Chapter 10-6

A fifty-foot stone wall. Some Protectorate cape had thrown it up the moment Outbreak started rearing its head. For days, this solid slab of grey rock had kept us and the monsters trapped inside like rats in a cage. It was supposed to be all but impenetrable.

Leviathan had broken it down in just a few minutes. Only a hole large enough to let itself through, but still… It was sobering. If those claws could tear through stone, imagine what they could do to a person. To my friends. To me.

As I looked on at the monster coming through the wall from the rooftop Strider had dumped me on, I couldn't help but think how odd Leviathan looked. It was about thirty feet tall, hunched forward and top-heavy. Its two legs were very thin. Too thin to support all that mass. A giant, malformed engine of destruction.

For a brief moment, the creature stood up to its full height. It looked at us, making eye-contact. As if sizing up the opposition. As if daring us to fight.

Then, it moved.

In seconds, Leviathan had crossed the bay and made landfall near the Boardwalk, with a wave of water following in its wake. The blasters opened up with a hail-storm of fire: lasers, cannons, blasts of god-knows what. Most of them did little more than whittle away at the shadow of water surrounding the monster. An impressive fireworks display, but did we actually accomplish anything?

Force fields were thrown up and popped like soap bubbles moments later: the thing just barreled through them, skating towards the Docks. A massive chunk of asphalt hurled at its face briefly knocked it off-course. Leviathan simply tore through an old apartment complex and continued its run on the other side, leaving the building to collapse. Flyers were rushing to the scene to evacuate whoever they could, but they didn't get everyone.

"Humble down, DE-8. Strapping Lad deceased, DE-8. Sundancer down, DE-8. Prince of Blades down, DE-8."

Irrelevant. Leviathan. We had to stop it. We needed a strategy. What was it after? It was killing people, but not nearly as fast as it probably could. If it stood still and started fighting, our front line would probably collapse as fast as the wall did. Why did it run? Was there a cape among the defenders that could actually hurt it? What was it thinking? What was its plan?

Alexandria rammed head-long into the Endbringer like a wrecking ball, finally slowing it down. The two started wrestling, the heroine grabbing it by the neck, while the monster struggled to free itself from the almost comically tiny woman somehow forcing it to a standstill. For a moment, it looked like Alexandria had the upper hand: the Endbringer was pushed into a building, limbs flailing uselessly while the heroes fired away, wearing it down.

Then, the Endbringer broke free and slammed Alexandria out of the way with a block of water the size of a house. Just like that. One moment Alexandria was there, the next she was skidding along the road, making dents in the concrete as she went. One of our strongest, swatted aside like a bug.

Leviathan spun. Water poured out of its body and wrapped itself around the Endbringer in a massive ring. Thin, whip-like jets lashed out, scattering the defenders and bisecting those not fast enough to get out of the way.

"Laserdream deceased, DC-8. Iron Falcon down, DC-8. Lady Photon down, DC-8. Intrepid deceased, DC-8."

With its path clear, the monster continued its trek through the northern half of the city.

I looked around, trying to find somewhere to go to. Something to do that didn't involve standing around, gaping. I didn't have a powerful long-range attack and I didn't think I could survive a hit from that thing. I did, however, have a few close range attacks that might be effective. 'Might' being the key word here. Unfortunately, Armsmaster was nowhere to be found. I did find my team, though, which was something.

Clockblocker, Browbeat, Vista, Sam (who really needed a better cape name than 'Rookie'), and what looked like a large, heavily modified version of the Corpus combat drone that was probably being remote controlled by Kid Win. Aegis wasn't here, probably because he was out there with Alexandria. Neither was Insight, but she was better off away from the fighting. Without a better place to go, I joined them. Maybe we could figure out something to do together.

"So." Clockblocker said. "This all seems...horrible." There was something forced in his voice. Then again, humor was probably his coping mechanism. I couldn't really blame him for making the understatement of the century.

"Pretty much." Kid Win's drone replied. "Bastard's really showing off its speedster skills. Didn't think it could move this fast. My drones are barely keeping up."

"So, what exactly are we going to do?" Browbeat asked. Even with the rain, I could see the tension in his poster. Fuck, I could hear his muscles contract under his skin. "I mean, I'm tough, but against that..."

Clockblocker snorted. "Oh, you can talk. At least you've got a Brute rating. I have to give Levi a hug while being just another squishy."

"Quark deceased, CC-8"

I shook my head. This was getting us nowhere. "Guys, focus. We need find a way to slow that thing down. It's running around for a reason and I don't think we want to find out what."

"It's an Endbringer, Banshee. Now's not the time to go all kill-dozer."

I chose not to look to deeply into that comment. "Then what are we supposed to do; sit around and watch it destroy the city?"

"Of course not. I'm just saying we shouldn't go in half-assed. We need a plan. A good one, 'cause, you know, I like being alive and not splattered across the pavement." Clockblocker sighed. "You want to slow it down, right? I guess I'm the best shot we have, assuming Levi doesn't just no-sell my power. I just need to get close enough to touch it. Without dying, of course."

