by Pal, J
“By Mario’s moustache.” David gasped. “This boss has a second-stage.”
“What the hell does that mean?” Anna asked. She fired another golden projectile, but it pinged off the biometal armor.
“The platyhawk males often have parts called plasma absorbers and plasma chargers,” I explained while running a dozen scenarios in my head. My heart rate finally picked up. My friends were potentially in danger now.
“This guy isn’t just working off plasma though,” Liam said. “He’s taking all ambient flames, heat, and the energy from Anna’s arrow too. Matt, check him out with thermal imaging.”
I did as requested. His body was going from red to orange and back again. When I deactivated the filter and zoomed in, I could see the emperor’s skin cracking and the flesh underneath burning too.
“This doesn’t look good,” I said. “We need to get out of here.”
“We can take him!” David exclaimed. “All the others are dead—”
“Once platyhawks realize they’re done for, they go wild. His Majesty, here, is burning himself alive to power up. It has to be a last-ditch effort attack!”
“Are you sure—”
“It’s how I lost my bloody arm, David. I know what I’m talking about.” I felt terrible about my harsh tone straight away, but we didn’t have time for apologies or better explanations. The emperor had his eyes set on where Anna, David, and Caitlin stood. “I want you lot to run. Kitty, have Diesel run interference. Liam, you help out from range and then get out through the ceiling.”
“We’re retreating then?” Anna asked. I could see from the distance that she had another arrow charged up. This one wasn’t just swirling golden energy but had red mixed in too. It was like a tornado of light had formed around the thick biometal bolt. “I bet the emperor won’t stand up to this.” Her voice sounded labored; she was pouring too much into the shot.
“Damn it, Anna. We’re not here to tire ourselves out. Fire that arrow and run.”
When she released the projectile, it left a trail of light behind it, much like a shot from my Coil Gun. It hit the emperor’s back and exploded. If not for my goggles, I would’ve been blinded.
“What the hell was that?” The shockwave from the blast threw us all back and him up through the stadium’s open roof.
A dust cloud hid where the platyhawk king had been standing. My heart jumped into my throat when an ear-piercing screech filled the area. A blast of air blew the dust away. The emperor stood with his wing’s spread; all the eggs under him were still intact. Nothing remained of the rest. Blood poured from all over his body, and only fragments of his biometal armor were left.
“Anna collapsed,” David said. “I’m getting her out of here.”
“Caitlin, you go with them,” I said. “Give her a once over, use the blood pressure monitor if you must. We’ll take care of this.”
“What happened to retreat?” Kitty asked.
“Anna just created an opening for us,” I answered. “We’d be stupid not to put it to use.”
“Roger,” she and Liam replied. Seconds later, Caitlin did the same.
Diesel was already running straight at him. The bleeding emperor flapped his wings to chase after the trio fleeing out of the stadium’s central space, but he failed to take off the ground. First, the three-meter tall golem grabbed his legs. Then Miley coated the limbs in liquid metal and helped strengthen the grip. The giant platyhawk flapped his wings hard, lifting all of them off the ground, but their combined weight made it impossible to take off. Then Morpheus rolled around to the creature’s front and bathed its face in flames.
Liam and I peppered it with shots, but it wasn’t enough. The creature was the patriarch of all the local nests. Holding back just wouldn’t do. He shook Diesel and Miley off and charged at Morpheus. Kitty had the bike golem zip to the side. Much to our annoyance, the emperor didn’t chase her. Instead, he took off the ground, flying towards the entrance the others had escaped through.
Chapter Thirty-Five
No New Grooves
The emperor’s giant wings sent powerful blasts of air through the stadium with each flap. It made aiming nearly impossible. I was sure he would reach the escaping trio and end them when Liam dropped down on the creature from above. When flying became near impossible, he switched to the spider-bot mode and went into free fall. My heart leapt into my throat as I watched him drop.
“What the hell are you doing?” I demanded.
