Shock and Awe Pt. 4

It took no more than ten minutes for Loki and Zephyr to clear out the entire refinery. The defects, who were kept in makeshift prisons, were set free to roam the desolate blackout sector. One could see it as a cruel fate, but to the freed, it was a blessing—a preferred outcome as opposed to having their limbs severed.

Zephyr and Loki stood at the front of the nearly collapsed building, admiring their handiwork. From her pocket, Loki pulled out a cigarette pack and snatched one out.

"Hey, Zeph," she said. "You got me?"

With a judgmental sigh, she unsheathed her katana and threw a rapid jab right in front of Loki's face, lighting up the tip of the cigarette with its plasma edge.

Loki took a puff and blew out the smoke with a satisfied smile. "Thanks."

"No problem. But... You should probably lay off on that. It's bad for you."

"It's fine. We're augmented, aren't we? Little things like this ain't gonna tear up my wires."

"What if you catch lung cancer?"

"I'll augment my lungs."

Zephyr scoffed as she shook her head. While it is true that any bodily problems that they have can be easily fixed by augmenting, she never thought it prudent to go any more than she already has. It was one of her ways of maintaining some semblance of humanity, as it is for most of the Calypsos as well.

A thunder boom echoed across the sky.

"Heh. A storm, huh?" Loki chuckled. "Weather report didn't say nothing about rain."

"If I remember correctly, it was a three percent chance of precipitation," Zephyr said. "I guess we landed on the three percent."

"Tough luck."

"It is what it is."

Right as Loki was about to take another puff, a subtle tremor shook the ground. At first, they brushed it off as nothing. But then, it happened again—louder and much more noticeable.

"You need to take a shit that badly?" Loki snickered.

"Shut up and prepare yourself. Throw that cigarette away, while you're at it."

"Tch..."

Loki spat out the cigarette and drew her sword. Together, they turned to face the encroaching darkness beyond the refinery. In the sky, lightning arced from cloud to cloud, occasionally striking the earth. It seemed as though with each passing second, the lightning storm drew closer. From the pitch-black, a pair of gleaming golden eyes stared back at them.

"Code: Metamorphosis."

"Loki!" Zephyr cried out.

"I know!"

Suddenly, a massive spiraling beam of electricity surged from the stranger, obliterating what remained of the refinery in an instant. Zephyr had already darted out of harm's way, while Loki rolled to the ground, coming to a stop with her weapon drawn. Both of them now stood, tense and ready, with the stranger positioned directly between them.

"Ah… I missed."

Stepping out from the shadows, the stranger moved beneath a flickering lamp post, her lime hair illuminated by the dim light. A sly smile curled beneath her striking golden eyes, a pair of hollowed diamonds gleaming from within.

"Whoa~" Loki scoffed. "Is that you, Franky?"

"Hello, Loki," she replied. "How've you been?"

"Me? I've been—"

"Don't care."

Frankenstein raised her hand again, siphoning the electricity from the nearby lamppost. Her arm shot back before whipping forward with a violent thrust. A jagged bolt of lightning surged from her fingertips, arcing across the air and leaving destruction in its wake. Everything it touched melted instantly.

Zephyr leapt backward, sprinting up the side of a building just as the wave of electricity collided with the structure. With a powerful push, she flipped off the wall.

"Code: Eleventh Hour!"

In the blink of an eye, a streak of white cut through the air. Before Frankenstein could even register it, Zephyr appeared beside her, as swift as the slash that tore through her side.

"Ouch," Frankenstein muttered, though she seemed unfazed by the wound.

To Zephyr's shock, Frankenstein's body began glowing with a violent light, and in the next instant, she exploded into a storm of crackling lightning.

Zephyr raised her arms to shield herself as the electrical storm ravaged her body. Every muscle screamed in pain, and her legs trembled under the onslaught. She knew that if she faltered for even a second, her body would seize up and that would be the end.

Just as the storm finally subsided, Zephyr barely had time to catch her breath before Frankenstein reappeared, delivering a brutal kick that sent her crashing to the ground.

"Phew~! What a way to get the year started, eh?" she snickered. "Though, I have to say, I'm disappointed. Have you been doing nothing for the past seven years? I thought you, Zephyr of Calypso, would put up more of a fight."

Zephyr struggled to move, as her body refused to respond. The electrical surge had short-circuited the systems in her augmentation, leaving her paralyzed. She could only watch as Frankenstein loomed over her.

