"I only have three rockets, and there are five Sigil-Bearers."
"It would be a couple of days before I could get you more," Ian tells me through my earpiece. "Moving that stuff to a place like Frendok isn't easy with the Federation's restrictions. Just wait to fight them until this weekend."
In the wake of the World Revolt, most large-scale governments dissolved. I guess that's what happens when five-point-two billion people die in a world with seven-point-six billion people. Things were apparently chaotic in a lot of places. Frendok has about fifteen thousand residents, and that's what's left of the roughly two hundred thousand residents in the area that used to be a fairly decent city center. Our area was hit harder than some.
We weren't hit as bad as some of the major cities, though, but many of them still retained higher populations after the month of disasters ended. Many countries may have been prepared for greater disasters, but no one expected quakes, tsunamis, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, and other natural disasters to occur on the scale which took place during that month of hell.
In the wake of the disasters, organizations such as the Federation rose up to help rebuild society, though they focused on larger towns and cities that were more intact first. Here, the survivors banded together and made Frendok, since it was the most intact place around and the best place for building up a new town.
However, when it comes to certain matters, Frendok still defers to the Federation. Klen attacks, weaponry, external food supplies – all of that stuff is regulated by the Federation in an effort to tone down the anarchy that rose up in some areas.
It's kept places like Frendok out of situations that they can't handle, so the Federation does have its uses.
"I could probably call in a missile strike," I mutter.
"No!" Ian exclaims. "Seriously, Cas? A missile strike? Again? What happened the last time you asked the Federation to do that? It hit the news and the local media swarmed the area trying to figure out why they did that."
"Conspiracy theorists," I state. "The Federation already cleaned up the mess and told everyone they were just testing some stuff, and forgot to warn the local authorities."
"Alright, Cas," Ian sighs. "What's the status? How many are there, what are the known Sigil-Bearers capable of, and how likely do you think the two of you could handle this?"
"There appear to be around forty normies," I put the binoculars back to my eyes and look at the building the Klen agents are staying in, where forty-seven forms light up in the infrared.
Right now, I'm on a taller building that didn't collapse during the World Revolt, though it's still unstable. When the nearby coal mines collapsed during the World Revolt, they weakened the supports for nearby structures, and that was before factoring damage from preceding and succeeding earthquakes.
Which is part of why I hang out in the ruins, when I'm not playing video games back in my apartment. I've created a mental map of everything within five miles of Frendok, and often chase idiot locals who don't know better out of the unsafe areas.
Since I don't tell them what's wrong, just chase them out, it helps contribute to the perception of me I've created. Moody, irritable, and someone to avoid making contact with if they can't help it. I don't normally show my fun side to people I have no interest in being friends with, and the number of people I want to be friends with are few.
Part of the reason I chase them off is because of things like this. One never knows when they're going to run into the Klen, and outside of a town? If you run into the Klen and aren't a Sigil-Bearer, it's either convert or die.
They want to cleanse the world, and it's disgusting. Especially with how many of their cult truly believe in this and aren't just brainwashed into it.
"Forty-two normies," I tell Ian. "Five Sigil-Bearers. The guy from earlier is with them, looks like he returned after putting the tracker on me."
Could he have been even more obvious? I mean, he probably could have, seeing as most people haven't had to deal with people putting trackers on them before. He used the touch of my shoulder to distract me as his other hand slipped the tracker into the empty, open front pocket of my backpack. It's more a slot than anything, as it doesn't zip up and has a pocket on the front of it.
An easy place to stick a tracker, and since it looked empty, he probably didn't think I'd look there. The lady last month was way more intelligent about it. She slipped it into a side pocket and managed to zip it back up all without making a noise somehow. A normal person wouldn't have noticed her action.
Someone who's dealt with this crap for two years? We'd notice.
"As for the Sigil-Bearers," I flip off the infrared and just look at the people I can see, which aren't many. "They're all hiding inside. One is fifteen, male, with the power to imbue a form of tracking essence into items. It's a marble he put a tracking power into that was put in my backpack, probably thinking I'd ignore it even if I saw it, maybe toss it aside once I was in location."
"Interesting ability," Ian says. "Even if he's strong, it shouldn't be too difficult for you to take him out, his power's not suited for combat."
"I can use a rocket launcher for that," I say. "Though I might be able to take him with a few bullets. Alright, next. Sixteen, female, power is a sonic screech. Kind of nasty, but taking her on won't be too difficult as long as my attacks aren't in the range of her ability, which is more conical than anything, since she's emitting it from her mouth."
