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paigesbasketball · 5 months ago

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Echos of The Fallen

Chapter 3: Crimson Heist Shadow the Hedgehog x Reader Warnings: A little firting but thats it

September 30th - 7:45 AM - G.U.N. Headquarters

The remnants of the explosion still hung in the air, the scent of charred metal and burnt rubber clinging to Shadow’s uniform as he stepped into the war room. The monitors on the walls flickered with the latest updates—feeds from the wreckage site, reports from analysts trying to piece together what little information they had. The entire building seemed to hum with tension, the weight of last night’s failure pressing down on everyone inside.

Rouge was already seated at the long metal table, idly examining her nails as she waited for him. Omega stood nearby, his mechanical frame motionless save for the occasional whir of servos adjusting his position. The moment Shadow entered, Rouge glanced up, arching a perfectly sculpted brow.

“Well, well,” she mused, tilting her head. “You look like hell.”

Shadow ignored her, dropping into the chair across from her and flicking open the latest intel file. “We lost her.” His voice was clipped, edged with irritation.

“No kidding.” Rouge smirked, leaning forward. “You let a woman get the best of you. Now that’s a first.”

Shadow’s crimson eyes narrowed. “She was ten steps ahead. The explosion was a diversion, and we took the bait.” His fingers drummed against the table, betraying his frustration. “She’s not just some rogue mercenary. She knows how we operate.”

Omega’s monotone voice rumbled to life. “RECOMMENDATION: TERMINATION OF TARGET UPON IDENTIFICATION.”

Rouge scoffed. “So dramatic. We don’t even know who she really is yet. ‘Danny’s wife’ doesn’t exactly lead us anywhere.”

Shadow turned the file toward her. “She’s connected to Cipher. That’s all we need to know.”

Rouge’s expression darkened slightly at the mention of the name. “So, Cipher’s making moves again. Last time he popped up, it took half of G.U.N.’s intelligence division to track down just one of his hideouts. If she’s working with him, she’s dangerous.”

“Obviously.” Shadow’s voice was tight. “The question is why. What does Cipher want with G.U.N.’s classified weapons project?”

Rouge shrugged, leaning back in her chair. “Power? Leverage? Or maybe he’s just bored. But something tells me your little rooftop admirer is more than just an errand girl.”

Shadow frowned. “What do you mean?”

Rouge’s smirk returned, playful and knowing. “She could’ve killed you last night, but she didn’t.”

Shadow remained silent, his jaw tightening. He had considered that already. The explosion had been designed to wound, to scatter forces, not to kill. If she had truly wanted him dead, she wouldn’t have left it to chance.

Omega interrupted the thought. “QUERY: NEXT COURSE OF ACTION?”

Shadow pushed the file toward the center of the table. “We find her. We stop her. No more games.”

September 30th - 10:12 PM - Underground Safehouse

The glow of multiple monitors bathed the dimly lit room in a soft blue hue, casting flickering shadows against the exposed concrete walls. The safehouse was tucked beneath the remnants of an abandoned subway station, far from prying eyes.

I sat in front of the main screen, scanning through lines of encrypted data as Zero worked his magic on the G.U.N. servers. The room was filled with the soft clacking of keys, the occasional beeping of software processes running in the background. Scar stood near the entrance, arms crossed, her gaze flicking between me and the screens.

“G.U.N. is scrambling,” Zero announced, his fingers flying across the keyboard. “They’ve got teams sweeping the city, but they’re running in circles.”

Scar smirked. “Shadow must be pissed.”

I didn’t react, my eyes still focused on the data. “Let him be. It won’t change anything.”

Zero’s hands stilled for a moment, his brow furrowing. “Hold up... This is new.”

I leaned forward. “What?”

He pulled up a series of documents, most of them redacted, but one detail stood out. A shipment manifest. Destination: G.U.N. Research Facility - Grid Sector Seven. Contents: Prototype X-09.

Scar whistled lowly. “Well, that sounds interesting.”

I exhaled slowly, my mind racing. “That’s what Carson was talking about.”

Zero nodded. “Whatever X-09 is, they’re keeping it locked down tight. I can't seem to find information on it. If G.U.N. wants it then that just makes it automatically bad.”

I tapped my fingers against my arm, calculating the next steps. “Then we move first. we break into the G.U.N. bank and steal some of their assets so they will be unable to fund this project anymore"

Scar raised an eyebrow. “You sure about that? If we intercept, we’ll be putting ourselves directly in Shadow’s path.”

A part of me hesitated, just for a fraction of a second. Then I pushed the thought aside. “Let him come. this time he won't know I know his turf.”

Zero cracked his knuckles, already preparing the next phase of the operation. “Then let’s get to work.”

Viper stood up, stretching her arms. "Alright, I’m grabbing food. Try not to blow anything up while I’m gone."

She slammed the door behind her, making the walls shake slightly. Nova immediately huffed, turning toward the door with an irritated glare. "Can you not? I’m working on an experiment!"

Viper’s voice called from the hallway, "Oh, I’m sorry, Princess! Didn’t mean to disrupt your evil genius time."

Nova scoffed. "At least I actually use my brain."

I rolled my eyes, shaking my head. "Guys, let’s be real. Unless you’re both on your period, let’s not bicker like this."

Nova shot me a glare, and Viper's laughter echoed from down the hall. "You wish, sweetheart!"

I smirked but turned back to the screens, my fingers hovering over the keyboard. The banter was familiar, almost comforting, but the weight of our situation pressed heavy on my mind. G.U.N. was moving fast, and we didn’t have time to waste.

Zero leaned back in his chair, exhaling sharply. "You really think we can pull this off?"

I didn’t answer right away, my eyes scanning over the shipment details. The security routes, the escort patterns—it was tight, but not impenetrable.

"We don’t have a choice," I finally said. "I do not trust them to have that weapon"

Scar crossed her arms, her gaze sharp. "And what happens when Shadow shows up?"

A beat of silence filled the room. That was the real problem. Shadow wasn’t like the grunts G.U.N. usually sent after us. He didn’t make mistakes. He didn’t let people slip through his fingers twice.

I exhaled. "Then we adapt."

The tension settled in the air, thick and unspoken. This wasn’t just another job—this was a battle waiting to happen.

