“Shit!” I whispered as I glanced back into the street. Even though the bot and I had killed a veritable mountain of Antithesis in the alley, there was already another pack back in the street. “I’m never going to get home to check on the kids at this rate.”

  Can’t you just call? I am detecting proper network enabled augments within your head. Although they’re quite out of date.

  I paused. I’d often forgotten that I had augs, since they were so old they didn’t even have a datalink. Very few places above ground still supported their protocols anymore, and here in the undercity coverage was spotty at best. I normally muted them because I received more network errors than messages. As soon as I turned off the mute I winced, that was a shit ton of missed calls.

  I skimmed the call log briefly before dismissing it, I had an important call to make.

  The strange electronic ringing noise echoed through my head, and went on far longer than I was comfortable with until the call connected.

  [Teddy? Did you finally remember you have the ability to call home?] the voice on the other side said dryly.

  [Stuff it Alan, this is important,] I shouted at my adopted brother. [Is the door barred right now? Is the place secure?]

  There was a momentary pause. [Of course it is, I’m not stupid. Why?] Alan asked.

  [Because that Antithesis warning, it wasn’t fucking garbage like usual. It’s real. The streets are swarming,] I told him. [Who’s home?]

  [It’s just me, Issi and Eddie,] Alan replied, his previously haughty tone replaced with mild fear. [Marcus took Jennifer out for training, and Jane’s on a job.]

  [Fuck! Alright, I’m heading your way.]

  [No fucking way,] Alan snapped. [You sold most of your tools last week to feed the kids, what are you going to do? Swear the aliens to death.] I considered telling him I’d become a samurai, but before I could Alan continued. [Besides, the burrow is hidden from the streets, and has that hatch you and Marcus put together. Solid steel. Even the aliens would have trouble getting through that. You just stay where you are, and stay safe.]

  I chewed on my lip for a minute, before conceding. [Fine, you’re right. Our place is probably one of the safest in the area. Just keep the door closed until Jane, Marcus or I tell you otherwise.]

  Alan snorted. [I’m not stupid, I know the procedures.] He paused for a moment. [I’m more worried about you and the others. Stay safe out there,] Alan said quietly.

  [Don’t worry, I won’t let those fucking plants anywhere near me. Talk to you later,] I replied equally subdued. We didn’t need any other words, so I cut the connection.

  Once I’d finished the call I brought up the call log again. There was one message from Jane, nothing from Marcus or Jeniffer. Probably not a good sign. I made a quick call to Marcus but it didn’t connect. Half the district didn’t have coverage, so that wasn’t a huge surprise. Being in an area without service was better than the alternative.

  Next I pulled up Jane’s message, to try and keep my mind off the situation. It was just a single line. [Stuck in Terminal. Building filled with Antithesis, but I’m safe for now. Don’t do anything stupid Teddy, stay safe. Jane.]

  “Fuck!” I whispered as I disconnected from the system. I jogged to the end of the alley, pulled out my CAR, and unloaded half a clip upon the Antithesis in the street. As soon as they dropped, I started to run.

  Is there a problem?

  “There are only a half dozen places that could realistically put up any sort of resistance to the Antithesis around here,” I explained as I bolted down the street. “There’s the precinct. As you can imagine the cops aren’t popular around here, they pretty much only come when there’s a murder to investigate. They take civilians in during incursions, and the cops are better armed than the gangs. Not worried about them.” I paused as I came to an intersection, checking both directions before I took off again. "Then there are the gang strongholds. Most are constructed out of a hodgepodge of scrap metal and duct tape, but they’re still better than the buildings around here. Most of them would protect the locals, if only to ensure their profit didn’t drop. I’d check them, but the majority of them would probably shoot me before I got close at this point.” I slowed to a walk, breathing heavily. I was in fairly good shape, but carrying around this fucking rifle was killing me.

  I quickly checked the area, making sure nothing was sneaking up on me, but Spooky was much faster. The bot cut down every Antithesis in the area before I even spotted them.

  “Finally we have the terminal. The undercity supposedly had a working train network at one time, way back, before it became the slum that it is now. Supplies came down the main lift and were shipped out on trams to where they were needed.” I explained, as I recovered my breath. “It was shut down long before I was born, but the central station is still there. It’s a huge concrete block, multiple levels, only ways in are through the tracks, which have heavy duty steel security doors, and heavy security doors on the upper level. The Brokers took it over years ago, it’s sort of a trading hub where people buy topside commodities,” I said as I took off running again.

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  Then why are you concerned?

  “The building has massive metal shutters at each entrance, which the Brokers can close during emergencies. The fact that the Antithesis are INSIDE, means something went seriously wrong,” I huffed. “The place is a massive market, so there should have been hundreds, if not thousands of people inside when the incursion started. The Brokers aren’t pushovers, they bring weapons down from the upper city, so they should have been able to hold their own stronghold. Something must have gone completely fucking sideway for them to be pushed back. Whatever the reason, Jane’s now trapped inside with who knows how many other people. I need to investigate."

