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Nazbeth wrote:The next chapter of Endgame is... finally... ready. It's a long one. Let me know what you think.

Reading...

Nazbeth wrote:Also (this is really, really unrelated) but I just read OPS again... and you know, it's really not that bad. We always joke about how bad it is, but it's actually pretty cool. Harlin Enolin and Senzala Kadhir are excellent characters. And that whole thing with Senzala's daughter was just tragic. Is it canon?

It is, and I think I mostly like to ridicule it for its (too cheezy) cheese.

Nazbeth

Nazbeth wrote:

Keep it together, Keith. You can’t lose it now. You can't be intimidated by this. You’re here for a reason, and that reason is going to be realized. Or so Keith told himself. The stress levels were ratcheting up relentlessly as he, Travis, and the agents slowly climbed the crowded stairs towards the Grand Paramount’s main deck, squeezing past wave after wave of celebrities and their entourages. Whatever confidence Keith once had had been crushed by the sheer size of the ship itself and also the endless throng of people he was currently pushing his way through—how would they find Grazod in this mess? Keith called himself a people person, but even he felt overwhelmed.

As they made an awkward turn around the grand staircase’s right banister, Kayla wrenched free of his arm, which until that moment she had still been awkwardly holding. Keith knew why. At the top of this last set of 20-or-so stairs was the main lido deck. According to Kayla’s intel, this was where they would find Grazod.

Both Kayla and Agent Finley’s right arms were casually tucked under the side of their dresses, where Keith knew they each had holstered a small pistol. Seeing this, Keith reached under his blazer and gripped his own firearm firmly. Travis did the same.

Keith had no love of guns, and was still hoping for a diplomatic solution to this dilemma he and the others had found themselves in. All alone on a crowded cruise ship, trying to clandestinely capture one of Nazbeth’s most enigmatic and dangerous men. For superspies Thorne and Finley, this was just another day at the office, but for Vice President Keith McAnder, he was way out of his league, and was starting to doubt his presence on this mission. He was sure his cousin felt the same.

Still, to combat these worrying thoughts, Keith focused on the plan. He repeated it over and over in his head, and it seemed to bring him some comfort. Stick together, help each other, get in, get out. That was the most important part. They had surprise and hopefully good fortune on their side. They could do this.

Of course, from the moment they finally stepped up onto the main deck, the oh-so-carefully constructed plan was in tatters.

Thorne shoved through the choked crowd of drinking, chattering celebrities on the deck first, clearing a path for Finley behind her, then Travis, and finally Keith bringing up the rear. Keith watched as Finley—easily a head taller than many of the fawning bimbos in the crowd—craned her neck as she pushed through, scanning the area for Grazod. When Keith reached the gaggle, he saw that the path the others had cleared had already closed. Sighing, he started to push though, muttering “excuse me” and trying to suppress the urge to roll his eyes at all the swooning girls, who were clearly vying for the attention of someone at the crowd’s center.

Keith couldn’t have been more surprised when that very same unseen person shot out of the crowd, broadsided him, seized his arm, and began leading him away extremely quickly. Still in shock, Keith let himself be led along, until a few seconds later he dimly turned and glanced at his assailant.

Keith did a double take. The person—a young man—whom he thought he didn’t recognize before, was staring straight ahead, not even acknowledging his presence. Indeed, the only sign that he recognized Keith at all was his right arm, which was clenched tightly around Keith’s shoulder, leading him away from the deck and the crowd.

But Keith did recognize him. The mop of impeccably styled blond hair. The piercing green eyes. The perfectly chiseled jawline. Even the powder-blue tuxedo. Keith knew only one person who looked like that.

“Tarius?” he said, eyes widening.

Tarius didn’t respond or even acknowledge Keith in any way. He just continued leading him along in silence.

“Tarius, what the hell?” Keith protested, finally coming to his senses. He started to struggle as Tarius continued leading him down the hall, but his grip on Keith’s shoulder might as well have been an iron vice. He continued resisting, but to no avail. Looking around, Keith saw that this section of the ship—what looked like the hallway of the cruise’s finest rooms—was deserted.

Tarius yanked Keith by the collar, ignoring his protestations, and deftly swiped into the room marked “202” with his left hand while holding Keith with his right. Then, throwing the door open, Tarius shoved Keith into the room and followed him inside, closing the door behind him.

Keith was now extremely confused. Thrown off by Tarius’ mysterious silence, he had no idea what to do. Looking around, he saw he was, as he predicted, now inside one of the ship’s elegant suites. He awkwardly took a seat in an antique armchair. Was this Tarius’ room? Why the hell had he brought him here?

“Tarius—” Keith tried again.

