Ashley took a deep breath, looking out over the crowd of reporters that had formed when he announced he was doing a press release about the state of the Godling. He hadn’t expected it to be this big, but the Union had been garnering a lot of attention lately, in dealing with all of the clone stuff, so maybe it was to be expected. Also, this was the first time they’d ever had to announce anything regarding the Godling. No doubt people were expecting something big. They wouldn’t be disappointed.
Jordyn, Vivienne, Maggie, and Steve sat behind him, more as a show of support than anything else. They might have to come up and say a few words, but that remained to be seen. He wasn’t planning on sharing that Jordyn specifically was involved in the attack, but who knew what the reporters would ask after being told the world as they knew it was ending? They had to be ready for anything.
Ashley leaned towards the microphone and began to speak.
“Yesterday afternoon, at roughly 3pm, Andreas de Vygon came out of hiding and kidnapped a liberated clone, one who was a registered member of the Heroes’ Union. He implanted a chip in her neck, designed to make use of the programming all of the clones were created with to completely control her movements. He then used this clone to launch an assault on the Union in an attempt to free the Godling and make a wish.” Ashley grit his teeth, swallowing down his nerves. “He succeeded.”
Immediately, the crowd exploded with camera flashes and shouting, so much so that Ashley couldn’t hope to make out any individual question. He put a hand up to calm them down a bit, but it was only marginally successful. He pressed on.
“The Godling was released at approximately 8pm last night, and as of this moment we have no confirmation of Its current whereabouts. However, according to what we know of the Godling, Its first target will likely be the world’s major population centres, and based on Its vengeful nature, we expect Tombguard will be at the top of Its list. If you live in Tombguard, it is the Union’s recommendation that you evacuate immediately, as we have no way of knowing when It might strike. If evacuation isn’t an option, we recommend that you arm yourself and your loved ones and stay indoors, preferably underground or on the first floor. I will now be taking questions.”
Once again, the volume of the audience peaked in Ashley’s ears. There was no way he’d be able to answer anything like this, so he picked a reporter at random, pointing at them and holding up his other hand to quiet the rest of the crowd. “Yes?”
The man stood up straighter. “If the Godling is really free, why hasn’t It destroyed us all already?”
Good, one he could answer. “The Godling’s bindings were designed to sap Its energy. To destroy the Earth, or even just all life on it, the Godling would require multitudes more energy than It currently has. This is also likely the reason It hasn’t attacked yet. When It does, I have no doubt it will be devastating, but it will be nowhere close to presenting a threat on a global scale. That is why there’s still hope that we might be able to defeat and re-imprison It before It can cause too much damage. 700 years ago, my ancestors fought without any modern technology, understanding of magic, or inherent powers and managed to imprison It. Today, we have centuries of advancement to fall back on, not to mention the fact that the Godling is weakened. Even if our infrastructure is damaged in Its attack, our modern methods of communication ensure that the entire world will present a united front against It. What I mean to say is, this is not the end of the world. This is not the beginning of a new era of Godling subjugation. Humanity has persevered and endured through two hundred thousand years of hardships. This will just be one more for the books. The only way we lose is if we lose hope.”
Pride flushed through Ashley as the crowd erupted into scattered applause and frantic discussion. He picked out another reporter, holding their hand up with a question.
“What sort of defences did the Union have prepared for this sort of attack?”
Ah. Ashley knew something like this would come up eventually. He sighed. “Unfortunately, we never predicted someone would be stupid enough to actually try something like this, so the only defences we had were ourselves, and the door to the prison itself. I should mention that that door was both magically and physically sealed shut, but de Vygon came prepared with explosives and the pre-requisite knowledge to disable the runic protections. He took us by surprise, and almost killed every Union member present at the time, including myself. The only reason we’re still alive is because de Vygon didn’t account for the wish not actually going to him. He planned for the clone he captured to make the wish for him, to get around the fact that only someone with a power can get close to the Godling, but for whatever reason, that didn’t work. The clone wished to heal everyone injured in the attack, which saved us.”
“Where is Andreas de Vygon now?”
“He’s currently in Union custody. We’ve converted one of our dorm rooms into a cell, and we’re keeping him there. Aside from a small incident in the aftermath of the attack, he has largely cooperated with us. We’re willing to discuss his situation with the police, but we are also willing to hold onto him until the situation settles down if need be.”
“Do you think this had anything to do with Sebastian Beaumond’s mysterious escape from prison last night?”
Ashley blinked, tilting his head. He heard Jordyn gasp behind him. “I- I’m sorry, I hadn’t heard about that.”
