"Don't let it reach the shore!"
Caravela tensed, standing on top of a restaurant along the oceanfront with the others. She shivered, in spite of the bright sunlight beating down from overhead. The weather today was almost perfect… but the Atlantic was roiled up into a froth as though a hurricane was coming toward them. And yet, Caravela couldn't help thinking that analogy was apropos, given the circumstances. Wave after wave crashed into the shore below, running up over the sandy beach and sending spray over the Leopard tanks lined up in a row along Avenida Ivens, their main turrets all pointed out to sea. Out in the harbor, ships of all sizes rocked back and forth, slamming into each other with a creaking and rending of metal, the shattering of fiberglass. A small flotilla of patrol boats pushed through the waves, picking their way between the distressed vessels, catching them with their tow cables in order to rescue the few sailors unlucky enough to still be on their ships. Overhead, a swarm of helicopters darted in and out between the ships, trailing lines just above the wave tops for those in the water to catch. Just east of Belém Tower, two Naval frigates had almost run themselves aground in order to point their main guns out toward the ocean, though each successive wave threatened to tip them onto their side.
Lisbon was prepared for war.
Next to Caravela crouched Socomem, holding onto the edge of the roof with one of his powered gloves. "Just like Germany, right?" he called as another massive wave built beneath a container ship, lifting it ten meters above sea level and turning it on end. The ship's horn blew a warning, low and loud, moments before it slammed into the shore. The bow crumpled in on itself and sheared off, and the ship spun around parallel to the oceanfront as it crashed into the beach just in front of the avenue and fell over onto its side, spilling its cargo of shipping containers onto the sand. Several of the sailors fell or stumbled over the side and into the sand, flopping over on their backs. A pair of police officers clambered down the embankment onto the beach, moving between the sailors.
"Maldição!" O Patriota swore. He slammed his fist into the roof on the other side of Caravela. "I told the Mayor to turn back all shipping! But did he listen? No…"
"Politicians," Socomem muttered, shrugging. "Can't trust them worth a damn."
Another wave began to form far out to sea. Only a ripple at the mouth of the river, it quickly grew in size, rising higher above the water until suddenly the water broke and an enormous tawny head emerged. Before it was fully above the water, the Lion shook its mane, sending torrents of spray in either direction. Two sailboats that had been waiting close to river's mouth for the Lion's appearance – despite repeated warnings to flee –tipped over almost immediately as their decks swamped from the spray and the sudden wave rolled past them. Their small crews dove overboard and swam toward the shore, propelled by the wave coming close behind them.
Standing up with one foot on the edge of the restaurant roof, one baton held at his side, O Patriota pressed a button on his radio. "Fire now, Commanders!"
The Avenue disappeared in a cloud of smoke as, in unison, the main guns of the tanks fired. At the same moment, both frigates unleashed their Harpoon missiles and opened up with machine guns, raking the Lion's head with concentrated fire. A pair of white foamy arrows shot through the water from each frigate, intercepting the Lion moments after the first volley from the tanks landed. The majority of the tanks' ordnance missed the Lion, overshooting or undershooting it and landing among the wrecked and abandoned ships choking the harbor. Of the Harpoon missiles, one veered off course, caroming straight toward a patrol boat, only to be remotely detonated ten meters above it, raining shrapnel over the patrol boat's deck. The remaining Harpoons flew true and exploded just in front of the Lion, sending a massive gout of water up into the air all around it. Caravela held her breath, watching the water shoot upward, obscuring the Lion from view. Her ears rang from the explosions; though she could see his mouth moving, she couldn't hear what Socomem was saying. The water finally died down…
… revealing the Lion, still wading inexorably toward them.
Again the tanks fired, as quickly as they could reload and adjust their aim. Having expended all their other ordnance in the first volley, the frigates continued to pepper the Lion with machine gun fire. The Lion reared back and roared, pushing forward against the continuous barrage of fire. The building beneath Caravela vibrated from the force, almost knocking O Patriota to his knees. Shells exploded against the Lion's hide almost constantly. Waves rose between the Lion and the shore. An especially high wave crashed into the Antonio Abreu, dislodging the frigate and propelling it out of its position. Pushed by the wave, the ship turned on its side, its machine guns keeping up a constant stream of fire all the while, and slammed into one of the Ponte 25 de Abril's support legs, crushing it and collapsing the road surface inward, sending a bridge loaded with vehicles toppling into the bay.
