Cyber Fair: The Escape 1 (Escape from Club Apophis, 58)

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STORYLINE:  Kyle dozed outside the glass door of MasterGin’s bedroom.

Cold, luminescent spores drifted past the glass balcony in slow, rhythmic pulses, glowing like deep-sea jellyfish in the dark air. It was hypnotic. The heavy hum of the cooling vents weighed on his eyelids, pulling them down.

The mission was simple: Escape. But MasterGin was guarding Jihoon’s limp, unconscious body like a clingy dragon sitting on a pile of gold. Jihoon hadn't opened his eyes or uttered a word since falling into the coma after catching fire in daylight. He was entirely at the mercy of whoever carried him. Kyle couldn’t force open the door lock to steal him, let alone carry unresponsive body safely across the chasm of toxic bioluminescent parasites.

Inside, Jihoon was sprawled across a luxurious silk bed in sleek, blindingly white bedroom. The room hummed with a low, throbbing energy as the overhead LED panels pulsed in a slow sleep cycle.

The Shadow Serpent slept curled around Jihoon's body like an ominous overgrown cat, — if a cat were made of liquid obsidian scales and flicked its forked tongue when snoring.

“WHAT’S UP DRAGONLETS!!!”

Kyle jolted upright, his heels skidding against the floor as his heart slammed into his ribs.

What the…?

Lisa? Lisa Liemawr was here?

He peered inside the room. The Shadow Serpent dissolved into dark mist, vanishing through the wall on the opposite side.

Was it looking to see what was going on?

A moment later, its head poked straight back out of the plaster, eyes wide with frantic urgency.

Click.

The electric door lock disengaged.

Kyle wasted no time slipping into the bedroom, pressing his shoulder to the far partition to listen. He held his breath, ears straining against the cold marble wall. Everything was muffled, a tense argument between MasterGin and Lisa. MasterGin was insisting Lisa worked for him.

What? No. That couldn’t be true.

Kyle leaned back, mind racing. No. Lisa was trying to expose him and his operation. She knew where they were too. Was she intentionally distracting MasterGin to buy them time? He didn’t know. Whatever game she was playing, she had broken in for sure.

An incredulous chuckle escaped his chest.

Even if she was out of her goddamn mind, he had to respect her gall for breaking into a vampire diva's private domain. MasterGin seemed impressed too, he was praising her. She’d be ok.

Wait…. It was silent now.

He pressed his ear against the wall again. Nothing.

The Serpent was curious too. It poked its smokey head through the wall, looking around before turning toward Jihoon.

It gestured wildly, dipping its head low in a sharp bow to the silent boy on the bed, then jerking toward the balcony exit.

Kyle didn’t need to speak Snake to translate. MasterGin had left with Lisa, and somehow Jihoon, even trapped deep in that coma, had just sent him the signal to run.

Gotta cover him. Gotta cover him now.

Kyle sprinted to the wardrobe, grabbing a white varsity jacket which was the only thing in MasterGin’s closet that wasn’t a dress or covered in glitter.

Face cover. Need a face cover. No daylight could be allowed to touch Jihoon’s skin.

His eyes landed on an old, hollowed-out TV monitor with devil-horned antennas sitting on a side table. Perfect. He snatched it, ripping out the tangled cluster of copper wire and dead capacitors, turning the plastic shell into a makeshift helmet. The chemical stink of old circuit boards drifted out.

No battery. No power cable dangling.

Yet, as Kyle lifted it toward Jihoon, the dead screen crackled to life. Static crawled across the dark glass in a soft, grey fizzle. For half a second, Jihoon's face appeared inside the static, faint, pale, and staring directly out from the screen.

Kyle froze, his throat tight, his hand still on the helmet casing as he stared the glitching screen.

“…Creepy.”

He shook off the chill, threw a heavy blanket over Jihoon, and wrapped him tight.

“Ready, Snakepoo?” Kyle muttered, hoisting Jihoon’s dead weight into a firm carry. “Can you get us across the walkway?”

The Shadow Serpent gave a single, resolute nod. It surged through the open balcony doorway, its long tail trailing thick black smoke across the floor.

The glass walkway chimed in its wake. Individual planks unlocked and extended one by one over the abyss, warm lights awakening in a rapid sequence.

Kyle stepped forward, hugging Jihoon tightly against his chest as the bridge settled beneath his boots.

