Chapter 9-3

"It's quiet." Triumph stated. "Too quiet."

I would have slapped him if he hadn't been so right. The streets were almost devoid of life. Sure, it had been several hours since the Endbringer sirens started blaring, but there was always someone still running around like a headless chicken. Not today, though. The only people out on the streets were us heroes. Well, and some villains too.

To make matters worse, Outbreak was laying low. We've been patrolling the streets for three hours now without sighting a single monster that the flyers hadn't turned to dust. If I weren't as paranoid as I was, I would have thought we were winning and that Outbreak was trying to avoid us. Of course, I was paranoid and so was everyone around me. Everyone knew the other shoe was going to drop, we just didn't know how or where.

What was Outbreak doing? Was it trying to tire us out? Was it looking for more people to convert? Both? Neither?

Once again, I found myself wishing that something would try to kill us to break the tension.

"We should check on the shelter." Armsmaster said. "There's one two blocks from here and I want to make sure it's safe."

"I doubt that will be necessary." Dragon replied. "According to our sensors, they're all fine."

"Those things are basic motion sensors from the nineties. Not exactly cutting edge. Outbreak is already smart enough to think on a human's level, Dragon. I'd be very surprised if it couldn't figure out mundane technology by now. Besides, it's not like we have anything better to do. What about thermal imaging?"

"Sadly, still the same as when you asked half an hour ago: Nothing of value. The only heat signatures I can detect are from you and the shelters. Nothing beyond what's expected. Of course, if they're deep enough underground…"

Armsmaster grumbled in response. I could sympathize with him. I didn't like running in blind either, but we had to do something. Even if people weren't dying right now, we still had a deadline.

"We should split up to cover more ground. Hookwolf, take your people north to the crossing on 23rd and Fareway. There should be another shelter there."

The walking pile of blades that I knew as the Neo-Nazi supervillain didn't respond to Armsmaster's orders. He just turned his vaguely wolf-like head to us. The unspoken message was clear: 'Send some of your own with us so I know you're not leading us into a trap'. It's a sad lack of trust, but not unexpected, all things considered.

So much distrust. They squabble amongst themselves, even in the face of Armageddon.

I froze. Outbreak was talking to me. Except it wasn't talking, not really. More like inserting thoughts and feelings into my head that couldn't have been my own. I looked around and saw that no one else reacted as I did, which could only mean one thing: Outbreak was speaking to me and only me. I had its personal attention.

That couldn't possibly be a good thing.

Should I say something? If Outbreak had something special for me planned, I could be a threat. If Aegis was right… Then again, that could be the point: scare me of the battlefield. I was one of the few capes tough and powerful enough to fight these things effectively. Not to mention that I couldn't look scared in front of the Nazis.

You are a part of us, and yet you fight us. Wherever we turn, in every crooked corner of the universe we find you lying in wait, tall and unafraid. We do not understand your hostility. It serves no purpose but to strengthen our common foes.

Outbreak sounded regretful, more than anything else. Part of me even felt pity for it. The rest of me clamped down on that part. Outbreak was a monster, pure and simple. I shouldn't care about it. It was probably affecting my emotions with its powers somehow.

Speaking of emotions, I noticed a distinct lack of anger. Miss Militia said the creature hated capes in general. Then again, I wasn't exactly an ordinary cape.

"Triumph, Banshee, go with Hookwolf." Armsmaster said, clearly unhappy with sending us away. The feeling was mutual. Truce or no, I didn't feel too comfortable at being surrounded by Nazis, especially when I was essentially used as a hostage in case Armsmaster wasn't being honest.

Hookwolf simply nodded. He pointed to two of his people and said: "You two, show the heroes how it's done."

His voice was something I couldn't quite describe. Hundreds of metal plates inside his chest all vibrating in just the right way to create something approximating human speech. I couldn't even begin to imagine how much time and effort it must have taken to get that right. Impressive, to say the least. I'd tried something similar before, curving sound in such a way that I could speak at range, but it never really worked. I just didn't have the fine control and multitasking to pull it off.

Well, not yet. I have been improving, after all.

