From where we are, there is a concrete path that leads out to the football fields. The path splits near the back of the bleachers and wraps around to the other side where the model Fifteens, ugly giant grasshopper looking nightmares are setting up an overwatch.

“Merlin, can you ask Hank for feeds from his drones, I would like to be able to see the big picture.”

Naturally, Hank’s AI has responded with the feed. Placing in the corner for you. I Will be monitoring it as well and will alert you if I see anything. By the way Hank’s AI’s name is Bobby.

“Thank you kindly, thank them for me as well.”

I notice in the feed the Twenty-Two seems to have taken up station in the middle of the field and started producing new Antithesis. Twenty-Two's are huge six legged monsters that can spawn new models and act like a mobile hive, they have a giant maw that they use to consume biomass or other matter to churn out Antithesis.

The crowd before has nearly doubled since the last time Merlin made a head count.

“Come to think of it Merlin, some sneak would be good for this. If I can get below the bleachers the Fifteens are sitting on, maybe I can kill them off as an opening gambit.”

There are many options, the most direct would be Class I Stealth Technologies for two hundred points, within it we can adapt your boots to be soundless, and your armor to suppress your smell. At your current points invisibility is not really an option, but with those two you should be able to complete the goal you desire. Total would be three hundred and fifty points.

“Let’s go ahead and do it Merlin.” I whisper.

As you wish, loot inbound!

Class I Stealth Technologies unlocked!

Points reduced to: 572

New Purchase: Class I Nanite Silencing Boot Enhancement:

Points reduced to: 472

New Purchase: Class I Nanite Smell Damper Armor Enhancement:

Points reduced to: 422

Two little boxes plop out onto the concrete sidewalk, reaching into them I find two small injection tubes.

Simply press against a piece of your armor and depress the plunger, the nanites will configure themselves correctly.

Easy enough, I grab them and stab them into my thigh armor and press the plunger. A small hiss escapes and then nothing.

“Did they work? I ask skeptically.

Of course, did you expect an explosion or something? They are stealth enhancements. If you were not so accustomed to your own smell, you’d notice you no longer stink of ash and blood. As for the boots, take a step.

I continue on the path around the bleachers trying to stick to the shadows, and sure enough I no longer hear the clomp of my boots on concrete, neat.

Keeping an eye on the drone footage I manage to sneak my way around the stadium without drawing attention from the Antithesis.

Watching them move around though is fascinating. It’s one thing to study feeds, photos, and written accounts of the Antithesis but it is an entirely different experience being up close and killing them. It hardly compares, and it is both exciting and horrifying.

Under the bleachers I bring up my wand and set the beads to remote detonation at three grams each which should yield a twenty-five-foot sphere. I space them out across the underside fifteen feet apart so there is overlap.

Exiting out the opposite side of the bleachers, I make my way behind the sheds that hold the gear and try to make it to the other side of the stadium. I want some distance before setting these things off, some cover would be nice too. Looking around I see a concrete building tucked off the side of the goal post maybe thirty feet off the field.

I sneak up to it and realize it’s a bathroom, whatever, cover is cover.

Morigana, the Antithesis seem to be grouping up at the far end of the field closer to the school. I believe they are about to make a push into the building to get into the bunker. You need to act quickly before they get too much of a head start.

Coming around behind the bathrooms, I see some random junk piled up behind the building and an ugly bush. I sneak up around to the far corner and take a peek at the bleachers, I pull out my wand and get ready to detonate my charges.

A heavy blow smashes into my back, putting me on the ground.

What the frick.

My whole body hurts, I lay stunned and wheezing. Whatever hit me knocked the breath out of me.

More hammer blows smash into my back pinning me to the ground.

“Merl…” I cough out trying to speak.

Morigana, a model Nine was hiding behind you. Use your augs to deploy your whip behind you.

With a mental command to my augs I deploy the whip and blindly flash it up and above my body.

I hear a sharp pop and hiss, as it slices into the model Nine, vaporizing the water in its body where it hit. It stops attacking my back and I roll over wheezing, looking around I see the ugly bush oozing green blood.

The model Nine, the leaves actually being its fur, its limbs being tucked inside the main body and extending vicious scythe like arms for weapons. The thing was muscular underneath, no wonder it felt like being hit by a freight train.

One of its arms lay on the ground between us where I sliced it with my whip.

With a new mental command, I direct the whip to coil in front of me and lance out in a piercing strike.

