Category Archives: Book 14: The Galaxy Core Device

Arc 14.5.0: Bigger Things

Bigger Things: Part 3

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Everyone tensed, a reasonable response, given that I’d told them that the end of the world was on its way and that my social skills might be the only thing standing in the way of planetary destruction.

Jaclyn responded to me first, thinking back, “Coming to meet you or coming to kill you?”

I shrugged, “That remains to be seen, but Kee thought he’d be interested in meeting because to the degree that I’m an Artificer, I’m descended from Nataw, his brother. He was also a friend of Lee, but he probably feels a bit betrayed by him. So, mentioning that is to be avoided.”

Haley looked up at me and thought, “And he could randomly show up at any time? Anything we do could be interrupted and then—BOOM—end of the world?” Continue reading Bigger Things: Part 3 →

Arc 14.5.0: Bigger Things

Bigger Things: Part 2

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“I can see not mentioning Lee because Nataw’s brother is in the Destroy faction, but is there more than that? Does he just not like Lee?”

Kee sighed, “No. Lee and Govan were good friends. Back when Lee was in Destroy and I was pretending to be, they became closer—because they were both worried about Nataw. When Lee left with the Galaxy Core Device, Govan felt personally betrayed. Govan isn’t vengeful, but I think he feels very hurt. He’s not a terrible being, but I can imagine that he’s felt abandoned by us over the last few thousand years.” Continue reading Bigger Things: Part 2 →

Arc 14.5.0: Bigger Things

Bigger Things: Part 1

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“The one good thing is that we don’t have to worry about how to keep them imprisoned. The bad, I guess, is that we have no chance of that. Now that I think about it, the base had teleportation blockers. They shouldn’t have been able to take anyone from upstairs at all.”

Rachel glanced over at me, “I think they’re off. I tried to get over here and help as soon as they appeared, but I couldn’t float through the walls. I found that they’d ripped the door off its hinges outside, but they’d also blocked off the stairwell on the lowest floor and broken the elevator. I was about to give up and go outside, but then everything worked and I could float up the tower.” Continue reading Bigger Things: Part 1 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 25

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Art had all of Haley’s power plus Magnus’ power-up, but he was carrying Jody. Haley didn’t have anything extra beyond her costume and now an implant.

Art had landed first and was already beginning to run across the lawn toward the street—probably trying to get far enough from the tower that the Nine could teleport him out.

Using my implant’s connection to Haley’s suit, I fired off a series of bots. I’d put a handful into other people’s armor, thinking that it would be better to have a few available for clutch moments. Continue reading Regression: Part 25 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 24

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I adjusted my foot position and felt my feet shift naturally. Whatever “neutralization” turned out to be, it had worked.

I knew “Counterattack” had not come into play yet because Scream Eagle’s claws were now swinging in my direction. Possibly worse, the circle of metal was reforming in the air behind him.

He hadn’t seen my feet shift or recognized what it meant, though. I stepped back, swinging through his arms with the lightning sword. The sword didn’t chop them off, but I did feel resistance as I swung through the space. Continue reading Regression: Part 24 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 23

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The funny thing was that I had a plan for this. Scream Eagle wasn’t the first person I’d ever met with the ability to control technology. The first person I’d met was Carlos, the son of a super in the SoCal Defenders unit.

I’d tested my armor design with him at one point to see how hard it would be to defend against it. It turned out to be pretty hard in fact, but I’d at least developed strategies to fight against it. Continue reading Regression: Part 23 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 22

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The circle of rotating metal doom in the air fell apart as Scream Eagle shot across the room, knocking into a section of shelving as he took off. A bunch of things fell, most of them glittering. They might have been trophies.

One of them looked like a YouTube award. I didn’t even know they had a channel.

Also, speakers around the room had started blasting music. I didn’t have time to pay attention, but it sounded like reggae, something about “one love.” Continue reading Regression: Part 22 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 21

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“You won’t live long enough for that,” Scream Eagle said, and the circle of metal balls and metal dust descended toward me.

I didn’t doubt that my suit could withstand ball bearings, but I didn’t know how long it would withstand repeated damage.

It looked like I’d get to find out, though, because the rotating circle of metal hit my chest. I’d been trying to dodge, but it moved faster, chipping away at my armor. Continue reading Regression: Part 21 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 20

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Camille saw him, but she was still trying to slow Scream Eagle down and didn’t have time to drop that to increase the gravity around Art.

Plus, again, in this small space, he moved as quickly as Jaclyn would have. She didn’t have time to do anything before he stabbed her with the palm claw in his right hand.

Art’s next move was to dive and roll past Julie, sinking the palm claw of his left hand into her thigh through her armor. As she fell, he turned toward the back of the room where Zola faced Haley, Sydney, Dayton, Daniel, and Jody’s unconscious body.

Well, sort of. Zola had been busy too. Continue reading Regression: Part 20 →

Arc 14.4.5: Regression

Regression: Part 19

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As I flew toward the open windows, my implant summarized the feed from the tower to the degree it could—a series of pictures.

Scream Eagle rose toward the windows, gaining speed despite Camille’s control over gravity. A flash from Haley’s cam showed sweat on Camille’s brow, fists clenched, and mouth in a thin line.

Sean and Vaughn, meanwhile, were doing what they could. Sean whirled a circle of metal balls with enough speed that they turned into a ring reflecting the light of the sun and the room’s fluorescent lights. I’d seen what he could do with them. They made a highly mobile circular saw that could cut through more than you’d think. When used with his power, even if they shattered, he could continue to cut with the dust. Continue reading Regression: Part 19 →