by Pal, J
Once near the bottom of the hill, I activated the Pogo Heelies and launched myself off the ground. The Grappling Belt helped me reach a neighboring building’s roof. I got in position and steadied the Coil Gun.
“You won’t believe this, guys,” I said as the goggles zoomed in on the scene. “It’s the raiders. The spined-armored locals are chasing them.”
There were seven of them. I recognized Blur and the once-handsome student president. The rest of the group consisted of one more man and four women. The closest local pointed his hand at the fleeing trespassers and a spike flew from it, striking President’s shoulder.
“What the hell are they doing here?” Kitty asked. I could hear her footsteps echoing in the background. She had to be running down the stairs.
“It must’ve been the chaos from yesterday,” Liam answered. “I bet they pissed Metalsmith off and that was her flushing them out. I wouldn’t be surprised if she and her people got the mantis threat under control. Imagine what she could do with a consistent source of biometal. How do the raiders look?”
“Reckon we should help the locals take them down?” Kitty sounded a tad out of breath.
“President is covered in blood,” I told them, studying the pursued. “They all appear more or less injured, but it looks like he’s been soaking up most of the hurt to cover their escape.”
“Are they coming towards us?” Jay’s words were barely intelligible over Maya’s husky babble.
“Looks like they’re trying to escape onto the hill. Hold on a second.” I had caught a glint off one of the fleeing women. I saw it clearly after zooming in on her. She had metal running along her spine too. It wasn’t just her. Of the seven, three wore the armor. “Something’s not right here, guys. It’s not just the raiders. There are three locals getting chased as well.”
President got hit by multiple projectiles and slowed. The locals were much faster than him. I couldn’t tell why Blur didn’t just speed away. The raiders were assholes, but maybe they did share some degree of camaraderie. Perhaps he couldn’t get himself to leave his friends behind. I couldn’t decide. A part of me wanted to help them, but at the same time, the bastards had gotten Rajesh killed.
Liam landed on the roof next to me. The upgraded Recon Drone made him so silent that I didn’t hear him approach or land. If not for the technopathic energy his body gave off, I would’ve missed him altogether.
“This doesn’t look good,” he said. “Reckon we should help them?”
“Are you serious?” Kitty demanded through the comms. “You help these arseholes today, they’ll screw us over tomorrow. Didn’t you want to ally with the locals? Why the hell would you want to—”
I stopped listening. Not because I intended to dismiss what she had said, but because the scene below went from bad to horrible in seconds. Flames consumed the local lagging at the back of the pack. At first I assumed one of the raiders or their new friends had set a trap during their escape. Then the man shot forwards, parting his companions on the way to President. He left a trail of fire in his path. As soon as he caught up to President, the local thrust both hands into his target’s back. Flames burst forth, consuming President. He screamed, falling to his knees.
Blur zipped back to help his friend. Unfortunately, the spike-shooting local rained projectiles in the speedster’s path. Blur dodged to the side, but much to everyone’s surprise, the local’s power wasn’t just shooting spikes but controlling them as well. The man waved his left arm, and the jagged projectiles changed trajectory, peppering President and Blur. The latter only suffered one injury to the left leg. That’s all it took. He didn’t have President’s hardiness. He fell to the ground, shouting and gripping his leg.
Instead of continuing their escape, the pursued turned around to help Blur. I couldn’t tell why the hell they hadn’t done the same for President. Perhaps they expected him capable of surviving the worst of blows. I assumed the speedster’s power had made his body light and fragile, which is why a glancing blow to the calf was enough to disable him.
Turning around proved to be a big mistake. The fire manipulator waves his hands sideways, and the flames on President’s back spread like a pair of large angel wings. It consumed everyone but two of the women: a raider and a turncoat local. All the screams blended into a singular, blood-curdling cry of pain.
The unharmed local woman’s arms shot into the chaos. They stretched much like Winnie’s, wrapping around Blur and pulling him out. The flames had consumed his left arm and shoulder, while blisters covered his face. Then they were on the hill.