The model dodges to the right, away from the building, then lunges forward unleashing its arms like a walking lawnmower.

I change my whips instructions forming it into a swirling mass between myself and it.

The model Nine’s arms swing into the vortex of crackling plasma and its limbs go flying in all directions in a bloody spray.

I bring the tip up and slice it horizontally through the model Nine, it stops moving as its top half lurches off of its bottom half.

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You have gained twenty-five points, incidentally the noise has attracted the attention of the other Antithesis, they will be here soon. I also recommend a nano repair suite for your internal injuries.

“Yes please.” I gasp catching my breath finally while retracting my whip. “That really fricken hurt Merlin, I thought my armor was strong enough to protect me from those attacks.”

New Purchase: Class I Nano-Regenerative Suite:

Points reduced to: 427

The inhaler drops into my hand, I immediately put it to my face and inhale.

The armor did protect you, instead of being sliced into bloody ribbons you only suffered internal bleeding. Also, enough dallying, focus on the incoming horde of aliens.

Right, in my augs I trigger the beads I set under the bleachers.

A cacophony of explosions ring through the stadium. Through Hank’s feed I see the bleachers turn into so much molten slag, shredding into the model Fifteens that were sitting there.

You have gained seven hundred points. Your total is now One thousand One hundred and Twenty-Seven points.

“Hecken-A yeah!” I shout.

I turn around the corner of the building I’m hiding behind and see the absolute horror as the entire army of Antithesis is rushing me.

I quickly pull up my wand and fire off my last bead.

It whizzes into the pack and detonates, it’s too small to reach all of them, crap.

Re-loading your wand Morigana, fire away! Points reduced to One thousand One hundred and seventeen.

I set the wand to lowest yield, and line it up across the field and launch the beads into the oncoming masses.

Fire and hell rips across the field, as Antithesis, the field and everything in front of me becomes ash and smoke.

It’s hard to see what’s going on anymore, the area is covered in smoke and chaos.

My wand hits zero charges left, I stop shooting and try and figure out what’s left.

The area is eerily quiet, minus the smoldering corpses, and crackle of fire.

You have gained Four hundred and Sixty-Two points. Minus the last wand re-load you are now at One thousand Six hundred and Thirty-One.

“Merlin, can you tell what’s left I can’t see anything in the smoke and flames, nor can I hear much. I ask in a whisper.

Same, Hank's feeds are showing an overhanging pillar of flame and ash. I need a better detection suite. For two hundred points you can unlock Class I Advanced Sensory Technologies. Then for two hundred points I can get you an advanced close range sensory suite that integrates with your armor. I can use it to scan using almost every medium of sensory data available but only in a short range.

“What is short range? Will it detect model Nines too? Twenty-Ones?”

The range will be based on a few factors, such as your height above your area, obstacles, countermeasures, and each type of sensor is different. On average, I will be able to detect anything within one hundred and fifty feet of you. Also, yes both models will be able to be detected within that range.

“I see no downside to that, lets do it, and quickly. Please just insert the nanites directly into my armor”

Loot inbound!

Class I Advanced Sensory Technologies unlocked!

Points reduced to: 1431

New Purchase: Class I Multi-Spectrum Sensory Suit Nano Armor Upgrade:

Points reduced to: 1231

Suddenly something surges up out of my armor onto my head.

“The frick!” I gasp reaching above my head.

It’s a hat, a pointy one with a wide purple and black brim. Naturally Merlin makes it a witch hat.

Software installed, system integration complete! Good news all of the Antithesis were killed by your barrage. Bad news! The hive has taken damage and is now emitting distress pheromones and is calling in backup. I recommend dispatching the hive quickly, it might limit the response of other Antithesis.

“Merlin, I still can’t see squat, how am I supposed to do that?”

I'm overlaying sensory data on your augs.

Suddenly I could see again, I could tell that there was still fire and smoke blocking my view, but I could see through it. I also was getting a general almost sixth sense of everything around me in a sphere, this might take some time to get used to.

Sitting smack dab in the middle of the field sat the model Twenty-Two.

“If I use my whip like a blender will that be enough?”

Most definitely, pureeing that hive will assuredly prevent it from producing more Antithesis. Once you have cut down the hive, I recommend using your wand to clean it up so it can not be used as biomass later.

“Sounds like a solid plan.”

