Ch. 9 - The Horde Comes Knocking

"Y'know, it's inattention that'll get ya.

You have this super-smart AI in your head and you get used to them having your back. And they do, but they're not human, not organic.

They'll out-chess you at every corner and you get the impression that they're infallible, but they're not. It's not like they're trying to make you think that either. They're just…really, really good at not making the thousand basic human mistakes we commit every day.

So you stop differentiating between what they're saying, and what they're not saying. No mention of surveillance? That must mean there isn't any. No mention of an ambush? That must mean you're safe. No mention of the mine you're about to kick? That must mean it's around another corner.

Gotta make sure you notice when you start taking what they don't say as something that was said. Happens so quick you won't even realize."

– Road Rash, when a fresh Vanguard asked him about his missing foot, January 2054

 

***

 

I enjoyed the momentary lull. The pods were on fire and generally dying, and I saw barely any Antithesis coming for me. 

Tynea's counter showed that I was at 1008 points. There were still a thousand, maybe more, aliens flowing into the city, and they seemed to be sticking to the streets, making easy targets of themselves.

Just to be sure, I ordered the scout drones to search the nearby houses and the shops along the strip. I hadn't seen any models indoors during that last rush, but maybe they'd start sneaking again?

I checked my guns for reloads. The Sentinel had nine shots of the twenty mil slaughtering rounds left. I still had the full magazine of HSRP for the rifle. The Foxteeth was down to one mag. I had a javelin on standby a few dozen meters above me, and it didn't need refueling anytime soon.

I caught my index searching the divot again, and suppressed the shudder that came with finding the haptic feedback of the suit getting in the way. It wasn't doing my mental coherence any good and I really didn't want to give the stress, the pain of the fall, and the fear born from it any chance to consume my attention.

"Tynea," I asked, to distract myself, "when will I get the points for the pods?"

As soon as I'm sure they've fully burned down and I've confirmed they're dead. It shouldn't be much longer now.

"Cool. I need some ammo. I'll switch to using the guided high-explosive in the rifle as my standard, and please supply me whenever it'll run out. Same with the twenty mil for the Sentinel. Those are great by the way, they're really doing work.

"And finally two magazines for the Foxteeth. Do you think high-explosive nine millimeter bullets would work? It'd be great if a non-fatal hit would still kill."

These pod-spawned model Threes aren't fully grown. It should be enough.

 

Purchased:

• 2 pts x 1; 7.62x39mm Guided High-Explosive, magazine of 10
• 3 pts x 1; 20mm Guided Delayed Gyrojet, magazine of 20
• 2 pts x 2; 9x19mm Guided High-Explosive, magazine of 10

Total cost: 9
Remaining points: 999

 

999 points left. Many more to come.

I went about reloading my guns and tucking magazines away, when I finally got the kill confirmation and point reward for the pods.

7999 points. I was so fucking set!

Antithesis are very quiet. They don't really vocalize, nor do they make a lot of sound while traveling or exploring. If you hear them, it's usually because they're moving something else, shoving at stuff, or something like that.

It took me a second to connect the background susurration to Antithesis feet, and even then it was more the points ticking up that tipped me off.

When I looked up, I saw a river of green flesh and black plates heading for me, squeezing into the other end of the strip like water through a dam.

Some of them ran through the remaining fires and burned up. Those were the ones I got points for.

They'd turned around when I proved myself enough of a threat by destroying the pods.

"..." I froze, caught like a deer in headlights.

Whatever the fuck deers are.

I had no fucking clue how to deal with this. Then I realized that I did. They were coming for me because I was a threat. That means they'd come to the conclusion that I could take them out.

"Tynea! I need grenades! Lots!"

What kind?

"Any! No wait! Shrapnel, but directed! Like shaped mines, but as grenades for the javelins to drop! Like, clouds of shrapnel all over them!"

 

Purchased:

• 5 pts x 4; 'Hailstorm' Directed Fragmentation Grenade

Total cost: 20
Remaining points: 8379

 

Use the javelin above you.

"Yeah!" I yelled as it dropped down to hover next to the new box at my feet.

I put the rifle down and hurriedly shoved the four grenades into the javelin with both hands.

Then I looked at the approaching horde and picked out the four densest groups. Focused at a model in the middle of each and marked them with a, "Target, stay above, drop one grenade, one second timer! Return once empty, go!"

While the javelin rushed off and I picked up my gun to start thinning the herd, I beat my million-miles-an-hour brain into submission and focused on what else I'd need.

"Tynea, get me more of those rip wires. A full magazine! Also, please try and dig the javelins out. Get me a bunch of firebombs too!"

Certainly. Please be aware that if you make the strip impassable, they will learn to just avoid it and go around. You'll need to hit a balance between being unapproachable but appearing reachable.

Shit.

I thought about that for a bit. They were ignoring the thinning flames from the ropes, so they'd go through fire, even die in it. 

Create a maze of fire, like tower-defense games? Maybe with weaker flames in the middle that they'll see me through? Make it look like it's not as deadly. But leave enough straight lines for the twenty mil to be effective.

Fourteen detonations rang through the air and spat great gouts of ash upwards as javelins rose up and moved in my direction. I counted ten. I'd lost four. The concussions unfortunately extinguished the flames, but also mangled the nearest Antithesis.

And that's with weakened 'nades. 

That gave me an idea.

"Tynea, I need ten or so sticky-fire firebombs. Spread them out along the sides of the strip and they need to burn for at least a few minutes and not go out in strong winds. Explode concussion grenades to shove the aliens into the flames every so often."

They'd line up nicely in the middle for the Sentinel to tear through, and we'd get rid of larger groups at any time by shoving them sideways into the fires.

