The mood aboard the Spirit of Nimue was sombre on the night of the raid.

  The multipurpose hall containing the Ghostslayer’s gym, firing range and sparring area was filled with personnel. They had erected a podium and set up a screen to brief the operatives that would be advancing into the ruins.

  Evantra took a seat next to Steve, who greeted her with a grin. She winced as her muscles protested, burning and sore from Steve and Stephanie’s gruelling training program. Despite their brief exchange at the bar, Guinevere hadn’t changed the way she had interacted with Evantra. If anything, the woman had warmed up to her, but Evantra was still startled at how quickly she could snap into her professional fa?ade at the drop of a hat.

  The force moving into the ruins was comprised of all of Caliburn’s Ghostslayers, along with a small detachment of soldiers. Caliburn’s soldiers were organics, but highly trained and skilled. Steve had explained to her that Caliburn had a pipeline that allowed particularly talented personnel to apply to their Ghostslayer program to be outfitted with cybernetics after sufficient service.

  Now that I think about it… if Clark hadn’t put his weight behind me, there was little chance I would be here right now. That, and Lancelot seemingly providing a recommendation as well. I have no clue why he did so… I wasn’t even particularly helpful out in the Sahara.

  Evantra’s eyes passed over the operatives seated in the rows behind her. Steely faced, they looked forwards in total silence, waiting for the briefing to begin. Evantra would have at least expected some degree of levity before the briefing commenced from men and women who were likely friends to some degree. Instead, they exercised perfect discipline.

  The sounds of chairs screeching backwards echoed through the air as the attendants rose to their feet. Evantra watched Clark and Elaine Hallewell walk into the room.

  Clark was outfitted in military gear. The man shot her a brief grin as he trailed his sister, who was dressed in a long, figure-hugging white skirt and a red blouse that seemed to have a life of its own. It seemed to flow like waves, seemingly generated by her momentum alone, for there was no breeze to engender the fabric’s movement. Unlike Clark, it seemed like she had no intention of joining the raid.

  Elaine ascended the steps. There wasn’t a microphone on the stage, but it seemed like Elaine didn’t need one. Evantra’s eyes widened when the corpo’s voice doubled in volume, amplified by cybernetically enhanced vocal cords.

  “The raid will begin at 0100 hours. The military has been notified of our intentions and will remain clear of our operational zone. As you have been briefed, all non-Ghostslayer operatives are to secure the route that we carve into the ruins – your priority is to ensure that we have a safe, efficient and direct means of retreat once the objective has been secured.”

  Search and retrieve? Whatever their objective is… looks like they’re trying to extract something.

  So far, it aligns with our theory.

  Elaine’s red eyes hovered over Evantra for a split second before she resumed.

  “Military reconnaissance has informed us of an uptick in Veilcreatures from the domain of Avalon. They have also informed us of an active class 5 poltergeist in the area. The operation is to be aborted immediately if paranormal signs are detected.”

  Evantra watched the hardened men and women around her shift in their seats at Elaine’s words. It seemed like if there was anything capable of unsettling them, it was a mention of ghosts.

  “As a standard, precautionary measure, no autonomous weaponry or machinery is to be brought into the ruins in the event of the sudden appearance of a higher-class poltergeist. Any exceptions are to be vetted and equipped with the necessary self-detonation kits as a precautionary measure.”

  Noelle had explained to Evantra that only a handful of megacorporations had managed to counter the threat that poltergeists posed. The ghosts which could possess autonomous machinery and vehicles. Depending on a poltergeist’s potency, they were also capable of operating manned machinery, but the ghost’s efficacy in doing so varied. Where it could leverage an existing AI, its capabilities were multiplied manifold.

  There were of course, exceptions. Nezha corporation's Intercontinental Autonomous Transports, and Santa Muerte’s drones being a few examples that somehow seemed to avoid paranormal influence – a secret zealously kept by the corpos. It seemed like Caliburn hadn’t cracked their countermeasures, and if they had, they would hardly be relegated to the mining industry.

  That being said, for a mining executive, Elaine was exceedingly well-versed in speaking towards military operations.

  Evantra supposed she shouldn’t have been surprised.