“Lisa Liemawr,” he whispered under his breath, waiting for the final plank to lock into place. “I owe you one, Queen.”

The moment the path sealed, Kyle dashed into the darkness, following the eerie faint glow of the Serpent as it hurtled ahead.

On Him, Kyle:

Mask: +NK+ - Manji Mask - VIP 250L[mesh](CyberFair)(250L)

Wings: SOLE - SA - Wing DND (Black)[mesh](CyberFair)(329L)

Eyes: MIDORI - Abduction Eyes // BOM // EXO 01 [BOM](CyberFair)(399L)

Top: YUEBIN - Sinful Patrol - black [Legacy (m)+Athl] [mesh](350L)

Pants: L&B - LEGACYM Tapered] Swear Havoc Leather Pants [mesh]

Boots: CULT - Cobain - Legacy Male [mesh]

Hair: TRASH - Lucifer w/o Horns V1 - Rainbow pack [mesh]

Headphone: !Reliquary - !R! Synth-o Ear Tap [mesh]

Skin: MUDSKIN - Hajimu, C, Brow, WINTER [BOM]

Head: LeLUTKA - Kane Evolution [mesh](3990L)

Body: TheShops - [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.7.1) [mesh](5000L)

On him, Jihoon:

Head: KNIFU - Deadware.exe Head [mesh](CyberFair)(499L)

Jacket: Muho - Tokyo - Jacket - Legacy [mesh](CyberFair)(189L)

Top: ZOS - Cyber Comprezzion Fatpack - Leg At [mesh]

Pants: AVEC TOI - Kai Pants, Turmoil, LegacyM [mesh](595L)

Boots: CULT - Gzad - Legacy M [mesh]

Claws: Subject Thirteen - Slay Plague Claws, PBR - LegacyA [mesh]

Body: TheShops - [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.7.1) [mesh](5000L)

Pose: Cyn~Cyn - Being Saved

Setting:

Furniture: Little Bee - Neon District FATPACK [mesh](CyberFair)(1999L)

Plants: .:Tm:. - C.DC10 Crackborn Cyber Potted Plants+PBR-light [mesh](CyberFair)(225L)

Table and chair: Your Dreams - {YD} Shinjuku Dining - Cyan [mesh](CyberFair)(299L)

Skybox: Erfe Design - Cyber Skybox House 170 LI  unfurnished [mesh](CyberFair)(2290L)

Pet: MoonRabbit - MR SNEK SPIRIT [mesh]

BONUS IMAGES: inworld raw shots,  midday sky, default camera:

Cyber Fair: The Age of Apophis, part 1 (Escape from Club Apophis, 55)

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STORYLINE: Forbidden Zone border. A dark alleyway. Noon.

The street reeked of ozone, coffee, and fresh blood. Overturned vending machines lined the dirty cement alley. One knocked over vending machine bled shattered mugs across the concrete, their porcelain shards scattered like broken teeth. In the darkest corner, a group of ghouls hunched over a fresh kill.

A hush fell over the landscape as if all sound had suddenly been sucked out of the air.

One creature looked up. A human hand hung limp from its bloodstained jaws.

The asphalt began to vibrate with a deep hum. Low. Inhuman. Glass shook. The surface of spilled coffee rippled in waves.

The other ghouls stopped feeding and looked towards the sound.

A low unnatural fog drifted into the alleyway, rolling over the shattered mugs like an undulating white carpet.

The creatures stood, backing away from their feast.

Then they saw it. Gold eyes burned through the haze like hellfire.

A blur of motion. A flash of white. Jaws. Claws. The sickening sounds of tearing flesh. Monstrous howls echoed off the walls.

Standing at the mouth of the alleyway was a towering figure clad in a white Neu Seoul Police uniform, his low-slung cap throwing his face in shadow. Behind him, a black-and-white police hovercar idled above the fog, red and blue lights flashing.

The remaining ghouls burst through the mist, rushing the man all at once.

He didn’t flinch. His arm swept upward.

Too fast.

An energy field snapped open, the face of Sekhmet blazing within.

The first ghoul’s claws struck its energy barrier and skated off in a blinding spray of blue sparks.

The ghouls broke formation, but it was too late.

A cyberblade sliced through the pack with lethal heat.

The fight was over before it began.

The last ghoul dropped to its knees. “Have mercy..." its dry throat croaked. “My King, we starve..."
The officer looked down. His cyberblade flashed.

