SSV 4 Chapter 30 (Patreon)

Inside the home, there was one more man who was shoulder deep in an old speaker, working on it with only a single candle lighting the space.

I froze him and pulled him out of the room. “Daeva, there was someone who used speakers to draw monsters to Point City. You called them ‘The Piper’?”

The man struggled in my power but I held a tight vice on him.

“Yes. A man whose power could attract or repel most animals, including monsters.” Daeva remembered. “In the early days of New Haven we used his power quite a lot and Skel made recordings.”

I pointed at the speaker. “Given what we just heard, could it be used against New Haven?”

She considered my question and then shook her head. “I mean, they could draw a decent number here, but it really only ever worked on small and medium creatures. Nothing more than a nuisance to you or me.”

“We’ll deal with him after this.” I floated the man up in front of me and unsealed his mouth. “So, what are you doing here?”

He struggled but couldn’t even budge. “Traitor.” He tried to spit, but I made it like spitting into the wind and had it smack him in the face.

I could have handled it many other ways, but that way made me smile.

“Nah. Just looking into issues in the city that I’m technically the god of. Have you seen my statue? It’s pretty cool.” I just smiled at him. “So, the other guy told us a lot before he died. Want to add anything useful?”

Pushing and prodding his brain, I tried to lower his inhibitions as well.

“You’ll die.” He sneered. “Fuck you and your fucking whores. Men will rise up, reclaim where we belong. Restore the patriarchy.”

I wasn’t impressed with what his inhibitions had been holding back.

“The speakers. Are you using them to draw monsters?” I asked.

“Direct them. But they’ll come regardless.” He smiled and was missing a few teeth. His smile turned into a silly giggle and then into an obnoxious laugh.

He was worthless to us, so I pasted him.

“Shame. He wasn’t much use.” I shrugged as Daeva scowled at me. “What? He clearly wasn’t going to be worth much.”

“Still struggling over killing so many men. It’ll hurt our city.” She frowned. “Hopefully not all of them are of this opinion.”

While she struggled with the recent findings, I tore up the floorboards rather than try to find the entrance.

The wood peeled back and snapped, revealing a large cavern below.

My power billowed out and I reached for what was being stored, wanting to know what they had.  Large crates were stacked everywhere along with two more men who turned into paste before they could reach inside the crates.

Light bloomed behind me.

“Those are big guns.” Daeva pointed to the crates.

“Very big guns.” I agreed. “They look like the type used for monsters, but I don’t think that’s why they are here.”

The gun in question was about as long as I was tall, and there was a large tripod underneath it as well. The gun had numerous nodes along its barrel.

“Rail guns.” I sighed. “These look far too nice to be made here. They brought them in from Point City.”

Technically the guns were older technology made by mad scientists in the early days after powers. They packed a serious punch, were great for monster killing, and were also great for super killing.

No one but the military mass produced them.

It wasn’t said out loud, but when Pratt was preparing the military to counter an invading force, he meant a force of supers.

“They’d get a few shots off with something like this, but then I’d crush them.” Daeva frowned.

“Don’t underestimate the chaos that a large number of monsters would cause. Besides, they might need them to defend themselves too.” I lifted the gun out and hefted it a few times before putting it back in the crate and opening the others.

A few stacks of rounds went into the crate. The weapon was meant to be mounted, but I was pretty sure that Stella could handle it like a very large rifle. And while they’d planned to use it against us, it was likely we’d end up using it to foil their plan.

Opening several other crates, I found more rail guns and even a crate of explosives.

“They were going to attack us from the back when we dealt with whatever monsters they had coming our way.” Based on what they’d said and what we’d found, the conclusion was clear. “But we’ll take these and put them in the temple.”

We could come back for them after we finished up tonight.

“Are you sure that is safe? Could someone harm us with the explosives?” Daeva poked the bricks. “I mean, I don’t think they would hurt me, but the temple could be a target to invoke terror and make me look weak.”

“I’ll cloak them in. Not even the maidens will know they are there.” Eyeing the crates, they were too big for the basement door, but I could break it apart and put it back together. “Let’s see where this tunnel goes.” I lifted the light to see the cavern and a tunnel that branched off of it.

Daeva nodded, her face set in determination.

