Hard metal crashed into darkened flesh, busting chrome knuckles against the very essence of the end times themselves. The beast on the receiving end stumbled away from the abuse, rearing back before letting out a mighty and terrible roar. The sheer power of it made Susie's cockpit shudder.
This was a Titan, a fallen angel the size of a skyscraper. It felt no pain, bore no emotions. The only thing that it existed for was to accomplish one final and terrible goal.
And Susie was going to stop it.
She lifted her knuckles, feeling the latex around her body tighten as it tried to tug her arms back into place. Outside the cockpit, Prophecy Shattered mirrored her motions, raising its dukes as if beaconing for the beast to charge and make her day.
Thankfully, the Titan seemed only too happy to oblige. It rushed ahead, lunging forwards like some sort of feral animal as it bounded across the vast void beyond. Just as it was about to pounce upon her, she pulled her body to the side, tugging upon her latex constraints and thus piloting the mech to do the same in order to avoid getting hit.
For the Titan's trouble, Susie paid it back in kind, delivering a swift punch right to the white cross that lingered over where the creature's face would be. Once more, it stumbled back against the force of the blow, betraying no fatigue as it quickly changed direction and tried to lunge at her again.
``You're doing good, Susie, dearest,'' Queen chirped in her ear. ``Better than all the simulations in fact.''
Susie grunted. ``This ain't my first rodeo, Queen.''
``This isn't a rodeo,'' Queen murmured before beaming. ``Ah right, a turn of phrase. How silly of me to forget.''
Susie tuned out the voice, pushing and pulling against the latex which engulfed her. Her movements were translated so perfectly into the way the mech moved in turn, dodging a flurry of blows which the Titan was throwing with reckless abandon.
``Still can't believe this is the best way to pilot one of these things,'' Susie grumbled.
Queen chuckled. ``I saw it in an anime once and it seemed to work perfectly fine for Mr. Domon. So, if it isn't broken why bother to improve upon it, right?''
``Freaking weeb,'' Susie grumbled.
She started to push back with her foot, jumping ahead as she brought Prophecy Shattered into an all out run. It was hard work and she felt her pulse hammer, her breath huffing and puffing as she exerted herself. But she could feel the cockpit rumble as the mighty metal suit around her crushed the black surface of the void under its alloyed feet.
``The upgrades seem to be doing rather nicely,'' Queen went on. ``Locomotion systems have a twenty percent increased efficiency in translating your actions compared to the last version. On top of that, the reactor seems to be pumping out nearly five percent more ethereal energy than before''
``Uh huh,'' Susie growled.
The distance between herself and the Titan was rapidly closing. When she was certain that they were going to meet, she jumped, lifting her leg so Prophecy Shattered impacted the white cross with its knee. Her mech shuddered violently as it crashed into the dark flesh, proving that she had timed it perfectly.
The feedback was sharp as the mech was knocked back. The latex fed that sensation right back into her, yanking her firmly to the cabin floor and knocking the wind out of her lungs. That had hurt like an absolute motherfucker but she could see that the Titan had fallen, skidding across the black ground of the void.
As Susie got back to her feet, she saw the outside through the various cameras posted around her cockpit. All around was that ceaseless black, relentless in every direction.
Darker than dark...
The end of the world.
She looked over her shoulder and saw the safety of home, that singular pillar of purple light rupturing towards the sky, acting like a lighthouse in a world otherwise devoid of safety. It was why she was here, putting herself between it and the beast.
Susie planted her hand upon the floor of the cockpit and Prophecy Shattered planted its upon the ground as well, both of them pushing themselves up at the same time.
The Titan also lumbered to its feet. That white cross plastered upon its face was damaged with white blood oozing through the cracks in it, flowing in heavy visceral globs. Underneath were sharp teeth that ran in both a vertical and horizontal direction, razor-sharp and a little terrifying. And then behind them was a broiling mass of something which Susie knew she wasn't going to like.
The beast was wounded but it wasn't out of the fight just yet. It sprung up and rushed at Susie, lunging ahead with relentless speed. Its heavy feet thundered against the ground, causing it to shake and for Susie's mech to shudder as if they were in the midst of an earthquake.
