Pinky felt afraid, but more than that, she felt ashamed.
Here, she had a chance to help Bit and Dev out, and she didn't even need to do much. All that was required of her was to make noise. She'd yell, and the Mets would come. The traps that Dev had meticulously set with Bit's concoction would kill them. Those that got past would be handled by the [Alchemist] herself.
...Just how many classes did Bit have anyways?
Pinky wouldn't even have to do any fighting. She was bait. She just had to yell.
It had been HER idea in the first place. She'd even felt a little of the old excitement rising up again.
...Since when was excitement 'old' to her? It had been only a day and a half since... well... everything.
Such a short time for her entire world to change.
"Pinky? Are you okay?" Bit was looking at her with a concerned face. "We won't make you do anything. I can-"
'Took? ARE you okay?' Pinky immediately focused on the other voice. The voice that was as familiar as her own. She'd heard it right as she'd fallen asleep.
"Lars?"
"Who?"
'Who else, runt?'
"Oh." Pinky sagged. "I'm hallucinating again." Her blood skill might've been removed, but that didn't mean its effects were gone also.
"Hallucinating? Again?" Bit lowered her voice and mumbled to herself. "Was the dosage off? Did it interact with Fraerling biology strangely?" She moved over to her backpack and began having a whispered conversation with Dev while mixing something like the [Alchemist] she really was.
'Took...' She could hear the concern that she was projecting towards herself with Lars' voice. 'You were hallucinating?'
"You know I was. You know everything." Or at least everything that she knew - since he was her hallucination and all.
'Do I?' Lars let out a hum. 'How about you explain it to me then? You know that it helps you order your ideas.'
"Huh." Pinky crossed her legs to get more comfortable. "I make a good point." Bit would find out she was insane... but that was probably for the best. Then she could get away before she was died. "Ever since I got my blood class, I've seen you. Spoken with you. That's why I hid it. So they wouldn't try and 'fix' me. I knew I was being stupid, but... I just couldn't afford to lose you. Not again. Not after our dads..."
She sighed.
"I hid the note you left. Nobody else would've understood why you did it, but I did. I... tried to follow you. That's where I got my blood class. It... was easy to hide. Everyone was used to me being an [Adrenaline Junkie], so what was one little accident? One overestimation of what I could do? It was nothing to call a [Thought Healer] about."
Pinky blinked the tears out of her eyes.
"That first accident led to others. I knew it was my class, my skill, pushing me. I mean, it was really, really obvious - wasn't it? The fact that I found it enticing instead of scary... well, that was concerning, until 'you' showed up. I mean, I know it wasn't you. That it's not you now, but... 'You' made me feel better. Like it was before..."
'Took...' Lars' voice sounded sad. 'I didn't. I never... I'm sorry.' He growled. 'Look. Your blood class and skill are gone now, right? So I CAN'T be a hallucination! You must've gotten a new class and skill, or something! Something that lets you hear the REAL me! You remember the basic skill guidelines, right?'
Pinky rolled her eyes, but humored herself. It wouldn't have been the first time that her insanity had helped her remember something important. "[Skills] can either allow you to do something you weren't able to do before. Or they can help you do something you've done before, but make it easier."
'But that's not all, is it?'
"Huh?"
'[Classes] themselves grant power. The most common expression is [Skills], but a [Class] can make you quicker, stronger, or...'
"...Or unlock an ability." Right. There were examples like the Lizardfolk who's classes evolved them. Those sort of classes grant a lot of abilities that didn't exactly fit into a skill. "Wait. If you aren't a hallucination, then how do you know I loss my blood class?"
'You talk in your sleep, and I was bored.' Lars grumbled. 'You wouldn't believe what it's like here. It was scary at first, then intimidating, but now it's back to the popular kids verses everyone else. And the popular kids are really, REALLY popular. ...And they deserve it.'
"Heh." Pinky chuckled. "If that's true, maybe it wouldn't be so bad..."