“No,” Tarius said, holding up a hand. Keith was happy to remain silent, now that Tarius had spoken at last. He watched as Tarius removed his baby-blue blazer and threw it on the coat rack. Then, sighing, he took a seat in an armchair next to Keith, who looked up at him expectantly.

Tarius made eye contact. “First things first—I’m not Tarius. I’m Taarius.”

Keith stared at the intelligence-enhanced clone in shock. Everything about his appearance screamed the dimwitted original, but Keith had no trouble believing him, as no Tarius spoke so seriously or directly—or could remain silent for more than a few seconds. Once Keith had mustered up the ability to speak, all that came out was “What the hell are you doing here?”

“I could ask you the same question,” Taarius replied, staring directly in Keith’s eyes.

Keith held his gaze. “I can't’ tell you—it’s classified,” Keith said. “I suppose it’s good to see you, Taarius, but I don’t understand why you’ve dragged me all the way over here. I need to—”

“No, Keith, you don’t understand. I know exactly why you’re here! And I hate to break it to you—but this ship is a trap. Did you seriously think you could prevent Grazod from hearing about this? His spies are everywhere! You need to get off this ship.

Keith was stunned. He took a few seconds to gather himself, during which Taarius remained silent. “Taarius, I came here to arrest Grazod,” he finally said. “I’m not going to give up that easily.”

Taarius stared at him. After a few seconds, he nodded, and a small grin slowly formed on his face. “I thought you would say something like that. Well, the good news is that I’m here to help you—”

“—Yeah, how did you even end up—”

“—The bad news is Grazod knew you were coming,” Taarius said, steamrolling right over Keith’s attempt to get a word in edgewise. “I don’t know exactly how, and you’re lucky I got to you before he did. Otherwise they would’ve taken you as a hostage—”

A horrible realization suddenly dawned on Keith. “Taarius! I didn’t come here alone. Two agents are also with me—”

“—Yes, I know,” Taarius waved his hand dismissively. “Unless all of NIJA or CSI is compromised, your agents’ identities are safe. We should call them and ask them to—”

“—And my cousin. Travis.”

Taarius seemed to consider this for a second.

“That could complicate things.”

It was a confounding confrontation. Taarius, clone of Tarius, stood approximately 1.2 meters apart from the bemused Travis, Thorne, and Finley, all of whom he had quietly—with Keith in tow—informed of the situation and dragged back to his suite. No one had yet spoken, and Keith knew why. They were still wrapping their heads around Taarius’ sudden appearance.

Kayla, for one, had taken it especially badly. “You?” she had said with such severity, her lingering animosity for the clone’s genetic template was clear.

Taarius had neglected to reply, and only stared ahead steely. Keith tried in his stead: “Kayla, he isn’t who you think he is—”

“—Oh, I know who he is. He’s the imbecile who harbored Crimtonian Spectre’s most dangerous fugitive in his house and didn’t even understand. Or maybe he did understand, considering that it was his brother.”

“No, I don’t understand,” Taarius replied coldly. “But I never had any family, so maybe that’s why.”

“Never had any family? That doesn’t—”

“Kayla!” Keith interjected, with false cheer. “This isn’t Tarius. It’s his intelligence-enhanced clone, Taarius.”

Clone?” Kayla’s eyes widened in shock, her mouth agape. It would’ve been funny if it was in any other situation. “You’re a clone of—?”

“It’s a long story,” Taarius said. Keith had to suppress the urge to add that’s putting it mildly.

“So where is the real Rostenstaphen now?” Finley, ever the perceptive, demanded. “Clearly you’ve taken on his persona to get aboard this ship.”

“Also a long story,” Taarius said hastily. “I’m happy to answer all your questions at a later time—but right now, I think we should go somewhere more private.”
And so they did. Now in Taarius’s quarters, Keith asked the clone to relay all the information he knew. And he did.

Taarius then proposed the revised plan, and the others interjected their own additions. Just the five of them, all alone on a crowded cruise ship, hunting Nazbeth’s most wanted man—but Keith was no longer afraid. Taarius’s sudden appearance, which had confounded him before, had now given him hope. When their conspiratorial meeting concluded, they all rose, ready to begin. Thorne even handed Taarius a rifle to use.

But then the clone just had to add something horrifying.

“These weapons,” he said, gesturing at the rifle. “How did you get them aboard? Nazbeth has some of the strictest gun laws in the world, doesn’t it?”

This gave Agents Thorne and Finley pause. “It does,” Finley said. “They didn’t even check us—they just let us aboard.”

Taarius grimaced. “It’s just as I feared. Only someone with Grazod’s clout could do that. It means this is his ship—operating on his rules, and populated by his people.”

Keith suddenly had an epiphany. He realized what Taarius was about to say right before he said it.

Taarius turned to them grimly. “I’d wager a guess that they’re all armed, which means that we’re outnumbered and outgunned.”

