by Pal, J
“How’s Winnie doing?” I asked once she had snuggled into me again.
“Just fine,” she answered, raising an eyebrow. “Why?”
“Well, I have an extra McGuffin. I’ve spent three on Liam, two on myself, and have one left. If Winnie is ready to upgrade—”
“It’ll take a couple more boss fights to get him there, and I’m not rushing into those any time soon. Either use it for the Hub or see if you can make something for Caitlin. It feels like her power is a perfect companion to yours. Plus, she made a major contribution to the Farm. It’s the least we can do.”
“You’re right,” I said. “I think I’ve got the perfect device for her as well. She did us a solid. I still think we’ve been pretty lax about the Hub’s security though. We have people and assets to protect.”
“What are you thinking?”
“I’m not sure yet,” I answered. “The building is pretty solid and recovers from damage fairly quick. A deterrent or offensive upgrade could go a long way. Maybe I’ll have a look through the D-rank upgrades first.”
“Probably for the best. I still think you should make something for Caitlin as a gesture of goodwill though.”
We left it at that and, after a while of morning canoodling, got washed and dressed. When Kitty opened the door out of our room, a small box and message were waiting for me.
The prosthetic is a touch too heavy for your shoulder. Use the supports until your body gets used to it. Maybe get off your arse and start working out. I didn’t want to disturb you since you were still asleep.
Going to be busy furnishing the top floor and making new shit, so please don’t disturb me unless we’re under attack.
P.S.: I have the drone out patrolling the neighborhood. If anything comes at us, we’ll know.
The box housed a harness made of several wide straps. The material felt very much like the platyhawks’ wings. Excited to try it on, I put on the prosthetic first. The cylindrical plug at its base slipped into the socket and the inner mechanisms took over. The biometal rings rotated the metal limb until everything was perfectly aligned and then clicked into place. The process took a minute from start to finish.
I started my testing by rotating the wrist and then wiggling my fingers. My control had improved since the day before. When I’d first toyed with prosthetic, all the movements had been too fast and out of control. I’d ended up warping a door handle, bending two forks, and shattering a mug. The prosthetic almost did what I intended now. I suppose the human body has limiters in place so a person’s movements didn’t cause immediate damage or wear and tear. My new limb didn’t have any such hard-wired limitations. The wrist could rotate all the way, and the fingers could spin and bend in any direction.
Liam was right. I hadn’t complained about the prosthetic being too heavy, but he must have picked up on things others didn’t see. After removing my lab coat and t-shirt, I slipped my hand through the harness’s loop before fastening the bands around my shoulders. Thanks to the snug fit, it didn’t feel like I had anything on at all. However, my shoulder did feel more comfortable with it on. The Mega Brain helped Liam see things we took for granted. That much was true.
When Kitty and I went down to the Farm level, the others were already present. The floor housed a lot more drones than the Menagerie and was almost unrecognizable. When we had stopped by to have a peek the night before, the floor had been cleared of all pillars and inner walls. Railings divided the space into walkways and large squares.
Now the ceilings were doubly high, and the squares were full of dirt. The drones were running around scanning the soil or hanging from the ceiling, working on the new lights or sprinklers. The spatial changes were already at play. I couldn’t tell whether my eyes were playing tricks on me, but the floor didn’t just appear taller but had more square footage too. My upgrades were turning the Hub into the Tardis!
“How’s it going?” Kitty asked the newcomers.
“All good,” Caitlin answered. “We were just discussing what should be our priority crops.”
“Why would we need priority crops?” I scanned the area for the lead drone. First, we needed to figure out how the Farm worked. “There’s enough space to set down whatever we want.”
“That might be true, but we need to think about our staples and necessities: potatoes, onions, garlic. Then we need greens, fibers, and root vegetables.”
“Herbs would be nice as well,” Jay added. “I like me some coriander in my curries. What about rice, wheat, and lentils? Those are pretty great too.”