"How far can her screeches go?" Ian asks.
"Around twenty to twenty-five feet," I answer, then shift my gaze to someone who's visible through a window. "Next up, male, sixteen, aerokinesis. He channels it through his hands and isn't all that powerful, though I guess against someone who isn't trained in combat, he'd be effective. I've trained in combat pretty much all my life, so I'd be able to handle him."
"Wind slashes are a thing."
"No, his are more like blasts," I inform Ian. "Batter attacks rather than slice attacks. Next up. Seventeen, female, hypernkinetic memorization, the ability to put into muscle memory any movement she's seen before. Makes for an excellent martial artist, though only the Sigil Gods can move faster than a bullet so she could probably be taken out with just a gun, if we hit her right."
The Sigil Gods are the three most powerful Sigil-Bearers known in all the world, and they're so powerful, they're able to move and think faster than even bullets or lightning without using an ability. The more powerful a Sigil-Bearer is with their ability, the stronger and faster their bodies become, even without a difference to their appearance.
Stolen story; please report.
And there's no one stronger than the Goddess of Darkness, the God of Death, and the Goddess of Chaos. There are rumors that there's a God of Destruction, but there's also no evidence of his existence. Groups like the Klen believe the Sigil Gods are proof that the world must yield to the Sigil-Bearers, and they also believe the God of Destruction caused the World Revolt due to the cataclysmic effects it had. They also believe he's more powerful than any other Sigil-Bearer, even the other Sigil Gods.
Idiots, all of them. No Sigil-Bearer was even conceived until after the World Revolt, which means it couldn't have been a Sigil God. As for whether or not he's more powerful than the rest? Why would destruction be more powerful than chaos? The three of them are on the same level, so even if a fourth did exist, which it doesn't, they would be on the same level, too, not above.
They should look for proof rather than believe in something without any. Otherwise, they'll find themselves sorely hurting when they tell a Sigil God to their face that there's one who stands above them as king. The Sigil Gods do not take that very well.
I'm not talking from personal experience, but I do know for a fact that if a God of Destruction existed, he wouldn't be more powerful than the Goddess of Chaos. Tied with her, but not more powerful.
"Alright, focus," Ian says, probably realizing I'd started mentally ranting about these idiots again. "What's the fifth one?"
"The final one," I say. "Hm. Male, eighteen, power is 'sonic'."
"Sonic?" Ian asks. "Wait, do you mean the normal usage of 'sonic'?"
"Yeah."
When he activates his power, he can 'see' soundwaves, his entire body and mind accelerating to the speed of sound. Then, he can ride along a soundwave to get from one point to another with sonic speed. Though it might be close to saying he becomes a soundwave to do that. During that time, his body is able to handle the speed he manages, and he's able to deliver a punch or kick at the end of it, too.
Ever been hit by something moving at the speed of sound? It's not fun.
It's a high-tier power, though it's still possible for him to be weak overall. It depends on how powerful he was when he was born and how much training he's put into the power.
"Describe him," Ian says.
"You know who he is?"
"If I'm right, you're reporting this to the Federation and staying the hell out," Ian tells me.
"Pale as hell," I turn my gaze to the teen who just exited the abandoned church the Klen members are using as a base at the moment. "Ginger hair, green eyes, and scrawnt but lean. Wiry? Is that the term? I'd say he's ugly, but you know me, I'm not into gingers."
"Contact the Federation," Ian orders. "Do not get involved. He's no Sigil God, but he is an Immortal Sigil."
They aren't literally immortal, it's just part of the classification of Sigil-Bearers that some people are spreading around. If a normal Sigil-Bearer ranked at a two, and the public power levels of a Sigil God ranked at a ten, an Immortal Sigil would be probably a six or seven.
"I could probably take him out with a rocket launcher," I set the binoculars down, then get to work setting up a special prize.
"Cas, no," Ian says. "He's not someone that a normie could take out. He-you're setting up a trap, aren't you?"
"At least one, maybe two, of them will come here," I say. "They'll bring the tracker for sure, since his marble's up here. Since they're thinking they're going up against an unknown Sigil-Bearer, they'll probably bring two of them. Also, most of the trap's already set up, I set it up weeks ago. I'm just doing some last-touch things. If all goes well, I'll take out two, possibly even three of them."
