Lead us in, said Jas, grip tight on his fire-axe.
Becca had her Bushmaster up, and her voice was taut with tension. Im going to drop down. You guys better be right behind . The edge is right where Im at, the drops about five feet.
Then she was gone.
Jas wanted to curse, to hesitate, but instead he slid his foot forward, sinking into the inky darkness till he could see nothing at all but felt the edge appear under his boot.
A deep breath and he hopped forward.
The darkness disappeared, and he dropped into a crouch beside Becca, who was already up and tracking a mutant Nesis 2 as it ca around a spire that pointed blasphemously up at the demon symbol like a huge, endlessly knuckled finger.
Jas froze.
The demon in the circular chamber was huge, easily ten feet tall, insectile like the Base Nesis 2s but engorged, its form made more complex with the addition of a dozen scythe arms clustered around a massive pair that could have cut a school bus open. Its head was a great fan of black gleaming bone that swept back in a ss of intertwined horns, and its face -
Jesus wept, croaked Jas, rising to his feet as Serenity dropped neatly beside him.
It was as if a score of Nesis 2 porcelain masks had lted and adhered to the demons head, so overlapping, others distending so that their human features were ruined, mouths bloating into black sars, eyeholes ragged or freakishly large.
It was tearing itself free from a great black thing, like a cocoon the size of an SUV, the entirety of which was webbed down with countless strands to the base of the spire and the floor.
Behind it lay dozens of people, their expressions slack, their eyes open, unmoving, their bodies covered in faintly gleaming gray patina of jelly.
Make room, said Serenity, pushing Jas aside, and Sarah leaped down with animal grace a second later, followed by Denzel who stumbled with a cry, then Bjrn and Joanna.
Sarahs bright circle lit up around them, giving Jas so asure of comfort.
Layer the shields right in front of us, he said. Keep that thing back. Ladies, shoot the shit out of it.
Both the Bushmaster and the Tavor were alive with the gray flas of Smite, and as one they opened fire, pouring burning lead into the huge Nesiss masked head.
The demon screeched, wrenched itself free of the giant cocoon thing it had been attached to, and leaped.
Both won tracked it easily, hitting it all the way, but it ca at them too fast. Shields shimred into existence before it and it impacted hard, bounced off, and fell to the flesh-paste floor where it landed nimbly, great limbs flexing to take its weight.
Serenitys mag ejected, she slamd a new one in, but the Nesis burst forward, swinging its huge scythe-arms, and tore apart the shields that materialized before it as if they were made of cushions.
Denzel, Sarah, and Joanna all cried out in pain.
Bless Jas! he roared and threw himself forward to prevent the Nesis from hitting the Protective Circle with all its might. Power, strength, speed, agility, and a huge reserve of stamina flooded into him, and his aura blazed bright as it washed over the giant demon.
Its ebon skin began to ashen, but not nearly fast enough. It swept a scythe-arm three ters long at him, but Jas ducked, ca up on the far side and hewed with his axe at the joint. The Smite-axe cut clean through, and the massive forearm limb fell to the ground just as the second pierced him through the chest.
Fucker, he gasped, then swung his axe and unleashed his last Sacred Strike at the Nesis head. The masks were already fragnted from scores of high velocity bullets, black blood oozing from the holes and cracks, and the Sacred Strike engulfed its head and shoulders.
The Nesis staggered back, withdrawing its arm from his chest and waving it wildly as it shrieked, the sound reminding Jas of nothing so much as the dying spider at the end of Arachnophobia.
Jas! scread Serenity, but he simply tapped an Aeviternum and felt clean white fire wash away his wounds and pain.
The Sacred Strike dissipated, and to his shock he saw that the Nesis hadnt gone down. Its upper torso was horrifically burned and mutilated, but with another shriek it leaped forward again and slamd its scythe-arm down on Sarahs hemisphere, which flared white, held, and then the dozen smaller scythe-arms attacked and the circle imploded.