“We should help them,” David said through the communicator. “I get it, they’re bad people, but standing by and letting this happen feels wrong.”
“I agree,” Caitlin added. The pair had not long caught up and had taken a position on the ground floor. “We don’t have to risk ourselves with the burning lot. I’m pretty sure all but the big guy are dead anyway.”
“Besides, they’re on our territory now.” Liam switched into flight mode as he spoke. “Probably for the best if we use this opportunity to establish boundaries with the locals. They need to know that they can’t get on the hill without our permission.”
“I don’t particularly want to fight that fire guy either.” I aimed the Coil Gun at him as the flames pulsed, devouring everyone but President. I couldn’t figure out how the man’s power worked. The fire licked at President’s skin but didn’t kill him. “Only fire warning shots. No lethal blows or crippling injuries. We only want to scare them off. Is that clear?”
“Crystal,” everyone confirmed, one after another.
I fired first. It took the Coil Gun five seconds to fire ten shots before it needed a moment to create more bullets. All the projectiles hit the ground between the spike-throwing local and the pursued. It separated the flame-wielder from the others. The attack drew their attention to the roof. Most of the locals slowed, but the flame-wielder continued chasing and roared. The fire coming off his body shrunk and turned blue.
Liam flew off the roof, flashing a bright pink light. His voice boomed through the neighborhood, amplified by the sonic blast generator. “Cease your chase immediately. If you proceed onto the hill, you will be trespassing on MAD territory. We will have no option but to open fire if you do.”
As he repeated the words in German, Kitty caught up to us. Morpheus skidded to a halt and transformed into his bipedal form. Winnie stood on his shoulder, spikes extended from both arms and aimed at the locals. Miley took up position in front of them as a rippling silver sphere. She looked the least aggressive of the three golems, but the mystery surrounding her added to the threat.
David fell in next to Kitty, his artifact in its cannon form. He fired a warning shot too. It landed awfully close to President and fire-wielder. The projectile exploded, showering them in the burning orange plasma. He didn’t have to worry about hurting the fleeing group. All but President were dead. We weren’t making assumptions. The flames had burned their bodies black and parts were starting to fall off.
The projectile didn’t deter the crazed man. All the surrounding fire withered, flowing into him, and he burned brighter. President collapsed on the floor unconscious as the fire-wielder’s shot passed him.
“He’s coming straight towards you, Caitlin,” I said. “Since his power is fire-based, your rifle is the perfect counter for it. See if you can hit his leg.”
“You said not to cripple them,” she replied.
“He’s burning too hot. The frozen plasma will melt before doing real damage. It will drop his temperature, though.”
I hoped I was correct. The man’s power had to be C-rank, at most B-rank. His power most likely drew from a source and, as a result, would suffer from some significant limitations. Caitlin’s marksmanship proved much better than mine. She fired two shots in quick succession. The first struck the ground just in front of him and exploded, showering him in cold and gravel. The second hit his shoulder. The affected bits dimmed considerably, a
nd the man roared again but slowed his charge.
“It worked!” I exclaimed. “Hit him again.”
Caitlin did as requested. Every time he tried to flare up again, she dropped his temperature. The cycle continued until he stopped a couple of dozen of meters from the hill’s base.
Liam repeated his previous spiel, first in English and then in German. The fire-wielding man looked back at his friends before growling at us. “Those were warning shots,” I yelled from the roof. “We’re neighbors and would rather not start off on the wrong foot. Let’s walk away from this without further casualties. If you step foot on the hill, we will have no choice but to retaliate with lethal force.”
Even though Jay had no intention of fighting, he parked himself next to Morpheus. He didn’t just have Maya out but a couple of giant Jack Russel terriers, a beefy chihuahua, and a black cat bigger than the auranthers. They didn’t move or make a sound. All lined up, we made for an imposing defensive force.
