by Greg Ramsay
Leaning against the trailer casually Lia voiced an idea, “I’m trying to find somewhere free of this madness too. Alphas are of no consequence to me. What would you guys say if I told you I’d let you take on the lesser shifted, leaving the alphas for my amusement? That is, of course, if you guys let me in on your convoy action. Assuming you still have the guts to roll out again?”
A brief smile passed over Steele’s face. “Sarcasm huh, nice! You guys don’t mind, do you?”
After a long pause and many poignant looks from Steele a collective “No” could be heard from all present, although not an energetic one; they clearly still doubted her.
Steele turned to Lia. “That enough of an answer for ya?”
“It’ll do,” Lia said. Why was that so easy?! A minute ago they were ready to murder me... Lia wondered. Dismissing the thought was her only means of stopping the painful turmoil in her mind.
Steele smirked coldly. “Hey, if you don’t try to eat us we might just be able to get along.” She turned to her troops. “All right, I don’t expect you to love Lia, but try not to shoot her until she does her part. Feel free to if she doesn’t.” She winked at Black. “Get these beasts fired up, we’re getting the hell outta here!”
A collective, “Yes ma’am” came from the others as they got in their vehicles, then checked their weapons.
John walked up to Lia. Smiling, he said, “Welcome to the party.”
Lia said, “Thanks.” She walked away brusquely so his smile faltered. He climbed into the driver’s seat of the Gas truck. Lia climbed into the passenger side of Steele’s Hummer. The powerful growling of V12 engines could be heard as the vehicles roared to life. “What do you think the most efficient route would be for us to get into Lower Canada?” Lia asked Steele.
Steele consulted a world map she had found in the Hummer’s glove compartment. Steele turned back to Lia then said, “I’d say we cut through Nebraska; there’s a small military outpost in Omaha that may still have some supplies. Then we can head through the lower corner of South Dakota. With any luck, we’ll have enough fuel to go right to North Dakota, make a quick pit stop in Bismark, then we’ll be there, smooth sailing.”
Lia laughed a little at the thought. “That works for me.”
She grabbed a CB radio microphone mounted to the dashboard, to relay the plan to the others while Steele stored the map. Steele took the microphone from Lia. “Everybody got that?” Everybody sounded off they did. Steele continued, “Let ‘em roll bitches!” Steele’s Hummer with Lia on board emerged first; the Gas truck fell in behind, Marks at the wheel. Black drove the Jeep, while Grant manned the turret. Lia had Steele pull over for a moment so she could refuel her original hummer then she fell in behind Black’s Jeep. With all the vehicles ready, they began the perilous trek north.
“We’ll need to replenish our fuel reserves before we can leave for Colorado,” Steele said over the radio.
“What about the alphas?” John asked.
Lia picked up her microphone. “I’ll deal with them, remember? I may even save you guys some weaklings,” she said in faux challenge.
“Well that is, if we haven’t already picked them off,” he replied.
Lia laughed lightly. “You can try keeping up with me, if you can still see me.”
Steele directed her comment at both of them, “Ok quiet down you two, let’s just get there first.”
They travelled slowly down the dusty road from the storage garages, scanning each building carefully with their eyes as they went. Increasingly, Lia couldn’t shake the strange feeling that somehow she already knew her new friends.
The tall buildings along the road stood quiet, draped in dark shadows made by taller buildings that seemed to tower above them. Lia observed every shadow, watching for anything that moved, or the slightest glint of sunlight on smooth black armour. The engine of her Hummer made it impossible to hear the only signs made by the silent creatures, like their claws wrenching buildings apart, or their animalistic growls. If the shifted ambushed them, the Leader within her would sense them, but it would be too late to warn the others.
Steele picked up the CB radio’s microphone from her dashboard. “Hey Black, ask Grant if he has any visual from the turret.”
“He says no visual on hostiles,” she reported.
“Copy that. Report in if anything changes.”