The Nesis fell upon those gathered within. Serenity rolled aside, firing all the ti, but a blade punched through Beccas thigh and into the ground, pinning her in place. She scread, reeled, then resud firing, though her aim had beco wild.
Blades slashed through Sarah, knocking her flying as blood fountained through the air, and then Bjrn stepped up, arms spread wide, his eyes burning, and cried out in a voice infused with power, Stop!
For a mont the Nesis hesitated, then it slashed its arm across Bjrns chest and he flew to the side, nearly cut in half.
Fuck, grunted Jas. No Sacred Strikes left, and regular Smite wasnt up to the challenge.
Only one thing for it.
He hurled himself forward, his fire-axe coming up and around, and with both hands clasping the hilt he brought it thundering down and imbued the attack with an Aeviternum point.
For a second it felt as if hed stuck a knife in an outlet. His whole body went rigid as power flooded through him, causing every muscle to cramp, his feet to montarily leave the ground, and his axe disappeared within a spasm of white lightning that trailed behind the head in an arc.
It hit the Nesis squarely in the side of its abdon, between its legs and just behind where its thorax rose up like a centaurs. Jas felt no resistance; his axe passed clean through and slamd into the ground, causing the flesh-paste floor to crater.
With a cry he reeled back, his vision returning, and saw that the Nesis had been split nearly in two; it had fallen on to its side, limbs waving weakly like a dying cockroach, black ichor spilling out into the shattered crater that revealed the regular street a foot or two down.
White flas enveloped Bjrn, Sarah, and Becca. Denzel let out a cry of extre effort and fell to his knees.
Had he healed all three? No, Becca was conscious, as was Sarah. Maybe just Bjrn, then.
Jas did a quick head check. Serenity, Jason, Yadriel, Joanna, and Denzel hadnt been hurt. The other three were rising smoothly to their feet, their terrible wounds erased by Aeviternum.
Everybody was fine.
Only then did Jas allow himself to cease panicking, to turn his attention back to the Nesis, his body shivering from an excess of adrenaline, the shock of those awful monts easing.
That was embarrassing, said Bjrn, rubbing at this chest as he strode up to the slain demon. Apologies.
Becca stepped up to the fallen torso, her face scrunched up in disgust and hate, and fired three rounds into what remained of the demons head, then spat on it.
Sarah, you all right? asked Jas.
Aye, she replied. Shed dropped into a crouch and was slowly rubbing where shed been wounded. A queen, then.
Looks like it.
Serenity still had her Tavor up, was watching the tops of the walls around them. Guess the demons really loved the movie Aliens.
But it wasnt laying eggs. Jas hefted his axe and made his way over to the cocoon. What the fuck was it doing?
The others followed over. The cocoon was substantially built, tough, with black chitin plates worked into its surface. The spot where the queen had torn herself free was obvious, leaving a hole the size of a sewer manhole leading into the cocoon proper.
Becca produced a flashlight and shone it inside. Disgusting.
Jas bent down to look. The whole cocoon was hollow, a tunnel of sorts filled with black feelers and gleaming oily sponges.
These people look like they were pushed out the back, said Serenity, moving around it. Oh. They were passed through that thing.
Oh damn, man. Yadriel passed his hand over his frizzy hair. You think the queen ate them then shat them out through the tunnel? But why?
Up there, sir, said Jason, pointing to the peak of the spire. What is that thing?
Jas looked up. At the very peak of the spire was a glittering, multi-faceted black gem that size of a grapefruit.
Serenity raised her gun to it, and for a second Jas thought shed open fire, but she rely studied it instead with Deadeye. Its attached to the spire by veins?
I thought all this couldnt get any worse, said Joanna, looking like she was going to throw up.
Worse would have been us dying, said Denzel. Cmon. We won this thing.
Want to shoot it? asked Serenity.