The door creaked open again, and Viper strolled back in, holding a bag of takeout. "Alright, nerds, eat up. If we’re gonna risk our lives in forty-eight hours, you might as well not do it on an empty stomach."

Nova snatched the bag from her hands. "Finally, you’re useful for something."

Viper smirked. "Careful, Princess. Keep talking like that, and I might ‘accidentally’ forget your order next time."

As they bickered, I stared at the screens, the blueprint of the G.U.N. transport route flashing in front of me. This was it. The moment we made our move, there was no turning back.

I clenched my jaw, determination settling in.

We had forty-eight hours to pull off the impossible.

And failure wasn’t an option.

1:45 AM – G.U.N. Financial Holdings, Downtown

Everything had been going smoothly—too smoothly. Scar and I had just finished loading the last of the stolen assets into our bags when a sharp, high-pitched beep cut through the silence.

"Tell me that wasn’t you," Scar muttered.

I looked down at my wrist device, where a flashing red warning glowed across the screen. Silent alarm triggered.

"Shit," I hissed. "We need to move—now."

We bolted for the exit, weaving through the dimly lit corridors of the underground vault. But as we reached the stairwell, the sound of approaching footsteps echoed through the space. Heavy. Coordinated. Armed.

Scar gritted her teeth. "They’re fast."

"They’re G.U.N.," I shot back. "Of course they are."

We reached the main hall just as the security doors slammed shut behind us. A single figure stepped through the haze of flashing red lights. Black and red. Sharp crimson eyes locked onto mine.

Shadow.

Behind him, his team—Rouge and Omega—stood ready, blocking the only other exit.

"You really thought you could just waltz in and take what you wanted?" Shadow’s voice was low, measured, but there was an edge of irritation in it. "You’re getting sloppy."

Scar and I exchanged glances before moving in opposite directions. Shadow’s eyes flicked between us, assessing. Calculating.

"Take them," he ordered.

Rouge lunged for Scar while Omega charged forward, aiming straight for me. I dodged, ducking behind a pillar as his massive arm smashed through it like it was paper.

As Omega charged toward me, I tried to dodge his powerful swing again, but this time I had a better idea.

"Geez, Omega, you ever think about toning it down?" I taunted, hoping to get under his circuits. He growled in response, tightening his grip.

"NEGATIVE," Omega boomed, his voice full of pure mechanical rage. "FULL DESTRUCTION MODE ENGAGED."

I couldn’t avoid his next hit in time, so I took a deep breath, waiting for the right moment. Omega swung harder, and this time, his fist collided with a wall near Rouge, sending debris flying everywhere.

A vulnerable moment.

Before he could adjust, I whipped out a small device from my belt. With a quick motion, I slapped it onto Omega's back. The device activated with a small electric buzz, sending a surge of energy into his system, causing his circuits to short-circuit and his movements to freeze.

Omega's massive frame shuddered, and his body froze in place. The once-booming voice became erratic. "ERROR. SYSTEM MALFUNCTION..."

I gave a sly grin. "Guess I’ll have to remind you how to play nice."

I turned just in time to see Shadow coming for me. Fast. I barely managed to block his first strike, but the sheer force sent me skidding back. He was relentless, each blow more precise than the last.

He feinted left before sweeping my legs out from under me. Before I could react, I was flat on my back, Shadow pinning me down, one knee pressing into my ribs, his hand gripping my wrist.

I struggled, but he didn’t budge. "Give it up," he said. "You’re done."

My mind raced. I needed a distraction. Something to throw him off—just for a second.

I locked eyes with him, smirking. "You gonna kiss me or something, handsome?"

Shadow’s expression flickered. Just for a second. A flash of confusion.

That was all I needed.

I drove my knee into his stomach, making him grunt in surprise. Using the momentum, I twisted us around, grabbing a pair of cuffs from my belt. Before he could recover, I snapped them around his wrist and slammed the other end to a reinforced pipe. The cuffs magnetized instantly, locking him in place.

His eyes widened slightly as he tested the restraints.

I grinned. "Gotta say, I didn’t expect you to be so easy to trap."

Shadow glared at me, but there was the faintest trace of pink on his face.

Scar broke free from Rouge’s grip, sprinting toward me. "We need to go!"

I pulled a smoke bomb from my belt, slamming it against the ground. Thick clouds engulfed the room, obscuring everything.

"See you around, handsome," I teased, before grabbing Scar’s wrist and making a break for the exit.

We darted through the emergency hatch we had scoped out earlier, leaving chaos in our wake. The sound of Shadow yanking at the cuffs and Omega’s booming voice echoed behind us, but we were already gone, disappearing into the night.

2:30 AM – Warehouse Hideout

We crashed through the doors, breathless, adrenaline still surging through our veins.

Zero looked up from his laptop. "I take it things didn’t go as planned?"

Scar dropped her bag onto the table, grinning. "Oh, it went great. Got the goods, fought Shadow, and someone got a little flirty mid-fight."

I rolled my eyes, slumping into a chair. "It was a tactical distraction."

Scar snorted. "Sure it was."

Viper raised an eyebrow. "Wait—you flirted with Shadow?"

Nova nearly choked on her drink. "Hold on, back up. Shadow the Hedgehog?"

I groaned, burying my face in my hands. "I’m going to regret this later."

Scar smirked, kicking her feet up onto the table. "Maybe. But for now? Totally worth it."

3:00 AM – G.U.N. Financial Holdings, Downtown

Shadow's POV

The smoke was thick, the echoes of their escape still ringing in my ears. I yanked futilely at the cuffs, feeling the cold metal dig into my wrist. They were designed to hold even the strongest, and for once, it seemed they might have me. But I didn’t have time to waste on my restraints. I had a bigger problem on my hands.

Omega was down, his system glitching from whatever trick that woman had pulled on him. He was muttering about malfunctions as Rouge approached me, her footsteps sharp and mocking.

“Well, that was quite the show, Shadow,” she said, her voice dripping with amusement.

I narrowed my eyes at her, trying to ignore the frustration bubbling inside me. “Save it, Rouge.”

She leaned in closer, her lips curling into a playful smirk. “Not so tough when you're distracted, huh? You got all flustered with her little stunt. Was that... flirtation? You know, I’ve seen you fight harder. Looks like someone’s got a soft spot.”

