Lo:Sing

Aiye’s body was thrown back from the shockwave before he neared. ’The force knocked her off He quickly recovered, voice shaking as it crackled over the comms. “Johe! Johe’s down!”

Shinku froze mid-air, his form hanging suspended for a moment. His eyes, wide and unblinking, stared at the spot where Johe had once stood. His mind gripped by a cold, unfeeling numbness. He had witnessed the moment Johe’s body had exploded, a violent burst of oil and debris that marked the end of his friend’s life.

Shinku’s face was a mask of coldness, his features hardening, the emotions swirling inside him locked away, buried beneath a shroud of ice.

Star’s body crackled with data, his form glowing with the force of the impending attack. “Cat got your tongue?” he taunted.

Before Shinku could react, Roton’s voice snapped. “You must stay focused, Shinku!”

But the words came too late. Shinku’s body was still locked in place, his mind overwhelmed with the sight of Johe’s body—his friend’s final moment—burned into his thoughts. His hesitation cost him precious seconds.

“I’m too slow!” Roton shouted as he frantically tried to send his data to Shinku. The next moment, Star’s fist collided with Shinku’s face with raging force.

The impact sent Shinku flying, his body careening through the air like a ragdoll, tumbling end over end. His mind was a whirl of pain, but even in that blur of agony, one thought pierced through—the echo of Johe’s final moments.

I couldn’t protect him…

Tackle and Bontly, mid-fight, froze. Their bodies stiffened as the announcement sunk in.

Tackle’s fists were clenched tight, her body taut with tension. Bontly’s head tilted down.

“No… not Johe…” Tackle muttered, a fury building up in her chest.

Meanwhile, deep in the heart of the dome, Vitron stood with his eyes locked on the massive form of Mother Brain. The immense supercomputer, thrashed. It writhed in pain, but something else stirred. Vitron narrowed his eyes.

Something’s going on with you, huh?

He could feel it. A disturbance in the flow of data, an unexpected surge of energy coursing through the dome. He frowned, stepping back, his attention never leaving Mother Brain. The officers continued to feed it viruses, but their efforts seemed futile as Mother Brain began to convulse again, more violently this time.

Mother Brain had stopped birthing stillborn hybrids. This, in itself, wasn’t entirely unexpected—its processes had been more erratic in recent hours—but the surge of power that followed was. What the hell is happening? Vitron thought, his body tense.

Suddenly, the entire dome trembled as a wave of data washed over it, rippling with an intensity Vitron had never felt before. It hit him like a force of nature, sending him crashing to his knees.

This power… He could hardly breathe, every part of him screaming in protest, the sheer weight of the force pressing down on him.

Mother Brain’s body began to convulse once again, the wires inside it crackling and pulling apart. A massive tearing sound filled the air as its body split open, revealing more wiring and what appeared to be another monstrous brain-like creature. It had a single cycloptic eye that brimmed with a fierce anger, and from it, tentacles began to lash out, violently swatting away officers that were too close.

Vitron’s eyes widened in shock. “What the…?”

He scrambled to his feet, his mind racing as he watched the creature thrash about. “Mother Brain is panicking… It’s trying to birth another of itself! It’s angry! It wants to kill us all!”

Vitron’s mind worked at lightning speed, and in an instant, his voice rang out across the room. “Finish the hydronuke formation! Kill it now!”

He turned to see the giant Xenox scrambling to place officers on top. Suddenly, a tentacle shot out from the new brain creature, slamming into Vitron with enough force to send him crashing into a nearby wall. The explosion of power sent a shockwave through the dome, knocking several officers off balance, nearly toppling the hydronuke formation.

Vitron’s breath was ragged as he struggled to rise from the rubble. Oil trickled down his forehead, but his resolve remained unshaken. “Shoot it now! Screw it!” he shouted, voice rising with desperation. “I wanted it dead regardless!”

His eyes scanned the area, and he saw the formation was still holding, but just barely. The officers had to act fast, before the new brain fully emerged.

From the tunnel entrance, a figure appeared, dashing forward with swift urgency. It was Anthril, his face set in grim determination as he sprinted into the dome, his mind focused solely on the chaos unfolding before him. Vitron shouted, his voice carrying the weight of command. “Do something! Before it can fully rebirth!”

