Call Me… Doc Ock – Arc One: Origin
Chapter 22: Now You're Armed and Ready
After a few minutes of running, I found what looked like an administrative office and barricaded it with several old bookcases and cabinets to help keep others out.
With that done, I finally opened my backpack and carefully rifled through it. The first thing I pulled out was the suit. Lifting myself with the upper tentacles I carefully extracted the boots on my feet and held them with my bottom-right tentacle. Feeling a bit antsy, I pulled off the loincloth and then set it on fire with a bolt before tossing it out the window.
"Right, now comes the trick part," I muttered. I managed to get the leggings over my feet and up to my waist. After putting the boots back on, I dropped to the floor and took the bag into my hands. Withdrawing my tentacles into my back, I quickly pulled my suit up the rest of the way and did a bit of stretching to get a feel for it.
Looking over my shoulder, I patted myself on the back. Before all of this, one of things I had done with the suit was create flaps for my tentacles…
Laying on a table I shivered as H2H took measurements of the area where my tentacles exited from my back. While the area around my spine and lower-back had been reinforced, it still felt oddly sensitive in a way that I was having trouble describing. I just hoped that I could get used to it before it became a problem.
"MEASUREMENTS COMPLETE." H2H's voice broke me out of my musings, and I got up to look over the notepad with the information I would need for this bit of work.
"Huh… okay… uh-huh…" I nodded. "Right." I turned my attention to the suit that Otto had made for me. "Let's get to modifying this thing." It had quickly become apparent that the suit did not have a means for me to let out my tentacles out without potentially damaging it. As such, I needed to make some exit points without compromising the suits protections.
Fortunately, for me, I could use an idea cribbed from Spider-Man's suit. Where he had holes in the arms for his web-shooters to poke out through, I simply needed to make some holes in the back that could stretch around the tentacles without impacting the suit's integrity.
"Right then…" I pulled out some tools. "Let's see if this works."
With the suit on I stretched my body this way and that to make sure that nothing felt off.
"Search the rooms! The little rat has to be here somewhere!"
'Welp, time to get a move on.' There was a minor stretching in the back of my suit before my extra limbs came out through the holes I made. I then pulled out the shield gloves and slipped them on.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG* "HEY! There's something blocking this door," someone cried out. The sound of several footsteps rushing to the speaker let me know that I needed to go.
'And not a moment too soon.' Slipping on my backpack, I considered the tools that I had on. 'Okay, let's see, I've got my suit, gloves, and the Ofo Rod back. Along with that, I've picked up a sword (possibly enchanted), a pistol, and some grenades.'
Given that there were more voices and banging at the door, I think it was safe to say that there was a crowd waiting on the other side. 'And since I just want to get out of here A.S.A.P., fighting my way through them is an unappealing option.' I pulled out a few grenades, some duct tape and string. 'That being all said, doesn't mean I can't leave something for these 'fine gentlemen.'
As the banging went on, I quickly set to work on my trap and then went out to the balcony outback and went over the ledge.
As I went along the outer wall, my pursuers made it through the door.
"Huh… that's odd, I could have sworn I hear-" *BOOM* The was a slight rumbling through the area at the blast. As I moved low along the ledge, I took the time to wait before crossing by any windows or doors.
"What the hell's going on over there!?" More footsteps.
"The enemy must have slipped past us!"
"What?! How?! We did a thorough check of these halls before setting up posts!"
As I listened to the men passing by, I pulled out a grenade and got ready to throw it.
"We may have to consider that one of the heathens was hiding here earlier," another voice went on. The light of a flashlight went on through the window I was hiding by. "Okay, Knight Dendrick! Knight Ferris! You two go up ahead and find out what caused that blast! Everyone, pair up. We have no idea how many more of the heathens may be hiding in the area. Fan out and watch each other's backs!"
"Yes, sir!" Soon more footsteps and the sound of doors slamming open. Biting my lip in annoyance, I thought about how to go on ahead. 'If they had just gone a little further, I could have slipped right by." Nothing for it now, I guess. Taking the sword in hand, I waited for the light to pass by before I held it past the edge of the window and looked at the reflection in the blade.
At the moment, I could only spot two guys: one looked like he was in the room across the hall, while the other was in the hallway with the flashlight looking both ways. Lowering myself down to the floor below I could spot two more guys going through the rooms within the area. Occasionally, one of them would peek out into the respective balconies forcing me to either hang underneath the balcony where they stood. On the ground below, I could spot three guys in armor with flashlights, looking around the area while keeping the others in sight.
Pressing myself flat on the underside of the third-floor balcony, I was thinking about what to do, when-
*BOOOM*
Another explosion erupted from the other side of the living space.
"WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?!" Some more footsteps followed after.
"THE ABOMINATIONS ARE BREAKING THROUG-" An explosion drowned the voice out and I was knocked loose as some of architecture groaned under the stress. 'SHIT! I need to get out of here no-" A bright light suddenly hit my face, and I had to cover my eyes.
