Mistrunner 2 - Chapter 24 - The Bayou (Patreon)

Regret is a funny thing. It’s not a constant, but when that feeling comes for you, it hits like a sledgehammer. Lately, it feels like it’s happening more and more, and I wonder if I might have been better off just swallowing my pride and enjoying the position I had.

Nora Lancaster

“What the –”

My assault rifle, which I’d loaded into one of the quick access slots in my Arsenal Implant, was in my hand before I finished the exclamation. But even then, I wasn’t quick enough to bring it to bear before I felt a pair of talons tear into my shoulder. For a moment, I was weightless as it tried to lift me free, but the bird wasn’t strong enough to handle our collective weight. So, after only a second of furiously flapping wings, it released us.

I fell, and for the briefest of instants, I thought I was about to plummet to my death. But then the harness tightened, and the ropes snapped taut as we were jerked to a stop. Tam let out a grunt of pain, and I nearly dropped my rifle.

But I was made of stronger stuff than that. My training pushed at my mind as I raised my weapon, took aim, and fired.  The R-14 barked three times in quick succession, and the resultant blobs of plasma tore through the air. When they hit the bird, which was some hawk-like variant, sleek and swift with an eight-foot wingspan and metallic claws, it burst into an explosion of feathers, blood, and charred flesh.

It was too bad, then, that the hawk wasn’t alone.

Looking down, I saw a swirling miasma of feathers and sharp talons. The flock of raptors looked like a solid thing, seething as its components reacted to the loss of one of their own.

“Uh…we’ve got a problem, Tam!” I shouted over the sudden screeching. “Head back!”

“Can’t,” he growled, climbing, hand-over-hand back to the underside of the platform. We’d fallen almost a dozen feet before our momentum had been arrested by the ropes, so I was more than a little impressed that he had the strength to haul us both up. However, I was even more surprised to see that the grate through which we’d left the Underground had been closed and reinforced, likely to keep the hawks from getting inside.

“Shit,” I muttered, going over my options. The BMAP would do little good against a flock of birds. Sure, when it hit one, it would do some damage, but its relatively slow moving projectiles were ill-suited to the task of assaulting multiple fast-moving targets. For the first time, I found myself regretting my choice to eschew the Dragon, which was an anti-personnel weapon perfectly suited for the exact situation in which I’d found myself, in favor of the mobile artillery platform.

But right then, regret wouldn’t do me any good, so I moved on to other options. Obviously, my nano-bladed dagger and sword were out of the question. If those birds got close, then I would be ripped to shreds. My constitution had progressed past the human limits, but these monstrous birds were far too fast for me.

My assault rifle was another option, but anything more than a three-round burst would overheat and distort the barrel. The Pulsar was even less suited for the occasion, and while I could easily explode a hawk every second, there were hundreds of the things down there. By the time I made a dent in that flock, they’d have long since murdered Tam and me.

So, my only real option was the scattergun. Luckily, I’d given it one of the quick access slots, so it only took a moment to exchange my R-14 for the stubby weapon. When I did, I made sure it had plenty of ammunition before taking aim. The birds were still too far away, but I wanted to be ready.

Tam was on the verge of panic, muttering to himself unintelligibly. Or maybe he was praying. Either way, it was getting on my nerves, so as I aimed down my weapon’s sights, I said, “Shut up, Tam. We’re fine. Just hold on tight.”

“W-what…”

It was at that moment that the birds chose to attack. The flock raced upward as if they’d caught an updraft, and when the first few got within ten yards, I opened fire. Lightning erupted from my scattergun in a wide cone, arcing from one hawk to the next and electrocuting the little monsters. One by one, they fell from the sky; it was more than a thousand feet to the bayou far below, but I knew they wouldn’t recover before hitting the ground.

And I felt certain that they wouldn’t survive. Even if they did, they’d be too injured to pose much of a threat, and they’d probably end up as prey for other creatures who called the swamp home.

As devastating as that arc of lightning was, it wasn’t enough. The cone was only about ten feet wide, but it carved a corridor through the ascending birds. Still, the moment the pulse faded, they flooded back in. I shot again, and the hawks closed in around us. I heard Tam scream, and suddenly, we were falling again.

I continued to fire until the rope snapped taut, jerking us to a stop. The sounds of a hundred bird cries coupled with the hissing boom of my scattergun’s report filled the air. The smell of charred feathers and cooking meat surrounded me, but I continued to fire, one shot after another, until the cannister ran dry. The moment I started to exchange it for another, more birds swooped in, clawing at me with their vicious metal claws.

