I rubbed the side of my head, scratching at my balaclava, before running a finger along the seam of my implanted gas-mask. It wasn’t something I ever really consciously noticed, but it felt uncomfortable right now. Perhaps I had slept on it weirdly and I needed to get it cleaned and pressed back in place.
Mostly, I was sure it was something to distract me from the present situation. While we had previously agreed to keep moving, the recon report from Clara had us pause to reconsider our approach. Stress levels were high, and I was sure I didn’t need my higher-than-normal skill in perception to notice that.
A veritable army awaited us, clearly preventing us access to the mines for some reason. It only made it more obvious that we had to get down there.
The drone was currently scouting the layout of the area ahead so that we could properly plan out our entrance. Orcs or goblins weren’t much of a problem—initially we had to weather their initial burst of ranged weaponry, but they were quick to fold once we got stuck in. It was the addition of the mech that turned the assault from a dangerous but winnable situation into something deadly. The entrance was also thick with maggots, so the possibility of the metal objects coming back to life was not zero.
Roxy had been a stalwart leader up until this point, but it was clear she was starting to fray at the edges. Her wounds had closed up and would fade in time, but it had taken her confidence down a few pegs. The best tactical option for assaulting the mine was to not do it. Not now, and not with our current forces.
“Are you able to Dispel the magic on the mechs?” she asked me, her brow furrowed in intense thought.
I shook my head slowly.
[Even with the help of the crystals, the magic they are filled with is far beyond my arcane strength.]
It would be like trying to break into a bank vault using a jewler's hammer. I hadn’t been too focused on the magic side of things while trying to prevent Roxy from getting shredded into pieces, but it was clear that old magic had more weight and density to it. My own capabilities were thin and forced into my person - unnatural.
“I could probably get close enough to kill the maggot, if you distract it,” the Captain offered. “Dodging dozens of shots at the same time is something else, though.”
Belle drummed her fingers on her holstered book. “I can shield three of us individually, or use the dome—but then you’d have to stay close to be protected.”
“I can go without a shield.” Roxy exhaled through her nose. “Maybe we can keep Wren far back so that she is out of danger?”
[I will go without the shield as well.]
“Fuck you,” the super spat out, before realizing that was over the line for our League mission. “I mean, that isn’t a good plan. You’re not as sturdy as you think.”
[If I may, I believe if I can be allowed to play to my strengths, I can offer us a way through this obstacle.]
She ran her tongue around her teeth, considering shooting me down again. After a brief glance at the others, Roxy gave me a brief nod. “Alright, Gunquake. This is your rodeo. What’s the plan?”
----------------------------------------
Being a superhero was never really on my bingo card, even as I got closer to Roxy and grew to begrudgingly accept the League and their interest in me. That wasn’t to say that I liked being a beating stick for Boss, but there was some comfort in the shadows.
It was with this mentality that I helped concoct our assault. Heroes often approached a problem head-on. It was the nature of being good and bringing justice to evil. Your morals and fortitude didn’t need to be hidden away. When you were the criminal doing reprehensible things, you sought the safety of darkness. Your deeds had to slither past the scouring eyes of those who would stop or look down on you.
I was probably worse that a lot of criminals my group had met, just looking at the long list of people I had killed over the years. That wasn’t my past life, that was me now. If the League wanted me to bend closer to their way of life, the squad would need to lean closer to my darker side.
//Clara: In position, Gunquake.
//Gunquake: Confirmed.
I planned to ask Clara if we could get a grenade launcher attachment for my shotgun. There was a small chance that she would throw a cold towel on the idea, but I’d prepared a list of benefits it would confer, as well as my best sulking face. If my barrel was an inch wider, then I could just put them in as is—or if they made stick-bomb styled grenades that could work.
Stepping off the edge of a roof, I landed into a roll across the top of another of these rectangular buildings. Unfortunately, the mine entrance was part of a rare open-air area of the interior pyramid shape. It was also dusk now, and sunlight was fading. The corrupted here didn’t seem to need to put any lights on, which was bad for us the longer we stuck around.