Liam didn’t answer. The spider-bot’s bottom changed. The rounded dome opened up, and a sizeable conical drill bit grew out of it. It was then I realized his mass was the same as when he’d assimilated both of his primary drones. However, the Recon Drone was outside, keeping an eye out for the locals. Liam had made a new toy to use in battle. The drill bit had the sheen of fresh biometal. I guessed the latest module used a platyhawk king’s gland to either enhance weapons or create temporary parts. The drill bit’s buzz challenged the emperor’s wing beats.
The platyhawk screeched as soon as Liam landed on its back, drill first. The creature dropped down to the ground. His momentum carried him forwards through the dirt into the bleachers. Diesel and Miley were upon the emperor again. Instead of just grabbing him, they used their combined weight to pin down his back.
“We’re not doing enough damage,” Liam said. “I’m getting through the hide, but it’s like there’s biometal woven into this thing’s bones.”
“Diesel can’t hold him for much longer,” Kitty told us. “His arm joints are severely damaged, and if he doesn’t stop to self-repair soon, they’re going to get ripped off. We’ll need you to finish this thing. Hit it harder.”
This wasn’t a part of the plan. To be fair, the strategy had involved getting in quietly and killing one boss while it slept. We weren’t prepared for a mass of bosses and elites but still had prevailed. I needed to give up on the idea of conserving energy if we wanted to succeed.
While making new outfits for everyone, I had tweaked the lab coat too. It now had an improved shock-absorption mechanism. Liam claimed it wasn’t enough to absorb the Coil Gun’s recoil. I needed to either user non-Newtonian fluids to better distribute the force or resort to McGuffins. Whichever path we took would have to wait until later, since McGuffins were in short supply.
Now that Liam had brought the emperor back to ground-level, I didn’t have to worry about the wind throwing off my terrible aim. The prosthetic switched to the Coil Gun, forming a long, narrow barrel. I had to use my left arm and nestle it on the armrest between two seats for support. Liam had spent some time explaining the exact science behind my newest weapon. Power wasn’t everything. Coil Guns relied on projectiles accelerating down a long tube with magnetized rings at regular intervals: the longer the tube, the more significant the acceleration. Liam believed the only reason I was reaching current damage levels was because the McGuffins were distorting the space within the prosthetic.
The weapon hummed louder as it charged up, and I dreaded the growing vibrations around my shoulder. Much to my surprise, Winnie hopped onto my back. He stretched his leathery teddy bear arms and wrapped around the shaking limb. Was this the bear acting of his volition or Kitty controlling him? It didn’t matter. I fired.
After dozens of missed shots that had gotten my friends hurt or almost killed, I was glad the projectile didn’t miss. It wasn’t as powerful as the first Coil Gun projectile I had used but still had an orange trail in its wake. My shoulder discomfort was minimal as well. Winnie had absorbed the bulk of the force. There was no show of gore or satisfying spray, but the projectile punched through the emperor’s skull and his body went limp.
“Well, that went better than I expected.” I sighed, falling onto my bottom.
“That’s growth,” Kitty told me. “It means you’re being a realist instead of an optimist.”
“For the record, Kitty,” Liam said, “you’re fucking badass. You’ve been controlling Diesel all this time, haven’t you?”
> “Diesel and Miley. Fortunately, Morpheus only needs to read a surface thought of what I need from him before executing directions.”
“I agree.” Deep breaths helped get my breathing under control. “Winnie too?”
“Yeah. Winnie does what Winnie wants now. He’s a lot more independent than before and more than a golem. Morpheus might be dependent on me for support, but Winnie is his own person.”
“What are your power levels like, Matt?” Liam asked. “Are you okay to take on the two nests I assigned you guys?”
“The Coil Gun’s power level is at 30 percent. It’ll need some time to recover, but unless we face threats like these ones, it should be fine. Let’s see how Anna is doing though. The plan relies on her doing the bulk of the damage so we can stay quiet.”
