezed from Spider's throat. "And don't touch anything."
Spider waddled toward the back of the hideout as the grunt dragged Kaviss along towards a panel in the back. Spider tapped in a code.
With a hiss, the wall split open and revealed a hidden chamber. Inside stood an ether pod. Not just any pod—it was ornamented with polished gold tubing, engraved glyphs, and absurdly plush cushioning. The vents hissed a soft blue mist.
Viper stared. "That's… Extravagant? You've got unique taste."
Spider waved a hand. "Got it off a baron who thought it made him royalty. That bastard always had a knack for collecting shiny things."
The grunt gently placed Kaviss into the pod. The machinery responded immediately—tubes snaked out, latching onto the plugs in Kaviss's armor, then hissed as they began cycling ether through his system.
The captain stirred, but didn't wake.
Spider leaned on the doorframe, arms crossed. "He'll be out a while. Days, maybe. I'll let you know when he's awake."
Viper looked down at the captain. "That's what I'm counting on."
"You planning to break him? Like the other one?" Spider hummed.
Void smirked faintly and turned away. "Nope, we'll just have a small chat and hope he really does remember what the splicers are up to."
"Whatever you say" Spider rolled his eyes, not believing a word.
As the door to the chamber hissed closed, a thought struck Viper as he spoke up, "Ah if he does wake up, he might try escaping. Don't let that happen."
"Hah." Spider grumbled, "I am not some amateur. If he dares to even step outside this base the entire shore would hunt him down."
"Good." Viper reached back into a pouch and chucked an engram towards spider.
"This is?" Spider caught it somewhat hesitantly.
"Payment." Viper replied, "Data collected on the splicer technology. We took everything the Devils had left."
"And what exactly am I supposed to do with this?" Spider was confused, he couldn't just sell it to the market. It'd be shooting himself in the foot. Besides, he wasn't prepared to permanently offend the Devils for a short term profit.
"We've got a workshop don't we?" Viper smiled, "Get me the materials, I'll give your syndicate an edge."
Spider sighed, "Mankind is truly a shrewd inventor. Handing me a supply order and naming it a payment. Aren't you ashamed?"
"So you don't want it?" Viper leaned towards the engram to take it back.
Spider jolted with unnatural agility as he pocketed the engram, "I never said that!"
=
Lmk your thoughts in replies. If you want, you can support me on Patreon for bonus chapters and exclusive benefits! You can read up to 5 or even 15 chapters ahead!
patreon.com/Writers_Ablood