AN: Looks like I had time to get this chapter done in a week after all. So before we get to it, here's the review response for last chapter.
Chrisxdon: Glad people got the references... would have been really awkward if somehow none of my readers had ever seen Red vs Blue or GoT. I originally planned on that scene with Ahri and the others to last longer... but it just didn't make sense since it would've revolved around no one noticing the smoke in the distance, so I had to cut it to make logical sense.
And that was all for last chapter. So... here's the second part of the battle for the Placidium! Again, hopefully I got most of the typos and errors in editing... because I only gave it a quick 1 over so I could get this update out at a reasonable time for once.
The Placidium, Ionia
"Stay in formation!" Ren's voice bellowed out, although it was difficult for even Isaac to hear over the thundering sound of six hundred sets of hooves.
Isaac gripped his cavalry spear tight as he tried to keep his horse in line with the rest as they charged across the open field. Another salvo slammed into the barrier in front of them, with no effect. His horse let out a noise of disapproval as he forced him through the smoke left behind.
"How much more can that barrier of yours take?" Isaac shouted over his shoulder at Syndra, who had flown down and seated herself on his horse behind him to keep pace with the charge. She had one arm wrapped around around him to keep herself steady as she funneled her power into the barrier with the other.
"It'll hold." She yelled, a confident look on her face. "Here! You'll need this!"
Isaac saw the air around him flash purple for a split second before it solidified into transparent glow, forming a bubble around him.
"Hang on a second…" He heard Mute mumble, and a moment later a small bar appeared in his HUD labeled barrier strength.
Huh…. Guess I get my own magic shield.
Good, that'll be useful. His suit's hardening had a small timer after all.
Their charge caught up to Blitzkrieg, and the larger meta-human slowly sank into the ranks as the Ionian soldiers veered their horses to get out of the way. Isaac ignored his drunk teammate's shouts over the COM, but that was mainly because it was probably nothing but German curses.
"Isaac!" Mute's voice had a hint of alarm to it that he didn't like. "I'm picking up… TO YOUR LEFT!"
Isaac's head snapped in the direction Mute shouted out, and he didn't like what he saw.
Five Ascension fighters were swooping down on him. He recognized them as Stormhawk multi-role fighters.
They're going to strafe us!
"Incoming from the left!" Isaac called back over his shoulder, hoping Syndra could do something about it.
He sure as shit couldn't… not while on horseback.
Thankfully it appeared Syndra could. He heard her grunt loudly and the barrier in front of them suddenly expanded from the top and backwards, covering them from above.
And just in time too, as hundreds of rounds slammed into the top of the barrier as the Stormhawks strafed over them. The five aircraft zoomed past over head, pilots likely pissed that their run did no damage.
However, just as the aircraft passed by, a massive roar of gunfire erupted in the distance ahead of them. The entire Ascension battle-line opened fire, including the Predator's mounted machine guns. Isaac felt himself sweat a little at seeing what was likely thousands upon thousands of bullets slam into the barrier only a few meters in front of him.
After three seconds of endless gunfire, Isaac saw cracks starting to form in purple magic shield.
"I… uh!" He heard Syndra groan behind him. It was faint, but he heard it… and that made him worried.
Come on! Isaac grit his teeth as he watched the Ascension figures in the distance get bigger and bigger as they rapidly closed the distance. We're almost there… just a little longer!
The tanks fired again… and it proved to be too much. It sounded like shattering glass as five massive holes appeared in the upper part of the barrier, unable to hold back the Ascension's salvos any longer.
Explosions went off around Isaac as the enemy artillery fire finally met it mark. Most of it was behind Isaac so he couldn't see it, but he could already picture both human and horse body parts splattering in different directions. One of the shells hit near him, showering him with dirt and making his ears ring.
But the worst part was the barrier… like a massive piece of glass it shattered from the top down, with the shards evaporating before hitting the ground.
Their defence was gone.
Thankfully… it held just long enough.
"IONIA!" The soldiers around him bellowed out as their charge reached the Ascension, even as several of their comrades were cut down but a hail of bullets. Some of the soldiers' broke line and tried to get away. Others stood their ground, firing away. Isaac saw Ren throw the Ionian banner at one of the Ascension soldiers, impaling the man and pinning him to the spot.
The Ionian cavalry smashed into the Ascension line, trampling those who had stayed in place. Some of the Ascension soldiers tried to weave through the Ionian lines, but even after dodging maybe one or two horses, they were slaughtered by one of the many others who came after.
Isaac lowered his spear and thrust it out at an Ascension soldier he raced past. Combined with the momentum of his charge, the spear pieced the soldier's armor and his chest. Sadly though, since Isaac's horse was still going full speed, the shaft of the spear snapped in half, leaving Isaac with a useless wooden stick in his hand.
Knew that was going to happen! Isaac cursed as he dropped what was left of his spear. He quickly looked down to the right side of his horse and found the hilt of his Demacian longsword, and grabbed it, yanking it out of it's sheath.
Longsword's better on horseback then my other swords, I'll need the reach!
"Engage!" Someone shouted nearby, which was responded with a chorus of shouts of the same word. The Ionian soldiers who had punched right through the Ascension line slowed their horses down and turned about, returning to the fight. Isaac motioned his horse to do the same, although he did so with probably a little more force then his companions.
He was NOT used to fighting on horseback after all.
"My turn…" He heard Syndra mutter, and he felt her release her grip on him. The weight on his horse shifted as she jumped off his horse.
Isaac wanted to look back at her and see what the hell she was up to, but he knew better then that. Instead, he looked ahead as he came up behind an Ascension soldier who was firing his assault rifle at passing Ionian soldiers. Isaac released the reigns of his horse and took his longsword in both hands, leaning in the saddle slightly as he took a horizontal swing at the soldier.
The poor bastard never knew what hit him, and Isaac's longsword ripped through the back of the man's neck and severed the head from the rest of the body.
Stab and bullet resistant… never proof.
Isaac darted his horse ahead, taking his longsword in his left hand and slashing at another soldier he passed by. He didn't outright decapitate this one, but his attack drew blood as he slashed the soldier across the neck.
