Chapter Sixty - The Enemy Won''t Do As You Wish


    Chapter Sixty - The Enemy Won''t Do As You Wish


    Vanguard have got something of a knack for things. Look, I aint saying theyre magic or anything, theyre not Jedi or wizards or whatever. They just... you know, theyve got a little something that makes them stand out.


    You think them brain-AI just picks any git off the street?


    --Curb-side interview, 2034


    ***


    Myalis, I said.


    Yes, Catherine?


    Myalis voice was, as ever, calm, which was reassuring when I was so very close to having my ass eaten by a whole heap of aliens, and not in the fun way. I need a way to kill all these fucks real fast-like, I said.


    How much collateral damage are you willing to accept responsibility for?


    I bit my lip at the question. That was terrifying to hear. However much would result in the most dead aliens, I said.


    Thats easily arrangeable. Your main issue isnt killing the antithesis. Youve proven quite capable at that. Your problem is getting your explosive payload delivered to the Antithesis. Honestly, you might be best served with a slight change in tactics. I have some options for short-to-midrange weapons that can weaken or outright kill most weaker Antithesis.


    What kind of weapon? I asked.


    The High Intermittency Sound Scrambler is a device you can fit onto your armour that would act as your resonators do, though with greatly increased efficiency.


    You just want to give me something called a HISS while Im distracted, dont you?


    That may play a role in my proposal. Though it would be effective in keeping you alive.Fo?llo?w new stories at novelhall.com


    Fine, but I want to kill things more than I want to stay alive. Not that I dont want to... fuck, you know what I meant.


    A box appeared by my feet, and I popped it open. It was relatively small, with a badge-like device within it that was round, maybe the size of my palm, and with a few concentric circles within a metal case.


    Just apply that to your armour. It will stick on and mesh with your stealth systems. The system will activate on its own when an Antithesis is near. The sound might interrupt any attempts at stealth though.


    I smacked the HISS against my upper chest and it stayed on with a clunk. Then I poked my head back up and over the debris wall.


    The renewed shelling had pushed the nearest part of the swarm back, but they were starting to run up towards us again, gaining speed as they covered more ground, leapt over craters and slipped around the roasting bodies of other dead aliens.


    Gomorrah found a chunk of cement to stand on, then she raised herself up so that her torso poked out above the debris. She shifted her flamethrower around so that it clunked onto a broken piece of fallen masonry, then she started to spray.


    The liquid fire splashed out ahead of her and Gomorrah slowly swept her flamethrower from left to right.


    The horde didnt stop just because the ground had turned into a flaming mess. They charged through the smoke and paid for it an instant later as they cooked alive. The bigger models pushed into the fires as well, just as heedless as the smaller, though the more clever among them used the bodies of the fallen as stepping stools.


    Im listening.


    Do we have any sort of ground-sensors in the area?


    There are several. Though currently their readings are complicated by the presence of so many heavy vehicles and drones by the walls. Not to mention the combat and explosive-use.


    I... would it be stupid to ask the Family to check? Its just a hunch.


    You are a Vanguard. You were chosen for a multitude of reasons, including your instincts. Your hunches are worth more than others.


    Thanks, I said.


    It doesnt mean youre not wrong. Frequently. And humorously.


    I chuckled. Youre the kindest, I said.


    Sorry for interrupting, Jimothy said. But Ive got an ounce of experience with ground-related things. If you two are busy I can get something and check on your hunch, Miss Stray Cat.


    That would be appreciated, Gomorrah said. Go ahead, Crackshot.


    Oh, I think Im liking the name. Not sure Ive earned it yet though, he said. Give me just a minute.


    Gomorrah glanced my way. You think theyre under us?


    Has the Family shut down all the connections between New Montreal and this part of the city? I asked.


    According to the Familys reports, yes. Though it is possible some unmarked infrastructure remains.


    Are there any sorts of Antithesis that can dig then? I asked.


    The Antithesis Model Eight and Eighteen can both dig.


    Model Eights were those big worm ones that carried food back to the hives. It figured that they could dig, they were worms. I figured a model eighteen was just more of the same.


    I heard a shift from behind me. A few screams and a pause in some of the gunfire, though the shooting had died down a little around our section ever since Gomorrah and I moved to the front.


    Oh, hells, Crackshot said.


    I spun around. What is it? I asked.


    Then I saw one of those big tanks sitting by the back tip over onto its side. Then, much to my surprise and everyone elses, the tank was thrown back. Several hundred tons of metal bounced up, flew a dozen paces back, then crashed down.


    A moment later, long black limbs started to press out of the ground.


    Misses, Crackshot said. I think we might be needing you back here.


    ***