Chapter 68 Weakness Is Strength.

Four beams rained down on the Calamity, drawning it in the light of pure destruction.

Countless drones followed surrounding it with a barrier compressing all the energy in one area.

[Alright! Stop the fire!] The strange voice instructed.

[This is forty sixth Resistance base independent humanoid anti Calamity weapon, Valkyrie unit BHTCNA05. Please Identify yourself.] Said Zero Five, turning to the forth Valkyrie who had just appeared beside her.

[Greetings. This is the forty fifth Resistance base independent humanoid anti Calamity weapon, Valkyrie unit RHMBSHB3, here to provide support as requested by the forty sixth base's commander. You can call me B3]

Just by looking five was able to tell that the new Valkyrie was from the same generation as Zero Three; although she wore a full body armor there was no hiding her small stature and flat underdeveloped chest.

[Well, this doesn't look so good.] B3 said, bringing Five's attention back to their enemy.

[You gotta be kidding me…] said Zero Three.

The explosion ended, the light faded and the dust settled. After all the power put into that last attack the calamity was still there.

It was damaged, with it's right arm gone and a part of its head burnt, however in just a few seconds everything was regenerated leaving only a few scorch marks here and there.

The Calamity raised its arms preparing to start another symphony. Before it could the metallic pillars surrounding it opened up releasing more lightning paralyzing it.

[Hm… Calamities being resistant to nuclear energy isn't so strange, but…] the new Valkyrie muttered to herself, looking down at the Torso as she tried to think of an explanation.

[All we know is that it uses soundwaves to create and control its creations.] Said Zero Five, glaring down at the enemy.

[I see. What about the giants?]

With the symphony stopped the two purple giants stood motionless, their mouths still open after shooting the death beams a few seconds ago.

[They're its creations. Damaging them is meaningless as their regeneration is almost instantaneous.]

[Is that so…]

[B3, I'm afraid another attack will have everlasting effects on the area.] A new voice joined the conversation. [We are already nearing the limit of radiation we can handle as well.]

[I know I know. If you're going to talk then at least tell md how we are supposed to deal with that thing?]

The lightning holding it in place won't last forever. They needed to find a way to destroy it and quickly.

[Zero Five, right?] B3 spoke. [Your base has faced a high end A class just recently, huh? You guys sure have some really bad luck, huh?]

[Am I right to assume that things have been peaceful on your side?] Asked Zero Five.

[More or less. Only the occasional C class.] She replied, shrugging her shoulders. [That said, I'm afraid an A wouldn't cut it for this one.]

The Torso had proved its destructive power to be bordering on the S class by its last attack. Worst of all is that there is no way to tell if that's its full potential, there is always the possibility of it having more strength that it has yet to show.

[Hey, how is it that the lightning from those things is a able to get past the barrier?] Zero Three asked.

[No idea.]

Hearing B3's answer, everyone including the Valkyries from the forty fifth base were left dumbfounded.

[Are you serious, B3?] Said one of the Valkyries.

[She's always been like this.] Another one followed with a sigh.

[Oh c'mon! It's not like I always have all the answers!!!] B3 protested. [It probably has something to do with the frequency. The lightning doesn't deal damage. It's made just to hold those things in their place.]

[Isn't that just what we need?] The one who spoke drawing everyone's attention was Nine. With all eyes on her she seemed freeze for a moment but then she went and explained the idea she came up with. [You can adjust the frequency of the blades of your melee weapons, correct? Won't doing so allow you to get past the barrier?]

[That sure is a great idea, but…] B3 sighed. [Alright everyone, I'll send you the settings so let's give it a try.]

[I'll go first.] Zero Three said.

[You're the only melee centered unit here, right? It's all yours.]

As B3 spoke, Zero Three altered the settings of her lance turning its color from green to a faint blue. A second later she began to groan.

[I don't think this will work.] She said. [Even a brick wall can block something of this level.]

[Are you sure this is the correct settings, B3?] One of the new Valkyries asked.

[Yes, I am sure! I'm a support type, you know! Of course my equipment isn't made to deal damage!] B3 shot back, frustrated by the way her comrades were doubting her.

