by Pal, J
Liam suggested the ideal team distribution. Caitlin, Anna, and me for a swift get-in-and-out crew. Kitty, David, and him for a more bruiser-styled ensemble to take on the hardier threats. Caitlin didn’t like being split up from her brother, and I would’ve preferred staying with Kitty, but I didn’t object. We needed to do what was best for the Hub.
Chapter Thirty-One
Living Defenses
I woke up before Kitty the following morning. My night had started with sweet dreams of my friends and I living the good life in the Hub. The Menagerie had filled the surrounding ground and sky with beastly defenders. Our plant-matter defenses had turned the building into a green beacon. It lured all manners of hostiles to our doorstep. The beasts and defenses killed them together. Then the Hub devoured them.
It felt like an ideal dream. We had nothing to worry about besides gearing up for taking down the tower. Once that was out of the way, we would move the Hub to a more strategically central location. Then we could guide everyone freed from Alvan control.
The dreams shifted into nightmares when my friends’ behavior changed. At first, they were just distant. Then they turned secretive and excluded me from their conversations. The dream took the final turn into nightmare territory when I got into bed with Kitty. I was caressing her back when my fingers touched cold hard metal. It ran all along her spine and disappeared into the back of her head. It was the centipede. I ran from her, and everyone gave chase. All of them had the strange creatures glued to their spines.
Every time I went back to sleep, the centipedes would work their way into the dream, resulting in a reasonably restless night. Caitlin and Jay had been out while we’d tried to take Helena apart, so they’d probably had an excellent night’s sleep. On the other hand, Kitty, David, and Anna were already in the cafeteria when I went down for a cup of tea.
“Can’t sleep?” Anna asked. Her new weapon sat on the table next to her.
“No,” I answered.
“The centipedes?”
I nodded.
Unwilling to talk about the nightmares, I questioned her about the bow, and she demonstrated it for me. After David had turned the weapon into an artifact, it had two modes. Instead of a bow, the base form was now a staff made of bone and biometal with platyhawk hide wrapped around the body for a grip. The biometal gland sat on the wider bony end of the stick. Kitty could use it to create a scythe blade, spearhead, or whatever she desired.
When Anna twisted the staff’s center, the metal and bone shifted and curved, taking on a bow shape. Two short blades grew out of either end, and the bowstring connected itself. That wasn’t all. Little segments of ridged bone and metal covered her bow-wielding arm from the back of her wrist all the way up to the shoulder.
David and Anna had discussed the weapon late into the night and decided that defense took priority over offense. Imbuer already gave her incredible offensive power—we had seen its effects firsthand—and mobility. By upgrading to B-rank, she had increased the potency and variety of imbued effects. While facing Helena, she had discovered the defense Imbuer provided was insufficient for the new sector. She could harden her flesh, of course, but it still hurt like hell. David had suggested they focus on defense and utility first. Once that was covered, they could look into improving the artifact’s offense.
The two suggested a Hub upgrade I hadn’t considered before. Once the defenses reached a sufficient level, they wanted a training room. I told them I’d think about it. A safe space to test our weapons, practice with them, and master our powers would make life a lot easier. It was a low priority project though.
After finishing my tea, I left the trio and headed up to the third floor. After investing in the newer members of the party, I only had two McGuffins left. It surprised me that Jay hadn’t asked for one to upgrade an animal yet. Perhaps he didn’t feel right taking resources away from people who wanted to contribute to our war effort.
I made up my mind to invest the last of our McGuffins in our base. My nightmares had gotten me thinking—the Hub was the best weapon we had at our disposal. It was one upgrade that made me think so.
Anti-Grav Transportation System (Biomass): Made the mistake of building a planet-bound Hub that’s not a transport?
The Anti-Grav Transportation System is just what you’re looking for. Your speed within a stronger gravitation field won’t be particularly high, but you know what they say—location is everything.
