Firesign 1 - Wage Slave Rebellion (43 page)

As its cultists and aku knelt at the border of the god’s damage shield, Amougourest examined the city’s defenders. It pointed. “
Y
OU.
A
RE YOU THE LEADER OF THIS RABBLE?
T
ELL ME WHICH OF YOU IS IN CHARGE!
”

Major Rur looked on in confusion. The god hadn’t pointed to her, or Captain Ankt, or any high-ranked guard, soldier, or even adventurer—he had pointed at one of her soldiers, a private wearing an identical uniform to the other privates scattered across the battlefield.

The private looked surprised for a second, but then he puffed his chest out and skewered the god with an arrogant scowl. “How did you guess? I am the leader! What do you want, foul beast?”

Amougourest considered the private’s word for a second, and then gave every appearance of shrugging. Major Rur briefly wondered how much of the True Head Cultist’s memories and knowledge had transferred over to the deity. It didn’t look like it could tell most mortals apart, save for especially aggravating ones like the trio.

“
T
ELL ME MORTAL, WHERE CAN
I
FIND THE FORMER RULER OF THIS CITY?
” asked Amougourest.

The private pulled himself up tall and crossed his arms over his wimpy chest, his thick eyebrows vibrating indignantly. “I will never tell you that, monster!”

“
H
M,
” said Amougourest. With a rumble as loud as plates shifting, the god stood up and loomed over the battlefield once again. It pointed at the private. “
G
ET THEM.
”

A beam of writhing mana tore a long, sweeping gash through the Houkian forces just as the private dove out of the way. As the air superheated and exploded, scattering people like confetti on a parade route, the cultists and the aku charged.

*      *      *

“So that was a god,” said Mazik. He was on his back, glowing pale green. Raedren had already finished dulling Gavi’s wounds, and had now moved onto Mazik.

“Yup,” said Gavi. She stood up and began looking around the area. The rooms around the blast crater were all badly damaged, but the ones above them didn’t look like they would collapse much more. Outside they could hear more screams and explosions.

“What’s the point in being that big anyway?” asked Mazik. He waved a hand. “I mean, other that the obvious people stomping reasons. I just feel like if you’re
that
big, all you can really do is break things. Who’s going to take a god like that seriously?”

“You don’t take any gods seriously,” said Gavi.

“Well,
yes
,” said Mazik, “but that’s why I said ‘anyone,’ not ‘me.’” He thought about this. “Or ‘I,’ I guess. You know what I mean.”

“Scaring people seems to be a pretty standard tactic among gods,” said Gavi. “Plus, dying a horrible, screaming death seems serious enough to me.”

“Well, he—” Raedren thought back to the god’s appearance “—it can probably transform into a smaller form if it wants to. That’s pretty common for corporeal gods, from what I remember.”

“Oh, right,” said Mazik. “I never paid much attention during those classes.”

They all paused, thinking about the massive three-story deity above.

“What happens to the rest of its body when it shrinks?” asked Gavi.

“It’s better to not think about it,” said Raedren.

“
Squish
and
splat
,” said Mazik. Gavi stuck out her tongue at him.

“There you go,” said Raedren as the glow around Mazik faded. “Just remember to take it easy. Your injuries aren’t any better, you just can’t feel the pain as much.”

“I know, I know,” said Mazik as he sat up. His entire body still hurt, but he could deal with it now. “Thank you,” he added earnestly.

*      *      *

“I don’t care how much the guilds charge, just get them here
right fucking now!
” said Captain Ankt, one finger to his ear as he yelled into the open air. He paused while the voice in his head responded. “ALL OF THEM!!” he roared, his face turning purple.

Major Rur knelt in front of her colleague, scanning for threats. The two of them were taking refuge in a hastily dug hole behind a pile of bodies, with Major Rur guarding Captain Ankt while he called for help.

“I’m telling you, if this thing gets out into the city, we’re going to have THOUSANDS of casualties!” Captain Ankt was yelling, veins bulging on his forehead. “I don’t—NO, I do NOT care how hard it is to get them to help, just promise them whatever you have to—do
you
want to come out here and fight this thing? …
WELL THEN FIND SOMEBODY WHO WILL!
”

Major Rur lifted her head above the pile. Amougourest had stopped attacking, and was looking at the buildings that peeked over the top of The Pit’s highest level.