Ascension regular infantry have the same weaknesses as the shock troopers. Armor is weak at the neck, armpits, and knees.
Their armor was also thinner, and Isaac knew from past experiences that he could stab them right through it. Problem was that he was on horseback, not on ground level, so he was stuck with slashing.
That problem, however, was quickly solved by the Ascension.
Isaac couldn't help but let out a yelp as he was suddenly launched from his saddle. He slammed into the ground hard and bounced twice as he rolled across the blood-soaked grass.
Shit! Shit! Isaac grimaced from the turbulence, having to put in a real effort into not dropping his sword.
Isaac rolled to his feet, dizzy and sore, but alive. He threw a quick glance over his shoulder to see what the fuck happened.
His horse was lying dead behind him… with two bullet holes in the head.
Shit! Syndra's barrier didn't protect the damn horse!
Isaac didn't have time to worry about it though, and he felt a chill go down his spine. He spun back around, bringing his longsword up across his body just in time to parry an attack by an Ascension soldier.
Isaac took a step back and parried the next blow before taking a step back, dodging the third. With the opening now presented to him, Isaac thrust forwards with all his might, plunging his sword through his attacker helmet with a nasty sound as metal ripped through metal and bone before the tip of his longsword burst out the back of the man's head.
Isaac slammed his shoulder into the corpse and yanked the longsword out, just as he felt another chill go down his spine.
Isaac ducked down, a blade going over his head, and quickly twirled his longsword around in his hands. He rotated to see his new attacker and responded to his attacker's stab with one of his own, driving the longsword through the soldier's stomach.
His attacker let out a screech of pain, one that was quickly silenced when Isaac jolted back upright and smashed his fist into his enemy's head with an uppercut. The now unconscious soldier flopped backwards, and Isaac pulled his sword free of the woman's body.
"When will they learn you can't be taken by surprise?" Mute sighed.
Nice to see you're so nonchalant about this whole thing while I FIGHT FOR MY FUCKING LIFE HERE!
Isaac grit his teeth as he quickly looked around, trying to get his barrings in this hell of a battle.
It was then he saw that he was actually standing in the center of said hell.
The Ascension soldiers had recovered from whatever shock they had received from the Ionian charge. Some had their swords drawn and were fending off their mounted attackers, others still wielded their assault rifles to devastating effect. Since they were on horseback the Ionian troops stood out over the heads of anyone on foot, giving the Ascension clear shots at them. With no magic barrier to protect them, Ionian troops were starting to drop like flies.
Some Ascension troops had jumped onto their tanks to keep out of the massive melee that had broken out, gunning down any passerby's who got within range. But even then, they were totally safe. Since they couldn't reach them, passerby Ionians who weren't gunned down threw their spears like javelins. Most of them had no effect on the armor of the Ascension soldiers, but some did find their marks.
Thankfully a good number of the Ionians had dismounted (either willingly or unwilling, Isaac couldn't tell) and were fighting on foot. Due to the close combat, most of the Ascension soldiers were unable to shoot effectively; having to use their rifles to fend off spears and swords, or use swords of their own.
And blood…. There was blood and dead bodies, both human and animal, fucking everywhere.
Focus… focus Isaac!
Isaac shook his head and snapped out of it, having taken in enough of the sights, he ran back over to his dead horse. He grabbed his shield and his longsword's sheath off the animal's corpse, strapping the sheath to his belt and his buckler over his right forearm.
With all the chaos around him, thankfully he went unnoticed… at least, until he put his longsword back in it's sheath.
The barrier Syndra had put around him started flashing, and the bar in his HUD started to drop. Someone was shooting at him.
Isaac's hand darted down to his leg, ripping one of his Glocks out of it's holster and turned around, spotting a pair of Ascension regulars standing next to a Predator tank that was in the middle of shifting back into it's normal tank form.
Got to take them quick!
Isaac kicked off the ground, leaping high into the air with a backwards spin.
Slow…
He felt the world around him slow down, and the sounds of the battle start to become intangible. With the limited window he had, he took aim at the first soldier's visor and squeezed off a round, then aiming at the second soldier's visor and fired again.
As soon as the second bullet left the Glock's barrel, Isaac relaxed, and the world resumed its normal pace. He landed on both feet and rolled forward, looking up at his attackers just in time to see them both fall onto their backs.
"Nice shooting!" Mute complimented him.
He sprinted towards their bodies and the hostile tank, that was just finishing its transformation back into tank mode.
Need to grab one of those dead guy's rifles, then I'll deal with the ta-WOAH!
Isaac's eyes went wide open as he spotted horse running right at him full speed. He tumbled forward to get out of the way, barely doing so. He rolled back to his feet and resumed his run, taking a moment to throw the Ionian soldier a death glare.
Asshole! I'm on your side!
That being said… with witnessing this chaotic battle, Isaac was starting to believe that friendly-fire was a lot more common in the middle ages then people were led to believe.
He dropped into a slide to reach the two soldiers he had killed, both had a single bullet hole in the center of their visor.
He wrenched one of the assault rifles out of the closest dead soldier's hand, checking its ammo counter.
Only ten rounds?!
Isaac grabbed at the soldier's chest, tugging at some of the pockets on the it's combat vest. Feeling around, he found what he was looking for.
Two more clips, better check the other one…
He felt another chill go down his spine and rolled to the side, bullets strafing the spot he was just at. He rolled again and came to a stop on his back, rifle's sights to his visor, and fired off a pair of rounds at the Ascension soldier on top of the tank. Both bullets hit the man in the head and he dropped like a sack of potatoes, falling off the tank and landing on the ground next to Isaac with a thud.
… and that one too I guess.
He quickly reloaded, not caring about the last eight rounds in the clip, and grabbed the remaining clips off the dead soldiers.
Now about this tank…
The best way would be to simply do what he did back in the capital city, just fire a laser of dark matter at it and the tank would be history. Problem with that though was if he hit something volatile inside the tank it could explode, and all eight of the Ascension tanks were in the middle of this clusterfuck of a melee.
In other words, he might end up killing more allies then enemies with his attack.