He waited for this to sink in. Finally, Keith broke the silence.

“It’s clear that the odds are stacked against us. But we can do this. I know that we can do this. The original plan still stands. And if it fails to succeed, we have the contingency plan.”

Finley nodded. “I don’t like our odds… but we still have a chance.”

“Let’s do this,” Travis finished.

Here they were. Keith, his cousin Travis, and Agents Thorne and Finley, ready for the final confrontation. They were joined by the young CSI Agents Roberts and Leafe, whom Thorne had contacted. She knew they were stationed nearby, and since they could use all the help they could get, instructed them to sneak aboard the ship. Their presence only bolstered Keith’s resolve. Roberts, he knew, was one of CSI’s finest sharpshooters—while his partner, Leafe, was a hostage-situation expert. Both skills would be invaluable today.

They walked onto the lido deck, camouflaging in the throng of celebrities who were likely disguised Syndicate agents, and therefore hid in plain sight. Thorne quietly pointed them towards the deck’s far end, where a rotund, silver-haired, tuxedo-dressed man lounged on a pool chair. “Grazod,” she whispered.

In an alcove near the deck’s entrance, Finley quietly went over the plan one last time. Nodding when she finished, they silently synchronized their watches before taking up their positions.

Keith watched. Waited. Finally, the opportunity came—and he saw Travis break cover, deliberately walking through the gap towards Grazod’s chair, only fifty feet away.

“Mr. McAnder, welcome! I am too glad to see you…” Keith heard Grazod say before the crowd closed again. Travis was now alone on the other side. Keith could now only hope his cousin’s part of the plan went correctly…

Keith glanced at his watch. Stared, waited for the time to come. When it did, he turned to the two people left with him—Roberts and Leafe, for Finley and Thorne had taken up positions on the upper deck—and nodded slowly. They nodded back.

Drawing their guns, they prepared to break from behind their pillars and execute their own, crucial part of the plan… but far too late, Keith noticed something. The crowd of people in front, who before seemed to be milling about aimlessly, were now looking directly at them.

Slowly, they drew handguns out of their elegant outfits and raised them. Keith turned desperately and saw that Roberts and Leafe were still unaware.

“Take cover!” Keith screamed, right before the enemy opened fire.

But Roberts and Leafe did not take cover. Instead, they grabbed Keith by the arms, running, leading him away from the fight. “Mr. Vice President, we need to get you out of here!” Leafe said as she led him away. Roberts turned over his shoulder, returning fire.

Keith and the two agents ducked into the hallway that they had came… but then Keith realized. The plan had failed… and it had failed horribly.

In front of them was a phalanx of enemy agents, armed to the teeth.

Keith closed his eyes, knowing that he was about to die. He didn’t even have time to curse his misfortune, knowing that someone had blown their cover. He could only hope that the others had made it out.

He winced as the shots rang out… dozens of them. A second later, he was still alive, but Leafe and Roberts had crumpled. Keith stared, his mind in hell, watching their blood pool on the floor.

Then the enemy seized him, dragging the Crimtonian Vice President towards an uncertain fate.

Incredible writing! This is why I like OE — and your writing/series in general — so much.

1. Taarius? I certainly didn't expect that, and now I'm interested in what happened between his encounter with Tarius (if that's canon) and this.

2. I had a suspicion that Grazod wouldn't travel without protection, but the Grand Paramount being entirely occupied by his people? Wow.

3. I know you can't answer this question, but what fate is Keith being dragged towards? Will he meet Grazod's children like Alan Hall did?

4. Again: this chapter (and really OEE in general) has incredible and captivating writing!

5. Whether or not it was intended, you made an excellent leaf/Leafe pun: "Leafe ... had crumpled." As the inventor of humor, I congratulate you on your success.

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:Incredible writing! This is why I like OE — and your writing/series in general — so much.

1. Taarius? I certainly didn't expect that, and now I'm interested in what happened between his encounter with Tarius (if that's canon) and this.

2. I had a suspicion that Grazod wouldn't travel without protection, but the Grand Paramount being entirely occupied by his people? Wow.

3. I know you can't answer this question, but what fate is Keith being dragged towards? Will he meet Grazod's children like Alan Hall did?

4. Again: this chapter (and really OEE in general) has incredible and captivating writing!

5. Whether or not it was intended, you made an excellent leaf/Leafe pun: "Leafe ... had crumpled." As the inventor of humor, I congratulate you on your success.

1. I know. I decided to revive him, and his presence here does make that encounter canon, because it cements how (as Finley observed) Taarius has taken Tarius's place.

2. You did kind of predict it, so well done!

3. A good guess as any. You'll have to wait and see...

4. Thank you! I'm glad you like it. For some reason, there's always nearly a month between chapters. Hopefully that'll change.

