(Episode VIII) (Act 4)

Almost at the nick of time, they all managed to dodge the strikes, reburying themselves into the asphalt so hard, each created a mole hill.

The small victory couldn’t be celebrated, because instantly each girls’ respective pair of legs locked up with siVis. Aiko peered down at her legs, and can see them enhanced with siVis. Or rather, the siVis forcefully activated because, for the life of herself, she doesn’t want to turn it off—while her body is arguing she needs to let go to rest. For every tense pulsating her puzzle-piece-defined legs did, it was a highlight of their struggle.

She trembled to stand, especially since Jackie was now on her back, Aiko’s arms clutching at her legs. She didn’t even know she did this in the precious seconds they had.

“We can’T—AAH—We can’t even run…!” Maddie wrestled with herself, grunted and grabbing her calf as she rolled up from the ground. “If we do—there could be more fucking wires under here! If there aren’t, it’s going to uproot and follow us into the city!”

But there wasn’t time to think, the hooks unearthed themselves, rose, twitched and then struck again.

There was a collective groan of agony, as the girls flung themselves away from them again. They found themselves squirming on the street, legs curling up in pain. Of course, Aiko could only lay on her belly, with Jackie still on her back as she writhed around.

And there wasn’t time for that, either. They grew smart.

The hooks scraped at the ground, as they trailed the girls.

Tracy screamed, pleading incoherently at her legs to work and they just couldn’t respond anymore. Maddie punched at hers, as if to spur them to move in the face of immediate pain.

But it looked like River was having the worse of it. Aiko remembered, not only did she do the legwork during Jackie’s town—but she along with Jackie used everything in their legs to escape the Nulgarrt. She made painful noises from her clenched close jaw, veins that were also siVis enhanced were starting to form on her neck, and she just hugged her leg.

Until she stopped hugging and dug her fingers within her leg, trembling as she does.

Aiko got it. While she has to suffer a bit more, she got how the rest could get away.

Despite the pain, Aiko forced her legs to kick away, letting go of Jackie’s legs to use her hands to skitter away, to dodge the trailing hook that was again, seconds from snatching her and the others away.

She kicked and kicked, even skidding a bit against the street because of how sloppy she was being, but it didn’t matter. She needed to survive. She needed Jackie to survive. Her eyes were squeezed shut, sweat coating every inch of her, at the point it felt like the very act was starting to hurt as well.

She forced her eyes to open, trying to gauge if the ground she covered. It wasn’t enough.

But the hooks paused, twitching. They stopped just a ways away from where she and the other were.

“Good thinking, River!” Tracy tried to sound congratulatory but was so strained. Aiko trailed down to the girl’s leg, and she too had her fingers within them. Her whole leg was activated, like the Hospital.

Maddie shouted out in both pain and strain, shaking trying to lift herself up, “Get up, get up!”

Aiko agreed, “Yeah, we gotta get up before—ah!”

The girls struggled to their feet, and had even harder trouble standing.

“We’re… We’re going to rush back, rush them---” River strained. “Wait until Jackie wakes up and she’ll try again…”

“But the thing isn’t the doll!” Aiko shouted out. “The mascot—It isn’t the mascot!”

“I figured… But… It’s messy… It’s still the Davenoid, despite… Despite not being the body… Like they’re merged…”

The pillars started to twitch harshly.

“SO WHAT ARE WE DOING?!” Maddie urged.

“We still destroy the body—” River reasoned. “The wires’ll still be there, but at least they’re going to be lost without any direction!”

River reached into her legs again and twisted something, causing her to scream as her legs shifted into activation once more. Maddie did the same in a second, while Tracy bit down on her lip and psyched herself up into following the lead.

Aiko still has to suffer. The pain panged, starting from her aching legs that echoed throughout her body. She felt woosie, as if she already broke a personal limit and the body is confused—deciding if enough is enough. And worse of all, the fear was trying to take hold again. Grasping to clutch her very heart.

She started the rush, running at top speeds in a burst, sidelining the pillars before they could’ve made their move.

After making it to the warehouse’s entrance again, Aiko fell on her knees hard. She fought back, against the surge of pure agony that tore itself through an already worn body, using siVis on her spine to stay erect. She couldn’t let Jackie fall.

She looked over, to see how the others were faring.

The pillars made their move, trying to wind up and swipe at the girls, but Tracy managed to find a spot to squeeze between where they couldn’t get her, while Maddie and River used to confusion to weave past. As they ground away from the pillars, it was clear that their stiff movements before every attack was them deciding the next move. Because after getting away, they froze, twitched in confusion almost. In a situation where time is a blissing, this was a gift.

They all ran, they used their activated legs to run as fast as they couldn’t have ran—how fast they never thought they could achieve.

But it was all still too new.

River landed a foot wrong. She tumbled forward, glasses fallen off onto the road, and yelled as hard as her voice allowed her to.

“FUCKING I FUCKING ROLLED MY ANKLE!” she practically sobbed out.

All Aiko heard from Maddie’s mouth was a string of swears, as Tracy looked on—deer in headlights with her mouth covered.

And almost akin to laughing at them, the pillars corrected themselves, lancing outwards.

One of them wrapped around River’s defenseless, now normal leg, and twisted it.

The only sound was the howl of pain River unleashed.

Maddie tried to advance, tried to save her, but the other pillars perked, aimed at her, causing her to backtrack and achingly dodge when they came to reap, burying themselves into a hole again.

The four crashed pillars formed a barbed cage, no way for the others to rush in as River now had no means of escape. From these black bars, they were forced to watch what would happen next.

The last three pillars coiled together, forming a sharp, pulsing, spike. The hook that twisted River’s ankle stayed firm, to paralyze River from trying anything.

She could only look up, hyperventilate. Raising her arms, holding them up towards it as if pleading for mercy, no matter how feeble it was. Her very breathe was a visible white steam.

Without a second of error, or fate, or anything intervening—the spear skewered River right into her chest.

…But instead of blood or even siVis sparks—it was just more of that thick steam.

Even with herself, who covered her eyes in her supposed last moments, moved her fingers to uncover her eyes. She was looking at a hole directly in her chest, and she watched her chest become steam itself.

siVis Ability: FOUNDED!

River laughed—in relief? Elation? True insanity, brought upon the fact she’s slowly becoming steam?

Either way, she became steam itself—flooding and clouding the whole area. The only way Aiko reckons that she could see everyone, if not hazily, was because of her prior trip into the dust cloud Jackie created. The others must’ve done the same as well.

Tracy garbled some semblance of words out—she herself probably going through many emotions.

“Well fuck—way to go, River! …W-wherever you are…” Maddie cupped her hand in confusion, at the still fog she created. “Is this you—if so, tell me if I’m touching your ass or boob or something—I’ll stop—”

“I think I’m over here…” a voice—River’s—but it was like a whisper. A whisper you would dismiss as you going crazy thinking you heard something.

They turned on instinct towards the voice, but their eyes caught what she meant. Almost like a cloud forming a shape within itself, River’s body shape was formed out of the smoke. She… Looked at herself? It was odd. Like the 3D creations in movies—your human perception catches that this is out of place, that it looked weird, because all of the nuanced detail being lost.

She looked at her hands, yet they weren’t hands—but puffs of smoke. And she didn’t have eyes. A face. And her moving was just smoke gathering and waiving, versus actual motion.

“And here… And there… And everywhere…”

“It’s incredible…!” Tracy remarked. “You’re able to escape anything with this ability, River!”

“Too bad it wasn’t some tech-shutdown shit…” Maddie admitted. “Otherwise, you would’ve been the new Jackson.”

“Still! No way it can track us now!”

“… Do you think I can turn back, guys…?” River questioned.

“Don’t ask us!” Maddie exclaimed. “I don’t even know what determines the power or whatever, try… Being you or some shit.”

They stood there for what felt like a minute.

“… Can I get another direction-?” River managed to retain her dry wit.

Tracy chuckled to herself.

“Anyways,” Maddie cut in. “You’re basically untouchable unless that thing has a fan, so that’s a plus.”

“You can run in and cloak us!” Tracy exclaimed in delight. “You do that, the Davenoid can’t hurt you, we hide out in a save place until Jackie awakes, and that’s it! You’re amazing, River darling! I’d kiss you again if you weren’t made of smoke!”

Maddie smirked towards the shape, “How’s that for motivation, huh?”

“Never in my entire life did I ever wanted to be me right now…” River sounded entranced.

Maddie was yanked from under them without a second to spare.

“WHY DO I EVEN OPEN MY MOUTH?!” Tracy screamed.

Aiko and the rest looked towards the entrance, the Davenoid’s suspected body was right there… And it’s eyes were glowing amber.

“THA-THAD-THAD-THAD-THAD—YUUUUR---AAAAAOO…”