Susie braced herself, putting out her hands. She'd done this a hundred times before and she'd hopefully live to do it a hundred times after. Just as the beast was about to trample her under foot, she dipped to the side, like a bullfighter avoiding getting gored.
Rather than deliver a punch, she instead grabbed the Titan, planting one hand upon its shoulders while gripping one of its wings within the other. She then yanked back with all of Prophecy Shattered's immense strength.
The grip was strong enough that she actually ripped the wing right out of its socket, causing even more of that white blood to come belching forth. Meanwhile the hand upon the beast's shoulder was sturdy enough that she stopped it dead in its tracks, causing its legs to fly forward while its torso remained stationary within her hand. Its prior speed ensured that it lost all semblance of balance.
That got a reaction out of the creature as it hollered and cried out with the broken stub of its wings spasming pathetically. The creature wasn't dead but it was definitely heading it in that direction one gruesome wound at a time.
She helped it along even faster by slamming it into the ground with all of her mech's considerable strength. The body impacted hard enough that Prophecy Shattered's entire frame violently shook, pipes and gears audibly groaning against the strain. One of them even burst open within the mech's cockpit, shooting hot steam into the space.
It was soon warm and humid, the air tasting of oil and age while salty sweat clung to her brow. The anime never made this seem this exhausting. Yet, she could feel her endurance starting to flag.
``Susie,'' Queen chided. ``Perhaps you'd do best not to push my very delicate war machine to the breaking point.''
A screen shot open in the corner of her eye, showing a still photo of her mech. It was a massive structure that was painted purple. There were numerous spikes, flame decals, and other rude features upon it that only added to the sharpness. And right now, several different sections lit up yellow, showing the start of damage.
But just the start.
Susie grunted. ``You know that I like to break shit.''
``Yes, well perhaps be careful about breaking this shit,'' Queen said.
Susie shook her head and pounced about the Titan, pinning it to the ground. Her latex squeezed and tugged in all sorts of irritating ways, actively fighting back against her. She drew back and pounded down, hammering her chrome knuckles into that giant cross which covered the Titan's core. Each blow caused the structure to crack more and more, until finally...
The cross shattered completely, sparkling like a million different magical diamonds glimmering in the light.
``The beast's weak spot is exposed!'' Queen hollered.
Susie grunted. ``I can see that.''
One more punch, just like all of the Titans that came before. She drew back as far as she possibly could, purposefully folding each of her fingers into a fist.
Only this time it was different.
A swarm exploded out of the beast's core, a hundred black pellets, flying forth and smashing ahead with reckless abandon. Many of them caught the midsection of her mech, each impact translated by the latex as it painfully snapped against her core.
She cried out, flinching away. As she was forced back, she caught sight of two of them heading right towards the cockpit with terrifying speed. They were small, like little cannonballs, though they weren't made of metal or anything of the sort. They each unspun, revealing a hideous, half-formed fetus of utter darkness.
``Titan spawn!'' Susie yelped.
One dipped over her mech's shoulder while the second heading right for her front camera. She caught a look at its deformed face before it impacted, hitting with a wet sounding splat. The camera promptly flickered out, being replaced by a static fuzz with the sixty-degree cone immediately in front of her being utterly blinded.
``Fascinating,'' Queen murmured. ``It seems that the Titans are evolving.''
``Queen, I can't see shit,'' Susie snarled. ``Where the fuck is my back-up cameras.''
``Language dearest,'' Queen teased though quickly went silent. When she spoke, her composure waivered. ``It seems that it was knocked out by the impact as well.'' There was the sound of servos whining on the other side. ``Hold on for a moment, I'll see if I can figure out a fix.''
The Titan didn't give her one moment. It instead lunged upwards and crashed into her, knocking Prophecy Shattered onto the backfoot. Blinded, Susie tried to swing though her arm was caught by the Titan who stopped it dead in its tracks, clenching it tightly within its vice-like grip.
Susie cried out, feeling pins and needles within her own arm as the latex abruptly stopped it in the middle of the air, not allowing any movement within that limb.