"THERE! I FOUND HIM!" *BANG* *BANG* *BANG* *PING* *PING* *PING*
By some miracle, I had just barely gotten my arms in front of me and activated the light shields in my gloves. "FUCK! FUCK! FUCK!" I dropped from my position and began to run further from the men firing at me. Just as I was reaching the end of the second-floor balcony-
"GOT YOU!"
"OH SHIT!" *CLANG*
Sparks flew as the armored man's sword ground against the light-shields. The knight jumped back and rushed at me again with a swing to my left leg. Without thinking one my tentacles reached back as I jumped and latched on to a pillar, pulling me back, out of reach. The knight rushed at me again, thrusting with his blade towards my neck. Somehow, I managed to bend backwards out of the way, and went into a reverse handstand, the front of my foot catching the guy in the chin as he tried to retreat.
With some distance between us, I grasped my borrowed sword tightly with both hands. As I stared at the nutcase in front of me, I found myself shaking. This guy… was actually trying to kill me… And with the other nutjobs swarming in soon, I was going to have to fight. I shook my head. 'Come on man, you can't get-'
"DIE!" The armored man had pulled out a fucking ax with his left and swung for my neck!
"SHIT!" I barely managed to deflect the swing with the sword in my hands. A glint out the corner of my eye was the only warning of the impending follow up with a sword. Before I could even think about it, one of my tentacles lashed out and grabbed onto the man's wrist. There was a sudden crunch, and the man let out a cry of pain and the sword fell from his hand with a clang. Without stopping to think, I lashed out with a forward left kick.
"GUHH!" The armored man was sent flying back and crashed through the guardrails and off the balcony. Shaking like a leaf, it was all I could do not to collapse.
"GOT YOU!"
I whirled around just in time to see another armored man come at me swinging a claymore. Both my arms went up and the shields came to life as the sword crashed into them. I could feel the impact in my arms. The man swung with an experienced frenzy, and it was all I could do to try and keep out of range. As my arms were still shaking from that initial impact, I distantly realized that while my legs and back were reinforced, my arms apparently had not been suitably strengthened.
Another swing and I staggered back. Seeing an opening, the armored man thrust his sword to my head. My two upper tentacles, moving before I could so much as blink, lashed out and caught the man's hands mid-thrust and twisted, throwing off his aims. Hastily, I rammed the sword point first into the man's mouth.
"GRRKKKK!" *CLANG*
The man's sword hit the ground as his body went limp. It took a few seconds for me to get myself together and I pulled out the blade from the fresh corpse. The resounding *thump* seemed so much louder as I processed what had just happened. Shaking a bit, I brought my tentacles into view. 'Holy… holy shit! If… if wasn't for these…' It was a good thing I had these extra limbs because I was pretty sure I would be dead without them right now.
I shook my head. "Come on! Focus, dammit! Worry about this, later; survive now!"
"GALE!" The new voice had me snapping my head up. Two more knights came through a door down the way. The speaker looked at the corpse, with horror in his blue eyes under blonde hair. Said eyes snapped up to me with raw hate, and I found myself stepping back in alarm.
"YOU VILE DISGUSTING FREAK! I'LL SEE YOU DEAD!" With a roar the man pulled out two axes and rushed at me.
"OH, COME ON, ALREADY!" I dodged back from the man's double slash. Before I could try to retaliate, he quickly followed up by throwing the axe at my head. I just barely managed to duck out of the way, before I was forced to block the man's overhead swing. My arms shook from the impact, and I was pretty sure that a few more of these kinds of swings would leave my arms feeling numb.
"HAVE AT YOU!" The second man, who I had almost forgotten about, came at my left with a sword, hate in his brown eyes. My upper-left tentacle lashed out and struck the man in the face.
"GRKKK!" Somehow, I could feel the man's jaw collapse under the force of the blow, and he dropped to the ground, blood flowing from his head.
"ANDERSON," the man with the axe cried out. Turning back to me, he glared at me with murderous rage. "YOU FOUL MONSTER! I'LL HAVE YOUR HEA-GUHH!" Pain and Shock twisted the man's face as he stared at the claymore buried into his pelvis courtesy of my bottom-right tentacle. Honestly, I was amazed I had enough self-awareness to even grab the thing before the two men had rushed me.
With a kick, I sent the man flying back a ways, and I took a few breathes to process whatever the fuck just happened.
*BANG* *BANG* *BANG*
Ducking down, I lifted an arm and activated the shield. I took a moment to grab whatever I could off the armored men around me and then headed back into the building. 'I need to get out of here now!' Quickly heading to the other side, I came upon the sight of more armored men who were now fighting both Clan Akkaba and my "relatives." I could only marvel at the sight of bolts of energy, fireballs and other assorted munitions flew across the field. 'What the fuck? How in the world has this been going on without the cops pulling up? With all this noise and chaos, you'd think-'
"ISAAC!" A hand tapped my shoulder, and I spun on the spot and swung everything in hand.
