Chapter 33:
– Silas–
I rapidly flicked my sparking fingers, sonic booms blasting out in all directions.
Miss Militia stood right beside me as she swiftly summoned quarter after quarter into my waiting palm. Her gloved fingers barely brushed against mine each time she handed over the coins.
Beneath my heavy Nightingale armor, sweat soaked my skin, trickling down my spine and pooling uncomfortably along my lower back. I clenched my jaw, breathing hard through gritted teeth.
I had no clue the Simurgh could create actual freaking clones of herself. Or maybe I had known at some point, but my memories from my past life weren't exactly perfect!
I'd already torn through dozens of her copies as they charged at me from every direction, their graceful forms shattered into grotesque wreckage by the quarters fired from my fingertips at ludicrous speeds. The quarters shouldn't have survived going at those speeds, but Esper abilities—the Railgun especially—didn't have to make sense.
Anime logic bullshit and all that…
Around me, other capes and even a few villains moved desperately to keep me covered, throwing punches, powers, and anything else they had to keep the relentless clones away from me.
I felt a tight knot of gratitude form in my chest watching them risk everything to buy me just a few extra seconds of breathing room.
But it was inevitable some clones would eventually get close.
I watched in shock as another pair of heroes rushed right in front of me. They were both young men, not much older than me. One wore bright yellow armor with glowing green lines on it, and the other had a long flowing cape that flapped behind him as he ran.
"You won't touch Dragonborn, you pale-skinned monster!" the hero in yellow shouted with a fierce yell, his voice cracking slightly from fear or bravery.
The hero with the cape gave a loud battle cry, swinging his arms wildly as he charged ahead.
The clones opened their mouths wide, letting out sharp hissing noises that sounded angry and hateful. "MOVE OR DIE!"
The clone closest to the yellow-armored hero slashed her hand down with terrifying force and speed. In an instant, the man's chest armor split open, and blood splattered out, soaking the Simurgh clone's pure white skin with bright red gore.
The hero with the cape didn't even have time to scream as the second clone reached forward, grabbing his head between its delicate fingers. With one quick twist, the clone snapped his neck. The sickening sound of bones breaking was loud enough to hear even over the roaring noise of the battle all around me.
I clenched my teeth tightly under my cowl, tasting the sweat and bitterness that filled my mouth. A sickening feeling twisted in my stomach as I saw the two heroes collapse onto the pavement in a lifeless heap.
"You fucking monsters!" I shouted, fury boiling inside me. My arm moved quickly, my finger and arm muscles burning as I flicked two more quarters.
The coins shot out at ludicrous speeds, crackling loudly as electricity surged around my fingertips. Both quarters struck true, hitting the Simurgh clones square in the chest and instantly obliterating them into splashes of white chunks and gore. Their shredded bodies splattered violently onto the pavement, mixing with the blood of the fallen heroes.
I stood there breathing hard, my fingers trembling slightly from both the anger and the constant flicking motion. I could hear my pulse pounding in my ears..
"Silas," Miss Militia said firmly, reaching out with her gloved hand to grip my shoulder tightly. "Don't think about it right now. We have to keep going."
I swallowed hard and gave her a tense nod, feeling her strong grip steady me a bit. "I know," I muttered roughly. "But seeing them die like that—"
"I know it's horrible," Miss Militia interrupted, her voice softer but no less firm. "But the casualties right now are dramatically lower than in any Endbringer fight we've ever had before! Think about how many lives you've already saved by ripping that winged bitch out of the sky! Focus on that," she told me.
I took a slow breath, feeling some of the tension in my chest begin to ease a bit at her reassuring words. She was right. We had a real chance at winning, and even though the losses still hurt deeply, it could have been so much worse. I glanced toward Miss Militia again, noticing her determined expression and the way she stood so confidently.
"We're really going to win this fight, aren't we?" I asked her quietly.
Miss Militia nodded quickly. "We're going to fucking win, Silas," she said loudly, sounding even more confident than before. "You've given us something we've never had. A fighting chance against one of these monsters!"