"I can get you close." Vista immediately said. "Within a few feet, maybe. If Rookie's power works the way I think it does, she can toss you the rest of the way."

Clockblocker's head shot up. "Really? You're gonna throw me at an Endbringer?"

"If you freeze him, it'll probably stop the water." The girl replied. "Rookie's aim is pretty good and I can help her find an angle that lands you somewhere in the water. It's the best I can do."

The boy sighed. "Well, if this works, it'll be the coolest thing anyone has ever done, so I guess there's that…"

Sam scooted over to me and whispered: "Is this normal? If this doesn't work perfectly, he could get himself killed."

I nodded and said: "I know, and Clock does too. And it's an Endbringer. We've already tried the sane and safe stuff."

Kid Win cleared his throat. "Maybe I can help." The robot folded open. Three large metal arms unfurled from its fuselage. Each limb was covered in small spikes, metal plates, and Tinkertech gizmos. It looked rather terrifying, to be honest. "I originally designed it as a jet-pack module for my suit, but I couldn't get the thrusters powerful enough to carry me, so I made it into an attack drone. However, with Rookie and Vista's help, I think I can squeeze just enough thrust out of this thing for an interception burn. Should get the job done."

The drone's arms opened wide and I could see Clockblocker falter. "Umm, Kid, that thing looks like a medieval torture device."

"The inner components have to go somewhere, Clock. Now turn around, relax, and let it happen." For a second, everyone was silent. Somehow, I didn't think Kid Win meant to say that. "Umm, it's got a shield generator, so it should keep you safe..."

"I need an adult." Clockblocker whimpered softly.

"That's not what I meant and you know it!" The drone flew towards its victim and grabbed him tight, turning into a make-shift jet-pack. Clock's surprised yelp was promptly ignored. "There. Now stop whining. We're just getting started…"

Vista nodded to Sam and said: "Armband, location of Leviathan." The device replied a series of coordinates and space started to warp. "Ready Rookie?"

"Uh, yeah." Sam replied looking more and more like she wanted to get the hell out of here. She made a gesture and Clockblocker started to levitate in the air.

"Clockblocker?"

"If I die, your collective asses are haunted."

"I'll take that as a 'yes'." Vista said. Suddenly, several blocks became a few yards and Leviathan 'appeared' right in front of us. "Now!"

Sam pushed and Clockblocker was launched like a cannon ball. He flew towards the monster, flailing and screaming along the way. Leviathan wasn't standing still. It hunched down, dove towards the ground, and avoided my teammate by less than a foot.

Good reflexes, I noted. Also, I really hope Kid Win's shield generator was up to the task.

"YOU MISSED!" Clockblocker screamed as he flew into the Bay. "HOW DID YOU MISS, IT WAS STANDING LIKE THREE FEET AWAY!"

Water started moving our way. Vista was quick on the mark and uncompressed the space she'd affected. It wasn't enough: I could still see the Endbringer coming towards us, even from several blocks away. "It's coming right for us, isn't it?" I asked.

"We have to go." Vista ordered. Not good enough; Leviathan was still running. Our plan was sound, if Leviathan wasn't fast enough to move out of the way.

Hmm…

We needed a distraction. Suddenly, I had an idea. A very, very stupid idea. A 'hold my beer, I'm going to do something cool' kind of idea.

"Banshee, what are you doing?!"

"Find Clockblocker." I replied. "You need a distraction, I'm getting you one."

Yes, this would definitely be the dumbest thing I've ever done. I walked to the edge of the roof, waited for Leviathan to pass by, and jumped.

First thought as I fell: Miss Militia was going to murder me.

Second thought: Oh, god, oh god, oh god.

I landed on the Endbringer's neck and immediately started sliding away. Water was everywhere. Its water shadow was only an inch deep, but enough to keep me from finding any traction. I tried punching the scales, but they were thick and a lot tougher than they looked. Eventually, I summoned the glaive and sank it into the monsters flesh. The blade cut through the outer layer, but only got a few inches deep before I started countering resistance. The deeper-lying flesh was thicker, like jello.

I gritted my teeth. A few inches wasn't enough. The glaive could go deeper. It had to. Leviathan wasn't going to die from a paper cut. I channeled my power into the scales, creating two little holes where I could anchor my feet. Then, using my new-found leverage, I pushed.

"Good Neighbor down, BE-6. Night down, BE-6. Vauban down, BE-6."

The blade got a few inches deeper, maybe a foot in total, before I couldn't get any deeper. Even with my strength, it just wasn't enough. Christ, what was this thing made off? The blade could cut through steel. Fuck, I chopped Lung in half with it pretty much by accident, but it barely scratch an Endbringer? Seriously, what the hell?

Leviathan suddenly took a sharp turn, dodging a volley of fire and another screaming Clockblocker. I grabbed the glaive with both hands, holding onto it for dear life while…Oh god, I was rodeo-riding an Endbringer.

I was rodeo-riding a fucking Endbringer!

What's wrong with me?!