I snuffed out my light and grabbed Daeva with my power, leading us through the tunnel with my senses.

Throughout the tunnel walls, I noticed powered bugs. There were too many types to be natural. Roach was collecting them and could very easily turn them into a large problem for the city above.

If I was walking the tunnel, I’d probably be attacked every few steps by an ant I stepped on or by spiders that were lurking at the edges if I weren’t popping them as I moved.

The tunnel wound around several times. We found two more caches of weapons before the tunnel finally rose sharply up and we were back into fresh air. I threw my power out wide to see if there was anyone else, but I sensed nothing.

“We’re outside.” Daeva noticed the moon and stars.

“Yeah. Not much down there but more weapons. Maybe it’s a retreat for them.” I sighed.

We had come up empty handed besides killing a few grunts yet again.

I went to say something, but then I sensed somebody heading straight for us very quickly. “Hold up. Inbound.”

I waited a moment, and it was clear that the speedy super was on its way to the opening where we stood.

But then about a hundred yards out they stopped and reversed.

“I don’t think so.” My power clamped down on the super and I drew them to me.

I smiled in satisfaction before a spike of pain went through my mind, searing my nerve endings and making me drop the super from my power.

I had to blink as the pain faded.

My fated, I failed. Her intrusion was so forceful and so sudden. I was unprepared.

Doesn’t matter. Do your best to shield me from that again.

“Miles?” Daeva held onto me, keeping me from plummeting.

“Telepathic attack. They…” I pushed on my power again to find them. They were moving fast and to the east. “That way.” I pointed and let Daeva fly us as I worked to get my mind back together.

Fuck that hurt.

Mona pressed up against the pain, cooling it like an ice pack. They tried to cut your mind in two, but I took a chunk out of them for it.

“They shifted.” I pointed in a new direction from Daeva before another spike of pain tried to wash over me, but I could feel it slide off some barrier that Mona had erected in my mind.

I dare them to try. Now that I’m prepared, they won’t be able to harm you.

It still felt like I was reeling from the previous attack, but with Daeva controlling our flight, I focused on reaching out with my power and capturing them.

Unfortunately for them, the range of my power had become unbelievably far.

Deava grunted and went limp, falling.

I snagged her body and waited for her while I reeled in our prize. Their super speed kept kicking on and then kicking off as they strained against my hold on them.

Telepathic attack after telepathic attack washed over me as they started throwing it around wildly like a child throwing a tantrum.

It was time to put it to an end. I regained enough of my senses to push on their power.

Even though they were boosted by monster fruit, I was too. I began ripping their ki away. It was almost like the ki completely obeyed me when I wished for the cloaked figure to not have any.

Daeva disappeared, only to reappear a few feet above her body with a scowl on her face. “That hurt.”

“Trust me, I understand. Had it happen to me too.”

“Can I be the one to paste her when this is over?” Daeva looked like she was ready for some vengeance.

I blew back the hood, finding a woman that was actually fairly attractive, but the hood blew back and her cloak parted, showing her giant grasshopper legs. “Ah. So we finally meet.”

The previous guard frowned and her teeth grit as she looked like she was constipated.

“Having trouble with your powers?” I teased. “Don’t bother; they are gone.”

She looked at me in surprise. “Impossible.”

“Quite to the contrary. It is happening.” I smiled wide and lit up the area with a few balls of light. “What are you doing for Roach?”

Her face split into a dreamy smile at his name. “Roach.” She sighed. “Is my everything. He is so handsome, so loving.” She was actually drooling.

It made me feel a little better that her mind had been taken over. I didn’t love the people willingly following Roach’s antics.

“Tell me about Roach. What has he been up to lately?” Daeva asked, and I pressed into the woman’s brain.

Daeva had asked the question the right way, with some suppression of her inhibition she’d probably talk about Roach all day long.

“He’s been busy. So busy. Those of us that serve him want nothing but for him to grow even more glorious, but that means New Haven must be dismantled, along with the top supers in the nine cities.” She drooled over herself as she spoke about his supposed greatness. “He’ll be glorious.”

“Why does he want to topple the cities? And how is he going to deal with someone like Daeva?” I asked.