“He was reported missing from his cell just after 8pm, and the body of his cellmate was found stabbed to death. Camera footage showed no one coming near the cell, and nothing unusual outside. He just vanished.”
They were right in that it was unusual, but Ashley wasn’t sure what it had to do with the Godling. “I’m afraid I don’t have anything to say about that. All I know is what we witnessed here last night.”
“How are you going to take responsibility for your negligence allowing the Godling to escape?”
Ashley clenched his fists. “The prison itself was perfectly secure for its purpose. The Godling never showed any sign of attempted escape. We just never anticipated an attack from the outside. Yes, the wish was a tempting prize, but we never predicted anyone would come along with the determination, callousness, and resources to be able to actually break in. This situation with Mr. de Vygon was a freak occurrence that no one could’ve seen coming, especially after he went on the run.”
Thankfully, the crowd seemed mostly satisfied with that answer, though there were still a few hecklers, as was to be expected in a situation like this. Regardless of his excuses, this only happened because he and his family had grown complacent. Had he just been a little more proactive, maybe he’d be at home enjoying a regular morning right now.
The press release wrapped up quickly from there. Most of the important details had been covered, and people were eager to begin their evacuation prep. A few more photos were taken, but before long, the group of them teleported back to the Union to decompress and plan their next move.
“Uhm, I think… I think I know where the Godling went after it escaped,” Jordyn said as they reconvened in Ashley’s office.
Ashley raised an eyebrow. “Where?”
She sat down, staring at the floor. “What that reporter said… about Sebastian Beaumond, and how he disappeared from prison. There was always something… strange about him, but I could never put my finger on it. I just… always got this sense of unease whenever I looked into his eyes. And it wasn’t just because he was complicit in what happened to me. Even when he hurt me, Andreas’ eyes never made me feel weird like that. But Beaumond’s, just… It’s like there’s nothing behind them whatsoever. And that feeling, it’s exactly what it feels like when the Godling gets inside my head. It always seemed like he knew more than everyone else about Andreas’ plan, so maybe… I don’t know. Maybe he was working with the Godling? Funding Project Genesis because he knew it would result in the Godling being freed?”
Siobhan hummed. “It’s not unheard of for It to prepare ideal hosts ahead of time, stealing the souls of newborns to leave room inside of them for possession once they come of age. I just never assumed It would be capable of such an intricate action from within Its bindings. Though, I suppose it explains the quiet period we had when I was a young girl, where no monsters attacked anywhere for an entire decade. It must’ve been the Godling saving up energy to extract a soul.”
Ashley rubbed his eyes, sitting down at his desk chair. “We should’ve been prepared for this. All those fortifications to the prison itself yet we barely set anything up to prevent an attack from the outside. If we just had a single blast door somewhere in the hallway that we could close in an emergency, none of this would’ve happened.”
“Andreas still would’ve stormed through and hurt all of you,” Jordyn said, her voice rough. “Only, then I wouldn’t have been able to save you. Yeah, the Godling wouldn’t be free, but… you’d all be dead. And… I’d rather live in a shitty world where I have you guys, than a safe one alone.”
Vivienne rubbed Jordyn’s back. Ashley sighed. “I suppose you’re right.”
“Enough of this shit,” Maggie growled, standing up. “Wondering what could’ve gone differently isn’t gonna change anything. What we have right now is the reality, and we need to accept it. Now, unless you guys need anything else, I’m gonna take Hex and start training, because we need to be ready when shit hits the fan. Anyone who wants to join me can meet me in the gym. Otherwise, figure out some other way to be useful. We all need to pitch in now.”
With that, she turned and left.
“Someone’s been watching a few too many movies,” Steve said under his breath.
“She’s just stressed,” Jordyn replied. “And… I get where she’s coming from. For all the formative months of our development, we had it drilled into us that the only thing we were good at is violence. And now, at a time where everything seems to be falling apart, it feels like the only thing we can reliably fall back on to keep us and our loved ones safe. I… feel exactly the same. It sucks, because we just finished telling Eight and Nine that they wouldn’t have to fight anymore, but we might not have a choice.”
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to Jordyn,” Vivienne said. “Maggie even said, find some other way to be useful. There is so much you can do to help people without having to fight.”
Jordyn shook her head. “No. I… I know what you’re saying, but… I can’t accept that.” She stood up. “I know you all think this isn’t my fault, but like it or not, I did cause this. And, like it or not, I’m the strongest person in this entire city; you all saw that last night. I can’t justify not fighting. I was literally made to fight, and… I have to do something to make up for what I did. So… I’m gonna go join Maggie.”
