Heinz was first to the meeting spot and strangely enough, he felt great.
It had been a busy day. He’d burned down a town, fought Swarm and suffered through a meeting but it didn’t feel like that as he leaned against his van and listened to the lapping waves.
There was no one reason why he felt so good. It was a combination of things. Satisfaction at a job well done, even if it wasn’t a job he wanted. Relief from the augment pain, pain that had taken his stiff shoulder with it as it left. Time spent with Rosa. Clarity from a short meditation nap. His problems and concerns weren’t gone. He was still worried about his ever ticking clock, the unknown that awaited on the other side of Innishannon and his fears for his friends right here in Kinmore. Right now though, he was calm.
It seemed to be a sentiment shared this night as Tara rocked up waving her left arm high in the sky. An arm free of bandages and splints.
“It’s still stiff but I figured something out about the second healing augment,” Tara explained. Closing her eyes, she set her stance like she was about to catch a ball.
Heinz stepped a little closer and examined her hands, waiting for something to happen. Her hands were clasped tightly, palm to palm but beyond that there seemed to be nothing special with her grip. He might be missing something. Anything beyond shape and movement was difficult to make out in the grey and silver of the night.
Nothing changed.
Tara opened her eyes a few seconds later, staring at him excitedly. When she realised he was looking at her blankly she pouted.
“Crap. I hoped you could see it with Vision.”
“See what Tara?” Heinz said with a laugh.
“The Healing augment. When I concentrate I can feel it and direct it. I was talking to my parents about cultivation and I think I can do something similar with Healing. They couldn't see but they don't have the augment and..”
Heinz raised his eyebrows. “Shit.” He considered the new sensation he’d received from his own second tier augment. “Want to try teach me?”
Shane arrived next without much fanfare. He gave them a grunt in greeting and placed his and Louise’s bags into the van.
Heinz raised an eyebrow at this but Shane gave a small shake of his head and settled in to watch Tara trying to guide Heinz.
She wasn’t having much success.
Her instruction was better than Shane’s had been for the Adrenaline augment, but it was even vaguer if that was possible. They had issues from the get go. Tara had a lot more words and gestures to describe her feeling - which seemed to be centred around her arms and hands. It was enough to make Heinz doubt their augments, Healing or not, felt the same at all but not enough to guide him to the right place with his own. Heinz's feeling was vague and to him, a lot harder to grasp or describe.
Tara had gained a startling amount of control over her augment in two days.
He could also just be bad at this. It wouldn't be the first thing he'd ever struggled to pick up. He’d taken a long time to grasp the first Adrenaline augment and he still didn’t have a perfect grasp of it. Thankfully Shane didn’t seem to be having an easier time with Tara's lesson.
Phil was the next to arrive and he did not look so relaxed. After a grunted greeting, he placed his bag into the boot and moved to the water’s edge. He remained there staring out as Tara started up again. The augment talk didn't catch his attention at all.
The ocean was odd to look at with the night vision from the augment. The front of each wave was bright but the water itself was empty, devoid of any colour, even black. Phil however, didn’t seem to be appreciating the view. Heinz had been waiting for him to test out his new augment but it didn’t seem to be a good time.
Louise arrived with a surprise. She wheeled a bag behind her and had another over her shoulder.
“Shane and I won’t be coming back.”
Heinz rubbed his face. The great feeling was starting to disappear. “You’re staying in Innishannon then?”
Louise opened her mouth to reply but Shane beat her to it. “Yes.”
Louise rolled her eyes and expanded on that. “We want to focus on getting to Cork.”
“That’s good to know,” Tara replied with a frown. It seemed Heinz wasn’t the only one who wasn’t asked. Tara didn’t sound like a fan of the last minute announcement either.
If Tara was upset, then Phil was sure to be-
“Shall we go?” Phil asked softly. His hand was on the handle of the passenger door already.
The drive over was quiet. Those in the boot didn’t make much noise. The front cabin was just as dead.
As hard as Heinz tried, Phil couldn’t be dragged into any kind of conversation. The most Heinz could get out of him was that he wasn’t also staying in Innishannon. Even attempts to discuss augments didn’t work.
