Apocalypse Ascension: Rift Walkers

Kade awoke to a stillness that felt almost unnatural. His body, though battered from his previous encounters, felt more solid—his strength more refined. It wasn't just recovery; it was something deeper, a sense that the Resonance Energy within him had settled, integrating into his muscles and bones. Every breath felt sharper, his senses more attuned. He had slept like the dead, and yet, for the first time since the world fell apart, he didn't wake up feeling like he was drowning in exhaustion.

He stretched, rolling his shoulders as he sat up in the maintenance room. His bed still smelled faintly of old fabric and the lingering hint of something sweet. Julia must have been the one to straighten it up before he crashed last night. The thought of her taking the time to do that almost made him chuckle.

The sounds of the clubhouse reached him through the walls—clanging metal, shuffling feet, voices barking orders. He pulled on his shirt, grabbed his gear, and made his way downstairs.

The first thing he saw was Julia drilling the fighters.

They had only started training yesterday, but already, the group was improving. The survivors who had stepped up—Daniel, David, Jin, Miguel, Frank, Rachel, and even the teenager, Miles—were learning fast. Their strikes were more deliberate, their stances more stable. Julia was relentless, correcting them with precision, her movements fluid and sharp.

"Keep your balance!" she called, flicking her rapier through the air. "If you overextend, you die. If you hesitate, you die. If you get distracted—"

She lashed out, her blade tapping lightly against Miles' shoulder before he could react.

"—you die."

The kid scowled, rubbing the spot where she had hit him, but nodded, resetting his stance.

Kade leaned against the railing, watching for a moment before making his way toward the forge.

Inside, Griggs was a force of nature. The forge burned hot, filling the air with shimmering heatwaves. The old man was hammering away at a glowing piece of riftsteel, sweat dripping down his arms as he worked. There was an energy about him—something more than just focus.

"You're just in time," Griggs said without looking up. "Got something for you."

Kade raised an eyebrow. "My new mace?"

Griggs snorted. "Try masterpiece."

He stepped back, wiping his hands as he gestured toward the workbench.

Two weapons lay there.

One was unmistakably Kade's—a monstrous Morningstar, far heavier than his previous weapon, yet balanced with perfect precision. The head was brutal, jagged with reinforced riftsteel spikes that shimmered under the forge's light. The handle was wrapped in thick, reinforced leather, but what caught his attention was the gold inlay spiraling up toward the core embedded in the weapon's center.

Kade picked it up, testing its weight. It felt perfect. Deadly.

Griggs smirked. "Gold's a natural conductor, kid. Riftsteel's strong, but it doesn't channel energy as smoothly. Mixed a bit of gold and riftsteel into the crucible and made a new alloy, still don't have the perfect combination down but were using the alloy for the inlay now—should make it easier to channel your power through it, its also a softer metal but still very durable, so using it as a core is a great way to reduce its chances of shattering again. And, if you figure out how to control it, you might even be able to release energy on impact."

Kade swung the weapon, feeling the way it moved in his grip. It wasn't just strong—it was alive.

Then he turned to the second weapon—a rapier.

Julia stepped forward, her eyes locking onto it.

It was a thing of beauty. Sleek, elegant, deadly. The blade shimmered, almost reflective, with subtle gold filigree etched along its length. The hilt was designed for precision, the guard crafted to resemble interwoven strands of Resonance Energy.

But what stood out most was the core, embedded just beneath the guard, pulsing faintly.

Griggs folded his arms. "That core stabilizes the energy flow. Means you can channel resonance through the blade itself—cut through things you shouldn't be able to, maybe even mess with the energy inside whatever you hit."

Julia lifted the rapier, giving it a few practice swings. It moved like an extension of herself. For a brief moment, she smiled.

"It's perfect."

Kade chuckled, rolling his shoulders as he tested the weight of the Morningstar again. "Guess we owe the old man a thanks."

Griggs scoffed, crossing his arms. "Damn right you do. But don't start singing my praises yet. We're just getting started."

He gestured toward another table, where an unfamiliar setup was arranged. A small, enclosed container of riftsteel alloy sat at the center, wrapped meticulously with thick rubber insulation. Wires trailed from it, leading to an old power strip, a few tools, and a refrigerator—the same one behind the bar that had gone dead when the World Break had fried the power grid.

"I've been working with Elliot," Griggs explained, nodding toward the retired electrical engineer who stood nearby, rubbing the back of his head. "The old-timer actually knows his shit."

Elliot grumbled. "Try genius, you glorified hammer-swinger."

Griggs ignored him. "We used the gold-alloy inlay as a conductor and placed a Resonance Core inside the riftsteel casing. Wrapped the whole thing in rubber to contain any wild energy fluctuations. Then we ran a cable through, testing small circuits first."