My grapple clicked back into place as I hopped over an alleyway and onto the next roof. I felt as though I was on the cusp of something—and not just the violence a few houses over.
Acceptance into the League meant a smoother process for me getting tech upgrades and better utilities. Clara had already ordered the new buildings for our growing compound. Our cartridge fabricator was soon to arrive. The superhero Gunquake would be a powerful individual, whether I was bound to punching criminals in the city or mopping up dangers in the wastes.
The League thought they could juggle with knives, but I was fast becoming a chainsaw. Excessive and deadly. Hunger for growth ached in my core, so I’d be biting into them once it suited my appetite. Either way, I'd be taking off their hand if they got careless.
I stopped in place and pressed my body against the wall of the third floor of this building. Still, I couldn’t fault them for giving me something to whet my bloodlust on. They must know it would be a mistake to leave me idle. I leaned forward and looked out to the open area below.
Although I had to ignore a handful of maggots here and there along the way for the sake of stealth, I had made my way up to the back of the mine entrance. A small building that was built around the entrance on the northern side of a square space cluttered with piles of rubble, mining tools, and what I assumed were the remains of some of the residents that had been eaten by the maggots. There were plenty of those grub-like creatures laying dead and half-eaten as well, the two sides somehow subsisting off each other.
The groups of orcs were set up in loose rows, like firing squads—the four or five closest to the southeast entrance, already in position to fire when the supers came through. I was now in the northwest corner, just about. It was difficult to make out as much detail from the gathered forces without my goggles, not half because of everything being a more normal hue.
Still, it was necessary for the plan. Back in cover, I loaded up Triple shot and pulled a grenade from my vest. I couldn’t see the drone up in the air, but they’d know when it was time, even if Clara wasn’t there.
I took a long, deep breath. It had been a tiring day, and my initiation to have a seat at the League’s table was more involved than I had anticipated. Not that I had gotten too injured yet, which was a plus.
With the spike of adrenaline, I turned and fired down amongst the throng. Three shots of Smoke shot striking near the mech, before Reflex spun down my synapses, allowing me to empty the rest of the ten-mag of Smoke into the large horde. From my hand, I threw a frag grenade to where the metal figure had been. As I received a hail of return fire from the blinded groups of orcs, I threw the last of my explosive grenades out.
The flash of the blast illuminated the inside of the massive cloud of gray. Stone burst around me as a couple of shots came close. I pulled a Smoke grenade and dropped it at my feet. Time for me to get out of here.
I ran and slid from this rooftop, landing into a roll on the lower one south of here. Resting up against a low wall, I looked up in the air to see part two of the plan play out.
A blazing meteor dropped from the sky. Roxy with both arms ablaze with lava cratered down, my goggles over her eyes and as powerful a magic shield on her as possible. It was a risky ploy that she almost didn’t accept—but if it was successful, then it gave us a decent chance against the fortified bunker of enemies.
She landed in the fog with a crash. There was the clang of metal and she roared. I was tense all over, unable to see what was happening. With a loud growl, a dark shape emerged from the smoke—at great speed and a high angle, over to the south. I watched the inert form of the machine fly over maybe a dozen houses before landing out of sight further down with a second, louder crash.
Either the grenade or her own punch had killed the maggot waiting inside it, and then we removed it from the area. There was the chance it could get controlled by one of the random maggots in a matter of minutes, but it gave us the chance to burn through the rest of the army.
The orcs continued to fire at random, attempting to hit the super, but her arms had now extinguished and she went unseen. She could see them, however. It was enough for her to cause a ruckus before a trio of arrows rained down from the sky.
I held onto my hood as the wind power from the three projectiles combined, creating a miniature hurricane. The cloud dissipated as it was sucked into the spout and spread out over the sky. Discarded weapons and smaller body parts spun around, clattering and bouncing from the buildings.