Her confidence flowed into me, making me stand up straighter. Around us, other heroes continued fighting bravely, throwing themselves at the enemy again and again.
I wasn't the only one destroying the Simurgh copies, though I definitely had the highest kill count. I glanced around quickly, assessing how everyone else was holding up.
Alexandria moved with terrifying strength, speed and brutality. Her arms striking and punching the original Simurgh over and over. She slammed her fists right into its face, each hit making loud crunching noises. She grabbed its long white hair and smashed its head down against the pavement, shattering the street into big pieces. With a fierce yell, she dragged the Simurgh across the ground, sending chunks of concrete flying everywhere. Her cape whipped around her as she tackled it straight through the walls of nearby buildings, bringing the entire structures down in clouds of dust and rubble.
I saw Legend flying high above the fight. He fired bright beams of laser energy from his hands, each shot burning clean through the chest or head of a Simurgh copy.
Eidolon was near Legend, floating steadily while using strange and powerful abilities. One minute his arms glowed bright blue and he unleashed waves of freezing ice that trapped several Simurgh copies in solid blocks. The next moment, he switched to controlling gravity itself, slamming the trapped clones violently to the ground and shattering them. I couldn't understand half the powers he used, but they were all effective and deadly.
I flicked another quarter, watching as it flew straight and true, tearing right through the head of another Simurgh clone. The copy's head exploded violently, bits of gore and bone flying everywhere as the body crumpled to the street. My fingers trembled slightly from exhaustion, but Miss Militia quickly conjured more coins for me.
"You're doing great, Silas," she said firmly, her voice loud enough for me to hear clearly over the noise of battle. "Keep going. We can do this!"
Armsmaster and Dragon fought nearby, both of them working perfectly as a deadly team. Armsmaster stood firm in his dark blue armor, gripping his nanothorn halberd tightly as he thrust the sharp blade forward, stabbing a Simurgh clone straight in the chest. The razor-sharp edge of his weapon sliced cleanly through the pale-skinned body of the clone, making blood spray out and splatter across his visor and chest armor. He pulled the halberd out quickly, causing the lifeless body of the clone to slump heavily onto the pavement with a wet thud.
Beside Armsmaster, Dragon controlled her enormous armored mech suit. The suit stood towering over everyone else, heavily armed with powerful weapons. She maneuvered the huge machine carefully, pointing the heavy cannons attached to its metal arms. With a loud mechanical click, the cannons fired off several explosive rounds, aiming directly at a group of Simurgh copies that were approaching us. The explosive shells hit their targets directly, making loud, sharp bangs as each one erupted violently. Bright flames burst from the impacts, throwing pieces of the clones' bodies into the air and scattering chunks of white flesh and blood across the street.
Dragon's mech suit didn't slow down as it continued firing repeatedly. The heavy cannons moved smoothly, tracking and blasting more approaching clones. Each powerful explosion echoed around us, and the air quickly filled with smoke and the sharp smell of gunpowder.
Between Armsmaster's skill and Dragon's powerful heavy fire, they kept the advancing Simurgh clones at bay, creating a safer area for me to keep attacking from a distance.
Armsmaster shouted loudly through his helmet, his deep voice sounding clear over the loud explosions and combat noise. "Dragon, adjust heavy fire left! More of them are coming in from that side of the street!"
Dragon responded immediately through the speakers of her suit, her calm voice firm and steady. "On it, Armsmaster!"
My half-gloved fingers on my right hand were dripping thick lines of blood onto the pavement, the skin split open from repeatedly firing the railgun at the Simurgh clones. The pain was a constant throb, but I ignored it and forced myself to keep moving. My breathing was heavy. I had burned through a lot of my stored electricity reserves already.
We were in the middle of a city, which meant there was plenty of electrical power around me if I desperately needed to recharge. But I'd never tried drawing electricity from random sources during an actual battle before, and I didn't want to risk experimenting unless it was a complete emergency.
Thankfully, as I glanced quickly around at the city streets—what was left of them, I realized we might not have to.
