by Pal, J
“Kitty, am I in his spot?”
She didn’t answer, just laughed, so I spoke to the golem directly.
“Am I in your spot, buddy?”
It came as no surprise that Winnie didn’t respond. Instead, he climbed atop Morpheus and squeezed into the cramped space. It would’ve been cute if he didn’t weigh a whole lot more than a standard stuffed bear. After an uncomfortable minute, he settled in between my legs.
We started our outing not long after six in the morning. Unlike the auranthers, the platyhawks appeared to prefer daylight. However, the sun hadn’t risen yet, so we hoped the platyhawks would still be asleep or waking up. Morpheus proceeded towards our destination slowly to avoid too much noise while Liam went on ahead. During the journey, we went over our game plan.
All of us agreed that our best bet would be to split up and take out all the ordinary platyhawks first. The chances of any of us taking out a boss with a single blow were zero, and we’d have to deal with two at the same time. If the little ones were taken care of beforehand, there would be less to worry about.
Since my lab coat now had a camouflaging function, I’d head off on my own with Winnie. He and I worked well together. Kitty would ride Morpheus and have Miley watching her back. Meanwhile, Liam wouldn’t stray far from her so they could group up if shit hit the fan. The plan went into play as soon as we arrived at the observatory. The front doors were wide open. Kitty and Liam headed left. Winnie and I went right.
It was darker inside than out. I had a peek at the central domed room and found the boss pair cuddled together. The ceiling was partially open, making the building a perfect place for the platyhawks. They could fly in and out of the building freely. Eggshells lay on the opposite side of the room and a large bed of bones between them. There weren’t just human remains, but auranther too. I spotted a third kind among them but couldn’t discern what animal they belonged to.
I closed the door and backed away. The pair would have to wait. I snuck along the corridors, checking every room for platyhawks. There were plenty of infants lying on their backs with bloated bellies. Winnie and I put them down swiftly using our melee weapons. My charged dagger cut through the adults with ease as well. We didn’t encounter any challenges until passing the old food counter. A trio of elites lay spread across the room with a half-eaten auranther between them.
Following my directions, Winnie waited by one while I made my way over to another. I did a silent countdown and plunged my blade into the elite’s open beak. The creature’s eyes shot open, and it thrashed for a few seconds before going still. Winnie copied my movements, but his target moved in its slumber, and he struck a bit of bone-plating instead. The elite platyhawk’s eyes shot open, and it snapped at Winnie. The bear leapt away from the leather-rending beak, avoiding damage, but now the beast had room to get upright. It yipped, awakening the other elite, and now we had no option but to fight them.
I didn’t waste any time. The more time we wasted on this, the more sound we’d make. This needed to be quick and quiet. So I ran at the third elite while it groggily looked up, trying to figure out what was going on. The creature’s eyes cleared when it saw me. Unlike the other two elites, it was skinny and had long claws.
My assumptions of it being a swift attacker proved correct when it slashed a flesh-rending claw at me so fast that my eyes barely registered the movement. Planning on saving the barrier for when my shotgun needed recharging, I relied on the Grappling Belt to pull me away from danger. It didn’t disappoint. Once away from the threat, I used the Pogo Heelies to launch myself directly at it. The creature turned to face me head-on, but I used the new grappling device to pull me up towards the ceiling at the last second.
The still-lying-down platyhawk struggled to reach me, and I went over its head, landing softly behind it. The Pogo Heelies didn’t fail me, keeping me stable throughout the man oeuvre. Then, still unwilling to use the Sonic Shotgun and alert the bosses, I sped forwards and slashed my electrified blade across the platyhawk’s back. It let out a soft surprised yelp, but before the creature got any louder, I climbed atop its shoulders and stabbed at the back of the skull.
Much to my disappointment, I struck reinforced bone. The platyhawk took advantage of my failure and swung its head backwards. Unfortunately, I had forgotten my lab coat no longer had an impact absorber and repulsor functions in the heat of battle—activating it did nothing to protect me from the blow. I turned invisible but was still knocked off the beast and to the ground.