“Because they are all broken. He has proven it. Point City, Coast City, Verdant City - are all his. He has the politicians in his pockets and can loot the cities as he pleases. Someone like Daeva is a problem, but she can’t be everywhere. All he needs to do is layer attacks on New Haven and it’ll collapse. She’ll become public enemy number one of all the cities, and if she tries to do anything else, he’ll topple it too.” The woman cackled while her eye twitched. “She’ll be hated by everyone and hopeless in time.”

“Why target me?” Daeva asked.

“You are the problem. You are a woman too powerful for her own good and trying to rule as a goddess.” The woman’s voice was full of vitriol. “Bitches like you have held him back.”

I chuckled. “Sounds like you have a fan, Daeva.”

She wasn’t so amused, scowling at the woman. “I’ve protected this city and helped it flourish. Because I wouldn’t let him dominate women, I’m the problem?” She turned to me. “Can I paste her?”

“How is he going to attack New Haven?” I asked the woman before Daeva finished her. “Specifics. Where are these monsters coming from?”

Her eyes snapped into focus. “He’s already won.”

There was a loud howl that sent chills down my spine, but it sounded like it was coming closer at a rapid pace.

“That’s it.” She cackled.

Daeva stepped forward and her fist blurred before the woman ceased to exist. The grasshopper woman blew into a red mist under Daeva’s strength. “I think we have a problem.”

“Yeah, I recognized it too.” I looked in the direction of the howl, and there was a rising glow that had nothing to do with the sun. “That’s the Fenris Wolf.”

“And it’s heading for New Haven.” Daeva was quick to point out. “How?”

“Doesn’t matter at the moment. It’s happening. We’ll figure out the how later. Come on.” I shot forward, trying to gauge if I could find a spot to fight the titan before it got to New Haven, but we had traveled far out of the city with the tunnel and further yet to chase the grasshopper.

Without my light sails, Daeva was faster and grabbed my waist before hurtling us forward.

I put a barrier in front of us to break the wind.

“Do you think you can fight it?” Daeva asked.

“Yeah, I’ll do my best. We at least have a way to hurt it.” My power was already out and scanning the rest of the world around us.

There was a rumble in the ground beneath us, and I knew it had nothing to do with the titan. Bugs writhed out of the ground, attacking anything and everything around them.

An endless swarm of those ant monsters were appearing in the wilds. Much further out than I had laid poison.

They were enough of a problem, but their sudden emergence was causing a wild flight of the monsters that were already in the forest.

Even by the dim light, that much movement was obvious to Daeva. “What’s that?”

“I’m guessing that’s part of his layered plan. Bugs are attacking everything and driving everything from the wilds into your city.” I was more capable of multitasking. I started forming six beads of destruction. I used the beads to create huge destructive beams through the forest. I managed to dig huge grooves in the forest, hopefully also creating a barrier for the monsters that were running from the ants.

I also knew the beams would also wake up all of New Haven if they weren’t awake already.

“Don’t tire yourself out before the Fenris Wolf.” Daeva warned me.

“This won’t tire me out at all. If anything, I’m holding back.” My power had improved, but I had never really reached the limit of my power before.

Skel’s power had not only made me smarter, but it had also improved my concentration and my ability to multitask. It was the latter two that had been holding me back.

Making a bead of destruction took a fair amount of concentration. It was a mental power, and now my mental abilities were improved.

Beam after beam of destruction devastated the forest around us, making it look like some titan had been digging, creating huge gouges that ran for miles.

Without even reaching out, I knew Point City would be repositioning their satellites based on the massive energy strikes I was making.

I couldn’t worry about those implications. At the moment, I needed to save New Haven.

All six beads pointed in the direction of the Fenris Wolf and fired north of New Haven to try and get its attention. I needed to reach it before it hit the city.

But then a terrifying thought occurred to me.

There was one thing that would have drawn the Fenris Wolf so far away. “Daeva, he put the wolf’s pup in New Haven. You need to get someone to find it.”

“What if it is a ghost like the Fenris Wolf?” She asked quickly.

“Then get Vaash from the temple. She can interact with ghosts. Get her to deal with it.” My voice got growly, but I wasn’t upset with her. I was just growing more tense by the moment while the Titan charged towards the city.

I had to get back.