Major Rur could tell what was about to happen. She stood up and looked around the battlefield, searching for anything she could do to stop this monster. There was nothing.

Unceremoniously, and leaving its worshippers to continue fighting, Amougourest turned and stomped toward the Gate of Life.

*      *      *

“We can’t just stay down here,” said Mazik.

“I don’t see how we’re going to get
out
of here,” said Gavi. All the tunnels near the hole in the ceiling had been blasted away.

“Details, details,” said Mazik. He looked around. “Important details for which I don’t have an answer, but still. We need to figure out what to do about that thing first,” he said, pointing at the ceiling in the general direction of where they last saw Amougourest.

The three sat on some rubble and thought. Raedren scratched his beard, Mazik scratched his stubble, and Gavi, due to her lack of facial hair, rubbed her arrowhead pendant.

“Come on,
think!
” said Mazik, slapping his cheeks. “Everyone probably thinks we’re dead, so we have time to think this through. How do we kill that thing?”

Mazik stopped. He looked startled, as if only now realizing what he just said. He mentally rewound. “Everyone thinks we’re dead,” he repeated.

Gavi’s brow creased. “Yes. So?”

Mazik perked up noticeably. “Well, that simplifies things!”

Now Gavi frowned in earnest. “Mazik, what are you thinking?”

“Maz,” said Mazik automatically.

Gavi rolled her eyes. “Fine.
Maz
, what are you thinking?”

Mazik stood up and walked to the edge of the newly created cavern. “No one expects us to be alive,” he said. “That means we have time to prepare.”

Raedren pulled Mazik back from the edge. “Be careful, that could collapse.”

“Bah,” said Mazik. “You never let me have any fun.”

“But
what
are we going to prepare?” asked Gavi, alarm bells going off in her head.

Mazik turned back and flashed Gavi a grin. “Everything. We’re going to throw everything we have at it. I bet if Rae and I pool our mana together, and we have enough time to cast a
really big
spell, we should be able to do enough damage to take even that thing down. Full power, no mercy, and nothing held back for defense. We either kill it, or die horribly trying.”

“Why do all of your plans end with somebody dying horribly?” asked Gavi.

“I want to know why those people are ever us,” said Raedren. “That’s a worrying trend.”

“Hey, I’m a realist,” said Mazik, the man suggesting the three of them attack a living god without any defenses. The hypocrisy was not lost on them, nor on Mazik. He laughed.

“But why no defenses? That seems like a good way to ensure we’re the ones getting killed,” said Gavi.

“I can answer that,” said Raedren, raising a hand. “It’s because it took everything we had to survive the last time it attacked us, and if we hold anything back, we probably won’t be able to kill it. Plus any mana we have left probably won’t save us anyway.” He looked at Mazik. “Right?”

Mazik gave him two thumbs up. “Right you are, good sir!”

“Okay, and what’s my role in this plan of yours?” asked Gavi. “Because I hope you’re not depending on what little mana I have.”

“Not in the slightest!” said Mazik, more quickly than Gavi would have preferred. Then he flashed her an evil grin, and suddenly Gavi was very, very worried.

*      *      *

Amougourest stopped in front of the Gate of Life. It stooped down, peering through the bars and into Gladiator’s Way. A smattering of spells struck it from behind, splashing harmlessly across the barriers protecting Amougourest’s burnished skin. The god ignored them.

“It’s at the gates!” yelled Major Rur from halfway across the arena. “Hurry, we need to stop it!”

“What tha hell are we gonna to do when we get there?” said Captain Ankt, his chest heaving.

Major Rur pursed her lips as she looked around. Most of their most powerful people were still wrapped up fighting the aku, trying to keep them from rampaging through their forces and ending the battle quickly. “We’ll have to think of something.”

“We need some godsdamned help,” swore Captain Ankt as he wiped blood off his cheek.

Amougourest stood up, and then looked at the rows of seats that were now at eye level. It looked up and beyond the top of the arena, and apparently made its decision. Amougourest rested its hands on the edge of the wall and pulled itself up.

It froze in midair. Hanging with its body several meters in the air, Amougourest looked at its feet.