  “Tag any threats in the [elemental] to [banshee] range. Our risk tolerance is exceeded if creatures above [banshee] appear in any significant capacity. We will be travelling by ground transport to the boundary. Load up, and move out.”

  ***

  “Do you know why we travel by ground, Evantra?”

  “Ancient dragons?”

  Steve guffawed, and Evantra swore that she saw the edges of Guinevere’s lips curl upwards. Steve was equipped with his classic heavy machine gun, the beast of a weapon that was leaning up against the seats next to him. Guinevere – much like herself – was equipped with a sniper rifle. It seemed like even Caliburn hadn’t managed to scrounge the funds to grant her a Wraithkiller SWS, although perhaps she had opted for another model out of personal preference. It seemed like it had been made bespoke for her, as it was covered in a similar material that her skin was – which allowed her to turn invisible.

  “Ancient dragons are one thing. Unless you’ve got serious armour plating or are flying at a high altitude, even the creatures on the ground manage to reach you sometimes. As bulky as our Bloodravens are, the choppers could easily get torn through by a nasty enough Veilcreature. We only use them for higher-stakes deployments.”

  This… isn’t a high-stakes operation?

  Strange.

  Clark grinned at Steve.

  “That is, unless we’ve got Santa Muerte or Nezha at our back. Their vehicles are nothing to scoff at. Izanami is coming up as a defence contractor as well,” Clark gestured towards Evantra’s sniper rifle. “They’re specialising in weaponry and vehicles with applications in space, probably shooting for a collaboration with Tsukiyomi. Their Kirin ships are so cool.”

  Evantra couldn’t help but smile at Clark’s whisper of reverence.

  “What about fighters at high altitudes? I’ve always wondered why we don’t just—”

  “Install some form of kinetic bombardment to get rid of the Veilcreatures? Poltergeists.”

  Evantra felt a chill run down her spine as Guinevere interrupted her.

  “There are plenty of weaker ones around. Even those can be terrors to deal with, depending on the domain that they occupy. Nothing hastened denuclearisation like the threat of the paranormal possessing the equipment that could end the world,” Guinevere delivered her statement matter-of-factly. “Before you ask why Nezha and Santa Muerte haven’t been inclined to outsource their proprietary, autonomous and ghost-resistant tech and make a killing wiping the creatures from the Earth for good… consider that even their drones aren’t infallible.”

  This narrative has been purloined without the author's approval. Report any appearances on Amazon.

  Evantra’s eyes widened.

  This… I hadn’t heard of.

  “All it takes is a strong enough ghostie, aye,” Steve said, chuckling under his breath. “Nezha’s Harbinger series was decommissioned when their allegedly ghost-resistant tech was turned against them. Paving the way for Santa Muerte’s entry and dominance. You can never predict these things with the Veil.”

  If there’s ever a time to press them… it’s now.

  “Clark… if we weren’t able to scout out the area using drones because of the paranormal activity… was a recon party deployed? Just trying to get a sense of how operations like this go down.”

  Clark beamed at her, shaking his head.

  “Nah! We’ve already got the locatio—”

  Evantra watched as Steve gave Clark a sharp nudge, stopping him in his tracks.

  She frowned.

  Clark turned to Steve, seemingly in confusion.

  “Great question, lass! Some basic satellite imagery from Seraphim does the trick when there are poltergeists about. We estimate from there.”

  Clark’s brows furrowed before he smiled and nodded, seeming to accept Steve’s explanation.

  Alright… that was weird.

  Clark seemed to suggest that Caliburn have already gotten a lock on what they’re looking for, before Steve cut him off.

  Satellite imagery could be a plausible explanation, but to know precisely what you’re looking for without any scouting on the ground… the trove seeker hypothesis still stands.

  They could have triangulated the location of a relic, potentially in real time, in which case, scouting to search for it wouldn’t be necessary.

  A subdued silence fell amongst them as they continued to make their way to the checkpoint. Caliburn had loaded the troops into a single truck, which would transport them to the defence line. It had long, segmented trailers and more wheels than Evantra could count – each of which was about the size as she was. She suspected that they had been built for off-world expeditions – perhaps on other planets with trickier terrain. The interior was temperature controlled, and Evantra stared out of the window as they began to near the military checkpoint.