``Oh, that's not good,'' Queen whispered.
``What's going on Queen,'' Susie snarled, gritting her teeth as she tried to wrestle her arm free.
``We appear to be having a little problem back in Castle Town,'' Queen quickly said. ``It seems that the Titan spawn were not only aimed at yourself.''
``Not only-'' Susie began. Then it clicked. ``How many are heading for the walls?''
The Titan slammed something into the chest of her mech, stabbing right into it. The blow not only compressed the plating but also caused the latex sleeve to constrict and drive the wind right out of her lungs. She wheezed and feeble punched with her other hand, blindly trying to hit whatever was in that mammoth blind spot. Not, that she had any success in this endeavour.
A warning light flickered and more of her mech was coloured yellow and red, pushing her well beyond a little damage.
The beast pushed back and she fell to the ground, smashing into it with a heavy thud that reverberated through the brackish void. Lights flickered within her cockpit and for a moment it seemed that the power would go out. A blaring red light told her that something important was broken and the growing temperature in the cockpit only reinforced that theory.
``At least eighty,'' Queen quickly said.
Susie snarled. ``Stop worrying about my damned cameras and focus on aiming your defense turrets. I got this.''
``Susie, Prophecy Shattered is taking-'' Queen began.
``Keep the city safe,'' Susie growled, using her one functional fist to hammer into the side of the Titan's body. Each blow felt utterly futile, thudding against the creature's carapace like it were a pillow against a brick wall. Hopefully, she was doing damage but she couldn't see blood or anything through her other cameras. ``I got this.''
``Susie!'' a voice cried through her comms.
There was a thud from the side and the Titan suddenly went flying away from her. A new mech took its place, zipping by with terrifying speed. It grabbed the beast and smashed it against the ground, dragging it across the surface as it zoomed on by.
This mech was limber and green with twin thrusters in the back that enhanced its speed as it tore the Titan's frame through the landscape. This machine was smaller than her own but still impressive in its stature.
``About time you showed up,'' Susie croaked, finally glad to have control over her arm once again.
Ralsei chuckled as he let go of the beast, sending it rolling away from him. ``Sorry that I took so long. The other Titan was a total pain in the behind.''
``Still can't curse?'' Susie groaned. She rolled over and enough of her mech responded that she actually managed to push herself up. ``You can say ass, you know''
``I shan't do that,'' Ralsei chided.
Susie wobbled upon her legs, feeling the mech actively fighting back against her attempts to rise. The machine had taken a beating. There were no two ways about it.
``This is Prophecy Shattered to Castle Town,'' Susie groaned, moving with the range of motion afforded to her. ``Renewed Purpose is at my position, over.''
``That's fantastic to hear,'' Queen murmured, almost absentmindedly. How heavy was the bombardment of the walls to get her in this sort of state. ``Please hold while I intercept the rapidly approaching apocalypse.''
Susie scoffed. ``Looks like we're on our own.''
Ralsei dipped to that blind spot directly in front of Prophecy Shattered though his mech's hands reached out, one resting upon her armour's shoulders while the other touched her chest. There was the sound of electricity sparking followed promptly by the smell of burnt ozone to go along with the harsh oily essence which still tinged the air. It was an ugly smell but was well worth it as her camera sparked and she could see the mech across from her, its eyes looking into the eyes of her own.
``Not a full repair but it should keep you in the fight,'' Ralsei said.
Susie nodded. ``Thanks, Ral. Can always count on you.''
A pause but when Ralsei spoke, Susie could practically hear the blush in his voice. ``Just doing what I can to keep everyone safe.''
There was a groan from behind him and Susie peered over Renewed Purpose's shoulder, seeing the Titan slowly get back to its feet as well. The creature had taken an absolute beating, the cross gone and leaving a dark gaping shape behind. Globs of white dripped from it, landing heavy upon the ground as it lurched towards them, limping. It wheezed and coughed, spitting up a river of the tarnished white along with more than a few of those razor-sharp teeth crammed inside its twisted maw.
The folds that made up its mouth snapped back as it let out a wet gurgling roaring, spitting up even more of its vile life essence.