I could feel my pulse spike, irritation mixing with something I couldn’t quite place. "This isn't the time for your games."

Rouge raised an eyebrow, clearly enjoying my discomfort. "Oh, I’m not joking. You practically let her tie you up. Seems like you let your guard down for something more than just the mission."

I grit my teeth, pushing back the surge of heat in my chest. “She got lucky. That’s all.”

But Rouge wasn’t done. “Sure, sure. I mean, she’s pretty good, I’ll give her that. Had to be quick thinking to get you like that.” Her eyes twinkled as she surveyed the room, her gaze shifting from me to Omega’s malfunctioning state. "But the real question is—how did she even know how to get past all the security systems? Couldn’t have been just luck."

A thought clicked into place, something I hadn’t fully processed in the heat of the moment. The woman’s movements, the way she seemed to be one step ahead, even the tech on her person—it all seemed too familiar. My mind whirred.

“Wait...” I muttered, looking toward Rouge. “She... she knew too much about our systems. She moved like someone who’d been trained to break into places like this.”

Rouge leaned against a wall, watching me. “You think she was G.U.N. trained?” she asked, raising an eyebrow, clearly amused.

“Impossible,” I muttered under my breath, but the more I thought about it, the more it made sense. Her style, her tactics—everything about her reeked of G.U.N. precision, just twisted in a way I hadn’t expected.

“I don’t know, Shadow,” Rouge said, her voice softer now, more serious. “Maybe we should start asking the right questions. Why would someone like her target a G.U.N. facility... and why are we just now seeing her face?”

I clenched my fists, the truth dawning on me. “We’re missing something. Whoever she is, she’s connected to G.U.N. in ways we don’t understand yet.”

Rouge gave me a knowing look, her smirk fading into something more thoughtful. “You think this is the beginning of something bigger?”

I nodded, my gaze shifting back to where Scar and the woman had vanished. “It’s more than just a heist. It’s personal now.”

Guys be honest im trying to find a good length for the chapters i believe this is fine but please let me know

- Caty

#shadow the hedgehog #shadow x reader #sonic 3 #catytuesdays #shadow

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qingyingpocketlirary · 1 month ago

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Into The Spider's Web; Part 2.

Early Saturday morning, the bell above Mrs. Fenshi’s door chimed to announce the arrival of a customer. “Morning Mrs. Fenshi.”

“Good morning Syntax, an all day ticket?” She asked with a smile, noticing his laptop bag seems fuller than usual. He was planning to spend the whole day working on something important, and judging by the slightly flushed expression, she knew he hadn’t eaten breakfast yet.

“And a pot of mild tea please,” he nodded.

“Go on in and get settled dear, I’ll have Lin bring you the tea.” The cat demoness smiled, waving him towards the closed room where the cats were.

“Thank you.” Syntax smiled and headed in.

A few minutes later, Lin entered with a tray, carrying the requested pot of tea and a plate of toasted sandwiches, shaped like cat faces, to find Princess, the tripod ginger cat sitting on Syntax’s table, enjoying head scratches as Syntax checked his emails.

“Mrs. Fenshi insisted you needed food as well as tea, and I’m not about to argue with her.” Lin said when Syntax blinked at the added food order.

“Thank her for me?” Syntax asked and offered her a small disk. “The upgrades and virus software you asked for.”

“Thank you. And if you have time tonight, we need to speak again.” She smiled and tucked the disk into her pocket for later.

“Not tonight.” Syntax said, shaking his head. “I’m visiting Nana, tomorrow is my free day.”

“Tomorrow then. Enjoy your day with the cats.” Lin smiled.

“I will,” Syntax nodded with a smile as the horn of the tuk-tuk sounded outside as MK drove by, due to it being market week, it was likely the boy had no deliveries for the day, as the streets would be blocked off for market stalls until the evening.

The morning went by slowly, spent designing a layout and working on a few smaller project designs for his personal use, all while taking breaks to pet and fuss over the cats and kittens that came over and demanded his attention, which he happily gave. By the afternoon, Lin had joined him with her own laptop and was busy working away while brother brothers spent their lunch break with the cats and kittens, enjoying the chance to cuddle and play with the cats before getting back to work.

With his work done, Syntax set his laptop and tablet aside to instead focus on the cats, gently petting each one and playing with the toys with them while enjoying a few snacks and good tea for the rest of the day, though he did notice that while he seemed relaxed and calm, Lin had become tense and frustrated.

“Everything ok, Lin?” he asked.

“It will be, when I finally figure out how to find this damned part for a client.” Lin said, “Why are computer motherboard parts so hard to find?”

“Because they are all very different and never manufactured to spec unless you get them on commission.” Syntax said, “What are you after, I might be able to help?”

Lin pushed him a yellow post-it note with the information details and he looked at it for a moment. It was clear whoever this client was wanted the very best and long lasting system, but that meant that they’d need to buy parts from all across China for the best of the best equipment. “Hm, have you tried looking at the Northern Market?”

“Does the north do shipments on fast track?” Lin asked and Syntax thought for a moment.

“Last order I put in took twenty nine days to deliver. Regular shipments can be anywhere from four to six months.” He said. “But that was on a computer harddrive, not motherboard parts.” He admitted.

“That fast?” Lin asked. “The fastest I find is forty days with Northern Parts and services and it costs a miniature fortune.”

“Never get anything through them, Lin. They’re a con wrapped up in a corporate packaging with pretty bows.” Syntax said as he rebooted his laptop and typed in a few things before showing her the site he used for his parts.

“Northern Tech, Systems and Parts?” Lin asked, looking at the site and reading their profile.

“Best place in all the North to buy anything related to computers, systems, technology and the like. All of my stuff has at least one replacement part from them.” Syntax nodded, “I think the only thing I have that doesn’t have their parts in it is my phone, because it’s the only thing not compatible with their tech.”

“Why can’t I find them when I search for them?” Lin asked.

“What browser are you using?” He questioned.

“Megacity Pro Search.” Lin answered. The same browser Syntax and most of the city used simply because it was world wide.

“Go into the settings and make sure the regional lock and switch the shopping regions to internasional.” Syntax said. “The whole browser got a system wide refresh last week, so some settings are back to default.”

