by Hayes, Drew
“Plus, you wanted a ride,” Alice threw out.
Shane smiled—an unusual sight, Alice realized. “That, too. But honestly, when I saw you, it occurred to me that circumstance had just presented the two of us with a very rare opportunity. You and I have something in common, Alice. We’re both hungry to prove ourselves: me for a variety of reasons, and you because of your weak power in earlier years. How about the two of us work together and start the year off by putting on one hell of a show?”
“You want to go help with the half-dozen to the east?”
“No. I want us to get there first and handle it ourselves. I want to sweep the entire fight with just the two of us,” Shane replied.
“Way too risky. Forget it.” Alice said the words before she’d even noticed she was speaking, but the moment they left her lips, she knew they were true. “Even if it’s only six Sims, just the two of us is too dangerous. We’d risk aggravating the fight and then losing control, costing nearby civilians their lives and tearing up a shitload of property.”
“Yes, but it’s not just the two of us. Rich and Jill are en route, but with your power, we can beat them there. Maybe not by a lot, but enough to level the combatant forces. With a quick, well-placed first strike, we can take down the majority of our opponents. Even if that fails and we only bring down two, that still leaves us with a Sim apiece once Rich and Jill arrive. We can clear the fight from the battlefield, get the civilians to safety, and then pitch in with the other battles as needed.” Shane stepped away from the edge, his eyes now trained on Alice.
“This isn’t just my ego speaking, making a plan purely out of pride. I think I know the best way to handle the situation before me, and I want to test that idea. If I’m wrong, then we made a bad call, but isn’t this the time to learn and make mistakes?”
He had her there. If ever they had an occasion to test their limits and see how training stacked up against what they might fight in the real world, this was probably it. Slowly, Alice nodded, and as she did, she also lifted Shane up from the roof.
“We move fast and hard. Take down as many as we can in the initial confusion, killing only if it’s unavoidable,” she instructed. “Are you sure you can handle that? Usually you fight one-on-one.”
“Trust me, I put a lot of effort into practicing and improving group tactics after last May.” Shane’s face darkened for a moment, though Alice didn’t try to find out why. They’d all seen things that night that would haunt them; she certainly wasn’t going to pry about someone else’s demons.
“Just be careful.” Alice lifted the two of them higher into the sky, then took off like a shot to the east.
31.
Vince and Roy were so close that they could make out the sounds of battle when a new voice echoed in their ears.
“Everyone heading to the southern battle: get in position, but don’t engage yet,” ordered the familiar tones of Britney Ferguson. “I’m nearby, invisible, and I just found Alex. He’s doing his weird… whatever… and figuring out where our civilians are holed up. We can’t proceed until we know how to keep them safe.”
Next to Vince, Roy’s footsteps slowed. Vince matched his pace, though neither stopped completely. Getting the civilians’ location was a good idea, something they should have considered sooner. While the obvious priority was to keep the non-Sims safe, that was about as far as they’d thought the plan through. But Britney hadn’t made it to senior year of the HCP just on her ability; she’d also shown a talent for tactics and leadership. There was no dissent on the comms as they waited for her next orders.
“Okay, Alex thinks he’s found all of them,” Britney said at last. Vince and Roy were only a block away by this point; they could see the Sims smashing into one another, to say nothing of the property around them. “The good news here is that the fighting seems to be centered in an open area—what looks like a parking lot. Our civilian bots have taken cover in the buildings that encircle the fight. Now, the bad news is that the battle spreads out around all the areas we need to access in order to move the civilians to safety. Common sense says that the minute we’re spotted, the Sims are going to prioritize attacking us over fighting amongst themselves.”
