Cluster Fucking #3
He nodded back and hurried to the front of the line of trucks, clicking his flashlight three times.
Truck doors opened all around as Bishop stared out the windshield, blood stirring with what was coming.
“Work while it’s still day,” Seer said softly next to him. “For the night is coming.”
Bishop looked at him.
Seer looked back and held his stare. “The night is here, brother.”
The words gripped him by the throat as Handy opened his door. “Better go shine our light then,” he announced smoothly.
Bishop made his way to Anvil and their gathered men.
“Recap,” Bishop said once he was in the center. “Quantum?”
Quantum stepped forward in his black tactical clothes, golden eyes hard with merciless calculation.
“My twenty-four soldiers will hit the northern line with the flash-bang grenades to weaken the southern line. I dispatch soldier number twenty-five—he takes out one of theirs—feeds me the bio-intel of what we’re dealing with.
Simultaneously, my east unit joins the west for full confrontation,” Quantum said, nodding at Bishop.
“Then our extraction team moves in,” Bishop said, pulling out his blade and squatting down to give his team the no-mistake-exacts. “Anvil, light me up here.”
Anvil aimed his flashlight at Bishop’s feet.
“The ring,” Bishop said drawing a circle.
“When the south line weakens, we go in with steel only.” He X’d the location.
“Close quarter combat—refugees here.” He added a big X in the center.
“We form a perimeter around them. Two-man shadow teams. My twelve and their seconds. Bacon’s team can be our joint fillers. ”
Bishop stood. “We’ve got eight Powerhouses.
Quantum, The Triplets, Handy, Kaphas, Zodak and me.
Quantum commands his twenty-five, I command mine, Creoles command theirs.
The remaining six Powerhouses are for real-time messy warfare.
” He pointed to the rooftop. “Anvil’s got eyes on them.
Said he doesn’t see weapons and they look like they’re all asleep. ”
“They’re likely in hibernation mode,” Sinrik said.
“I don’t think this is typical AI intelligence,” Quantum said.
“It isn’t,” Zodak confirmed. “I picked up impenetrable darkness.”
“We need to be prepared for the worst,” Bishop ordered.
“For those of us that don’t have comms or neuro-links, we’re using our ole-fashioned body-comms, or vocals when it’s optimal.
” He regarded Handy. “I’ve got root access to your system for any critical stats.
” Given their enemy, his demon containment was something to watch.
Bishop continued, “My architecture will create a breach map that allows me to signature and track all on the field, friendly and hostile.” He lowered and dug two straight lines inside the ring with his blade, leading to the southern opening.
“We’re aiming to create a corridor to move bodies through.
Once it’s created, my men will begin the extraction, and the Powerhouses will cover them. ”
Bishop stood again. “At some point, I need to get intel on one of these Dead Kings. But now that we know there’s a hierarchy, it likely means divergence.”
“Meaning?” Bullets asked.
“Meaning a soldier might give us data on the army, a Dead King data on himself, same for a general. And the Hollow King…” Bishop stared down at his dirt map. “He might be the only thing that explains all of it.”
“Which is why you don’t bite unless there’s no other way,” Seer said, his stare hard on Bishop.
“Brother, I bite when it becomes time to know what’s killing us.
” He looked at Handy. “When that time comes, you’re on me.
Drag me back if this shit gets too deep.
” He looked at their siphon weapon. “Zodak, only siphon what it’s carrying, not what it is.
I don’t want you swallowing whatever poison’s running through that army until we know the limits.
Kaphas, do not backlash into the source, not until we know whether it helps us or feeds them.
If they hit, catch it and fling it somewhere empty until I say. ”
“Understood,” he said quietly.
Bishop found Pain’s dark stare among the faces. “You do whatever it is you can do.” He pointed at Kult. “And you make damn sure his limbs stay attached to his body while he does it.”
“Always,” Kult said, his hunger hitting Bishop’s tastebuds.
Bishop pointed at their mind militia. “Vex and Seer, you keep whatever-the-fuck they have from crawling into our heads.”
“Panic may become our biggest challenge,” Lore warned, his peace slicing the doom-packed air.
“And if that happens then you beat that panic into whatever shape you need to. Modify it, mold it, weaponize it. Then move their asses. Knock them out, drag them, carry them, whatever you have to do.”
Bishop looked around. “Where’s our transporters.”
A dozen hands rose.
“Get in position and be ready. Anvil, keep your eyes on that field. If shit goes sideways, do what you’re good at. Find a way to fix it.”
“Got it, Eveque.”
He regarded all of them once more, his gaze landing on Seer. “We need you to see this off with prayer, brother. This operation can’t fail.”