Chapter 49 A Fool’s Conviction

Just as the pilot's question echoed through the comms, the ground beneath his tank mech's feet began to tremble. There was a sudden cracking sound, followed by a crash as the earth split open. The tank mech's legs buckled and the mech itself fell forward, its massive frame crashing into the rubble. A loud screech reverberated from below, and grotesque, slippery tentacles erupted from the fissures in the ground. They shot up like a spider’s legs, massive and twisting, and began tearing into the fallen tank mech's frame.

The pilot screamed into the comms, but his voice was quickly cut off as the tentacles yanked the mech apart with horrifying force. Metal groaned and cracked under the assault, and it didn’t take long before the mech was rendered completely useless.

Aria shouted into the open comms to all the units.

"Tier 2 mutant spotted! I repeat! We encountered a Tier 2 mutant! Everyone on high alert! Suppression squad! Sector 01 C8! One tank mech down! Need immediate support!"

She turned sharply to Harry, “Get us close! Now! Before it’s too late!”

To her surprise, Harry didn’t hesitate, pushing their tank mech forward. He was already angling their position before she’d even finished the order. 

Aria’s grip tightened on her controls as she watched the mutant rip open the casing of the tank mech, revealing the cockpit beneath. The pilot inside scrambled to escape. With a panicked yell, the pilot yanked open the cockpit hatch and leaped into the air, attempting to escape the horror. But just as she was about to land, one of the mutant’s monstrous tentacles shot out, wrapping around one of the pilot’s legs.

The girl screamed, her body jerking violently as the tentacle dragged her back into the beast’s ugly jaws. 

Aria’s voice came out in a low angry growl. 

"Move, Harry! We can’t let that thing get her! Just get me close! I will rip that mutant to pieces!"

Just as Aria said she would take down the mutant, Harry suddenly slammed on the brakes making the tank mech lurch to a stop.

“I will not let you do that! This is my chance! I’ve been waiting to meet a mutant all my life! I will not let you ruin it!”

Before Aria could process his words, Harry powered down the tank mech. The lights on his cockpit flickered out, and the massive machine stood still as a grave. Then, without warning, he hopped out of the cockpit and jumped down onto the cracked ground of the city ruins. 

Aria’s heart nearly stopped as she saw what he was doing. 

"Have you gone insane?!" Aria shouted through the comms, “What the hell are you doing, fool?!”

With no time to waste, Aria switched to drive mode and began moving again.

"Harry! Get back in the mech, now! Are you out of your mind?!" Aria yelled over the comms, but he didn’t respond. Of course, he didn’t.

With one last, desperate shout, Aria said, “Harry! Harry! If you don’t get back in the damn tank, I will drag you back myself!"

Finally, Harry seemed to snap out of whatever trance he was in. He turned his head slowly, He looked at Aria.

But it was the desperate, echoing scream of Lisana that caught Aria’s attention.

Lisana, a pilot, was struggling in the grasp of the mutant, her leg ensnared by its long, slippery tentacle. The creature, half-buried in the rubble, hissed as it began to pull her closer, its massive jaws snapping. She was going to be eaten if Aria didn’t act fast.

Without hesitation, Aria thrust the controls of her tank mech forward, charging toward the mutant. But before she could strike, Harry got in her way. His arms stretched wide like a barrier.

“Stop!” Harry screamed. 

He didn’t move, didn’t flinch, even though Aria’s mech was barreling toward him.

 “Don’t kill it! Please, you have to understand - this isn’t the way! It doesn’t have to be like this. We can talk to it. We can make them understand. I know it! It’s not a monster. It’s just afraid. It’s just trying to survive, like us. Like you and me!”

Aria’s heart hammered in her chest, a storm of frustration building in her gut. She slammed the brakes on the mech, grinding to a halt just inches from Harry’s body.

 “Get out of my way, Harry!”

 Lisana was still being pulled closer, her leg wrenched painfully toward the mutant’s snapping jaws.

But Harry didn’t move.

“No, no, you don’t understand! This mutant, this creature! It’s not evil! It’s afraid, just like us. It’s been hurt, just like us! If we could just talk to them, if we could just communicate, we could end this war. We don’t have to kill it! We can make peace with them! We can make it all stop, we can coexist, we—”

“Harry! Get the hell out of the way!”

But Harry wasn’t listening. His arms were still spread wide.

“I’ve spent my entire life! My whole life! Waiting for this moment! Do you think it’s easy? Do you think it’s easy, standing up, being mocked, being beaten, punished by everyone who said I was a fool? All because I believed, I believed that if we just showed them, if we just reached out, we could stop the violence, we could end this war! All of this! But no one ever listened. No one ever understood. Do you know what I’ve gone through to get here? Do you know how many times they told me I was crazy? How many times have they laughed at me? Every punishment, every humiliation at the Academy - it was all for this. For this moment! For this chance to show the world that we don’t have to fight. I survived it all because I believed we could make them understand.”

“I said get out of my way!” Aria shouted, pushing her mech forward.

She swung the mech’s arm toward Harry, knocking him aside. But as Aria was about to bring down the tank’s massive knife onto the mutant. Harry, fully powered by his tactical suit, shot forward like a human missile. With an inhuman grunt, he launched himself, his boot connecting with the tank mech’s knife just as it descended, kicking it.

The impact sent a shockwave through the machine, the massive arm jerking to the side. The blade missed the mutant by mere inches, slicing through the air and grazing the ground.

Aria’s mech staggered and the controls broke in her hands. The mech powered down with a mechanical groan, its systems shutting off one by one.

“Harry! You insane bastard!” Aria shouted, climbing out of the cockpit.

She ran forward, her eyes locked on the mutant, but Harry was already there, stepping between her and the creature.

“No, no! You don’t get it! We don’t have to kill it. We can still... we can still talk! Please, don’t do this. We can save them. We can save everyone. We’ve been taught to hate them, to kill them. But they’re not the enemy. It’s the fear. It’s the violence. We can make peace. I can show you. Just give me the chance. If you just let me talk to it, I know... I know it will understand.”

He was right in her face now, his hands shaking, his eyes wide and pleading. He wasn’t moving. He wasn’t backing down. It was as if, at this moment, nothing mattered except his belief that peace could somehow be achieved.

"I won’t let you kill it. I won’t let you destroy this chance. This is everything I’ve ever worked for. I’ve given up everything for this. I’ve been beaten, humiliated, called a fool, all so I could stand here and show the world that we don’t have to kill. That there’s another way!"

Aria stood there, fists clenched, her body trembling with the weight of everything she had just witnessed. Harry was beyond reason. He wasn’t just in the way - he was preventing the only thing that could save Lisana.

The mutant’s screeches echoed around them. Aria could see Lisana’s body, pale and limp, still trapped in the mutant’s grasp.

She had no more words for Harry. She didn’t know how to make him see. She didn’t know how to reach him anymore.