5. Fairly morbid humor, but humor nonetheless. (RIP Agent Leafe, but to be fair, anyone with any variation of the [treething]e name was probably doomed from the start.)

Nazbeth wrote:1. I know. I decided to revive him, and his presence here does make that encounter canon, because it cements how (as Finley observed) Taarius has taken Tarius's place.

2. You did kind of predict it, so well done!

3. A good guess as any. You'll have to wait and see...

4. Thank you! I'm glad you like it. For some reason, there's always nearly a month between chapters. Hopefully that'll change.

5. Fairly morbid humor, but humor nonetheless. (RIP Agent Leafe, but to be fair, anyone with any variation of the [treething]e name was probably doomed from the start.)

4. I don't think you've written an OE chapter I didn't like.

4 (still). It's like Brexit the Crimtonian election, but not. You wanted to synchronize the events of the 2056 election with the real life year of 2018 — primarues in the spring, conventions in the summer, and election in the fall. (Something something inspairation?)

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:4. I don't think you've written an OE chapter I didn't like.

4 (still). It's like Brexit the Crimtonian election, but not. You wanted to synchronize the events of the 2056 election with the real life year of 2018 — primarues in the spring, conventions in the summer, and election in the fall. (Something something inspairation?)

I meant a real life month. Haha, that reminds me of UTZZY... the time passing in real life passing in the series too. No, there has been on in-character time passing between this chapter and the last, but there has been a month of RL time.

Nazbeth wrote:I meant a real life month. Haha, that reminds me of UTZZY... the time passing in real life passing in the series too. No, there has been on in-character time passing between this chapter and the last, but there has been a month of RL time.

I know.

Nazbeth

More than a month... almost two. Wow! I need to pick up the pace.

You ready for the next one??

Edit: I think you'll definitely have some QRCCs for this one. Posting now.

Nazbeth

“Vice President McAnder, what a lovely surprise!” Grazod said smugly, reclining in his pool chair. “I must say, this is bold, even for you.”

Keith has thrown, bloodied and beaten, at Grazod’s feet. When he looked up, glaring, all he could see of his adversary were his pudgy bare toes.

Surrounded by Grazod’s guards and at the Syndicate’s mercy, Keith knew he was done for. Leafe and Roberts were dead, and their bodies had been dragged only a few meters to Keith’s right. Keith allowed himself one second of grief—one tear for the slaughter of the young agents—for he knew they had died in vain. They had died trying to protect him, when they should’ve saved themselves.

There was no sign of Agents Thorne and Finley, or Taarius. It was possible they had died as well. But to Grazod’s left, standing right beside him… it was Travis! Keith looked at him. He seemed to be averting his eyes from his cousin.

“Ah, noticed Travis now, have you?” Grazod smirked. “I know that you came aboard this ship together… I know that you thought he would betray me. But no, my dear Mr. McAnder, it is you who have been betrayed!” Grazod smiled widely and horribly. “Travis was the one who alerted me to your plan, to your coming. Travis was the one who engineered your downfall. It is he, Travis, your own cousin, who has betrayed you! Travis, my most loyal servant!”

Keith shut his eyes tightly. Hot, angry tears ran down his cheeks before he looked up at Grazod, seething with hatred. “My cousin means nothing to me. Even without him, you’re still not escaping this place, Grazod. You’re done for. I’ve won.”

You’ve won? You?” Grazod guffawed. “Get him up,” he said to two Syndicate agents at his right. Roughly they pulled Keith to his feet and brought him to Grazod.

Now only centimeters away from him, Keith stared into Grazod’s baby-blue eyes, cold as ice. “You’ve lost, boy. You have no power here. Your agents are dead. And while I would torture you and revel in your screams, killing you will be that much more… enjoyable. Just like all your friends in the bombing.”

At this, Keith lunged forward with hate, breaking his captors’ grips, and swung at Grazod wildly, feeling his fist connect with rubbery flesh. When they finally pulled him back and beat him, he saw with a fleeting glance that Grazod had collapsed in his chair. He savored that image.

When Grazod finally recovered, he extricated himself from his chair and stalked towards Keith, now held in an iron grip by the two Syndicate agents. Keith saw, with immense satisfaction, that Grazod’s nose was broken and bleeding. He watched as he wiped it with his hand.

“Such spunk. Such fire,” Grazod whispered. “But I should’ve expected nothing different from such an incendiary as yourself. I assure you, Keith, that you and your firebrand politics will not be around much longer.” Grazod gestured to the agents holding Keith, and they began to drag him to the edge of the lido deck. They pitched his torso over the side, backwards, so that he would have no doubt of the manner of his demise. With a glance, Keith looked down. All he saw was water… hundreds of feet below.