Without a word, Hookwolf marched on and we hurried to follow him. The message was clear: we weren't the team he wanted, but he'd make do with us, one way or another. "Let me make this perfectly clear." He began, probably speaking to me and Triumph more than his own people. "I have two objectives: Drive the monsters out of the tunnels and bring everyone home alive. I willsucceed in the former. I will not succeed in the latter, not with all of you. What we're about to fight, that's not an enemy in the arena or a two-bit villain you pansy-ass heroes are used to fighting. This is war, pure and simple. There can be no room for honor, restraint, or rules. Either we die, or it does. There can be no other outcome."

I took a look at the rest of our team: Stormtiger, Cricket, Rune, Trainwreck, and half a dozen or so unpowered men with Tinkertech weapons from Coil. In addition to Triumph and myself, we had a decent force at our disposal. It probably wouldn't be enough, though. Not when these monsters managed to fight off the entire Protectorate.

We arrived at our shelter soon after. Hookwolf knocked on the blast door with his giant metal fist. I tried to shut out the noise coming from his hand. All that metal being crushed and instantly reforming… Didn't that hurt? "We're capes. Is everyone alright in there?" There was no response. "I repeat, is everyone alright? Somebody fucking holler. We don't have all day."

I stepped towards the door and listened. There were people inside, judging by the heartbeats. Many, too, maybe as many as a hundred. Strangely enough, most of them were right by the door, spread out quite evenly. Wouldn't it make more sense to be as far away from the entrance as possible? "There's someone inside, Hookwolf."

He growled, not even bothering to question me. "Then why aren't they responding? The walls aren't that thick, they have to be able to hear us."

I listened again, looking for any other anomalies. The heartbeats were calm and even, which was odd, considering the situation. Shouldn't they be, I don't know, scared out of their minds since there's a zombie apocalypse on their doorstep? Finally, why were all the hearts beating at exactly the same pace? The probability of that happening is…

Then it hit me. My stomach sank. "Guys, we're too late."

"Too late?"

Clever child. Outbreak whispered in my head.

Suddenly, one of the people inside moved and started doing something to the door. No, not people. Not anymore.

"What do you mean, we're too late?!" Hookwolf demanded. The door creaked open and the screams started. Hookwolf was the first to get mobbed: being buried alive under a pile of mutants. The rest of the horde turned towards us. I reacted. Before I consciously registered it, Kid Win's gun appeared in my hand and I had pulled the trigger, reducing the closest monster to a fine mist.

Right, insta-gib. How very apt.

A geyser of blood and gore erupted. Hookwolf had gotten back on his feet and was tearing into the horde. Everyone else…they were fighting too. Not my concern. Not when there's another group coming right at me.

I felt a hand on my shoulder and was pushed aside. Triumph. He took a step forward and roared. My ears rang and the monsters were pushed back by a wave of force…only to get back up a second later. Note to self, knock-backs weren't very effective against quadrupeds.

I got back up and threw myself forward, gun firing with every step. It overheated just as a monster leapt towards me. Without thinking, I put my fist in its malformed mouth, summoned my glaive, and tore it apart from the inside. Triumph shot a worried glance at me and the shredded remains of my enemy, but I paid it no further attention and I quickly replaced the heatsink on my pistol.

Triumph changed tactics. Instead of wide area attacks, he focused his power on a single target and reduced it to a broken heap. Not unlike what I could do. If we both survived this, we'd have to compare notes. Looking around, I got the distinct impression that that probably wasn't going to happen.

We were holding the line, but that was about it. Aside from me and Hookwolf, we didn't have any real heavy hitters. At least, not ones that could make a dent against the tidal wave of monsters barreling down on us. As if reading my mind, Hookwolf yelled: "Hit the supports! Bury these fuckers!"

"Cover me." I yelled to Stormtiger, who was coming up behind me. I leapt. The monsters tried to bar my way, only to be swept aside by explosions and what sounded like a fucking tornado. I ignored the display of power and focused on the support column, liquefying it with waves of sound.

Then, a massive boulder smashed into the damn thing. Rune.

The roof rumbled. My power had weakened the column already and now the whole shelter was coming down with me still in it. Before I could run like hell or curse myself and Rune for our stupidity, I was buried under concrete and the world turned black.

When I woke up again, I was covered in rubble and feeling like I'd just been used as a punching bag by fucking Alexandria. My vision was still blurry, but I could make out movement. The creatures weren't dead yet, I realized. That needed to be corrected.