“They are, but not very space efficient,” Caitlin told him. “For the time being at least, we’re better off focusing on potatoes as our primary carbohydrate. But, in the long run, we’ll want whole grains. They provide just as much energy, plus vitamins and fiber.”
“You really know your stuff,” I remarked. “Were you studying agriculture?”
“Not quite. I used to be a personal trainer but did a few nutrition courses. The growing knowledge is more due to self-interest. It’s a good thing you have these little gray helpers. We’re going to need the practical know-how.”
The Farm’s drone leader interrupted our conversation. Like Fin, she looked different from the other drones. But, instead of a fin atop her head, she had wide shoulders and well-defined musculature. I knew nothing about growing food, so I took a step back, putting Kitty and Caitlin in charge.
After handing over the seeds, cuttings, and root vegetables for planting, we went down for breakfast. After that, the group made plans to go out and explore the buildings in our neighborhood and then the rest of the hill. When I asked how we’d split up our groups, they shut me down.
“You’re not coming with us,” Kitty said.
“Why the hell not?”
“You’re not in the correct headspace. Take some time to get used to your arm and take it easy for a few days.”
That was the end of it. I couldn’t get her to budge on the matter, and Caitlin backed her up. Then Jay and David lined up behind them, and I didn’t have a leg to stand on. They split into pairs: Jay and Caitlin, Kitty and David, before heading out. I understood where Kitty was coming from, but I hated the thought of them getting hurt and me not being there to help. No matter how hard we tried in this new, dangerous world, there was no way for us to prepare for every scenario.
After seeing them off, I went down to the basement to keep myself busy. I still couldn’t decide how to spend the McGuffin, so I turned to the Hub Core’s interface for inspiration. Several new D- and C-rank options appeared on the list. I focused on the options that would add to the building’s offense and defense.
Taken aback by the sheer number of options, I found myself spoiled by so many choices. Almost all of the available upgrades took advantage of the biomatter, Farm, and Nurturing Field. It took me almost half an hour before I narrowed the list down to the best possible D-rank candidates.
Entangling Brambles: What’s worse than brambles? Animated brambles. They grow rapidly, covering the Hub’s exterior surfaces, and attack all unwelcome visitors. Of course, your Hub won’t be the most attractive home for your residents, but they’ll sleep easy with this extra layer of defense.
Balloon Pods: Have you pissed off a superior force? Do they outnumber you? Then you need exploding traps. Set them free to float around your base or plant them strategically at the ground level. Fight the attackers on your terms, not theirs. Not only will these bulbous fungi explode in your attacker’s face, but they’ll cover them in burning spores while at it!
Toxic Blooms: There’s nothing wrong with chemical warfare when your home is at stake and the world is out to kill you. Don’t let the bulbs’ sweet smell fool your fellow residents. Depending on which variety you pick, they’ll paralyze, kill, or put the unfortunate sniffer to sleep.
Toxic Blooms didn’t meet the brief. I didn’t want the Menagerie beasts wandering too close and falling victim to the flowers. I’d have to choose between the other two if I went thi
s path. The Entangling Brambles sounded great. They would act as an extra protective layer over our current defenses and entrap anyone who got too close.
But after some thought, I decided the Balloon Pods were the winner. During the second world war, London had filled the sky with blimps to deter German air raids—or so I had learned from an episode of Doctor Who. Balloon Pods in the air space above our base and planted on the ground around it felt like the best option, so I locked it in. The gift for Caitlin would have to wait.
Chapter Twenty
We Are Not Alone
The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. Plant-based defenses would require minimal maintenance. They would feed on the remains of the defeated creatures to grow stronger and recover any damage. Unlike the Toxic Blooms, the interface gave me the power to designate friend and foe. Fortunately, that included the Menageries’ residents. The Balloon Pods wouldn’t explode if the platyhawks and ankylopus got too close.