The convoy reached the small gas station Steele had mentioned, then pulled in quietly. There were no shifted in sight.
Steele radioed, “Black you’re first to hook up to the pump. Once the Jeep’s full, fill the containers. Marks, you start siphoning from the station’s supply. Lia, you cover Marks, Grant’s covering Black. I’ll pull in behind the Jeep to fuel up, then help fill containers. Everybody know the plan?” Everyone sounded off that they did. Steele said, “Get to it people!”
Lia grabbed her microphone. “You’ve all seen my armour, keep an eye on me as you’re working, if you see it come out then shifted are inbound.”
“How are we gonna notice that? We’ll be busy topping up,” Grant said.
Lia smiled, “Don’t worry you’ll notice.”
Lia set down her microphone, then drove over to a pump hooking the vehicle to it. She then got out of her Hummer and walked over to John. He had the tanker truck’s pump hooked to the station’s supply already siphoning gas. “Isn’t that truck going to suck up all the gas before everybody else can fill up?” she asked.
He laughed. “No, don’t worry about that,” he said. “This station has two tanks, so I’ll siphon from this one while they draw from the other. Once they’re done, I’ll drain what remains in that tank.” “Do you sense any shifted yet?” he asked.
“Not yet,” Lia said. “If I do, you’ll be the second to know.”
She walked back. Lia glanced around the station. Black and Steele had their vehicles filled as well as half of the gas containers. Lia noticed a small gas bar attached to the station and, on a whim, she decided to check it out. She yelled out, “I’m going to look inside the store.” Steele and John nodded. Lia made sure she had her kynari, then jogged across the smooth concrete lot into the building.
She pulled the dirty pane-glass door open, walked in, then looked around the room. Looted metal shelving units made up the entire room, small alleys were made in between the units. Looking at the bathroom door at the back wall behind the checkout made her feel uncertain. Lia hopped over the checkout counter to quickly enter the bathroom for the sake of efficiency, since the trip wasn’t necessary. Just as she entered, huge black claws emerged suddenly through the floor on both sides of her. She jumped up onto the toilet, crouching as she drew her kynari. Almost immediately the claws ripped the floor out from where she stood moments before. She released her armour; the Leader’s tendrils exploded from her. They ripped the roof off, also destroying the rear wall of the building as they flailed around her, forming a destructive storm of unstoppable razors to repel the shifted while her armour formed within. Lia hoped that would be enough to warn the others.
The tendrils drew in, then she carefully stopped them from exploding outward like shrapnel so as to not eviscerate her cohorts. With that, the armour was ready. Lia landed on one knee, her left hand in front of her. She had to backflip to evade a sudden attack. She landed before driving her kynari forward into a lesser shifted, her attack driving her into a huge dirt cavern dug under the station. When Lia looked ahead she could see two alphas with an entourage of ten lesser staring back at her, their claws bared. Lia looked around the cavern, noticing a large gas line exposed in the cavern that led into the tanks, then branched towards the pumps. Lia knew she couldn’t release her energy here or the already exposed pipes would be ruptured, easily blowing up the station above as well as burying her. Lia held her kynari in her right hand, gripping it with determination. In an instant, she moved so quickly she disappeared, reappearing quickly in between two lesser shifted.
She stabbed one in the back of the head then stabbed th
e other with practised efficiency. When three lesser shifted encircled her, she repeated the double stabbing attack. She ducked as the third swung its claws, then her kynari met its head. Due to the angle of her attack she could only rupture its lower jaw cleanly, so she deftly removed it then slammed it hard into its skull. Another shifted got behind her in the chaos. She jammed the kynari’s keen tip through its chest, then sliced downward through its guts. The remaining five lesser shifted came at her straight on at the same time, so she charged towards them. She ducked a swing from one of them to her right, easily kicking it away, then used the kynari to block a strike to her left by impaling its hand before tearing through it, allowing the strike force to carry it to the ground.