Plan B it is then... mantle the tank.
Isaac turned to the tank and started to climb onto it… when he noticed a purple field shimmering around the entire thing. It was oddly similar to the barrier Syndra had placed around him.
"What the hell?" Isaac muttered, pausing for a second. Then his skin started to crawl.
I've got to get off this thing!
He jumped off the tank and landed right where he was a moment ago, when he felt another chill go down his spine.
Ugh, will they ever learn?!
He shouldered his rifle and turned to face his newest attacker… only to see Shyvana rushing at him. Her odd weapons were covered in blood, and she had a frantic expression on her face.
Huh? Is she seriously going to attack me n-
"GET DOWN!" Shyvana shouted at him, causing Isaac to hesitate in confusion. The she-dragon didn't though, and she dove at Isaac, making him jump back in surprise.
He didn't get far enough, and Shyvana tackled him, sending them both to the ground with Shyvana on top of him.
"WHAT THE FUCK ARE…" Isaac screamed at her, completely blown away by the fact that she was willing to attack him here and now of all times and places.
He tried to push her off him, but Shyvana scowled and pinned him down to the ground, lying on top of him. Isaac was about to unleash his powers to get her off, when he noticed something soaring through the air over them.
It was the tank.
Isaac watched with wide eyes as the tank he had been standing on moments ago rolled through the air, narrowly missing him and Shyvana. It slammed into the ground several meters away, crushing several soldiers of both sides as they failed to get out of its path as it rolled across the dirt… only coming to a stop when it slammed into another tank.
"What the fuck…?" Mute voiced his thoughts, appearing just as shocked as he was.
Isaac turned to the other side, and saw Syndra standing there with her hand outstretched towards the tank. Purple energy flowed around her, and she had a diabolical grin on her face.
Did she just THROW a fucking TANK?!
Forget his internal bitching about having to babysit Syndra… taking her along for this road trip was the best idea he and Mute had come up with since coming to Runeterra.
"Isaac! Incoming from above!" Mute cried out, Isaac's head darting upwards.
Shit!
Dozens of shock troopers were descending on them from the city. There had to be at least fifty, hell, maybe seventy.
His HUD highlighted one of the front runners in the attack group, being clad in different armor then the rest.
"Looks like Starscream's back." Mute muttered, "I'll ping Goth."
Yeah, you do your secretary work, I'll do the ACTUAL fucking work. He thought as Shyvana got off him, jumping back onto his feet.
"Incoming!" Isaac thrust a finger out at the shock troopers sailing down at them. He raised his rifle and set the first one in his sights, firing off several rounds. It took several shots before he dropped the first one, moving onto the second as soon as he saw his first target veer off-course.
Several dark purple spheres flew at the shock troopers, courteously of Syndra. The shock troopers broke off and scattered in the air, flying over the battlefield with their guns going full auto.
Starscream came flying down at full speed, slamming into Syndra. The barrier around her flared brightly as the armored cyborg grabbed her by the throat, and taking her with him as he soared just above the ground. He slammed her into the ground over and over again as he carried her with him, before throwing her into the side of another tank.
Syndra crashed into the metal hull back first, and collapsed… either unconscious, dead, or stunned. The barrier around her flickering dimly.
Syndra! Shit!
Isaac turned to help her, taking Starscream in his sights. Just as he squeezed the trigger, the rifle was knocked out of the way by a shock trooper, causing his shots to miss. Isaac turned his head and saw four more shock troopers coming down at him.
I don't have time for your bitch asses!
Isaac dropped the assault rifle and grabbed one of his arming swords, dodging to the side as the shock trooper who knocked his rifle aside tried to gouge him with a bayonet. Isaac kicked the rifle out of the shock trooper's hands and lunged forwards, wrapping his free arm around the shock trooper's head and putting him in a headlock.
"Get off me!" The shock trooper shouted as Isaac drew one of his swords out of it's sheathe and wedged the edge of the blade under the man's helmet. Isaac grunted as the shock trooper resisted, but Isaac's meta-human strength won out, and he got the blade under the helmet and wrenched around, slicing the man's neck open.
Isaac darted his head back over at Syndra, only to see Starscream walking towards her menacingly, uncaring of the battle around them. The dark mage stirred, but she was clearly stunned and defenseless.
Need to help her… shit!
Isaac released his victim and twirled around in response to the cold feeling that went down his spine, just in time to parry a swing from another trooper, with another shock trooper rushing in to join. Isaac drew another sword and parried a blow from the first, before slashing away the sword from another shock trooper. He parried another blow before dropping down and sweeping the legs out from the second shock trooper.
While Isaac fought two shock troopers, he saw the other two get tangled up with Shyvana, who immediately started kicking their asses. One of them leapt back and started firing at her with his assault rifle, only for Shyvana to stick both her hands together and fire a fireball at him. The fireball slammed into the shock trooper's body, sending him flying back while his partner rushed at the half-dragon.
Which quickly turned out to be a bad move. Shyvana bashed the man's weapon out of his hand before driving one of her oversized brass knuckles into the soldier's helmet with enough force to send the man off his feet.
Back with his own fight, Isaac channeled his dark matter into his arms, feeling a burn. With his now even more enhanced strength, Isaac leaned out of the way of another attack, and lunged forwards. He drove both of his swords into the shock trooper's chest, the soldier's armor creaking loudly as it gave way to the pointed tips of Isaac's blades.
The man gargled as both Isaac's swords penetrated his armor, then his rib cage, then his lungs. Isaac slammed his shoulder into the impaled soldier and wrenched the man to the side with all his might, flinging the body away from him and freeing his now blood-soaked blades.
He turned his attention back to the other shock trooper who had scrambled back to his feet.
Only to have Shyvana ground pound him in the back of the head, dropping him.
Isaac looked back over at Syndra, ready to help as saw Starscream approaching her. An Ionian soldier charged at the meta-human, who simply dodged to the side, grabbed the man's spear, and yanked it from his hands. Starscream dropped the spear and his arms shifted, transforming into guns. He fired a salvo of rounds at the disarmed soldier, raking his body in bullets.