And there she was. Roxy tore the head off of an orc, before straight up punting a goblin into a wall, causing the smaller figure to burst like a balloon. Briefly, I crouched wide-eyed at the amount of anger contained within her. Then again, she was being a volcano. Her power suited her to a tee.
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
I hoisted myself over the wall, dropping to the ground floor. Roy was there as soon as the wind started dying down. One hand blazing with electricity, he mixed in some of the martial arts to his attacks. Although he didn’t have the strength, getting hit at great speed was almost as damaging, if not completely disorientating, for his opponents.
Ren appeared on one of the eastern rooftops and started firing down at the enemy in disarray. Either it was the necessity of the mission, or she was getting more used to using her artefact for its purpose. Her bright blue eyes burned, while her expression remained stoic and focused.
I expected Belle to appear alongside her, or perhaps a different roof, to fire and provide shields from somewhere safe. Instead, she walked in from the direction Roy had appeared. No longer with rifle in hand, her magic book was out and glowing green. With a pulse of light from her back-mounted battery pack, a bolt of green energy swirled out from her magic tome and zipped off to a group of orcs. Although the four of them didn’t take any damage from the projectile, they each now glowed a light green hue.
My selectloader clacked a HE shot into the chamber and I blasted it at one of these marked opponents. It burst straight through his neck and then detonated in the face of one just behind him. The spray of gore painted the third, blinding them, while the fourth stumbled away from the small explosion, tripping on a corpse and impaling themselves on the crystal of their dropped rifle. Roy zipped in, a straight punch shattering the ribcage of the blinded one.
I watched as Roxy lifted up a long chuck of the ground she had pulled up, and spun it around like a cyclone, making a paste of a group of the corrupted inhabitants before she launched it off—crushing three more against one of the side buildings. As a shield washed over me, I stepped in to be her shadow.
Drum of Nerve shot got a good workout. I kept an eye on her blindside, debilitating and slowing anyone trying to shoot or move in to stab her. She would spin to finish them off, and I would fire in the other direction. Roy sped through to finish off the stragglers before carrying Belle over to us. The woman smiled and held her book up, the crackle of magic clear to even those without detection capabilities. A brighter and larger dome appeared around us.
It took maybe another two minutes of fighting before we had completely cleared the open yard, but by that point, it was all going through the motions. Once we reached a certain level of power and unity, there was nothing they could do.
I switched out my near-empty Nerve drum and put the metal ball one back in. Looking over at the group, they were exhausted.
Roxy was sweating profusely, which helped to clear some of the orc blood she was practically dripping with. She currently had her hands on her thighs, hunched over as she tried to catch her breath. Steam ran off of her.
Both Roy and Ren had taken it upon themselves to walk around and make sure everything was entirely dead. The amount of damage we had dealt out made death pretty easy to diagnose in the ones missing body parts or being smears of crimson across the gray stonework, but it paid to be cautious.
Belle had been reading through her magic book, as if it was something new. Eagerly drawing out… something—I wasn’t sure how that all worked and didn’t care to find out. My muscles ached and I could really do with a fresh canister. I would have asked someone to assist with the spare I packed, but my mind was actually occupied with something even more important.
My eyes went up to the drone, who was hovering over by the mine entrance. An open maw leading down into the earth. Darkness within, and probably a lot worse.
But what I really wanted was to know how we were going to steal this shit for ourselves. I had been assuming the League had been watching us, and they’d want to know all the details about what we had found. No doubt after we were done here, they’d send a cleanup team to acquire information and evidence—especially if they suspected the World Government had a hand in this.
We’d need to play this coy and see what we could get away with. I wanted as many of those crystals as we could carry, and one of the mechs. There was just too much potential that we could learn from it. A nigh indestructible blend of old magic and ancient tech. If I had the energy to have an imagination, I’d have all those qualities pasted atop my other enhancements.
