10-07-2013, 11:28 PM
Samus’s boot hit the pedal and the jet engines of the vehicle shot to life, lifting it forward and off the ground. It had taken about eight minutes to summon the vehicle, during which time the hunter’s mind had been entirely focused on the summoning itself. She hadn’t thought about where they were going.
“Any ideas!?” she shouted as she swerved the vehicle to avoid incoming fire.
Nobody had much to say. Where to even begin? It was obvious that whoever they were facing had already taken control of a significant portion of the Dataverse. In the end, it was Raising Heart who spoke first.
I suggest taking the Information Highway to the Dataverse Library. Nanoha and Proto Man looked at the sentient device, mouths open – evidently wondering why they didn’t think of it first. We will be safe there, and be able to plan our next course of action.
“And …” Samus couldn’t recall the device’s name, “Which way is the highway?”
Straight up.
Samus hit a button on the dashboard and the roof slid shut. In the same moment she pulled sharply back on the controls and spun upwards, leaving a volley of shots to sail past in the vehicle’s wake. It seemed as though the largest black ‘portal’ in the sky was actually a road of sorts; as they sped closer, she saw that there was movement within; more robots heading their way. They’d have to break past.
“There’s no weapons on this thing, so you might wanna help me out.” One hand still on the steering stick, Samus pointed her gun arm out of the window and began to charge a blast. Nanoha and Proto Man followed suit, as their car passed through the portal and onto the Information Highway.
Already, a swarm of robots were forming a blockade in front of them. Numerous other ‘vehicles’ (some of them seemed like denizens in their own right, others looked more like pixelated spaceships and one seemed to be a kind of cyber-snake) veered around the robots, honking and hollering as they did so. The robots paid no mind, instead releasing another volley of lasers and missiles towards Samus and company.
The hunter grit her teeth, releasing her charged shot into the fray and firing more beams off as she did so. Driving and shooting at the same time was always difficult. “Focus on the middle!” she yelled as the car did cartwheels around the laser fire. She realised, in one of those instinctive flashes of insight that happen when you’re completely in the moment, two things: that the missiles were homing, and that she wouldn’t be able to dodge them.
Luckily, before she could discover whether the vehicle was strong enough to withstand that many missiles, a magenta hue lit up the windshield as a bubble surrounded the car. A moment later, her entire vision was filled with explosions, but the car held. It seemed that Nanoha had casted one of her shield spells just in time. Samus would have to save her thanks for some time they weren’t careening towards a swarm of robots in a fragile cocoon of sheet metal. Meanwhile, her charged shot had impacted somewhere in the fray, and although it left a satisfying explosion in the place of robots, it wouldn’t be enough to get them through. “Robo-kid,” she said, no time to even be embarrassed at her poor memory for names, “Charge up a shot. We’re gonna release them at the same time.”
“Sure thing, Robo-lady,” Proto Man replied sardonically, understanding the plan. “You wanna aim towards the middle?”
“Right.” Samus jammed the steering stick to the right as the shield absorbed another hail of lasers. “Not yet!” They jerked violently to the left, scraping through another volley. “Wait for my go!” Her own charge shot was pulsing into life at the barrel of her arm cannon. First a small orb, then the size of the barrel, then spilling over until its light painted the hunter’s entire suit a white-blue hue. She aimed it at the centre of the melee.
“Ready …” She narrowed her eyes. Right now, she was in perfect zen. Every minute of her life that she’d spent firing that arm cannon – the sum of that experience was total mastery over her weapon. As the vehicle spun and shuddered, she waited for the right moment. She trusted her hand to know when it was time. They bobbed up and over a hail of laser rain. And then there was a chance. The rain stopped, and the path was clear. She let her left hand go loose on the steering stick as her right arm zeroed in on its target.
“NOW!”
Aran and Blues fired in unison, into the centre of the formation. The two explosions met like star-crossed lovers, bouncing off one another in just the right way to create sparks. Shrapnel and robotic body parts lit up the highway like fireworks. Samus hit the pedal and flew through the storm, as the shield broke and the car shuddered like it was having an orgasm. For a moment everything was white, and then the light faded to reveal that they were still alive. Nobody said anything for a few seconds.
Raising Heart broke the silence once more. Take the next up.
Samus did, and soon they were flying down another highway. Behind the car, robots still pursued them, firing their lasers and missiles, but it was a lost cause and they knew it. The trio let smiles creep onto their respective faces. They knew when they’d won. It was a small victory in the grand scheme of their mission, but at least they were out of the fire.
It took around fifteen minutes before Raising Heart finally gave the words they’d all been waiting to hear. The library is ahead. A collective sigh unravelled itself from the party as the car pulled off the highway and into a large, white space with a single, gigantic feature; a building, looking almost like a large, square cathedral. It wasn’t what Samus had been expecting. “You sure this is the place?”
One hundred percent certain. This is the library. It is protected by a barrier once you are inside. I suggest we hurry.
None of them argued, not knowing when their pursuers would reappear. Right on cue, as they jumped out of the vehicle, the robots appeared from the entrance to the highway. They ran, throwing open the library’s large wooden door, and slammed it behind them. The action seemed odd to Samus, who didn’t see how it could stop missiles. Of course, that was thinking within the logic of the real world. My world, she corrected, reminding herself that there were no doubt other worlds out there with their own defiant laws of physics. Still, it didn’t stop her jumping when an explosion sounded from right outside the doorway. Yet, just as Raising Heart had said, the door held.