Isaac broke off and sprinted towards him, trying to get to him before he reached Syndra.
He wasn't going to make it.
Thankfully, it didn't seem he would have to.
"Hey! Decepticon wannabe!" Blitzkrieg shouted as he zoomed into Isaac's field of vision and right at Starscream. The meta-human in question turned to see Blitzkrieg charging at him, and unlike with the Ionian soldier a moment before, this time Starscream reacted. He aimed both his arms at Blitzkrieg and opened fired.
Blitzkrieg's body lit up with sparks as bullets showered him… but didn't slow him. The alpha meta-human reared his arm back….
"Knock, knock!" He shouted as he drove his fist forward, delivering a nasty running punch. It connected with Starscream's head and the cyborg was launched off his feet. He soared through the air for several meters, before hitting the ground and rolling for several more.
Isaac ran up to his partner and stood next to him, turning to face their enemy. Starscream stopped rolling, and groaned.
"You…." Isaac was somehow able to hear the cold hearted meta-human's voice over the sounds of battle. "You… FUCKING CUNTS!"
Blitzkrieg sighed, cracking his knuckles. "Yep, he's pissed… Arch?" He turned to Isaac. "I got this one."
Isaac nodded, sheathing one of his swords and racing over to Syndra.
"Syndra!" Isaac gave the scantily clad woman a shake, earning a groan from her as she stirred.
"W… wh…at?" She mumbled, barely coherent.
"Yeah… yeah I think she's done." Mute observed.
No shit…
"Come here!" He heard Blitzkrieg shout, causing Isaac to glance back up at his teammate.
Blitzkrieg was chasing Starscream, who was using his jetpack and boosters on his legs to keep away from him as he opened fired.
Isaac heard a chorus of war horns and looked over his shoulder, back in the direction they had originally come from.
He was greeted with the sight of thousands of Ionian soldiers charging across the open field towards them. At the head of the group was Irelia, and Isaac could barely make out the unique appearances of the other League champions with her.
"Looks like the rest have finally arrived." Mute pointed out the obvious, before her expression turned grave. "Oh no!"
Isaac turned his head slightly to the side and saw the Ascension's Stormhawks strafe the reinforcements, but thankfully it appeared they had barriers too.
However, he also saw the dozens of dropships approaching over the horizon.
The Ascension's got reinforcements too.
Not wanting to worry about that right now he grabbed Syndra and helped the groggy woman to her feet.
"Can you stand?" He asked, and get a groan and a flimsy nod from Syndra in response.
"That's a no…." Mute sighed.
Isaac sighed and pushed Syndra back down. "Just… stay here and put a barrier around yourself or something."
"I.. I'm fi..fin…e…" She moaned in response.
Yeah… no you're not.
Isaac felt yet another a chill go down his spine… and he remembered he was still in the center of the god-damn battle.
He twirled around, kicking his leg out up high to knock a bayoneted charge off course. The soldier who charged at him didn't stop though and he made to tackle Isaac, shoulder ramming him in the stomach.
Isaac grunted in pain as his back slammed into the tank. He dropped his other sword and wrapped both his arms around the shock trooper's body and threw the man to the side, slamming him into the tank as well. Isaac then drove a knee into the soldier's chest, followed by another one. The shock trooper's grip loosened just enough for Isaac to break free, and he quickly grabbed him by the head.
Fuck off! Isaac thought as he slammed the shock trooper's head into the metal hull of the tank as hard as he could. The trooper's body immediately went slack, and he collapsed to the ground. With him taken care of Isaac looked over to the side, and saw Shyvana, now joined by Galio, fighting off several shock troopers.
Might need to help…
Isaac was about to rush over to them. As much as he disliked those two they were damn handy in a fight. However, his attention was diverted when he heard the boom of the tank next to him firing its main gun.
Oh shit! This thing is still active?!
Isaac saw an explosion out in the distance, where the reinforcements were. He had to take care of this tank before it could shell Irelia's army.
Fuck it, out of options.
Isaac darted over to Syndra who was still sitting with her head bobbing up and down. He grabbed her and pulled her away, ignoring her half-intelligible protests. He dragged her several meters away from the tank and let her down there, ignoring whatever gibberish was coming out of the half-conscious woman's mouth.
He let out a breath and focused on his dark powers… feeling the dark matter starting for form around one of his hands as he walked up to the tank.
Isaac lashed one hand outwards, picturing a chain in his hands. At his command, the dark matter flew out of his partly nerve damaged hand, forming a whip that wrapped around the tank's main gun. With a flick of his wrist, the whip turned into a metal chain. Isaac ignored the pain that started to flare though his body, and grabbed the chain with both hands.
Come on….
Isaac grit his teeth as he channeled his powers into the chain, and it started to constrict harder and harder around the tanks massive barrel. He heard the groaning of metal as used his powers to crush the cannon.
The tank's gunner must have been unaware that Isaac was crushing the cannon, because the tank fired.
And that resulted in the whole top of the tank exploding.
Isaac was launched backwards several feet from the force of the explosion, his head spinning as he rolled on the ground a few meters before coming to a sliding stop on his knees.
He looked up at the tank and saw the remains of the top of the tank on fire.
"Nice!" Mute congratulated him. Isaac shook his head as he tried to clear the dizziness from his mind. He released the flow of dark matter to his hands and the chain that he had used vanished from sight.
Isaac took a quick look around him. The fight around him was becoming less crowded now, but that was because a good chunk of the soldiers were now among the many dead bodies that littered the field. Blitzkrieg was still fighting with Starscream, having caught the Ascension meta-human and slammed his body into the ground. He also saw two Ionian soldiers stab an Ascension soldier through the chest, only for both soldiers to be gunned down a moment later.
Never mind, this is still chaos.
He turned over to Syndra, who was starting to sit upright on her own. He heard her mumble something and the barrier around her flickered twice before flashing a bright purple and becoming more solid.
"Archangel!" He heard Shyvana voice's behind him. He glanced over his shoulder and saw her run over to him, followed by Galio. Both of their hands were soaked in blood, clearly not their own though, since neither appeared wounded or concerned. Galio seemed fine, but Shyvana had some cuts and scraps on her body and some of the red paint on her armor had been chipped off. Isaac also saw marks on her armor that showed clear signs of her having been shot at.