Lin clicked a few things and retyped her search, then smiled. “Have I mentioned lately that you are one of my favourite people?”

“Only everytime your brothers break stuff.” Syntax chuckled. “Speaking of your brothers, are they allowed their stuff back?”

“If they say please.” Lin nodded.

“Got it.” He nodded and went back to playing with the cats, both of them unaware that their interaction had been witnessed by someone else, through the eyes of a small drone hidden away in the upper most corner of the ceiling.

“He doesn’t look like much.” Huntsman said, watching the live feed from the drone.

“Neither does the Monkie Boy at first glance.” Goliath remarked, “he looks small and easy to beat, yet he took down the Bull prince and Demon Bull King by himself.”

Huntsman gave a huff but said nothing more on the matter, instead focusing on what Lin was doing. Their Queen had searched the few precious scrolls and books they’d managed to salvage from the ruins of their home, and found the means to harvest the energy from other demons to infuse with their drones, making them bigger, stronger and able to carry her venom rather than Huntsman or Goliath’s.

It would take a lot of work, and a lot of careful study to manage what they needed, but if they could master that delicate balance of magic and technology, the Spider Clan could rise up and remind the world they were still a force to be reckoned with and finally make the demands to have their home’s ruination looked into properly.

But that would come later, right now they needed to make sure they had the means to take those steps and the best way to do that was to make sure that Lin was making good on her task. And if that meant keeping an eye on her through a spy drone, well, Lin could forgive them their caution. She’d done well so far, finding the very best parts and equipment for them and using Yin and Jin to run messages between herself at them throughout the night and most of the morning, but for the last six hours, she’d been stuck trying to find the motherboard parts.

It seemed that this man was something of a techy himself, both from what they’d seen from the drone’s live feed and had given Lin a means to locate the parts she needed sooner. A point in his favour, along with the fact that the felines seemed to like him and had no issues climbing on and over the man as if he were just another part of the furniture.

“Syntax?”

“Yes Mrs. Fenshi?”

“I’m sorry to bother you dear, but one of the cat’s knocked it over.”

They watched as the feline demoness brought over a card reader device from her countertop, it looked undamaged, but the screen was unfocused and warped. Syntax looked at it, hooking it up to his laptop with a spare cable and checking something for a few minutes.

“Well, good news is it’s fixable, bad news is, it’ll take about a half an hour to fix. Can you manage without it for about that long?” The man asked.

“I can, but are you sure you can fix it?” The demoness asked.

Syntax nodded. “It's the older model, so it’s an easy fix. I’ll just need an order of chunky wedges and a toasted kitty burger afterwards.” He said, “And if you can, try and keep anyone from bothering me for that time?”

“Of course dear. Just make sure you don’t overdo it.” the cat demoness pleaded.

“I won’t.” Syntax nodded. “Lin?”

“I’m busy working, I have no idea what you are doing.” Lin said. “We’ll talk about business when we talk tomorrow.”

“Thank you.” Syntax bid and adjusted his laptop so it looked like he was working on it rather than the card reader, smiling as one of the cats jumped up and loafed on the edge of the table, blocking any view of his hands should anyone come inside.

The drone’s placement allowed them to see what was happening, and what they saw shocked them.

The man pulled out two large power banks from his bag and set them in his lap, then, with a deep breath to focus himself, he put his hands over the device for a moment before a greenish seal formed under the device, casting a strange glow over his fingers as he set to work.

“Magic?” Goliath asked.

“Technological Magic.” Huntsman corrected, watching the human slowly pull the device apart and seamlessly set to work not using his hands and tools, but magic, a type that was very rare outside of the northern region, so rare in fact it was considered a specialty.

Slowly, using his fingers like tools, Syntax pushed and pulled the tiny device’s insides apart, gradually rebuilding it while carefully replacing the damaged parts with magic replacements, blending the elements to form the needed intricate parts and carefully weaving modern technology with ancient magic as if it were a natural mixture. It was a slow process, it had to be, if the man rushed this and made even the smallest mistake, it could backfire horribly, but it seemed that Syntax was well trained in his magic and well versed in this method of repairing things, slowly taking time to check and recheck his work until he was sure of its success before, after twenty seven minutes, he let the device weave itself back together and sagged a little in his seat.

The cat that was loafed beside him meowed and reached out with a paw, bapping his nose.

“I’m alright, I’m alright, you little fluff ball.” Syntax assured, reaching up to pet the cat.

“Need me to get that order for you?” Lin asked him.

“Nah, just… need a minute.” He assured her with a soft huff.

If this was the man Lin was planning to ask help on their behalf, not only would it be a huge help in their technological needs, but also mean that the need to order so many parts would be vastly reduced. They continued to watch the scene, watching as Mrs. Fenshi brought in the requested order, and how after eating Syntax seemed to be back to his ‘normal’ self from what they’d seen before of him playing with the cats and working on his own personal projects.

Until his watch gave a sharp ping sound and he packed up his laptop and tablet, fussed the cats one last time before leaving the Cat Cafe wave a wave to Mrs. Fenshi as he went.

“Should we follow him?” Goliath asked.

“No. Not until we know if he is the one Lin is planning to ask to help us. But we will be telling Our Queen about him regardless.” Huntsman assured. Someone with this kind of power would not only be a valuable friend, but also a powerful ally.

“You had an encounter with the Spider Queen?” Monkey King repeated as MK sat with his back against a rock, trying to stay calm as the little monkeys combed through his hair and picked at his clothes in an attempt to try and calm his still pounding heart.

“She snatched my Dad and Pa from the market pretending to be a vegetable vendor. I thought I could handle it but- I guess I still need to work on internalizing the panic and fear in the moment and having the breakdown later… I’m just not good with spiders.” MK admitted with a slight shudder.

“You’re an arachnophobe?” Monkey King questioned, sitting beside his young successor. “I would never have guessed.”

“It's a childhood trauma.” MK admitted, carefully steadying a smaller monkey in his lap. “It's also the biggest reason Dad and Pa had me homeschooled, and if not for all the therapy I had as a kid, I don’t think we’d be having this conversation right now. I’d be curled up in my bed still, trying not to have a mental breakdown.”

“What happened, if I may ask?” The Monkey King asked, offering the boy a slice of an apple.

