Aetheral Space-Chapter 538 - 17.10: Taurus Mortar

DAY 2

"Taurus Mortar."

The roof exploded outwards.

That in itself wasn't a huge problem. The moment the Captain's hand had moved, Ruth Blaine had been ready for it. She was already clad in her twisted Direwolf armour, perched on the roof of the neighbouring building, crimson hair burning behind her as her keen eyes were fixed on the smoking hole in the apartment complex.

Blue Aether sparked -- and a second later, the Captain reappeared, standing on the rooftop itself. His scarlet coat billowed in the wind around him, his blue eyes fixed on Ruth.

Shit. So he's still got Gemini World.

That made sense, though. If he'd been telling the truth during their conversation, then his point of divergence had been the battle of Elysian Fields. That meant he still had all of the real Dragan's abilities and experiences up to that point -- alongside whatever weird other powers he might have access to.

Taurus Mortar, he'd called it. Things had been too fast for Ruth to get a proper look at it, but it had been powerful enough to blow the room apart instantly. She'd have to be careful and watch out for it.

The Captain, for his part, was just observing Ruth from behind his veil of bandages.

"Interesting," he murmured. "What's that appearance about, Ruth?"

"I never got Direwolf in your timeline?" Ruth scoffed. "Damn, I must've been weak as shit."

"So it's called Direwolf, huh?" the Captain said, keeping a finger pointed at Ruth as he adjusted his position. "Very interesting."

It was difficult to hear their conversation over the screams coming from below. The people of Ward 6 were in a panic, running for their lives with desperate frenzy, pushing over each other to get to safety. Ruth guessed it made sense. Pandershi had kept these people isolated from the outside world, from any kind of danger. This fight between two Aether-users was probably the most terrifying thing most of them had ever witnessed.

Damnit, where the hell was Reyansh?

"You've blown your cover, you know," Ruth called out over the rooftops. "You were trying to lay low, right?"

"Right," the Captain sighed. "Maybe I jumped the gun a little by inviting you to a meeting in the first place. I should've observed longer. Still… there's no point crying over spilt milk. Gemini Shotgun."

Not Railgun. His abilities hadn't developed in that direction, then. Good.

As blasts of blue light surged through the air towards Ruth, she threw herself off the roof, kicking off the wall and launching herself into the apartment building below the Captain. From there, it was an easy thing to flank him. Stairs were time-consuming, so Ruth just barrelled through two ceilings, exploding out of the rooftop behind the Captain like another projectile.

He was still standing there, still facing away from her. His reflexes, too, had lagged behind the real Dragan. Crimson Aether crackling around her claws, Ruth went to slash at the impostor's back --

-- but her momentum was halted as something struck her in the jaw hard.

Her thoughts were jumbled as her head swam from the blow. What had hit her? Had the Captain managed to spin around and punch her? No, he hadn't moved. Ruth grit her teeth and stayed on her feet, skidding to a halt on the other side of the rooftop.

Finally, the Captain turned to look at her. There was the faintest smirk on his cracked lips.

"I guess I didn't have this in your timeline, then," he said with just a trace of smugness. "Otherwise, you'd have known to watch out for it."

Ruth scraped her claws together. "Whatever tricks you've got," she said. "I --"

It hit her again.

This time it hit her hard in the chest, and this time it was faster, but she'd been ready for it -- and so, this time, she got a good look at it.

Taurus Mortar was a spherical projectile formed of junk -- shredded wood from the apartment, shattered stone from the rooftop, broken glass from the windows. It was all being pulled in by some strong force to form that sphere -- and that sphere was homing in on Ruth, again and again and again. As it bounced off of Ruth's chest plate, it was already curving in the air to strike her for a third time.

Well, if the Captain thought this was going to be enough to bring Ruth down, he'd clearly forgotten who he was dealing with.

Noblesse Set!

As Taurus Mortar came in for the rebound, Ruth switched her chest plates -- and the reflected force of the Noblesse Set shattered the sphere into its disparate parts. Grinning, Ruth kicked herself off the ground towards the Captain. If she could just get rid of him here, they'd be one step closer to getting Dragan back.

They'd be --

"Taurus Mortar," said the Captain -- and five wisps of blue Aether fired from each of his fingers.

In an instant, the falling junk that had formed the first Taurus Mortar was pulled in and distributed among the new five projectiles -- and, as one, the Mortars slammed into Ruth from every angle. The first swarm of impacts sent her flying up into the sky, the Taurus Mortars following in quick pursuit. The Captain watched with mild interest as Ruth ascended.

"That first one was just a sneak peek," he said, putting one hand in the pocket of his coat. "I don't mind telling you I can send out a lot more than this, too. They'll automatically home in on their target as long as I keep them active -- and the longer they're active, the faster and stronger they get. You'd better do something quick before there are boulders following you."