Great bands of multicolored bindings were wrapped around its legs and feet, bands of mana that wrapped around its feet and bound it to the ground. Amougourest tugged, still suspended in the air by the strength of its arms, but the bonds held.

“Keep it up!” yelled Rynthe as the god lowered itself to the ground. He and several other adventurers were glowing with power as they kept the god rooted in place. More adventurers rushed over, adding to the bindings and firing spells, taking advantage of the god’s predicament to hit it, and hit it hard.

Rynthe blanched as Amougourest turned around. Its eyes were glowing. “Spread out, spread out you idiots, it’s about to—!”

Indigo beams shot out, racing from adventurer to adventurer and knocking them off their feet. Bindings began to shatter as their casters tumbled, first a set of red, then pale yellow, then two sets of blue—and then Amougourest leaned down and ripped the others apart. Rynthe sagged to the ground as his spells were broken.

“Again!” called Rynthe as he fought to stand. He began weaving the necessary spells, mana flowing through him in the right pattern as the magick bent to his will—and then a spell hit him from the side, sending him tumbling.

Crimson lowered his hand like it was a smoking gun, and looked to see if Rynthe was still alive. He was. He lined up another shot.

As the cultists descended on the adventurers, with the aku keeping the others busy farther away, Amougourest turned back and hauled itself into the stands like a swimmer exiting a pool. The seats cracked but the building neither sagged nor crumbled, despite Amougourest’s size.

The deity hiked up the sheer cliff of the arena, its eyes already locked on the city beyond.

*      *      *

The three of them were on the topmost floor of the Catacombs now. Raedren was inspecting the metal chute that would take them topside while Mazik and Gavi looked down into the cavern Amougourest’s magick had created.

Gavi thought about Mazik’s plan again. “I’m going to die, aren’t I?”

Mazik’s grin grew wider. “Hey, the other day you said you wanted to be more help next time.” He spread his hands wide, palms up, like he was presenting her with a brand new car. “Here’s your chance.”

Gavi appeared to think about this for a second, and then punched Mazik on the shoulder, softly. “I guess someone has to keep you from getting yourself killed.”

“Isn’t that usually my job?” said Raedren, coming up behind them. “I’ve been replaced already…”

“Thanks,” said Mazik, ignoring Raedren in favor giving Gavi a quick hug. “Oh, and if it makes you feel any better, if you get killed then we’ll probably be dead shortly thereafter, so we won’t have much time to be mad.”

“That doesn’t make me feel any better, no,” said Gavi, her cheeks flushing red. She thought about it. “Okay, maybe a little.”

“Clearly, you’re a horrible person,” said Raedren. “No wonder you two get along so well.”

“Quiet you,” said Gavi.

Mazik laughed and walked over to the chute. He pointed at it. “Are we ready?” he asked Raedren. “Can we get out okay?”

In lieu of answering, Raedren reached up and pushed at the chute. Not only did it raise several centimeters into the air, the hinges popped out of their housings.

“And I suppose it hasn’t been killed since we last looked a minute ago?” asked Mazik, though he already knew the answer.

Raedren shook his head.

“Damn,” said Mazik. He nodded, and Raedren lowered the plate back down.

The three listened to the sounds of battle above as mana streamed back into their bodies, bringing them ever closer to the moment they would act.

“I never imagined I would be in a situation like this,” said Gavi, rubbing her injured arm. The sounds above were starting to get further away.

“I did,” said Mazik. “I just never expected it to actually happen.”

The trailing mana pool, Raedren’s, climbed past the three-quarters mark.

“You know, we could always wait for backup,” said Gavi.

“Yes, we could,” said Mazik as his body glowed a soft blue, “but the longer that thing’s alive, the more people who are going to suffer and die, and for some reason I find myself caring about that,” he added, flashing her a roguish grin.

Gavi shook her head, smiling wryly. “Idiot. You just want to be the star of the show.”

Mazik laughed. “Well, that too.”

Raedren’s mana pool edged up to 85 percent.

“So, what do you think is the most fate-tempting thing I could say right now?” asked Mazik as his personal mana barrier melted away and his mana pool swelled. He shuddered, feeling completely exposed. It would be hours before he would be able to reconstruct his MPB, even if he started now.