“Don’t worry,” came a gentle-sounding male voice. Samus turned to see a suited man smiling. “You’re quite safe within these walls. As long as you’re here to learn, hm?”
“Any ideas!?” she shouted as she swerved the vehicle to avoid incoming fire.
Nobody had much to say. Where to even begin? It was obvious that whoever they were facing had already taken control of a significant portion of the Dataverse. In the end, it was Raising Heart who spoke first.
I suggest taking the Information Highway to the Dataverse Library. Nanoha and Proto Man looked at the sentient device, mouths open – evidently wondering why they didn’t think of it first. We will be safe there, and be able to plan our next course of action.
“And …” Samus couldn’t recall the device’s name, “Which way is the highway?”
Straight up.
Samus hit a button on the dashboard and the roof slid shut. In the same moment she pulled sharply back on the controls and spun upwards, leaving a volley of shots to sail past in the vehicle’s wake. It seemed as though the largest black ‘portal’ in the sky was actually a road of sorts; as they sped closer, she saw that there was movement within; more robots heading their way. They’d have to break past.
“There’s no weapons on this thing, so you might wanna help me out.” One hand still on the steering stick, Samus pointed her gun arm out of the window and began to charge a blast. Nanoha and Proto Man followed suit, as their car passed through the portal and onto the Information Highway.
Already, a swarm of robots were forming a blockade in front of them. Numerous other ‘vehicles’ (some of them seemed like denizens in their own right, others looked more like pixelated spaceships and one seemed to be a kind of cyber-snake) veered around the robots, honking and hollering as they did so. The robots paid no mind, instead releasing another volley of lasers and missiles towards Samus and company.
The hunter grit her teeth, releasing her charged shot into the fray and firing more beams off as she did so. Driving and shooting at the same time was always difficult. “Focus on the middle!” she yelled as the car did cartwheels around the laser fire. She realised, in one of those instinctive flashes of insight that happen when you’re completely in the moment, two things: that the missiles were homing, and that she wouldn’t be able to dodge them.
Luckily, before she could discover whether the vehicle was strong enough to withstand that many missiles, a magenta hue lit up the windshield as a bubble surrounded the car. A moment later, her entire vision was filled with explosions, but the car held. It seemed that Nanoha had casted one of her shield spells just in time. Samus would have to save her thanks for some time they weren’t careening towards a swarm of robots in a fragile cocoon of sheet metal. Meanwhile, her charged shot had impacted somewhere in the fray, and although it left a satisfying explosion in the place of robots, it wouldn’t be enough to get them through. “Robo-kid,” she said, no time to even be embarrassed at her poor memory for names, “Charge up a shot. We’re gonna release them at the same time.”
“Sure thing, Robo-lady,” Proto Man replied sardonically, understanding the plan. “You wanna aim towards the middle?”
“Right.” Samus jammed the steering stick to the right as the shield absorbed another hail of lasers. “Not yet!” They jerked violently to the left, scraping through another volley. “Wait for my go!” Her own charge shot was pulsing into life at the barrel of her arm cannon. First a small orb, then the size of the barrel, then spilling over until its light painted the hunter’s entire suit a white-blue hue. She aimed it at the centre of the melee.
“Ready …” She narrowed her eyes. Right now, she was in perfect zen. Every minute of her life that she’d spent firing that arm cannon – the sum of that experience was total mastery over her weapon. As the vehicle spun and shuddered, she waited for the right moment. She trusted her hand to know when it was time. They bobbed up and over a hail of laser rain. And then there was a chance. The rain stopped, and the path was clear. She let her left hand go loose on the steering stick as her right arm zeroed in on its target.
“NOW!”
Aran and Blues fired in unison, into the centre of the formation. The two explosions met like star-crossed lovers, bouncing off one another in just the right way to create sparks. Shrapnel and robotic body parts lit up the highway like fireworks. Samus hit the pedal and flew through the storm, as the shield broke and the car shuddered like it was having an orgasm. For a moment everything was white, and then the light faded to reveal that they were still alive. Nobody said anything for a few seconds.
Raising Heart broke the silence once more. Take the next up.
Samus did, and soon they were flying down another highway. Behind the car, robots still pursued them, firing their lasers and missiles, but it was a lost cause and they knew it. The trio let smiles creep onto their respective faces. They knew when they’d won. It was a small victory in the grand scheme of their mission, but at least they were out of the fire.
It took around fifteen minutes before Raising Heart finally gave the words they’d all been waiting to hear. The library is ahead. A collective sigh unravelled itself from the party as the car pulled off the highway and into a large, white space with a single, gigantic feature; a building, looking almost like a large, square cathedral. It wasn’t what Samus had been expecting. “You sure this is the place?”
One hundred percent certain. This is the library. It is protected by a barrier once you are inside. I suggest we hurry.
None of them argued, not knowing when their pursuers would reappear. Right on cue, as they jumped out of the vehicle, the robots appeared from the entrance to the highway. They ran, throwing open the library’s large wooden door, and slammed it behind them. The action seemed odd to Samus, who didn’t see how it could stop missiles. Of course, that was thinking within the logic of the real world. My world, she corrected, reminding herself that there were no doubt other worlds out there with their own defiant laws of physics. Still, it didn’t stop her jumping when an explosion sounded from right outside the doorway. Yet, just as Raising Heart had said, the door held.
“Don’t worry,” came a gentle-sounding male voice. Samus turned to see a suited man smiling. “You’re quite safe within these walls. As long as you’re here to learn, hm?”
![[Image: 0bwAI3j.jpg]](http://i.imgur.com/0bwAI3j.jpg)