  In her time in Wisptown, the residents had all been strongly advised to stay well clear of the checkpoint. Then there was the matter of her parents, which operated to guarantee that Evantra had never managed to get close to the boundary in her time in Wisptown.

  She stared at the towering turrets pointed towards the ruins of LA. In other circumstances, the military boundary would have been a shifting beast, rather than stagnant. Expanding as and when inroads were made into the lost territories, when Elsecaller’s Ghostslayer guild organised reclamation efforts.

  That possibility had been neutered by expansion in the other direction from Elsecaller City, free of lingering Veilcreatures. As a result, Wisptown and Bastion remained neglected and underdeveloped.

  The truck came to a halt. The airlocked rear of the vehicle clicked open and gradually lowered with a hiss as the cabin depressurised. The operatives stood to their feet and made a brisk, organised exit from the vehicle.

  “Let’s go.”

  ***

  Evantra watched as Clark and Lancelot exchanged words with the Colonel in charge of the checkpoint. The man was a rival for any of the Ghostslayers in the enhancements he possessed – but unlike Clark and Elaine, his were on clear display.

  Guess even the top guys in the military don't have the funds to afford the aesthetic conveniences of executives. Maybe he doesn’t want them.

  With a wave of his hand, Lancelot ushered the operatives towards the gate illuminated by harsh floodlights. Caliburn’s soldiers filed towards the metallic doors that towered over even their all-terrain trucks. A blaring alarm sounded, and flickering orange lights began to blink as the doors slowly began to open.

  Evantra could feel her heart thundering in her chest, watching the vast doors open. Anticipation was building in all of them, and she watched Steve heft his heavy machine gun, shifting from one foot to the other. Lancelot was calm, and he had swapped out his Tsukiyomi sniper for what looked like an assault rifle.

  “Evantra. We’re going ahead with the advance party.”

  Evantra followed Guinevere as Caliburn advanced into the ruins.

  ***

  The ruins of Los Angeles loomed around her. Once towering skyscrapers now rendered skeletons of themselves, torn asunder by the Veil. In its prime, the city had been idyllic, bordering the coast. Now, the once beautiful neighbourhoods and even the city’s business district had fallen into ruin.

  The area around the military checkpoint was a blank stretch of land that they had painstakingly cleared. Beyond them lay the remnants of skyscrapers and the commercial district.

  Through her night vision goggles, Evantra watched as what looked like a nesting wyvern took off from its perch atop one of the collapsed skyscrapers far in the distance, the remains of which still stood approximately forty stories tall. Squinting, she could see other tiny, moving shapes in the distance, which she assumed were all other wyverns that had claimed the heights of the fallen skyscraper.

  More immediately beyond her were streets filled with rubble and collapsed buildings. It was no wonder that Caliburn had opted not to bring in the trucks. While one of their drills could potentially do the job, Evantra could understand why they didn’t want to risk expensive equipment.

  “Pick out a spot.”

  Evantra nodded in response to Guinevere’s request. The woman had turned invisible, but from the sound of her voice, she was standing just ahead of Evantra. She pointed towards the top of a smaller building on the street corner.

  “Why did you choose it?”

  “It’s relatively intact – we should be able to get to the top without trouble. Gives us a clear line of sight through the rest of the street to provide suppressive fire.”

  Evantra took Guinevere's silence for agreement. Together with the recon team, they advanced through the rubble, keeping a keen eye on their surroundings.

  Pressing slowly through the street, taking cover wherever they spotted an outcrop, the group advanced towards the building. Guinevere momentarily reappeared and inclined her head towards the recon team. Evantra watched as they broke off, heading in a single direction to scout further ahead.

  They didn’t split up or head in even slightly different directions.

  They’ve got a location in mind… I’m certain of it. And for whatever reason, that was not something that Steve wanted Clark to reveal.

  They turned to halt in front of the three-storey building. It looked like it had once featured a shopfront which came paired with living areas on the floors above. A huge chunk of the surface of the structure was missing, and assuming the floorboards were still structurally sound, it would allow them to peek out of it into the street ahead of them.

  There was just one problem.

  Evantra had no easy way of getting up there.