They weren’t disturbed until they reached the bridge over the river to Innishannon. Heinz and Phil were recognised by the guards but he was glad to see that they weren’t let through immediately. The guards only started to move the blockage when a nervous looking man gave them thumbs.
They had less trouble on the other side of the town and were back on the road again.
Their speedy travel didn’t last. Mid way through the next zone, I38-GW, abandoned cars started to clog up the road. Heinz was able to weave between them but it was a sign of the end. This was the main road between Cork city and the west side of the country and it was a busy one.
Innishannon had started reclaiming the cars, and the resources inside them, but it was slow work. The cars may have the keys still inside but if Heinz's experience held true, not one had a running battery.
They came to a complete stop before the Halfway roundabout. The cars here had crashed into each other after the teleportation and the verge was just as bad. It was as far as the van would go.
Phil slid out of the car without a word.
The rest of the team was more talkative.
“We’re only 10? 15? kilometres from the city! I had no idea Innishannon had come so far,” Tara said with a grin.
This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.
It seemed the drive was long enough to resolve whatever issue she had with Louise and Shane.
“Four zones,” Louise whispered.
“Shall we go?” Phil asked, breaking up the gathering before it could begin.
As they walked through the pile up towards the roundabout and town alongside it, Heinz revealed his new augment to the group.
Shane, Tara and even Phil followed suit.
Shane had picked up Adrenaline II. As usual he didn’t have much to say beyond a muttered “Hard to control.”
Tara had gone for something unexpected. Combustant I, and Breathing I to support it. She didn’t seem eager to demonstrate the augment but revealed it worked as described. Heinz hadn’t thought any of them had enough credits to buy multiple augments but Tara’s parents had not been idle. Credits were slowly earned by Cultivators but everything added up.
Phil gruffly reported he had gotten Camouflage I and left it at that.
Heinz felt a bit guilty that Phil had gone for one of the augments that would have been great as a team, but well, Phil was the only one who did.
The town of Halfway had, ironically, been split in half by the wall. Several houses had been bisected including the local garda station. The group didn’t stop to check the houses. They got into position, put their helmets on and checked each other’s gear. Louise counted them down and then they were pushing through the purple haze of a wall.
There was no time for rest on the other side.
“Swarm front,” Shane called but there was little point to the warning. It was impossible to miss the creature. Broken buildings framed the swarm as it turned to face then.
This Elemental was bigger than the one that they had faced in the Clogagh graveyard. While that one’s torso had been the size of a shed, this one’s was the size of a caravan. Its tail swept to the side as it turned and crumpled an SUV.
“Same as last time,“ Louise shouted quickly. ”Heinz and Phil to the front. Shane and Tara with me. We’ll stab the legs when it lunges. Watch out for the tail and rolling.”
They moved.
Heinz and Phil had less distance to travel as the creature was already turning to face the five. It moved as slowly as the previous one but size granted a speed of its own.
Louise, Shane and Tara split off to the left, heading behind a building to loop around to its back.
The Elemental began to turn after them and the movement.
Heinz grabbed a chunk of rubble from the ground and chucked it. The rock shattered on its rugged grey plates without any effect but it was enough to keep the creature’s attention.
“No more broken arms,” Tara shouted before disappearing from sight.
“Ready?” Heinz said to Phil.
Phil grimaced and advanced. The two of them began to dance.
Phil lingered close, too close in Heinz’s mind, and struck whenever the creature opened its mouth to snap at them or block access to its forehead. His spear penetrated but the creature gave no sign of discomfort. When the creature’s mouth closed it was Heinz’s turn. He would dart forward and smash down at a plate on the left of the creature’s forehead. His halberd’s counterweight sent shards flying but this Elemental’s plates were thicker. Tougher.
There was a lot of yelling from the back of the creature but no orders to back off.
Ten blows later the plate had only begun to crack. The Elemental had shown no sign of a lunge. It was weathering Phil’s stabs without issue.
The lack of progress was frustrating. Every second they spent trying to break through was more time that the others spent in danger. It wore away at Heinz.
