Tyloric
Illogical Process of Elimination
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Z.E.S.: Titan Bound [An Original Novel]
Currently Unproofread
“No!” Matt yelled at the speedometer. “Don’t do this now!” The engine sputtered violently, coughing like a sick child. The car ground to a halt, the twenty year old engine finally reaching its end.
Matthew Gabes beat his forehead against the steering wheel, stringing curse words together in a fit of rage.
“This is not happening.” He spat to no one, slamming the car door behind him much harder than necessary. He stomped across the pavement to the hood of the car, popping it open. Smoke poured out of the cavity, causing Matt to cough and fan the air in front of his face.
Hopelessness crawled over his face, returning to the car to fish his cell phone out of the glove compartment. Flipping it open, he began to dial his friend John.
Low Bat flashed at him in all its unholy light, stealing any hope that he might have had.
The full moon shone down dimly through a thin layer of clouds, illuminating the Texas back road in an eerie silver glow. Trees lined the street, giving no range of vision outside of concrete. There were no street lights outs in this stretch Tyler, Texas. He had taken this route to avoid an accident on the highway. The irony of the situation wasn’t lost to him.
Bending over to retrieve his keys from the ignition, and his wallet and a flashlight he kept for emergencies. He shut the door, much calmer this time, and locked the door. He flipped his cell phone open again as if expecting it had magically recharged itself. It had shut itself off. Groaning, he looked down the road.
He clicked the flashlight on and started walking.
Matt felt a certain uneasiness walking down an abandoned road in the middle of the night, which just happened to be Halloween, during a full moon. It also humored him endlessly. He kept expecting Jason to jump out of the trees.
The wind picked up, causing the trees to brush against each other. The silence started to weigh on his mind, and he began to flip his cell phone open and closed nervously, keeping his flashlight trained on the tree line, darting from one side of the road to the other, paranoia slowly creeping up in his mind.
At one point, however, something metallic reflected the light back at him. A chrome metal fence lined the side of the road, stretching a good one hundred yards. In the middle of the fence was a tall gate, with words hanging above it, though not in a language Matt recognized.
After a few moments of hesitation, he crossed the street to get a better look.
He traced the metal of the gate with the tips of his fingers, giving it a slight nudge. It swung open slightly, old rusted hinges creaking in protest. Matt looked over his shoulder nervously, overcome with a sudden self-consciousness, as if someone might be watching him.
He slid in, past the worn metal, and the sound of his foot steps changed. He pointed the flashlight down towards his feet, only to find that he was standing on gravel. He trailed the light up the path until it fell out of his range of vision. The dirt road stretched on for at least a few hundred yards.
This is a ****ing stupid idea, he thought, his rational mind challenging his curiosity. Curiosity won.
He started down the road, the crunching of gravel unsettling him some. It was the only sound besides the wind, and it made for an uncomfortable atmosphere.
His flash light flickered. He hit the side of it solidly, and the light settled into a constant stream.
Something made a loud crunching noise behind him, and he whirled around, flashing poised in front of him. There was nothing there. Matt clutched at his shirt to steady it as adrenaline filled his system.
Something thudded against the grass next to the road, his flash light turned towards it almost immediately. His breaths were become shorter and more erratic, fear seeping into the corners of his mind.
Heavy breathing that didn’t belong to him filled his ears, so loud to his panic stricken mind that it might as well been two symbols crashing together in a steady rhythm.
Matt turned very slowly to face the sound. There, standing not five feet away was a figure. When the light met it it reflected back at him the same way the fence had. Only this metal had feet, hands, and limbs. The face was smooth, divided down the middle by a sharp curve in the metal. Two narrow slits formed the eyes, though Matt didn’t know how anyone could see out of something so small.
It easily stood seven feet tall.
Along with the figures heavy breathing, he could hear his heart beating firmly, blood gushing in his ears.
“Uhh…” he started nervously. “Wha-”
“What are you doing out here?” the man’s voice was rough and demanding, and it caught Matt off guard.
