So, some of the new things I’ve been working on, you all had a preview of. After playing several solo RPGs earlier this year to help get me back into a creative flow, I decided to write some of my own! Digital versions are available here on my itch.io profile.

The story below, Skulker, is based on my Demon Defense Fieldbook solo RPG.

Skulker

Konomi’s shoulder ached from slamming into the helicopter's side paneling. Quick deployments for emergencies were about speed, not comfort. But each jostle had her wincing as the equipment they carried careened across the floor, stopped only by banging into the wall, seeing as the bungee cords had broken during a turbulent portion of the flight.

Below, Diamond Canyon lay covered in the country’s armed forces. A rescue mission gone wrong. On the perimeter, several teams of Kuru Tsuru soldiers formed a barrier at the entrance of a cave. They kept both the EGM Mining company people and other government entities at bay.

“Start taking readings,” Konomi said into the mic of her helmet.

“Do you see it?” Jazza asked, her eyes glued to the window, with the multispectral camera already recording.

In truth, Konomi swore she could feel it from this distance.

“Two minutes, ma’am,” the pilot cut in to their sparse conversation.

“Copy,” Konomi zipped the remainder of the silvery experimental suit the rest of the way. Two Kuru Tsuru officers stared openly, exchanging unapologetic glances at each other. The tools she’d preloaded onto the utility belt clanked, and a few had come loose during the short, chaotic flight.

The two minutes felt like ten seconds until the chopper landed and the door was thrust open. Officers were escorting Konomi and her team out in a flurry. Someone on the ground tried to cover Jazza’s camera, but the Kuru Tsuru officers promptly pushed the army sergeant away, issuing louder and more emphatic clearance codes.

It was Konomi’s suit. The prototypes rarely had Kuru Tsuru icons big enough to see, and with this suit in particular, they hadn’t quite figured out how to incorporate it without detracting from functionality.

“Lt. Colonel Akiko?” Operation Field Commander Saito broke through crowds. “Damn, it’s certainly been a long time, hasn’t it?”

Konomi stopped with her team and saluted. “Commander,” she nodded at one of her father’s many friends. “What’s the latest?”

“The cave has been sealed off. We’re working under the assumption that multiple entities are in play, but unfortunately, reconnaissance went south.”

“Were any readings taken?” Jazza slipped and clamped her mouth shut, chewing nervously on her lip and concentrating abnormally hard on her camera.

“There was very little data in the packet the Research Unit was given, sir.” Konomi motioned for them to walk. “I read that three EGM mining personnel are missing, and that was the extent of the report. Please tell me we have something more current.”

“Unfortunately,” Saito sighed, “now it’s three EGM miners and three soldiers. Kuru Tsuru took over and…”

Konomi gritted her teeth. If Kuru Tsuru, the demon slaying specialists, were in charge, why was she not dispatched sooner?

Pushing through, Konomi strode through the men and women awaiting orders, keeping lookout and whispering to one another as she passed through.

“The sergeant leading the men was Kuru Tsuru… and it seems he’d come in off script.” Saito paused, saluting a man blocking their path. Commander Temen of Kuru Tsuru.

“Sir,” Konomi said in passing, as she refused to stop. They’d already spent too much time waiting.

“Research is not equipped…”

“No, I would hazard we are more equipped, Commander. And based on the current guidelines of the Kuru Tsuru, we’ll have you in for a court martial tomorrow. Your actions could have seriously endangered or killed any number of the men stuck in that cave. For what? Your ongoing delusions that R&D…”

“You and your people are going to get killed, Lt. Colonel Akiko.”

“We’ll see about that,” Konomi pushed through the last of the EGM personnel, most of whom were wearing suits–owners probably flown in to try and keep tabs on the situation unfolding.

At the tent closest to the cave entrance, Konomi finally stopped. “Kato,” she growled, causing all his men to pause in their assessments.

“Ah,” Jazza came up short, trying hard not to scream in frustration.

“And here I thought the Kuru Tsuru was without the same struggles as the Armed Forces,” Field Commander Saito chuckled.

