Starburst Jailbreak Part Four

Each and every one of the guards standing in the hallway was armed to the teeth. Some had even opted for jawline implants, sharpening their canines into lethal weapons. The commander of the group was busy screaming at Connor to get down on his knees and put his hands behind his head.

Connor was too busy gathering his bearings to pay attention. It took the commander's third scream, and the very loud whirring of his railgun, for the scrapper to actually focus. Connor finally realized just how many guns were facing him. He could feel his heart begin to race, a cold sweat beginning to pool in the mask. Connor raised both arms in surrender.

“I don’t know what happened back there!” he meant to say. “Don’t shoot!”

What came out was unintelligible sounds. It sounded like a combination of creaking power lines and modem dial up. Every guard tensed up at the response.

Ah crap, the Pinnacle sounded off in Connor’s head. I must have reached your vocal cords. Try that one aga-

A guard in the back had a misfire. In his panic, he had gripped the trigger too tightly. A couple of rounds made pinholes in Connor’s left lung and lower left side. The scrapper could feel the recoil from the bullets entering through him. It was a combination of shock at being shot and the Pinnacle within him that kept the pain away. The scrapper slowly looked down, to see two holes punched in his orange jumpsuit. He glanced back up.

A wall of metal was rushing to meet him.

Enhanced by the Pinnacle’s senses, Connor had what seemed like a couple of seconds until the bullets slammed into him. Not enough to dodge. Just enough to almost faint.

Yet he knew if he did that, the parasite in him would take control.

Connor danced like a drunken puppet as the rounds drilled into his body. He could feel a couple hit his face, only to ricochet off the newly formed mask. His neck was pierced twice. A majority of bones broke, chipped, and shattered. Tears and scars became the norm. Six rounds found ground within his heart. Connor managed to keep standing during the onslaught. Then one slug pinged off his femur, causing him to finally fall backwards. His breath came hard and fast.

The guards pushed up, astounded that the thing was able to take that much gunfire and survive. Even more so was the fact no bullets had whizzed through him and into the machine behind him. Its dark frosted glass sat unmarked by any sort of damage. One of the guards chanced a look inside.

He could barely make out what was in there. It looked sort of like a man. However, both arms and legs were bound in an x-shaped device. The figure’s head sagged onto its chest, as if unconscious. The guard was wondering just what the machine was when he heard a yell from his commander. The janitor the squad had just unloaded on had as many holes in him as stars in the night sky. And like said stars, they were glowing a stunning shade of yellow. The janitor’s eyes flashed open. Pits as red as hellfire blazed in the sockets.

All at once, Connor arched his back and screamed.

A wave of force swallowed those in the chamber whole. Pure, unfiltered and unrefined energy shot from the scrapper’s body. Electrical systems built into the guards’ uniforms were eradicated. Those closest were fused and melted with their suits. Plastic and flesh sizzled together with a sickening sound. Further away, one guard screamed as he was blinded by the light. Others equipped with shaded lenses on their helmets still had black splotches gliding across their vision. The guard inspecting the machine was thrown back into the wall by a punch of kinetic force.

As he fell to unconsciousness, he saw the janitor rise from his back directly onto his heels.

Connor stumbled forward a couple paces. It felt as if half his brain had turned off. He couldn’t think about where to go or what to do. He began to trudge forward. While his jumpsuit was swiss cheese, his body underneath was fine. If the scrapper had been more aware, he would have heard a verbal shot at him from his parasite.

That’s right, it softly cried. I do all the work, you get all the credit…

The escaped Pinnacle, now drained, felt the same as his host. The two halves of separate minds now formed one instinct: survive. Connor trudged onward, mind barely taking in what he saw. Guards continued to assault him as he passed down the sterile hallways. Each one was met with a simple extension of his new hand. The Pinnacle threw whatever he had at them. One man was swamped in a dazzling light show that left him blind and stumbling around. Another experienced so much microwave radiation he boiled alive in his suit. Connor passed all these casualties without a look back.

Eventually, the duo rounded a corner to find a female and male Lookalike staring at them. Connor stared at the woman dully, thinking her just another fixture of the place. His concern was the hulking guard mere feet away. The Pinnacle, however, sensed the woman's fear. A twisted smile formed under the mask as he strode towards her. The woman screamed, and the male sprang forward. It grabbed Connor by the the head and slammed him into the wall. Pulling the scrapper revealed his mask glowing a soft silver. His red eyes turned towards his enemy. An EMP fried the cortexo of the guard. He fell to the floor, drooling. Connor followed the path of the fleeing Lookalike. Rounding the corner revealed two more males. The scrapper took the simple approach.

With a raise of his hand, a stream of raw energy shot forward.

Connor watched them crumble into skeletons. A nasty laugh came from the Pinnacle inside his head. The scrapper kept on going, trying to remember how to get out of the basement and back into the world proper. Coming to a stop between the piles of charred bone, Connor looked to the side down the hallway.

There stood a small blonde was supporting a much taller Black woman. Connor, still dazed, was surprised at the scene. Yet he noticed the Black woman was panting from overexertion. These two needed help. And in turn, they could help him.

The Pinnacle was thankful for this new turn of events. He was familiar with the Lookalikes after seeing them coming and going for the last few months. Now there stood two new women for him to examine. And now he was out of that stupid cage, ready to get an in-depth look. He raised his new arm, planning on sending out a tendril to grab both of them.

Connor could feel the intention like a poison rise up in his veins. He had no idea if there was a way to stop the output of energy. The almost instantaneous buildup was finished when a lone guard rounded the corner. The Pinnacle was too focused on the women to take notice. His host, however, sprang into action. Connor braced himself and shifted his arm towards the man. A lance of lightning leapt out, piercing straight through the newcomer. The small woman looked back, eyes wide at the casualty. Connor slowly lowered his arm. Underneath the mask, a smug smile formed.

Then the Pinnacle’s arm started choking its host mercilessly.

Why’d you do that?! the Pinnacle screamed in his mind. You’re no hero. We could’ve taken at least one of them and made off with her. The other one would have made perfect cannon fodder.

Connor grabbed at the thing with his human arm. He floundered around for a few paces. In his mind he could hear the parasite screaming at him. In fact, he could  see the thing clearly. A glowing figure the same color as his arm. It might be powerful, but it didn’t know who it was talking to. Connor visualized himself grabbing the parasite by its throat. The Pinnacle’s indigo eyes grew wide in shock.

I want you to shut up, Connor thought back. I’ve seen too many Suits act like that. Treating lives like money. Even worse you’re doing it to a defenseless woman. Now go to shove off. I’d rather us get captured than have you do something stupid I would regret.

The scrapper could feel the thing glaring at him. A shooting pain erupted behind his eyes. Connor didn’t care. He held on. Until, after what seemed like forever, the parasite relented. It disappeared in a huff. A small flash, and Connor only had one arm. The iron mask he was wearing also disappeared. Connor’s stupid grin shone bright to the world.

Then, without the backup power offered by the Pinnacle, he slammed forward face first into the flooring.