"Holy fuck, we've done it," I breathed out loud, a wave of relief washing through my chest as I saw the last of the Simurgh clones collapsing, killed by the other heroes fighting nearby. My legs felt shaky, but I forced myself to stand tall.
Nearby, the original Simurgh looked awful, badly injured from the brutal beating she'd received from Alexandria and the others. Her pale, beautiful body was mutilated and torn apart. Both of her legs had been ripped cleanly off, leaving bloody stumps of shredded synthetic flesh exposed. Half of her graceful wings were completely gone, leaving ragged shreds of flesh hanging from her back. One of her slender arms was missing entirely, blood dripping steadily from the torn shoulder. Even her flawless face was damaged, one eye socket empty and gaping, blood or an imitation fluid of it at least was trickling slowly down her pale cheek.
I took a step forward, squinting closely at the Simurgh's chest.
I saw a metallic core through a massive, bloody hole right where her heart should be. It looked like pure silver, smooth and shining brightly beneath layers of what should have been near indestructible layered skin. But my shout had reduced her to a "mortal."
The other heroes noticed the same thing I did.
"That must be her weak spot!" Armsmaster shouted immediately, pointing urgently toward the glowing silver core with his halberd. "Destroy it to finally kill her!"
Alexandria reacted immediately, her powerful legs kicking off hard from the ground as she soared directly toward the wounded Endbringer. She pulled her fist back, preparing to deliver the final strike to finish off the Simurgh.
I saw something I'd never thought I'd see before—actual fear flashed clearly across the Endbringer's damaged face. Her single remaining eye widened in desperation.
And then suddenly, with that terrifying desperation, the Simurgh held up her one remaining hand toward Alexandria, her fingers stretching out frantically. An invisible wave of force erupted from her palm, slamming brutally into Alexandria's body that was almost on her.
Alexandria let out a loud, startled scream filled with pain and shock as the blast sent her hurtling backward. She crashed violently through a nearby building, chunks of brick and concrete breaking off and burying her.
"Fuck," I shouted, my heart sinking rapidly as I watched Alexandria collapse amidst the wreckage. "The Simurgh's got her telekinesis back. Her other powers must have returned too!"
My Dragonrend shout had already worn off completely! That was the worst possible timing!
Dragon shouted urgently through her suit speakers. "The Simurgh just used telekinesis directly on Alexandria! She isn't Manton limited like we believed!"
Miss Militia immediately turned to me. She stepped closer, grabbing my arm tightly. "Silas, quick! You have to hit her with another shout and seal her powers again!" Her voice sounded panicked, for good reason.
The Simurgh's head snapped toward us at those words, her one remaining eye filled with absolute hatred. She locked her gaze directly onto Miss Militia, glaring at her with murderous rage.
Miss Militia flinched and instinctively took a half-step back, her hand trembling slightly on my arm. Without even thinking, I quickly stepped in front of her, standing tall and steady. My chest heaved from exhaustion, but I forced myself to remain calm as I shielded Miss Militia from the Simurgh's hateful stare.
"Silas…" Miss Militia whispered softly behind me.
I didn't turn around but simply kept my eyes locked firmly on the Simurgh, glaring right back at her. I took a deep breath, ignoring the burning pain in my chest and throat. "You've lost today, Simurgh!" I shouted clearly, loud enough for everyone around to hear.
I filled my lungs, preparing to release another Dragonrend shout.
But before I could release the powerful shout, the Simurgh immediately launched herself straight up into the sky without even flapping her remaining tattered wings. She shot upward like she was propelled by a powerful rocket, quickly soaring higher and higher above us. We all stood there, frozen, watching as she rapidly climbed into the atmosphere, becoming nothing but a small pale speck. Within seconds, she disappeared entirely from our sight, escaping completely.
Fuck! She was prepared to escape as soon as she got her full powers back this whole time!
...She wasn't going to be hit by my shout a second time, she was too damn smart.
Had I tried to immediately use my shout after realizing her powers back, I had no doubt she would have done the same.
At least I got to insult her to her face and bring her ego down 1000 levels... It did make me feel a bit better.