I make my way closer to the model Twenty-Two, tiptoeing around smoldering Antithesis corpses, large swaths of burning field and random debris. A large section of the bleachers ended up on the thirty-yard line. I feel a bit smug about it, that’s some good range.

The Twenty-Two reacts as I near, I can see that it has dangling pods around it. It’s trying to desperately make some new plant monsters to defend itself.

I throw my arm out willing the whip to extend to max range, curling it up around the hive from the base up. As it reaches the top, I make the whip rotate around and shrink in onto the hive.

Expanding water vapor erupts from the Twenty-Two as the whip meets it’s skin. Chunks of plant and blood spurt out like a geyser. Once I feel it’s been blended well enough and most of it has collapsed into a heap, I pull out my wand and send out two beads.

They impact the Twenty-Two, reducing the lump of gore into a pile of ash and bloody goo.

You have gained five hundred points. Your total is now One thousand seven hundred and Thirty-One.

“Hey darlin, Hank here. Congrats on taking out the Twenty-Two and its little posse. However, my drones see a model Eleven flying at rooftop level on its way here, three minutes out.” Hank says.

Model Elevens, giant four winged, furry, dog faced, smart avian predators.

Sweet tits let’s do it.

“Thanks Hank, I’ll be ready for it!”

Just over the school I see a massive dark object zip overhead, I don’t even get a chance to react when it climbs up and I see it release something large.

A friggen truck! It’s throwing a truck at me!

I run as fast as I can towards the truck, hoping that it will fly over my head.

I slide onto my side through ash and blood, the truck passes over my head by a few feet thudding into the field behind me.

I lose track of the Eleven. “Merlin where is it!”

Currently several thousand feet up according to Hank’s drone. Do not fret, it is on the way back to you, be ready.

“I was not fretting about its lack of bothering me, thanks.”

I ready my whip by extending it out in a swirling cone around and above me. If it tries to snatch me up with it’s claw it has a nasty surprise awaiting it!

I hear the thing before I sense/see it with my hat.

It’s making a steep dive at me, is it going to just suicide smash into me? That’s not typical of an Eleven, they are supposed to be smart.

Nope, at the last moment it pulls out of the dive and lands on the field.

It swings one of its massive me sized claws at my person.

I trust Merlin when he says my armor can stop most Antithesis melee hits, but after the Nine I don’t trust my internals to take the blunt trauma.

I jump under the claw and send my whip right at its stupid face. For good measure I also swirl the following section like a corkscrew.

The Eleven throws one of its wings in front of the whip. The wing gets shredded into ribbons, somehow chunks of it get thrown at me, hitting me in the chest.

I let out a grunt as I’m knocked over.

It shrieks and flies off-apparently three wings is enough for it to bugger off.

Using the whip, I burn off the bits and sit up.

“Merlin, the heck is it now?”

Hank’s drone is following it. The Eleven just picked up another car, I’m going to assume it’s a gift for you.

“I don’t need a friggen car or truck thanks, he can keep it. Please overlay its location in my HUD, I’m going to try and destabilize its flying ability with a fireball and then hit it before it releases the car at the whip's max range.”

Target marked; I will change the highlight to red when you should release your fireball and then whip.

I ready my arm wand and get ready to extend the whip out like a lance.

The Eleven turns into a hypothetical marker, into a black blob with a green outline.

As it nears , I can see it clearly; it has a bright yellow car in its talons.

The moment the highlight turns red I release a max range bead set to proximity. It detonates just under the model Eleven. The sudden rise in temperature under it causes a short but powerful updraft. The Eleven surprised by the sudden updraft becomes unstable. I then unleash the whip at max speed and length to intercept.

A sonic boom fills the stadium as it accelerates from my forearm.

It pierces through the car and up into the Eleven's body, and out its back. I quickly send the whip into a swirling motion trying to shred the thing like a smoothie.

What ends up happening is the whole mass turns into a large, blended mess of blood, hide, and car shrapnel.

I quickly start running parallel to the direction of its travel.

It cruises through the goal post and into the field, like a meteor.

I hear a sickening crunch and squelching noise as it impacts onto the field and makes a small crater.

You have gained one hundred points and one token, for a total of One thousand Eight hundred and Thirty-One points and two tokens. Congrats!

I flop onto the ashen field onto my back, exhausted.

“This work kind of sucks it out of you, doesn’t it? I think my next purchase needs to be physical conditioning upgrades.”

I have just the thing!