Visette stepped out onto the emptied streets of Eden Hall. The city which had formerly hosted more than a million people had been emptied by the relentless horde. Though, the completely unexpected appearance of the horde played a factor in the city's fall. Perhaps other cities who were aware of the threat would be able to withstand the wrath of the horde for at least a few days. That grim thought convinced Visette that her choice to recover Minerva’s laboratories was right.
There were vehicles strewn about everywhere, some flipped over and others were torn apart. However, there were a few cars that still appeared to be functional. A military truck with bloodstains on the door and an armored truck that appeared to belong to Eden Hall’s domestic security force. Of the two, the former was equipped with a mounted turret. The added protection made it her first priority, so she quickly approached it.
The distant echoes and hisses of the Corrupted remained ever-present, urging her to act faster. She climbed into the driver’s seat and opened up a panel near the dashboard, exposing different types of wiring. The tips of her fingers began glowing blue as she sent electrical signals into the wires and caused a low hum to fill the air, signaling the car had been started. She moved to the armored truck and did the same before she speaking into her radio.
“Both vehicles are ready, move quickly,” She spoke as quietly as she could as the sounds of the Corrupted weren’t far off.
There was no doubt that the electrical hum of the cars sounded ten times louder to the Corrupted. Especially in what was an otherwise silent city.
[On our way.] Lyn replied back.
It seemed that everything was going well until a single shot rang out followed by dozens more. A chorus of screeching filled the air and the ground began rumbling shortly after.
[Shit… Yeah, we’ve got a problem!] Lyn’s annoyed voice came through the radio.
“What’s the situation?” Visette asked as she readied her gun.
[A couple of those things came out of nowhere and nearly killed one of the researchers. We managed to kill it but that sound is going to draw them to us. We’re coming around now, you should be able to see us.]
Just as she finished, Visette saw the group turn a corner and began running toward her. Inwardly, Vis guessed that a few of the camouflage-capable variants had discovered the group and attacked.
“Let’s go! Rodent you’re driving the truck with the researchers. Bear and Rabid will watch them. Kitty, you’re with me.” Hawk shouted as he headed for the truck.
“We got trouble, Hawk!” Kitty looked over her shoulder and saw a tide of pale grey creatures barreling toward them.
“Get a fucking move on!” Lyn climbed into the military truck while Hawk and Kitty piled into the back. Visette entered the passenger side and gestured for Rodent to drive ahead of them.
Being the easily frightened person he was, he obviously didn’t need any convincing and sped off immediately.
Just as they began to move, the groups of flying Corrupted appeared and started to descend toward them.
The next disturbance, and possibly the worst even possible event, came in the form of a shrill, blood-freezing, scream of the Calamity Variant which was accompanied by the sight of buildings collapsing in the distance.
“Vis?!” Lyn shouted as she stuck close to the armored truck.
“I’ll deal with the ones that approach, just keep the vehicle steady.” Visette’s pupils began glowing blue as she filled her ocular nerves with psionic energy, enhancing her vision beyond normal. She immediately began firing at the flying Corrupted who swooped past in order to harass the two-car convoy.
“I got them!” Hawk’s aim, even with a mounted turret, was nothing to scoff at as he began mowing down the flying Corrupted en masse. Whenever the ammo ran out, Kitty was quick to help him reload.
“Right side!” Hawk suddenly shouted.
A pack of evolved Corrupted burst through a few buildings, their grotesquely muscular frames didn't seem to hamper their speed at all. They bore down on the military truck first, showing that were at least aware it was the biggest threat given the mounted turret.
Visette waved her hand and a wave of psionic power flung the pack away, sending them crashing into buildings. The horde was gathering quickly and a single turret and a few guns weren’t nearly enough to stop them.
Only a few moments had passed and already, thousands of Corrupted had caught up to the military truck. Hawk couldn’t help but worry seeing as their numbers didn't diminish no matter how many he killed. Luckily, Visette reacted accordingly, with a short grunt, she used her psionic power to tear down a towering building and send it collapsing onto the horde behind them.
“Thank Anton!” Hawk cried.
“Try thanking Visette first,” Kitty said with a nervous laugh.
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“We’re not done yet!” Lyn yelled at both of them, glancing at a side mirror. The street underneath them was beginning to rupture. “I think there’s something under us.”
Visette immediately sent out a psionic pulse and discovered Lyn was right. Just underneath were Corrupted with grotesquely thick and elongated bodies that were more suited for burrowing.
“There is something under us,” Visette replied, before focusing her psionic power.
She gathered it into a single point at the tip of her finger and fired it at the ground beneath them. The psionic power exploded, shattering the ground and a peculiar creature emerged with a cry.
Worse still, there were more Corrupted descending from the air, so many that it seemed as if the sky was blacked out.
“Bear, you’re gonna wanna use that gun!” Hawk spoke through his radio.
A haughty laugh was heard in response before the two doors on the armored truck swung open.