Now that I think about it, she did take that bullet back in Ionia when we rescued Syndra… maybe her dragon-skin is bullet resistant?
Would make sense, seeing how she wasn't bleeding from a hundred different bullet wounds.
Shyvana nodded towards the tank, while Galio lent a hand to help Syndra back to her feet.
"That your handiwork?" She asked him. Isaac nodded, before looking back at the tank he had destroyed and paused.
Hang on… the tops on fire… what if….
…
SHIT!
Isaac went wide eyed and snapped his head back over to the others.
"Get back! It can still blow!" He shouted as he scrambled to his feet to get away. He didn't get far though, as Shyvana suddenly grabbed him by the arm and pulled him closer to her and Galio, who suddenly grabbed Syndra and yanked her towards him.
He was about to question the actions when he saw Galio slam his other fist into the ground. A massive white colored barrier appeared around them, protecting them all.
And just in time to, since the rest of the tank exploded.
His helmet's blast-shield came up, bloating out any sight, along with disabling his earpiece to make sure he didn't go deaf from the loud explosion. After a few seconds of being unable to see or hear anything, Mute undid the locks and his vision and hearing returned.
He saw the remains of the tank, with the only thing left of the Predator being it's burning frame. The grass around it was on fire too, and Isaac saw the charred remains of several bodies as well.
I REALLY, REALLY hope those are enemy bodies….
Isaac was NOT keen on being the cause for friendly fire.
He noticed Galio's barrier had cracked slightly, but remained up.
Christ's sake… does EVERYONE but me have some kind of magical shield or something?
That was bullshit. Why couldn't he do that?
…. Huh…
Isaac paused at the thought, but shook it from his mind. Now was not the time.
He looked over to the others, seeing Shyvana and Syndra clasping the sides of their heads and grimacing, likely from the after effects of the loud explosion. Galio on the other hand seemed fine.
Bullets ricocheted off his barrier, likely because it was large enough to attract attention. Isaac turned and saw several shock troopers hovering nearby aiming at them, firing on full auto.
"Galio?" Isaac asked the stone-gargoyle. "Can I shoot through this thing?"
Galio gave him an affirmative.
Perfect…
He focused his powers on the air in front of him, feeling his body burn as he summoned up a weapon. After a second he heard a loud pop and he grabbed the ebony-purple rifle out of the air. He aimed his summoned SCAR at the shock troopers and opened fired. Unlike normal bullets, the dark matter rounds slammed into the shock troopers and got immediate results, and after the first two dropped the others activated their jetpacks and tried to scatter. Isaac fired at their retreating forms, but only managed to hit another one.
"Everyone!" He heard a familiar voice call out, one he was thankful to finally hear.
He glanced over his shoulder and saw Irelia running up to them, behind her were the other champions. Isaac noticed Ahri looking at him with an expression that clearly showed concern. He gave her a nod and her expression turned more relieved.
"Awwwwwww…" Mute cooed, and Isaac rolled his eyes.
"Shut up Mute…" He grumbled quietly just low enough that only Mute heard him.
Soraka put her hands together and chanted something, and Isaac saw a green light flash around Shyvana and Syndra, both letting out sighs of relief as she fixed their shell-shocked status.
"What now?" Isaac asked the captain of the guard.
"We're pushing into the Placidium, Captain Ren will command most of the army and will remain out here and fight off the Ascension's reinforcements. Its up to us and the others to clear the Ascension out of the Placidium." She ordered before waving her hand forward. "For Ionia!"
"IONIA!" The soldiers behind them screamed out and charged towards the Placidium.
"Mute?" Isaac hailed his AI. "Can you pass the message to Goth?"
Mute nodded. "Goth says Blitzkrieg is still fighting Starscream and his shock troopers. He'll remain outside and hold him here and assist the Ionians."
"Sounds good." Isaac dispelled the dark matter weapon in his hands and drew two of his swords before rushing after the others.
Irelia's army charged through the gates of the Placidium, which had already been blown off before their arrival. The sight that awaited them was nothing but ruined buildings and lots of dead bodies. Thankfully, and sadly, most of them appeared to be Ionian soldiers, and not civilians.
Oh, and there was the shit-ton of Ascension's soldiers waiting for them too.
"TERRA INVICTA!" Was the massive shout that came from the Ascension soldiers as they opened up on the charging Ionians.
Isaac saw Syndra float into the air and throw her arms out, erecting another massive barrier to cover them as they charged into the city.
Jesus, does she ever run out of gas?
Not all the Ascension soldiers stayed in cover to open fire at them though, Isaac saw many of them draw close combat weapons and charge out at the Ionians… although Isaac's eyes locked onto the three banshees that charged with them.
Fuck, banshees…
"Mute! Banshees!" He shouted.
"I see them!" Mute acknowledged, and Isaac's external audio became disabled, causing all sound to vanish aside from his own breathing.
Isaac saw several of the Ionian soldiers leading the charge in front of them stumble and drop their weapons, hands rushing to cover their ears.
They must have screamed!
Mute must have agreed, because his helmet's speakers re-activated and Isaac's ears were flooded with the battle-cries and screams of soldiers as the Ascension met the Ionian charge head on.
An Ionian soldier impaled an Ascension soldier with a magically enhanced spear, an Ascension soldier gunned down an Ionian soldier. Another Ionian parried off a pair of blows from another Ascension soldier, before being cut down, only for his killer to be killed by another, followed by that soldier being killed by another.
Isaac saw Irelia leap out from in front, the four blades that float around her lashing out at any Ascension soldier near her. Lee Sin let out a "hiya!" as he drop-kicked one of the banshees, sending her flying backwards.
Sona, somehow near the front and carrying that weird ass instrument of hers, darted her fingers across said instrument sent out a large shockwave that caused a bunch of Ascension soldiers in front of her to drop their weapons and scream, hands rushing to cover their ears.
Oh shit, she just did what the banshees do. Hah! How's it feel you Ascension bastards?!
