NOVEL WEB Chapter 8: Escape II
{Three days ago}
The moment Sylas released Sera from his ring, the sleek spider-shaped droid unfurled her legs and wings.
Her metallic frame shimmered briefly before her stealth protocols engaged, cloaking her in shadow.
Without hesitation, she leapt onto one of the black crates Sylas had brought.
Folding onto herself, she blended perfectly with the crate's surface.
Several minutes later, a labor droid clamped its mechanical arms around the crate and carried it into the colony ship.
Sera remained motionless, her advanced sensors sweeping the area.
Once the crate was deposited in the cargo bay and the droid lumbered away, she carefully unfolded herself and scanned her surroundings.
The bay was large, filled with rows of crates and automated machinery. No organic being were present, only droids patrolling in routine cycles.
She found an outlet nearby and plugged herself in. Tendrils extended from her legs, interfacing with the ship's systems.
Her first goal was simple: access the ship's map.
Though the security protocols were advanced, she bypassed them without triggering alarms.
A minute later, the map was hers.
She sent a silent message to Sylas. "Mapping complete. Proceeding deeper."
Unplugging from the outlet, Sera moved silently across the cargo bay.
She scanned for cameras and sensors, carefully avoiding detection as she made her way toward the inner sections of the ship.
Each movement was deliberate, each scan precise. She took her time, ensuring that no patrol droid or automated turret spotted her.
By the end of the first day, she had mapped out a safe route to the command bridge and identified key blind spots in the ship's surveillance network.
{Day 2: Surveillance Control}
At the start of the second day, Sera made her way toward the command bridge, using air vents and maintenance tunnels to bypass high-security areas.
Several times she had to wait, perfectly still, as patrolling droids passed by. Her small frame allowed her to slip through tight spaces, avoiding detection entirely.
By midday, she reached a vent overlooking the bridge. She observed carefully.
Eleven crew members manned the bridge, including an Aetherian seated in the command chair.
His sword handle, resting at his side, confirmed his identity. He would be a problem.
[A.N: Basically Aether cold weapons like sword, hammer, spear and so on are similar to lightsabers except instead of a round handle they can come in different shapes and forms]
Sera noted his position and the behavior of the crew before retreating into the vent.
She needed to be carefully.
Returning to a secluded corner of the ship, she plugged into another system outlet.
This time, her objective was the ship's surveillance network. Taking control of it would allow her to operate without being seen.
After several hours of careful work, she disabled the surveillance system, creating a minor, unnoticed glitch in the network.
Once the surveillance was under her control, she turned her attention to the Reaper Automata Storage Unit—a high-security section housing hundreds of assassin droids.
Reprogramming all of them was impossible now, but thirty would be enough.
She spent the rest of the day working on the reprogramming, ensuring that the droids would remain undetected until she gave the order to attack.
{Day 3: Execution}
On the third day, Sera activated the thirty Reaper Automata. Cloaked and silent, they began making their way toward the dining lounge near the command bridge.
Thanks to her control over the surveillance system, none of the crew noticed their presence.
The timing was perfect. As Sera had predicted, the eleven crew members on duty left for dinner, replaced by a fresh team of ten.
The Reapers waited in the lounge, concealed in the shadows.
When the crew finished their meal and began to leave, Sera issued the command.
The Reapers struck with precision, eliminating the unarmed crew members before they could react.
The Aetherian drew his sword and tried to fight back, but he was quickly overwhelmed.
Surrounded by the elite droids, he fell in moments, his lifeless body hitting the floor with a dull thud.
Sera ensured the bodies were hidden in a corner of the lounge before directing the Reapers toward the bridge.
The ten replacements on duty had no chance.
Before they could sound an alarm, they were gunned down by the silent droids.
With the bridge secured, Sera plugged into the main system.
As expected, taking full control caused a noticeable glitch across all systems. But by then, it didn't matter—there was no one left to notice.
Once she had control, she sent the droids to the sleeping quarters of the remaining crew members.
Each was eliminated in their sleep, ensuring that no potential threats remained aboard the ship.
With the ship fully under her control, Sera sent a message to Sylas: "Ship secured. Awaiting your arrival."
While waiting, she began reprogramming the remaining droids onboard, slowly replacing the active patrol units with ones under her command.
Bit by bit, she ensured that when Sylas arrived, the colony ship would be fully operational and loyal to him.
{Back to Sylas}
Although he had disabled most of the surveillance systems, he knew he had to move quickly.
The longer he lingered, the higher the risk of discovery. He didn't want the guards to realize something was amiss, and more importantly, he didn't want to kill anyone—it would leave evidence behind, something he couldn't afford.
Stealth was key.
He stuck to his usual route, the same path he took every day while working.
Familiar terrain was an advantage, and Sylas wasn't one to leave things to chance.
Every morning, he wasn't just training his body—he was practicing escape strategies, memorizing the blind spots, timing the guard rotations, and mentally mapping out the best places to slip past unseen.
As he approached a narrow corridor, he heard distant footsteps echoing off the metallic walls.
With practiced ease, Sylas activated his telekinesis. A small metal tool lying on a nearby workbench wobbled, then fell with a sharp clang.
The guards' footsteps halted. Curious about the noise, they turned toward the source, allowing Sylas to slip through a side passage unnoticed.
"Guards are getting close to realizing the cameras are down," Sera's voice whispered in his ear. "They'll notice soon. Keep moving."
Sylas didn't break stride. He moved fluidly through the corridors, sticking close to the shadows.
Every so often, he reached into his ring and pulled out a small bomb, carefully placing it in random spots even where he had planted it before.
This way, the resulting blast would be eractic, making it harder to trace where the bombs had been placed.
He avoided heading toward the docking bay, where most people would most likely be working.
Instead, he made his way toward the repair hangar where the starfighters in need of repair were kept, one of the few places where no guards would be present.
"I'm seeing signs that the guards are running manual checks," Sera informed him. "They'll figure out the hack any moment now."
Sylas remained calm. When he reached the final turn before the hangar, he pulled a small detonator from his ring and pressed it without hesitation.
*******
In the surveillance room, a red warning light blinked urgently on one of the control panels.
Joran frowned and leaned closer. "We've got—"
His words were cut off by a sudden flash of light and heat.
The explosion tore through the surveillance center, reducing it to molten debris before anyone could raise the alarm but it didn't stop there.
The base shook violently as secondary blasts echoed throughout the complex.
The alarm blared for only a few seconds before it was silenced by the chain of explosions ripping through key sections of the base.
A series of controlled detonations rocked the structure, perfectly timed to create maximum confusion while destroying most of the planet facilities.
*******
Sylas reached the hangar just as the first tremors subsided. His eyes scanned the rows of starfighters.
Most were in various stages of disrepair.
His choice for his escape was a fully functional F-35 Lightning II in need of slight engine repair as well as new paint job.
[A.N: Just google what they look like. I am creating this starfighters exactly like the fighter jets on earth except they can fly in outer space and are powered by Aether cells.]
More importantly, it was discreet—small, fast, and capable of slipping through unnoticed amidst the chaos.
He climbed into the cockpit, quickly familiarizing himself with the controls.
The engines purred to life without a hitch. Sylas engaged the thrusters, the ship rising smoothly off the hangar floor.
The moment the hangar doors opened, he accelerated, vanishing into the void before anyone realized what had happened.
Moments later, he docked safely with the colony ship, unnoticed and undetected.
Everything had gone according to plan.