“That’s all you had to say!” Bear smiled viciously as he lifted the heavy machine gun in his arms and let out a volley of lead toward the skies.
“There’s another problem!” Kitty pointed to the left side where a huge shadow could be seen breaking through building after building.
“No fucking way,” Lyn muttered upon seeing the Queen, who was in full health, making her way toward them. “Vis, we’re gonna really need something here.”
“I’ll deal with it.” Visette removed her seatbelt and opened the passenger door.
“Vis?” Lyn showed a look of confusion as Visette jumped out of the truck.
Instead of tumbling onto the ground, Vis began levitating just about the road and her speed was no less than the truck. And that was due to her intentionally slowing herself down so she could still provide assistance.
“Is there anything you can’t do?” Hawk asked in a moment of disbelief.
Visette moved ahead of the vehicles and ascended higher. She wouldn’t be able to injure the Queen as she had before, but she could still slow her down. She swung both of her arms and pieces of buildings were ripped away before being flung toward the towering Goliath that was the Queen.
“HUMANS!” The Queen roared as clumps of debris struck her massive frame. “YOU ARE NOTHING MORE THAN FLESH TO BE CONSUMED!”
She responded to Visette's assault in kind, plunging her razor sharp claws into the ground before uprooting the concrete and asphalt and flinging it toward the fleeing vehicles.
“Hold on!” Lyn cried out at the top of her lungs.
Visette quickly maneuvered herself while in the air and landed atop the military truck. She stretched her hand toward the oncoming shower of projectiles and formed a barrier. She couldn't stop everything flying in their direction, but she was able to alter the course of the biggest pieces of debris flying toward them, using them to strike at the Corrupted in the air.
The failed attack only made the Queen even more aggressive. She let out a high-pitched scream that could shatter glass but was forcibly silenced after Visette showered her with a volley of concrete blocks. In response, the dark carapace shell around her body began shifting before it moved to enclose her body. Even from afar, Visette could tell that the Queen’s armor could without a doubt resist the strongest of explosives and she was partly to blame for it. The attack which nearly killed the Queen forced her to adapt, making her even harder to eliminate.
Fortunately, the carapace restricted her movements and forced her to slow down. Visette exhaled a sigh of relief as traces of fatigue began to emerge.
“Behind you!” Hawk's warning came too late.
Visette turned around only to be tackled by a flying Corrupted that took advantage of her distracted state.
Lyn reacted quickly, drawing her revolver and firing several shots at the airborne Corrupted. Only a few of the hasty shots managed to land, but it was more than enough to allow Visette a chance. She had dropped her rifle and couldn’t grab the short sword on her back so she drew her knife and sunk it into the throat of the Corrupted followed by a blast of psionic power that rendered the flying creature nothing more than a few crimson colored chunks of flesh.
Visette recovered herself and grabbed onto the truck before drawing one of the pistols holstered at her hip and firing at the oncoming flock. With pained screams, they plummeted toward the ground but their numbers hardly seemed to be affected.
“The gate’s up ahead, we’re nearly there.” Lyn saw their escape just ahead. Her foot was almost glued to the accelerator as they closed in on the route of escape.
“You’ll have to open it then, right?” Hawk asked as he fired at the flying Corrupted.
The armored truck wasn’t much better off as Rabid and Bear had to fight off the increasing number of Corrupted. If it wasn’t for Visette, they would’ve been overwhelmed before they had a chance to leave.
Visette concentrated on the entrance to Eden Hall, a slightly ajar pair of thick metal doors which were tough enough to withstand explosive ordnance. They weren’t of use since the Corrupted tunneled in from underneath the city, but at the moment they were a blessing for the escapees.
Under the influence of Visette’s psionic power, the doors loudly creaked open, parting just enough for the cars to slip through.
Lyn and Rodent both steered clear of the abandoned cars littering the street and sped out of the city’s gate without wasting any time.
“We’re clear!” Lyn shouted.
Using it as a signal, Visette made sure to slam the metal doors back together, stopping most of the Corrupted in their tracks. The airborne Corrupted were about to continue their pursuit but were halted by the eerie screech of their queen.
The escape seemed to be a success.
Hawk and Kitty shared a look before laughing. The latter couldn’t stand up anymore and fell, the sudden release of tension seemed to have taken away all of her strength.
“Stay alert,” Lyn warned, but even her hands had loosened around the steering wheel as she relaxed.
Visette, being Visette, maintained a calm but attentive gaze at the fading background of the infested city. The very presence of the queen was a massive problem. A being that could direct the millions of Corrupted at a single target was the living equivalent of a guided missile. She even felt as if the queen was only just beginning, seeing as the time it took her to reach her present form had been extremely quick. If she continued to grow, it meant that the longer she was left alone, the more likely it was for her to evolve to an unknown level of strength.
Still, escaping alive could be considered a victory since Visette herself also had room to grow and she was well aware of it. As everyone rejoiced through the radio, they headed for the nearest town they could find in hopes of making radio contact with their respective cities.