Isaac sprinted to the front of the group and leapt at one of the dual-wielding banshees, mimicking Lee Sin and drop-kicking the female warrior. The banshee shrieked and stumbled backwards, as Isaac chased after her, weaving past an Ionian soldier in the process.
The banshee recovered from the drop kick and lashed out at Isaac with a flurry of swings. Isaac parried them and retaliated, swinging high with one blade and parrying an attack with the other. The two went back and forth for several seconds, neither gaining an upper hand. Isaac feigned a horizontal swing, then dropped down and swung low, his sword slashing at the banshee's knee. The blade hit the armor of the banshee but didn't go through, however the impact of the hit caused the banshee to stumble.
Seizing the chance, Isaac parried a desperate swing from the banshee and darted forward, wrapping his arm around on of the banshee's, locking it under his armpit. The banshee tried to stab at him with her remaining blade and Isaac deflected the attack with his free hand.
"Harden!" Isaac ordered Mute, and his vision flashed yellow. He lunged forwards again and delivered a nasty headbutt, his hardened suit resulting in him taking no damage while having a noticeable effect on the banshee, as her head reared backwards as she let out a massive and terrifying scream, triggered by her pain.
Isaac grimaced hard as he felt his ears pop and his HUD flashed to warn him that his earpieces had been disabled… but the damage to him had already been done. He felt his vision blur and his teeth rattle as he felt the concussive effects of the banshee's wail taking hold of his mind and body.
It didn't deter him though. Isaac drove his free hand forwards with all his might, the pointed end of his sword rushing towards the center of the banshee's damaged helmet. He stabbed the banshee through the face, just like he had done four years ago in Doha, Qatar. The blade pierced through her helmet, and the banshee's entire body ceased up, her arm that was locked under his armpit going rigid… then slack.
Isaac yanked the blade out of her face and let the banshee drop to the ground in a pool of blood, that quickly mixed in with that all the others.
Shit! Shit! Shit! Isaac cursed, feeling the effects of the banshee's scream taking hold of his body. He was in the center of a damn clusterfuck of a fight and he was having to deal with this shit?!
Before he could bitch about it anymore, the effects suddenly vanished. His vision came back to normal and the ringing in his ears were gone.
Huh?
His external audio turned back on, returning him to the sounds of the bloodbath around him.
"Isaac!" Mute called to him. "I just picked up a massive surge of energy there. I think someone healed you with magic."
Well… damn. That's helpful.
Isaac wanted to look around for who just did him a massive favor, but he was kind in the middle of a battle.
On cue, he dodged to the side to evade a swing from an Ascension soldier, and responded with a stab. He thrust the blade through the regular infantryman's chest and grabbed him with his other arm. With a grunt, Isaac flipped the soldier over him, yanking the blade out as he did so. Feeling a chill go down his spine he twisted his body to the side, narrowly evading a stab from a bayonet.
He elbowed his attacker in the face, and then further stunned him by bashing him with his shield, before spinning around and using the momentum to stab the Ascension soldier through the head, blade ramming through his attacker's helmet. Isaac wrenched the blade out and noticed a nearby Ionian soldier being pinned to the ground by another Ascension soldier.
Nothing for it…
Isaac flipped the sword in his hand around into a reverse grip, and threw it like a javelin at the enemy soldier. The blade ripped through the air and lodged itself in the soldier's visor a few feet away, killing him.
Isaac darted over to the Ionian soldier and grabbed his arm.
"Get up!" Isaac shouted, pulling the man to his feet. The soldier didn't bother thanking him, instead, he slashed at another Ascension soldier with his katana. Isaac saw a shock trooper finish off a different Ionian and turned his attention to Isaac. Isaac brought his arm up and blocked the attack with his buckler, before swinging his remaining sword upwards. His sword hit he enemy shock trooper's arm at the inside of the elbow, another armor weak point. It had the desired effect, and the shock trooper screamed as Isaac dismembered the woman from the elbow down.
Isaac made to finish the shock trooper off, but he saw a spear splatter outward from the shock trooper's neck as an Ionian soldier stabbed her from behind. Isaac paid the now dead shock trooper no heed, turning back to the body of the soldier he had thrown his other sword at and yanked it out.
"Above! Again!" Mute warned him, and Isaac glanced upwards. Two smaller Ascension gunships emerged from behind the rooftop of a nearby temple, guns blazing as they rained death done on the Ionians. Isaac's visor was splattered with blood as several nearby soldiers were slaughtered from the hailstorm of high-calibre rounds that covered their area.
Shit! Revenant gunships!
Isaac cursed. He needed to get out of this melee and to a better position, so he could bring them down. The Revenants were smaller Ascension gunships that acted as close air support in a fashion similar to helicopter gunships.
Lightly armored… but armed to the teeth.
Isaac wiped the blood from his visor and tried to find a position, but instead he had to dodge another attack from an Ascension soldier, and even one from an Ionian!
For fuck sakes! I can easily tell the difference between and Ionian and an Ascension soldier in this shitstorm!
Of course, that was because Ionian and Ascension soldiers had such distinctive armor. It was easy to tell the difference!
Isaac on the other hand? While sure his suit was way better, to most Ionians his armor probably looked super similar to that of Ascension soldiers.
Remember you half-wits! Black armor, good guy. Dark blue armor, bad guy!
Although in the clusterfuck he was honestly surprised he didn't have more Ionians mistaking him as an enemy.
Isaac darted out of the fight and to the side, but as soon as he got out of the melee he saw his barrier flash several times as someone started shooting at him. He saw his barrier flicker weakly one last time before he felt an impact on the side of his leg.
Isaac cursed and dove behind a large piece of fallen debris, likely stone or something that had gotten blown off from the city walls. He looked at the meter in his HUD and saw that it flashed red. The barrier Syndra had given him was gone.
Isaac cursed again and looked down at his leg. No damage aside from having the paint chipped off from the bullet.
He flipped over onto his stomach and looked up at the Revenants. He got up on one knee and started to focus his power into one hand.
