Aetheral Space

Chapter 252:9.43: Blast Shadows

WARNING

POWER PRODUCTION EXCEEDING SAFE LEVELS

WARNING

FTL OVERRIDE HAS BEEN ACTIVATED

WARNING

VIOLENCE DETECTED ON BRIDGE

WARNING

IMMEDIATE RESPONSE REQUIRED

Automatic Security Notice, Deus Nobiscum Auto-Brain "Aquinas"

Serena del Sed landed on one knee, her body fizzling into existence around her. She blinked rapidly in confusion, looking around at her new surroundings.

This wasn’t the place she’d been. The ant she’d grabbed by the throat was gone, and now she was surrounded by monolithic windowless buildings. Far above, lights flickered from a metal canopy. Some kind of residential quarter?

What the heck?

Bruno brought himself to the forefront, his more cautious gaze looking around in

But still there were more.

Each blow that hit her grew subtly stronger, until just being brushed by one was enough to send her flying across the room. She felt like a pinball -- and even as she killed, she could feel the time approaching where this would be all too much for her. The crowd was too thick for her to escape. Their blows were too ferocious for her to avoid.

There was a moment’s mistake -- a dodge misjudged, mistimed, and the sharp leg of an insect lunged right for Ruth’s jugular. She knew her red blood would soon join the black on the floor. In her own way, she accepted that.

But…

Bang.

The wall above the amphitheater exploded inwards, rubble raining down on the gathered insects. The one going for Ruth’s throat hesitated for just the slightest second -- and that was all she needed to slice it into ribbons. She landed on one knee amidst it’s viscera, glancing up at the cloud of dust spreading through the room, and the silhouette emerging from it.

Skipper grinned to himself as he strode into the chamber, his invisible blades eviscerating any ant foolish enough to approach him. He was flanked on either side by an unfamiliar-looking automatic, perfectly humanoid but featureless, like someone had painted over them with chrome.

Without even realizing it, Ruth let out a sigh of relief.

His eyes flicked down to her.

"Got somewhere to be?" he called out, voice amplified.

That was right. The situation hadn’t changed. She still had to go after Pablo. There was no time to talk right now -- but when this was all done, that man was going to tell her just where the hell he’d been all this time.

She swung around on her heel and launched herself at the gap in the crowd Skipper had created.

Giovanni walked onto the bridge of the Deus Nobiscum -- and immediately, he let out a weary sigh.

The room was a mess. Dead bodies lay slumped over consoles, collapsed beneath walls, one even lodged halfway through the reinforced glass of a window. Blood dripped from the ceiling, matching the red tears winding their way down Giovanni’s cheeks.

In the middle of the bridge, amidst the carnage, stood an exact copy of Giovanni -- save for the fact that it was missing a mouth. It’s bloody fists hung at its sides, and it stared straight ahead, paying the original no mind as he entered. This was Giovanni’s Replica, the product of his Ninth Verse. It could not use other Verses, or think for itself, but it was very adept at following simple orders.

It seemed the personnel here had worked out his intentions and tried to interfere. The Replica had followed it’s instructions and terminated them. Giovanni threw the Captain of the Deus Nobiscum, Lucius Turnbolt, off of the console -- his corpse clattering to the floor. His chest had been caved in with a single punch.

Grimacing, he wiped the blood from the monitor, getting a better look at the readout there. Preparations for the FTL jump were already underway -- the power plants aboard were working at full-tilt to accelerate the process. Barely half an hour left until all of this was over.

Barely half an hour left until the bloody tears ran dry.