“You, Mr. McAnder, are about to set a new record for Olympic diving,” Grazod spat. “You are an example to all who dare to defy me! You will be—”

Keith would’ve listened to all of his death soliloquy, well aware that Grazod’s speech was to be his final moments on this earth, but something had caught his eye. Far above them, on an upper deck, there was a scuffle. Neither Grazod nor Travis nor the agents holding him had noticed, but he had. A flash of dark hair… Syndicate agents falling left and right… it was Thorne and Finley! Was the plan still on? Keith knew that they wouldn’t arrive in time to save him… and even if they could, they would be hopelessly outnumbered. But there was something they could do…

“—You, Vice President McAnder, will die!” Grazod finished triumphantly. He made a small push gesture, and Keith knew what was coming.

“Probably,” he said, just as the agents pitched him over the side.

As Keith bent, backwards, twisting over the edge, he locked eyes with Kayla Thorne, who was staring at him in horror.

He knew that she could make the shot.

She made the shot.

Not on Grazod, but on the agent closest to Keith’s right, a stoic young woman with long blond hair.

As Keith began to fall, he was Kayla’s shot pierce the agent in the neck. She fell too, dropping her handgun. And Grazod screamed.

Keith caught it.

And as he finally fell off the edge, he threw it, a perfect left-handed arc.

He saw everyone stare at it.

And then he fell, plummeting over two hundred feet to the ocean below.

Kayla saw Keith fall, and froze.

Finley saw it too, but she kept her head. She kept firing. Soon, Kayla joined in.

The Syndicate agents on the deck had no chance. They fell to the floor, picked off by the relentless aim of the two agents above, firing in anger, hoping to avenge Keith and their comrades.

Soon only two people stood on the deck. A helpless Grazod… and a far-from helpless Travis.

Travis caught the gun… the one that Keith had thrown… and in seconds, had it held on Grazod’s neck.

“No, Grazod, you have been betrayed,” he hissed. “You fell right into our plan… even if Keith was lost because of it…”

Travis refused to let his cousin’s death keep him from justice. “Augusto Grazod, in the name of the Nazbethian government and under orders from Crimtonian Spectre President Lainey Johannsen, you are under arrest.”

“Travis, m’boy...” Grazod said, smiling, somehow keeping his cool despite the gun aimed squarely at him. “Surely we can reach some sort of agreement…”

“Not this time,” Travis said. “You’ve betrayed me and my family for the last time. Now move. I’m taking you into custody.”

“Travis…” Grazod said again. By this time, Agents Thorne and Finley had arrived, and Travis noticed Thorne was clearly blinking back tears. He knew why, but the time for mourning would come. It was not now.

“I have nothing to say to you,” Thorne said to Grazod, glaring with hatred. “You’ve killed the Vice President of Crimtonian Spectre. The only solace that I can find is that this is all finally over.”

“Oh, my dear, it is far from over,” Grazod said, still smiling. “You may have ended me, but you’ll never end my syndicate. Why, I may even implicate some of my superiors for you… in exchange for my freedom.”

Kayla hesitated, but only for a second. “You can negotiate this all in a court of law, Grazod,” she spat. “Right now I’m taking you into—”

Suddenly, a single gunshot rang out. Kayla, Finley, and Travis all looked around desperately… but nothing had happened.

“Grazod!” Travis yelled.

“Travis…” Grazod said weakly. He reached up with one hand and brushed Travis’s cheek ever so lightly, causing him to recoil. “I… I…”

Blood was gushing from Grazod’s neck. Travis, Thorne, and Finley could only watch in shock as he fell to the floor.

Augusto Grazod was dead.

You know, it’s crazy, but I’m actually nearing the end of Endgame and OE itself.
There’ll probably only be a few more chapters! Then I’ll switch to the CS election.

(Maybe we can move the timeline around so CS comes before TLU and URR.)

Rahul, you haven't been on for a full 24 hours. Is this a record??

Edit: Actually, you’re answering issues, but I’m sure you’ll get around to reading OEE eventually. No rush.

Wow... this will make 6 unliked posts in a row, in a span of 33 hours! I mean, for anyone else this would be normal, but Rahul, for you, this is unheard of.

Anyway, just wanted to say I just broke 1,000 scientific advancement score! My NSing is complete.

Nazbeth wrote:You ready for the next one??

Edit: I think you'll definitely have some QRCCs for this one. Posting now.

Already? (Amazing!) I didn't check the RMB yesterday because I hadn't expected the next chapter to be published so soon.

Nazbeth wrote:You know, it’s crazy, but I’m actually nearing the end of Endgame and OE itself.
There’ll probably only be a few more chapters! Then I’ll switch to the CS election.

(Maybe we can move the timeline around so CS comes before TLU and URR.)

URR is in mid-2059 and TLU is in early 2060. I don't think you'd be able to make the election (which was in the fall in 2056) earlier than either of those without some heavy retcons.