It jumped up and spun around, looking for me. I lay very still, worried a single movement would give away my location. While getting my breathing under control, I checked on Winnie. He hadn’t killed the platyhawk. Instead, the stuffed bear had wrapped his stretchable limbs around the monster’s skull, keeping the giant beak shut. He had extended his spikes from all over his body too. Unfortunately, only a few droplets of blood had collected on the floor. He hadn’t penetrated the elite platyhawk’s skull; it was trying to shake him off and failing miserably.
When my opponent stopped looking for me and approached his entangled sibling, I launched my attack. Using my technopathic link to the Charge Launcher, I channeled extra energy into the blade and slashed at the creature’s hind limbs. Somehow my attack cut clean through, spraying blood all over the floor. It opened its mouth to screech, but no sound came out. Instead, the creature convulsed! The electricity had gotten through. So when it turned around with its beak still open, I stuck the Charge Launcher’s barrel in and fired a projectile.
The third elite intensified its struggling when its sibling exploded. The hide might’ve been insulated to protect from lightning, but the insides weren’t. I ran to the final elite, trying to slash at its limbs, but the platyhawk moved swiftly, refusing to let me flank it. The temptation to use the Sonic Shotgun hit me, but I wrestled the urge down. There was still no sound coming from the main room. The bosses were probably still asleep.
Combat would become so much easier once I had my new devices. The designs made me think I had been going around battle the wrong way so far, but such thoughts would have to wait. Winnie followed my instructions once again and released the creature’s neck, moving the bindings to the forelimbs. Once they were secure, he released the elite’s beak, and its first move was to lunge at me. The powerful hindlegs gave it propulsion but no control—I dodged the attack with ease and plunged my blade into its side.
Much like its dead sibling, the platyhawk opened its beak, but no sound came out. Its insides were in shock. I poured more electricity into the dagger, making the creature convulse. Winnie slipped his fluffy arm into the monster mouth before extending all his spikes at once. The death was a tad slower than what I liked, but it got the job done.
Once the last elite went still, I fell on my back, panting. We were lucky the sounds hadn’t attracted the attention of any residents of the building. After catching my breath, I dismantled the monsters and continued on my way along the curving corridor. When we encountered the others, they were just finishing up a massive horde of infants and normal platyhawks.
We assumed the beasts had split up the building using different parts of it as the lair. King and Queen had the center, while the elites had taken up an entire quadrant for themselves. This couldn’t have worked out any better. I kept my thoughts to myself, of course. Superstition had never been my thing, but after what had happened in Mama’s lair, I knew better than to make light of easy progress. Besides, it made people complacent, and we couldn’t afford to get overconfident.
Chapter Thirteen
Three-Winged Dance Party
Neither Kitty nor Liam worried about the smell within the building. Morpheus filtered the former’s air, while the latter no longer had a sense of smell. The odor of rot and decay filled the air. It was the scent of all the carcasses the creatures had littered all over the place. At least they hadn’t defecated within their home. That would’ve added a whole another layer of unpleasantness to the general aroma. Perhaps
my next upgrade to the lab coat could come with a face mask.
The smell intensified when we entered the central domed room. A telescope lay on the ground, dividing the room into two. It appeared mostly undamaged, but the monster’s claws had ripped the side into spaghetti. The device’s console sat against the wall, primarily intact. The screens were cracked or shattered and the keyboards covered in gunk, but besides that they didn’t appear significantly damaged. We didn’t have much use for the telescope—the chances of it surviving the fight were low anyway. On the other hand, the console likely had high-end parts which would prove invaluable with time.
This was our first organized fight since the party had split apart. I didn’t count the attack on the Hub, since it hadn’t on our terms. We’d been defending our new home and on the back foot. Now, we had the luxury of proceeding with a proper battle plan.