Roy’s voice mumbled softly at Vince’s side. “We need a distr—”
“We need a distraction,” Britney continued, unaware that Roy was echoing her thoughts across the battlefield. “And it won’t do us any good to execute it on the periphery. That would just draw attention to the paths we need kept clear. The only way to force the Sims’ focus away from the buildings is to drop some people right smack dab in the middle of their brawl. I won’t bullshit you guys; that’s going to be a tight spot. The only ones who should go in are those who can take a hell of a lot of damage and keep on fighting. Everyone else is going to help Alex and me evacuate the civilians. We’ll start in on the outer Sims when that’s done, but until then, you’ll be on your own.”
“I can go.” No one was surprised to hear Chad’s voice volunteer, nor were they shocked an instant later when Roy pressed the button on his earpiece and added, “Not without me, you won’t.”
“I’ll go, too,” Vince said.
Roy took his hand away from the earpiece, cutting his words off from the rest of the class, and turned to Vince. “Are you sure? I know we made a lot of headway this summer, but you never perfected your counter.”
“It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just has to be good enough to keep me alive,” Vince replied.
Roy nodded and said nothing more. It wasn’t his place to tell Vince what he could or couldn’t do; only Vince knew his true limits. It was, however, absolutely Roy’s place to watch his friend’s back and make sure Vince didn’t take too much damage. And, friendship aside, Roy did not want to deal with Camille if Vince got seriously injured while he was nearby.
“You boys can count on me dropping in,” Violet said.
“I believe I can lend aid as well,” Thomas volunteered.
“Sorry, Thomas, but we can’t spare you,” Britney said. “You’re the only one of us who can shield the civilians with something other than your body. In fact, find Adam so he can mimic you. That orange energy is going to be the key to making sure we keep people safe.”
“I feel I would be a valuable asset in battle.” They could hear the frustration in Thomas’s voice. This was a chance to prove his mettle, to help protect his friends, and he was being shoved off to evacuation duty. Worse, he knew it was the right call. Dean Blaine had even identified it among their priorities: civilians’ safety came first.
“You would no doubt be tremendous on the battlefield,” Chad agreed. “But you have the ability to do more than that, to help people in a way that we cannot. That is the true mission, Thomas. What we’ll be doing is nothing more than distraction, opening a way for the real work to be done.”
There was a long beat of silence before Thomas finally spoke again. “Give me Adam’s direction and I’ll find him.”
“No need. Alex found you and sent Adam your way. He’s mimicked me for the moment, so don’t be alarmed if someone pops into view from invisibility,” Britney said. “As for those going in the middle, does everyone have a way to the center? We need you to drop in from nowhere, keep all the attention right in the thick of the fight.”
“Need a charge?” Roy asked, flexing his biceps.
Vince shook his head and scanned the block ahead of them. “I came in with plenty. This is a test, after all.”
“Vince and I are good,” Roy reported.
“Seeing as I’m airborne, I’m solid,” Violet added.
“I’ll make my way,” Chad said.
“Fine. Everyone else contact me as you arrive. We’ll start evacuating and give you targets to find. The robo-civilians are pretty human-looking—a little uncanny-valley, but nothing you’d mistake for a Sim. Distraction team, you’re clear to start as soon as possible,” Britney told them.
Neither Vince nor Roy needed any more than that. They took off r
unning in a dead sprint, heading down the block where the Sims were still fighting one another, utterly unaware of the tide of Supers about to wash over them. In the sky above, Roy could make out the floating form of Violet, no doubt getting into position to drop herself like an ultra-dense bomb. She had the easiest way in, but certainly not the only one.
When they were still some distance away, Roy launched himself, with Vince right behind him. The explosion of force from Roy’s legs left cracks in the concrete while pushing his body high into the air. Vince’s take-off was powered by stolen kinetic energy rather than enhanced muscle, but the effects were almost indistinguishable.
Leaping was a great way to cover distance as a strongman, but doing it with accuracy took a lot of practice. Luckily, there were few better places to work on that sort of skill than a barren landscape specifically put aside for training. Neither Roy nor Vince had ever managed the sort of amazing accuracy that Titan could do, but they had gotten good enough to get within ten feet of their target.
