Dawn of the Void

Chapter 90: Inside

James stepped inside the veil of fire. He moved slowly, warily, watching the horde of Nem3s before him.

Theyd been milling about, turning their heads blindly from side to side as if questing for an elusive scent, and with Jamess arrival they finally found it.

And so a hundred or so Nem3s turned as one to orient on him.

The rest of Crimson Hydra emerged behind him. Olafs circle of white fire burned brightly around them all, mystical patterns filtering through the dark air.

Oh shit, said Denzel quietly. This is gonna hurt.

Serenity hefted her M2. Lets party.

And she started firing, leaning back, the M2 extending over a yard before her, unleashing a stream of white bullets that never ended, never overheated the barrel, and which strafed across the Nem3 crowd.

DONDONDONDONDONDONDON -

Shit got hairy, fast.

These Nem3s sported auras of their own, black flames licking over their skin, and they exploded into action, all hundred of them immediately shrieking and rushing forward, leaping, surging, sword-blades cleaving through the air.

Fuck fuck fuck! shouted Jason and thrust his palms forward. Tentacles of Iron aura burst forward like the tentacles of a kraken, undulating at a length of some ten yards, whipping up and around and forming a blender of sanctified destruction.

Deadeye! shouted Olaf, and Joanna, Denzel, and Kimmie opened fire beside Serenity, pouring Smite-enhanced lead into the tidal wave coming their way.

Fuck this, barked Yadriel, and his whole form bulged, jerked, and then erupted upward, his clothing tearing, his arms forming into huge blades, his face turning into a bony carapace, his muscles swelling monstrously as he assumed his demonic form. With an inhuman shriek he charged forth between Jasons swirling aura-arms, black energy flowing toward him from all the demons.

But it was like spitting into a hurricane. James knew this was different. The Nem3s were taking far more damage from the Smite-bullets, their burning auras shielding them somehow.

So he raised his Sun Skeggox, activated its illuminating power, and dropped a Heavenly Assault on the avenue before them.

The air above the burning dome brightened but the bolt didnt fall as it always had in the past. What pierced the black fire was skinnier, less forceful, with the veins of Gloria highlighted for the rest of the white fire being so pale. The lightning bolt hit the avenue some twenty yards ahead of them, thick as a sapling, and a concussive wave of white fire blasted outward, washing over the Nem3s.

Who staggered, some falling to their knees, their hides immediately scorching and cracking, but none of them ashed.

Shit, hissed James.

Bone spears flew at them, dozens at a time. Shields flitted from side to side, but Olafs circle immediately flared white as too many attacks got through. A second later it cracked, collapsed, and a spear slammed into Serenitys chest, knocking her off her feet and knocking her back.

Denzel cried out in pain. James saw the spear extrude itself as her wound healed, and then there wasnt time for anything but war.

James ran forward, skeggox blazing with sunlight and bronze Smite. The closest Nem3s were vastly slowed down by the wounds dealt by his Heavenly Assault and Jasons aura arms was carving deep gauges in their sides. Yadriel bellowed as he leaped into a mass of them, arms swinging, and James hurled a Sacred Strike after, both healing him and causing his foes to burn.

With a grunt James dropped another Heavenly Assault. Again, the strike was greatly weakened by the burning dome; were it not for the gloria he didnt know if the assault would have done half as much damage. He ducked under a sword swing, tore his burning axe through a Nems thigh, spun and hurled a Sacred Strike up at two demons who were plunging down at him then threw himself into a roll.

Machine gun fire mixed with demon roars. Serenitys Ma Deuce was thundering again, tearing huge holes in the demons, but more were coming.

James come up on one knee and dropped a third Heavenly Assault. This one caused a good thirty of the Nems whod been hit by the first two Assaults to ash; they simply fell apart, opening a wide area before him.

But there were plenty more to take their place.

James rose and was then knocked right off his feet to come crashing down on his side. A bone harpoon had slammed right through his back. He couldnt think, couldnt breathe, all was agony, but with effort he burned his first Aeviternum and healed.

The pain vanished. The bone harpoon slid right out. James gasped, looked up, and saw a Nem3 about to swing its blade-arm down and decapitate him.

Kames Jellyyyyyy! screamed the Animus as it flew straight into the demon, sword-arms spinning and wreathed in Smite. It punched a bowling ball-sized hole right through the demons chest and vanished, continuing to slam at high speed through more demons as it went.

James grunted, rose, hurled a Sacred Strike to the right, the left, then realized he wasnt using his greatest weapon: his fucking Bronze Aura.

Courage! Fight! We can do this! Kimmies cry filled his chest with fervent bravery, and he roared and simply ran forward, axe-swinging.

Nem3s came at him. Some fell away, undone by 50 Cal Eternal Fire, others reeled back as Yadriel fell upon them from the sky, but a good dozen roared right back at him and came charging.

James swung his axe, turned his shoulder, and powered right into the first one. His blow severed its arm, gave him an opening, and then his shoulder punched into the demons thigh. His Bronze aura flared to life, but instead of consuming the demon whole it merely burned the shit out of its leg, warming and cindering the muscle and bone.

The hives black fire was dampening his power.