 

Purchased:

• 5 pts x 10; 'Napalm' Fuel-Gel Mix Firebomb
• 5 pts x 20; Mark I Concussion Grenade
• 3 pts x 1; 7.62x39mm 'Ripwire' Graphene Monofilament Razorwire, magazine of 10

Total cost: 153
Remaining points: 8886

 

More boxes, I used one hand to shove two firebombs each into the javelins. Kept plugging away at the Antithesis with the twenty mil and the rifle's high-explosive.

"Tynea, command the javelins, please? It's getting a bit much!" I asked as I shoved a magazine at the Sentinel, letting it grab it for itself.

Yes. As before, I'll carry out your plan, Aden.

"Roger!"

I watched the five javelins shoot down the sides of the strip and drop napalm bombs in regular intervals. A whole bunch of Threes died with each conflagration, fed to the new bonfires.

I loaded the other javelins up with concussion bombs and set them to hover in various points above the horde.

The nearest aliens were only a hundred meters away now. On the cameras I could see open street behind them. Fewer Antithesis than I thought? Several hundred, still.

Concussion grenades started throwing waves of them left and right, staggered more in big rings.

I remembered the Ripwires and added another five at varying distances and angles in front of me. A nasty spider web that went from the floor to about my hips in height.

When I looked up into the sky for a second, I saw a great cloud of Model Ones light up from within, between the distant scrapers of New Montreal. Some sort of electrical arc attack chaining from unit to unit.

Moments later, a figure with silver wings shot past them all, in my direction. Was he going to destroy the aliens here, too? I wasn't sure I liked that, making points hand over fist as I did. But I guess I could also use the relief? I felt pretty tired and had a headache from all the adrenaline. 

But the points!

The dude slowed down and took in the scene. Flew off to one side and I watched as great arcs of lightning rained down across the ground beyond the buildings to my left, running parallel to the strip.

"Oh shit," I yelled at Tynea, "they must've been flanking us! No wonder there were fewer aliens here than I thought!"

I'll move the scout drones to our flanks. We don't really need eyes on the pods anymore, they're dead.

"Yeah!"

The silver-winged person dashed across the strip and repeated his attack on the other side.

Then he turned around and studied the strip again. He waved at me once and flew back towards the greater city.

Guess he decided I didn't need more help.

I returned the wave sorta belatedly and figured he probably didn't notice, but whatever. My first time meeting another Vanguard since I became one myself. I was glad he'd given me a hand. Those Antithesis would've been a nasty surprise.

I ordered a bunch more concussion grenades and a few more magazines for the Sentinel as the mass of model Threes crept closer. I was making a dent in the crowd and the constant tossing around they were suffering really slowed them down.

Aden, said Tynea. She almost seemed…stressed. The pod-grown models are considerably weaker and slower than those you will usually meet. This is an exceptionally good source of points, and you've profited from a very happy chain of coincidences that lined up this particular opportunity.

But please, do not think that you'll always have as easy a time dealing with so many Antithesis at once. It would usually take two samurai of your experience to accomplish what you've managed here. Fully mature models would've overrun you from the front and as lucky as you've been, the flying Vanguard still had to protect you and clear your flanks.

That didn't sound good. Chewing my lip, I decided I would take it to heart, as best as I could. I didn't really know what to say. I hadn't experienced an incursion before. This did all seem…kind of easy compared to some of the horror stories I'd heard from other places.

"Oh, I should invest a lot in personal enhancements, huh? I think I don't really know how to approach fully grown models. If they're going to be stronger, then I need to be stronger too, yeah? At least I wouldn't die because I misjudged them."

And maybe I shouldn't try to fight alone, either. Just to be safe.

A few minutes later the last few Antithesis, a mix of model Threes and Fours, stumbled into my razorwire traps. Some wires snapped from their anchors and whipped around to cut into their spines, others sheared their legs off, and the wire at hip height ended up severing the heads of the last two to nearly reach me. To be safe, I tugged the Foxteeth from its pocket and shot every non-severed head or brain in the bundle.

I finished the battle with 11,287 points and two tokens. The entire thing had lasted roughly an hour. I'd been a samurai for about forty minutes.

I had plenty for a sex change, and a lot more besides. I'd have to think a while about everything. Later. 

I was still jittery with the adrenaline. I could feel the battle-thirst and suppressed fear coursing through me. I'd been emotionally…transported outside of myself by the intensity of everything. An intensity that had nowhere to go.

The incursion in New Montreal was still going, but here, in my suburbs, it was done.

Breathing heavily, I decided to sit myself down and close my eyes until my body got the message.

It was a fight to get my mind to blank out a little. To stop whirling with everything. In the end, I gained focus by planning what I'd do next: I'd get some nutrition and crash for a few hours. Having so much adrenaline breaking down in my body had always been exhausting, so I expected I'd get sleepy soon. I'd probably wake up after noon, or something.

I blew out a breath of air and sat up. I wasn't really calm yet, but I wasn't vibrating my boots to pieces either.

"Tynea, can you keep an eye around? Make sure there aren't any Antithesis sneaking through the houses and stuff."

I will, Aden.

"Thank you. I don't think I need the drones, if you want to use them. Oh and the javelins."

The javelins don't have eyes, but I'll use the drones.

"Oh, yeah. Well, I'm gonna go upstairs. Actually. Are there any people who need help closeby?"

I detect none. Since the local shelter was blocked by the drop pod, everybody either died or escaped beyond the suburb limits. There are some people in nearby houses who didn't run and fought, but nobody who's terribly injured or in danger. I believe that's due to the horde's focus first on the megacity, and then on you.

"Alright," I sighed, feeling my shoulders finally drop. "Time to go."

 

***