“You look ravishing, as always, Lieutenant Akiko,” Kato turned, his spiky hair mussed and partially flattened from his helmet. His cocky smile and cool expression had often been the talk of the academy.

“Your screwing up the data!” Jazza finally exploded. “The settings…STOP TOUCHING EVERYTHING!”

Konomi waved Jazza forward and let her rip cords from machines and people from their chairs. “I was promoted.” Konomi breathed. “Where are your orders?”

He flashed another coky grin and handed a tablet over. “RIFT backup.”

“Field backup is not supposed to touch everything, or screw up all our readings!” Jazza sneered. “What data have you…” She’d thrown on a pair of headphones and listened to the last recording. “Ma’am?”

“Raw recording?” Konomi asked Field Commander Saito, who nodded. “What analysis was…”

“None. Our equipment is not up to Kuru Tsuru standards, especially in this location. We rarely have encounters such as this. We were admittedly unprepared.”

Jazza rewound the recording for Konomi and handed her the headphones. Konomi pressed them close, trying to block out all the background noise.

“Copy that. We’re…”

“There!”

“There was a noise…”

Voices melded together. All three were male.

“We have visual on an EGM uniform.”

“Preparing to engage. On your knees! On your knees!”

The words were cut off with screams and gunfire. And a low rumble.

Konomi clamped her hands over the headset, eyes squeezed shut in concentration.

“Put it through the rack,” Konomi ordered.

“You heard it, too, right?” Jazza asked, her brow creased deeply.

Konomi kept her hands on the earmuffs as Jazza rewound and played the last bit again before pulling out her laptop and odds and ends.

“Was there a video feed from EGM? They’re required…”

“Way ahead of you,” Kato waved a different tablet at Konomi. “You know… There was that date I’d asked you about…”

Ignoring the comment, Konomi snatched the pad and played the shaky footage without sound.

“You know, it works better to turn it up and hear what is happening,” Kato attempted another flash smile.

Standing at her shoulder, Jazza gasped. “What would you say? Grade Echo?” Konomi asked.

Jazza hummed, “Size, sure. Grade Echo sounds right. That’s definitely a Skulker, class 1 based on those levels.” She swallowed hard and flicked the squiggly lines on the side of the image. Didn’t need the sound up to see what frequencies were recorded. “The prototype won’t be enough. It’s not built for a Grade Echo.”

Konomi had thought the same thing. “It’ll be fine,” she lied. Skulker. She’d assumed Skulker based on the location. They preferred caves. It was hiding in the shadows, hence the light suit. A suit that literally shone like a flashlight in 360 degrees.

The portal was simply a confirmation.

“What? What stupid magic are you two pulling?” Kato snatched the tablet back before they could even run the video through any filters.

“No magic. Probably wouldn’t do any good,” Konomi mumbled. “Doubt EGM has installed the latest camera specs, so our equipment won’t extract any other new data.”

“You’re going in based on a guess, ma’am,” Jazza said with a grimace.

“Your readings?” Konomi started checking her equipment.

“Gamma is off the charts.” Ah, there it was—finally, a Jazza eye roll.

“Confirms portal activity. Size gives us a grade. I need an inhibitor. Multi-frequency.”

Jazza again grew concerned, but handed her the earbuds, which were lined with a special alloy that resisted specific frequencies from hitting her eardrums while also being designed for communication and isolation. The only problem was… what frequencies was the damned thing emitting? Skulkers had various powers, but manipulation was the most prevalent. “Lt. Colonel Akiko, it’s…”

But Kato appeared in Konomi’s personal bubble, “Your suit is not enough. Frequency is unknown. You cannot do what I know you’re thinking of doing.”

As she considered both Jazza and Kato’s comments, Konomi felt the buzz of a message from her watch.

Makoto: Be safe. Come home. You got this.

Konomi grinned at the message from Ma-kun–or as few others knew him, her fiancé. “I’m going in. I need the smart glasses, Jazza. Wire me up.”

“The caves have interfered with the wireless signals getting out. It’s why we had such a hard time even getting that audio from my men.” Saito worried, but Konomi only shrugged.