The Captain said that, but up in the air there wasn't actually debris for the Mortars to incorporate into themselves. Ruth adopted the wings of the Monarque Set, flapping through the air to fly as she weaved through the homing swarm of projectiles. Their speed was just as the Captain had described, though. Each time she dodged one of them, it came back faster the next time. Eventually, they'd just be too fast for anyone to dodge.

Think. Think, think, think.

She could destroy them like she had the first one, but…

Taurus Mortar. Taurus Mortar. Taurus Mortar. Taurus Mortar. Taurus Mortar.

…the Captain wasn't holding back anymore.

Every second, he was firing off another five Mortars, the Aetheral singularities scraping up debris from the rooftop and launching themselves up towards Ruth. The sheer cloud of shots heading for her made the swarm she was already dealing with look like child's play. She'd be overwhelmed if she let this situation continue to cascade like this.

Okay. Time to get crazy.

Ruth discarded her armour and dropped out of the sky.

Above, the false sunlight was flickering. The first group of Mortars she'd just avoided were scraping away lights from the ceiling as they curved to follow her, growing in size as they pursued. Below, the second cloud of Mortars whistled as they rose to meet her falling form. This was fine. She had a good feeling for their speeds now. If she timed this right, just right…

Noblesse Set!

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…she could win.

The gauntlet of the Noblesse Set appeared in the air next to Ruth, and she kicked off of it, launching herself out of the path of both Mortar-swarms. Even if they were homing in on Ruth, their sheer speed meant that as they curved to follow her, the two groups of projectiles collided. Glass and stone and plastic rained out of the air as Taurus Mortar experienced mutually assured destruction.

She'd won herself an opening. She'd won herself a victory. And to seize that victory… 𝙛𝓻𝒆𝒆𝒘𝙚𝓫𝙣𝙤𝒗𝙚𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

Empereur Set.

…Ruth Blaine wouldn't hesitate.

The surge of crimson Aether lit up the sky for just a moment -- and before it had even faded, Ruth had used its overwhelming speed to reach her destination. She'd already switched out of her most powerful Set -- she didn't want to attract too much attention -- but she was now standing directly behind the Captain, her Skeletal claws inches from his throat. Slowly, his head still facing where she'd been a moment ago, he raised his hands.

"Looks like you're stronger than I remember," he said carefully.

Despite herself, Ruth smirked a little. "And you're weaker than I remember."

"So what now?" the Captain asked, still looking up at the false sky. "Are you gonna kill me?"

That was the right move. If he wasn't going to join their group, then he was an obstacle. Getting rid of him was necessary if they were gonna get Dragan back.

Still… the thought left a sour taste in her mouth.

When her answer didn't come straight away, the Captain spoke again. "By the way… can I tell you something interesting?"

Ruth frowned. "What?"

"My Taurus Mortar actually locks onto a person's Aether signature, rather than the person themself," he explained casually. "Because of that, I can only use it on Aether-users… but, so long as I've witnessed that person's Aether, I can use Taurus on them even if I can't see them -- so long as they're in my effective range, which is… pretty damn big."

"So what?"

"So my partner has Aether too," the Captain smiled. "I sent a shot their way before I left the building. It's been heading towards them all this time, building up strength and speed… and about thirty seconds ago, I switched the target back to you."

He looked off to the side.

"You'll want to brace yourself for this one," the Captain said.

Ruth followed his gaze, and her blood turned to ice in her veins.

She saw the cloud of smoke it was producing before the attack itself, like a tidal wave of dust and soot was pouring across Ward 6… and, in the midst of it all, hurtling down main street, was a Taurus Mortar the size of a truck. It was just as the Captain had said. Bigger, faster, stronger. It would be upon her in barely a second.

Dodge? It would just follow her.

Block? It would just keep striking her, again and again.

Attack? There was no way she could destroy it in one hit in her current configuration -- and she didn't have time to switch back to Empereur.

There was one more option. With a roar, she grabbed hold of the Captain's shoulders and swung him around, using him as a human shield against the incoming boulder. It would be a game of chicken -- the Captain would surely deactivate his ability before it struck him head-on.

Surely.

Surely.

Surely, right?

Only… he just stared at the incoming doom, his eyes dull in acceptance of the end. At the last second, he looked over his shoulder at Ruth. Even with his features burnt beyond recognition, the smug look on his face undeniably belonged to Dragan Hadrien.

"See ya," he said.

The shadow of death fell upon them both…

Corpse Construct: Coffin Cannon.

…but, in the moment before it made contact, it was instead blasted apart.

Orange Aether ran through the streets as a bolt of pure and wicked light slammed into the Taurus Mortar, destroying its core instantly and sending scraps of debris raining throughout Ward 6. The orderly crowds that had filled the streets before the battle had become a flood of terrified bodies -- this was, of course, probably the most violence they had ever witnessed in their entire lives. Screams of every pitch and timber rang out through the air.