Nazbeth wrote:Rahul, you haven't been on for a full 24 hours. Is this a record??

Edit: Actually, you’re answering issues, but I’m sure you’ll get around to reading OEE eventually. No rush.

I've been very busy with other things; I only spent a few minutes a day on NS. It's not a record, but yesterday had to have been my least active day in months.

Nazbeth wrote:Wow... this will make 6 unliked posts in a row, in a span of 33 hours! I mean, for anyone else this would be normal, but Rahul, for you, this is unheard of.

Anyway, just wanted to say I just broke 1,000 scientific advancement score! My NSing is complete.

Finally... your people are now intelligent enough to understand the greatness of Holyfa. They will dismiss the idea that he's an imbecile as the belief of lesser beings, and they will all migrate to Holydia!

(Or something like that.)

Nazbeth

Nazbeth wrote:

“Vice President McAnder, what a lovely surprise!” Grazod said smugly, reclining in his pool chair. “I must say, this is bold, even for you.”

Keith has thrown, bloodied and beaten, at Grazod’s feet. When he looked up, glaring, all he could see of his adversary were his pudgy bare toes.

Surrounded by Grazod’s guards and at the Syndicate’s mercy, Keith knew he was done for. Leafe and Roberts were dead, and their bodies had been dragged only a few meters to Keith’s right. Keith allowed himself one second of grief—one tear for the slaughter of the young agents—for he knew they had died in vain. They had died trying to protect him, when they should’ve saved themselves.

There was no sign of Agents Thorne and Finley, or Taarius. It was possible they had died as well. But to Grazod’s left, standing right beside him… it was Travis! Keith looked at him. He seemed to be averting his eyes from his cousin.

“Ah, noticed Travis now, have you?” Grazod smirked. “I know that you came aboard this ship together… I know that you thought he would betray me. But no, my dear Mr. McAnder, it is you who have been betrayed!” Grazod smiled widely and horribly. “Travis was the one who alerted me to your plan, to your coming. Travis was the one who engineered your downfall. It is he, Travis, your own cousin, who has betrayed you! Travis, my most loyal servant!”

Keith shut his eyes tightly. Hot, angry tears ran down his cheeks before he looked up at Grazod, seething with hatred. “My cousin means nothing to me. Even without him, you’re still not escaping this place, Grazod. You’re done for. I’ve won.”

You’ve won? You?” Grazod guffawed. “Get him up,” he said to two Syndicate agents at his right. Roughly they pulled Keith to his feet and brought him to Grazod.

Now only centimeters away from him, Keith stared into Grazod’s baby-blue eyes, cold as ice. “You’ve lost, boy. You have no power here. Your agents are dead. And while I would torture you and revel in your screams, killing you will be that much more… enjoyable. Just like all your friends in the bombing.”

At this, Keith lunged forward with hate, breaking his captors’ grips, and swung at Grazod wildly, feeling his fist connect with rubbery flesh. When they finally pulled him back and beat him, he saw with a fleeting glance that Grazod had collapsed in his chair. He savored that image.

When Grazod finally recovered, he extricated himself from his chair and stalked towards Keith, now held in an iron grip by the two Syndicate agents. Keith saw, with immense satisfaction, that Grazod’s nose was broken and bleeding. He watched as he wiped it with his hand.

“Such spunk. Such fire,” Grazod whispered. “But I should’ve expected nothing different from such an incendiary as yourself. I assure you, Keith, that you and your firebrand politics will not be around much longer.” Grazod gestured to the agents holding Keith, and they began to drag him to the edge of the lido deck. They pitched his torso over the side, backwards, so that he would have no doubt of the manner of his demise. With a glance, Keith looked down. All he saw was water… hundreds of feet below.

“You, Mr. McAnder, are about to set a new record for Olympic diving,” Grazod spat. “You are an example to all who dare to defy me! You will be—”

Keith would’ve listened to all of his death soliloquy, well aware that Grazod’s speech was to be his final moments on this earth, but something had caught his eye. Far above them, on an upper deck, there was a scuffle. Neither Grazod nor Travis nor the agents holding him had noticed, but he had. A flash of dark hair… Syndicate agents falling left and right… it was Thorne and Finley! Was the plan still on? Keith knew that they wouldn’t arrive in time to save him… and even if they could, they would be hopelessly outnumbered. But there was something they could do…

“—You, Vice President McAnder, will die!” Grazod finished triumphantly. He made a small push gesture, and Keith knew what was coming.

“Probably,” he said, just as the agents pitched him over the side.

As Keith bent, backwards, twisting over the edge, he locked eyes with Kayla Thorne, who was staring at him in horror.

He knew that she could make the shot.

She made the shot.

Not on Grazod, but on the agent closest to Keith’s right, a stoic young woman with long blond hair.