  The buildings blurred by as I pushed my body, Spooky’s feet thudded behind me.

  I was doing my best to make good time through the mostly empty street, and I admit, I got a little reckless. And I paid for it.

  One second I was running my heart out, and the next I felt immense pain as something swept my legs out from under me, throwing me face down onto the street. I was vaguely aware of Spooky firing at something. It was hard to tell, darkness crept into the corner of my vision.

  …lyn, Evelyn, listen to me. You need to listen to me, you need to get off the street or you’re not going to survive long enough to treat your injury.

  That didn’t make sense, “What injury?” I mumbled.

  Model four, you’re lucky it only got you in the leg. Spooky killed it, but the spike is still stuck in your leg. You need to get off the street, the Antithesis will smell the blood.

  There was an immense weight on my right leg, which prevented me from flipping over. I had to push myself off the ground and twist at the waist to see the problem. A Model Four lay at the entrance of the alley I had just tried to pass, a single tentacle extended out into the street. Following the offending limb I found what could only be described as a barbed bone harpoon. I could see the first three inches of it, unfortunately that meant the remaining nine inches of it went right through my calf and out the other side. The sight made me nauseous, my eyes watered.

  Concentrate, time is of the essence. First, I recommend severing that spike and getting you mobile. It could be done with a bonesaw out of the Class I medical utilities, but I wouldn’t recommend it. A faster option would be a thermal blade from the Class I thermal melee weapons that’ll cost you 100 points total.

  The pain was excruciating, why was Nyx making me make decisions right now? “Just do it!” I screamed.

  A package materialized in my outstretched hands, nearly as big as my gun. I quickly popped off the lid and exposed something I hadn’t expected.

  “Is this a fucking fire-ax?” I snarled.

  Not fire, Thermal axe, it’ll cut through that spike easily.

  “Like hell it will,” I replied through gritted teeth. Darkness was approaching the corner of my vision, and I had to fight to keep conscious. “How am I supposed to swing this from this position?”

  You don’t, I’ve got you an assistant.

  Before I could react Spooky pulled the axe out of my hands, the blade started to glow a bright red. It took a step to the left and, in a single fluid motion, brought the axe down. There was a brief sizzling noise, then my leg pulled free of the model four that had been anchoring me.

  Barely a second later the bot stuck its arms under my shoulders, dragged me up the nearby stairs, kicked open someone’s door, and unceremoniously dumped my butt into the landing.

  Now, I recommend you unlock the Class I medical utilities for 50 points. Buy a pain blocker for 5 points, a woundstop for 5 points, a Class I nano-regenerative suite for 15 points and, just in case, a wake-up booster for another 5. 80 points total.

  “All at once?” I asked groggily.

  Yes, I hate to tell you this, but I doubt you’re going to be in the right state of mind to do this all by yourself. Time is of the essence.

  “Just do it then,” I muttered. A half dozen packages materialized next to me, set in a neat line.

  Take the first package, the pain blocker, and inject it just above the spike.

  My hands shook violently as I followed the instructions, almost immediately the pain dulled, though didn’t dissipate entirely.

  Now take a deep breath in, try not to scream.

  “What do you mean by that?” I asked suspiciously. As I watched Spooky knelt down, put one hand on my shoulder, the other on the tip of the spike emerging from the inner part of my calf, and wrenched the spike pulling it fully through my leg. The pain was excruciating, even with the pain killer.

  I may have blacked out for a moment, it was hard to tell, I was faintly aware of Spooky sticking various medical boosters into my wound. The last injector was stabbed into my chest, and I immediately went from semi conscious to fully aware in an instant. The pain in my leg was still there, but dulled somewhat.

  Now, all better, ish. I’m glad Spooky was around to be my hands, I’m pretty sure you wouldn’t have been able to do that yourself.

  “That was horrible,” I gasped. “Never again.”

  Good, we’ll chalk that up to a learning experience. Now back on your feet.

  “Seriously? I just had something ripped THROUGH my leg. I’m in no position to move right now,” I said.

  The nano-regenerator is fixing the wound right up. You might not be able to run right away, but give it a few minutes.

  I stood, unsteady, but the leg held. Hobbling the first dozen steps, walking more confidently with each step. As I scooped up my CAR and the axe I marveled at how efficient the nanites were, I could really feel them working.

  “So, where are my points at? I wasn’t sure I’d even have the points for all that stuff when you started throwing prices at me,” I asked as I tested my leg. Not quite good as new, but surprisingly stable, and feeling better every second.

  With all the random packs you encountered you managed to get the total up to 319. The emergency medical care puts you back down to 139.

  “Reload Spooky. I want to build up a reserve, maybe 100 points in case something like that happens again, but as soon as I build up enough points get me another bot. Too useful,” I explained as I rested my hand on Spooky’s shoulder. “You’re growing on me, thanks bud.”

  He did nothing.

  and gain access to my full backlog for all stories!

  Here's the link:

  server!

  Here's the link:

  Check out my Stories:

  Big thanks to all those people that review my draft, the chapters would be a lot rougher without your feedback!