Before the lesser shifted in front of her could recover its balance, she slammed the kynari through its neck entirely, then dodged a strike from the lesser shifted she had kicked away, before quickly recoiling to slice through the other side of her target’s neck. She smoothly sidestepped as the other shifted tried to strike her, instead striking its dying companion. Lia jumped onto its back, straddling it like a bucking bronco; she held on to its neck forcing it straight. It struck ahead, attempting to dislodge her, killing another one of its brethren. The fifth lesser shifted attempted to attack her from behind; she calmly slid the kynari through the neck of the one that she was riding, easily retiring her mount. She jumped off the decapitated shifted as the fifth lesser struck out, perfectly aligning below her, so she landed hard on its back. She wrapped her clawed armoured hands around its neck and ripped its head off with a violent squelch as it roared in agony. The alphas stood in front of her, eying her as though they were irritated by the failure of their underlings.
Lia looked beyond them dismissively to discover another tunnel that angled upward. She decided she would try to lead them out of the tunnel, hopefully away from the station. She ran straight at them, diving past the scimitar of one, while claws collided with it from the other. She sped up and dove sideways through their attacks. Her feet made contact with the side of the tunnel, helping to leverage her as she ran along it until she was forced to jump into a tight roll above an alpha as it struck out at her. She kicked it hard with both legs and flipped upright before she hit the ground running. She spun around in time to block strikes from both alphas. Her kynari blocked the clawed alpha while her armoured hand met the scimitar of the other, stopping it abruptly. Lia released her block on the scimitar while she spun her kynari. Both tips sliced deep through the creature’s arm, almost amputating it. Kicking off from its chest, she wrenched its damaged arm free while tendrils sought wildly to reattach it in vain. She raised her free hand straight toward the approaching claws of the alpha as though it was a wide blade holding there until its strike impacted, then grabbed its claws in her vice grip before ripping them clean off as well. When the alpha attempted to strike out at her with its free arm she turned to the side, allowing it to pass her by before ramming her kynari into its face. While the alphas were briefly occupied, Lia ran to the top of the tunnel.
Thankfully the gas line didn’t come up this tunnel so Lia concluded it was where they must’ve dug in. Confident she was far enough away, Lia focused her crimson power into the kynari’s tip, pointing it forward as she yelled, “RELEASE!” The energy exploded forward like a laser, ripping open a dusty hole. Lia leapt through the hole into harsh sunlight, landing in a small field beside the gas station. Enraged roaring followed her out of the tunnel as the alphas jumped out, landing violently in front of her, their claws rending tears in the earth. “You bastards are beyond fucked now,” she said as she focused red energy again, but this time evenly between both tips which formed short focused blades on both. She disappeared and reappeared in between them, spinning her new dual-blade formation above her head. With only brief contact the arcing blades cleaved the chest area from the bodies of the alphas. Tendrils shot out quickly drawing them back together. Lia decided to practise a little and spun the blade repetitively, angling it to sever the appendages before they healed. As more tendrils shot from their now severed appendages, their midsection finished healing. Lia laughed while grabbing them both with large tendrils from her armour, easily pulling them together. With one spin of her blades she decapitated both. She re-focused all her energy into her normal single blade before slamming it into the ground in front of the headless bodies trying to heal, yelling, “RELEASE!” The energy exploded from her like a circular fire burning outward, turning the alphas to dust while scorching the small prairie field black. She walked back to her convoy.
They all stared at her dumbfounded as she walked up to John. “Where were you; weren’t you going to shoot them all before I got to them?”
He laughed. “I didn’t know I was supposed to follow you in the bathroom! Next time I’ll be sure to ask.” Lia cringed a little and John laughed playfully.
“Don’t bother, I was just looking for a mirror,” she said coolly.
Steele walked up behind John, standing still for a moment. “Your tank full yet, Marks?”
John stiffened slightly. “Nearly.”
Steele’s voice turned stern. “Well go back to it, and report to me when it’s done. I’d like to get out of this dump.”