He cleared his throat nervously. “My car died ‘bout half a mile back and I was look-”
“You need to leave. You need to leave now.” The man took a step forward and Matt instinctively matched it by taking one back.
“Hey now, I just-” Matt was cut off yet again by a scream in the distance. It was a high pitched, blood curdling screech that he didn’t only hear, he felt. His knees suddenly felt like they were made of rubber.
“Damn.” The armor clad man hissed. He took a few more quick strides towards Matt. Cold metal gripped his hand. “Run.” And with that he pulled Matt along with him.
The guy had speed, he’d give him that much. Matt nearly tripped over himself numerous times. The flash light had slipped from his hand, landing on the ground with a thud. He didn’t even make an effort to try and obtain it.
Another screech cut through the night air, and a shiver of dread shot down Matt’s spine. It was closer than the last one.
“Code!” The man yelled. “Code, we got incoming!”
Matt was able to make out the outline of a house in the distance, but the finer details were lost to his eyes in the darkness.
The armored figure ran up to the door, dragging Matt brutally behind him. He could feel the edges of the gantlets digging into his skin and felt the wetness of what he sure was blood. The man swung the door open and literally threw Matt inside before slamming it closed. Matt stumbled, leaning against the wall to catch his balance.
“Code!” the man yelled a bit more forcefully.
“We’re doing the best we can, Malcolm!” A female voice yelled back at him from the living area.
The man in armor, presumably Malcolm, stomped down the hall, “Talk to me, Joey.”
Another voice joined in the commotion. “I’ve got the system up and online, but barrier is making it hard to get any readings. This piece of land must nearly be completely crossed over.”
Matt crept slowly down the hall towards, the voice, weary of everything that was happening. Peeking his head around the corner; he tried to get a glimpse of the room. There were a multitude of tables scattered about the room. On each of them were machines and computers, wires criss-crossing all of the floor.
“There!” the women cheered triumphantly. She whirled around, short black hair twirling with her. “I got—Who are you?” she asked abruptly, catch Matt’s eye. He just stood there, frozen in silence. She wore a cape that fell down to her midsection and covered the top of her torso completely. She was Asian, though her eyes were an odd amber color.
Malcolm growled. “It’s no one. Focus.”
She made a face, but did as he said. “Here.” She said, tossing him what looked to be some kind of gun. “It’s set to the exact plane that the Titan exists on. One good burst should do the trick.” It was no bigger than a nine millimeter.
Malcolm nodded, seemingly satisfied. “Oro, where you at?” He called. Matt was willing to guess he was the leader of… what ever this was.
“Here, boss.” A voice said suddenly from behind Matt, causing him to jump slightly. Combat boots thudded against the hardwood floors, giving the large man an ominous presence as he pushed by Matt. He was large in the sense he was well muscled, though he was actually fairly short. Shorter, than himself, anyway, and Matt wasn’t even six feet. His skin was tinted, Hispanic of some sort, and sported a shaved head.
“Who’s the new guy?” He asked Malcolm.
Malcolm, who was stilled hidden inside his armor (That’s really weird, he thought offhandedly) didn’t look up from the gun he was fiddling with. “Don’t know and right now I don’t care.” Oro shrugged.
“I got it!” Joey shouted, jumping place excitedly.
“Well?” Malcolm asked irritated.
“It’s…” The small man’s face paled, his back hunching over. “Oh no.”
“What?” Code asked, frowning.
“It’s… here?” Joey looked scared and confused. “It says it’s right here.”
Oro spoke next. “How is that poss-”
A thud came from above their heads and the room feel eerily silent. The old house must have had a second story, though Matt hadn’t noticed any stairs. All eyes stared up at the ceiling.
“How did it…?” Code asked weakly.
A howl pierced the silence, vibrating the walls and floor. Matt fell to his knees, covering his ears with his hands. A sudden tightness in his chest seemed to threaten to explode out of him.
The ceiling in the middle of the collapsed, and Oro dove forward, pushing Code out of the way. Rubble collapsed on top of him and a cloud of dust and debris rose.