We got in touch with Caitlin and asked them to return. It would take a while for me to take apart all the corpses. Unfortunately, most of them were in such poor shape that the goggles’ “Disassemble” function didn’t light up for them. Much to my disappointment, the emperor and empress didn’t give me any new parts, but I got four McGuffins from each of them. Most of the other specimens hadn’t transitioned to full-blown bosses yet and I only got seven more, even though there were close to fifty bodies around us.
For the longest time, we couldn’t find the nest’s core. Then, while scanning the room, Liam detected an energy source under the broken eggs and dirt. The emperor and empress had buried it. We got four more McGuffins, bringing the take to nineteen. It broke my heart that most of the eggs had gotten destroyed during the battle. By my estimation, there had been close to a hundred of them when we arrived. Now only sixteen remained.
Liam summoned his Scavengers. It wasn’t just two or three that arrived, but a massive fleet of twenty. They picked up the eggs and flew out through the open ceiling. Liam informed us they would be traveling back and forth all day getting all the biomass and biometal they could. We didn’t want to leave either for the locals or the auranthers. If hostiles showed up, the drones would flee and clear out the other nests we targeted.
Anna was awake when the others joined us. She apologized before we could say anything. Apparently in the past President and Chroma would poke at her later if she didn’t pull her weight, so she’d wanted to prove herself. Besides that, Anna had hoped her self-imbuement would help her sustain the drain without collapsing. She’d overestimated her capabilities and promised not to do it again. Kitty insisted I give her a pass due to her age. If not for her, we would’ve been forced to retreat and lose out on our tremendous take.
We had a quick team meeting and decided to carry on. Anna had passed out from the mental strain after pouring more power into the arrow than she had ever before, but her stores were still more than half full.
The locals had seen us traveling and would spot the Scavengers carrying resources too. If the centipedes really got human-level intelligence from their hosts, they’d figure out what we were doing. With the primary platyhawk nest emptied, that was a large source of resources wiped from the sector. They’d rush to take out the other platyhawk nests, and we needed to beat them to it. In the end, the vote to carry on was unanimous. I trusted my companions and expected them to come out on top. Anna was the only one I still doubted. It was a good thing we’d be in the same party.
Kitty and I had a private moment before parting ways. It wasn’t a romantic one as I had hoped, but a request that I play it safe and run if things got hairy. She didn’t ask me to ditch the others, of course, but at the same time, requested that I prioritize myself over the others. Once done, she took one of the McGuffins. The fight had been sufficient to get an upgrade for all of her golems. Diesel still had a long way to go, but Miley was ready to graduate to an independent golem already.
Anna asked for two McGuffins, and David wanted one. I obliged. Their artifacts were vital to our ongoing success. Even though I was still working to trust Anna, I thought it safe to invest in her. Besides, I had Caitlin to watch my back. Even though she could be a touch rough at times, she had proven herself level-headed. I upgraded her Void Rifle with a McGuffin too. The total count went down to fifteen, but now I only needed six more McGuffins to upgrade my power.
Chapter Thirty-Six
From Enemy To Ally
Liam’s Recon Drone did a once over of the surrounding neighborhood before we split into two parties. The mission has brought us to the sector’s edge. It was another cityscape, and a scan identified the threat level as red. As far as Liam could tell, no one was waiting for us along the border. The locals hadn’t snuck up on us during the boss fight either.
“How do you have new drones already?” I asked Caitlin when she dropped a boom juice-filled drone. Instead of going inert, it followed us, scanning our surroundings. “Didn’t you use them all in the stadium?”
Caitlin raised an eyebrow, looking at me. She clicked her belt buttle, and a faux McGuffin popped out. She fed it to the drone carrier. The heavy breastplate and backpack lit up and hummed, coming to life.
“Didn’t you intend this as a function? Drone production speeds up when I feed the carrier.”
“Perhaps it’s your power that changed it?”
“Maybe,” she said. “It did change the ordinary tech that I plugged in. I wouldn’t be surprised if it did the same for your Creations.”