Roy came crashing down first, whipped his bat around, and caught the nearest Sim in the torso. He kept swinging, creating a wide circle in the center of the chaos where Vince could land. For Roy, coming down was easy, but if Vince didn’t reabsorb the energy of the impact he risked injuring his legs. Vince generally stayed low to the ground to be safe; however, the risk was still present. The fewer obstacles present, the easier his landing would be.
Seconds later, a streak of silver whipped by Roy’s face, and Vince came to a sudden stop only inches away. The Sims, taken by surprise initially, were quickly adapting to the intruders in their midst. An eruption of noise and gravel to their north was all they needed to know that Violet had entered the fray. Chad would be along soon, or perhaps he was already there, racing between the Sims and cutting artificial tendons.
All that mattered was that the Sims were definitely focused on them. Now, they just had to keep it that way.
32.
The six Sims were fighting on what looked like the remains of a small grocery store. It had fallen under their weight and power and was now little more than rubble beneath their rampaging feet. Alice dearly hoped that none of the civilians they were supposed to save had been inside, but if so, there was no helping any of them now. All she and Shane could do was stop these things before more buildings were destroyed.
“Drop me off over there,” Shane directed, pointing to a small alley just out of eyesight for the Sims.
Alice complied, flying over and slowly lowering him to the ground. “Going to try and sneak up on them?”
“Do you have a better idea?”
“Yes, actually. How precise are you with those shadows?” She watched the Sims fighting as she spoke, noting that one was hurling balls of fire. At least one of six had range, probably more. She’d need to be careful.
“I’m as deadly as I want to be,” Shane replied.
“Well, keep it un-deadly, if possible. Cripple, not kill.” Alice floated a bit lower; she’d need to try and take the Sims by surprise when she struck. “I’m going to lift them into the air, rendering all the ones without ranged attacks helpless. Since I can’t very well pinball these like I did in last year’s exam—not without smashing up the neighborhood—I need you to cut them up while they’re floating. If possible, focus on the ones that will be attacking me; dodging while keeping stuff afloat and steady is a real pain.”
“That’s… that’s a really good idea.” Shane checked out the Sims as well, no doubt forming a plan of attack. “Just curious, what would you have done if I weren’t here?”
“Waited for Rich and Jill, obviously, then probably used gravity to crush the Sims’ limbs,” Alice said. “But that’s an imprecise method, and I might have accidentally killed a few of them. This will be cleaner.”
“Yes, I suppose it will.” Shane glanced away from the Sims, taking in Alice as if through fresh eyes. “Has anyone told you that sometimes you are quite terrifying?”
“I don’t consider it a good week unless I hear that at least three times.” Her altitude increased as she readied herself, eyes locked on the fighting robots. “You ready?”
“I’ll only be a few steps behind,” Shane assured her.
That was all Alice needed to hear. She rocketed off, racing through the air and quickly closing in on the Sims before her. With a minor burst of effort, she momentarily reversed their gravity then cut it off completely, leaving all six opponents floating at least five feet away from the ground. Her pace didn’t slow when they noticed her. She kept her speed brisk enough to be a challenging target but slow enough to be watched. The ranged ones needed to focus on her for this to work; otherwise, Shane would have a tough time making the precise strikes he needed to.
The first fireball flew by her, soaring harmlessly into the false night sky. Already she could see the metal hands glow red as the Sim took aim for a second shot. Her attention was quickly stolen by the assault of small, needle-like blades that swarmed toward her. They presented too wide a spread to dodge, so Alice didn’t try. Instead, she created a small focal point ten feet in front of her with enough gravity to pull in everything near it—save for the woman who could render herself immune.
Every needle suddenly diverted course, collecting into a thick ball centered on her gravitational point. Last year’s attack had reminded Alice that while armor could fill a lot of gaps, she was far from bulletproof. This technique had been her solution, a way to divert any number of projectiles without having to sustain an increased field all around her.