Vivienne stood up, taking her hands. “Okay, Jordyn. Just… Don't push yourself too hard, okay?”
“I won’t,” she replied, leaning in and planting a quick kiss on Vivienne’s lips.”I know how to pace myself.”
She let go of Vivienne’s hands and left.
Vivienne looked around, cheeks slightly pink. “I, uh… I’m gonna…”
Without any further explanation, she teleported away.
Steve huffed a tired laugh. “Those kids, I swear.” He turned to Ashley. “Unless there’s anything else, I’m gonna get back to my post. Gotta keep an eye on things with all the chaos that’s about to be unleashed.”
He walked out the door, leaning much lighter on his cane than he used to.
And with that, only Ashley and Siobhan remained. He leaned back, looking up at the ceiling.
“What am I gonna do, mom?” he asked after a long pause.
“Your best, sweetie,” she replied. “Just like you always do.”
—
The news broke not long after, and predictably, the city immediately descended into chaos as people decided between evacuating and holing up. Stores were looted and crime skyrocketed. Maggie, Viv, and I headed out onto the streets to try and quell some of the pandemonium, trying to stop people from getting hurt. But, in a city as big as Tombguard, there was only so much ground the three of us could cover. It made for some halfway decent training to shake off the rust, but that was about the only positive that could be gleaned from the situation. In the end, we had no choice but to retreat back to the Union and leave the civil protection to the police.
Maggie and I started a training regime in the gym for anyone else who wanted to learn how to fight. Brianna showed up pretty much every day, as did Eight (now going by Ettie) and Ten. Nine (or, Nina, as she preferred to be called) spent most of her time helping out around the place, such as in the kitchen. We’d begun setting up a shelter in the main conference room for those with nowhere else to go, so food was a pretty big need for everyone.
The city government had taken temporary control of the local grocery stores, to ensure that food was still being distributed while allowing the workers the opportunity to evacuate should they wish to do so. Vivienne’s job was largely to transport food and other important supplies to the Union from wherever she was getting them. Thankfully, due to her power, she could also source from outside the city if need be. As such, we didn’t really get to see much of each other for a few days as preparations continued, catching brief moments together as we rushed between different jobs, and when we settled down back at our apartment at the end of each day, falling asleep from exhaustion before we could really enjoy each other’s presence. I missed her.
Rosalyn and Maddie finally showed up after their little three-day honeymoon ended. It wasn’t hard to guess what they spent most of the time doing, judging by the hickey-covered state of their necks, but I could hardly blame them for that. Regardless, they both seemed in good spirits when they arrived; eager to help out in whatever way they could. Maddie had that look in her eye like she still couldn’t believe what was happening, but as long as she and Rosalyn stayed attached at the hip, she seemed happy.
Apparently, they’d taken the time to tell Rosalyn’s parents what had happened before they came here, and helped them evacuate. I knew they weren’t really… my parents, but it was comforting to know they’d be safe away from where all the action would no doubt be happening. And I could only imagine how happy they’d be now that their real daughter had come back to them.
About four days after the Godling was freed, I found myself wandering into the kitchen one afternoon, seeking out my girlfriend after training had finished. She was washing the dishes that didn’t fit into the dishwasher after lunch, getting things ready for dinner prep to start. At this point, about half a dozen people had moved into the conference room, so kitchen work was quickly becoming a round-the-clock job. The civilians were thankfully volunteering to help as well, which took the load off of Vivienne and Nina a bit, but cooking for such an increasingly large number of people always required extra helping hands, so they were never too far from their stations.
“Hey,” I said, approaching her in the brightly lit kitchen. No one else was around, but the radio was playing. “Need any help?”
She glanced over at me. The bags under her eyes had grown heavy again, like they were back before Maddie and I got her to relax at the cabin. The sight sent a pang of sadness through my chest. “Oh, hey! Yeah, would you mind drying these for me? We’ll get it done quicker.”
I sidled up beside her, grabbing a teatowel and getting straight to it. “Sure.”
We worked in silence for a while. Vivienne hummed along to the radio, occasionally singing quietly when she knew the words, and I just listened and enjoyed the sound of her voice, drying off dishes and putting them back in their places. Eventually, the radio switched from music to commentary, and Vivienne spoke.
“How’s training going?”
I sighed. “It’s going. Brea’s making great progress, at least. She figured out how to keep her extremities materialised while her arms and legs are smoke, so she basically has floating hands now. Combat applications are still pending, but she’s really proud of herself. I am, too.”
“That’s good,” Vivienne replied. “She needed a win after the other night. But, what about you? Don’t think I didn’t notice you dodge the question.”