“I’m not too sure on the whole details, but I remember one day in school I was grabbed from behind, tied up with webbing by one of the Silkworm kids and thrown into a closet-like space as an ‘offering’ to the Spider Ghost that haunted the School. It wasn’t real and I know that now, but when you’re five years old, and knew to the school, and how cruel kids can be you don’t think about that when you’re struggling to get out of webbing in a small space where there are lots of spiderwebs and little spiders.” MK explained, pausing his story to eat the apple slice he’d been offered. “What I didn’t know at the time and didn’t learn until a few years later was that it was all premeditated by a group of slightly older boys in the school who didn’t like me.”

“Why didn’t they like you?” Monkey King questioned, sharing the rest of the apple slices with the monkeys, youngest to eldest.

“I was friends with a lot of the girls in glass, mostly because I didn’t mind trading my cookie for a fruit snack or my juice carton for a milk one instead. And I also did really well in my classes, so they may have hated me for that.” He admitted, and smiled when the littlest monkey decided the best place to be at that very moment was sat up on his shoulder. “What I also didn’t know was that locking me in the closet wasn’t the only thing they had in mind for me.”

“I’m almost worried to ask. If you're still this worked up over the Spider Queen it must have been bad.” the Monkey King said, chuckling at the little monkey’s behaviour. It was good to see the children were learning to trust MK, and that the boy had no problem letting the children climb and ride around on his shoulders, as long as they didn’t fight with each other while on his shoulders or head.

“It doesn’t seem so bad now that I’m older, but being only five years old at the time and still kinda new to the whole social thing, I didn’t understand what was happening. While I was locked in that little space with no windows or any way out, tied up and unable to move, one of the boys used his magic, some kind of illusionary type from what my dad told me later, and made the image of a giant spider appear in the room, to further sell the idea I was gonna be eaten. I remember I screamed, but then I blacked out and when I woke up, I was in the hospital with Pa at my bedside and Dad talking to a lawyer.”

“Stars above and soil below, what did they do to you?” The Monkey King asked.

“I have no idea. I wasn’t hurt, just unconscious. According to Pa, the school cameras showed a really bright flash of light from down the hallway and then when everything came back into focus, all the boys were laying on the floor, screaming and frantically trying to get away from something the cameras couldn't see and then the teachers came and unlocked the closet to find me passed out and unresponsive so they called in the emergency services and it was a whole big investigation into the matter.” MK explained smiling when the mother of the littlest monkey came over and gently tugged her now sleepy cub from their chosen nest and set about grooming them. “They tried to talk my dad into letting me stay in school, even offered to let me go through their whole system for free, from current year to my end of education in their collage program, but dad and pa said no and since then I was homeschooled, the school had to pay for my enrollment in online classes and the boys who did it had to go to disciplinary schools while their parents paid out to cover my medical bills, and my therapy.”

“Did it help?” Monkey King questioned.

“Kind of.” MK admitted, “I only really freak out when I see an actual spider now, rather then when I see webbing or hear someone mentioning spiders. But when I do see a spider I freeze up a little, and need to either get away from it, or usually my pa or dad catch it and take it outside.”

“Sorry to say bud, but that’s not gonna help in a fight against the Spider Queen and her Clanmates.” Monkey King said, “So, we’ll have to work on your response to seeing her again. But that can be a tomorrow thing.” He assured his successor with a smile. “For now, head home and make sure your pa and dad are ok, tomorrow, we’ll talk more about this and come up with some ways to help you face her, just in case she pops up again with Huntsman or Goliath.”

“Who?”

“Her clansmen. I’ll tell you about them tomorrow, for now, go home and get some rest.” Monkey King said again and gently ruffled the boy’s hair. “When you come back tomorrow, we’ll talk, train and then we’ll talk about the Spider Clan and their story.”

“Okay.” MK nodded, and after making sure none of the little monkey’s were clinging to him still, he shifted into his bird form, taking a moment to steady himself before taking off towards home.

By the evening, Lin had sent confirmations for all the parts she’d found, with only two of those items needing to be ordered through ‘special’ channels. And after a hot meal, Huntsman and Goliath informed the Queen of what they had seen through the eye of the drone that had followed Lin.

A human with such abilities was a blessing to any Clan, and the fact the Demon Bull Family hadn’t picked him up yet spoke of just how well this particular human had done to hide his abilities. And with good reason, such magic as his would not only cut costs down, but also greatly increase the life expectancy of any and all technological creations made by double or even triple the standard. The North had been the only safe place for them because it was a place of advanced technological progress, so to find out one such person lived in Megapolis and that Yin and Jin knew and kept their mouths shut about it was proof of a deeper understanding between them and him.

If this human could help them, the nagging worry about her mount mech’s age, the increasing chance of it failing as well as the technology they use now failing and falling apart would be all but remedies for the next few years. If this human helped them with their current project, it would allow the Queen and Huntsman to focus more of their own plans wholeheartedly.

But therein lay the catch to it all.

If.

It was clear that this human was aware of just how valuable his particular ability was, to the point he didn’t openly advertise it and those who did know also kept their mouths shut about it in respect to the man. Mrs. Fenshi had gone to the lengths of saying that the Cafe was being used for a very important conversation between Lin, the man and a third party to keep people out while the man was fixing her cardreader. Lin pretended not to know what the man was doing while she actively blocked any view of him from where she was sitting while the man made further efforts to hide what he was doing behind his laptop.

This man was aware of how sought out his skills were, and he either didn’t wish to be caught using them and drawing attention to himself or he had suffered already at the hands of someone’s cruelty and now protected himself by keeping his abilities to himself and a few trusted people. If the Queen was to earn his trust and aid to bring her and her clan into this man’s favour, their contact had to be handled with care, with delicacy and most importantly, with as much honesty as they could afford.

“Your orders, My Queen?” Huntsman asked as he and Goliath bowed before her.

“For now, I have none.” She admitted. “This man hides for a reason, I will not subject him to stalking as we were so long ago. No, this matter must be handled delicately. If Lin choses to introduce us, we shall speak to him more, if not, we shall seek a means to contact him ourselves.” She expressed and waved them both away.

“Yes My Queen.” They both responded before leaving her to think.

“A key?” Red Son repeated his mother’s statement.