Kade's brow furrowed as he stepped closer. "And it worked?"

Elliot snorted. "You're damn right it worked."

Griggs grinned. "Watch this."

With a flick of a switch, the low hum of electricity filled the air. The fridge sputtered to life, its small interior light flickering before stabilizing. Cool air hissed from its vents, filling the room with the faint, sterile scent of refrigerant.

Kade let out a low whistle. "Holy shit."

"And that's not even the best part," Griggs continued. "We hooked it up to the generator, cut the fuel, and let the core run the whole clubhouse." He tapped the metal casing with a knuckle. "One low-tier core kept the lights on for five hours. Just one. And we haven't even tested this with a Tier 2 core yet."

Kade absorbed the information, his grip tightening around the handle of his weapon. This changed everything. If they could refine this process, they wouldn't just survive—they could start reclaiming pieces of the old world.

But then, Elliot's expression darkened. "There's more," he muttered, fiddling with the knobs of an old radio unit set up beside them. "Not every radio got fried in the World Break. It depends on their shielding, their power source, and the strength of the transmission."

Griggs gestured toward the radio. "With the core-powered battery, we managed to get this thing running. We weren't expecting much, maybe just static, but then we picked something up."

Kade narrowed his eyes. "A signal?"

Elliot nodded gravely. "And not just any signal—it's coming from the financial district."

A crackling voice burst through the old speakers, warped and distorted but unmistakably human.

"...Please… if anyone can hear this… we're trapped… we have vital information… Forty survivors… we need assistance…"

The room fell silent.

"Its popped up about thirty minutes ago, we were deliberating if we would wake you... it could be dangerous, definitely dangerous, they could be gone by now, dead, overrun, or it could be a trap!"

Kade had been so busy fighting off monsters and trying to survive, he had forgotten how savage the world could be even before all this. The thought of it being a trap didn't cross his mind initially. 

Kade exhaled slowly, his mind racing. They weren't the only ones left out here. There were others. And they needed help.

"Well," Kade muttered, gripping his Morningstar, "looks like we've got our next move. Trap or not, this takes urgency. We don't know how many people are left out there, and if they have vital information, that's what we need most right now."

The room fell into a tense silence, everyone absorbing the weight of his words. Uncertainty loomed over them like a thick fog, but Kade could see it—the spark of determination in their eyes. It wasn't just about survival anymore. It was about finding answers.

After a long pause, Elliot cleared his throat and spoke up. "If I may, we need more tools, electronics, and materials for making batteries. I have an idea on how to make... well, a laser of sorts."

The room collectively snapped their heads toward him.

"What do you mean, a laser?" Griggs bellowed, crossing his arms with a skeptical grin. "We aren't living in some sci-fi novel. How the hell are you going to make a damn laser?"

Elliot adjusted his glasses, his fingers drumming against the table as his mind raced. "That's exactly the point, old man. It's not from this world."

That got their attention.

Elliot hesitated for a moment, visibly wrestling with something in his mind before exhaling sharply. "Alright, screw it. This was classified information, but seeing as the world has already ended, I doubt the government's coming after me anytime soon."

He straightened, his voice steady despite the growing tension. "I used to work for a certain... government agency out west, near Silicon Valley. Led an R&D team focused on future warfare. We worked on all kinds of advanced weaponry, but lasers were our biggest project. Conceptually, they're simple—a concentrated projection of energy. The problem was, we never had the materials to handle the energy output needed to make them practical. Every attempt came across the same bottleneck: power. We couldn't find an efficient way to transport large amounts of energy without insane losses."

His voice grew more animated, his breath quickening with excitement. "But now? With Riftsteel, these Resonance Cores, and the very nature of Resonance Energy itself, I think... no, I know it's possible to make a functioning laser weapon. Something portable. Something devastating."

A stunned silence followed. The implications of what Elliot was suggesting were monumental. A Riftsteel-powered energy weapon—something that could cut through the mutants like butter.

Griggs finally let out a low whistle, shaking his head. "You're saying, with the right tools, you could make this thing work?"

Elliot nodded. "If we can get enough hardware from that radio station, yes. That place should have everything I need—high-powered transmitters, circuit components, and fabrication tools. If we pull this off, we won't just have a better defense... we'll have a game-changer."

That was it. The deciding factor. The urgency of the mission had just doubled.

Kade nodded, his decision made. "Then we don't have a choice. We're heading to that station."

Griggs let out a gruff chuckle, rubbing the back of his head. "Jesus. One day you're bringing me a bag of scrap, next day we're talking about building goddamn laser weapons. Hell of a world we're living in."

Kade smirked. "Yeah, well, if we're gonna survive it, we need every advantage we can get."

The vote was made. It was time to assemble the survivors and head out. Time was running out.