The severed head rolled across the slick pavement, bumping gently against the man’s heavy black boot. One milky eye stared upward at him in absolute horror. Then it faded, unfocused.

A mechanical voice spoke from the alley. “My King, all escapees are eliminated.”

A glossy white lioness padded lightly out of the fog, its metallic jaws splattered in black fluid. It paused before the man, and dropped a severed ghoul arm onto the pavement like a cat bringing a gift.

The man wiped the dripping black blood from his blade’s edge before both the sword and shield folded neatly back into his gauntlets. He unhooked his faceplate, revealing a handsome, chiseled visage. His gold eyes held the terrifying weight of a thousand lifetimes.

A crowd had gathered at the edge of the alley, recording the scene on lifted wrists and high-gain ocular implants.

A woman near the front lowered her camera slightly. Her recording kept running, but her smile vanished. She was not looking at the hero. She was staring at the strange badge on his jacket. A cobra with its fangs bared, swallowing the sun.

The Ruler of the Night was suddenly beside her.

A blast of wind whipped her hair across her face.

He snatched the camera from her hand and crushed it in his palm as if it were paper.

She gasped, her heel slipping in gore as she staggered backward.

His smoldering gaze then swept over the crowd, locking on the merchants cowering behind the nearest carts.

“You should not be running food stalls in this sector,” his deep rumbling baritone could be felt as well as heard. “The perimeter is unsafe. All contraband is forfeit. Go home.”

No one moved.

“NOW.” He swept one arm across the nearest cart. Skewers of Korean BBQ tumbled into the gutter.

The merchants turned and fled down the avenue abandoning their carts.

The Ruler of the Night did not watch them go. His eyes were on the lioness. "What news have you on the boy?"

The robotic beast settled beside him.

“Observe,” it projected security footage onto a grimy wall. “It is exactly as you predicted, my King. Their escape remains undetected.”

The flickering image showed a tall, muscular red-haired guard carrying the sleeping boy, his long white hair trailing across the floor. The guard was looking left and right as he crept out of the screen.

“Rewind.”

The lioness obeyed. “The relevant footage of the comatose boy begins at 6:32 pm.”

“Zoom in.”

The footage zoomed in on Jihoon, focusing on mist beginning to roll off his body.

“At 6:42 pm, REM sleep indicators.”

The footage zoomed back out, revealing the guard collapsing.

“At 6:53 pm, sensors detected a spike of energy at the exact moment the guard fainted.”

“Hmm.” The Ruler pointed to the fallen guard. “A call for help.”

“Yes, my King. The boy has exhibited two of your gifts. The mist and the extremely rare Dream Sight. He is immobile, not helpless. Congratulations, my King. You have created a strong fledgling. Does the child know the rules of the Blood Bond?”

The Ruler did not reply.

A slow, ruthless smile touched his lips. “Cancel the ceremony.”

The lioness’ heavy titanium tail stopped its rhythmic swaying.




On him, The Ruler of the Night:

Jacket: TRK - Losttune_Jacket_LEGACYM, white [mesh](CyberFair)(399L)

Cap: AURICA - Ray Cap [mesh](CyberFair)(249L)

Tattoo: MIDORI - Cyber Neck 07 [mesh](CyberFair)(399L)

Eyes: SHIMM - CYBER XV BONUS [BOM](CyberFair)(100L)

Pet: SEmotion Libellune - Felis Nexus Companion, Special [Animesh](CyberFair)(gacha 88L)

Sword: Mythic - [M] Claw Sword and Shield [mesh](CyberFair)(640L)

Pants: Savage - Blade Pants // LegacyM [mesh]

Boots: Gabriel - ::GB::Double belt metal boots, LEGACY, Black [mesh]

Headset: SOLE - SA Headset ARA2, Black [mesh]

Gloves: Archivefaction - Penumbra Gloves_Legacy M_Slim Fingers [mesh]

Head: LeLUTKA - CAMDEN 4.0 [mesh](3990L)

Body: TheShops - [BODY] Athletic Meshbody (Legacy)(m) (1.7.1) [mesh](5000L)

Pose: momomuller - 3M gogogo 1-1

Setting:

Vending Machine: Cerridwen's Cauldron - Scifi Black Honey Coffee [mesh](CyberFair)(499L)

Background: Zeroichi - REITO Backdrop [mesh](CyberFair)(560L)

BONUS IMAGES: inworld raw shots, hi-res, midday sky, default camera: