Interim 4: The Case of Solis Legatus

Art by Kris Nguyen: https://x.com/hakuku/status/1795292582219800973

    One final deep breath and then silence. Fulgur Ovid's body went still as a statue as he lay on the ground. The heat left his chest, leaving only the icy coolness that had always existed in his 4 limbs. What was the final thing he would see as he passed away? The grey sky above him as he imagined another life or something beyond this one? The black ground beneath him as he lay face down in the dirt? The red of blood as it sprayed out of his own body where moments ago flesh and bone had been? One thing was for sure. Fulgur Ovid didn't want to be alone when he died. He couldn't stand the idea of letting go of his mortal coil all by himself. No, if he was going to die, he wanted to do so while staring into the eyes of the person who had finally gotten the better of him. What would he feel while looking at that person? Hatred for his life being cut short? Frustration at his weakness and all the things he would never do with his life? Sorrow for the loved ones he left behind who would mourn his passing when he was gone? 

    Another deep breath filled Fulgur's lungs and he chuckled at the thought. No, when he died there would be no-one mourning and while there may be hatred and frustration, he already knew the final expression that would spread across his face as he looked into his killer's eyes and spotted the abyss beyond. A smile crossed Fulgur's lips, knowing and mocking as the ones he aimed at others, despite this expression being for him alone. Know thine enemy, he thought to himself. He knew himself well enough. Self actualization and introspection where two of his favourite activities when not busy with work. Well, favourite might be a little strong, but they were two things he could do comfortably without having to worry about pain, and he preferred his own company and opinions to relying on those of others. The problem was he didn't know his enemy, and that was a recipe for suffering defeat.

    Fulgur's breathing returned to a natural rhythm as he stared down the scope of a sniper rail gun. He'd come very close to simply pulling the trigger and ending the hunt before they ever got a chance to look one-another in the eye. "Cowardly," he spat, not only to himself, but at Praetor Chroma for giving him the order.

    The target in his scope didn't look that special. Short blonde hair, trimmed neatly enough out of his bright blue eyes. An oversized black jacket with yellow trim, and some sort of bullet proof vest underneath. The hair and eyes were striking as neon against the dark of night, but the bigger warning sign was the size of the man. His chest was almost twice as big as Fulgur's, as were his shoulders and thighs. Despite that, he carried himself with the ease of a man half his size, and moved without any wasted effort. Military trained, and not rusty like my own. 

    Fulgur had learned everything that the legion could teach him, starting from the bottom ranks and finishing with the horrors he'd witnessed in the auxilia. Over time, he'd developed his own style that relied on his powerful cynets and risked more of his body for the sake of being as aggressive as possible. He was used to dealing with multiple enemies at once. Fighting defensively was good for preventing injury and making it through to the next battle, but if you fought as offensively as he did, fear itself became another weapon to be wielded. Nothing makes a target easier to deal with than them flinching, shitting their pants or trying to run away. It worked, and that's what mattered. 

    This target on the other hand was a textbook example of the lessons he'd learned in the past, but that didn't mean he posed any danger to Fulgur. Sure, he could see the dozens or so grenades strapped to that vest and hanging from his coat, the assault rifle strapped to his back, pistol in his hand and... is that really a fucking laser katana in the other hand? When was the last time anyone had actually wielded a laser katana that wasn't part of a performance? It was so old it even had a metal blade. Models from the last decade had forgone the physical blade completely in favor of the weightless laser. They'd trained him to use one back when he was a pup. Even gave him the option to carry one in the auxilia that cleverly disguised itself as a netjack until the blade was activated. He'd laughed at them and opted for firearms instead. Why then was this target limiting himself so? And why was the voice still screaming in his ear to take the shot at what was basically a child playing with toys?

    "You're not going to be able to win in a fair fight Ovid." Praetor Chroma's warning from hours ago ran through his mind. "This target is unlike anything you've ever dealt with. A cyborg with unparalleled strength that even you can't handle." That's why they'd loaded him up with his own assault rifle, pistol and the sniper rail gun he now used as a pair of binoculars. The mission was to take the target out from afar. End it all, with one shot if possible, or as many as it took while the target ran for cover or approached to kill. The rifle and pistol were for if all else failed and he needed to engage the target in closer quarters. The target... he was getting as sick of thinking that phrase as he was of hearing the voice in his head repeating their command over and over again.