I raised my pistol and opened fire, hoping that I'd catch something. I kept firing until the only heartbeat I could hear was my own. My heart slowed again. I was alone.

Where were the others? I couldn't find them. A human shape was stuck in the rubble. Merc. No heartbeat. Crushed by the collapse. He was dead.

There was no time to waste. I could see the tunnels leading down. Outbreak would be back sooner rather than later. I tried to move my leg, but couldn't. Massive block of concrete. Need to get rid of that. A quick application of my power caused it to melt away. I was free.

I tried to stand up, felt a stab of pain in my leg, and fell over. My ankle was sprained, or maybe even worse, I couldn't tell. I tried again. While I was still able to stand, I couldn't put much weight without the pain becoming too much.

Now, on getting out of here… The passage out of the shelter had collapsed, so that wasn't an option unless I wanted to risk the rest of the bunker coming down on my head. The tunnels…yeah, not going to work. I could walk, but not much else. Fighting my way through the tunnels alone was a bad idea, even if I hadn't been injured. Maybe someone from the outside could come and help me. If I stayed put…

I reached out a little further with my power and spotted my team outside. "…can't be serious! We're not leaving them there!"

"We can't get them out, Triumph, not without ending up like her. I'm sorry, kid. If those bastards are still alive, they're on their own."

A sound came out of the tunnel. Inhuman roars and screeches. More were coming. I was running out of time.

"But…"

"No buts. Shut up and fall in line. We have a job to do."

They're leaving me. Damn you, Hookwolf! Don't leave me here to die, you son of a bitch! I looked to my armband, but it didn't respond. Fucking thing must have been crushed during the collapse. So much for Tinkertech.

Later. I would kill Hookwolf later. Even if leaving me was tactically sound. And there's a truce going on. Fine, I wasn't going to kill him. I would strap him to the hood of a car and drive him into a swarm of zombies like a lawnmower from hell. Assuming that I was going to live long enough, of course.

I sighed and got on my knees. Staying here, hoping for help to arrive wasn't an option. I'd be torn apart. Going back the way I came wasn't possible either, and heading into the tunnels…

The creatures were back. My choice had been made for me, it seemed. Instead of mindlessly charging ahead, they surrounded me, slowly inching closer. I crawled back to the wall and pulled myself up. Raising my pistol, which somehow still worked, I…

Defiant to the end. You do your heritage proud, little one. A feeling of pride radiated in my mind.

Fuck you, Outbreak. Fuck you so very much. "Don't taunt me. I'm not in the mood." I pulled the trigger and reduced one of the monsters to mush. The others bolted for cover but didn't run.

We mean no offense. We merely stated the truth.

"Of course, you do." I snarled as I put another mutant out of its misery. I had to focus. Outbreak could influence my emotions somehow and I couldn't let it get to me.

Whether you believe it or not, we do not want you to die. You have been wronged by your masters. Forced into silence and servitude by the very people that abandoned you at your time of need. You are trapped with no hope of escape or improvement. We offer another path. True unity. Transcendence. An end to your misfortune.

A creature stepped out of cover. It was much taller than the others and looked like a series of tree branches woven together in a roughly humanoid shape. A series of greenish glowing tentacles formed what could pass as a face. It had a long, thin limb, dripping with blood and what looked like liquefied zombie flesh. I had no doubt what would happen if I let that thing touch me.

Join us, Taylor Hebert. Embrace us, as we embrace you.

My hand lowered. I knew what Outbreak offered. I felt it: an end to all my troubles. No more bullies, no more judgmental team mates, no more asshole superiors. Everything that made my life miserable would be swept aside. All I needed to do was to let go. To stop fighting.

The tree-man-thing was within striking range and held out its hand. Its offer was tempting. So very tempting. I just had to reach out and take the grotesque mockery of a human limb. I just had to give up on everything.

No. I don't give up. Not now, not ever. My glaive manifested itself and I sliced off the creature's hand with a single swing.

"I reject your offer."

The monster snarled, enraged by my act of defiance. It promptly threw me across the chamber like a ragdoll. Then, just as it was about to deliver the deathblow, the world turned grey and the hand passed harmlessly through my chest.