'No!' Lars shouted. 'Just... no. What I did was a mistake and stupid. Don't... Just, enjoy yourself, alright? I still don't know how exactly you've done what you've done, or where you are right now, but you're doing it! You're out in the world! You're having an adventure! I know it's scary, but you've already shown you have what it takes! So, keep pressing forward!'
"Ha. Now I know you're not the real Lars." Pinky smiled to herself. "You were never that optimistic."
'Hey, what can I say? I've matured.'
"Pinky?" Bit came back with a small bottle. "You don't have to be bait. Here. Drink this. You'll feel better when you wake up."
Pinky wiped her eyes and stood up. "Thanks, Bit, but I'm feeling better now. I just had to have a conversation with my imaginary friend to sort everything out."
'I'm not imaginary!'
"I'm going to be the best bait the world has ever seen!" She thought about that for a second. "...Or not. I don't want a [Class] like that. But you know what I mean."
Bit frowned. "Are you sure? I mean, it's great if you are feeling better, but trauma doesn't just vanish. You've been through a stressful situation, and it's okay to take a break."
"I'm sure!" Pinky puffed out her chest. "I even know how I'm going to do it too! You'd better get in position, 'cause I'm going to use my [Outside Voice]."
"UPON A DAY THAT WAS BRIGHT AND FAIR!"
"THERE WAS A MAIDEN WITH LONG, BLONDE HAIR!"
"SHE DANCED IN A FIELD, ALONGSIDE BEES!"
"AND SAW A MAN AS TALL AS THE TREES!"
Riley walked away from Pinky. One hand held her sedative, while the other covered one of her ears. The Fraerling was LOUD. ...And off-key.
It was a little concerning that Pinky suffered from hallucinations. Concerning, but not really surprising. It wasn't like sanity was all that great. Crazy people were more interesting, and most capes were off-kilter in one way or another.
The first Met to arrive was another monkey. It swung in from the tree tops, but as it put its weight on a branch, the limb of the tree gave way. Dev had cut it off, and re-attached it with sap and a few twigs as dowel rods. It was enough to support the weight of the plant and nothing more.
Riley's main concern had been how quickly the trees - and the slime inside of them - might regrow. While the jungle was a lot calmer than it had been close to the Red crystal, that didn't mean it wasn't still supernaturally regenerative.
Thankfully, that hadn't reduced the effectiveness of the trap. The Met and its invisible body fell onto small spikes that Dev had placed. It was like a blanket of caltrops. Each small piece of wood had been sharpened and placed in the ground. Dev had gone back and brushed Riley's anti-Met venom on their tips.
There was no visual clue it was working as the Met seemingly floated up, but Riley could see the heat from the decapitated monkey just fine. She also saw the fluctuations as the venom raced through its body. It rode on its nervous system, and left a trail of distorted space in its wake.
The Met-monkey took a few steps forward before the distortion reached it's neck. The Met then froze... before breaking apart into smaller and smaller cubes.
Then, it was gone.
Seven Mets out of the twenty that had accompanied her. Five monkeys out of the ten that had survived up until this point.
That left thirteen Mets and five more monkeys. Unless, of course, the Mets had traded in their monkey bodies for something better. The monkey's primary advantage was pretty much nullified by having a non-invisible Met attached to them.
The Mets were probably trying to adapt the invisibility to conceal themselves as well.
Riley doubted it would work. The Mets were agents of the Shards, and the primary weakness of the Entity was that it wasn't good at experimentation. That was why it outsourced it in the first place.
Besides, traps didn't care about if their triggerer could be seen or not.
Pinky continued to sing her heart out. The song was loud, off-key and annoying, but the lyrics were kinda sweet. It seemed to be telling the tale of a doomed romance between a Fraerling girl and a Tallfolk boy of indeterminate race.
...
Met after Met moved towards the singing, triggered a trap, and died.
Or at least was un-summoned. It wasn't like they were alive in the normal sense of the term in the first place.
So far, the biggest issue had been when another Met-Redno arrived. It had charged towards them along the cleared pathway with remarkable speed - which also meant it had a substantial amount of momentum behind it too. Far more than would be needed for it to continue past the traps and crush Pinky and the Milk Box before the dispersion venom could take effect. It trampled the traps and kept coming.