Malcolm didn’t hesitate. He raised the gun, aimed for the middle of the cloud of dust, and fired. A crimson burst of light shout out of the barrel, roaring forward with a loud crack.
Something launched itself out of this cloud of debris, the shot missing by inches. It rushed forwards in a blur, tackling Malcolm with mind boggling speed. The armor clad man went flying backwards, gun flung from his hand, landing against the far wall in a heap.
He groaned, trying to regain his bearings when in the creature struck him again, this time across the face, the sound of metal scraping metal screeching through the room. Matt got his first good look at what it was doing the attacking.
Another suit of armor, black as night. Spikes jutted out of its back, tipped in gold. Both gauntlets were tipped in a claw like fashion, though the right gauntlets claws were the color of blood, the left’s emerald.
Malcolm sprang to his feet with a burst of speed, striking the creature across the face with all of his strength. It fell to the ground and rolled back on to its knees in an almost cat like fashion, moving to balance on the tips of its toes and open palms, as if ready to pounce.
Matt slowly got to his feet, watching the scene unfold in awe. Joey had moved to take cover near Code, who lay unconscious in his lap. Oro was no where to be seen, Matt guess he was trapped underneath the collapsed ceiling.
The creature slowly crept around Malcolm, circling him like prey. Matt eyed the fallen gun out of the corner of his eye. It was close, maybe ten feet away.
Malcolm was crouched in a defensive posture, though his back was to the wall with no where to room. As the creature moved around him my gaze followed it.
Matt slowly crept toward the lost weapon, creeping slowly behind the two deadlocked fighters. As he stepped forwards, however, one of the floorboards squeaked loudly. ****, Matt thought through a sudden haze of panic.
The creatures head whipped around to face him. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, Matt sprinted towards the gun. The black armor took off before Malcolm had a chance to react, his speed nothing compared to the Titan’s.
Just as Matt reached the gun the black armored monster was upon him. It rose its left claw to slash him, and he raised the gun ready to fire. As the creatures claws dug into his chest the gun went off in another flash of crimson, and pain exploded from every nerve in his body.
He screamed in agony before darkness overtook him, all thought lost to him.
Z.E.S.: Titan Bound
by Tyloric
by Tyloric
Currently Unproofread
Chapter [1]
Matthew Gabes beat his forehead against the steering wheel, stringing curse words together in a fit of rage.
“This is not happening.” He spat to no one, slamming the car door behind him much harder than necessary. He stomped across the pavement to the hood of the car, popping it open. Smoke poured out of the cavity, causing Matt to cough and fan the air in front of his face.
Hopelessness crawled over his face, returning to the car to fish his cell phone out of the glove compartment. Flipping it open, he began to dial his friend John.
Low Bat flashed at him in all its unholy light, stealing any hope that he might have had.
The full moon shone down dimly through a thin layer of clouds, illuminating the Texas back road in an eerie silver glow. Trees lined the street, giving no range of vision outside of concrete. There were no street lights outs in this stretch Tyler, Texas. He had taken this route to avoid an accident on the highway. The irony of the situation wasn’t lost to him.
Bending over to retrieve his keys from the ignition, and his wallet and a flashlight he kept for emergencies. He shut the door, much calmer this time, and locked the door. He flipped his cell phone open again as if expecting it had magically recharged itself. It had shut itself off. Groaning, he looked down the road.
He clicked the flashlight on and started walking.
Matt felt a certain uneasiness walking down an abandoned road in the middle of the night, which just happened to be Halloween, during a full moon. It also humored him endlessly. He kept expecting Jason to jump out of the trees.
The wind picked up, causing the trees to brush against each other. The silence started to weigh on his mind, and he began to flip his cell phone open and closed nervously, keeping his flashlight trained on the tree line, darting from one side of the road to the other, paranoia slowly creeping up in his mind.
At one point, however, something metallic reflected the light back at him. A chrome metal fence lined the side of the road, stretching a good one hundred yards. In the middle of the fence was a tall gate, with words hanging above it, though not in a language Matt recognized.
After a few moments of hesitation, he crossed the street to get a better look.