John watched Steele until she was too far away to hear and once she was, he winked at Lia. “Nice work with those shifted; we’ll have to find another bathroom though.” Lia smiled, following as Steele walked back to her vehicle.
“No need, at least not for me.”
Steele just gave her a confused sideways glance before dismissing whatever she was thinking. Lia gently laughed at her reaction before getting in the driver’s seat of her vehicle, waiting for John to radio that the tanker was full. She grabbed her microphone asking, “What’s the plan now, Steele?”
“We’re gonna eat, then we’ll hit the highway and be almost to the edge of Nebraska, hopefully before nightfall. If it gets dark before we get there, we’ll have to set up camp somewhere easy to monitor.”
Lia acknowledged the plan then radioed John. “How much longer do you think it will take for that thing to fill up?”
“About twenty minutes, give or take a few,” he replied.
Lia radioed Steele again. “I’m starting to get weak; I consume shifted for food. Do you think you guys will be okay here while I hunt?”
Steele said, “Don’t worry about us, we can handle a few lesser shifted no problem. The alphas are all dead, right?”
“Ya, they’re roasted, I’ll leave the Hummer here. I’ll be faster without it,” Lia replied.
“Alright we’ll be here, maybe you should let John know where you’re going, Steele said with a laugh.
Chapter 13 – The Huntress and her Brethren
Lia set her microphone on the dashboard with an annoyed sigh before exiting the Hummer. Releasing her armour, she let the Leader take over. His mask formed over her face and they took off, nearly disappearing. A small whirling dust cloud was the only evidence of where she once stood. With the Leader’s speed amplifying hers, Lia soon found herself back near the apartment her friends used as a base.
Why are we back here? Lia asked the Leader.
I sense others nearby; they are hunting.
What could they possibly be hunting here? Lia asked.
I can’t tell, he replied.
Let’s go find out then. By the way, how haven’t I collapsed yet? she asked, acutely aware she should’ve dropped dead by now.
He sighed. The nuclear energy I absorbed from the kynari, coupled with its continued exposure to sunlight means my skin, your armour, now absorbs power from the sun.
Lia smirked. Nice, try to upgrade the solar panels then, would ya? Would save us all this tedium, she thought sarcastically.
Leader form Lia turned in midair as he leapt forward. He could sense the other shifteds’ increasing agitation. Whomever or whatever they were after was making it difficult for them which made Lia happy. Using the building below him as a platform, the Leader jumped off it. The f
orce of his leaps from each building caved in their roofs. Lia felt the shifted drawing in on their target; she could feel their anticipation. She hoped she would make it in time; the Leader had already traversed the distance of ten blocks in seconds; Lia could tell they were getting closer quickly.
The Leader made one more huge leap forward; he spread Lia’s arms and tendrils emerged at their sides. The tendrils joined, forming wings on the inside of each arm, which connected to Lia on each corresponding side. The Leader used his new glider style wings to suspend himself above the buildings, so they could get a better view of their surroundings. Lia was shocked.
Where did you get wings?” she asked.
We share a body, you can use my power and vice versa. It’s the same way with memories and thoughts. I saw one of your memories of crows flying above the MiraiCorp complex, so I used my tendrils to mimic a wing form, he answered.
Makes sense, do you see any shifted yet? Lia asked.
Not yet, but we’re very close, the shifteds’ anticipation is still rising. Therefore, their target is still alive.
Lia relaxed slightly then focused her attention on finding the shifted. The Leader turned Lia left in the air, allowing his wings to recede into his armour, then landed lightly on the top of a tall office building.
They are below us, he informed Lia.
I can feel them. Do you mind if I take it from here? Lia asked.
Not at all, I assume you would prefer to do this without my power then?
No not entirely, I’ll keep the armour. I would prefer to be in control of the power for the sake of restraint, should that become necessary.
Ah, to refrain from frightening the one we came here to rescue? he asked.