Sure, elements and the depth of the caves inhibited wireless signals from getting out, but the glitches Saito’s crew received? Probably had more to do with the Skulker.

Kato stepped in front of Konomi, all hint of flirting gone. “You can’t go in alone.”

“I’m just doing my job. As you should be. Watching our backs. At your post.” Konomi rolled her eyes and opened the cases that the others in her team had set out. Weapons, knives, but more importantly, light and gamma radiation traps–Skulkers had little mass, so the room needed to house them was small. Dimensional work had come a long way in Konomi’s lifetime thus far. For larger demons, it was likely they would perish or could be captured by usual means (zip ties, cuffs, rope, etc), but the more… incorporeal were harder to deal with. Forced folded space trapped within–well–a physical trap about the size of a cell phone. Konomi had three traps strapped to her leg.

Kato started sending his team to designated spots around the cave entrance, but stopped Konomi before she exited the tent. “Hey, I have to come in and save you… I get that date.”

Stifling a snicker, Jazza hid behind monitors when Kato glared at her.

“Not going to need a save,” Konomi stated confidently. And you’re certainly not getting a date. The idea racked Konomi with a shudder. Though a moment after she stepped out of Kato’s grip, she returned for one of her blades, thumb caressing the tsuka. She’d taught Makoto how to engrave last year, and they’d placed their initials together before she’d wrapped the tsuka-ito. “Just in case.”

Getting one more jab lovingly in, Jazza shouted, “It’s going to cast a shadow!”

Yeah, she had a point, yet Konomi unsheathed the blade and, waiting until she entered the mouth of the cave, and then flipped on the switch under her collar. Light glowed all around her. Turning back around, she could see the Kuru Tsuru troops watching her. “Comms check,” Konomi said from the mouth. Jazza gave a thumbs up.

“Good to go, ma’am. Hope you follow that usual advice you get.” Great, Jazza was still worrying.

Konomi shook it off and stared down into the unnerving dark. “The cave is pitch black.” She kicked at the ground and felt the thick electrical cords running along the uneven cave floor. “Electricity lines have been run.”

“When you get further in, it looks like the schematics show both EGM and government-issued lighting…”

“Evac, Akiko,” Kato’s voice cut off Jazza..

How did anyone get any work done with Kato around? “Get off my channel, Kato!”

“If you’ve got a Skulker–”

“Not an if!” Konomi couldn’t take much more of this. She slowly walked into the cave, allowing her blade to bounce light off her suit along the walls. The ground sloped downward. Long ago, diamonds had been mined from these caves, but only recently had other ores within the stone become valuable, particularly to organizations like Kuru Tsuru.

Away from the sunlight, in the dank recesses, the temperature dropped. And it dropped fast! Konomi saw her breath. The light from her suit glinted off stalactites of ice. “Skulker's ability may be temperature-related. What is the average temperature of this cave?”

“Ranges from 10 to 15 °C depending on external temperatures.”

“I would estimate the temperatures between 0 and 4.” Konomi caught movement ahead. “What readings do you have?”

“It’s… you’re…” Static.

Fantastic. Konomi froze in place. The Skulker zipped back and forth in her path, unable to break the light barrier. Her head, however, remained exposed. The glasses glitched. She hadn’t been watching for data, but now realized none had been streaming. The record function, however, seemed to be blinking at her. Hopefully, this was all being saved. “Appears to be a singular entity blocking my path. Prototype L-suit appears to be working as intended. Skulker, Grade Echo, appears at best estimate to be darting back and forth without a path to through the light cast by the suit.”

Another glitch crossed the glasses, and readings started pouring in, though staticky.

Something brushed Konomi’s shoulder. Damn. Maybe it could jump. No readings seemed to indicate a minor portal had opened, no jump in gamma radiation, radio, or x-rays.

A sound wave glided across her glasses display. “Skulker is attempting audiological control. Often, Skulkers utilize a frequency that can manipulate brainwaves, allowing for…”

The creature left again, the same brushing feeling parting Konomi’s hair. Using the blade again, Konomi bounced light off the walls ahead. Shuffling footsteps echoed off the walls.