The officers, armed with hydroarms, were already firing at the creature, the pressurized water bullets tearing into the newly emerged brain. The beast writhed violently, its tentacles thrashing in pain as the water impacted its form, forcing it to recoil. But it didn’t stop. It couldn’t stop.

The news of Johe’s death tore through Tackle’s thoughts and shattering her focus. She had been fighting with everything she had against Coach, her movements sharp and precise, but now, her body felt heavier, her limbs sluggish. The thought of Johe, gone… No! she screamed in her mind, but the tears came anyway.

A sharp punch from Coach snapped her back to reality, sending her crashing to the ground. Her hands trembled, but she pushed herself up, trying to clear her head. Coach was relentless, slamming Tackle down again, her strength overpowering Tackle’s faltering will.

Suddenly, a loud voice broke through her anguish. “Hands off, dammit!”

With a fierce kick, Coach was sent flying across the tunnel, the force of the blow knocking her off balance. Tackle, still kneeling, looked up in a daze, her mind struggling to catch up. Her heart skipped a beat when she saw who had intervened.

It was Epongi. He stood there, fists clenched and an intense expression on his face. His eyes burned with fury. “Epongi?!” Tackle shouted in disbelief. Was he really here? Was this… was he really helping her?

Epongi didn’t hesitate. “Tackle,” he said, his voice low and filled with determination. “Uhm, I’m trying to make things right! It’s poetic justice that it happens to be you that I’m saving.”

Coach, recovering from the impact, started to get back up, but Epongi didn’t flinch. He was ready for the fight. “I know I said I don’t like your kind,” he continued, his fists shaking in anger, “but Vitron killed my buddy, and that’s where I draw the line. I hate Vitron way more than I could hate a human. So, I’m on your side now!”

Tackle’s emotions twisted in every direction. Epongi… On our side? It didn’t make sense. Not after everything he had said, after everything he had done. Yet, here he was, standing with her. But no matter the shock, the rage still burned within her. Johe was gone. It didn’t matter who was helping her now. “Then let’s keep fighting!” she shouted, wiping the tears from her face, her voice thick with emotion. “But you’re gonna make amends with me later.”

Epongi chuckled, he gave a small nod. “Deal.”

Meanwhile, Shinku and Roton continued their struggle against Star, both visibly battered. Star moved like a storm, deflecting Roton’s bullets with ease and swatting Shinku’s strikes aside like they were nothing.

Shinku’s thoughts were consumed by one thing: Johe… A cold, sickening feeling gnawed at his gut. We’re losing.

Star roared with malicious glee. “I think the end is coming!” he taunted, his voice echoing like a death knell. He charged, his power surging with every move, overwhelming them both.

Shinku, struggling to stay on his feet, thought desperately, I can’t fight Star. Not like this. His body was on the edge of collapse, but his resolve was still there, flickering like a dying flame. Roton teleported Shinku away again, narrowly avoiding a crushing blow from Star.

As the battle raged, Mother Brain was beginning to shrivel. Its form twisted, convulsing as it seemed to wither from the inside.

Vitron stood among the chaos, eyes flashing with determination. “Good job! Good job!” he shouted, the thrill of victory rushing through him. He stood tall beside Anthril, watching the supercomputer’s final moments. “You hybrids will never be born again! It was a good run, Mother Brain!”

Roton shouted. “Don’t lose your composure, Shinku! We can beat him! We can exhaust him!”

Roton fired a barrage of bullets, hitting Star a few times. The force of the bullets sent sparks flying, but Star didn’t retreat. Instead, he howled in fury. “I will say, you’ve hit a couple bullseyes!” His grin widened with manic energy, and he leapt into the air, spinning to launch himself at them once more.

Star moved so quickly that Roton barely had time to react when, with a vicious yell, he grabbed an officer from the ground and hurled him at Roton. The officer’s body flew through the air like a projectile, and Roton, with no time to dodge, fired a single shot through the officer’s body, hitting Star’s arm in the process.

“I’m sorry!” Roton shouted, regret lacing his voice, but he had no other choice.