“Circle round,” Roxy said, standing back up straight and grimacing. “We need a break, but we’re right at the end of this bullshit parade. Let’s get through the mines and put a bow on this before one or both of the mechs come back.”
“The third might be down there,” Ren said, looking over at the entrance. “I’m not a fan of being… underground.”
//Clara: I will stay out here and monitor movement.
//Clara: Should there be any trouble, I will inform the Captain.
Roy nodded and rubbed at his beard. “If it’s anything other than the mech, I could buy time for the rest of you to get back out.”
[Sounds great. Let’s get moving.]
I only had one Flashbang grenade left on my person. The rest were still in the quake-wagon. Maybe not the right time for it, but I wondered if it was too soon to whine for more.
We stood by the entrance. Mine cart tracks ran from here, but they looked either unfinished or broken. They weren’t set evenly and were missing many of the wooden boards between the metal rails.
Roxy held out her hand, and it turned into lava, bringing light to the area. I palmed around my vest for the seldom-used mounted flashlight. Belle was practically radiating green light from all of her crystals, while Roy just made do with the light we gave out. Ren just hung at the back and looked out of sorts.
As much as I wanted to tell Roxy she looked great in my goggles, I kept it professional with just a nod of thanks as she helped put them back over my eyes. I pulled my hood back up and glanced behind us at the night. It was unlikely the League could see us down here… but I wasn’t about to take the risk on that kind of unknown.
The strength super led us forward, down the roughly hewn corridor that sloped downward. There was a noticeboard nailed to the wall that probably detailed how extensive the caverns were at some point, but had now been painted over… or had decayed from the slime of maggots sliding out of this area.
In fact, now that I thought about it - the rock around us had a certain sheen to it.
“Most likely, this is the spawning point of the abominations,” Belle said. “I can smell the thick stench of their foul nature.”
“Here,” Ren offered. She passed out cuttings of her bandage material for each of them to use as face masks. “We don’t know if consuming it is the only way to become corrupted.”
Thankfully, my re-breather filtered out the worst of the smells. I presumed that I would be safe from whatever the maggots could do, and there was no point bandaging anything of mine up, anyway.
As we entered the first wider chamber, at least two of us let out an audible groan. Eggs or some sort of pupae shell littered the area. There were two exits from here, but one side was absolutely clogged with debris. Dark gray chitin and strands of thick webbing mixed with bones and body parts not fully decayed.
“A nest?” Roy asked, looking like he wanted to gag.
Ren shook her head, equally as nauseated. “Refuse pile.”
Not that I wasn’t expecting it to bust open with fresh maggots or something worse, but it looked as though the elf was correct. It wasn’t uncommon for creatures, even of low intelligence, to do some functional tasks, especially when it came to their home or reproductive lifecycle.
The second passage led further downwards, but was our only option. Our job here was to secure safety for Goldarch, but how far did that extend? We could probably kill most of the maggots down in the mines, but we wouldn’t know if there were stragglers hiding in the city. We weren’t pest control—plus the mechs were near invincible. Maybe our decision about how far to go was one of the testing criteria for our mission.
//25344: Report anything interesting.
//98231: Still working on how we can get out with everything.
I sent her confirmation that I understood her messages. Then almost walked into the back of Belle as they had stopped—Roxy had gone around the corner to find herself almost face-to-face with a maggot crawling on the wall.
“Fucker!” she swore, her voice echoing down the corridor. With her normal hand, she tore it from the wall and threw it down, stomping it into the ground.
After regaining her composure, she pulled a face at what the rest of us had been silently looking at.
Dozens of maggots, crawling their way along the walls, ceiling, and floor. Not especially toward us, but we were in the way between them and the inert machines.
“Can’t we just collapse the mines?” Ren asked.
[We have to fully investigate, I’m afraid.]
Belle rubbed at her head. “I think this is all getting to me. Either the stench or grasping at extra power has my mind muddy. Can you sense anything, Gunquake?”