But, that was why Riley had neurotoxin finger bone darts!
They weren't the most potent poison that she could create, but they acted almost as quickly as she could fire them.
A dart in the chest caused the Met-Redno to seize up. Its pectoral muscles constricted with enough force that it broke its own ribs. While its legs technically worked, it was impossible for it to run or even keep its balance.
The massive beast pitched forward, crashed into the ground, and then flipped over!
Riley could see the dimensional distortions propagating through its limbs. The flesh of the beast pixelated in lines as the venom raced along its nervous system. The only problem was that the Redno was large enough that the reaction took time.
That, and the Met realized its ride had been disabled!
Spider-like limbs were already extending from underneath its helmet, and the Met began to pull itself away with a horrible ripping sound!
Riley darted forward. The Met Factory was in her hand. She'd expected this.
Of all the animals the Mets might commandeer, a Redno was the second worst. Monkeys weren't an issue. A large lizard the Mets had encountered lacked the leg strength or size to be an issue. The red crocodile-like animals could sprint decently fast, but they lacked the agility to avoid Dev's traps or the mass to survive the venom for long.
Quillcats weren't much of a threat either. They were agile and fast enough to be one, but the Mets didn't utilize them effectively.
Riley hummed to herself as she struck the Redno's Met and dispersed it.
A large group of Met-Quillcats that learned to avoid the traps and flanked them would be trouble. Thankfully, Quillcats weren't pack hunters. The Shard that was controlling the Mets (possibly Surgery, but she had no way of knowing for sure), wasn't creative.
That might've been why it had assimilated the animals - to harness their intelligence and instincts. That was probably why the non-predator monkeys were doing the worst.
...And why the most dangerous animal would be Badgy.
Riley jerked her head as she smelled cookies. That was a clear indicator that something was trying to interfere with her mental processes.
The Bloodrage Badger had been a tenacious and intelligent foe. It had stalked her and lain in wait to ambush her at the most opportune time.
It also had more advanced Stranger abilities than the monkeys. It did more than just bent light. It also had a mental component to its stealth.
And it was using it right now!
Dev clenched his spear as he watched the gigantic Redno die.
It was almost comical in how small the parasitic Met that replaced its head was. He might've found it funny if it was in a cartoon or a movie. As it was, the impending doom suppressed his other emotions.
...Except for disgust. He'd seen it happen with the previous animals, but watching the Redno's brain splat on the ground as the robot around it disintegrated? He was going to have nightmares about that.
At least they wouldn't be about the Vetala.
At least the things attacking them were only robots and animals. Super advanced robots out of science fiction, and magically enhanced animals, but nothing as mystical as a vengeful spirit.
At least the Redno was dead. It would probably be at least half an hour until the next Met showed up. Two had come within ten minutes of one another, but so far there had been a decent time gap as the Mets moved towards the sound of Pinky's voice.
Dev hadn't even had to use his spear yet. He was more of a bystander in a superhero fight than an active participant.
He didn't know how he felt about that.
Still, it was his traps that were keeping them safe, and the Redno had trampled most of the spikes he'd placed in the road. Dev moved forward to scavenge what he could, though he'd probably have to replace most of them. The large animal had mostly left splinters in its wake.
"Stop!" Bit shouted. "Pinky, stop singing! Dev, stand back! The Bloodrage Badger is close!"
Dev froze before slowly backing away. He'd heard how indomitable the thing had been when it had tracked Bit and Pinky. He'd seen it in action when it had fought the jungle. It might've been smaller than the Redno, but he was pretty sure the Badger would win in a fight.
It was also sneaky...
Dev whirled around. The river! It would come from the river!
...No.
No splashes. No sign of any invisible animal swimming across.
But... his [Advanced Dangersense] was going off. A sense of unease filled him. If he was an invisible and intelligent predator, where would he be?
The road!
Dev spun back towards the path Bit had made. The place that was hard to trap because there was nothing there. The place where the Redno had just trampled all of his spikes!
"[Rearm Trap]!" He pointed and activated his skill. He could only use it once a day, but now seemed like a pretty good time to do so.