He traced the metal of the gate with the tips of his fingers, giving it a slight nudge. It swung open slightly, old rusted hinges creaking in protest. Matt looked over his shoulder nervously, overcome with a sudden self-consciousness, as if someone might be watching him.
He slid in, past the worn metal, and the sound of his foot steps changed. He pointed the flashlight down towards his feet, only to find that he was standing on gravel. He trailed the light up the path until it fell out of his range of vision. The dirt road stretched on for at least a few hundred yards.
This is a ****ing stupid idea, he thought, his rational mind challenging his curiosity. Curiosity won.
He started down the road, the crunching of gravel unsettling him some. It was the only sound besides the wind, and it made for an uncomfortable atmosphere.
His flash light flickered. He hit the side of it solidly, and the light settled into a constant stream.
Something made a loud crunching noise behind him, and he whirled around, flashing poised in front of him. There was nothing there. Matt clutched at his shirt to steady it as adrenaline filled his system.
Something thudded against the grass next to the road, his flash light turned towards it almost immediately. His breaths were become shorter and more erratic, fear seeping into the corners of his mind.
Heavy breathing that didn’t belong to him filled his ears, so loud to his panic stricken mind that it might as well been two symbols crashing together in a steady rhythm.
Matt turned very slowly to face the sound. There, standing not five feet away was a figure. When the light met it it reflected back at him the same way the fence had. Only this metal had feet, hands, and limbs. The face was smooth, divided down the middle by a sharp curve in the metal. Two narrow slits formed the eyes, though Matt didn’t know how anyone could see out of something so small.
It easily stood seven feet tall.
Along with the figures heavy breathing, he could hear his heart beating firmly, blood gushing in his ears.
“Uhh…” he started nervously. “Wha-”
“What are you doing out here?” the man’s voice was rough and demanding, and it caught Matt off guard.
He cleared his throat nervously. “My car died ‘bout half a mile back and I was look-”
“You need to leave. You need to leave now.” The man took a step forward and Matt instinctively matched it by taking one back.
“Hey now, I just-” Matt was cut off yet again by a scream in the distance. It was a high pitched, blood curdling screech that he didn’t only hear, he felt. His knees suddenly felt like they were made of rubber.
“Damn.” The armor clad man hissed. He took a few more quick strides towards Matt. Cold metal gripped his hand. “Run.” And with that he pulled Matt along with him.
The guy had speed, he’d give him that much. Matt nearly tripped over himself numerous times. The flash light had slipped from his hand, landing on the ground with a thud. He didn’t even make an effort to try and obtain it.
Another screech cut through the night air, and a shiver of dread shot down Matt’s spine. It was closer than the last one.
“Code!” The man yelled. “Code, we got incoming!”
Matt was able to make out the outline of a house in the distance, but the finer details were lost to his eyes in the darkness.
The armored figure ran up to the door, dragging Matt brutally behind him. He could feel the edges of the gantlets digging into his skin and felt the wetness of what he sure was blood. The man swung the door open and literally threw Matt inside before slamming it closed. Matt stumbled, leaning against the wall to catch his balance.
“Code!” the man yelled a bit more forcefully.
“We’re doing the best we can, Malcolm!” A female voice yelled back at him from the living area.
The man in armor, presumably Malcolm, stomped down the hall, “Talk to me, Joey.”
Another voice joined in the commotion. “I’ve got the system up and online, but barrier is making it hard to get any readings. This piece of land must nearly be completely crossed over.”
Matt crept slowly down the hall towards, the voice, weary of everything that was happening. Peeking his head around the corner; he tried to get a glimpse of the room. There were a multitude of tables scattered about the room. On each of them were machines and computers, wires criss-crossing all of the floor.
“There!” the women cheered triumphantly. She whirled around, short black hair twirling with her. “I got—Who are you?” she asked abruptly, catch Matt’s eye. He just stood there, frozen in silence. She wore a cape that fell down to her midsection and covered the top of her torso completely. She was Asian, though her eyes were an odd amber color.