Horrified, Caravela turned away from the bridge's destruction, only to stare as the Lion rose up out of the water and took its first steps onto the beach, digging its long claws into the beached container ship as it passed.
A pair of energy beams struck the Lion's muzzle, followed by a half-dozen small rockets that landed in its mouth and detonated, filling the air with acrid smoke. The tanks unleashed another volley, just as a metal figure landed on the beach just in front of the Lion and shot out a cable toward it, sending an electrical pulse into the Lion's still-soaked fur.
"Hold your fire!" Iron Maiden bellowed, her voice amplified above the din of the explosions around her. The ground shook beneath her, sand spraying in all directions from rounds falling short, and she dropped to one knee, sending two more energy blasts at the Lion along with another electrical shock. At the same moment, the Hound leapt off of her back, twisted around, and looped his leash around the Lion's muzzle, tugging it shut. The Lion let out a low growl that vibrated the beach.
"That's our signal!" shouted O Patriota, swinging over the roof's edge and rappelling down to the ground. He undid his quick-release harness in a flash the moment his feet touched the pavement and broke into a sprint.
Following his lead, Caravela dropped to the ground and pulled her trident from its place on her back. There was just barely enough space between the tanks for her to squeeze through, they had packed in so tightly. Clenching her jaw, trying to mask her anxiety, she raced after O Patriota, with Socomem just in front of her. Iron Maiden pumped a beam of energy into the Lion's head, just as the Hound stood up, pulling with all his might on his leash in a vain effort to raise its head and expose its neck. The Lion threw its head forward, launching the Hound off of its back and sending him careening straight toward Iron Maiden, who shot up into the air just in time to avoid him. The Hound contorted in midair to land in a crouch on all fours, spinning his leash to one side. Caravela's heart pounded in her chest as she jumped down onto the beach. The last time they had fought one of these Beasts, there had been ten of them, and they had barely managed to push the Bear back into the ground – and A Saltadora had nearly been killed in the effort. This time, the Lion was at least three times larger than the Bear had been, and there were less of them to fight it, even with the advance warning, because the Heroes of Paris themselves were already spread thin with trying to monitor the situation. And the Lion had already stymied the best that the Portuguese Armed Forces could throw at it. It had already reached the shore. How were they supposed to stop it?
A dozen vines sprang out of the sand from the seeds that Bandruí had scattered on her arrival, growing rapidly and reaching up to grasp the Lion's legs. O Patriota sprinted in front of the Lion's face, and it lunged for him with its mouth wide. The Hound flicked out his leash around O Patriota's waist and pulled him back, moments before the Lion's mouth closed on that spot. Socomem jumped into the air and drew back both his powered gloves, driving them into the Lion's jaw simultaneously. With a crack the energy propelled him away from the Lion, but the Lion rose back up, opened its mouth, and let out a roar. Eyes narrowed, it pulled the vines from the ground easily, striding across the sand after O Patriota and Socomem.
It was now or never. Caravela drew back her trident and hurled it at the Lion's chest with all her might. The trident flew true and struck it just at the base of its neck, hanging there for a fraction of a moment before falling to the ground. The Lion turned to her, bared its teeth, and roared. Eyes wide in fear, slowly she backed away, activating the electromagnet to recall her trident as she did so. The Lion stalked forward. Iron Maiden dove in front of it and grabbed Bandruí around the waist before snagging the Hound's leash, pulling both of them out of the Lion's path. Snatching her trident out of the air, Caravela turned on her heel and ran between the tanks, just before the Lion reached them. Pouncing on them in a fury, with a single swipe of its paw, the Lion sent one tank sailing through the air, deeper into the city, before crushing a second tank under its paw. With a wail, the first tank crashed straight through the side of a building, unbalancing it and sending it crashing to the ground. Frozen in place, Caravela stared as the Lion strode past her, deeper into the city.
Iron Maiden raced after the Lion, the Hound perched on her back. On the ground, O Patriota and Socomem jumped onto the fronts of two of the tanks as they turned to dash west and pursue the Lion from a block away. Caravela, however, remained rooted in place, staring after the Lion. Its roars pierced the air, shaking buildings throughout the city.
They had failed.
AN: "Tragedy" begins tomorrow...