I let out the deep breath I had been holding, feeling my whole body slump slightly with frustration and exhaustion.
But still…
My shoulders dropped heavily, and I muttered under my breath, angry and disappointed. "She fucking ran away," I whispered to myself, bitterly clenching my bloody fists. "We had her dead to rights, and she fucking ran."
I was hesitant to turn around to face Miss Militia and the other heroes. I expected to see their faces filled with disappointment because we had failed to land the killing blow.
Slowly, I turned to face them, bracing myself for their reaction.
Instead, I was shocked when the group of heroes, led by Miss Militia and Armsmaster, immediately burst into loud cheers of excitement and joy.
"We did it, Silas! We actually did it!" she said excitedly.
"Fuck yeah! We beat an Enbringer!" another hero cheered.
"Get fucked Ziz!"
"VICTORY!"
Miss Militia suddenly stepped in closer to me. She grabbed the edge of her dark green bandana and quickly yanked it down, revealing her beautiful face. Her olive skin was flushed with excitement, shiny from sweat, and strands of her silky black hair clung damply to her forehead and cheeks. Her full lips were parted slightly as she took deep breaths, and her dark eyes stared intensely into mine.
She didn't even seem concerned about the other heroes noticing her identity, fully focused only on me.
I stared at her in shock. Before I could say anything, she reached up to me and quickly pulled off my own Nightingale mask and cowl, revealing my face completely.
I blinked at her in confusion and surprise, my mouth dropping open slightly as I tried to speak. "Hannah, what are you—"
But I didn't get a chance to finish asking, because Hannah suddenly stepped forward and forcefully pressed her soft, warm lips directly against mine.
Her kiss was passionate and aggressive, her lips moving fiercely against my own as she pushed her tongue boldly into my mouth. She wrapped her arms tightly around my shoulders, pulling me firmly against her. I felt the soft curves of her perky breasts pressed hard against my armored chest.
Cheers and excited wolf-whistles erupted loudly from the other heroes and even some of the villains nearby, all of them celebrating our victory and watching us openly.
Their excitement fueled Hannah even more, and she kept passionately kissing me.
At first, I was hesitant and caught completely off guard by her sudden kiss, but quickly the thrill and rush of our victory took hold of me too. My hesitation vanished completely. I tightened my arms around her slim waist, holding her closer and kissing her back just as passionately. I pushed my tongue firmly past her soft lips, deeply exploring her warm, wet mouth.
Hannah moaned softly against my lips, her fingers clutching the back of my neck as she pressed herself even tighter against me.
Hannah and I both jumped a little when we heard someone clear their throat loudly beside us. We broke apart from our kiss quickly, both of us breathing heavily and turning to look.
Armsmaster was standing there, shaking his armored head slowly from side to side. "I realize today is a day for celebration," Armsmaster said in his usual flat voice. "But there are still other heroes around, and the two of you need to behave yourselves in a way that's fitting for members of the PRT."
I felt my face heat up, embarrassed at being called out like that. Miss Militia reached up quickly and wiped her mouth with the back of her hand. She looked embarrassed too, her cheeks flushed deeply and her eyes dropping to the ground as she avoided Armsmaster's stare.
"I—apologize for how sudden and forward that was, Silas," Hannah told me. She was fidgeting in place nervously. "I should have thought about it more before forcing myself on a Ward…" she admitted hesitantly.
"I was definitely caught off guard, but it was nice…" I replied with a soft smile.
"It was nice—but, we should just forget about it for the time being. Consider that kiss a heat of the moment type of thing. I—I have a lot to think about," Hannah admitted while rubbing her arm anxiously. She looked like she wanted to say more but suddenly stopped.
I glanced over and saw her reason why. I decided not to push more about the kiss for now as well.
Alexandria limped towards us. I'd never seen her look hurt before—no one had, but now her armor had dents, scrapes, and even some deep cuts. She moved slowly and heavily, like each step hurt her.
I guessed that the telekinetic blast from the Simurgh had done more damage than I thought.