*CLANG*
"WOAH! ISAAC," Azelea shouted, having brought up mystic barriers to block my wild strikes.
I stared, uncomprehending for a moment.
"CREATOR." My eyes snapped to H2H, the android standing at attention. "UNIT HAS SUSTAINED LIGHT DAMAGE, EXAMINATION IS REQUIRED."
"Hey, Isaac, are- are you okay?! You're- you're covered in blood!" Azelea looked me over concern clear on his face.
After several deep breaths, it finally registered to me that I was no longer on my own in this crazy situation and I was gonna make it out of here alive now.
"ISAAC!" Azelea suddenly grabbed me, holding me up. It was then that I realized that I had collapsed due to nerves. "Are you hurt?! What did they do to you?! Come on stay with-" I held up a finger stopping his string of questions. Once I felt like my legs were no longer made of jelly, I stood up and took a few more deep breaths to calm myself down a bit.
"I'm- I'm good," I managed to get. "None- none of the blood is mine."
Azelea looks me over for a few more seconds before he slumps a bit, pinching the bridge of his nose. "This has gotten completely out of hand. We need to go, now!"
"Alright, then let's portal out of here." I look around. The sound of fighting is still going on. "The sooner, the better."
"Well as much as I would like to, I'm afraid that the sling-ring is being blocked." At my incredulous look, he went on. "Apparently, your 'relatives' have set up some ward that both kept us from detecting their presence here and interferes with the sling-ring's ability to bend space."
It took several seconds to get my jaw working. "Are- Are you SHITTING ME RIGHT NOW?!"
"I wish I were, but that's how it is for the moment."
*BOOM*
At the explosions, he brought out a pair of barriers, his face going stern. "Sol Rama and several others are currently working to undo the wards. For now, it may seem like we'll have to be ready to fight our way out." He began to move, with me and H2H following along. "Let's hope we can either get through in one piece or last long enough for reinforcements."
"Hey, speaking of which, how the hell have the police now pulled up by now," I asked.
"That, you can blame your family for," Azelea responded, his lips pressed into a thin line. "Apparently, they had instigated several fights between rival gangs throughout other parts of New York State, so most law enforcement is currently trying to get that all under wraps."
"…oh, for fuck's sake…"
"Yeah, I imagine that they're gonna have a lot of heat coming down their backs if we manage to get through this… Honestly, starting a war between all those criminals has got to be the dumbest thing they've done so far."
"No," I stated, a hard look on my face. "I can say with no bias, that that is far from the dumbest thing they've done so far."
"How do you figure that," Azelea asked, an eyebrow rising at my tone.
"Because I now know the identity of the monster these idiots are trying to summon."
Now both alert and alarmed, Azelea focused on me. "You- you know what we're dealing with here?"
I nodded. "Yes, I do. And if that thing gets loose, everyone and everything is done for!"
"In that case we'll have to get a move on, hopefully we can prevent it from getting loose. Worst case scenario, the Ancient One might be-"
"No. The Ancient One cannot deal with this thing," I stated firmly.
"Isaac?" Azelea looked concerned as he regarded me.
"I am only going to say this once," I went on. "This thing is beyond the Ancient One's power. There is literally, and I mean literally, nothing in this reality or the next and beyond that could stop this monster!"
"Isaac, the Masters of the Mystic Arts have-," Azelea began, but I interrupted him.
"Look! Goddammit! I am not exaggerating when I say that this monster is the worst of the worst! It's the source of all those dark urges that exist within all of us! IT WANTS TO DESTROY US AND WILL STOP AT NOTHING TO GET ITS WAY!"
Azelea stared at me wide eyed. "O-okay… Isaac, I think we need to-"
*BOOOM*
"GAAAH!"
"CRAP!"
The both of us were knocked off our feet as the floor beneath us gave way and we found ourselves tumbling to the floor beneath us. I managed to catch myself thanks to my tentacles and I spotted Azelea using a barrier to cushion his fall.
"There you are." At the sound of the familiar voice, I turned on the spot to find Roderick Slade a few yards away his form crackling with power as a ball of energy formed in his hand. On the ground next to him, was bruised and burnt Remy.
"ISAAC," Azelea's voice rang out. As I turned towards him, I spotted a knife headed right for me. My bottom-right tentacle lashed out and grabbed it mid-flight.
"…tch! Almost had him." Isaiah Curwen stood at the other end of the hallway with two other men. His armor was covered in a few dents and scratches, and there was blood on his face.
Slade's face twisted in annoyance. "Seriously, I thought Brashir was taking care of you."
Curwen snorted. "You will need far more than a metal freak to put me down." He then regarded me with a scowl. "As for you… those blades… I recognize their make." His one eye narrowed. "So, my knights have fallen to you, have they?" He closed his one eye. "I will simply have to ensure that their deaths were not in vain."
His eye snapped open and then he threw a knife towards Slade then charged at me. "HAVE AT YOU!"