As Keith began to fall, he was Kayla’s shot pierce the agent in the neck. She fell too, dropping her handgun. And Grazod screamed.

Keith caught it.

And as he finally fell off the edge, he threw it, a perfect left-handed arc.

He saw everyone stare at it.

And then he fell, plummeting over two hundred feet to the ocean below.

Kayla saw Keith fall, and froze.

Finley saw it too, but she kept her head. She kept firing. Soon, Kayla joined in.

The Syndicate agents on the deck had no chance. They fell to the floor, picked off by the relentless aim of the two agents above, firing in anger, hoping to avenge Keith and their comrades.

Soon only two people stood on the deck. A helpless Grazod… and a far-from helpless Travis.

Travis caught the gun… the one that Keith had thrown… and in seconds, had it held on Grazod’s neck.

“No, Grazod, you have been betrayed,” he hissed. “You fell right into our plan… even if Keith was lost because of it…”

Travis refused to let his cousin’s death keep him from justice. “Augusto Grazod, in the name of the Nazbethian government and under orders from Crimtonian Spectre President Lainey Johannsen, you are under arrest.”

“Travis, m’boy...” Grazod said, smiling, somehow keeping his cool despite the gun aimed squarely at him. “Surely we can reach some sort of agreement…”

“Not this time,” Travis said. “You’ve betrayed me and my family for the last time. Now move. I’m taking you into custody.”

“Travis…” Grazod said again. By this time, Agents Thorne and Finley had arrived, and Travis noticed Thorne was clearly blinking back tears. He knew why, but the time for mourning would come. It was not now.

“I have nothing to say to you,” Thorne said to Grazod, glaring with hatred. “You’ve killed the Vice President of Crimtonian Spectre. The only solace that I can find is that this is all finally over.”

“Oh, my dear, it is far from over,” Grazod said, still smiling. “You may have ended me, but you’ll never end my syndicate. Why, I may even implicate some of my superiors for you… in exchange for my freedom.”

Kayla hesitated, but only for a second. “You can negotiate this all in a court of law, Grazod,” she spat. “Right now I’m taking you into—”

Suddenly, a single gunshot rang out. Kayla, Finley, and Travis all looked around desperately… but nothing had happened.

“Grazod!” Travis yelled.

“Travis…” Grazod said weakly. He reached up with one hand and brushed Travis’s cheek ever so lightly, causing him to recoil. “I… I…”

Blood was gushing from Grazod’s neck. Travis, Thorne, and Finley could only watch in shock as he fell to the floor.

Augusto Grazod was dead.

Amazing! As of right now, this and part ten are my favorite Grazodocentric chapters in OEE.

1. How reliant are the Syndicate's day to day operations on Grazod himself?

2. I said "are" and not "were" because I assume Levi is supposed to become the leader of the Syndicate now. Is that true? Will he take Augusto Grazod's place?

3. Was Grazod killed by the handgun Keith threw at him?

4. I know you probably won't be able to answer this, but what will happen to Travis?

5. Keith's not dead, right? OEE takes place before the main timeline and I don't expect you'd do something so major (and so likely to create an RP between TLU, Naz, and CS's leadership).

6. Again, amazing writing! It was a long time between parts ten and eleven, but your writing has stayed just as great!

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:Amazing! As of right now, this and part ten are my favorite Grazodocentric chapters in OEE.

1. How reliant are the Syndicate's day to day operations on Grazod himself?

2. I said "are" and not "were" because I assume Eli is supposed to become the leader of the Syndicate now. Is that true? Will he take Augusto Grazod's place?

3. Was Grazod killed by the handgun Keith threw at him?

4. I know you probably won't be able to answer this, but what will happen to Travis?

5. Keith's not dead, right? OEE takes place before the main timeline and I don't expect you'd do something so major (and so likely to create an RP between TLU, Naz, and CS's leadership).

6. Again, amazing writing! It was a long time between parts ten and eleven, but your writing has stayed just as great!

1. Pretty reliant. It functions like a large mafia. To answer what I think you're getting at (and kind of 2 as well), the fallout of Grazod's death will be major. The next chapter(s) will address it.

3. It's intentionally unclear, but based on Travis's reaction to Grazod's being shot (considering he was the one who caught the gun Keith threw) you can assume that the answer is no.