    "I'm not taking the shot," Fulgur declared, silencing Chroma mid-sentence. "This target, you know how dangerous he is, so how about you tell me more about him, starting with his name and what he's done to scare our dear Arbiter Senate this much."

    "Are you kidding me?" Chroma asked with an exasperated breath. "Since when do you shy away from violence? I seem to recall wiping pieces of brain off the ceiling after the slaughter in the slums."

    "It isn't about the bloodshed," Fulgur replied. "I'll end the target's life in a heartbeat as soon as you tell me his name and why I'm doing it. For all I know he's your ex-lover, and I don't kill people over broken hearts." A knowing laugh passed through his mind but Praetor Chroma was kind enough not to put into the words the hypocrisy of his statement.

    "You don't need to know that Legatus," she replied. "He's the most dangerous enemy The Republic has faced in centuries, and you're the strongest weapon we have in our arsenal. Take the shot like the good little wolf you are, or I will see to it that you never get let off your leash again."

    The silence hung in the air for a while as Fulgur watched the target leap from one rooftop to another. His target. After all, he was literally built for this.

    "Thank you for your suggestion Praetor. Please tell the Arbiter Senate that their problem will be dealt with momentarily, and I thank them for choosing Fulgur Ovid for all their murder needs."

    "Ovi-" the voice cut off as Fulgur stood up and touched two fingers to his temple, severing their link. With a single step, followed by a leap, he arrived at the next roof and began running, pursuing his target across the rooftops of The Republic. He'd never traversed the city this way before, but it almost seemed made for it. All the huge buildings were designed as uniform grey slabs. If he had the duoverse activated each would look unique and lit up, but with the true world visible, the entire city was one giant graveyard left to memorialize the Earth. No average man would be able to make the huge leaps between the graves of course. The ground below would claim any human who tried their luck. Fulgur Ovid wasn't human however, and neither was his target who bound so freely from roof to roof as though it was the only way he'd ever traveled. 

    It took some time to catch up to the target, despite the man pausing to check his surroundings often. Whatever he was up to, he didn't seem to have a clear course plotted out before he strapped the explosives to himself. Unpredictable. Possibly insane. Even less reason for the very mind and will of The Republic, The Arbiter Senate, to be so afraid of him. This wasn't the first time a Legatio had come straight from the top, but usually their orders were directed to the Auxilia and focused on external issues that threatened the entire city. For Fulgur to receive one directly was rare and it piqued his interest. There was no way he could simply blow his target away without learning more.

    Fulgur was three rooftops away when the target finally noticed him. His blue eyes opened wide and locked on to Fulgur with ferocity. As Fulgur leapt between one more pair of buildings he watched the pistol disappear into a holster on the man's hip, the katana sink into the roof beside him and then turn off, blade now sheathed into the building itself, and the barrel of a rifle trained itself on Fulgur's chest as he landed one building away. He slid to a halt, hands raised as high as his shoulders, showing that he had no weapon ready. "Hold o-" a gunshot cut him off and pain tore through his shoulder. Fulgur let the momentum of the bullet spin his body and entire rotation as he fell to the ground, getting as low as he could. The target may be trained well but his shooting is shit. The bullet had barely hit his arm and glanced off the metal, leaving only a scratch.

    "Warning shot!" The target called out. "You come any closer and I'll put two in your chest and one in your head before you hit the ground." …okay, or maybe he's a hell of a marksman, Fulgur mused.

    "Two o'clock! Roughly 3000 feet!" Fulgur called back. "The edge of the rooftop! Do you see it?" There was silence that lasted a few seconds before the voice replied.

    "That's a hell of a gun! Doesn't appear to be any sniper to use it though!"

    "I AM the sniper!" Fulgur snapped. "Or, I was supposed to be. Didn't feel right to me!" When he hadn't received a response for another few seconds Fulgur began to get up. He'd only raised up to one knee when a bullet whizzing past his face caused him to freeze. "For fuck sake, I could have killed you 5 minutes ago! Doesn't that atleast earn me a conversation!?" Another bullet smashed into the tiles below him, chunks of roof spraying over his body. Fulgur's right hand moved to his pistol, left arm covering his face in case the next wasn't a warning shot.