“Your power is bloody awesome,” I said. “Liam and I should look into building you an exo-suit.”
“As much as I’d love that, Matt, I can’t help but wonder why you don’t make something similar for yourself. Wouldn’t it make sense, given your technopathic abilities?”
“And lock me in a biometal coffin?” I asked, shaking the chill out of my spine. “Hell no. It might work for Kitty, but I don’t think I can deal with that. The Sonic Barrier Projector and lab coat’s shock absorption abilities give me sufficient protection. Once we finish this hunt, I might use a couple of McGuffins to build some shoulder and arm armor though. I’ve been thinking of employing non-Newtonian fluids for shock-absorption. Then I can use the Coil Gun at full power without worrying.”
“I don’t get it.” Caitlin sighed. “You made this breastplate for me but don’t make anything similar for yourself.”
“We fill different roles in the party,” I told her. “You’re our sniper and trap setter. Neither role requires you to run around too much. It would be best if you had passive protection in case something sneaks up on you. On the other hand, I fill whatever role the team requires. Mobility and speed are my focus. With time, I’ll upgrade my barrier to gain some passive protection too, but for now, this will have to do.”
“Fair enough, Matt. You do you. I’d work on that passive protection sooner rather than later if you insist on joining us in the field. I get it that you want to be out here and ensure we don’t get hurt, but if I had your power, I’d stay home. Drones and remote-controlled units would be a lot more effective.”
I laughed. “Don’t worry, Caitlin. If things go according to plan, before long none of us will have to leave the base. We can all sit at home and let the Hub do the fighting for us. Maybe I’ll put in turrets so you and Anna can continue to snipe people.”
“Jay will be ecstatic if you pull that off. Maybe put a long-range cannon on the roof too.”
We fell into silence as we continued our journey to the following nest. The goggles’ GPS function helped keep us from getting lost. It wouldn’t have been a big deal if we used the main roads. To keep the locals from tracking our smaller and flimsier group, we used side streets and alleys though. Liam broadcasted his position to me throughout the journey. They walked down a parrel road several blocks away. If either of us got attacked, we’d rush to rendezvous as close to the Hub as possible.
Winnie sat on my shoulder. He had his legs wrapped around my right shoulder, and an arm rested on my head. Kitty had done an amazing job of upgrading him. I guessed she had focused his improvements on intellectual development. Winnie’s physical capabilities had improved too
. The fight displayed his improved stretching powers and speed, and the spikes had better penetrating powers also. The increased intelligence also gave him better control over his physical movements.
Anna’s artifact continued to transform as they walked. Bits of bone moved along the staff’s length, forming little segments. I did not doubt that getting hit with the weapon, imbued or not, would hurt like hell.
“What changes did David make?” I asked.
“High-power arrow imbuements strain my muscles a bit too much. David added armor and support so I won’t have to waste too much energy imbuing my body.” Anna rolled her shoulder absent-mindedly as she spoke. “He used the second one for a wire function. Imbuements and my natural flexibility are pretty good for mobility, but not enough. The artifact can produce biometal tethers now. It’ll take some practice but should be pretty awesome once I’m used to it.”
“Well you were pretty awesome back there,” I said, deciding not to berate her for defying an order. “The platyhawk emperor would’ve been an impossible challenge without your help.”
Anna smiled. “I get that you don’t trust me, Matt,” she said. “The others filled me in on what happened after the mantis nest. I’m not going to make excuses or pretend that didn’t happen. That wasn’t Kyle. That wasn’t me. I don’t know what made Kyle play along with his friends or why I did whatever he needed of me. Ever since you took me in, things have gotten so much clearer. Maybe I’m imagining things, but everything, until Kyle died, feels hazy. Looking back on everything we did, I can’t figure out what the hell we were thinking.” Anna sighed. She diverted her eyes to the staff. “Apologies aren’t my strong suit, Matt. Instead of rambling, I might as well just come out and say it. I’m sorry we got our friend killed.”