The Archiverse world series [Wild drafted]

Chapter : Strategic Sabotage — Oliver and Zack Infiltrate the Tribute Lines

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The forest air was dense, as if Sector Six itself had clenched its fist around the trees.

Oliver and Zack moved through the dense thickets, their steps deliberate and muted. The Player King's Tribute Lines had been marked — narrow supply routes where weaker blue-ranked teams were transporting scavenged resources towards Caine Ashrel's main camp.

For Riven's plan to work, they needed to cripple these tribute lines. Not with brute force. With surgical precision.

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Oliver glanced at his Systematic Guide, syncing the live data feed.

> Sector Six Tribute Route Alpha

Estimated Transport Group: 10 Players

Escort Rank: Blue (Low-Tier)

Supply Contents: Vita Core Shards, Food Packs, Power Cells

Zack was slightly ahead, crouched low, eyes sharp beneath his black headband. His dagger was already unsheathed, glinting faintly as they crept alongside a narrow ridge overlooking the first transport group.

Ten players.

Modern clothing, thrown together armor, nervously watching their flanks.

> "They're jumpy," Oliver murmured.

Zack didn't respond immediately. He watched, waiting for the weak points to reveal themselves.

Then he spoke — quiet, deadpan.

> "Front three are decoys. The rear two with the yellow straps have the real supplies."

Oliver nodded. He didn't doubt Zack's assessment. Zack never spoke unless it was fact.

> "You want to split?"

> "No." Zack's eyes narrowed. "I go in. You cut off the ridge path. We funnel them to you. Silent takedowns only."

Oliver exhaled through his nose, steadying his heartbeat.

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The Plan Activated.

Zack moved like a shadow through the underbrush, barely rustling the leaves as he circled the caravan's rear. The two players with yellow straps were too busy whispering about Caine's broadcast to notice the danger.

A soft crunch of a pebble—enough to make one of them turn.

Too late.

Zack's dagger slid in, the strike swift and surgical, disabling his target in a clean nerve pinch before the boy even hit the ground. The second guard's gasp was muffled by Zack's gloved hand as he dragged him silently into the thicket.

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Up on the ridge, Oliver set small kinetic trip-nodes, thin discs with pressure-sensitive triggers, directly in the narrow path ahead. They wouldn't explode — just detonate a pulse strong enough to disorient and knock players off-balance.

The remaining eight players, unaware of their shrinking perimeter, advanced toward Oliver's kill zone.

> "Contact in five," Oliver whispered through the comm.

Zack responded with a single click.

The first three decoys, laughing and bragging about "another easy haul," tripped the node.

WHUMP.

The pulse detonated—sending them sprawling. Before they could scream, Oliver dropped down from the ridge, baton in hand, dispatching the nearest two with efficient strikes to the back of the neck.

The remaining three panicked.

One reached for his flare.

A small throwing knife embedded itself into his wrist.

Zack was already there, moving through the confusion, cutting through their formation with terrifying fluidity. Within seconds, the Tribute Squad was down, unconscious but breathing.

Oliver crouched next to one of them, pulling a data chip from his pouch.

> "Tribute Line Alpha — neutralized. Supplies secured."

Zack retrieved his dagger, wiping it on a patch of moss.

> "We move to Route Bravo. Same strategy."

Oliver stood, slinging a pouch of Vita Core Shards over his shoulder.

> "You think Caine's gonna realize we're cutting off his flow this quickly?"

Zack's lips curled into a faint, fleeting smirk.

> "If he does, he's slower than I thought."

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As they disappeared back into the forest, the Player King's network had already lost its first artery.

One by one, the Tribute Lines would fall.

And Caine wouldn't even know it until it was too late.

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Systematic Guide Update:

> Tribute Route Alpha: Neutralized

Supplies Confiscated: 85 Vita Shards, 12 Power Cells, 7 Supply Packs

Remaining Routes: 5 Active

Ghostline Influence: Expanding

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Chapter: Sector Six's Pressure — The Player King Hunts Back

The midday sun filtered weakly through the dense canopy of Sector Six, but the atmosphere beneath remained cold and tense. In the heart of the ruined woodland temple, Caine Ashrel stood silently, his arms crossed as data flooded his Systematic Guide.

> Tribute Route Alpha — LOST.

Supplies Confiscated. Ghostline Activity Suspected.

Estimated Perpetrators: Travelers / Resistance Faction.

His jaw tightened. Two more blinking alerts appeared as Routes Beta and Gamma reported delays—inevitable signs of a cascading collapse.

> "They're not going for a head-on fight," Caine muttered. "They're suffocating the network."

Around him, his 50-strong squad of mixed blue ranks awaited his orders, but even they were shifting uncomfortably. The steady flow of Tribute—resources that kept their status, their power, and their survival in Sector Six—was now choked off.

Caine wasn't a strategist by title, but in the forest, survival was strategy.

And this?

This was a challenge.

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He turned to his second-in-command, a burly player named Krev, known for his twin hatchets and a face covered in jagged scars—battle-earned, not cosmetic.

> "We're not waiting for the Tribute Lines to stabilize. We hunt them. Now."

Krev cracked his knuckles.

> "You want a full squad sweep?"

> "No. Squad sweeps are predictable. They'll be watching for large groups."

Caine's Guide pinged as he manually opened the Hunter Units Activation screen.

> Enforcer Squad Selection:

Units Available: 10

Selected: 5

Rank: Blue (Upper-Tier) — Combat Specialization

Tracking Augments: Enabled

He picked five of his best—players who knew the forest like a second skin. Not thugs, but hunters.

> "Deploy them in pairs. No noise. No flare support. If they see Travelers, they engage immediately. We pull them out of hiding."

Krev nodded, already issuing the deployment commands through his own Guide.

But Caine wasn't finished.

He tapped into the Open Frequencies.

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Open Transmission — Sector Six All-Players

Caine's voice, sharp and unwavering, filled the audio channels of every player Guide within the zone.

> "To the cowards who've been bleeding my Tribute Lines dry: This is my forest. You're not heroes. You're not saviors. You're thieves."

He let the words settle.

> "So now, I'm hunting you. And when I catch you, no resets. No second chances. You'll become fertilizer for this zone's roots."

The transmission ended abruptly.

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Back in the Dwarven Mist Command House, Riven sat back in his chair, watching the feed with a thin, satisfied smirk. Goldie floated nearby, her ears flicking playfully.

> "He's predictable."

> "And emotional," Riven added. "He's sending hunters. Smaller units. That's where we crush them."

He turned to Aurelia, who was scanning the updated activity logs.

> "Prepare the secondary strike teams. Oliver and Zack will keep severing the Tribute lines. Nico will intercept the enforcers. Yarrow will handle overwatch."

Goldie purred.

> "It's going to be a busy 72 hours."

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Meanwhile, in the Field — Oliver and Zack

Zack's earpiece buzzed faintly as he crouched over another downed transport unit, wiping off his dagger.

> "Caine's reacting," came Riven's voice, calm but focused. "Enforcers inbound. Expect advanced trackers. No more rookies."

Oliver, scanning through the looted packs, glanced at Zack.

> "Guess we stirred the hornet's nest."

Zack sheathed his dagger with a soft click.

> "Good."

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The hunt had begun.

But this time, both sides were hunting.

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Systematic Guide Update:

> Tribute Routes Remaining: 3 Active

Enemy Enforcer Squads: 5 Deployed

Traveler Team Orders: Ambush & Intercept

Special Notice: "Phase II Sabotage" Unlocked

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Next Chapter: "Phase II Sabotage — Nico's Intercept Strike & Yarrow's Overwatch"