I browsed through the Hub Core’s interface. The options for vegetation-based defenses were endless. There were upgradeable turrets that melded machine and plant matter, monstrous Venus flytraps capable of functioning as bear traps and monstrous pitcher-plant pitfalls. The prospect of the latter ones terrified me the most. It would digest attackers and turn them into usable biomatter.
Once I was done setting everything up in the holographic display, I stepped out of the base to have a look at the new installations. At first, I struggled to find the bulbs. I couldn’t see any signs of them on the walls. Then a trio of excited ankylopus got my attention. They stood huddled around a corner, yipping and chittering to another. The smallest of the group leaned in for a chomp, but the others snapped at the little guy, warding him away.
When the ankylopus became alert of my approach, they watched me in curiosity for a second before rushing up the wall towards the roof. I found a fist-sized bulb growing out of the wall. It resembled a raisin and housed a soft pink glow. When the light pulsed, the wrinkles wriggled, making me jump back. I supposed the bulbs needed time to grow and balloon up. I’d check on them later.
Things were coming along beautifully. A few more defenses of the like and we’d become an impenetrable fortress. Once the Menagerie beasts reached maturity, no creature in the sector would stand a chance against the Hub—not even the crushers! There weren’t a whole lot of the half-metal monsters, and the platyhawks would have little trouble swarming them.
Since we were prioritizing taking down the local nests, I’d soon have enough McGuffins to make devices for all the newcomers. Kitty would benefit the most from my Creations, but I would like to gift Jay a couple as well. Chances are he wouldn’t participate in combat unless things got dire, but I wanted to show him my appreciation for joining us. Besides, I needed to use ten more McGuffins to upgrade my power.
The little raisin-like plant doubled in size while I stood pondering what direction to take. Standing out in the open didn’t bother me. Liam had his Recon Drone keeping an eye on the surroundings, and I trusted him. The others were on and around the hill. If anything approached the Hub, they’d know before me. So I watched as the pink glow brightened and the bulb continued to pulse and grow. How big would it get? We’d have to wait and see.
The interface had only let me plant a dozen. However, the benefit of biomatter-based defenses was that they would grow and evolve with time, functioning much like the Menagerie. If the balloons killed something or a creature died within their range, the plants would feed on its body and produce more bulbs that I could place around the base. Depending on the materials absorbed from the corpse, there was a chance of the bulbs gaining additional abilities as well.
I loved the idea of incorporating something based off the bulbs in my devices. It was what I had intended with the drone carrier, but I wasn’t so sure about it anymore. It almost made sense to pour a little more effort into it and give the device to Caitlin. With no need for a power source, the McGuffin’s power could focus on creating minor AI for the temporary drones. Besides that, I had a couple more ideas for equipping Caitlin: a supergun to replace the hairdryers, and something that could potentially benefit her as well as me.
It was around lunchtime when Kitty and David returned. They had found several boxes of cereal, cartons of long-life juice and milk, as well as enough dried grains to meet our carbohydrate needs for the month. When Kitty climbed out of Morpheus, she had a giant grin on her face.
“We saw a person!” Kitty exclaimed.
“What?!” I had been lazing in the cafeteria, coloring my prosthetic black. Her words almost made me spill the paint all over my lab coat and trousers. “Where? Was it the raiders? What did they say?”
“Slow down there, tiger.” Kitty laughed. “Let me answer a question before you ask the next one. It was at the bottom of the hill, and I’m pretty sure the raiders haven’t made it to our sector yet. Liam and Jay would spot them sooner than us. It was an older man: gray hair and a crooked back. Plus he had dirty lederhosen on. I doubt the arseholes from our sector would ever be caught dead in something like that.”
“I get that. What did he say?”
“Nothing,” she answered. “He almost had a heart attack when he spotted us. The old bugger dropped all his cans and ran into a narrow alley. We thought it best not to chase him.”
“That’s great news,” I said. “It means there are people in this sector. Perhaps we can find them and see if we can bring them over to our side! Even offer them our protection.”
