All Chapters of The Outcast: Michael Grey's Rise to the Top: Chapter 81
- Chapter 90
103 chapters
Chapter Eighty-One: The Line
The moment Michael disappeared into the distance, the atmosphere across the Southern Sector hardened into something far heavier. The street shook under the constant pressure of dozens upon dozens of mutated monsters forcing their way through every opening the defense had attempted to anchor. The frontline squads of the Libertas Aeterna spread themselves thin along a half-collapsed avenue, the soldiers firing in strict volleys under Commander Cane’s direction. Most of their regular ammunition barely slowed the creatures, the bullets embedding uselessly into hardened bone, carapace, or whatever twisted material made up their reinforced bodies. Only concentrated plasma shots or the heavy-caliber cannons mounted on the nearby armored carriers could stagger or kill the advancing beasts. But both resources were limited, and the sheer number of mutants pouring into the Sector made the situation more chaotic by the minute. Cane stood in the open on the roof of a fallen transport vehicle, issu
Chapter Eighty-Two — Engagement
The rooftop of the half-collapsed commercial tower gave Cane, Lea, and Stella the vantage point they needed, but the sight ahead was anything but reassuring. Three giant mutants were lumbering deeper into the Southern Sector, each one moving with deliberate, coordinated aggression. Their bodies were hulking masses of mutated muscle and bone, hardened plating covering their skin like natural armor. Behind them, dozens of smaller mutants followed, drawn forward by whatever instinct drove the frenzied swarm. Cane analyzed their spread and their movement speed, calculating what they would reach within minutes: the inner residential districts, the evacuation tunnels, and the few streets that hadn’t been cleared yet. He relayed orders through his comms to redirect units, reposition heavy artillery, and concentrate plasma support lines. Even as he issued commands, he could see how difficult it was becoming for his forces to contain these things. Normal ammunition barely scratched the creat
Chapter Eighty-Three — Chaos
The second giant mutant’s movements were heavier and more deliberate than the one Stella had helped bring down earlier. From the rooftop of a half-collapsed complex, Commander Cane gave the order and Lea immediately sprinted forward, cutting across the broken street in a blur of enhanced speed. Stella followed a second behind him, her alloy shifting down her arms and chest as she formed a reinforced breastplate and plated gauntlets. The hulking monster turned its head toward the rushing pair but its delayed reaction created the opening they needed. Lea fired several plasma bursts into its upper torso to force the creature to brace, while Stella closed the distance and drove a thickened alloy lance straight into its knee. The limb bent inward with a wet crunch and the creature toppled sideways into a building, sending concrete debris into the street.Lea vaulted over a fallen streetlight and landed beside Stella, both girls breathing hard as they repositioned while the massi
Chapter Eighty-Four — Strange Fire
The flames from the explosion still flickered across the ruined street when two silhouettes emerged through the haze. One was a young man with dark hair tied loosely behind him, his movements impressively steady and controlled as he stepped across the charred asphalt. The second was a young woman, shorter, lighter on her feet, and her expression was as unreadable as her companion's. Both were completely untouched by the heat. The scattered mutants screeched as they registered new targets, their twisted bodies shifting forward in a lunging wave. The young man didn’t wait for them to reach him. His right hand ignited instantly in a blaze of orange-red light, and a thin line of flame shot across the ground ahead of him. He kicked off the surface and moved with a controlled violence that reminded Lea faintly of a trained martial artist. His body twisted mid-air as he delivered a heavy downward strike that unleashed a burst of compressed fire, instantly blowing apart the first group of m
Chapter Eighty-Five — The Weight of a Higher Will
No one could lift their head.Not Lea.Not Stella.Not Commander Cane.Not even the two unidentified powerhouses who had been tearing through the mutant horde.The gravitational pressure kept every living being, human and monster alike, locked to the ground. Even with all her enhancements, Stella’s legs were shaking violently, forced into a kneeling position she couldn't resist. Lea’s breath rasped in her throat, the crushing force pressing her ribs inward. Some of the smaller mutants had already been flattened completely, their bodies sinking into the concrete like wet clay. Even the massive giants trembled on the ground, their limbs quivering uselessly under an invisible weight strong enough to shatter the earth beneath them.Above them, suspended in the air like gravity meant nothing to him, the stranger stood with one hand in his pocket. After a couple of seconds, he tilted his head slightly, as though listening to something far away. His g