The Infiltration suit combined with my Sheath to protect my vitals, but it didn’t take the birds long to target my relatively unprotected face. Panic rose in my chest. My heart pounded. And all I wanted to do was flail to keep those vicious, stabbing beaks and metallic claws from my head. I forced myself to follow the procedure I’d repeated thousands of times before, slamming the new cannister into place before opening fire once again.

The birds fried, falling from the sky in droves.

But there were always more. For a subjective eternity, my world was nothing but feathers, talons, and pain, but I persisted because any other option would see me dead. Staying alive is the most powerful motivator, after all.

Finally, when I was on my second-to-last cannister, the air cleared, and the few remaining birds glided away.

I sighed, hanging limp. I could feel that my face and hands were a mass of scratches, but I hoped none of them were serious. Thankfully, the Sheath protected my entire body, which had kept the talons from doing more than superficial damage. Still, I could feel that it had been pushed to the limits of what it could do. No single strike was enough to strain the subdermal armor, but after being subjected to hundreds of strikes from the ripping talons, it was on the verge of giving in. Thankfully, it would slowly syphon Mist from my surroundings to repair itself.

“You okay, back there, Tam?” I asked.

There was no answer. “Tam?”

I knew he was dead before I turned my head, but even that slim preparation wasn’t enough to keep me from vomiting. I couldn’t get a good look, but from what I could see, it looked like his face had been ripped off. And I was fairly certain that most of the rest of his body had received similar treatment. After all, he didn’t have high-grade armor to protect him.

Shaking my head, I tried to shift around, but I quickly realized that I was hampered by the harness that had been designed to keep us back-to-back. That’s when I realized that if I wanted to get out of this mess, I would either need help, or I was going to have to unhook myself.

Even as I moved, the rope attaching us to the platform above twisted until I was facing the grate. There was a man standing there, staring at me with wide eyes.

“Help me!” I yelled across the twenty-foot expanse.

He shook his head, then backed away. As he went, I could see the fear in his eyes. And I knew it wasn’t just directed at the birds. Instead, he was terrified of me, too. After all, the birds were scary enough, but I’d just killed dozens of them. Maybe hundreds. I was probably much more frightening.

Briefly, I pointed my weapon in his direction, but he’d already retreated out of sight. I swore in frustration, imagining all the things I’d like to do to the coward. But inwardly, I didn’t really blame him; he was just afraid, and he wanted to stay alive. The seeds of empathy did little to assuage my anger, though.

I took a deep breath, calming myself as I thought through the problem. But I already knew how to solve it. I just didn’t want to do it.

Of course, the situation didn’t care about my hesitation, and it soon lit a fire under me in the form of a fraying rope. The moment I saw it, I knew it wouldn’t hold the combined weight of Tam and me for very much longer. So, if I wanted to avoid a fall of more than a thousand feet, I needed to move.

So, after taking another deep, calming breath, I reached down and unhooked my harness. As I did, I grabbed hold of Tam’s, and once I felt myself come free, I flipped around and started to climb.

With my [Acrobatics] skill, combined with my high constitution attribute, I had little trouble clamoring over him and grabbing hold of the rope. A moment later, I was climbing hand over hand until I reached the underside of the platform. When I did, I grasped the handholds Tam had intended to use to make his way to the pylon that held the platform aloft. They were little more than iron pinions drilled into the concrete, but they were just big enough that I could wrap my fingers around them. The rope it had once held had already been sliced to ribbons, and I knew it would snap the moment I gave it my weight.

Swinging like a monkey, I made my way to the enormous concrete platform, and I soon found my next major obstacle. I wasn’t sure if one of the pinions had fallen out or if there had been something else planned for the last ten feet, but there was a definite gap between me and the pylon.

“Crap,” I muttered.

I couldn’t go back.  And I only had one option going forward. So, I ground my teeth together in frustration before I started swinging back and forth. When I’d gained enough momentum, I waited until I reached the apex of my swing and let go. My stomach dropped as I sailed through the open air, and for a single moment, I was sure I’d come up short.

I’d fall to the swamp below. Just like the hawks.

But then I realized that I had the opposite problem. I’d aimed too high. My swing had been too forceful. As a result, I slammed into the pylon five feet above the pylon’s first pinion. The air left my lungs in a rush, and a tinge of panic colored my thoughts. Still, I kept my wits about me as I began to fall.

After spending quite some time on the obstacle course, I’d gotten used to using my latest ability. So, it was almost subconscious when I activated Balance. Immediately, I knew the precise location of every inch of my body. More, that knowledge came with increased coordination, and I had no trouble at all grabbing the pinion that would have assuredly evaded my grasp without the ability pushing my proprioception and balance to superhuman levels.

I released the ability before it could completely drain my Mist, but even that brief activation had taken half my reserves. It was an ability that was intended for short-term use, and even then, only in emergencies. Still, as much as I’d wanted to save it, I knew that it had been a necessary expenditure.