Another sharp turn and a wave of water nearly threw me off his back. Okay, new plan. I wasn't doing any real damage to it like this. Maybe I could help someone else then? I used my power, trying to figure out if there were any structural faults in the Endbringer's body I could exploit. What I found was breathtaking.

Interlocking scales, each supporting the others. Thick muscle fibers, so entwined with each other that I couldn't see how the creature was able to move at all. Then, once I got about two feet in, nothing. Or rather, everything. The Endbringer's flesh was getting more and more dense the deeper I looked. Eventually, I couldn't see anything anymore: matter packed so tightly that sound simply couldn't exist.

But it wasn't perfect. There were fault lines. Tiny, little cracks in the areas I could still use my power on. A hit of sufficient power would destabilize a whole section of muscle, or cause a layer of skin to fall off. Would it be enough? It'd have to be. I needed to get a message to the others.

"Carapacitor down, CF-9. Resolute down, CF-9. Nekros deceased, down, CF-10."

Well, at least the armband was still working. "To the Blasters, I'm going to mark weak-points in Leviathan's hide with flares. Hit them with everything you got as soon as they go up."

I pulled one of my flare-tipped arrows out of my quiver and rammed it into the Endbringer's skin as hard as I could, right between its shoulder blades. Less than a second later, it began to glow with a bright, neon light. I slid down Leviathan's back, moments before a massive, crimson laser impacted the creature. A wave of heat washed over me. Water and smoldering pieces of flesh followed in its wake. I looked at my handiwork: a three feet hole in the Endbringer's back, maybe six inches deep, ichor leaking out of it. Leviathan staggered for a moment, but didn't stop.

It was something.

It was a good start.

"Sham desceased, CG-10. Cricket down, CG-10. Regent down, CG-10."

But not good enough. We were still hemorrhaging assets. We needed to do more. I needed to do more. I grabbed another flare and rammed it into a second weak spot I found. This time, it was right below the left shoulder blade. Another laser blast from somewhere, another tiny hole.

More weak points. A spot between two ribs. Several muscles on the back. A spot along the spine. The base of the tail…all of them just pockmarks. Bigger holes than most, but still not enough. Leviathan…did he even notice? Were we hurting him at all? He hasn't slowed down, as far as I could tell, and if the casualty reports were any indication, he was just as deadly as before.

As I started sliding down its tail, I realized that I had a bigger problem: I was running out of Endbringer. Then, before I could anchor my glaive, the tail whipped around. I lost traction and was flung towards a building.

Something hit me in the back and my spine lit on fire. Not a building. It sounded like a whip. Leviathan's tail? Didn't know what it was. A wall rushed to meet me and I slammed right through it. It hardly slowed me down. I kept going, crashing through furniture, another wall, more furniture, and a window, before finally seeing the open sky. Then, I slammed into the ground.

"Banshee down, CF-12."

Pain. Pain was everywhere. I couldn't move. Every bone felt like it was shattered. My muscles didn't respond. There was water. Water up to my lips. I had no mouth, but I was still running out of air. Suffocating I tried to move my head, but my body didn't cooperate. Everything was broken, and I was drowning in a puddle, powerless.

No.

Not like this.

Not after everything I'd been through.

I had to get up and move. Get up and move. Get up and move! GET UP AND MOVE!

Pain. Every muscle in my body tensed. Bones snapped and I screamed, curling up into myself. I could move. I wasn't paralyzed. How…didn't matter. Leviathan. Where did it go? Armband, I had to…

"Banshee!" Someone called. Aegis. Was it Aegis? Yes it was. He was floating right above me, his costume soaking wet. "Banshee, oh God."

"I'm fine!" I shouted back. Nothing to get worked up about. I mean, it wasn't like I was…Oh. I was covered in blood. Again. "It's not…actually, I'm pretty sure it's mine this time. I'm okay, though. Brute rating."

Aegis shook his head. His face was pale. In shock, I think. Already? That didn't bode well for the rest of the battle. Then I remembered that he'd probably been near the front lines. Seen a lot of people die. Ah.

"Don't ever do that again." He warned.

Part of me wanted to say something kind or inspiring, but I couldn't think of anything. Then my armband started rattling off another group of casualties and I was reminded why I was here. "Find Leviathan. Fly me there. I can hurt him."

"Banshee, you don't need to…"

"Every second that thing runs around the city, people are dying. We can either talk about it, or we can fucking do something!"

He looked at me. Was he angry? Afraid? I couldn't tell. Without a word, he picked me up and flew me into the city. Even with the downpour, tracking Leviathan wasn't difficult: we just followed the trail of water, bodies, and ravaged buildings. Things that were once people and lives. No, couldn't think like that. Not now. Empathy is a distraction. One I couldn't afford. I had a mission and that was all that mattered.

Soon, we caught up with Leviathan. Aegis was about to drop me, when the Endbringer suddenly stopped. Frozen in place. Did Clockblocker finally manage to hit the damn thing? I looked down and saw a small figure with a halberd. Not Clockblocker.

"You'll have your twelve minutes, Dragon." Armsmaster said. "Make good use of them."