Amidst that panic and terror, McCoy appeared.

Just like the Captain, McCoy was covered in bandages -- but hers covered her entire body tightly, allowing her corpse to maintain a human shape. Just like the Captain, McCoy wore a red coat -- but this was more like something a private detective in a novel would wear, billowing in the wind behind her enigmatically. And, just like the Captain, McCoy had come prepared to fight.

In her hand, she held a colossal and grotesque weapon -- dozens of corpses twisted and sculpted around each other to form a massive cannon, the barrel jutting out from a stretched-open set of jaws. With just one shot from that thing, she'd annihilated the final Taurus Mortar completely.

Ruth's heart thundered in her chest as she saw the woman land atop the opposite rooftop.

Shit. Shit, shit, shit.

This was exactly what she'd wanted to avoid -- drawing so much attention that Darkstar came after her personally. It was even worse that it was this woman. Back on Serendipity, Ruth had watched her create a replica of EIN SOF like it was nothing. Who knew what else she was capable of?

"Gemini Shotgun!"

Ruth was so distracted that she almost didn't dodge the Captain's attack in time. She jerked her head back to avoid the shot that had been aimed to go up through her chin -- but the Captain took that opportunity to kick her in the stomach, breaking free of her grip and flipping to the other end of the rooftop.

And, just like that, they were in a three-way standoff. Ruth, the Captain, and McCoy.

McCoy spoke first. "I was hoping to run into you first, Ruth Blaine," she said with distaste, her voice muffled by her bandages. "You're an unpleasant sort of woman."

Ruth snorted. "Didn't think we had too much time to chat back on Serendipity."

"It was enough," McCoy replied. "Mindless idealists like you are repulsive to me."

"You talk like you know me," Ruth said, manifesting her Empereur Set fully. "You sure about that?"

"Sure enough. You're not an uncommon sort of animal. There are plenty of people who cling to a version of the world that simply doesn't exist. You were irritated when I said human life was worthless, weren't you? That's the proof of your incompetence, right there. Show me where this so-called worth lies."

Ruth raised her fists, ready for combat. "I don't think I really need to, sorry. I'd rather, uh, just kick your ass."

"Hey."

Ruth looked over to the side, as did McCoy. The Captain was standing there, hands on his hips. His face was concealed behind his bandages, too, but Ruth thought she could see a frown there.

McCoy adjusted her hat with her free hand, lifting the rim to get a better look at the Captain.

"What?" she asked, disinterested. "I thought you'd provide some grateful silence, to be honest. I just saved you from being killed by this fool."

"Well, the thing is…" the Captain said, lifting his hand -- in McCoy's direction. "I'm not done with our discussion here… and I don't much care for you interrupting."

Tiny spheres of junk began to drift towards his hand -- small Taurus Mortars, set to follow his fingers so he could use them like floating claws.

McCoy cocked her head. "Are you serious?"

"Apparently."

The three of them stood there, caught in the moment between crises, tricolour Aether of blue and orange and red surging through the air between them. With someone like McCoy in the mix, the first shot would spell massacre. Ruth understood that. Even with Empereur, even with the chaos of a three-way battle, there would be blood within seconds.

"Whatever," Ruth grumbled, with more resolve than she felt. "Let's get this over with."

She prepared to kick off the ground.

"I guess negotiations have fallen through," the Captain smirked, holding out his Taurus claws. "Ain't that always the way?"

He reached back with his free hand, preparing another volley of Taurus shots.

"Today's a good day, then," McCoy said, lifting her Coffin Cannon. "I get to kill two idealistic fools at once."

Light began to gather in the mouth of the dread weapon.

Blue Aether hummed.

Orange Aether spat.

Red Aether crackled.

And…

Bang.

The noise came from none of the three preparing for battle. That sound -- the sound of a pistol firing up into the air -- came from a fourth person, the sharp refrain cutting through the tension in an instant. A figure began to stroll through the smog the final Taurus Mortar had left, their gait casual and carefree.

Ruth frowned. She hadn't even noticed them until after they'd fired. She knew she wasn't that careless -- so this person was clearly good.

She narrowed her eyes as the newcomer arrived…

…only for them to widen in disbelief as they came fully into view.

No fucking way.

Dragana Hadrien grinned carelessly at the three nightmares gathered before her. In one hand, she held a plasma pistol, smoke still drifting from the barrel. In the other, she tap-tap-tapped away at a script. Her long hair was tied back into a ponytail and she was clad in a silver Ultraviolet combat suit, sections glimmering as they enhanced her muscle movements.

Her bright blue eyes locked onto the Captain first.

"Y'know," she said. "If you want me to get over here, you can just shoot me a message. There's no need for the boulder treatment."

Then, her gaze returned to the other two… two people she didn't know.

"So," she called out. "How about all of us try talking again?"