``Let's finish this,'' Susie said, lifting her hands and finding that only one of them responded to the command. That was enough. She only needed one hand to pummel this thing into the fucking dirt.
Ralsei turned and raised both his fists as well, charging the jets on the back of his suit.
Together they sprinted ahead.
Ralsei took an immediate lead. Which was fine as he zipped by, smashing a sturdy arm into the Titan's face, snapping it back yet again. It fell and hit the ground hard, going motionless as if stunned by the sheer force of the impact.
As Renewed Purpose started to turn, slowing down, Susie took over for him. She leapt forwards and pounced upon the Titan, pinning it beneath Prophecy Shattered's much heavier frame. That one fist proved more than capable as she plunged it right into that gnashing maw of teeth, splintering off a few of them with the impact.
Her arm was immediately obscured by something darker than darkness. But she could still feel around inside of it, however, blindly reaching until she felt something wet and squishy buried deep within.
Bingo!
She squeezed hard, crushing the bundle of sin as if it were an overripe fruit. There was a wet sounding snap and then the Titan went completely motionless, limp and very clearly dead.
Susie drew the arm back, waving it through the air in order to do away with the viscera that clung to it. Something that she was only somewhat successful in accomplishing as that sinful white still dripped from her appendage.
``Castle Town, this is Shattered Prophecy,'' Susie said, hearing the exhaustion in her voice. ``The Titans have been dealt with.''
``And it looks like we've disposed of all the spawn,'' Queen said.
Ralsei chimed in. ``No casualties I hope.''
Queen went silent for a moment though she didn't need to say the truth. They both knew that silence and what followed.
``Are we free to return to base?'' Susie asked.
``Yes,'' Queen said, sounding distant. ``The council is convening as we speak.''
[hr]
Tenna observed the room in front of him, seeing the flickering three-dimensional map of Castle Town laid out in front of the group. It had grown a lot since he'd first come here, sprawling outwards into a fairly sizeable settlement boxed in by truly mammoth walls.
On that map were three red blemishes, scattered throughout.
``Three spawn from the recent Titan attack got around the walls and impacted Castle Town,'' Lancer said.
Much like the town, he had also grown up. He wasn't a soft and pudgy boy anymore but a young man who was nearly as tall as his father with awkward facial hair that clung to his cheeks. He wore ill-fitted armour which was both too short and also somehow too baggy for him.
Oh, the tantalizing dramas that would've unfolded with such outfits back in the High School dramas that Asriel and Dess used to watch. There would be a whole subplot about hand me downs and respecting monsters of different socioeconomic factors.
Tenna sighed. Those had been happier times. The conflicts were much simpler to deal with.
``The first struck the Card Castle,'' Lancer said, grinning as he thrust a thumb into his chest. ``But was quickly dealt with by myself.''
Another figure stepped forward, an older turtle who used his mammoth war hammer as a cane in order to hobble towards the table. His name was Gerson, a strange name for a strange entity that was neither darkner nor lightner, being something else.
``Another one of them hit the Church District.'' He rubbed at his chin, caressing his long white beard. ``Nothing we couldn't handle but...''
``But even in the best case, a Titan spawn is still a Titan spawn,'' another darkner said. They were a golden statue with a well-polished sheen and no distinctive facial features, looking kind of like a sport's version of an Oscar. Their name was All-Star. ``How many did we lose?''
``Too many,'' Queen chirped. ``Every darkner we lose is one too many.''
Everyone looked towards her, seeing the torso and head which hung from the wall, suspended from it by a torrent of wires and cables. She was plugged into a vast bank of computers directly behind herself, unmoving and eternal, a prisoner trapped in her own duties.
Tenna nodded. ``The third impacted TV Town.'' He sighed, waving off a Swatch who came to refill his tea. ``We broadcasted an evacuation order but some of the older programs were a little hesitant to follow it. They're pretty steadfast in just letting the Roaring take them.''
``I think we need to discuss a possibility here,'' a voice drone. It belonged to a Basset Hound in a creased beige suit. The ever-astute Detective Columbone. ``The evidence is pointing towards Queen's uh... defenses not holding up like they once did. The attack before this one did a pretty nasty number on us over in Law Ville.''