Malcolm growled. “It’s no one. Focus.”
She made a face, but did as he said. “Here.” She said, tossing him what looked to be some kind of gun. “It’s set to the exact plane that the Titan exists on. One good burst should do the trick.” It was no bigger than a nine millimeter.
Malcolm nodded, seemingly satisfied. “Oro, where you at?” He called. Matt was willing to guess he was the leader of… what ever this was.
“Here, boss.” A voice said suddenly from behind Matt, causing him to jump slightly. Combat boots thudded against the hardwood floors, giving the large man an ominous presence as he pushed by Matt. He was large in the sense he was well muscled, though he was actually fairly short. Shorter, than himself, anyway, and Matt wasn’t even six feet. His skin was tinted, Hispanic of some sort, and sported a shaved head.
“Who’s the new guy?” He asked Malcolm.
Malcolm, who was stilled hidden inside his armor (That’s really weird, he thought offhandedly) didn’t look up from the gun he was fiddling with. “Don’t know and right now I don’t care.” Oro shrugged.
“I got it!” Joey shouted, jumping place excitedly.
“Well?” Malcolm asked irritated.
“It’s…” The small man’s face paled, his back hunching over. “Oh no.”
“What?” Code asked, frowning.
“It’s… here?” Joey looked scared and confused. “It says it’s right here.”
Oro spoke next. “How is that poss-”
A thud came from above their heads and the room feel eerily silent. The old house must have had a second story, though Matt hadn’t noticed any stairs. All eyes stared up at the ceiling.
“How did it…?” Code asked weakly.
A howl pierced the silence, vibrating the walls and floor. Matt fell to his knees, covering his ears with his hands. A sudden tightness in his chest seemed to threaten to explode out of him.
The ceiling in the middle of the collapsed, and Oro dove forward, pushing Code out of the way. Rubble collapsed on top of him and a cloud of dust and debris rose.
Malcolm didn’t hesitate. He raised the gun, aimed for the middle of the cloud of dust, and fired. A crimson burst of light shout out of the barrel, roaring forward with a loud crack.
Something launched itself out of this cloud of debris, the shot missing by inches. It rushed forwards in a blur, tackling Malcolm with mind boggling speed. The armor clad man went flying backwards, gun flung from his hand, landing against the far wall in a heap.
He groaned, trying to regain his bearings when in the creature struck him again, this time across the face, the sound of metal scraping metal screeching through the room. Matt got his first good look at what it was doing the attacking.
Another suit of armor, black as night. Spikes jutted out of its back, tipped in gold. Both gauntlets were tipped in a claw like fashion, though the right gauntlets claws were the color of blood, the left’s emerald.
Malcolm sprang to his feet with a burst of speed, striking the creature across the face with all of his strength. It fell to the ground and rolled back on to its knees in an almost cat like fashion, moving to balance on the tips of its toes and open palms, as if ready to pounce.
Matt slowly got to his feet, watching the scene unfold in awe. Joey had moved to take cover near Code, who lay unconscious in his lap. Oro was no where to be seen, Matt guess he was trapped underneath the collapsed ceiling.
The creature slowly crept around Malcolm, circling him like prey. Matt eyed the fallen gun out of the corner of his eye. It was close, maybe ten feet away.
Malcolm was crouched in a defensive posture, though his back was to the wall with no where to room. As the creature moved around him my gaze followed it.
Matt slowly crept toward the lost weapon, creeping slowly behind the two deadlocked fighters. As he stepped forwards, however, one of the floorboards squeaked loudly. ****, Matt thought through a sudden haze of panic.
The creatures head whipped around to face him. With a sudden burst of adrenaline, Matt sprinted towards the gun. The black armor took off before Malcolm had a chance to react, his speed nothing compared to the Titan’s.
Just as Matt reached the gun the black armored monster was upon him. It rose its left claw to slash him, and he raised the gun ready to fire. As the creatures claws dug into his chest the gun went off in another flash of crimson, and pain exploded from every nerve in his body.
He screamed in agony before darkness overtook him, all thought lost to him.
[tbc]