Anti-Grav Transportation System’s energy pool may be upgraded with McGuffin investments, allowing the Hub to travel faster and further. Lateral upgrades to the system will enable the Hub to lock itself in place no matter the altitude.
Biomass variation: The Hub will gain the ability to grow all manner of limbs at the cost of biomass. They may only be used for transport.
The base upgrade alone required five McGuffins. Several side tabs displayed the cost of improving the energy pool, the usage efficiency of said pool and biomass, and the lateral upgrades. There was no point in hoarding the McGuffins for it though. We’d be better off getting immediate improvements so, once mobile, the base had weaponry to take down anything that dared to attack us. Much like with the Balloon Pods, I spent the McGuffins with aerial as well as ground-bound enemies in mind.
Living Turrets (Aquaguard): Biometal and biomass mesh excellently well. The Hub will make the 3D Printer a permanent installation and allow the growth of plant turrets. They’ll fire biometal bullets laced with a choice of natural toxins, acids, and fungus.
After the initial planting, the Living Turrets will naturally grow from the Spiny Naiad.
Aquaguard will give the turrets and its projectiles resistance to heat, fire, and radiation. Lateral upgrades will provide it with the ability to shoot pressurized water jets or ice projectiles.
It was too good an upgrade to ignore. I needed to see them in action, but going by the description, aerial and ground attackers were now equally screwed. I invested two McGuffins in taking the upgrade to B-rank. Thanks to the Farm and Aquaguard, it would eventually scale to A-rank power by itself.
When I returned to my room to put my prosthetic on and get dressed, Kitty was waiting for me. “Winnie is ready for his upgrade!” she exclaimed. “The last fight must have gotten him close, and he just crossed the threshold! Give me a McGuffin.”
“Oh.”
“Oh?”
“I thought he needed more time, and we should be getting a big haul from all the nests, so I spent them on the base,” I told her. “I’m sorry.”
“Oh.” Kitty sighed. “I let myself get all excited.”
Kitty’s shoulders drooped, and I felt miserable for not consulting her first. Considering the power-up Morpheus had gotten from his upgrade, Winnie’s effectiveness in battle would double. Besides that, it would free up a golem core.
“Anna and Caitlin want to get in some practice with their weapons before we head out. We were discussing the hunt tomorrow. Reckon we could pop out and find a McGuffin ourselves?”
“It could serve as training for the—” I lost my train of thought as my goggles made a suggestion. It had never done anything of the sort before, and its progress excited me just as much as the idea. My storage ejected the item, and it materialized in the palm of my hand. “What about this? Reckon it will work?”
Kitty lifted an eyebrow, confused by the silvery pink orb. Her eyes lit up when she reached for it, and the light picked up a platinum hue. “What is it?” she asked.
“The system calls it an Elastic Core. I got it from disassembling Helena’s centipede.”
Kitty gasped, pulling her hand away. “You don’t think the centipede absorbed her power into a McGuffin?”
“I think that’s exactly what happened. Perhaps they can turn the host’s power into a McGuffin. That way, when they move to a new body, they can take the power with them.”
“That sounds terrifying,” Kitty said, shuddering. “I hope there are some hard limitations to it. Otherwise, we could end up facing a
monster with half a dozen insane powers.”
“Well, the sooner we take them down, the better. Can you use it though?”
Kitty nodded. “I don’t particularly want to, but we can’t afford to miss out on such an advantage. If the core can give Winnie Helena’s power in addition to his natural weapons, he’ll be a formidable asset in the battlefield.”
Much to our disappointment, Kitty’s power didn’t let her add any additional parts to Winnie during the upgrade. As soon as she offered him the core, all other material choices disappeared. We would’ve liked to improve the spike’s penetrative power and hoped the McGuffin would get it most of the way there.
The upgrade would take most of the day, so we both got dressed and went down to the ground floor for breakfast. Kitty didn’t join us straight away though. The ground floor housed the candidate for her next golem. It was what I’d been expecting when she’d made Miley. Once again, she didn’t ask for my help. She took the parts we had saved from auranther bodies she and David had brought back from a previous hunt and a biometal gland. Then she offered it all to the Iron-Giant-styled metal sculpture in the lobby. A tingle ran down my spine when its eyes lit up. No wonder Liam had wanted his team to assault the more heavily populated nests. Kitty was as good as an army.
Chapter Thirty-Two
Preparing For War
We woke before sunrise the following morning. While people made breakfast and got ready for the assault, I got dressed, armed, and headed outside. It came as no surprise that Liam was already flying around the building. When I waved at him, he joined me at ground level, transforming into his spider form as he landed.
“The 3D printer grew last night,” he said. “There are two printing stations now, and it works so much faster than before.”
“I imagine it’s been working non-stop then?” I asked, looking up at the half dozen turrets growing out of the Spiny Naiad. The barrels appeared one and a half feet tall. Not all the turrets looked functional, however. They seemed to be growing directly out of the Spiny Naiad, and I couldn’t tell where it would get its ammunition.
“More or less. How many did you set?”
“Twenty turrets took up half of our biomass stores. Of course, we could get more, but I’d rather have a stockpile in case of emergencies. Also, I’d rather have a contingency for the centipede controlling the guy. Considering the color of his flames, I imagine he can reach temperatures that would overwhelm Aquaguard and damage the Hub.”
“I’m glad you’re using your brain again,” Liam said. “Your bit about saving every damn person you see wasn’t just getting annoying, but scary too.”
“Don’t get me wrong, I still want to help people,” I said. “What I wanted to do was start a dialogue. It would help us get information on them and find out where they stand regarding the Alvans. I was wrong, of course, in this scenario, but when it comes to other groups, I’d rather take the diplomatic approach. Think about it. If Anna’s people had chosen to speak to us first, things wouldn’t have gotten so messy. We could’ve made a trade deal for McGuffins.”
“What happened to you?” Liam asked. “You weren’t as trusting—”
“Kitty brought that up as well, and you’ve both got it wrong. I haven’t gotten trusting. I’m terrified of what happened to Rajesh happening again. But, at the same time, I don’t want what happened to him to happen to others. Think about all the people who died because of what the Alvans did. We have the strength to help them and unparalleled shelter. The point of diplomacy is to figure out whether we can trust people or not.”
Kitty joined us outside of the Hub, handing me a warm croissant stuffed with molten cheese and ham. I devoured the entire thing in three bites. Perhaps it was the anticipation of the upcoming fight, but I was ravenous.
“That doesn’t change the fact that you’ve been rushing into situations without thinking about your safety, Matt,” Kitty said, pecking my cheek. She must have been listening in on the conversation without my realizing. “Your intentions are good, but execution? Not so much. I can’t tell whether you rush into things without thinking about it or if you’re just impatient, but that’s what cost you an arm. Next thing you know, it’ll claim your leg or life.”
“I think she’s trying to say that she doesn’t want to lose you, Matt.” Liam chuckled, and for the first time his spider-bot body shook with laughter. If it weren’t for the big brain sloshing about in pink fluid, it would’ve been cute. I was glad to see a touch of humanity returning to Liam.
“Of course I am.” Kitty wrapped an arm around my shoulders and kissed my cheek once again. “No one can say I slept my way to the top either. He was at the bottom when I made my move.”
“It all makes sense now,” Liam said. “You made the first move. It’s a shame we don’t have a doctor among us. It would’ve been great to have you checked out for brain damage.”
My skin must’ve thickened since the end of the world, because I found myself laughing at the jibe too. Perhaps Liam had improved his tone and delivery.
Kitty’s golems joined us too. Morpheus had absorbed the cart again, forming the four-wheeled vehicle instead of a bike. Winnie stood on his back, looking no different from before. I looked forward to discovering how he had changed and grown. Miley and the new golem, Diesel—named after the actor who’d voiced the Iron Giant—followed the other two out. He was a lot bulkier than the Disney version, especially the torso and neck. I couldn’t wait to see it in action.
“What can I say? I must’ve been dropped on my head as a baby,” Kitty said with her mouth full of croissants.
A pair of ankylopus stalked over, sniffing at our croissants. I gave them scraps of ham, and they took them out of my hand gently. It had been a couple of days since I’d seen the beasts up close and realized how big they’d gotten in that time. They didn’t just have the Nurturing Field working on them anymore. The latest upgrades had pimped out the Menagerie too. When I pet the side of their head, they leaned into my hand, much like a dog would. The velvety, hairless skin did feel odd under my skin though. I wondered whether the creatures realized or not, but I had made clothes for everyone using their kinds’ hide. They all had minor shock-absorption abilities.
We discussed the latest upgrades to the Hub and watched the turrets come online when the others joined us. Besides the new toys I had built for Caitlin, she carried her blood pressure monitor too. I already had healing covered with the Gloop Shooter, but having a secondary source didn’t hurt. Jay came to see her off. He continued to stick by his word regarding not engaging in combat and would remain in the base. If the locals attacked, he would lead the platyhawks, dogs, and cats into battle. We had Jay’s word on that.
“Winnie will be with you once again,” Kitty said. “Between Diesel, Morpheus, and Miley, I have plenty of defense and control.”
“What about damage, though? Diesel has no weapons.”
“He’s got piston fists, hands for grabbing, and his weight. I’d say that’s plenty for now. Miley is getting better at controlling the liquid metal too. We’re set. Besides, it’ll mostly be Liam and me clobbering the bosses and keeping them busy while David does the real damage.”
“I got this,” David said, beaming. “My multitool will crack open the boneplating and rip through biometal. Those platyhawks don’t stand a chance.”
“I’ve scouted everything out for the secondary battles, Matt,” Liam added. “Just execute caution after we split up. Remember, your team is all about getting in, hitting hard, and getting out. Between the three of you, you have enough damage. None of the crippled bases will last long against you. Just try to keep the noise down. Let Caitlin and Anna snipe everything down, and you’ll be golden.”
“We’ve got the Mini-drone Launcher if things get out of control,” Caitlin said. “If things get hairy, we can use wire traps and mines to cover our tail.”
“Just a tad anxious, that’s all,” I told them. “I’ve not been in a nest since…” my eyes drifted to the
prosthetic, “this happened. It’ll be the first time I head into a nest without you lot by my side.”
“Enough of that.” Caitlin clapped my back. “We may never have fought together outdoors before, but all three of us have several battles under our belts. You’re our scout and leader. Give us directions, and we’ll follow. Isn’t that right, Anna?”
Our newest member nodded, smiling at me for the first time.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Extermination
We moved down the hill and city streets at a brisk pace. Much to my surprise, Kitty had had the forethought to add padding to Diesel’s joints and under his feet. He had little trouble moving silently. His biggest drawback was speed. There wasn’t enough room on Morpheus for David, Caitlin, and Anna, so it didn’t matter. Walking was our only option.
It wasn’t long before Liam detected a couple of locals moving alongside alleys. He scouted ahead too and couldn’t find an ambush. They were most likely keeping an eye on us and biding their time. Their intelligence worried me. I couldn’t tell whether the centipedes were smart to begin with, or it came from the host’s brain. Either way, we needed to keep an eye out for them.
Kitty’s golems and their size gave us an intimidation factor. We hoped it was sufficient to keep them at bay for the time being. To be safe, Caitlin laid mines behind us. The drones went dormant as soon as she planted them, but as soon as someone got within five meters, they’d alert her. If a local dared to make contact with the metal spheres, they’d trigger, exploding or wrapping them up in sharp biometal wires. The added McGuffin had increased her drone carrying capacity. After planting four, she still had four on her person. They’d replenish at a rate of thirty every half an hour, so we didn’t worry too much.