Outrun – Cyberpunk LitRPG
Chapter 243

After setting up the last of the bombs, we moved to the rendezvous point. It was closer to the frontline we’d be holding. And then we waited. For three days, we just sat around waiting. Part of the reason we were waiting was for the demolition crews to come back. Some routes took longer, and like what happened to us, sometimes the intel was just a bit off. Reroutes obviously took longer.

Eventually, though, all the demolition crews were grouped up in a large cavern, waiting patiently. Originally, by the time we arrived, it was already full of turrets, sentries, and Crusaders all holding the line. This particular cavern had our route back up to the surface.

According to Ligh, we needed three things to happen before we could leave. One, we needed the Crusade to push far enough to our location to safely extract. Two, confirmation that the raid team shut off the city's utilities for this area. And finally three, confirmation from HQ that the primed areas had been fully evacuated.

That isn’t to say we weren’t busy, though. The cavern we held backed right below the cult’s main HQ. The cult may not have had defenses across the entire underground of the AEZ, but they definitely had them under their base. Plants constantly poured into the cavern, and we acted as a shield, keeping them from spreading into the rest of the Underground.

According to some rumors I heard while defending the location, scouts reported that the great tree’s roots even came all the way down here. There were supposedly entire root-filled caves and caverns that acted like monster spawn rooms. The enemy's numbers were potentially endless. If they got out into the rest of the city through the Underground? Chaos. Pure chaos.

The days down here weren’t pleasant. Sleeping was difficult with the constant gunfire and warnings of new waves. The food was also bland silage that the Crusade brought down. I avoided most meal times and stuck to my canteen. I'd had enough silage to last me a lifetime. Unfortunately, Hope was worried about me not eating and wouldn't leave until I forced it down my throat. Ugh.

Having a mask on for three days also sucked. They were hard to breathe in in the first place, and my lungs ached from the overwork. The stench of rotting plants and corrosive goop that occasionally got through the mask was equally uncomfortable.

If there were some things to be happy about, it’d be that I was farming Skill experience from the constant waves. The Crusade provided ample ammo, weapons, and equipment. It was exciting at first, but I soon got used to the monotony and started going out of my way to try new things.

Shooting the HMGs the Crusade setup had been a riot. I didn’t have chrome arms, and the HMGs the Crusade brought down were kick monsters. It made it rough to aim, but damn were they fun. It was impressive seeing a massive .50 cal punch through bullet-resistant bark like it was butter. Especially considering I was used to seeing bullets bounce off or get stuck in the plant's bark armor. Looked like Mother's forces weren't the only ones learning.

The entire time I was firing it, my brain constantly churned with ideas on how to create a recoilless version of the gun so I could fire it easier. Maybe even a heavy automatic coil gun? It’d be wicked to whip out a .50 cal out of nowhere and just start blasting if push came to shove. I still had that one stashed in my speakeasy, I hadn't found much of a use for.

All this time, I’d been working on special bullets thanks to Aether Imbuement. I forgot a simple fact—big bullet equals big damage. If one big bullet wasn’t enough, fire a hundred. Overkill? No such thing. Underkill was the big issue. IF big bullet no work, go big bomb. No bomb? Ooga booga, charge into the enemy without any regard for safety-

Ugh! The Crusade! It's infecting me. Help! I- I gotta get out of here-

"Where are you going?" Hope asked me as I shot up.

"N-nowhere." I forced myself back down as I grabbed my notebook and started lazily drawing again.

Of course, big equipment brought me back to the same issue as always. I simply didn’t have enough carrying capacity for all the stuff I wanted to carry. Then that line of thought brought me to something I’d originally put on hold. The Aether Jumping tech would solve most of my problems. Once this was over, it would be one of the first things I got to work on.

Aside from the big guns that I convinced the Crusaders to let me use with a sweet, honest smile and innocent glee in my eyes, I likewise convinced the explosive enthusiasts to teach me a thing or two. Most of them were happy to share their passion with me. Big bomb here I come. Hopefully, being actually trained a bit would help raise my Skill. 

And then there were the medics I worked alongside. With the Crusade full of melee enthusiasts, there were plenty of chances to get injured. Especially once the monsters started bringing those small octopus-type drilling monsters that I saw on the ship. The ones that latched on and then tried to grind through armor.

They were enhanced now, smart enough to get around the Crusade’s armor and drill directly into flesh. The marks they left were nasty, and the medics were already few in number. They appreciated my help, especially when it came to Calming some of the more erratic injured. Who would've thought that having your flesh drilled out of your body was insanely painful?

All in all, while the three days had been a drag, they were a great opportunity to use some of the Skills I hadn’t been able to for a while. Hopefully, it’d result in a few level-ups. I was especially looking forward to explosives hitting four and getting me my first Perk.

Speaking of the interface, it was eighty percent through its upgrade. It wouldn’t be long now before I could fully access whatever the eidolons had in store for me. 

Maybe I’d even be able to get a Trait point by the end of this, too. There were several Requests active for one. I’d been thinking of which Trait I’d want to grab if I ever got the opportunity. It'd been an off-and-on thought plaguing me since I got the interface, second-guessing if I really picked the best Traits I could've.

I was really looking forward to the day the cult would be dead and buried, and all of this would end. Thankfully, the end was starting to come into view slowly but surely.

