Mod and Arsenal watched from the parking garage as highlighted enemies converged on highlighted allies. Athena and Lucy were still holding their position in an abandoned office building across the block.

That was worrying enough, but now TINA had gone silent.

Mod would’ve chalked it up to her lack of processing power compared to before the war, but that was before they had to worry about a technopath like Midas.

Mod tried to keep his voice level. “Should we move to intercept?”

“Do not intercept,” TINA finally replied. “There is an uptick in communications activity across the sector. It is likely that other patrols are converging on the block. I’ll highlight nearby patrols as they come within range.”

“Shit,” Arsenal muttered. “How did they find us?”

“Right now it doesn’t matter.” Mod turned, quickly surveying the surrounding block. So far, Mod could only see the soft glow of trash can fires and the scattered groups of homeless people in the garage. There weren’t any more highlighted patrols, which meant they had time to escape. “TINA, do you still have those maps of Belport and the underground tunnels?”

“Yes. There is an access hatch on the first floor of the garage. I am attempting to guide our allies there. However, Lucy is taking some convincing.”

“Behind us.”

Mod followed Arsenal’s gaze to a second group of biomechs approaching from the East, then a third group from the North—

Moving fast.

There was no way Athena and Lucy would reach the parking garage before the biomechs did.

“TINA, the drones are still unarmed, right? How tough are these mechs?”

A flood of specifications scrolled down Mod’s HUD, but he didn’t have to actively read it. He understood it in an instant, courtesy of his direct connection to TINA.

And he shuddered.

The biomechs were engineered by Ava Savanus, a member of the Binary Brotherhood. There were three styles of biomech, each controlled by a copy of Ava’s brain. None of the brains were an exact copy of the original—instead, they were implanted in a biomech. While the brain matured, its growth was directed electrically and surgically until the biomech became an organism all its own.

Part of this maturation was allowing each biomech to pick out its own weaponry. All mechs were governed to have at least one nonlethal weapon, and 98% of mechs only had one nonlethal option.

The smallest biomechs were quadrupedal, dog-sized reconnaissance units. These were lightly armored and outfitted with small caliber weapons. As far as physical threats went, these were a non-issue for Mod and Arsenal. However, the biomechs were all linked and communicating in real-time, so they could still be dangerous if they called for backup.

The second biomechs were human-sized and could alternate between bipedal and quadrupedal as needed. These were generally employed as security units due to their size and adaptability. They sported everything from riot-control armaments to military-grade weapons. Depending on their loadout, they weighed anywhere from 200 to 400 pounds.

The final biomechs were bipedal, heavy units. They stood anywhere from one to almost two stories tall and weighed up to three tons. They carried armor and weapons usually reserved for tanks and aircraft—everything from EMPs to rotary cannons, missile launchers, and high-watt lasers.

TINA had helpfully labeled the reconnaissance, security, and heavy units as rec, sec, and hec units, respectively.

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“Ew, I can’t believe these things are real,” Arsenal muttered to herself.

It took Mod a second to realize that she was still reading through the information TINA had sent them.

“We can handle the rec and sec units—the first two types—no problem,” Mod said. “We need to stay clear of the heavy units though.” Mod doubted anything less than a sustained fusion laser would cut through their armor.

A second later, Arsenal chuckled. “TINA’s been taking after McGuire’s naming conventions… I really wish I had my old suit.”

“One day, we need to tell McGuire about those names. He would appreciate—”

Gunfire erupted across the block. The biomech patrol near Athena opened fire. Athena and Lucy’s highlighted forms retreated deeper inside the abandoned building.

Panicked shouts echoed across the parking garage. Arsenal started to move forward, but Mod grabbed her.

Information flooded into his mind. “Don’t! They’re nonlethal rounds.”

Arsenal jerked out of his grip. “We can’t just stay here! What are we supposed to do?”

TINA’s voice came through both their earpieces. “Athena and Lucy should be coming toward you. I believe that was the incentive that they needed.”

Thankfully, TINA was right. The highlights of Athena and Lucy sprinted through the building and leapt out of the third-floor window. Glass rained down on the street. Athena staggered her landing, using a small forcefield to cut the distance in half. Lucy hit the ground and took off running without missing a beat.

But the biomech patrol wasn’t far behind them. There were two sec units and a single hec unit. The person-sized sec units were sprinting after the supers. Mod’s HUD clocked them at 40 miles per hour. They ran on all fours, their powerful limbs tearing chunks out of the asphalt.

The hec unit was slower, but it saved time by barreling straight through the building. It ran through brick walls without pausing its stride.

As soon as the two sec units had a line of sight, they opened fire again. Athena threw up a shield behind her and Lucy, which flickered as the rounds impact.

It seemed like a waste to use her powers if the rounds were nonlethal… but Mod forgot that not everyone had his resilience. So far as he knew, Athena was only as tough as a regular person.

People all along the upper floors of the parking garage were watching the scene across the street, including Mod and Arsenal.

“She’s almost here,” Arsenal said.

Movement across the garage caught Mod’s attention—

A super leapt off a lower floor of the parking garage and onto the street. They were heading toward Athena and Lucy!

At first Mod thought they were another enemy—the new super hurled blasts of light across the street. But the projectiles sailed past Athena and Lucy and hit the two sec units chasing them. Each projectile exploded in a flash of sparks, causing the mechs to stagger.

Athena was forced to use more shields as another patrol engaged them. Shields rippled as Athena tried to convince the new super to retreat.

More movement nearby—highlighted rec units and sec units climbed up the sides of the parking garage like spiders. Panicked screams echoed through all four levels of the parking garage as the first rec units appeared.

High-pitched, mechanical voices followed:

“On the ground!”

“Do not resist!”

Mod and Arsenal slipped behind one of the support columns. “We need to get to the first floor,” Mod said.

“This path has the least enemies. Go quickly.”

A blue trail appeared in Mod’s HUD, leading toward a set of maintenance stairs. He assumed Arsenal saw it as well. They sprinted toward it.

There was a single sec unit highlighted on the stairwell. They’d have to go through it.

Mod would have to be careful. He had no idea how much info the Brotherhood had on him. If he used any of his mods or gadgets, he might very well give himself away. Right now, they still had some element of stealth and surprise.

Hopefully, this works…

Mod sprinted across the garage. He slammed into the door at full speed, lowering his shoulder into it and using the impact to tear it off its hinges. He didn’t slow. He raced down the flight of stairs while carrying the door. Arsenal was right behind him.

The sec unit skidded to a stop on the landing. It raised twin guns and fired. Mod didn’t have time to discern whether they were nonlethal rounds or not. He held up the door like a shield.

“Wrecking ball!”

Mod sprinted down the stairs and tackled the sec unit into the wall. Gunfire stopped abruptly as the mech was crunched between the wall and the door. For a brief second, Mod felt the mech struggle against him. Three hundred pounds of machine struggled in vain.

Then Mod quickly rolled out of the way.

Full body kinetic thrusters opened up on Arsenal’s suit. She rocketed down the stairs and slammed into the door with merciless force. There was a sickening crunch of metal and concrete as the sec unit was crushed under the impact.

The door fell away, and Mod readied himself for a followup strike. But the mech fell over, crushed. Brainmatter, oil, and other fluids were already pooling beneath it.

Mod and Arsenal didn’t waste anymore time. They turned and continued down the stairwell.

~ ~ ~