Chương 16: 9A. The Smiling Man

As the Seeker trio began their assault, it became clear to Sam that, during the previous confrontation, they had truly been caught off guard. It seemed they all required a moment to prepare their techniques and spells before unleashing their full power, Fred and the boss more than Iris. They were likely capable of taking care of themselves and surviving most things, but not defending others as well as they believed. Unlike the Seekers, Sam didn't have the means of gauging strength.

The horde's individual members appeared weaker than the specimens they had fought before. They didn't throw explosive, flaming spikes, were slower, and seemed lacking in strength. However, he didn't doubt that each of them was significantly stronger than he was. They were a herd of raging, charging bulls. Sam was the china shop. Despite their numbers, superhuman strength, and sharp bony spines, the mutated awakened failed to so much as scratch Fred's armor.

Bones crunched, and spines broke as they struck the stone bear shell. He didn't use any flashy attacks like Iris, relying on the overwhelming strength that came with his technique to pulverize his foes. The man's fighting style was simple but effective. His punches and kicks were precise, and he never overextended. Occasionally, he swiped and bashed like the bear he resembled.

Even though Sam believed that he lacked the instinct for it, he resolved to improve his martial abilities regardless of whether his talent and domains forced him into a close combat role or allowed him to fight from afar as he hoped. The boss left most of her light spheres untouched. A handful of her lenses shaped themselves into a prism as big as Sam's head. She shot a thick, solitary beam into the dense structure, splitting it.

The smaller beams all maintained the same blinding gold color as they sheared through several monsters at once. Her spell crippled, if not killed, everything they touched. Her overwhelming power, precision, and cool head explained why she was the leader, even though Iris held the title of scholar and had bonded a Great Spirit. Sam was forced to use the hand cannon much sooner than expected. An especially speedy charging specimen broke through Fred's waves and weaved through the beams.

His hands trembled as he aimed the weapon. Sam took a deep breath in, adopted the stance, braced himself, and fired. The violent recoil threatened to knock his right shoulder out of its socket. It rattled his hands and every joint within or attached to them. Sam's ears rang, and a metallic taste filled his mouth. It took a moment for his vision to refocus. Much to his relief, the blast had ripped a monstrous hole in his target's chest, blowing off the right arm and leg.

Only sinew kept the head attached to the rest of the body. A pair of small followers had suffered similar fates. Another lost both hind limbs, rendering it immobile. Sam's stomach gurgled, and bile threatened to evacuate it, but he swallowed, clenched his jaw, and rushed after the boss, barely keeping up. Occasionally, Sam caught sight of a crimson blur shooting back and forth overhead. He didn't know what Iris was doing, but it was clear that her companions trusted her to fulfill her role.

Signs of her activities became clear as they advanced, and Sam caught sight of monsters impaled on hardened blood spikes.

"Bastard knows this is nothing to us," the boss grumbled through gritted teeth.

"He's trying to tire us out." It was a sound strategy. No matter how strong the awakened were, they couldn't do much if their resources were drained. The boss and Iris's words came to mind.

"If shit hits the fan, forget about what we're doing, where we are, or our physical state," the boss had said after Sam agreed to help them on their mission.

"Our priority is securing the anomaly. If you see an open path to it, run and don't look back." The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

"Remember, I can recover from almost any injury," Iris added.

"Some might take more time than others, but I can take punishment and just need to hit back to recover. So, don't worry about me. Only things that matter are you and the job."

"What if the Inhuman follows me in?" Sam had asked.

"Then what?"

"That's the thing. The Inhuman shouldn't be able to enter the anomaly or approach the spirit directly. They assimilate through corruption, and the more powerful the spirit, the harder it is to corrupt." The boss claimed she wasn't a scholar. However, the way she explained things and patiently taught Sophie suggested she had history as a teacher.

"The fact that the Inhuman is trying to slow us down means he hasn't completed the process yet and needs more time."

"Look out for snakes," Iris had advised.

"Especially any that aren't behaving right."

"I remember." Sam disliked snakes. To be fair, he disliked most creatures that weren't domesticated. It made sense following the cataclysm, where almost everything, even formerly harmless and docile animals, was eager to kill anything that wasn't them. They especially liked to target unawakened individuals.

"Going after essences or avoiding obvious food sources." Sam spotted the anomaly before he saw any snakes. The reports claimed it was a lone building, but the effect had spread. Several structures appeared to be in rapid decay. Cracks spread across their surface, growing into fissures. Chunks of concrete and pieces of steel fell, turning to dust before or soon after hitting the ground. The damaged section regenerated rapidly, appearing freshly built before decaying again. The cycle seemed to continue endlessly.

"Over there!" Sam yelled, pointing at the anomaly.

"Seen." The boss activated a second light sphere. It fired a concentrated beam at the anomaly, cutting through the monsters in its path. The screeches and roars doubled. The smell of burning flesh and hair intensified.

"Advance. I'm protecting your rear." Heart pounded. Temples throbbed. Sweat soaked Sam's back. It went without saying that he was terrified, and a part of him wished he hadn't left Harrow or taken a job that kept him close to home. Yet he kept advancing. Monsters capable of ending him with a single blow got within less than ten feet of him before perishing, dying to beams or to crimson javelins.

When any beast got too close for comfort, water lenses imbued with golden hues shot through them, severing limbs and leaving cauterized stumps behind. Sam resisted the urge to wretch as he panicked and shot the hand cannon at a lunging beast, blowing it to pieces. He was better prepared and kept his balance. His joints still complained. However, bile didn't fill his mouth.

"I've got this!" Fred roared, trampling countless foes to join Sam and the boss. The earth ripples seemed to die before reaching them. Fred skidded to a halt just behind the pair and slammed his fists into the ground. A curved wall rose rapidly. The boss didn't wait to watch the barricade grow; she grabbed Sam's collar and dragged him toward the anomaly, her beams cutting through everyone in the way.

"Go. I've got your back. Just—" Rocks rained down. Sam looked over his shoulder to see the bear armor shell falling apart. His heart fell as Fred came into view. A giant bone javelin jutted from the man's chest.

"Keep going!" He roared, spitting out blood. Another bone javelin appeared, jutting from Fred's face. It flew so fast that Sam barely caught the trajectory. He followed the boss's eyes to find the source. A slender-suited man stood atop a building just outside of the anomaly's range. He smiled warmly, meeting Sam's eyes. The man was the kind of handsome one would expect to see on the screen in the old world, as a leading man or the far-too-good-looking competing love interest in a romantic comedy or drama.

He was perfect, and something about him was undeniably alluring. Sam felt compelled to befriend him, make him happy, and do whatever he needed.

"Fuck," the boss whispered, smacking Sam. The flicker of connection he had felt to the man abruptly cut off.

"Don't look at his eyes. Never look at his eyes. He's—" A bone javelin shot through the boss's stomach and planted itself in the road behind her, locking the woman in place. The glasses lenses gathered in front of her just in time to deflect a follow-up projectile. Despite the injury, the boss didn't stop. All her light spheres fired, half targeting the suited man and the rest opening a path for Sam.

"Go!"