Chapter Sixty-One - Trapsetter

Chapter Sixty-One - Trapsetter

Chapter Sixty-One - Trapsetter

Do Not Remain In Your Domicile During An Incursion!

Immediately follow your local municipalitys evacuation path and remove yourself from the area of immediate danger.

If this path is unavailable, then use Qells Nation-Wide 34G network* to download your local free* Qell Life Saver app at any time!

*All data transmitted across Qell networks is the property of Qell Telecom

*The app contains in-app purchases. Qell is not responsible for any data collected by the app.

*Fees apply. Prices are subject to change at any time.

*The Qell 34G network is NOT being used for mind-control.

--Part of Qell Telecoms Feel Good, Live Long advertisement campaign of 2029

***

I stuck to the shadows, either those cast by the bridges overhead, or the shadows next to every vehicle.

Any passing alien wouldnt be able to spot me under my coat, but my gun was still visible, as were my feet and hands. Worse, I was moving. If the antithesis had eyes like humans, then theyd gravitate towards any motion.

So I stuck to the shadows.

Also, it made me feel cooler, which was a not-inconsiderable part of it.

I stopped by a semi-trailer at a four-way intersection. Id ranged out about a block and a half from the shelter. Far enough that I could see the sniffing packs at the lead of the alien wave. For now, there were just Model Threes moving in large groups. There would be a whole lot more coming around.

Myalis, door, I said as I tapped the side of the truck I was using as cover.

Something in the door clunked and I reached up and pulled it open to slip in. The truck had mirrored glass on its front, making it hard to see within. That suited me just fine.

Turret, Sparrow and ammo, I whispered.

A few more shots added to the beautifully gorey mess across the street. Myalis, I need more ammo, I said.

I crossed while reloading Whisper. If I could block the path, then maybe the Antithesis would have to pass by some other route. On the other hand, that would maybe just make them rush by some other way.

The plan, then, was simple. Id just kill off as many aliens as I could and once the area was more or less clear, Id add a few dozen surprises for any of the brutes trying to pass by. It would at least slow them down. My goal wasnt to kill every last alien, it was to stall until Monroe got everyone packed up and ready to go.

The alley had a pair of Model Threes and a single Model Four in it. They looked like theyd been going through the trash when Id popped their buddies and were now coming closer to investigate.

Four more shots took care of them... and also a dumpster about five meters behind them.

Myalis didnt comment, but I could swear I felt her disapproval as I sidestepped the giblets left of the aliens and crossed the alley.

The next street over was a mess. Not only had a bunch of Model Threes and Fours already made it halfway down, some of them were working away at the doors of every building on the street. Model Sixs were thumping their way down, and a few little flocks of Model Ones were darting here and there, keeping an eye on the sky.

Gunshots popped in the distance, sometimes accompanied by a flash through an apartments windows.

I winced. There had to be hundreds of people that had decided to hide away in their rooms and who would soon be visited by some hungry aliens. Maybe a few could defend themselves for a bit, but as the density of aliens grew, I doubted they could keep up.

Nothing I could do, at least, not without abandoning the thousand-odd people behind me.

At least I could win them some time. I crouched by the edge of the alley, rain splattering down across my hood and leaving distortions in the invisible cloth as they passed.

Taking in the surroundings didnt leave me with as many options as I would have wanted. The road here was a bit wider, with a crossing in the middle for pedestrians and, just under a hundred meters away, was another intersection, this one with a large cement building taking up the corner. The entrance into the subways.

Thats where the aliens were coming from in twos and threes, the worm-looking Model Eights slithering up with difficulty.

Fuck, I muttered. I forgot all about the undercity.

Incursions tend to bury themselves, given the opportunity. A transit system is a ready-made way for them to travel across an entire city until its cleared.

Im going to need something that can really fuck that entrance up, I said.

Before Myalis could reply, I darted ahead and ducked under the underside of a trucks trailer. I was just about to start planning my next few moves when, with a throaty whoosh the street caught fire.

***