The fire-wielder extinguished his flame and took another step forward. Kitty shot a bolt of frozen plasma at his feet. The man hopped back, probably worried the projectiles would hurt without the fire’s protection.
“They’re ours!” He exclaimed, pointing at Blur and the two women. The German accent came as no surprise.”
“Not anymore,” I replied, stepping off the roof. My coat flared outwards as I fell, fluttering wildly behind me. When I landed, my knees bent instinctively, but the Pogo Heelies absorbed all the force and helped maintain my balance. It must have looked badass, because the fire-wielder looked at me with his eyes widened. I pointed my prosthetic at them and the muzzle crackled with blue energy. “This lot have given us trouble in the past. We’d like to deal with them ourselves. You can keep the big guy.” President’s chest was still moving, but I couldn’t tell whether he would survive or not. “Or what’s left of him anyway.”
The man sighed, shaking his head. He glared at me for a moment before returning to his friends. It was then that I got a good look at his back. The armor running along his spine looked different from that of his friends. Not only did it cover more surface area, but each segment tapered into a pointed ridge. Despite the flames he wielded, the metal had a silvery sheen to it while the others had a matte effect. Was his armor special? Considering how powerful his flames appeared to be, they couldn’t be from an ordinary C-rank power. Perhaps the spinal armor worked as an amplifier or limit-breaker. We’d find out soon enough—one of their own was in our protection now.
We watched the group pick up President and go back the way they had come. The spike-thrower brought up the rear, watching us as they left. As soon as he looked away, Liam detached the Recon Drone from his main body. It activated the camouflage function and followed them. Now that we had pissed them off and knew they were violent, we needed to find out more about them. Once we were sure of their numbers and location, we could assess how big of a threat they were.
“Help us,” the female raider begged as she and the turncoat local dragged Blur towards us. “He’s fading fast.”
“That’s Sniper,” Liam said, transforming into spider form.
Considering how big a threat she had been, I expected someone older. The person in front of us was a girl around David’s age. How the hell had she gotten entangled with such a violent crew?
Kitty looked at me with hesitant eyes. Caitlin didn’t hesitate. She unplugged the Mini-drone Launcher and connected the blood pressure monitor to the socket. Then, on approaching Blur, she paused. Burns covered the man and his left leg was bleeding profusely. She didn’t know where to start.
“I know we were horrible to you before, but you have to do something!” The raider exclaimed, tears pouring from her eyes. “He’s my brother. Please.”
Kitty shot him with two syringes. The wound on his leg closed within seconds, but it did nothing for the burns. The smell coming off the singed arm made my stomach churn and breakfast threatened to make a break for freedom. Parts of the limb had been burnt so badly they had blackened and cracked.
Blur’s eyes were open, but the unfocused gaze suggested he wasn’t all there. We helped the women lay him down. Then I showered his body with the Gloop Shooter. It washed away his bruises and the blisters on his face and neck lessened, but the arm and shoulder didn’t change. Were they too far gone, or was this a part of the fire-wielder’s power?
“It’s no good,” Liam said. The pink in his dome became clearer as he spoke. “His body is shutting down, and the pain broke his brain. There is not a single thought in there, just emptiness.”
“You’re wrong,” Sniper said, wiping at her eyes. She knelt next to her brother and placed a hand on his good shoulder. “Get it together, Kyle. C’mon.”
“What if—” Liam cut me off with a poke of his spider-leg.
“I’m not being a dick because he got Rajesh killed.” He broadcasted the words directly into my goggles’ communicator. “The guy’s heartbeat is almost gone. I’m willing to bet the Nurturing Field won’t do anything for him now. It’s over. He’s responsible for getting our friend killed. Let him die.”
“I’d rather make him my prisoner and put him to work,” I whispered so only the communicator would pick up my words.
Kitty and I didn’t stop though. We checked Blur’s pulse and used the medical devices at our disposal. Nothing changed. The man’s body had given up. Sniper started bawling and the turncoat local—she introduced herself as Helena—comforted her. Morpheus lifted the body, and we carried it back towards the base.