[Well, I guess we have nothing to lose.] Zero Three said, fastening her grip on the lance as she brought one of her drones closer.

She crouched down on the halo it formed, pointing her lance at the Calamity as she prepared to launch herself.

[I'll remove the binds the moment you get there so dont hold back.] Said B3.

[Don't electrify me now.] Three commented with a short laugh.

As if counting down from three, a loud boom resounded as the young Valkyrie broke the sound barrier right from the start. B3 was shocked at the speed but was able to remove the lightning just a fraction of a second before Three entered its range.

The Calamity recovered almost instantly opening its mouth to sing, however Zero Three's lance shattered the invisible barrier like thin glass penetrating the Torso who moved slightly to the left avoiding a fatal blow.

"_______________!!!!!"

The monstrosity released a painful cry echoed by the purple giants. It was a moment worth celebrating, however the Valkyries watched in astonishment as the Torso slowly healed the most damage it took since the start of the battle like it never happened.

[I can't believe… that's all it took?]

Five's surprise was understandable. The invisible barrier took the force of both her proton canon and Nine's atomic cannon so it didn't make sense for the only thing to damage it to be a physical attack enhanced by a weak electric current.

[Five, I think this Calamity is capable of absorbing energy.] Nine spoke. [You noticed it as well, right? How the explosion from the proton cannon vanished.]

[It absorbed it…?] Five muttered. An explosion that big couldn't possibly just vanish without a trace like what she had witnessed upon her arrival. The only reasonable explanation is that the Calamity somehow harnessed the energy and redirected it somewhere else.

[The giants…]

[Your comrade is right.] Said B3. [We have shot that thing with four proton cannon. Even if we suppressed the explosion using the force field there is no way we would still be here if that thing didn't absorb most of the blast.]

The good news is that there is a limit to how much the Torso can absorb before it overloads. The bad news is that the Valkyries didn't have the energy needed to repeat another attack. Not to mention, all of that energy wouldn't just dissapear into thin air once they overload the Calamity. Even the Valkyries themselves wouldn't be able to survive the disaster if that torso looking monster decided to turn into a nuclear warhead.

[So the reason such a low frequency charge is capable of damaging it is…] Five spoke.

[Most likely the barrier ignores anything below a certain frequency.] Nine replied. [Guess it has to be lower than the default charge of our weapons.]

The secret to defeating the limbless torso was to use weaker weapons, who could've guessed something like that.

Five grasped her halberd, changing its setting and causing the glow of its blades to fade.

[I'll go down as well.]

The moment she announced that, the world shook violently at the sound of another symphony starting.

[I thought it-]

Looking down B3 saw that the Torso was still held in place by the lightning from her lightning rods, however it wasn't struggling to release itself like before.

Zero Three launched herself at it once more, ignoring the effects of the lightning and using her momentum to escape the binding.

Everyone understood the reason the young Valkyrie was in a rush. The Torso stopped bothering playing the role of the maestro, its chest and head splitting apart revealing the endless darkness inside from which the sound of instruments came out.

The purple giants began to move as well, their hands reaching for the lightning rods.

[GO!] B3 shouted at Zero Five who was already on the move.

The moment she started her dive, her halberd at the ready, the purple giants turned their heads toward Zero Five with golden symbols forming circles around their open mouths.

Beams of light shot out targeting not only Zero Five but the other Valkyries as well. Orange lines were drawn on the ground followed by series of explosions as the creations hailed destruction on anything and everything in their desperate attempt at stopping the humanoid weapons.

[Hey tiny boss! Your lightning is in the way!] Three shouted as she prepared to charge the Calamity one more time.

[WHO'RE YOU CALLING TINY!!!] B3 shouted back.

Five skillfully maneuvered through the giant's beams as she headed straight for the Torso.

[Three!]

[Got it!]

As if in sink, Zero Three launched herself at the same time Zero Five swung her halberd. The lightning binding the Calamity disappeared but before it could react its head was chopped off a moment after the young Valkyrie blew a hole through its chest.

The symphony came to an abrupt stop and so did the destructive light beams. A moment later the purple Giants began to collapse turning to small squares and rectangles that slowly blinked out of existence.