Miley and Morpheus would be our frontline. With Pallav gone, we had no other choice of tanks. Since Kitty wore Morpheus as a power suit now, he would keep her safe. However, I worried the creatures would rip through the protective layers and hurt her vulnerable and powerless body underneath. Kitty assured me she had designed Miley to fight by her side. The liquid metal body enabled her to shift between offense and defense with ease, making the golem an excellent off-tank. I was dubious, but at the end of the day, it was her choice.
Liam switched into flight mode. The domed ceiling gave him plenty of room to move around. The latest upgrade had enhanced the sonic blast generator in the spider-bot, so he positioned himself near our monstrous opponents’ heads. As soon as the fight started, he’d take to the air.
After a long discussion with Kitty, we had agreed that Winnie was no longer an assassin. The spikes, the ejection system, and the launcher weren’t strong enough to damage the creatures in the new sector. However, his roars and stretchable limbs made him an excellent supporter. He could get people out of trouble and disable problematic foes, leaving me to bring the pain. Unfortunately, I suspected the Charge Launcher couldn’t challenge the super-football kid’s destructive power.
We all took up position around the platyhawks’ heads. Morpheus and Miley stood behind me while Winnie and I joined Liam on either side of the bosses. I took a deep breath in, then slowly exhaled. For the first time since the end of the world, my heart wasn’t beating like crazy before a big fight. We had this. It wasn’t going to be easy, but I knew we had the tools and skills. It was a matter of keeping a cool head and zeroing in on our enemies’ weaknesses.
The nest core didn’t remain stationary above us like it had in the other nests we had visited. Instead, it floated around the room’s perimeter. The moving light kept our shadows dancing around the room. It wasn’t just us, though—the bones on the floor appeared to be moving too. It sent shivers down my spine, but my heartbeat remained steady.
I pressed the Sonic Shotgun against the metallic-looking platyhawk. A scan confirmed it was the male. Biometal being light, flexible, and strong made it excellent for construction. According to the scan data, it gave the platyhawk king a great balance of offense, defense, and mobility. Fortunately, now he had a missing wing. If we took the king out of the picture first, we’d have little to worry above.
Liam and Winnie aimed their sonic weapons at the female. Unlike the almost-queen I’d fought in the Hub, bone armor covered almost all of her body. It made sense. Spending her time mostly in the nest, she took charge of defending the eggs and newborn. I guessed she would be the harder of the two to combat.
After a short countdown, we all attacked at once. Both sets of eyelids burst open, and they opened their beaks to screech. Like with the elites, no sound came out. My hypothesis was correct. Sonic attacks messed with their brains, and that’s just what we needed—stunned and confused. When combating creatures bigger and badder than us, we couldn’t ask for anything better.
Even though it was tempting, we didn’t let the single advantageous moment get the better of us. Liam retreated. I fired the Sonic Shotgun again before following him. Morpheus rushed in and doused the king with his flamethrower. Two spikey tentacles burst from Miley and stabbed at the same target.
I was glad to see Kitty had taken my discussion to heart. Winnie descended on the queen. His limbs stretched and wrapped around her head. The bear golem roared again and extended spikes from all over his body. They didn’t penetrate the queen’s bony head, but it kept her blinded and confused, allowing us to focus on the king.
Both platyhawks jumped to their feet. The queen thrashed blindly, trying to claw at her eyes, but ended up staggering sideways into the telescope. The force dented it, and shards of glass from either end of the tube exploded outwards.
The king spread his one wing and flapped it. He must have forgotten about the missing limb, because he failed to take to the sky. The platyhawk staggered but remained on his hind legs. The blast of wind that spread through the room threw all of us, but Morpheus and Miley managed to maintain their balance. Liam had to compensate for the added turbulence and flew into the wall. He managed to transform into his spider-form just before the collision and scuttled up towards the dome’s peak. Two barrels extended from the mechanical body, and he started with the glowing-white projectiles.
Morpheus didn’t let up. Instead, he continued to bathe the king with the flamethrower. The biometal glowed red, and the smell of burning skin filled the air. Now when the monster opened its beak, an ear-ripping screech filled the air. I fired the Charge Launcher, hoping to get my shot in the platyhawk’s mouth. I missed, but the projectile exploded and showered the beast’s head in arcing bolts of electricity.