“What about the girl?” Liam asked. “She’s shot Pallav multiple times, and the little bitch is partially responsible for what happened—”
“She barely looks thirteen, Liam.” The mention of her age shut him up. “Let’s have some empathy and find out her circumstances first. I’m not saying we forgive her. That’s off the table. But we can’t just kill a child or turn her away. Dialogue is everything. Let’s see what’s up. Killing all probable threats shouldn’t be our first reaction. We’re not murderhobos.”
We all decided silently to bring the two new people back with us. I’m sure everyone wanted to know their story, but that would have to wait. We didn’t trust them, of course. Despite her age, we were especially suspicious of Sniper. She had just lost everyone she knew though. We knew even less about the local.
“Let’s turn the basement into a holding area,” Liam suggested. “We’ll put the two there for now. Can you use the Hub’s interface to put a couple of beds and a toilet down there?”
“It shouldn’t be too much of an issue,” I said. “What will we do with them?”
“We can’t just throw them out knowing what the fire guy wants to do with them.” It came as a surprise when Kitty joined in. It wasn’t that I was trying to exclude her. I had assumed that Liam and I were on a private channel. “Once they’ve calmed down a bit and eaten, let’s find out what happened back there. In the meantime, let’s keep the pair under surveillance.”
Chapter Twenty-Six
Prisoners of War
We tried to get Sniper to eat, but she wouldn’t so much as look at food. She sat in the lobby cradling her brother’s body for hours. We’d all suffered some degree of loss since the world had ended, but we didn’t know how to comfort her. Sniper was an enemy, after all. Her people hadn’t attacked us once but twice. Even though the raiders hadn’t killed Rajesh, we believed they played a big part in his death. First they’d opened pathways for the elites to sneak up on us, then they’d held us at gunpoint.
We didn’t have anything against Helena. However, after the display her former comrades put on, I couldn’t be sure about her. Winnie expressed more curiosity in her than he did in anyone else. Kitty figured it was the stretchy limbs. The little golem had seen the woman rescue Blur. He probably hypothesized that the two of them were the same.
After a while, Caitlin and David went up to the Farm. Jay left us for the Menagerie—the new batch of eggs were almost ready—and Liam ret
ired to his lair. Only Kitty and I remained with the newcomers. We didn’t talk, just watched them, racking our brains on what to do.
I couldn’t get myself to kick them out. Where would they go? The locals would most likely attack them on sight. Two C-rank power users wouldn’t survive long in the sector either. At the same time, there was no way in hell I could trust either of them in the base. They’d only been on the ground floor, but that alone was too much intelligence for them to walk away with. What if the pair got captured by the locals and tried to bargain for their lives? Wouldn’t any details regarding the Hub prove as valuable chips? They hadn’t seen the beasts yet, but giving out our location could potentially hurt us.
We used biomatter for the building materials and plant matter for defenses. Until we got water-based deterrents up and running, the fire-wielder had the power to devastate our sanctuary. No. We had no choice but to take the two in for the time being. We’d keep our eyes on them and limit their access to the basement and ground floors. I left Kitty to watch them for a short while and excused myself to the third floor.
The white glow had faded, and the floor appeared to be complete. However, it hadn’t achieved functionality yet. Unlike the Farm, the sunlamps were built into the ceiling. There were four of them, one in each quadrant of the floor. Their luminosity wasn’t awfully bright but resembled the morning sun in early spring. Under each sunlamp sat spheres similar to the McGuffins in appearance. Little pools of water had already started growing on the mud-covered floor around them. I imagined it would take quite a while until the floor reached functionality.
I turned my attention to the Hub’s Core. It turned out that the remote access would only let me use the traps tab—the rest of them were set to view only. I first invested some biomatter to officially make the internal and external cameras a part of the base. Now if any of them got damaged, I could replace them cheaply for no effort. Next, I added more cameras to the ground floor interior, exterior, and basement.