Phil snapped three sets of blows later. He had just stabbed into the back of the creature’s mouth, so far back in its mouth that he’d bumped the creature’s jaw with his hips.
It was an unnecessary risk to get that close. The creature couldn’t move quickly but it could lunge and if it did while Phil was touching it he’d be crushed against the ground.
Worst of all, the stab had no effect.
Phil let out a pained laugh and thankfully, pulled his spear out from the creature’s mouth before he began beating its head with his shield. Seconds later he tossed his spear aside. Phil slammed wood and corrugated iron against the rugged plates with both hands.
Clang by clang the metal began to bend and the wood crack.
From Heinz’s position he could see the creature’s forelegs shift and begin to raise. Phil couldn’t, even if he hadn’t been fully focused on destroying his shield.
Heinz ran forward and grabbed the top of Phil’s bag and jacket. He pulled and jumped back.
The bag followed. With a rip Phil did not.
Phil stumbled off to the side from the force of the grab and that was enough to save his life.
The Elemental rose slowly but crashed down in an instant. The craggy head that Phil had been bashing away at dove forward and slammed into Phil.
Already off balance from the stumble, Phil was sent flying off to the right side.
A roar came from behind the creature and the elemental let out a deep rumbling hack. The earth shook and dust flew as the Elemental landed back down. Louise, Shane and Tara had been waiting for it to expose its back legs as it stretched.
“Phil!” Heinz screamed.
He didn’t turn towards where the man had fallen. Instead he ran forward and slammed another blow down on the cracked plate. He couldn’t turn back. Not while the others were stuck behind it. Not while he was alone at the front. If Phil didn’t get up he'd call for a retreat. Hopefully the wall would stop it.
The Elemental opened its mouth to hide its head plates and Heinz stole a moment to glance off to the side.
“Phil!”
No response came.
Frustrated, Heinz twirled his halberd around and stabbed forward with the spear tip into the creature’s mouth. The mouth closed and he jumped to the side to avoid the snap before charging forward for another hammer blow on the cracked plate.
When he jumped back Phil was back on his feet.
“Heinz,” Phil called with a cough.
“Fuck Phil. Retreat?”
“No, just give me a second.”
Heinz ran in again to stab at the creature’s mouth. As it snapped forward he cursed and twisted to the side. He took a second to breath before darting forward again. “No more of whatever the fuck that was!"
Phil called a hoarse agreement and Heinz slammed another hammer blow down. A large chuck fell off from the forehead plate. Heinz put Phil out of his mind as the Elemental shook its head side to side and knocked him back.
Two blows after Phil rejoined him, the plate was gone and the flesh beneath exposed. Five lunges later the creature’s back legs were crippled.
Louise, Shane and Tara joined them at the front and together they finished the creature off.
User I38-3NA5 - Fighter
Sprout Bounty
Credits
10
Heinz shoved the message away and rounded on Phil.
“What the hell was that? You have a death wish?”
Phil collapsed onto a piece of rubble and rubbed his left side. “I hate it.”
“What?" Heinz snapped. "The Elemental? So what?”
Phil shook his head. “No, the system. All of it.” He reached down and grabbing a ripped handle, dragged his bag closed . Reaching inside he grabbed the notebook that he was always writing in and threw it on the dusty and rubble covered floor. “I hate it.”
Heinz slammed his halberd against the floor and threw his hands up. He shook his head and looked at the others. “He’s lost it. Half way through the fight he decided to start bashing the bloody things head in with his shield.”
Louise, Shane and Tara were watching the two of them warily. They looked a lot more exhausted and dusty than he or Phil but none of them had received any injuries.
“Phil, what are you talking about?” Louise asked slowly.
Phil’s face crumbled. He stared at her like he was about to cry. “It was gone. They were fine.”
“Phil!” Heinz snapped.
“It came back in the evening. Faster than last time,” Phil said, voice growing hoarser still staring at Louise. “It’s not something new. It’s me.”
Louise darted forward and grabbed his head with both hands.
“Phil focus. What are you talking about?”
“It’s me. The rash. I’m making them sick. It’s us. It’s the system.”