“I’m trying not to think about it too much,” I answered truthfully. “If I can just push the meaning behind it out of my mind, it just feels like a regular workout. But… It’s not always easy. Especially when I’m with Maggie, too many things are just… Familiar.”
Viv took her hands out of the water, quickly dried them off, and pulled me into a hug that I gratefully sunk into. “You don’t have to keep doing this if it’s hurting you, Jordyn. You’re already the strongest person here.”
I shook my head against her shoulder. “It’s not enough. Ettie, Nina, and Ten still beat me. The whole reason all of this is happening is because I slacked off and let myself slip.”
She pulled back slightly to look me in the eye. “Do you think Maggie’s been keeping up with the same training schedule she had back under Andreas for the past two years? Of course not, so you can’t blame yourself for that either.”
“Maggie doesn’t count, she’s super strong already.”
Vivienne sighed, tracing her hands up to cup my cheeks. “Oh, Jordie…”
Something felt off about them. I reached up, gently taking one to examine it. Her skin was bleached; raised, cracked, and bleeding around her nail beds from being submerged in the soapy water for too long. I gasped.
“Vivienne, your hands! Why didn’t you wear gloves?”
She winced, glancing to the side. “I… I couldn’t find them. The dishes needed to be done. It’s fine, it doesn’t hurt.”
“You can’t get on my ass about pushing myself too hard when you’re doing stuff like this,” I quietly huffed, gently kissing her fingers. “You have to take care of yourself, too. That’s the deal.”
Viv rolled her eyes, but a smile spread on her lips. “Fine. I can’t argue with you. We’ll swap places.”
I grinned. “Sure. But first… can I get a kiss?”
Viv leaned in until I could feel her breath on my skin. “Of course.”
We came together softly. Her lips were dry, a little chapped, but I didn’t mind in the slightest, sighing against her, putting my hands on her hips and gently squeezing. She smiled against my mouth, teasing me with the slightest brush of tongue as the kiss lingered on. I’d only intended for a quick peck to refill my energy, but now that we were intertwined like this, I didn’t want to pull away. It seemed Vivienne felt the same.
Unfortunately for us, our fun was short-lived, as someone in the doorway cleared their throat and startled us apart.
We whirled around, finding Maggie, Steve, and…
Andreas?!
“What the fuck?” I exclaimed.
Maggie smirked. “Keep it PG in the kitchen, ladies.”
She had one arm behind Andreas’ back, presumably keeping hold of him. The man himself had his hands cuffed in front of him, staring past me at the far wall. His face still bore the bruises from the night of the attack, and every movement he made seemed to bring him pain. He was dressed in what I recognised as the spare sleep clothes we kept on hand. Without all of his military gear or the slightly crazed frazzle he had going on at his hideout, he just looked like a regular, weak old man.
“What’s he doing here?” Vivienne asked.
“Believe it or not,” Steve said, “he said he wants to help out. Right now, we’re not in a position to deny that, so we figured you kitchen workers could use a hand with all the new residents.”
“I don’t believe it,” I replied. “There’s no way this isn’t just another one of his schemes. Don’t let your guard down.”
“As if,” Maggie said. “No, whenever he’s out of his cell, Steve and I are gonna be keeping a round-the-clock eye on him. He doesn’t do anything without us knowing about it.”
Vivienne hummed. “I’m not sure this is a good idea. Even just for Nina, she won’t be able to work well if he’s around.”
“Already considered that. We’ll make sure there’s no contact between him and the triplets unless they initiate it.”
I bit my lip, staring at him. “Well… If you guys think it’ll work. But…” I took a step closer to him. “Why do you want to help? Why not just stay in your cell where you don’t have to do anything?”
Andreas kept his eyes on the wall behind me. “My reasons are my own.”
I wasn’t sure what I expected, really.
“Either way, you two clearly need a break,” Maggie said, “So Andy here is gonna handle the rest of the dishes while you two relax. Consider it his way of making up for the other night.” She smiled widely, patting him on the back and definitely enjoying this a little too much. Andreas’ eyebrow twitched, but he otherwise didn’t react.
“I won’t argue with that,” Viv said, taking my hand and leading me out of the room without any further ado. “Have fun!”
“I will!” Maggie called back.
I laughed, more out of nerves than anything, letting go of Viv’s hand to wrap an arm around her waist as we walked. “Wow. I don’t even know what to say to that.”
“I know, right?” Viv replied. “So, what do you wanna do? We’ve got a bit of time to kill.”
I grinned, moving my hand down from its strategically chosen position to squeeze Viv’s ass. She squeaked.