[Other than our shared disdain for this place, no. I will remain vigilant in your stead.]
The silver lining was that the small creatures weren’t very threatening, even if they were visually abhorrent. It was simple enough to kill them as we went, and I was at least thankful that they didn’t squeal or make any other noise. I couldn’t imagine wanting to eat them willingly, but perhaps that was just me speaking from a position of privilege. As I didn’t have a mouth.
“There’s just more and more,” Roxy said through clenched teeth.
Sure enough, they were either trying to flee or fulfill their purpose in finding the machines. Their nest was clearly down here and destroying that would be part of our mission objective. We passed several other off-shoots in the mine, but they were all blocked with refuse. Almost as if we were being guided to this position.
And then, we found the exit. It was hard to see out into it at first, due to the darkness and dozens of maggots in the way, but our dim light finally reached the edges of their next.
Piles of refuse and their weird nesting goo had formed stalagmites reaching halfway up to the rough roof of this large cavern. The edges of mining platforms and tools could be seen poking out of clusters of eggs—most empty and decaying away, but some plump and full of life.
In fact, as we begrudgingly stepped into this room, there was an amount of… awe in the extent to which these creatures had proliferated. Aside from the piles of egg clusters hanging to every object and corner, the walls were thick with them, floor to ceiling. Everything writhed and undulated, aside from a small patch of walkable stone which was still thick with the maggot’s slime.
“Ugh.” Roxy put her forearm over her face to cover her nose better. “I guess we can burn this down, then? Can’t see shit here that-”
I noticed it too late. We all did, really—but thankfully I was the one to bear the brunt of our lax defenses.
The third mech burst out from our right-hand side, obscured by the filth of the egg clusters it had remained hidden. Potentially the long-term guardian of the maggots.
Lance lashed out toward me, striking my right shoulder. Shield was just slightly too late, but prevented the sharp tip from skewering me all the way through. It had bent some of my cybernetic arm, the metal folded into the muscle of my more fleshy parts. Stims washed through me to abate some of the agony.
“Dubs!” Roxy yelled, grabbing hold of the machine. It resisted her, unmoving as its other hand raised up, beam gathering energy as it intended to erase my head. I could see the super about to switch into maximum power. A terrible idea, but Roy was there to prevent it.
He slid across the slick floor and jabbed up into the maggot controlling the machine with one of the goblin blades he had taken. Not wanting to take any risks, he then grabbed and tore the dying creature out from the perch—and before I even had a chance to get the lance pulled out of me, he had slammed the expanding foam into the cockpit.
“I’m so sorry,” Belle said as she came up to me, guilt across her brow. “I couldn’t-”
[I am fine. Rockslide, I will need your assistance.]
“Of course.” She pulled the mech away and out of my wound and then stepped up to inspect me. “What do you need, Du- Gunquake?”
I moved my jacket to show her the impact site. Explained that she would need to put her fingers in there, cauterize the wound as she bent the metal back to the correct shape. Despite almost bathing in filth, her lava powers were a decent disinfectant, and a quick burst had her hands clean—if not a bit dusty with molten rock. The alternative was my skin and muscle trying to heal over the piece of metal.
Belle assisted with light as the super performed the impromptu surgery, grimacing at her fingers, bloodied as they dug into me. The other two killed maggots around the machine.
“It didn’t hit your synapses or anything, did it?” Roxy asked, as she stepped back and wiped my blood off on her side.
I flexed my arm and moved the chamber open and closed.
[Seems fine. Muscle movements will be slow from the damage, but I am functional.]
“Ah, guys?”
We turned to see Roy, who was frozen in place. He raised his finger to point at a wall further down that I couldn’t make out from here.
“You’re going to want to see this.”
Killing maggots along the way, the three of us joined him. Ren took out her disgust on a few more creatures before seeing what we were looking at.
A fourth mech, still half-buried in the thick stone.