As he charged up, Isaac took a quick tally of the battlefield
The Ionian and Ascension soldiers were still engaged in a blood bath at the city gates, however it was clear that the Ionians were winning due to sheer numbers. Ionian soldiers started to fan out away from the melee, but a good number of them were forced to run for cover as the Ascension soldiers in the background and in the buildings, were gunning them down.
Although he couldn't see her, he saw Irelia's blood soaked blades dart up above the sea of fighters before plunging back down. Isaac saw Varus and Ezreal emerge from the city gates and rush off to the side, neither seemed eager to enter the melee and Isaac couldn't blame either.
Syndra was hovering above the fight, her barrier flashing brightly as several Ascension soldiers tried to gun her down. The dark mage was flinging dark purple orbs at her attackers, who would duck behind cover to try and avoid them.
He also spotted Ahri rushing off somewhere, her body being enveloped in a bright light as she dashed out of sight.
Where you running off to…?
His question was answered when he briefly saw Ahri appear behind some Ascension soldiers in cover. Flashes of magic appeared around Ahri that fired off and hit the enemy soldiers, causing them to fall over.
And just as she had appeared, Ahri's body became enveloped by a light again and dashed back out of sight.
…. Clever girl…
He couldn't see Lee Sin, Shyvana, Sona, or Galio anywhere. Irelia neither, but her blades were dancing up and down in the air, so he had a general idea where she was.
Isaac felt his hand start to burn to the point where he grimaced hard at the pain. He stood up from behind his cover and looked up at the closest Revenant gunship. With a grunt he lashed his hand out, palm open.
The dark matter that he had spent all that time collecting in his hand exploded outwards, sending out a massive dark purple and black laser. The laser hit its target, ripping a hole through the side of the gunship and destroying the engines. The gunship started to spiral out of control, spinning in the air several times before it veered off to the side and falling behind some buildings out of sight. A loud noise, followed by dust floating into the air confirmed the destruction for Isaac instead.
One down… guh!
Isaac grunted as he felt his entire body shiver, a burning sensation overcoming him for a moment. Then his head exploded with a sudden and massive headache, followed by a warning that went off in his helmet.
"Gah! Ugh!" Isaac grunted as he doubled over, gripping his helmet with both hands.
"Isaac!" He heard Mute call out to him, although she did it so loudly that it didn't do much to help his headache.
Isaac grunted in pain… he wasn't confused as to why he was suddenly feeling this way… he had felt it many times before.
He didn't need to read the message that appeared in the center of his HUD, but he did anyways.
"Warning: Inhibitor Damage Detected. Powers Unstable."
My inhibitors!?
He had hardly used his powers yet! Why the hell were they…
Isaac cursed. He had overloaded his inhibitors back at Bilgewater... he remembered now.
I must have damaged them with that! Why else would I be getting a backlash like this now, and so soon?
Isaac made to stand, but he couldn't help but let his knees buckle from the pain, and he dropped down onto them.
"Isaac!" Mute shouted. "Don't move! Hang on!"
Several small windows appeared in his HUD, with lines and lines of text and numbers being scrolled through. Another warning appeared in his HUD… this time warning him that Mute was overriding something and taking over his armor.
Normally, an AI taking over a soldier's suit of armor was a big deal and a massive warning sign of danger for soldiers… but Isaac didn't care for any of that. Even without all the pain, he wouldn't stop her. He trusted Mute.
I'm in the middle of a fucking battle! I don't have time for this shit!
Isaac wanted to shout that out, but in the back of his mind he knew it would mean nothing… right now, he was in a very vulnerable position. It was a stroke of luck in its own right that he was behind cover with this happening to him.
"Archangel!" He heard Ezreal call to him. Isaac looked over to the side and saw Ezreal rush over to him, ducking behind the same debris as he was. Right behind the explorer was Varus and Sona. "You ok?!"
Isaac, tried to stand again and opened his mouth to respond when he felt another wave of pain rip through his body, causing only a gasp and grunt of pain to escape his mouth. Isaac collapsed back onto his hands and knees and shut his eyes with a grunt.
Not… now…
"What's wrong?!" He heard Ezreal shout, followed by feeling someone patting his armor down.
"No, no you're not hurt…" He heard Ezreal muttering. Isaac opened his eyes and looked up, seeing Ezreal checking him over for injuries with Sona setting up her musical instrument.
Not… not me you idiots! The… gunship!
"Hang on Isaac. Got it!" Mute exclaimed, and Isaac felt the headache in his head suddenly get way worse for a second, before it started to fade. The various windows and displays in his HUD disappeared, clearing his vision up again.
"W…what did…" Isaac grimaced. He was still in pain, but he was already starting to feel better.
"Sorry, I totally just broke all protocols and over-rid your inhibitors for the time being. I'll explain later, but for the time being, DO NOT use any more dark matter powers!"
She sounded serious… very serious.
Normally Isaac would argue about how he didn't give a shit about himself and how he felt, but he knew that he was no damn use in this battle if he was flopping around on the ground in pain.
"Fine." Isaac grunted, taking a deep breath and feeling most of the pain disappear from his body. He wasn't sure if that was due to his inhibitors being disabled or if the backlash from his last attack had worn off.
Then, he noticed a small, pleasant tune in his ears. It was hard to hear, given how soundwaves were filled with gunfire and the screams of soldiers, but he heard it.
Huh?
Isaac looked about him and saw Sona crouching next to him. She had her eyes closed and had a neutral face, all the while strumming away on her instrument. It looked strange, because she had some spots of blood on her face, clearly not her own though. But what was most shocking was the faint green line in the air that connected Isaac to said instrument.
Mute's scanner appeared in his HUD, highlighting the instrument and the green line that connected him to it. Mute let out a lower whistle.
"Wow… now that is cool!" She exclaimed. "Sona is somehow using that instrument to funnel healing magic directly into you!"
Huh… that explains why I'm suddenly feeling way better.
In fact, he felt a hundred percent fine.
Ezreal was still looking at him with a concerned expression though, so Isaac waved him off.
"I'm fine, I'm good now." He turned to Sona, who was now looking at him. He gave her a nod. "Thanks."
A loud bang brought him out of his stupor.
The gunship!