``Are we running out of time?'' the final darkner in attendance asked. They were a tall and looming figure made up of dark wood and evergreen needles crammed inside of a grey three-piece suit. Senator Evergreen of Capitol City... which wasn't actually the capital of the Dark World.
Queen sighed. ``I wish I had a good answer for all of you but...'' She looked down at the map which started to change, zooming out to get a better look at the walls which surrounded the town. ``I've been constantly upgrading and tinkering with our defenses, making them as efficient as I possibly could.'' Various features upon the map started to blip, showing off all sorts of turrets and shields, along with the placement of numerous AI-sentries. It was a fortress that would've made many of the generals on the history channel envious.
``But the Titans are adapting faster than us,'' Evergreen said.
Columbone stuck a dog treat between his teeth, idly wiggling it with his chops. ``A doomed if we do, doomed if we don't kind of scenario, huh?''
``We've been flying blind ever since we first derailed from the prophecy,'' Tenna said, shaking his head. ``Like reality signed a contract and we've been actively working against it. Eventually we're getting taken to the cleaners, right?''
Maybe that's what was happening? The laws of nature were finally having their way and the Titans were just the judges passing down a mandate for compliance.
``Let's not get doomer here,'' All-Star said.
Gerson nodded. ``I agree with the kid, we need to get smarter and better about this. Three Titan spawn getting through this time doesn't mean we can't avoid it next time.''
``What did we learn from their attack this time around?'' Lancer asked.
Queen froze for a moment, her eyes swirling as she loaded. Tenna frowned. He knew a gizmo that was struggling with age, after all he'd been struggling with it for a lot longer. It wasn't a pretty sight and even less pretty for a machine this important.
Finally, she clicked back to the moment. ``We need to make our respective denizens more aware of the measures they should take. A lot of darkners have taken the castle's safety for granted and that showed last attack.''
Tenna nodded. ``I can see about recording some more public service announcements to air on prime time.''
``Maybe we could think of an alternative way to reach out to them while we're at it,'' Evergreen said, throwing him a look before judging the room. ``TV is good and all but it's also a bit of a dated medium. Some younger darkners might not be watching it.''
Tenna felt his hackles raise but he pushed down the sensation.
``Dated?'' Gerson asked, cackling. ``I find it quite new fangled, actually. Back in my day we had books, newspapers, and the nickelodeons, and we liked it.''
All-Star looked at Queen. ``But that's only one piece of the problem, right? We need to figure out how to make our defenses better while we're at it.''
``I will begin working on solutions after this meeting has concluded,'' Queen said. ``I don't have the processing power to run simulations this soon after an attack.''
Tenna didn't say it but he could still remember a time when she was able to run those simulations and hold a conversation while dealing with five other concurrent issues all at once. And it seemed that the others also remembered this, looking dark and awkward about the implications.
But no one said a thing. There wasn't a back-up for her... for any of them. It was just better to pretend that everything was fine.
``Perhaps it wouldn't be a bad idea to have a plan B,'' Columbone said, pointing his dog treat at the map. ``You know I once met a darkner who had something profound to say: `the best defense is a good offense'. I think he might be onto something''
``Isn't that saying backwards,'' Evergreen grumbled.
Columbone shrugged. ``Maybe that's why I found it so profound.'' He flashed a smile as he wagged a finger at Queen. ``But we do have those two mechs of yours. Maybe we can use them to kick the Titans in their hive.''
``And risk losing our two best assets?'' Evergreen asked, scoffing.
Queen hummed. ``I have considered the idea but Evergreen has a point. Those suits are irreplaceable and more importantly, so are their pilots.''
Speak of the Devil and he'll arrive.
The door to the council chamber opened and two figures strode into the room.
One was the Prince of Darkners, the boy having grown up considerably. He was a tall and sturdy figure, dressed in a camo jacket and battered jeans, filling both of them nicely. His hair was blonde and long with a small beard of similarly coloured hair sprouted from his chin. He looked tired but still smiled to the room at large.