“I can think of a few things,” I said with a wink.
She smirked, turning and pulling me close until our faces were inches apart. “That’s all I needed to hear.”
The world around us popped and we fell into bed back at our apartment, ready to enjoy some proper quality time together.
—
A few more tense days passed as we waited for the other shoe to drop, but it never did. It had been an entire week since the Godling was freed, and apart from Its presumed rendezvous with Beaumond, there had been no sightings of it the world over. Life in other cities continued on as if nothing was amiss. In Tombguard, barely half of the population still remained in the metro area, all hiding away and preparing for an apocalyptic eventuality that, at this point, seemed like it might never come.
Vivienne and I laid in bed, both pretending to sleep. The digital clock on the nightstand displayed 11:45pm. We went to bed at 9. Something about falling asleep just wasn’t clicking tonight.
I sighed, rolling over and resting my head on her chest, forgoing the pretense and just accepting that we were awake, and we had to deal with it.
“Do you think… we made a mistake?” I asked quietly, whispering into the dark.
Vivienne took a moment to reply “...About what?”
“Announcing it. Half the city evacuated. There’s all this chaos. What if… What if the Godling never actually attacks? What if it was all for nothing? What if It just… got sick of humanity after being imprisoned for so long, and decided to leave?”
Viv reached up, threading her hand through my hair and lightly scratching my scalp. I shivered, sinking into her. “What if we did nothing, and Its attack killed half the population? A little bit of chaos is a small price to pay for peace of mind against something like that. Even if It has decided to leave. There’s no way for us to know.”
“But how long are we gonna be stuck in this holding pattern? We’re just… waiting. How long do we wait before we decide to go back to normal? What if Its waiting for us to do that before It attacks?”
“Jordie…” Vivienne sighed. “You gotta get out of your own head. Overthinking like that won’t do any good. All we can react to is what’s in front of us. If we’re wrong… then we’re wrong. It’ll be no one’s fault.”
“I know, I just… I can’t sleep. And every time I close my eyes it’s all I can think about.”
First it was Andreas’ drill and all the horror from the attack, and now this. If not for the intensive training exhausting me enough to knock me right out most days, I’d probably be neurotic by now.
“You wanna put on the TV?”
Distraction was usually the best medicine in these cases. I shifted a little to look down the end of the bed at the TV. “Yeah.”
Vivienne reached for the remote on her bed-side table. Goosebumps shot up my arms. My spine tingled. I sat up.
“Do you feel that?” I asked.
Viv blinked up at me. “Feel wha-”
A light bright enough to burn straight through my corneas flashed through the window. I grabbed Vivienne, pulling her close and summoning any shadows I could find to wrap around us as the shockwave hit. We were thrown from the bed, slamming into a wall as the world crashed down around us. All I could do was squeeze my eyes shut, hold her, and pray as I reinforced my shadows just in case it wasn’t over.
Eventually, the rumbling around our little cocoon ceased. By the feeling from the darkness around me, it seemed like the roof had collapsed on us, along with all the apartments above ours. We were trapped deep under the rubble.
Vivienne’s entire body shook, and she clung to me like a scared cat. Her whimpering would’ve broken my heart, if it wasn’t beating so fast.
“It’s okay,” I whispered into her neck, trying to keep my composure for her. So long as she could teleport us out, we’d be fine. “We’re okay. We’re safe.”
“Wh-what… What j-just happened?” she stammered quietly.
“I… I don’t think we have to worry about whether we made the right choice or not anymore.”
Vivienne sucked in a breath. “...Fuck.”
“Can you teleport? I don’t think we have much oxygen left.”
“Y-yeah, I think so. Hold on.”
After a moment, the environment beyond my shadows changed. I felt open air above us, and slowly released my hold, letting the darkness dissipate.
We were on a rooftop, some ways away from our apartment. Vivienne and I stood up, taking in our surroundings. Vivienne cursed.
Everything in a massive radius around where the central business district used to be was completely destroyed. In its place sat a huge crater. Most of the buildings surrounding it had crumbled, just like our apartment. Even here, a good few kilometres further away from the impact site, every window was shattered. Cold wind blew from behind us, nipping at our skin and making us shiver. Car alarms blared in every direction. Smoke filled our nostrils as fires lit up across the ruins.
Total, complete devastation. This was the power of the Godling.
“Our apartment…” Viv whispered. “It… It’s all gone. Everything I owned, it… It’s gone.”
She broke down, dropping to her knees and sobbing into her hands, staring wide-eyed at the collapse of everything we’d built.
Really, what else was there to do?
I joined her on the floor, holding her close and crying along.