The small spikes of wood vibrated on the ground before flying back along the Redno's wake. It was as if he was seeing a video of twigs being blown in the wind - played backwards.
The broken ones didn't move, nor did the ones that didn't have a glistening tip from Bit's poison. His [Skill] couldn't repair traps, and even if it could, the superhero grade poison might be too much for it.
Still... it was enough. One of the small spikes vanished as if something invisible had stepped on it. The next second - Badgy was there with a Met for a head.
Somehow, he looked even angrier than normal.
Bit was already away from the Redno's corpse and in front of her old pet.
Dev wondered what he could do to help... until his Dangersense pulsed again. He was getting better at recognizing the sensation, and it was warning him of something to his right!
The Bloodrage Badger charged. At almost the same time, a horde of Met/animal hybrids erupted from the jungle!
It HAD to be ALL the remaining ones!
Bit was right. The Mets were both smart and stupid. They blindly walked into the traps, but they also had gathered for a final surge.
Quillcats, lizards, monkeys, and one large bird all emerged - and were killed as Dev's traps triggered en masse. It wasn't that his traps were that lethal. They WERE meant to kill, but they shouldn't have been that effective against large animals.
It had only been through his [Skills] that Dev had managed to make dart launchers out of wood in the first place. Sure, they managed to fly quick and straight enough, but a rabbit or a bird were their intended targets. Against large predators, they'd only wound and (hopefully) drive them off.
Bit's poison had changed that.
The anti-robotic concoction she'd made was... let's just say it was in the realm of super-science that didn't exist outside of a comic book. Or, perhaps, a fantasy world like the one they were in.
All it took was a single scratch. A solitary dart, spike, or barbed snare. One wound, and their attackers died.
Except for the Redno and Bloodrage Badger. They were too big.
Similarly, the second wave of animals that had come right behind the first had survived.
Dev didn't know if that was their plan, or if they'd charged forward and simply hoped for numbers to overwhelm their defenses. He glanced over his shoulder. A Met-Monkey had gotten through on the other side and gone straight for Pinky. The Fraerling was nowhere to be seen, and Krabby had moved forward to fight the monster.
The monkeys were the least dangerous of their attackers, but the Met wasn't restrained by its programming against the giant crab. Its robotic limbs were scoring deep wounds in the crustacean's shell, while also deftly holding off its claws.
Dev moved to help, before a Quillcat Met got past the trap line to his right. The animal rounded on him before pouncing!
Dev fell onto his back, but braced his spear. The simple wooden stick wasn't much, but it was long and coated in Bit's poison. The Met's head was more of a hindrance than a help. A mouth full of sharp teeth a regular Quillcat had would be more dangerous since the robot still wasn't attacking him directly.
Heck, the Met's helmet was actually helping shield him from the cat's quills.
Dev pushed the cat away with his spear and tried to keep its claws from eviscerating him. He was mostly successful. By the end of their short fight, his left arm had been wounded, but it didn't hurt with all the adrenaline going through his system.
The cat, on the other hand, lay lifeless once the poison from the spear reached its robotic head.
Dev pushed it off of him and stood up. He glanced around. The crab was losing and Bit was squaring off against the Bloodrage Badger. Should he help? Could he help? Would he only get in the way?
Dev hesitated before [Advanced Dangersense] drew his eyes to the side.
A hulking figure emerged from the underbrush. Its armored feet crushed the wooden spikes that lined the clearing. Traps shot their darts, but they struck iron plates or thick leather. The green figure towered over Dev.
It was Chewbacca - or what was left of his body. The Jungleclad had a Met in place of its head like all the other possessed animals. Unlike the rest, it still wore the armor their guide had died in. There were holes and tears in it where the robots had struck, and the green blood that had congealed on the outside stood in stark contrast to the ubiquitous red of the jungle.
Worse, the great ape held his axe in one hand and a massive shield in the other.
He was bigger than Dev, had better equipment, and was far stronger as well.
Riley was afraid that this would happen.