"Nothing to say? Or perhaps... You just can't say anything. Who would've thought lightning would be so effective against the augmented? After all, we're just machines wrapped in flesh. Still, I expected more from you... but oh well. Can't do anything about that. You were just... too weak. Code—"

Suddenly, her words were cut short. Frankenstein's vision tunneled. Time itself seemed to have froze as Loki appeared beside her, eyes ablaze with fury.

"...Berserk."

Loki threw a devastating punch, launching Frankenstein away. Her body crashed into the ground twice before she skidded to a stop.

"Still as reckless as ever, Loki..." Frankenstein muttered, wiping the blood from her lip. "You know the consequences of touching me, yet you did it anyway."

"Heh, what can I say?"

Loki stood tall, electricity crackling around her body. She cracked her knuckles, unfazed by the coursing energy, as if it were nothing more than a passing breeze.

"I've been smacked down by General Mars before," she grinned. "A little bit of lightning ain't gonna do shit to me."

"Hah... Then, wanna put that to the test? Code: Metamorphosis!"

A lightning bolt fell from the sky and struck Frankenstein right where she stood. Another one came crashing down, followed by another, then another. However, she felt no pain. Instead, she felt as light as ever and filled with overwhelming energy.

"Just one punch," she smiled. "Let's see who's still standing."

"You know I'm always up for a bet."

"L-Loki..." Zephyr muttered.

"Relax, Zeph. I got this."

For a moment, the two stared each other down, both with smiles that betrayed their killing intent. At the next strike of thunder, both of them bolted at each other, arms raised. Right as they were about to strike, a figure slammed onto the ground, forcing them to standstill.

"You...!" Frankenstein growled.

"H-Holly..." Loki gasped.

Holiday stood right in between them. With one arm, she held Loki by the hand, gripping her fist with just enough force to control her Berserker state. With the other, she held onto the handle of her gunblade, keeping it still as Frankenstein's fist collided against the face.

"Judy!" Frankenstein roared, her mind overcome by rage.

As her hand was still charged with lighting, she lifted it and attempted to swing. Holiday jerked her head out of the way, narrowly dodging the strike. She hovered her fist no more than an inch from Frankenstein's stomach, and shoved her entire body forward. Frankenstein slid back only a couple of steps, but the pain she felt from just that alone was nothing compared to Loki's punch.

"C-Captain..." Zephyr mumbled shamefully.

"Holly, let me explain," Loki quickly said.

"Both of you, go," she growled, allowing them to speak no further. "That is an order."

They both exchanged nervous glances, before picking themselves up and running away. At the center of the darkness, Holiday and Frankenstein stood face to face.

"Hah... Haha," Frankenstein chuckled. "Well, here we are again, just like the good ol' days, huh? Only... I guess Nel isn't with us anymore."

"Alex..." Holiday mumbled.

"What, Judy? You got something to say? Go on. I'm listening. Whatever great speech you prepared for the last seven years, let's hear it!"

However, Holiday remained silent.

"Nothing, huh?" Frankenstein scoffed. "I expected as much. You know, for us to finally catch up... Isn't it funny? Out of all the people in the world, you're the last one I ever wanted to see again, but here we are. Isn't fate just so~ cruel?"

"Alex... Listen. Your squad—"

"You don't have to try and make me feel better, Judy."

"We had no choice! They were controlling you! We... We tried..."

"Oh, I bet you did. I'm sure you tried your best, didn't you? But oops, too little, too late. My team? Gone. Just like that. All thanks to you and your precious captain. But don't worry, I've made my peace with it. After all, death is such a funny thing, isn't it? You never really know when it's going to sneak up on you... or who will be left standing when the dust settles."

"...I won’t fight you, Alex. Please, just... go."

"Hah, but where's the fun in that? You think I pushed through the past seven years just to put an end to you? No, Judy. I want to watch you suffer. I want to see how far you've fallen. I want to see that look on your face when everything you've been holding onto finally shatters. Just like you shattered us! CODE: METAMORPHOSIS!"

As if to answer her call, the storm clouds above spiraled into a vortex. Thunders boomed every second, until a towering pillar of lightning slammed into the earth with the force of a hundred strikes. It devastated the land, destroying what was left of the ruined sector.

Frankenstein emerged at the center of a newly-formed crater. Although there was nothing left but dust, she knew that Holiday had gotten away.

"Hah. Run, Judy. Just like you did back then. But this... isn't over. Not even close."