    "What exactly do you want to discuss?" The target's voice was calm with a unique richness. It exuded the confidence of a man who felt like he always had a gun trained on those listening.

    "How about we start with who you are? You're not in The Republic database at all."

    "Legatus!"

    "... yeah!?"

    "Anything else before we end this?"

    "... I asked who you are!?" Fulgur's fingers traced the handle of his pistol, patience wearing thin for this target who only lived this long by his will.

    "I told you. I'm Legatus! So just stay out of my way and let me do my job."

    He's Legatus? Oh well that clears it all up. A quiet chuckle escaped Fulgur's mouth. The next words he spoke were mocking and dripping with irony.

    "Ohhhh, you're Legatus? Well excuse me, I didn't realize I was speaking to a co-worker. Tell me, which division is it that specializes in rooftop related crimes?"

    "Division? I'm THE Legatus. Solis Legatus."

    Fulgur stared at the target who referred to himself as Solis Legatus. He'd heard the name before. Not from any reports or arrest warrants though. The name called back to a distant memory he'd not bothered to think about in years. Fulgur blinked twice, returning to the duoverse. The rooftop came to life around him, with grass and flowers sprouting between his fingers and legs. He ignored that and did a quick search for the name. The top result brought memories flooding back of stories he'd been told as a child. Solis Legatus. The original legatus. Within the first 100 years of The Republic's founding he was a member of The Legion that distinguished himself above all others. In those years most of The Republic's threats were still external, with the remnants of humanity that survived The Fall desperately throwing themselves against The Republic's walls for salvation or revenge. The military and police were separate entities then, and ranks were all named differently. Solis had been one of the first generation born as a citizen of The Republic, and took on the name Legatus to swear his loyalty to the city's mission. He became something of a folk legend, and when the military and police eventually became one organization they used the rank of Legatus in Solis' honour to carry on his mission. So my target is a ghost?

Art by Theta: https://x.com/theta_niji/status/1795468778068992436

    "Sorry to break it to you, but you died a long time ago Solis. Defending the same Arbiters Senate who-" a loud bang. Fulgur reacted just in time to block his chest with his hand, catching the bullet and rolling to the side as two more traced his movements, smashing into the roof centimeters behind him as he moved. Not a ghost then, just another run of the mill psychopath. Fulgur ripped the rifle from his back, aiming at Solis who threw his own to the side, drawing the katana from the roof beside him as if to slice him down from the other roof. Fulgur hesitated a fraction of a second, but remembering the pain of the bullet in his shoulder, pulled the trigger, a barrage of lead ripping into his target and drawing the fight to a close. At least that's what he'd expected to happen.

    The movement was so fast it only registered as Solis' arms twitching to Fulgur. Every bullet that came within a few feet of Solis had vaporized, leaving no traces behind other than the wind which buffeted his hair as he let out a slow exhalation of air. That isn't possible... is it? The target stood there, laser katana at the ready in two hands, the yellow hue of the blade basking him in the same glow natural sunlight would. It must have been some trick, Fulgur concluded. There's no way he could do it again.

    Pulling down on the trigger, Fulgur held true this time, his chest and shoulder rocking gently as the powerful rifle continued to unleash murderous metal upon the target. Finally the roar of gunfire faded to silence and the flashes of bullets ceased their strikes, as all 120 rounds in Fulgur's magazine had been expended. Solis stood tall, glaring back at Fulgur without a single drop of sweat beading on his flesh. A handful of bullets had flown past Solis, missing the target entirely and disappearing into the night, fewer still had been deflected into the roof and surrounding buildings by the metal of the Katana rather than being reduced to atoms by the laser edge of the blade, not a single one had found their intended target, who now shifted his weight, placing the katana gently on his back where it stuck to some kind of magnetic holster. That shouldn't be possible. Even if my cynets were able to keep up with automatic fire my brain wouldn't be able to track the trajectory of each one, let alone move my arm to them in time. 