"Then you'll have Klen after you," Ian sighs. "Cas, seriously, let the Federation handle this. They'll call Katie out, since she's the closest."
"How do I connect DRES-4314 to KREP-2121?"
Ian sighs again.
"Please don't give my bombs such weird names."
"What are you talking about?" I ask with my best innocent voice.
"Dress and crap," he says. "Seriously, Cas?"
"I didn't realize they were so close in sound," I tell him. "So? How do I connect them?"
"I take it they aren't touching?" He asks. "Since I've walked you through how to connect them when they're in close proximity?"
"Yeah, the DRES bomb is actually under the church they're using as their base," I tell him. "So unless our sonic guy escapes that, there's no need to contact the Federation."
"You put a big, loud beep on it, didn't you?" Ian exclaims.
"It wasn't meant to be used as a trap," I tell him. "I was planning on blowing the building up today. I got it set up yesterday, the beep usually chases out deer that might be hiding inside. They just happened to move into there today. It's actually one hell of a coincidence."
Sometimes, the wheel of fate likes to play things for me.
"Why were you planning on blowing up a church?"
"A former church," I state. "It hasn't been in use since everyone moved into Frendok."
"That doesn't answer my question."
"You know I don't believe in the old religions," I state. "You don't, either, Ian."
"So you're blowing up their churches?"
"Just the one," I answer.
"You're irreverent."
"It's not in use," I state. "And we wanted the space for something. It's easier to just blow up the building and remove the rubble than it is to demolish it by banging it a bunch of times."
"That sounds so wrong," he mutters as I glance over the edge of the roof again. "Alright, fine. It's not like you'd be pissing off an actual god."
"I know, I know," I say. "So? How do I do the connection? Especially since I can't do it directly."
Ian walks me through remotely connecting the two bombs, and once I finish, I pack my laptop back into my bag.
"Thanks," I tell Ian, then glance over the edge of the roof once more. "Anyway, I'm going to let you go. I'm done setting this up and it looks like they're on their way."
I end the call, the put the binoculars back into my backpack and slip the marble out, dropping it onto the ground. Then, I pull my backpack on and sit on the couch up here, pulling out my phone and loading up a crossword to play.
A few minutes later, the door to the roof is pushed open, and ten people come out, including the guy I met earlier and three of the Sigil-Bearers; the tracker, the sonic screech gal, and the aerokinetic guy.
"Uh, hi," I look up from my phone. "Oh, hey, it's you! Did you seriously follow me all the way here? I told you, I don't know where she is."
"I thought you said you were going paintballing?" He asks.
"I'm waiting for my friend," I tell him. "We do it together. Who, uh, who are all these people?"
"Coworkers," he answers as I stand and pocket my phone. "You meet your friend on the top of a seven-story building to go paintballing?"
"Nah," I answer. "Normally, we meet on the ground. But I figured, if the Klen were going to follow me, I might as well meet them up here."
The group of agents look at each other, and the sonic screech girl takes a step forward. They probably now think I'm a Sigil-Bearer because of my looks and ability to have seen through the lie so easily. Haven't they wondered why their agents keep dying in the area? Perhaps there's some secret organization that keeps killing them? Hm? Did they ever think about that?
"So you knew he was lying," Lady Screech says.
"Yes," I answer, then feel a light tug on my arm. "Seems like my friend here. Guess I'll see you later."
I give them a wave, then my body is suddenly yanked into the sky at high speed. The wind is temporarily evicted from my lungs as I'm pulled by the unseen force, and as the screech girl and aerokinetic attempt to attack, the girl unleashing a screech and the boy attempting to knock me down with blasts of wind, the building explodes.
A shockwave ripples out as flames swirl through the air where the building was, and a second explosion is heard in the distance. The blast barely touches me, causing only a slight battering as I'm pulled further away, out of its range. Then my acceleration slows and I'm set down on the roof of another building, this one a fifteen-story one that used to be a bank.
Having expected the landing, I touch down on my feet, standing. I smile as I look at the eighteen-year-old girl only a couple of months older than me.
Dark brown hair, brown eyes, and flawless, caramel-colored skin. She's wearing faded, ripped jeans and a faded black tank top, along with combat boots. Hanging from her studded belt is a pair of guns and several knives, along with a couple of grenades and spare magazines. Her outfit does nothing to conceal her lean, trained form, and her stance screams 'I'm a badass' at anyone who would look at her.
"Just in time, Ali!"