“Shit. Hostile engagement is likely. Skulker appears to have kept control…” The body slammed into Konomi’s back before she saw where it came from. Moaning and drooling as it swatted at her. The suit flickered. Konomi found a flashlight she’d packed onto her tool belt. A hand clawed at her ankle. Kicking, Konomi swung the light onto the man… one of the EGM miners, based on his torn jumpsuit. The man’s jaw hung slack, his eyes eerily unfocused. Konomi kicked again, her boot smashing into the man’s hand. Whether it was the light or any effect of the Skulker, his skin seemed pale, grayish blue.

Within the flashing of her suit, Konomi saw more movement and felt the Skulker flit back and forth, too.

Her suit continued flickering. Dropping her sword, Konomi reached in and held the power switch on, illuminating the cave once more. She slammed her boot into the man’s face and hands, but pain did not deter him. She kept going until she’d likely broken many bones in his hand and could no longer physically grip her leg. Panting, Konomi slid back and stood. One-handed, she grabbed her stun gun, aimed, and fired at the EGM employee.

Another person slammed into her. Releasing the switch, Konomi lived with the flickering, noting that it was a serious flaw in the suit's design, grabbed a syringe, and plunged it into the new attacker’s thigh. He collapsed, and her suit’s light glinted off a metal tag from the army.

“Two of those who were officially MIA have been apprehended. Removing consciousness appears to cause the Skulker to lose control. This Skulker needs its victims to be conscious. However, if there is only one, it can control multiple people at once… Classification may need updating.” Another breeze ruffled her hair. Her sensors detected new frequencies, all of which were blocked by her earbuds, including isolation. Konomi removed a trap and watched the bodies on the floor intently. The breeze passed again, and she snapped the switch on the side. Another round of moaning came from a branch ahead. But as the trap opened, which looked to be nothing but an exceedingly bright cell phone flashlight, the breeze suddenly stopped. A green LED lit on the trap, and she closed it with a release of the button. The moaning from the cave branch also stopped abruptly as electricity hummed to life and lights cascaded on again.

Konomi held the trap up, not that she could see the creature inside. “Powerful little guy, aren’t you?”

“Ma’am? Akiko? Do you copy?” Jazza was frantic on the line.

“Clear, Jazza. Send in,” she dug into the early reports when she’d been given the assignment. Kato’s team was not slated for ARC Team–aka Anomalous Retrieval and Containment.

Jazza’s smile could be heard over the comms, “Obsidian Unit is on tap for ARC Team. Kato’s Null Division is holding Black Line. I checked when you were offline, RIFT was not deployed. Only ARC and Scene Control.”

Well, well, well. Scene Control? And damn, someone didn’t tell me his unit was ARC Team for me today. Konomi probably hadn’t been paying attention to the team assignments with all the excitement of testing her new prototypes.

“Send in Obsidian Unit. Medics required.” An odd warmth seeped into Konomi. Ah, the cave temperature was returning to normal since the Skulker was contained.

Bending to check the broken-handed man, his skin appeared to be generally on the blue-ish side. Hypothermia?

Sweat began to bead at her forehead. Jazza’s numbers weren’t that hot for the cave average. No, this was warmer. Burning almost.

Konomi jumped. Searing heat burned her around the collar of the suit. She clicked the light suit off. “We need to make a lot of adjustments to the suit. For starters, where the switch is.” Footsteps echoed in the cave. “Don’t tell Ma-kun. As far as he is concerned, this was a rousing success.”

“Aye, ma’am,” Jazza giggled.

“Looks like it to me.” Makoto’s voice sent a shiver down Konomi's spine. “Forgot to read the team assignments again? Didn’t even see my team at the landing pad?”

They’d probably escorted Konomi’s R&D team in…

Oops.

“Can I tell Kato he’s not getting that date? Or do you want to tell him?” Makoto bent to pick up her blade, flashing a snarky grin.

“I’ve already told him. But one more person couldn’t hurt.” Or it might. Depending on if Ma-kun used his blades at all… “We really need to mass produce these earbuds. Worked like a charm.”

“And tell Jazza to put the switch for the suit on the outside.”

Leave a comment