    "Don't take it personally, I can't even kill me." Words that Fulgur himself had used in the past to mock his enemies were so calmly stated to him by Solis as he plucked a grenade from his vest, pin letting out a metallic jingle as it held true to his chest. Casually, he tossed the grenade under arm, Fulgur watching it rise into the air in a lazy arc and fall towards him.

    Offensive! Fulgur Ovid snapped out of his stupor, legs moving before his mind could, he'd made the distance to the edge of the roof in 3 strides and launched himself through the air as Solis stared, dumbfounded. In one fluid motion he slapped the grenade, spiking it towards Solis as he continued to rise with his leap. The grenade shot straight back towards the target, no more lazy arc, and exploded as it hit the ground beside him. Fulgur curled his legs up to his chest, with his arms closed over his face as the heat and pressure surged past him, barely slowing his descent as he stabbed both legs forward, drop kicking Solis who had been knocked off balance and blinded by the explosion. A loud grunt echoed across the rooftops as Solis crashed backwards, and Fulgur silently caught himself on one hand, using the forward momentum to push himself up and take a fighting stance. "The stories make you out to be some sort of hero. Loyal to a fault, and ultimately losing your life while defending The Republic. Somehow I don't think the Arbiters Senate would want someone like that dead, so I ask again; who or what the fuck are you?"

    "I don't care what you think you know about me," Solis snapped back. "I AM Solis Legatus and I AM loyal to The Republic and the arbiters will pay for what they did!"

    "What d-" Before the second word had left his mouth he was cut short, catching a fist Solis aimed for his throat. The force of the blow pushed him back half a foot. I really need to stop asking questions until he's neutralized. The man's second strike, an uppercut was similarly blocked, this time Fulgur was lifted off the ground and used the opportunity to kick at Solis' stomach. In a flash that foot was met by the solid wall of Solis' thigh as he shifted his weight and delivered a punch hard into Fulgur's stomach. The blow pushed Fulgur through the air and he felt blood rush up his throat. He tried to ready himself for another attack, but his vision blurred and Solis twisted, weight shifting from one foot to the other as that same defensive thigh swung around and crashed into the side of Fulgur's chest.

Art by Yumi: https://x.com/yumi_0206tw/status/1787496196816412824

    Fulgur's blurred vision transformed to a flash of white, but he still felt the impact as he smashed into the ground and bounced before coming to a rest. A breath that was more a rattling gasp came out of him before he coughed hard, blood spilling out onto the roof.

    "You're so squishy," Solis said. There still wasn't any hint of malice or insult. It was simply a statement of fact. "So squishy, and yet you leave yourself open for punishment. I guess they don't train them like they used to."

    Fulgur gasped and wheezed, struggling not to choke on the blood hemorrhaging from much of his body.

    "The Arbiters aren't what you think they are," Solis continued, closing the distance between them in slow, precise strides. At some point he'd drawn the laser katana again and had it fixed in front of him, point threateningly close to Fulgur's back as it powered up. "For the good of The Republic, they have to be dealt with and that's why I need this." Solis' foot roughly slid under Fulgur, flipping him with a gentle kick.

    Along with the twist of his body, Fulgur lifted his arm from where it had been wrapped around his chest, tucked into the holster under his jacket. He fired the pistol he was gripping straight into Solis' stomach. Once. Twice. Three times. Solis' expression didn't even change as each bullet crumpled to a piece of scrap and fell limp to the ground with a hollow clang. Gasping, Fulgur lifted the barrel to aim at Solis' face but the arm that held the gun exploded at the elbow, more scrap metal crashing to the ground as Solis tossed the arm he'd caught and sliced through away.

    "There is no greater danger than underestimating your opponent." Solis quoted a teaching that Fulgur had similarly learned in The Legion. He had underestimated his opponent. He was told the target was a cyborg, but hadn't expected that to mean everything from the neck down was made of cynets. At what point does a cyborg become an android anyway?

Art by 0l0: https://x.com/sukinakoto1ppai/status/1795130538744811911

    "What... did the Arbiters d- do to you?" Fulgur forced the words up through sputters of blood as Solis' hands slid down and yanked viciously at his belt.

    "Do to me?" He asked. "It's what they did to The Republic. It's what they did to my men." Solis pulled away, raising in his hand the netjack that all legati carried with them. "I came across a truth they didn't want me to know. All they are is a bunch of Doomers. I'mprints that escaped The Fall and refuse to let go of power. I tried to tell my men but the arbiters got to them first. They told them I was crazy and trying to rebel against The Republic. My own men gunned me down in cold blood." Solis' blue eyes illuminated slightly, flickering with artificial light. It was an effect outdated models of IIs used to do, giving away when the user was using a full view process. He's open!

Art by Natzumeko: https://x.com/natzumeko/status/1795107736981504380

    Fulgur didn't miss a beat, every nerve in his body screaming in protest as he pushed himself up to his feet and drew back a fist, slamming it into Solis' face. Solis stumbled backwards, shocked at what he'd basically seen as a corpse still fighting back. He was even less prepared for the half an arm that he'd already ripped off to slam into his face next, orange acid that served as Fulgur's cynets' blood spraying over the pair. Solis screamed, this time in pain, and brought his katana around in a diagonal arc. Fulgur threw one final punch which was easily caught by Solis. As he tried to twist away he felt himself falling, but only a few inches and heard his legs crash to the ground, body now held in the air from where Solis grasped his single wrist. He hadn't even noticed that katana swipe take away his legs at the middle of the thigh, but here he was being held aloft by his target.

    "You're making it really hard not to kill you! Did you even hear what I said about the arbiters!?"

    It was impossible to tell if Fulgur had attempted to say anything, a guttural noise spewing out of his throat along with blood that sprayed over Solis' face. As Solis winced backwards, Fulgur pulled himself up, leaning what remained of his body forward and biting into whatever flesh his mouth managed to find on Solis.

    "PSYCHOPATH!" Solis screamed, ripping Fulgur's final limb off of his body. Still he held on, teeth sinking deeper into Solis' flesh with every second as he hung from his target by his mouth. "Nnnghhha, fuck!" Solis screamed, dropping his katana and ripping Fulgur off of him with both hands. With amber liquid pouring form his face, Solis tossed Fulgur painfully to the ground, no limbs to break his fall as the back of his head smashed hard into the roof. "I'LL FUCKING END Y-"

    An eruption like multiple strikes of lightning lit up the night sky of The Republic as the sound of thunder shook the very foundations of the city. Fulgur spat out the chunk of flesh in his mouth, vaguely recognizing the shape of a human nose as he turned his head to get the best view of Solis that he could. Solis, his target, wasn't just missing a nose. There were several chunks of his body missing. Not little chunks of flesh like Fulgur had ripped off of him, but huge basketball sized holes gaping where his stomach, chest, and even half of his head used to be. A whimper escaped the man as he fell to the ground, never again to take another breath. Out of every hole spilled the same amber liquid that powered Fulgur's cynets, but with it too came the blue of android coolant.

    Barely conscious, Fulgur's mind focused on one thing above all others. The amber and cobalt slop that now spilled forth from inside Solis' skull. Chunks of metal and Grey matter that intermingled with circuitry and wires. There were parts of biological matter in there but nothing that could be called human. Not quite an I'mprint which ran on hard drives and data, certainly not a man. What the fuck was the Solis Legatus that just defeated me with such ease.

    "Is he alive?" Praetor Chroma's voice was echoing in Fulgur's mind as multiple auxilia members approached him, each with the same sniper rail gun he had almost used earlier in the night.

    "Yes ma'am, you want us to put him down?" One of the men had already unfastened his side arm and was aiming it at Fulgur's head; a mercy at this point. Solis had hit him so hard that some of his organs had been blended inside him.

    "No," the cool voice commanded. "Patch him up best you can, and bring him in immediately."

    There was more conversation after that and the men began to painfully tourniquet some of his wounds, but thankfully the pain finally gave way to cold dull silence. In his final moments he stared down at what remained of Solis' face and recognized the expression. Fulgur felt a smile cross his lips as he lost consciousness and sunk back into his own personal abyss.

Art by Tsukumi: https://x.com/Tsukumi_777/status/1795215285667926142