A Despot's Redemption

Daniel maintained his grip on the submachine gun , the weapon steady in his hand as the mercenaries kept their aim on his. With swift movement, he used his artificial eyes to scan them one by one. Profiles popped up on his display , revealing the names and background of the members.

He discerned the fearful expressions present on their faces. Daniel grinned.

"It's the eyes isn't it. But you don't need to worry about them. The Restless are no longer my companions."

"What do you mean by that?."

"When does a Restless ride alone?"

"All my days, not another riddle." said Jake as he 

"It's a long story , but I'll need some oil first."

Daniel rode off to the back of the jeep.

"So, where do you keep it?

"In the boot."

Enyo clutched the jeep's boot and swung it open, revealing large blue canisters filled with oil.

"I'll let you take one and one only, understood."

Daniel nodded as he disembarked from his horse. He smiled in satisfaction as he removed the cap.

"But how does he use it.? Does he spread the oil across his joints or something?" asked Jake

"No!"

Daniel raised the canister and began to drink from it.The musky scent of oil filled the air mingled with the sound of the liquid flowing down his metallic throat. Jake glanced away, repulsed by the sight of him drinking their oil.

After a few moments of silence, Daniel sealed up the canister. He brushed his hand against his mouth to wipe away the last remnants of oil on his face.

They were all anxious about what he was really planning. He understood how they felt ,after all the Renegades were always seen as ruthless killer.

"So Daniel , why have you left the Renegades?" asked Enyo

"Like I said I was exiled."

"The Renegades don't just exile their own members for the sake of it. What happened that led them to expel you."

"I attempted to kill my mentor."

"But why?"

Before long, memories of that dreaded night flooded back to him. Daniel remembered himself scouring in a distant city as he wore a hood that concealed his face. Inside the house was a room patrolled by several masked guards armed with machine guns and bearing a white insignia on their black leather jackets.

He burst through the door, shooting down every person that stood in his way. The sight of his glowing red eyes sent shivers down the guard's spines , prompting them to retreat. Daniel scanned the rest of his room, his clothes ridden with bullet holes. He had been sent by Lupa to eliminate a member said to be responsible for his death. 

However the target turned out to be his old friend. But it was too late to save him. His one edged sword had cut through his chest like a knife through butter and there was no medical aid in sight.

Daniel knelt to the ground , tears streaking down his face as a lake of blood formed around his friend's motionless body. He snatched his katana and rode back to the Renegade's home town to confront his mentor Lupa, the leader of the Renegades.

A fierce battle occured between the two with Lupa emerging as the victor. From then on Daniel was no longer part of them and was forced to fend for himself.

"And that's how I got exiled." said Daniel

"I'm sorry about what happened to your friend." said Enyo as she held him by the shoulder

"From now on you'll be part of our team. We've all lost someone important to us."

"Thanks. So where exactly is your team going"

"To the Rapturian colony. We brought back an associate of theirs and are returning to get our pay. Don't worry we'll make sure you have a share of our spoils."

A few hours later

.

Daniel shifted his gaze to the ruined desolate landscape stretched ohut before him. He took in the crater marked plains dotted with splintered tree stumps. He looked back to Chloe, seated in the jeep, with a box that she clutched tightly to her chest

"What was in it?" he thought to himself

Without warning, the jeep lurched to a stop. Hescanned his surroundings and noticed a group of creatures approaching them.Daniel stroked his horse , trying his best to calm Phoebe down.

 Beside them stood monstrous insects taller than him and everyone else on board. He fought the urge to grab his assault rifle as their compound eyes locked onto him with saliva dripping from their mandibles.

The cgreature shifted their attention to Chloe. A bone chilling screech tore through the forest, sendin shivers down his spine along with Ferric holding his nose at its horrid breath.

Chloe responded to the insects with a series of sharp clicks and fierce hisses. The rest of the squad stayed silent as she communicated with the Rapturians.

After a long exchange of alien sounds, the insects finally went to open the gate. Daniel sighed in relief as he eased the grip on his weaponry.

"That was close." Daniel whispered "Maybe they'll let me stay here for a while."

However, his relief was short-lived. 

"Everyone get your guns now!" shouted Chloe

The creatures dashed towards the jeep, their appendages studded with dagger-like spikes.

Enyo slammed the brakes and drove the jeep in reverse. Jake and Ferric sprang up from their seats and unleashed a hail of bullets from the mounted heavy machine gun. The deafening ratte of gunfire echoed through the woods as the bullets bounced off the creature's exoskeletons.

Michelle slammed on the brakes once again and spun the jeep into a tight U-turn and drove as far as she could from the colony.

The moon began to rise as Lupa hit the brakes. Leaving a trail of dust billowing behind them . Daniel glanced to his right as he switched his vision. He scrolled through the options before reaching heat vision.

Before long , the darkness that consumed the forest was replaced with several animals adorned in yellowish hues with trees glowing brightly against the bright blue backdrop of the cloudless sky. For now, they didn't seem to be any sign of the Rapturians.

Daniel sighed in relief as he disembarked from his horse. On his left was the edge of the plateau overlooking the vast stretch of buildings that dominated the landscape.

"That city should make a good place to get some extra canisters" Daniel thought to himself "but why hasn't the rest of the squad disembarked yet?"

He glanced back at the jeep and everyone was still in their seats." Enyo sat before the steering wheel as she fought the urge to sob

"What do we do now commander?"

"I don't know Michelle just don't know Lloyd, Daniel, Chloe you can all go now There's no point in you staying"

"The nearest town is a few miles down from here. If you're lucky enough you may find a place to rest."

We"re not going to." said Ferric with a smile 

He glanced back at them, wondering what they meant.

"The Rapturians betrayed us, so will we return the favour." said Chloe "We are travelling to the Shai desert."

"Why there?" Daniel asked

"There's a man there who can help us. His name is Shamill, a prince who is doing his best to reclaim the throne. His army might be good enough to help us."

"But that is an entire continent away. It will take us weeks to get there."

Chloe reached out for her pocket and took out the fist sized chest that she had been carrying this whole time. She slowly felt across the surface and opened the case revealing glowing blue shards dotted across the bottom. With a deep sigh she lifted the shards as they levitated around her as they swirled around her head and rematerialised into an orb Chloe grinned. Despite the cracks present on its surface it was still functional.

"Sorry it took a while , repairing orbs is a very tedious process."

Chloe clutched the orb and pointed towards the horizon . Her eyes glowed a bright blue as a gust of wind swept past them A giant portal formed near the plateau's edge with what seemed to be clouds swirling around the glowing centre.

"You want to come with us?" asked Ferric

"I'm an exiled man and have nowhere else to go." Daniel replied "So I will join you."