Suffer Not The Radiant

Chapter 54: Hatred Unchained

The two Astartes were bound, their strength rendered impotent, and they could do nothing but watch as the Radiants binded them. They were tantalizingly close to their adversaries, each Radiant well within arm's reach. If they could just break free, they could slaughter all of them in quick succession.

Ranesk, in particular, seethed with an intensity of rage that threatened to consume him. Reyna stood right before him, her mocking words ringing in his ears, her arrogance plain to see. But it was not her words that stoked his fury the most. It was the fact that she was within arm's reach, so close to the edge of death. The image of his hands closing around her neck, ending her existence, felt like the most heavenly vision he could possibly conjure in that moment.

Unfortunately, it was all it was. An image in his head.

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"Indeed, I am," Reyna replied, her voice a blend of pride and serene confidence. "I am your target, Ranesk. You know this all too well. And I stand before you, within arms reach, you can kill me."

Leaning forward once more, her demeanor oozed with mockery. "But you can't," she chuckled, as if privy to an inside joke.

"Do not think this to be the last time we meet, Reyna." Ranesk growled, his voice laced with barely contained fury.

"Of course not," Reyna retorted. "you will watch, watch as every human is hunted down, slaughtered, tortured." she paused, "you will watch the extinction of your own race."

Ranesk offered no retort, his defiance apparent. Though his limbs strained against the Radiants' hold, he displayed no sign of surrender. The Radiants themselves, resembling weightlifters grappling with a formidable weight, struggled to maintain their restraint.

"I'm afraid we must go, say goodbye to this little headquarters of yours." Reyna declared.

Turning her gaze toward Jett and Phoenix, both battered and bloodied, shock and awe etched onto their faces, she approached them. With a mix of pity and a maternal love, like a mother tending to her child's minor injury, Reyna extended a hand. Jett accepted, and gratitude welled up in tears, not born of fear but thankfulness.

Moving on to Phoenix, too wounded to stand, unsure of consciousness or life, she whispered, "Estarás bien con nosotros."

Dozens of additional Radiants as well as regular humans who abandoned their own kin traversed the Portal, their countenances familiar to Ranesk, who glared with impotent rage. Among them was Fade, that inconsequential Radiant who had quivered at the vision of him and Tyberos laying waste to her kind. Yet, she now bore a countenance markedly altered – stern, serious, akin to a battle-hardened soldier scarred by the horrors of war.

However, as her gaze alighted upon Tyberos and Ranesk, her solemn demeanor wavered. Shock slightly contorted her features, mingling with a subtle undercurrent of fear. Despite Ranesk being bound by her fellow Radiants, her eyes remained fixed upon him. It was only when Reyna intervened, placing a reassuring hand on Fade's shoulder, that her momentary panic subsided.

'They're under our control, don't worry.' Reyna affirmed. 'those visions you saw... they won't happen.'

A brief pause settled in, marked by a shared glance between Fade and Reyna. Fade let out a breath that spoke of momentary relief. Her feeble smile found its echo in Reyna's response. Their quiet connection was interrupted by an unexpected event.

A swirling surge of energy bore down on them, a dark force hurtling their way., Both Fade and Reyna managed to barely dodge the impending threat. As well as the Radiants who had bound Tyberos and Ranesk, simply hovering away from the large swirling mass. The same could not be said for their fellow Radiants, unfortunate victims of the encroaching darkness.