Alexandria came to a stop in front of us, her arms crossing slowly over her chest as she stared down at Miss Militia for some reason. Her body language made it look like she was very irritated and I didn't think it was because of her injuries.
Hannah bit her lip anxiously.
But after a long, tense silence, Alexandria just sighed deeply and shook her head slowly. "I'm not even going to say it," Alexandria muttered, sounding tired instead of angry. Her posture relaxed a little, and her voice became softer. "You did a good job today helping Silas, Miss Militia..."
Hannah's eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected praise. "All I really did was summon quarters for him," she said quietly.
Alexandria ignored Hannah's modesty and turned her masked gaze fully onto me instead.
Before I could react, she suddenly stepped forward and wrapped her powerful arms around me, pulling me into a firm, crushing hug. My whole body went stiff with surprise and awkwardness.
Holy crap, the leader of the Illuminati was actually hugging me!
"You did amazing, Silas Thorn," Alexandria told me, her voice firm but gentle at the same time. "I'm incredibly proud of you! You saved an entire city! You saved countless lives today, and everyone here owes you their thanks! You were amazing!"
Wow, that was all some high praise…
I awkwardly patted Alexandria's armored back, unsure of what to say. My heart was beating hard against my ribs as I stood there feeling uncomfortable and a little freaked out at being embraced by this intimidating, scary woman.
With everything I knew about her secrets and power, it felt surreal to have her hugging me so warmly.
"Uh, thanks, Alexandria," I managed to say, my voice coming out weak and shaky. I didn't know exactly how to feel about her showing me this kind of affection, but I figured it was probably better for me that she liked me rather than disliked me.
Slowly, she released me from the hug, stepping back carefully. She turned her covered gaze towards Armsmaster and Dragon, giving them firm instructions with clear authority in her voice. "You two can lift the communication lockdown around the capital now," Alexandria said, her voice steady despite her injuries. "The Simurgh has retreated. It's safe enough to allow people access to communication again."
Alexandria's orders reminded me just how scary the Simurgh really was. Even a simple picture of her could mess with a person's mind, driving them insane if they stared at it too long. That's why during her attacks, no signals were allowed to get out just to make sure pictures of her stayed off the internet.
Armsmaster nodded in response to Alexandria's command, immediately bringing up his armored gauntlet and typing in several commands on the small keypad. Armsmaster pressed a final button and suddenly stiffened, his armored shoulders tensing up in obvious shock.
He made a startled noise under his breath, straightening up rigidly as he read something urgent on his gauntlet's small display screen.
"Armsmaster?" Alexandria asked carefully, noticing his sudden reaction and sounding worried.
He lifted his head quickly, panic clear in his voice as he spoke. "I just received an emergency message from the Rig," Armsmaster blurted out loudly, his voice trembling slightly with shock. "It's under attack by villains! The message is from twenty-five minutes ago!"
Everyone standing nearby froze for a second.
Alexandria cursed sharply under her breath. "Fuck!"
Hannah's voice shook slightly with concern. "Twenty-five minutes ago?" she repeated, sounding tense. "Why didn't we get the alert sooner!?"
Armsmaster shook his head urgently, typing again into his gauntlet as he tried to gather more details. "The communications lockdown around the capital stopped our signals," he explained quickly, his voice stressed. "They've been under attack this whole time, and we had no idea!"
I clenched my fists hard at my sides, feeling frustration and panic boiling inside me. Almost all the girls I cared about were currently at the Rig! "Why didn't my freaking System notify me!" I cursed in anger.
As if in response to my anger, a blue screen suddenly appeared in front of my eyes.
[Congratulations on driving away the Endbringer! You have been awarded with—]
"Cmon, Silas we have to go!" Hannah called out to me.
I didn't get to finish reading the message as Hannah suddenly reached out and grabbed me by arm. She pulled me over towards the group that was forming around Strider.
A bunch of tired heroes, but ready to take the fight to the villains who dared break the Endbringer truce back in Brockton Bay!
I just hoped everyone I cared about back at the rig was ok…
XXX