“It seems this treasure your father found requires a specific key to unlock it. Our other methods have failed, and so we require a more modern approach.” His mother explained. “Can you do it?”

“I’d need to see the lock and do a few tests on it first, but yes, a Key should be relatively simple to make, assuming you don’t mind the expense of the metals needed to craft one?” he explained, already looking through his shelves and equipment to find the tools he’d need for the job.

“What would you need?” She questioned.

“Depends on the lock itself, if it’s as old as you say, then possibly something celestial or perhaps ancient demonic. I’d need to see the lock first to know that answer.” Red Son admitted and she waved him to follow her.

His Father was there already, and while clearly angered by the delay, said nothing as he set about inspecting the lock on the strange box he’d uncovered. A simple five point keyhole greeted him and after making a note of its size and measurements, he began using his tools to take measurements of the lock itself and the box itself, making notes as he worked until he went to insert what looked like a lockpick tool into the lock, to check the number of teeth the Key he’d be making needed-

And was suddenly flung backwards and ended up against the wall by the door.

“Are you hurt?” His Mother asked.

“No.” He assured, dusting himself off and moved back to the box. “What was- wait…”

“What is it?” His Father questioned.

“The lock changed,” he said.

“What?” His Mother asked and moved to see what he was talking about.

“It was a five point keyhole before, now it's a trigram pattern,” Red Son said showing her the notes she’s watched him make not a few moments ago. “Is this some kind of puzzle lock?”

“It can’t be, puzzle locks have riddles to uncover the key on the box itself. This one had no such riddle of inscriptions.” his Mother said, looking at the box again.

“Hm. just a moment.” Red Son bid and after picking a different tool from his coat he steady himself and began to check the keyhole again, sure enough as he brought the tool to check the teeth inlays again, the lock tried to push him back and right before his and his mothers’ eyes the lock shifted and changed yet again, becoming an entirely new shape. “It's a skeleton lock.”

“You’re sure?” His Mother asked.

“Yes, the measurements for the keyhole stay the same, but the shape and tooth patterns change every time something other than the correct key is brought close to the hole.” Red Son said. “Whatever is inside must be either very powerful or very rare.”

“Can you still craft a key?” His Father asked.

Red Son thought for a moment, “I could try crafting a skeleton key, but that would take more time than just a simple key.” He offered.

“How much longer?” His Father asked, his voice heavy with impatience and anger.

No point in lying and making him angrier. “Two weeks.”

“Two-”

“My Love.” His Mother soothed with gentleness. “Trust our son to know better than to waste time with things needlessly. It was after all, his efforts and brilliance that freed you from beneath that mountain. Do you doubt his skills in crafting something as simple as a key to unlock any door?”

“No.” His Father huffed. “Forgive me, I- I am not in my calmest mind.”

“Go and rest, my love, you are still adjusting.” His Mother bid and his Father left the room, hsi heavy steps shaking the ground.

His Mother looked at him as he gathered his tools again. “You are sure only two weeks?”

“I am, Mother. I’ll have the Bull Clones bring my meals to me so that you and father can have meal time to yourselves.” He said and went back to his lab.

She didn’t stop him, nor argue. Partly because she knew it would not help, and also because she could not blame her son for this distance. He’d spent years of his life dedicated to freeing his father, and now he was free, there was a disconnect between them all, hurts, grief, pains and mourning the time they’d missed made bonding hard.

Red Son didn’t know his place anymore, now that his father was back, he wanted to give his parents the time to be together without him, but he was also suddenly very aware of how little his and his father could bond, as despite everything, the time spent apart had robbed them both of the closeness they once shared. He wasn’t a small child any more, and his father was still suffering bouts of pain from being trapped in a limbo between death and living under that mountain for so long.

It would take a long time for them to begin walking on the path to being close as they once were again, but they were trying, navigating the ruined steps of relearning each other slowly and carefully one say at a time. And thankfully, they had the luxury of longevity, allowing them to take as much time as they needed to rebuild and reforge their bonds as a family.

They would heal and eventually, the Demon Bull Family would be united again.

Syntax sighed as he adjusted his glasses, ready to go over the oversized stack of papermail he’d retrieved from his post box that morning, just in case somewhere amongst the junk mail and pamphlets was something interesting.

Junk mail went into the shredder, newsletters were read over then also shredded if they were not of interest, the ones that were would be neatly folded and placed aside to be properly read over later, any important paperwork was set on his keyboard to be read, organized and sorted away properly.

That was usually it, but it seemed this month, he’d somehow picked up a few extras. Handwritten letters, six of them closed in pastel pink envelopes and all with the same heavy perfume scent coming from them and all of which were quickly shredded and forgotten. The seventh letter may have been different, it was addressed to him and was in a simple white envelope, redirected from his Nana’s old apartment to him, but upon opening the letter, Syntax found that the words have been distorted and warped into an unreadable mess and thus, whatever had been written was unreadable and with no return address to write back to, it also went into the shredder.

If it had been truly important it would have come to him via an email or a phone call.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Part 2 of Into the Spider Web.

Here we have a look at how the Spider Clan learnt about Syntax's magic, a glimpse at the Demon Bull Family and my own personal thoughts on why MK is afraid of spiders.

< Part 1 Part 3 >

#lmk #lego monkie kid #lmk spider demons #lmk sun wukong #lmk huntsman #lmk spider queen #lmk syntax #lmk the spider's web #lmk Goliath #lmk Demon Bull Family #lmk mk #lmk qi xiaotian #lmk Lin #lmk Yin #lmk Jin #lmk monkie kid

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virtualgriffinnavigator · 21 days ago

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swathig · 2 years ago

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fetche · 18 days ago

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mariacallous · 1 year ago

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Shortly before noon on Aug. 19, 2023, a Russian cruise missile sliced past the golden onion domes and squat apartment blocks of the Chernihiv skyline in northern Ukraine. The Iskander-K missile slammed into its target: the city’s drama theater, which was hosting a meeting of drone manufacturers at the time of the attack. More than 140 people were injured and seven killed. The youngest, 6-year-old Sofia Golynska, had been playing in a nearby park.

Fragments of the missile recovered by the Ukrainian armed forces and analyzed by Ukrainian researchers found numerous components made by U.S. manufacturers in the missile’s onboard navigation system, which enabled it to reach its target with devastating precision. In December, Ukraine’s state anti-corruption agency released an online database of the thousands of foreign-made components recovered from Russian weapons so far.