Chapter Eighty Six: Aftermath of a Fallen Queen
The Southern Sector did not celebrate Rose’s death, not with the catastrophe it had brought. The change in the environment was subtle at first, fewer emergency sirens cutting through the night, fewer panicked reports flooding the sector channels, fewer civilians moving with the frantic urgency that had become routine during the first couple of weeks following the mutant incursion. The streets were still scarred, entire blocks torn apart by roots, spores, and flesh that were being cleaned up day by day, but the pressure that had sat over the sector like a clenched fist was gone. Michael moved through it all in silence, watching from the inside of an armored convoy as Libertas Aeterna units secured the last of Rose’s known facilities. He did not feel relief that Rose was dead. All he felt was the weight of what he had to do next.The first laboratory they breached made that reality impossible to ignore. Hidden beneath a derelict industrial complex, its entrance masked by layers of bio-e
Chapter Eighty Seven — The Heir in the South
Erin had not planned on returning to her family home so soon after the events in the Southern Sector, but the summons had been worded carefully enough to make refusal not an option. Her father had asked for her presence for a very obvious reason; several heirs who had been thought to be untouchable had met their ends relatively recently. Whether it was out of concern for her well-being or simply a move to protect their investments, Erin understood the language well. She had grown up hearing it spoken fluently across polished dining tables and private conference rooms, where affection was secondary to leverage and blood mattered less than usefulness.The Lassette estate sat on elevated ground overlooking the outskirts of Whitewood City, its architecture restrained and deliberate, favoring clean lines and muted colors rather than ostentation. It was a place designed to project stability and reason, the kind of environment that suggested control even when its occupants were anything but
Chapter Eighty Eight — Neutral Ground
The docks were busy in the way they always were when money changed hands faster than paperwork could keep up. Cargo cranes moved in steady rhythms overhead, automated haulers rolled along marked lanes, and the smell of saltwater mixed with oil and heated metal hung thick in the air. Michael stood near the edge of one of the piers with his hands in his coat pockets, watching a shipment get unloaded while Don handled the final details with his usual efficiency. Since Rose’s death, things had moved quickly for his growing empire. Don was halfway through issuing instructions to a crew supervisor when Michael’s Biz-Watch vibrated against his wrist. The signal wasn’t encrypted through LA channels, which immediately caught his attention. He glanced down and read the sender, his expression remaining unchanged. Ordo Supremus. He opened the message without comment. The invitation was brief, formal, and carefully worded, requesting h
Chapter Eighty Nine — Terms and Conditions
The silence that followed Michael’s declaration did not break immediately. It stretched, thick and deliberate, as the members of the Ordo Supremus reassessed him not as a rising nuisance, but as a factor that could no longer be ignored. Michael brought his hands together on the table and met each of their gazes directly, his posture calm in a way that made the tension in the room feel sharper by contrast. He could feel the attention on him from every direction, layered with irritation, curiosity, and something closer to caution.Gareth Wessen was the first to speak again, his tone slower now, more measured. “You’ve made your position clear,” he said. “And despite your… unconventional approach, the council recognizes strength when it presents itself.”Michael said nothing. He had learned long ago that people often revealed more when they were allowed to keep talking.“We are prepared to offer you formal membership within the Ordo Supremus,” Gareth
Chapter Ninety — A Quiet Judgment
The doors to the council chamber had not yet finished sealing when the arguments began.Vernoux Armitage was the first to break the silence, slamming his palm against the polished table hard enough to rattle the glassware set before him. “That was a disgrace,” he snapped. “After all he had done, you all just let him walk out of here?”Gareth Wessen leaned back in his chair, jaw tight, eyes fixed on the frozen guards still standing near the exit. Frost clung to their armor, slowly melting into thin streams of water that traced down to the floor. “Forcing the issue would have ended worse,” he said. “I don't know if losing your daughter has made you suicidal but that boy has gotten to a level where threats are useless against him.”“He threatened the authority of this council,” Vernoux shot back. “That boy publicly declared control over the Southern Sector, which is a direct affront on our power, and declared allegiance with Libertas Aeterna. You want to