I hung there for a few seconds before beginning the arduous climb down. I went one pinion at a time, like I was descending the world’s most awkward ladder – which was precisely what those pinions had been intended for. As I climbed down, I couldn’t help but feel a surge of respect for the late Tam; if everything had gone to plan, he would have made the descent with me on his back. Likely, he was extremely specialized, but even so, I was impressed.

The descent forever, and as I drew closer to the ground, I saw that a crowd of people were gathered at the bottom of the pylon. They were clearly the men and women who had preceded me, and when I finally reached the bottom, I was beset by questions.

I ignored them all. Instead, I summoned my Cutter, not even bothering to extend my Mimic skill to disguise it. In seconds, I was mounted up and speeding away, leaving a trail of swampy water in my wake.

My actions had made a lot of noise, and I knew that it wouldn’t be long before the Enforcers responded. Perhaps they’d only send a drone, or maybe they had some sort of flying vehicles they could use around the underside of the city. Either way, I had no desire to find out. So, I put on as much speed as I could until I’d left the city behind.

When I looked back, the huge structure still loomed over me, but that would be true for miles more. In fact, Nova was so big that it could be seen halfway to Mobile, if only as a vague outline on the horizon.

After making certain that I hadn’t been followed, I resumed my journey. Soon, I found the remnants of an old highway, which I followed for another few miles before coming across a mostly intact building. I dismounted and dismissed my Cutter before summoning my assault rifle. Thus armed, I approached the building, and spent a few minutes clearing it of any threats. With Observation constantly running, I felt certain that it was empty, but still, I didn’t want to take any chances. Once I was satisfied that the building was free of previous occupation, I set about the task of treating my wounds.

It had taken me over an hour to descend the pylon, and in that time, the blood had dried on my face. So, I took great care in cleaning the cuts before applying a foam bandage to the worst of them. Hopefully, that would prevent them from scarring, but even if it didn’t, I felt confident that any scars would be shallow and hardly noticed.

So, that taken care of, I settled down to eat and rest. It was still only mid-afternoon, but a thunderstorm had begun. So, I chose to wait it out in the relative shelter of the abandoned building.

Leaning back against one of the walls, I found myself replaying the day’s events in my mind. Could I have prevented Tam’s death? No. He was ill-equipped to deal with even one of the hawks, much less a flock. However, I still wished he wouldn’t have died.

Sighing, I wondered if Patrick was okay. He was probably at Dr. Montague’s office, learning how to be a [Cybernetic Engineer]. According to him, he was already making great progress, which was faster than I’d expected. Of course, that was probably selling him short. After all, he was driven, talented, and unafraid of hard work. He’d proven that more than once. So, his progress shouldn’t have been surprising.

Not for the first time, I found my mind drifting to the future. Things were coming to a head in Nova City. I still had a long way to go, but my plan’s progress made it clear that I’d be finished in the city sooner rather than later. What would happen after that? I had no idea. But I couldn’t deny that I hoped Patrick would be part of that future.

I spent a while just sitting there and thinking. An unfortunate side effect of tending to all of the irons I had in the fire was that I rarely had time to just sit and think. I was always planning one thing or another or worrying about the plans I’d made the day before. That didn’t lend itself well to introspection.

But now? Alone in the wilderness, there was precious little else to do. Inevitably, my mind went to Nora’s betrayal. Why had she done it? My uncle had treated her like family. I had treated her like a favorite aunt. Or a big sister. And yet, she’d betrayed Jeremiah. She had betrayed me. Was the allure of power really so strong? Or did she have another reason? What wasn’t I seeing?

Those thoughts dominated my mind until, at last, I found myself drifting off to sleep. It was well into the night, and I hadn’t made much progress in finding answers. I suspected that would be the case until I finally confronted Nora. But that was for the future. For now, I just needed to keep pushing forward until that confrontation could take place on my terms.

My sleep was blessedly dreamless, and I awoke to the incessant sound of my KIOI’s alarm. So, I quickly rose, took care of my morning ablutions, and ate. When I got around to checking my wounds, I was unsurprised to find that they’d largely healed. Another day, and they would be completely faded. A day more, and there would only be unblemished skin.

Stretching a bit, I worked the kinks out of my muscles before heading back outside, where I summoned my Cutter, and resumed my journey east. I didn’t take the same roads I’d used on the trip back from Mobile, instead skewing a bit more south as I made my way toward the destination specified by Mia Salvatore, the woman who’d set me on the mission to undermine her rival’s position within their company.

Finally, after most of the day had passed, I found what I was looking for.

Biloxi loomed before me, a strange mixture of Nova City and Bayou La Batre.