Russia’s struggle to produce the advanced semiconductors, electrical components, and machine tools needed to fuel its defense industrial base predates the current war and has left it reliant on imports even amid its estrangement from the West. So when Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022, major manufacturing countries from North America, Europe, and East Asia swiftly imposed export controls on a broad swath of items deemed critical for the Russian arms industry.

Russia quickly became the world’s most sanctioned country: Some 16,000 people and companies were subject to a patchwork of international sanctions and export control orders imposed by a coalition of 39 countries. Export restrictions were painted with such a broad brush that sunglasses, contact lenses, and false teeth were also swept up in the prohibitions. Even items manufactured overseas by foreign companies are prohibited from being sold to Russia if they are made with U.S. tools or software, under a regulation known as the foreign direct product rule.

But as the war reaches its two-year anniversary, export controls have failed to stem the flow of advanced electronics and machinery making their way into Russia as new and convoluted supply chains have been forged through third countries such as Kazakhstan, Turkey, and the United Arab Emirates, which are not party to the export control efforts. An investigation by Nikkei Asia found a tenfold increase in the export of semiconductors from China and Hong Kong to Russia in the immediate aftermath of the war—the majority of them from U.S. manufacturers.

“Life finds a way,” said a senior U.S. intelligence official, quoting the movie Jurassic Park. The official spoke on background to discuss Russia’s evasion of export controls.

Some of the weapons and components analyzed by investigators were likely stockpiled before the war. But widely available Russian trade data reveals a brisk business in imports. More than $1 billion worth of advanced semiconductors from U.S. and European manufacturers made their way into the country last year, according to classified Russian customs service data obtained by Bloomberg. A recent report by the Kyiv School of Economics found that imports of components considered critical for the battlefield had dipped by just 10 percent during the first 10 months of 2023, compared with prewar levels.

This has created a Kafkaesque scenario, the report notes, in which the Ukrainian army is doing battle with Western weapons against a Russian arsenal that also runs on Western components.

It is an obvious problem, well documented by numerous think tank and media reports, but one without an easy solution. Tracking illicit trade in items such as semiconductors is an exponentially greater challenge than monitoring shipments of conventional weapons. Around 1 trillion chips are produced every year. Found in credit cards, toasters, tanks, missile systems, and much, much more, they power the global economy as well as the Russian military. Cutting Russia out of the global supply chain for semiconductors is easier said than done.

“Both Russia and China, and basically all militaries, are using a large number of consumer electronic components in their systems,” said Chris Miller, the author of Chip War: The Fight for the World’s Most Critical Technology. “All of the world’s militaries rely on the same supply chain, which is the supply chain that primarily services consumer electronics.”

Export controls were once neatly tailored to keep specific items, such as nuclear technology, out of the hands of rogue states and terrorist groups. But as Washington vies for technological supremacy with Beijing while also seeking to contain Russia and Iran, it has increasingly used these trade restrictions to advance broader U.S. strategic objectives. For instance, the Biden administration has placed wide-ranging prohibitions on the export of advanced chips to China.

“At no point in history have export controls been more central to our collective security than right now,” Matthew Axelrod, the assistant secretary for export enforcement at the U.S. Commerce Department, said in a speech last September. U.S. National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan has described export controls as “a new strategic asset in the U.S. and allied toolkit.”

Russia’s ability to defy these restrictions doesn’t just have implications for the war in Ukraine. It also raises significant questions about the challenge ahead vis-à-vis China.

“The technological question becomes a key part of this story and whether or not we can restrict it from our adversaries,” said James Byrne, the director of open-source intelligence and analysis at the Royal United Services Institute, a British think tank.

In the Russian city of Izhevsk, home to the factory that manufactures Kalashnikov rifles, shopping malls are being converted into drone factories amid a surge in defense spending that has helped the country’s economy weather its Western estrangement. Arms manufacturers have been urged to work around the clock to feed the Russian war machine, while defense is set to account for one-third of the state budget this year.

“We have developed a concept to convert shopping centers—which, before the start of the SMO [special military operation], sold mainly the products of Western brands—to factories for assembly lines of types of domestic drones,” Alexander Zakharov, the chief designer of the Zala Aero drone company, said at a closed event in August 2022, according to the Russian business newspaper Vedomosti. “Special military operation” is what the Russian government calls its war on Ukraine. Zala Aero is a subsidiary of the Kalashnikov Concern that, along with Zakharov, was sanctioned by the United States last November.

Defense companies have bought at least three shopping malls in Izhevsk to be repurposed for the manufacture of drones, according to local media, including Lancet attack drones, which the British defense ministry described as one of the most effective new weapons that Russia introduced to the battlefield last year. Lancets, which cost about $35,000 to produce, wreaked havoc during Ukraine’s offensive last year and have been captured on video striking valuable Ukrainian tanks and parked MiG fighter jets.

Like a lot of Russia’s weapons systems, Lancets are filled with Western components. An analysis of images of the drones published in December by the Washington-based Institute for Science and International Security found that they contained several parts from U.S., Swiss, and Czech manufacturers, including image processing and analytical components that play a pivotal role in enabling the drones to reach their targets on the battlefield.

“The recurring appearance of these Western products in Russian drone systems shows a keen dependence on them for key capabilities in the drone systems,” the report notes. Lancets are not the only drones found to contain Western components. Almost all of the electronic components in the Iranian Shahed-136 drones, which Russia is now manufacturing with Iranian help to use in Ukraine, are of Western origin, a separate analysis published in November concluded.

Early in the war, the Royal United Services Institute analyzed 27 Russian military systems, including cruise missiles, electronic warfare complexes, and communications systems, and found that they contained at least 450 foreign-made components, revealing Russia’s dependence on imports.

One of the principal ways that Russia has evaded Western export controls has been through transshipment via third countries such as Turkey, the UAE, and neighboring states once part of the Soviet Union. Bloomberg reported last November that amid mounting Western pressure, the UAE had agreed to restrict the export of sensitive goods to Russia and that Turkey was considering a similar move. Kazakh officials announced a ban on the export of certain battlefield goods to Russia in October.