Isaac straightened up, but stayed on his knees as he peeked out of cover. The gunship was still firing away at the Ionian troops.
"The gunship!" Isaac pointed up at it, remembering how Ezreal had taken out some turrets back at the submarine some time ago. "Ez, can you…?"
"I got it." Said a voice Isaac didn't recognize.
He looked past Sona and saw Varus stand up right.
"Huh?" Isaac raised an eyebrow in question. Varus didn't answer.
Instead, the corrupted and half-crystalized man let out a massive shout.
"RAHHH!" Varus shouted as he threw and arm out, and a massive dark tendril emerged from his hand.
WOAH!
Isaac's head reared back, and Sona moved away from the corrupted man as the tendril flew through the air towards the gunship. He followed it with his eyes and saw Varus's attack wrap around the gunship in the distance. It wrapped around it several times before several explosions rocked the gunship. The lights on the ship flickered twice before the whole thing seemed to power down, and gravity took hold of it.
The ship dropped to the earth and fell onto a building before it exploded.
Mute let out another low whistle and Isaac had to agree… that was quite the sight.
His attention however was quickly taken by the massive chunks of debris that flew over the battlefield, launched in all directions by the explosion.
One of which, was heading right for them.
His head snapped over to where Ezreal and Sona were a few feet away. Isaac bolted upright and darted at the two, grabbing Ezreal first and throwing him behind him, yearning a loud yelp of pain and a grunt from the explorer.
Isaac choose to ignore the popping sound he heard too.
He grabbed the bewildered Sona with both hands and brought her in close, before jumping backwards, slamming his back against their cover.
A split second later, a massive chunk of stone slammed into the ground and rolled away… right where Sona and Ezreal had been a second ago.
"Whew!" Mute's avatar whipped her forehead. "Nice reaction time!"
"Thanks." Isaac sighed. That was a close call.
"What the hell!?" Ezreal grunted loudly, and Isaac looked over at him. Ezreal was gripping his shoulder with a grimace, clearly in pain as his other arm hung lifelessly.
… Whoops…. Sorry Ez.
Isaac motioned his head back towards where the debris had crashed down. Ezreal's tearful eyes looked over in that direction and after a pause Isaac saw the "Oh" emerge on his face.
He felt something shift in his arms, and Isaac glanced down.
Oh.
He had Sona in a vice grip of a hug, and she clearly looked uncomfortable. Not that Isaac could blame her… she was pressed up against his blood-soaked armor. He released his hold on the woman and she immediately looked over her shoulder, likely seeing just how close she and Ezreal had been to dying.
After a second she pushed herself off Isaac, but not before looking at him and giving him a smile and a nod.
That's about as close to a thanks I'm going to get from her.
Isaac nodded back and Sona pushed away from him to pick up her instrument, strumming it and the green line that had once connected Isaac to it now connected it to Ezreal. He did notice the look Sona gave him though.
Yeah, yeah… I know I dislocated his shoulder… sheesh. No good deed goes unpuinished.
Isaac reached over to Ezreal.
"This might hurt…" He warned Ezreal, who looked up at Isaac with a questioning look.
"Huh? What do you- GAAAAH!" Ezreal let out an unmanly scream as Isaac set his shoulder back in place.
"There." Isaac nodded, crouching back down. "Fixed."
Ezreal just glared at him, and Sona just shook her head.
Sheesh… cheery lot.
Isaac watched Varus stand up and walk around them all, raising his bow and taking aim at something. An arrow appeared out of thing air and Varus pulled it back, firing it off over Isaac's head to something he couldn't see.
That's handy…
Although giving the nasty vibes he was getting off that thing… and he remembered Mute's warning.
Varus stepped out of cover and walked away, firing arrows at what Isaac guessed were Ascension soldiers he couldn't see.
Isaac leaned out of cover and looked out at the battlefield.
Thankfully, it looked like they had managed to secure the gates, as Isaac didn't see anymore fighting in the melee he had been in a short while ago. Instead, he saw Ionian soldiers flooding out into the city, with Irelia near the center shouting orders to everyone.
He saw the others too. Shyvana, Lee Sin, and Galio were near Irelia, the three of them were helping injured soldiers get to their feet.
Soraka was attending to the wounded, while Syndra was floating in the air above everyone, glancing around the battlefield.
Better go see what the boss wants… we still got a city to clear. Isaac stood up and walked out from behind his faithful piece of cover.
He then felt a massive chill run down his spine.
Shit!
Isaac made to roll back behind cover when he felt something slam into his chest.
As the Ionian soldiers pushed through the gates, the Ascension soldiers fell back. Their goal hadn't been to actually win the fight, they just needed to stall for time.
So, once it was clear they couldn't hold them at the gates, the order came out to fall back into the many levels of the city-temple to try and stall the Ionians. To fight them at every street, to shoot at them from rooftops.
They needed to buy more time for the soldiers on the higher levels to finish loading the dropships up and for the heavy landers to finish making off with those massive floating mana-crystals.
On one such rooftop, Vindicator watched the Ionians rush into the city through the gates… like the swarm of angry ants they were. He was perched nearby, and he knew he only had one shot before his position would be revealed. He WAS in plain sight after all.
The meta-human sniper peered through his scope, his crosshairs zeroed on the enemy commander. Irelia was her name.
One shot, one kill, and the Ionian army would be demoralized.
But Vindicator didn't take that shot.
Instead, he drifted his vision off to the side, scanning the battlefield, looking for the target he wanted to kill.
He found him. Emerging from behind a piece of debris, was a smaller, slender, black armored figure. Vindicator's HUD highlighted him.
Target: TRANS-OPS Meta-Human: ARCHANGEL
Vindicator smiled.
One shot… was all he needed.
He focused his crosshairs on Archangel's chest… right where his heart would be.
"My kill… nice try Siren." He whispered to himself. "And fuck whatever those lunatics Mania and Jinx think."
The assassin pulled the trigger.
And smiled when he saw the Ascension's hated enemy collapse with a hole where his heart would be.
"Three thousand, nine hundred and eighty-five."
It was already his new favorite number.
AN: Next chapter will be posted on November 7th.