I expected the king to brush off the attack, but much to my surprise, he screeched. The attack had gotten the platyhawk’s eyes. “Pin the bastard down, Kitty!” I yelled and ran towards the king, approaching from the newly blinded side. Once close enough, I activated the Pogo Heelies and launched myself onto the beast’s back. I shot the Sonic Shotgun into the creature’s neck. He screeched and thrashed.
The king platyhawk writhed, trying to shake me off. Then, using a mental command, I launched the belt’s grappling hook. It wrapped around the creature’s neck and paired with my stabilizing devices. I stayed on my feet. An uncomfortable warmth washed over me, and the smell of burnt skin was much more pungent than before. The creature had suffered plenty of damage. His movements were weak, his hide damaged, and the biometal warped. Strange. The platyhawk was impervious to lightning but not fire?
Crouching, I pressed the Charge Launcher against the king platyhawk’s neck. Using my technopathic link to the weapon, I poured electricity into the dagger blade. A blast of the Sonic Shotgun softened everything further. Morpheus held the creature’s hind legs, and Miley pummeled the head.
Unfortunately, I’d failed to pull off my attack. Heavy thuds stormed towards us. It was the queen. She had come to save her king. I didn’t get around to ejecting the dagger blade. The queen had managed to get herself free of Winnie. I launched myself into the air using the Pogo Heelies and activated the Sonic Barrier Projector. The queen’s open beak came for me, and for a moment, I was sure it was going to get me.
Once again, I found myself in a dire situation, moments from death. Like every other time, all my devices sang to me. But they didn’t want me to use them. Instead, the devices directed my attention to their newest sibling—the Grappling Belt. When I activated it, the little mouth shot forward and bit down on the platyhawk’s wing. It pulled me away from the creature’s head and over her back. The stabilizers in my boots helped me land on my feet, and I spun around to study the scene behind me.
Fortunately, Morpheus had gotten clear just in time. The queen must have lost control over her flight, because she barreled into her mate. The giant claws meant for protecting the nest ripped giant gouges into his back. Liam dropped down on the king from the ceiling and stabbed his barrels directly into the creature’s flesh. Smoke rose from the king, and he collapsed onto his stomach. The queen’s following screech shook t
he building. She lunged at Liam, and he failed to dodge. The attack knocked him off the giant platyhawk, and my breath caught in my throat as three spider legs flew free of his body.
“Liam!” I exclaimed. “Are you okay?” I got no answer. “Keep her busy, Kitty.”
I rushed to where he had landed, jaw clenched, and my breathing exercises failing. As long as Liam’s jar remained intact, he’d be okay. After what had happened, though, I couldn’t help but imagine the worst. The queen platyhawk screeched once again. I spared a glance and, fortunately, her attention was split between the golems and her other half. We couldn’t tell whether the king was alive or dead, but at least he was down for the count.
Liam’s metal bits had enveloped almost the entire glass dome. I couldn’t tell whether it had suffered any damage or not. Besides the three missing legs, there were two more hanging off the edge. My technopathy informed me that the inner machinery was all intact. The damage was mostly external.
“C’mon, buddy. Get up!”
I almost jumped out of my skin when something poked my leg. It was the spider-bot! The three-jointed limbs were making their way towards me like fat metal worms. The warped bits of metal on his body creaked and groaned, straightening themselves into their initial form.
A static-filled voice spoke in my ear a minute later. “Bloody hell, mate. I’ll be fine! Help Kitty with the fight.” Liam must have figured out a self-repair system with the last upgrade! He continued when I hesitated. “Priorities! Get your head in the game.”
Liam wasn’t wrong. I returned my attention to the platyhawks. While Morpheus and Miley kept the queen busy, Winnie had climbed back on top of the queen. I watched him extend a long skinny spike from his left paw before plunging it into her eye. The spike missed but sank into the flesh under the socket. Winnie had found a weak spot!