Suspected transshipment is often revealed by striking changes in trade patterns before and after the invasion. The Maldives, an island chain in the Indian Ocean that has no domestic semiconductor industry, shipped almost $54 million worth of U.S.-made semiconductors to Russia in the year after the invasion of Ukraine, Nikkei Asia reported last July.

Semiconductor supply chains often span several countries, with chips designed in one country and manufactured in another before being sold to a series of downstream distributors around the world. That makes it difficult for companies to know the ultimate end user of their products. This may seem odd—until you realize that this is the case for many everyday products that are sold around the world. “When Coca-Cola sells Coca-Cola, it doesn’t know where every bottle goes, and they don’t have systems to track where every bottle goes,” said Kevin Wolf, a former assistant secretary for export administration at the U.S. Commerce Department.

While a coalition of 39 countries, including the world’s major manufacturers of advanced electronics, imposed export restrictions on Russia, much of the rest of the world continues to trade freely with Moscow. Components manufactured in coalition countries will often begin their journey to Moscow’s weapons factories through a series of entirely legal transactions before ending up with a final distributor that takes them across the border into Russia. “It starts off as licit trade and ends up as illicit trade,” said a second senior U.S. intelligence official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The further items move down the supply chain, the less insight governments and companies have into their ultimate destination, although sudden changes in behavior of importers can offer a red flag. In his speech last September, Axelrod, the assistant secretary, used the example of a beauty salon that suddenly starts to import electronic components.

But the Grand Canyon of loopholes is China, which has stood by Moscow since the invasion. In the first days of the war, U.S. Commerce Secretary Gina Raimondo warned that Washington could shut down Chinese companies that ignored semiconductor export controls placed on Russia. Last October, 42 Chinese companies were added to export control lists—severely undercutting their ability to do business with U.S. companies—for supplying Russian defense manufacturers with U.S. chips.

But as the Biden administration carefully calibrates its China policy in a bid to keep a lid on escalating tensions, it has held off from taking Beijing to task. “I think the biggest issue is that we—the West—have been unwilling to put pressure on China that would get China to start enforcing some of these rules itself,” said Miller, the author of Chip Wars.

A spokesperson for the U.S. Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) said: “Due to the restrictions imposed by the United States and key allies and partners, Russia has been left with no choice but to spend more, lower its ambitions for high-tech weaponry, build alliances with other international pariah states, and develop nefarious trade networks to covertly obtain the technologies it needs.

“We are deeply concerned regarding [Chinese] support for Russia’s defense industrial base. BIS has acted to add over 100 [China]-based entities to the Entity List for supporting Russia’s military industrial base and related activities.”

Export controls have typically focused on keeping specific U.S.-made goods out of the hands of adversaries, while economic and financial sanctions have served broader foreign-policy objectives of isolating rogue states and cauterizing the financing of terrorist groups and drug cartels. The use of sanctions as a national security tool grew in wake of the 9/11 attacks; in the intervening decades, companies, government agencies, and financial institutions have built up a wealth of experience in sanctions compliance. By contrast, the use of export controls for strategic ends is relatively novel, and compliance expertise is still in its infancy.

“It used to be that people like me could keep export controls and sanctions in one person’s head. The level of complexity for each area of law is so intense. I don’t know anyone who is truly an export control and sanctions expert,” Wolf said.

Export controls, experts say, are at best speed bumps designed to make it harder for Russia’s defense industrial base to procure Western components. They create “extra friction and pressure on the Russian economy,” said Daniel Fried, who as the State Department coordinator for sanctions policy helped craft U.S. sanctions on Russia after its annexation of Crimea in 2014. Russia is now paying 80 percent more to import semiconductors than it did before the war, according to forthcoming research by Miller, and the components it is able to acquire are often of dubious quality.

But although it may be more cumbersome and expensive, it’s a cost that Moscow has been willing to bear in its war on Ukraine.

Western components—and lots of them—will continue to be found in the weapons Russia uses on Ukraine’s battlefields for the duration of the war. “This problem is as old as export controls are,” said Jasper Helder, an expert on export controls and sanctions with the law firm Akin Gump. But there are ways to further plug the gaps.

Steeper penalties could incentivize U.S. companies to take a more proactive role in ensuring their products don’t wind up in the hands of the Russian military, said Elina Ribakova, a nonresident senior fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. “At the moment, they’re not truly motivated,” she said.

Companies that run afoul of sanctions and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a U.S. federal law that prohibits the payment of bribes, have been fined billions of dollars. Settlements of export control violations are often an order of magnitude smaller, according to recently published research.

In a speech last month, Axelrod said the United States would begin issuing steeper penalties for export control violations. “Build one case against one of the companies extremely well, put out a multibillion-dollar fine negotiation, and watch everybody else fall in line,” Ribakova said.

And then there’s the question of resources. BIS has an annual budget of just $200 million. “That’s like the cost of a few fighter jets. Come on,” said Raimondo, speaking at the Reagan National Defense Forum last December.

The agency’s core budget for export control has, adjusted for inflation, remained flat since 2010, while its workload has surged. Between 2014 and 2022, the volume of U.S. exports subject to licensing scrutiny increased by 126 percent, according to an agency spokesperson. A 2022 study of export control enforcement by the Center for Strategic and International Studies recommended a budget increase of $45 million annually, describing it as “one of the best opportunities available anywhere in U.S. national security.”

When it comes to enforcement, the bureau has about 150 officers across the country who work with law enforcement and conduct outreach to companies. The Commerce Department has also established a task force with the Justice Department to keep advanced technologies out of the hands of Russia, China, and Iran. “The U.S. has the most robust export enforcement on the planet,” Wolf said.

But compared with other law enforcement and national security agencies, the bureau’s budgets have not kept pace with its expanding mission. The Department of Homeland Security has more investigators in the city of Tampa, Florida, than BIS does across the entire country, Axelrod noted in his January speech.

On the other side, you have Russia, which is extremely motivated to acquire the critical technologies it needs to continue to prosecute its war. The Kremlin has tasked its intelligence agencies with finding ways around sanctions and export controls, U.S. Treasury Undersecretary Brian Nelson said in a speech last year. “We are not talking about a profit-seeking firm looking for efficiencies,” the second senior U.S. intelligence official said. “There will be supply if there is sufficient demand.”

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