The other was a rugged woman who wore dark crustpunk pants and a black leather jacket with quite a few patches sewn onto it which offered about a hundred different ways of saying: `fuck your norms'. Her hair was trimmed into a mohawk and a jagged scar crawled along the right side of her snout and up her cheek before ending just shy of blinding her eye.
``What did we miss?'' Ralsei asked, moving over to a pair of empty seats and plopping down within one of them.
Susie took the other one and planted her feet upon the table, folding her hands behind her head.
Queen observed them for a moment. ``We're just discussing the recent attack and measures that could be taken to lessen the damage next time.'' She computed for a moment, smiling. ``In fact, one silver lining was seeing the improvement to your mechs in the field.''
``Mine still ate shit,'' Susie grumbled.
Gerson scoffed as he narrowed his gaze at her. ``That's because you've been skipping out on your training. I saw the way you fought out there.''
``Only because you've tried to double our sessions, old man,'' Susie ribbed right on back. ``Can't spend all of my free time training or I'll be too tired to fight.''
``Alright, you got me there,'' Gerson retorted, smirking.
Tenna folded his hands together. ``We were also discussing the possibility of planning some sort of counterattack.''
``Counterattack?'' Ralsei asked, perking up. He took a tea cup from Swatch and blew upon it. ``Towards the Titan nesting grounds?''
Lancer nodded. ``As a Plan B.''
``Just thought it would be safe to have a back-up, kid,'' Columbone said, rubbing the back of his head. ``No offense to you two and Queen but it would feel a whole lot better if we had a more permanent solution to all of this, you know?''
``We've talked about this before,'' Susie said, huffing. ``I was told those toys were too important to lose.''
``And we don't even know if we can even destroy the place that they're coming from,'' Ralsei added.
Queen nodded. ``And you two are also far too important to risk losing.'' She blinked and the map started to change, showing new fortifications being built upon the walls. ``I still have some memory left to spare and we might be able to shore up our defenses with a couple more data turrets.''
``Until the next attack is even tougher,'' All-Star said.
Evergreen nodded, looking at Ralsei. ``Does the prophecy offer any sort of insight into this.''
Ralsei looked quite dark all of a sudden, staring down at his hands. He rolled his thumbs around one another as he obviously gave it some thought. In the end, he shook his head. ``According to the Prophecy, we all should've perished years ago.'' He frowned. ``The Roaring was the bad end and nothing was supposed to endure after it happened.''
``We try not to think about the Prophecy anymore,'' Susie suddenly interjected, placing a hand upon his shoulder. She brushed a finger along the side of his neck as she tenderly stroked his shaggy coat. ``We write our own stories now.''
Gerson smirked. ``Damn straight we do.''
``Guess we're kind of caught between a rock and a hard place, here'' Lancer said, scratching at his chin.
Tenna chuckled. ``What else is new?''
``And if we don't have any solutions, may I suggest that we pick this up at our next meeting?'' Queen asked. ``I require time to run simulations on our defenses and I also need to attend to repairing those very important toys that our Warriors of Light smashed.''
Susie frowned, a certain heat entering her cheeks. ``I gave as good as I took.''
Ralsei reached across his chest and placed his hand overtop of her hand. It seemed that his touch had a way of softening her demeanour, trimming down the edges into something a bit easier to handle.
It reminded Tenna of an old movie the kids watched about a princess and a beast who'd been cursed. What was it called again? Something something ninety-year copyright restriction.
``You did,'' Ralsei said. ``It's why I left the bigger one for you to deal with.''
Queen chortled. ``I promise, it's nothing. We have plenty of spare arms and you did a fantastic job bringing back Shattered Prophecy mostly in one piece. Regardless, I'd like to call this meeting there. If that's okay with the other leaders that is?''
Everyone looked amongst each other, nodding to one another.
Tenna was the first to get up. ``I best get to the studio and start on those public service announcements.''
``Let me help with that, TV Dad!'' Lancer beamed, bouncing up as well.
TV Dad...
That was the kind of title that gave a darkner something to fight for.
``I'll gladly take the help,'' Tenna said, smiling at Lancer.