4. He played the double agent role well, didn't he? You'll have to wait and see.

5. You'll see...

6. Thank you, thank you! I always appreciate the praise, but you really don't have to do it every time!

While you were gone, I also made this lovely chart:

Democratic Party

Progressive Party

Equality Alliance

Populist Party

National Front


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Centrism
• Neoliberalism
• Social libertarianism
• Fiscal conservatism
• Regionalism
Founded


2051
Leadership


President Lainey Johannsen
Senate M.L. Hazel Grant

Frontrunner


Senate M.L. Hazel Grant

Motto


"Freedom, Justice, Democracy"


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Progressivism
• Ecologism
• Social liberalism
• Democratic socialism
• Regionalism
Founded


2052
Leadership


Director Jaime Soares
Senator Alessandra Elhem

Frontrunner


Senator Alessandra Elhem

Motto


"Forever the Future"


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Left-wing populism
• Ecologism
• Social egalitarianism
• Economic socialism
• Pacifism
Founded


2054
Leadership


Chairwoman Elise Engelhart
Senator Blaise Reilly

Frontrunner


Senator Blaise Reilly

Motto


"All as One"


Caucus


Liberty
Ideologies


• Libertarianism
• Social conservatism
• Fiscal conservatism
• Traditionalism
• Religiousness
Founded


2051
Leadership


Chairman Brian Henderson
Senator Veronica Walker

Frontrunner


Governor Ellis Terrence

Motto


"For the People"


Caucus


Liberty
Ideologies


• Right-wing populism
• Neoconservatism
• Alt-rightism
• Hypernationalism
• Antiregionalism
Founded


2055
Leadership


Director Kevin Zimmerman
Senate Speaker Loren Ross
Frontrunner


Senate Speaker Loren Ross

Motto


"Crimtonian Spectre First"
Read factbook

Nazbeth wrote:While you were gone, I also made this lovely chart:

Democratic Party

Progressive Party

Equality Alliance

Populist Party

National Front


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Centrism
• Neoliberalism
• Social libertarianism
• Fiscal conservatism
• Regionalism
Founded


2051
Leadership


President Lainey Johannsen
Senate M.L. Hazel Grant

Frontrunner


Senate M.L. Hazel Grant

Motto


"Freedom, Justice, Democracy"


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Progressivism
• Ecologism
• Social liberalism
• Democratic socialism
• Regionalism
Founded


2052
Leadership


Director Jaime Soares
Senator Alessandra Elhem

Frontrunner


Senator Alessandra Elhem

Motto


"Forever the Future"


Caucus


New Left
Ideologies


• Left-wing populism
• Ecologism
• Social egalitarianism
• Economic socialism
• Pacifism
Founded


2054
Leadership


Chairwoman Elise Engelhart
Senator Blaise Reilly

Frontrunner


Senator Blaise Reilly

Motto


"All as One"


Caucus


Liberty
Ideologies


• Libertarianism
• Social conservatism
• Fiscal conservatism
• Traditionalism
• Religiousness
Founded


2051
Leadership


Chairman Brian Henderson
Senator Veronica Walker

Frontrunner


Governor Ellis Terrence

Motto


"For the People"


Caucus


Liberty
Ideologies


• Right-wing populism
• Neoconservatism
• Alt-rightism
• Hypernationalism
• Antiregionalism
Founded


2055
Leadership


Director Kevin Zimmerman
Senate Speaker Loren Ross
Frontrunner


Senate Speaker Loren Ross

Motto


"Crimtonian Spectre First"
Read factbook

Beautiful.

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:Beautiful.

I know. Favorite logo and motto?

Nazbeth wrote:I know. Favorite logo and motto?

The logos are all amazing (the Front's shouldn't have words — but I know that was intentional); the Progressive logo and motto are my favorites.

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:The logos are all amazing (the Front's shouldn't have words — but I know that was intentional); the Progressive logo and motto are my favorites.

Haha. I knew that would annoy you. Not to mention that it's Sans Serif.

Of course you do. Anything about going into the future ("forever advancing") is guaranteed for you to like.

I'm glad you like the logos! I made them on Pixelmator, which is an infinitely superior tool to the imbecilic design software.

Also, CS seems to really like its fists.

Nazbeth wrote:Haha. I knew that would annoy you. Not to mention that it's Sans Serif.

Of course you do. Anything about going into the future ("forever advancing") is guaranteed for you to like.

I'm glad you like the logos! I made them on Pixelmator, which is an infinitely superior tool to the imbecilic design software.

When will you forgive Adobe Illustrator for having a UI you dislike?

Nazbeth wrote:Also, CS seems to really like its fists.

They got inspiration from General Onindaga punching through Meep Shields.

Nazbeth

Rahul Raghuraman wrote:When will you forgive Adobe Illustrator for having a UI you dislike?
They got inspiration from General Onindaga punching through Meep Shields.

1. Never. How hard is it to design a UI that does its job??

2. Obviously.

I gtg. I look forward to talking more about your idea for Taarius later today or tomorrow.

Nazbeth

Hey y'all, thanks for putting BLM in the FB entry. Can you sign this petition?

http://chng.it/HMQvGCBJHF

Thanks

Rahul Raghuraman and Nazbeth

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