No. For all we know it could explode like a bomb. Jas rubbed at his bearded jawline. Shoot just below it, see if you can knock it down. Whatever it is, we dont want to leave it there.
Look here. Becca had crouched by the base of the spire close to the cocoon and was gesturing with her rifle. I thought these were all just support strands, but so of them look like arteries, or sothing.
Serenity opened fire, strafing the top of the spire about a foot from the top. Chunks of bone and hard jerky flew, and then the gem leaned over then toppled down, tearing a foot of spire off with it. It crashed to the paste-floor, and Jas winced, half expecting it to blow, but it simply lay there, gleaming as if with its own inner light.
Joanna and Denzel had moved over to the people, were talking to first one, then the other, shaking them by the shoulder, lightly slapping them.
No response, Joanna called back.
Im all out of juice or Id try healing one, said Denzel.
Serenity stood over the gem, frowning. This is fucked up. Queen Nesis passes people through the cocoon. They erge whole instead of turning into flesh paste, but sothing gets passed through the veins attaching the cocoon to the spire. And more veins are attached to this gem, which is placed as close to the demon symbol up there as possible. She looked up at Jas, expression bleak. You ever see The Dark Crystal?
Yeah, he breathed. Used to love that show.
Maybe thats whats going on here. They drain people of their I dont know, essence, and then funnel it up the spire into this crystal.
Jas felt an icy bowling ball drop into his stomach. You think that thing holds the essence of the how many people did it take to make this place?
Serenity shook her head slowly. I dont know. Maybe.
Jas shivered and raised his radio. Stokes, this is Kelly. Were all alive. We killed a queen Nesis in the center structure. It looked like a composite of twenty or so demons. It was attached to a cocoon which was attached to a spire, at whose top was a black gem. Serenity thinks the queen was draining people of their life force by passing them through the cocoon, which collected in the gem. He paused, not quite believing what hed just said. Over.
There was a long pause. The other Crimson leaders would have heard his report as well.
Kelly, this is Star Boy. Another pause. Thats so fucked up shit. You got the gem?
Got it.
Bring it in. Ill have the boys at the lab examine it. I think its ti you got out of there, over.
We have a lab? asked Serenity.
Jas shrugged. Understood, Kelly out.
Everybody was standing around in so form of shock or other, except for Sarah who remained crouched, her eyes narrowed, her expression pensive but collected.
Serenity. Jas dug out his phone and held it to her. Record .
Now? Serenity hesitated then slung her rifle back and took the phone. Youre the boss man.
Jas moved over to the fallen Nesis, waited for Serenitys nod, and began speaking.
Jas Kelly here. My team just broke into the flesh structure at the center of the dead zone under a demon symbol in Brooklyn. There was a queen Nesis waiting for us. It was far tougher than regular Nesis 2s, but we killed it. We think it was passing regular people through that cocoon thing there, and sucking their essence out into the spire, which had that black gem thing at the top. We dont know why, but we stopped them.
He paused, montarily at a loss, then found his thread. What matters is that this is proof they can be stopped by leveled folk. We ca in here a mix of Level 5 and up, but because we worked together, we got this done. More importantly, theres a synergy that happens when nine people work together, and I think its got to do with getting the right spread of Benedictions. We were sharing the kills. People in the back working Bless or Shields of Faith were leveling up just as fast as front liners. As of now, were all Supplicant Level 1 or higher.
Jas felt a surge of emotion. What does this an for you? Get organized, like I said. Get into groups of nine. Were being given these powers for a reason and rewarded for using them right. Get a spread of Bless, Shield, and Smite, three each, and then have each person take a different Benediction in turn when they hit Supplicant Level 1. Were far stronger together than we are apart. If were going to win this war, its going to involve fighting in teams. Find your people, get to work, and level up together.
Serenity lowered his phone, and in her eyes he saw horror, yes, but also a bright and singular spark of hope.
Reviews
All reviews (0)