As she soared above the needle ball, letting it fall harmlessly to the ground, Alice could see the source of the mini-daggers. One of the Sims was covered from head to toe in the things—probably meant to replicate a Super with the ability of spines. It turned its arms toward her, intent on letting loose another barrage. That chance never came as the swipe of a dark object raced behind its neck, and suddenly, the whole body went limp. Without meaning to, Alice slowed, her eyes tracking the moving shadow, leading her gaze to the terrifying spectacle that was Shane DeSoto.
Shadows whipped around him, like the arms of a half-dozen squids trying to claw their way up from the ground. Clearly, he hadn’t been kidding about working on dealing with groups. Each shadow ended in a thin blade that sliced through small sections of the necks, back, arms, and legs of every Sim they encountered. Amidst the flurry, Shane stood motionless, his eyes pitch-black. That was nothing new; it had always been a side effect of using his power, but somehow, in the flickering streetlight and burning glow of the fire-Sim’s building attack, it was terrifying.
Wait, why was the fire Sim still building up power? The thought jarred Alice out of watching Shane, and she picked up her pace just in time to dodge another fireball. That didn’t make sense. Shane was shredding through the others with incredible precision, but the Sim with fire powers… was cloaked in flames now, casting light in all directions. This time, Alice paid closer attention to that one Sim, noticing how every attack Shane threw seemed to dissolve before making impact, leaving little more than scratches in the metallic hide.
“Five out of six? Not too shabby,” Alice said, flying in closer to Shane and the burning Sim. “How about I take this last one?” She dropped lower, near enough that the Sim might be able to hit her if it got another fireball off in time.
“Look, your gang is beaten, your friends are down, and you’re clearly outmatched. Why don’t you give up peacefully? Because, if you keep fighting, there’s a chance you’ll get hurt.” Alice had no idea if the Sims were still able to surrender—she was sure that information had been left out of the briefing on purpose—but she felt like she ought to at least give it a try. If nothing else, it seemed like the right thing to do.
“Doesn’t look like he’s biting,” Shane called up.
Sure enough, another fireball began to kindle in its hands, its eyes locked on Alice’s floating form.
“Can’t say I didn’t try. But still, that’s enough of that.” She
held out her arm, and for a moment, the gravity between the Sim’s cupped hands was beyond intense. In an instant, its hands smashed together, the lingering flames of the fireball dancing across its now misshapen fingers. Seconds later, its legs were similarly crushed.
The Sim didn’t let out any yelp of pain, but the fire around its body flickered out as it went limp and fell into surrender mode. Slowly, Alice lowered it to the ground then surveyed the damage Shane had done. The other five Sims were carved up in almost the exact same places, areas she felt pretty sure would sever tendons and the spine on a real human. Two of them had much deeper, rougher cuts than the rest; these were probably armored to represent strongmen. Yet he’d still managed to get through them, and in so little time, too.
“You know,” Alice said, taking in the damage. “You’re pretty scary yourself sometimes.”
“I have my moments,” Shane agreed. “And it certainly helped that last year I learned a valuable lesson about hesitation. Now, let’s head north and see how the fight with the dozen Sims is going.”
“We can if you really think it’s necessary, but I’d say it’s smarter to wait for Jill and Rich and then start picking off the isolated Sims,” Alice told him. “I mean, you know Mary is at that fight, don’t you? I’d be shocked if there was anything for us to do but sweep up the Sims’ broken pieces.”
33.
“Allen, to your left! Amber, one in the back is starting to shake it off. Selena, you’re doing great; just keep it up.” Mary spat out the orders quickly, turning her focus to a Sim that earlier she’d witnessed causing the concrete under them to ripple like an ocean wave. It was probably linked to machines beneath their feet to simulate rock-manipulation or something. She didn’t really care about the how; Mary was more concerned with making sure it couldn’t get enough of its bearings to mount an attack.