“Don’t get ahead of yourself, Matt,” David said. “While exploring the sector, we encountered some German folk. They kept away from us though and stared at us creepily. Caitlin said it’s our accents. It gives us away as outsiders, and they want nothing to do with us. I just think they’re weird.”
“Why do you say that?” I asked.
“I don’t know. They looked at us funny and had strange clothes on. Besides, when they saw us, they stared for way too long. Then when we tried to approach them, they ran away. Maya didn’t appear particularly interested in tracking them, and Jay didn’t push her, so we moved on.”
“I wish you’d told us this before.” I helped them unload everything they’d brought back. “We were convinced that the monsters in the sector had killed all the people. In all honesty, I miss having more people around. It’s too quiet.”
“There’s a reason for that though,” Kitty said. “Not everyone is resistant like David and Caitlin. I’m pretty sure Jay breaking free of the mind hack due to his power is an anomaly too. We can’t just trust anyone. Even if we find these people, would you feel comfortable trusting them enough to let them into the Hub?”
“I don’t know,” I said. “Perhaps we could turn the first floor into a refugee center. We bring people in and give them access to the first floor and cafeteria. If they pass a probationary period and fit the bill, we let them stay.”
“I’m with David on this one.” Kitty placed a hand on my shoulder. “You’re a good person, Matt. Jay wants to help animals, and you want to help people. While his rescues are easy to trust, yours won’t be. I understand if after what happened to Rajesh you want to go out of your way to save lives. Let’s keep our eyes open for these new people but continue taking it slow. Alright?”
“Fine.” I sighed. “But we’ve got sanctuary to offer. I just don’t want it going to waste.”
Caitlin and Jay returned after we had eaten lunch and gorged themselves on cold leftovers. They claimed having seen people raiding shops at the base of the hill too and repeated David’s story. The people the pair had seen were of varying ages, but all wore dirty or torn clothes. Due to the increased threat level, they probably didn’t have the luxuries we enjoyed at our old home.
I found myself wondering why they had remained in the sector. What was keeping them here? If not for our ambitions to take down the pylon, we had nothing keeping us in the area. I hadn’t analyzed the neighboring sectors, but there had to be more regions with low threat levels
. If I were in their shoes, I’d abandon the sector as soon as possible. Every creature we had encountered was much too powerful for ordinary C-ranked individuals.
Jay and Caitlin had done more than see people. While exploring an old church, they had found auranthers in the basement and slain them without any injuries. More importantly, they had found a trio of eggs and brought them back for the Menagerie. We rushed up to the fourth floor and passed them onto the drone running the show.
Fin and his gray employees exploded into motion at the prospect of a new species in their Menagerie. They took the eggs out of Jay’s hands and got to work, setting them up for incubation. When I looked at their incubation setup, I noticed the floor had grown too. There were spaces between the machines and more hands running them. This was all a result of the Farm’s addition! Perhaps it would benefit us to add plants to the ground floor too.
They set up two eggs connected to pipes that fed them biometal-related materials and the third to the tube that provided bone enhancements. An auranther’s biggest weakness was their lack of durability. Bone-plating would make up for the weakness.
After everyone had eaten, we discussed our next move. Several more platyhawk nests needed taken down. We picked the ones closest to the Hub and then went onto the roof to study the landscape. Following a little chat, we decided to focus on the ones growing around the main roads and escape routes. So far, neither pair had spotted any auranthers on the hill. Perhaps there was no underground system under it big enough for them to traverse. I couldn’t make up my mind and decided to take a step back and leave it to the group.
We had all made mistakes with Rajesh and Pallav and didn’t want any repeats. Either way, none of us were ready for another boss fight, so we agreed to take some time and continue exploring. Perhaps we’d find some nervous neighbors while we were at it and make friends. It came as a surprise that Liam’s Recon Drone hadn’t spotted any yet. Maybe he needed to increase the scouting range on it.