A blade slammed into his back, the edge ashing and crumbling as it hit, but the force still sent him stumbling forward.

A second Nem slammed its sword-arm against his head. It was like being clocked with a piece of crumbling wood. The arm broke apart, but there was enough force to the blow that James rose up to his feet, staggered back, then almost fell.

Fuck this, he growled, and dropped his fourth and last Heavenly Assault. Smite, Bless, and his Sacred Strikes had used up the remainder of his divine pool.

The lightning bolt crashed down, thinned out as before, and lines of Gloria writhed over the Nem3s who shrieked and fell back, their bodies carved and ashed.

Denzel cried out in agony again.

Yadriel reeled back, his huge form lacerated with wounds, but it wasnt him that had taken the mortal blow. Even as James glanced at him he saw Yadriel drinking deep of ever more black mist that flowed to him from the demons and caused him to grow even larger.

Jelly! shouted the Anima as it zipped past again, shearing limbs and causing heads to burst apart as its blender-blades tore through everything in its path.

James gasped, raised his axe, and lumbered forward again. Theyd killed - what - fifty Nem3s? More? But it looked like an endless crowd of demons were pressing forward to take their place.

James reeled back, hurled a Sacred Strike at the closest demons, saw again how this blazing white fire was reduced to a dirty gray wash that burned but didnt kill the Nems.

Fall back, he gasped. Fall back!

He looked at his crew. Theyd followed him a good block into the hive. Olaf was bleeding, a scalp wound sheeting his face in crimson, his whole-body straining as he sought to raise his circle. Jason had gone into full defense, encircling them all with his arms of aura, but he couldnt duplicate the protective sphere and bone harpoons kept punching through his defenses.

Joanna was reloading her M4 when the bone spear hit her right in the side of the head. Her skull burst into an explosion of blood, bone, and brains, her whole body rocking to the left, suddenly limp, to collapse to the ground and lie still.

Denzel was down, blood running from his nostrils and the corners of his eyes. He didnt cry out.

Joanna didnt get up.

Out! James tried to roar over the clamor. Get out!

Kimmie raised her gun, eyes wide, and when she spoke her words boomed over the battlefield, not loud but penetrating, spearing straight into Jamess core: Retreat! As a team, retreat!

This was no Inspiration. James felt his being flood with renewed power and energy. His thoughts narrowed to her command which lay in perfect accord with his own desires, and all that mattered was getting himself and his crew out.

He could sense more than tell that his stats had all massively increased. Strength, Speed, Agility, Stamina - all of them had received a massive influx. Weariness fell away. His very wounds began to heal up, the numerous scrapes and cuts and gashes.

James ducked a swipe, slammed his axe through a knee, then raced back to his people. Yadriel was falling back, too.

A Nem3 moved to interpose itself, and James leaped. His Power and Speed combined to give him wings and being close to 50 he soared. Up he flew, his bound momentarily breaking the laws of gravity, up over the slashing arms, right over the Nem3 which looked up as he flew past and slammed his axe into its face, shattering the bone carapace and sending black blood and fire flying.

He landed neatly. Scooped up Joannas body, then used an Aeviternum to drop another Heavenly Assault right atop their group.

Gloria flooded over them. Nem3s fell back in dismay and pain. Jason used his aura to slash at the Nems between them and the hives perimeter, and James unleashed one of his last Sacred Strikes over his crew, bathing them in healing fire.

Shields! shouted Olaf as his circle came back up, the ambient Gloria seeming to give it power. James manifested his shield right behind them and ran, leading the way, Joanna over one shoulder, horrific hot wetness running down his back. As a team they pounded up the avenue, the single-minded goal of getting the fuck out all consuming.

A couple of Nem3s landed before them, turned, hissed, and Yadriel bowled into them, huge and massively swollen, knocking them aside just as the rest of them sprinted past and burst out the wall of up flowing fire.

It was like stepping out of the worlds dankest, mustiest room into clear, fresh air. James heaved a deep breath, his stats dropping as the Holy Zeal eased off, and together they turned, back pedaling, watching the dome of black fire as they retreated.

Nothing emerged to follow them.

Gunfire erupted from the soldiers at the hummers, and James realized they were shooting Yadriel.

Stop! He turned, waved his arms. Cease fire!

Yadriel crouched, snarling, blade-arms crossed before his visage, dozens of Smite-enhanced bullets slamming into his demonic form. But he flashed white, burning Aeviternum, and then sank down to his human form, unhurt.

Fuck you assholes! he screamed at the gaping soldiers. You fucking idiots!

James dropped to his knees and lowered Joannas body to the road.

No, whispered Olaf, falling to his knees beside them. No no no.

Her head was utterly ruined. The skull shattered within the sack of skin and hair. Jamess gorge rose.

Oh fuck, whispered Serenity, hand over her mouth.

Im so sorry. Denzel was shaking his head, looking like he was going to burst into tears. I ran out of Aeviternum. Im so sorry.

His Anima settled down on the road beside the corpse, his every surface covered in black ichor. He scrutinized the corpse then shook his head, answering Jamess question before he could even ask.

Fuck, whispered James. Fuck.