Page 1 of Stars in Nova

The Burden of Light

The air split, atoms rent in two by a kinetic wave as a man tore through the crowded street, his boots pounding against the synth-stone pavement.

He took fast, flying strides, his broad shoulders cutting through the throng like a blade.

His visor flashed as he narrowed his vision on the fleeingkinai.

Black tactical gear, dusted with the grime of the city, hugged his muscular frame as he powered forward, unrelenting.

The fluorescent badge on his hip ID’d him as one of the rock’s elite Eden Guardians.

Ahead of him, the thief darted like a shadow, smaller and more agile, able to slip into spaces the muscled Edenite guard could not.

The crowd parted with screams and protests as the crim knocked over a vendor’s cart, spilling gleaming trinkets across the street.

The Guardian gave chase, leaping over the wreckage without breaking stride.

‘Move!’ he barked, his deep bass carrying over the din.

A woman shrieked as the fleeing low-life shoved her into the ground, her basket of vivid orange fruits cascading to the surface.

Children scrambled to get out of the way, their laughter replaced with wide-eyed fear.

The thief twisted down a narrow alley, the stench of oil and waste overpowering the air.

The man with a glowing visor followed, his boots echoing off the metal walls as he gained on his target.

The alleyway became a blur of flashing neon signs and swinging laundry lines, the rhythmic slap of his steps syncing with his heart pounding.

Another turn.

The market district of Eden II crawled with its usual chaos.

Drunks stumbled out of dim-lit bars, their laughter fractured and hollow.

Merchants hawked wares in a cacophony of languages, scents of roasted meats mingling with the acrid tang of overheated machinery, and the hum of hover carts cut through the crowd.

A vendor yelled in fury as his stand of skewered kebabs toppled over.

The sizzling sound of food hitting the ground mixed with curses in the local dialect.

The burglar lunged through the wreckage, but the Guardian didn’t give up, relentless, hurdling over the overturned grill with a single fluid motion.

‘Stop!’ the meta guard roared with raw authority.

The thief glanced back, his face pale with panic, and that moment’s hesitation cost him.

The man giving chase scaled a wall with a kinetic burst of power.

He darted, one strong hand closing around thekinai’sshoulder and yanking him back with a force that sent them both sprawling.

The robber yelped, the sound high-pitched and desperate, as they tumbled.

The crowds fell into stunned silence for a heartbeat, frozen in macabre fascination as the meta man pinned the struggling mugger.

The street bandit writhed, his breaths ragged. It didn’t help, for the Guardian’s grip was unyielding.

‘You think you can outrun me?’ he growled.

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