The Mets weren't geniuses, but it didn't take one to come up with the strategy to all attack at once. She, however, didn't have any attention to spare towards her friends right now. Badgy was the biggest threat and she needed to stop him before he killed anyone.
Dev had done something, and the spike traps had mostly returned to how they'd been before the Redno had trampled them. That was good. What was even better was that Badgy had stepped on one while he'd been trying to sneak up on them.
The bad news was that the venom wasn't as effective as it should've been.
She'd included Red cells as part of its composition - along with some of the genetic material she'd stored from Badgy himself. She'd made sure that her toxin would be effective against their greatest threat.
...But the Bloodrage Badger's immune system was still a marvelous combination of biology and magic. It might not be capable of negating her venom, but it was slowing it down.
She could clearly see the path it was taking up Badgy's legs. It was the same as what had happened with the Redno. There was less distance for it to travel before reaching Badgy's 'head', but it was also progressing much, much slower.
Pinky... should be able to evade it long enough for the venom to reach the Met. Badgy clearly had some enhanced senses, so a Fraerling probably wouldn't have been able to hide from it for long. The Met that had replaced its head?
Actually, she didn't know exactly how they saw the world. They didn't have anything that would overcome a proper Stranger, but that didn't mean they weren't observant.
She needed to slow Badgy down.
Riley braced herself. She was between the body of the Bloodrage Badger and the Milk Box. The Met would've gone around her if it was on its own. The Met-Badger hybrid would try to go through her.
As it bore down on her, she idly wondered if the Mets would try to actively hunt humans if they escaped the Dyed Lands, or if they would limit themselves to those that they happened upon.
Probably the latter.
Then again, she hadn't thought that the Shards could press back against the 'no killing humans' rule as much as they currently were. Of course, parahumans still killed humans all the time - so the rule clearly had a lot of flexibility in how it was interpreted anyways.
Badgy lunged!
Its arms came in from the sides in a massive double-sweep.
Riley pushed off the the ground with her extendible spine and sprung to her left. It would've been safer to dodge backwards, but she wanted to pull the Met-Badger off course from the Milk-
Riley slammed into something!
She had a brief moment of surprise before Badgy's right claw caught her in her chest!
She was tossed almost to the edge of the clearing.
Ow.
That hurt.
She blinked as she gathered her wits. What had happened?
Oh.
The devious little fucker.
Riley stood as the Met withdrew its arms. She had been focusing on Badgy, since the Met controlling it couldn't hurt her directly. Blocking her dodge with one of its long, slim limbs? That, apparently, was just fine.
At least the trick had forced it to dig deep into the ground - deep enough to halt the Badger's momentum. Heck, it probably hurt itself by effectively slamming its body into an immobile head.
Ow.
She winced as she stood up. It had definitely hurt her more though. Her damage control systems were already cutting off blood flow and dampening the pain signals. It had managed to break her ribs... again, but that was pretty much it. Her dress and her under-armor had stopped the claws from actually penetrating her flesh.
The question now was: Would it go after her? Or would it attack the Milk Box?
Or, would it go after Pinky - wherever she was? Her little friend had obviously been shaken by her near-death experience. It would take time for her to get over-
"[Scarlet Beam]! [Scarlet Beam]! Scarlet Beam!" A red beam struck Badgy in the chest, while a second one flew towards the Jungleclad-Met that Dev was squaring off with. An outraged voice shouted from the ground. "Two?! Two! It was supposed to be three! ...Dying sucks."
Riley wasted no time. She raised her hand and aimed at the red splotch that now marred the Badger's pure white skin. Her muscles contracted and a bone needle flew forwards!
...Only to be blocked by the Met that sat on Badgy's torso.
Riley glared at it while pulling out a syringe with a long, thick needle from one of her pockets. It was such a pain to repair all the minor tears and other injuries over-clocking her muscles caused. Hell, she hadn't gotten the time to give herself a once-over since she used the rest of her energy concoction back in the clearing.
Oh well.
'Never save potions for the final boss.'
Kevin was right about that. Tinker's had to use their tech, otherwise they would be plain old boring humans.