— — —

Aether Jumping sure was interesting. I couldn’t make one capable of transporting a living creature without destabilizing it thanks to money and technological limitations, but theoretically I could whip something up that the unliving, like a robot, could pass through. I had most of the stuff, anyway-

”Zuku!” Hope’s voice called to me. I set aside the documents I was reading and looked up at the woman. “It’s time.”

I stood up, gathering my stuff. “Really?”

”Orders finally came in. C’mon, the Inquisitor is waiting.” Hope waited for me to get all my stuff before moving with me towards our group.

”I’m so ready to get out of here.” I commented idly as we moved through the camp. The entire place was being torn down and packed up.

Hope slicked back her hair and adjusted the respirator covering the bottom half of her face. “At least it wasn’t a week.”

”If it were a week, I doubt we’d still be fighting… how long do you think it’ll take for the cult’s ritual to finish?” I asked the Squire. Honestly, I thought it’d be over in a few days. It’d been almost five since we raided the super-carrier.

”A month? A couple of weeks? Not too sure about all that magic stuff.” The Squire shrugged her shoulders. Her guess was way different from mine. Too bad none of the magic experts were down here with us, or I would've picked their brains too over the three days we’d been confinded down here.

We walked in silence toward the group. Inquisitor Ligh had set up on the side of the cave, right next to the path up out of the Underground. He leaned against the wall, watching everyone move about. Joshua and Dev stood close by, the latter of whom looked even worse for wear than usual. And yet he practically bounced like a puppy as he stared at the way up.

His attention moved to me and Hope as we approached. “All here? Packed up?”

”Chek.” I replied. The other’s confirmation wasn't far behind my own.

”Then we’re moving.” Inquisitor’s cold, emotionless voice brought me some amount of happiness as he announced we were finally leaving. “I got ush on the advanced shcouting party. We’ll look around a bit, then find a spot to watch the fireworksh.”

I looked around, spotting six other groups of five. They were in a similar position to us, waiting at the exit. Unfortunately, we were the last of the groups to leave, taking a makeshift rope elevator up to the surface. It was much easier than how I usually came and went, operated entirely automatically. A bit slow, but not bad considering it was carrying five loaded Crusaders.

The ropes were a bit sketchy, but we arrived in the basement of a supermarket, back up near street level, shortly after. The other squads had already split off, leaving a small group guarding the building from attackers. 

Inquisitor Ligh led the way out as I used the nearby landmarks to locate our exact position. We were about two blocks from the frontline, behind friendly lines. Even from this far away, as we stepped onto abandoned streets, I could hear the fighting.

The Inquisitor paused and fished out his flask as we left the other Crusader’s line of sight. “Does anyone know where the tallesht building nearby ish?

I shared a look with the other Squires. “Um- a couple blocks behind enemy lines?”

”On our shide.”

”Oh, that way. Tenpenny Tower, I think it's called.” I pointed toward a skyscraper that just peeked over the nearby buildings. It was a block closer to the enemy line. It'd probably be fine, right?

”We’re moving.” Inquisitor Ligh didn’t doubt me and headed toward the tower. 

The rest of us followed, keeping our eyes peeled. We were back up on the streets of the AEZ. Even though we were technically behind friendly lines, there was a good chance an ambush force might have gotten past perimeter patrols. 

That all proved for naught as we easily arrived at our destination. I thought they were shutting down the AEZ’s utilities, but electricity still seemed to be flowing just fine. The elevator worked, anyway. It carried us to the top floor. 

As it dinged, we stepped out into a luxury penthouse suite-

I flinched back, ducking behind Dev as several guns flicked up in our direction. Insight didn’t offer a hint of warning as I brought my own up to-

“Hold fire! Friendly, friendly!” The mechanized voice of a woman shouted from inside the penthouse. Even though the call came to hold fire, the tension amped up for a few moments as we all took in the situation we found ourselves in.

We weren’t the only ones up here. A group of women, numbering seven in total, stood scattered around the penthouse. All of them were in full, top-class armor. Their bodies were fully protected by bronze plates that practically radiated sleek professionalism. From the gaps between plates, an ominous red glowed.

Their armor was somewhat individualized, with three being in heavier sets that looked akin to power armor with attached shoulder-mounted heavy guns. The rest wore sleeker variants that seemed to be more focused on agility. All of them were armed to the teeth, though.

What looked like mechanized wings peeked over their shoulders, folded neatly against their spines. Even from here, I spotted dozens of micro thrusters. As it looked, there weren’t enough thrusters to provide substantial lift. Maybe for the lighter ones, but definitely not in the ones in the heavier sets. Why have them in the first place?

The four ones in lighter armor stood in front of the heavies, glowing shields deployed to provide cover. It was hard to get a good angle on those behind, allowing them to potentially fire at will without worry about their own safety. Two of the shielded ones pointed plasma spears in our direction, their tips practically radiating danger. The other two stood just back, rifles raised and at the ready.

I could tell at a glance who they were. Valkyries, one of Sentinel’s elite fighting forces. Even without being too embedded in the big corporations, I’d heard far too many stories about how frightful and effective the all-women elites were. They were who Sentinel called on when they wanted something done. They were the primary discussion point during most modern fights back in the Sentinel school. 

I’d always wanted to see them in action, though this definitely wasn’t how I thought it’d happen. My past anticipation turned to pure tension as they stared us down as if they’d attack at any moment.