She stabbed herself in the heart again. It was easier, as the bone plate hadn't regrown from the last time. For some, it would be a miracle shot - not to mention how many would flinch at the thought of piercing their heart with a needle.
For Riley? It was literally child's play.
She crouched down. Her legs flexed. Her spine prepared to help propel her. Then...
She charged.
Riley collided with Badgy's chest before the enraged animal could react. One hand pressed against the patch of red and fired another needle point-blank.
The effect was instantaneous. Without its color-based defense, her neurotoxin paralyzed it. Or, at least, the muscles in the red section were frozen. Her toxin couldn't go past that area easily. But, it was enough. Badgy tried to crush her with a bear hug, but that was hard to do without its pectoral muscles working.
Riley brought up her other hand, and slammed the Met Factory into the Met.
Badgy's body collapsed and his brain fell to the ground with a wet 'splouch' as the Met disintegrated.
Unfortunately, Riley was underneath it at the time.
Ugh. Badgy was heavy!
Riley tried to twist around so she could push against the ground with her arms. She'd taken out the biggest threat, but there were still other Mets out there. She'd lost count in the chaos of the battle. It would take counting brains to confirm the number of Met kills. Hopefully, all of them were part of this group attack.
She wasn't getting anywhere. Riley changed tactics and tried pushing Badgy up and off her enough for her to scoot out from underneath it. Dev was in trouble, and she needed to get free.
The civilian was desperately fending off a Met that had taken the body of their gorilla guide. Thankfully, it didn't seem to be in top condition - which was probably the only reason Dev was still standing.
Dev took a deep breath as he backed away. He was in good shape, but he was already exhausted. There was just something different about fighting for your life and hiking all day.
It wasn't just the difference in the muscles that were used. It was far more stressful - and it had been going on for so long!
A small part of Dev's mind knew that he couldn't have been dodging the gorilla's attacks and trying to counter with his little wooden stick for more than a dozen seconds. He'd seen fights in nature before. Heck, he'd seen them up close and personal ever since joining Bit's group. The time dilation was really just hyper-focus and adrenaline or something...
At least that's what he kept telling himself.
It couldn't have been as long as it'd seemed, otherwise Bit would've come and saved him by now. It was that, or the superhero had been defeated and another robot zombie would've also joined the fight.
Chewbacca swiped with his axe, and Dev backed away and circled to the left. That put the Jungleclad's shield between them - which might've hampered his potential counter-attack, but also interfered with the axe swing.
The Ape's body was wounded, and it couldn't move quickly. The robot zombie comparison was surprisingly apt. Apes COULD walk on two legs, but they weren't really designed for it. He'd watched the Jungleclad in general and Chewbacca in particular while sketching them. He knew how they moved. He knew that they used their arms to help them 'run'.
Dev wondered that if he could gain enough distance, if Chewie would 'charge' him. That might be his chance to land a blow. If he lowered both his axe and his shield, then Dev would only have to get past the armor!
"[Scarlet Beam]! [Scarlet Beam]! Scarlet Beam!"
He only realized it was Pinky shouting AFTER a lance of pure red struck Chewie in the side. The laser-like attack penetrated his opponent's iron armor and bored deep into its side!
Chewbacca ignored it, and continued his relentless pursuit. Dev thrust his spear in probing attacks, but they were all useless. He'd struck the Met on top several times, but Bit's poison didn't seem to be able to do anything directly.
...Or too much of it had been wiped off in his fight with the Quillcat.
Dev's next step back was onto some wet leaves, and he stumbled. Chewbacca towered over him, and raised his axe up high for an overhead chop!
The weapon whistled through the air. Dev didn't need a dangersense to know what was coming.
Somehow... somehow, he managed to roll to the side.
"Stab him now!" Bit yelled from the side. Dev glanced over. The little girl was pinned underneath the headless corpse of the Bloodrage Badger. She had one hand out and was pointing at the Jungleclad.
Chewbacca seemed frozen.
Dev snarled as he rammed his stick into the opening the laser had made.
The green flesh seemed to shudder for a second before the robot that sat on top of Chewie's neck vanished.