We arrived at the previously proposed parking lot not far from Landmark Hotel. The sound of heavy rain pelts was pattering all over the place above us. We all got out of the car and waited as Obeten placed the charge under the car. There was a feeling of tension in the air. It was quite normal - the odds were kind of stacked against us. I glanced around us, my eyes adjusting to the dimness of the underground parking lot. I folded my arms as Oyiza stepped forward.
"So, you blow the charges when I give the signal, Voltage. Comet, as soon as the explosions go off, you fall back, join up with Voltage and rain hell on those bastards. Lēohtan and I will take the fight to them - up close and personal. No holds barred - we kill, if we have to. Comet, has Runner responded?", Oyiza said, using our codenames.
"He said he'll come to us as soon as possible. He's breaking rank - fate of his wife-to-be being more important than League orders", Nene said, smirking proudly.
"Awesome sauce", Obeten gave the air a fist pump.
"Great", Oyiza said. "This is it, guys. It's up to us to stop these guys from drowning our city. If their boss shows up - since this is most likely ground zero - it's up to us to stop him/her too, whatever or whoever they are, whatever it takes".
"We've got this. We watch each other's backs at all times and we will get through this", I said. The others nodded solemnly.
"I'm not going to do that shit they do in the movies where we say stuff like 'it's been nice knowing you' ", Oyiza said. "We're all going to make it out of this alive and get back to our homes and families. Nobody in this circle dies. If it becomes too much for us, we PULL OUT - immediately. We all bolt for Lēohtan's bunker and we hope for the best, agreed?".
"Agreed", we echoed. But I had other plans - an ace up my sleeve. This was all going to end today, one way or the other. I'd make sure the others were at a safe distance before I did what I had to do. I smirked. I get to be a hero and save the same world I was sick of. How ironic was that?
"What's the smirk for?", Nene asked, snapping me out of my thoughts.
"Just thinking about how fun this is going to be", I replied, winking at her. She rolled her eyes and Oyiza chuckled.
"Alright. You guys be safe - I'll go place the charges", Obeten said as donned his helmet and made his way deeper into the parking lot. We wished him good luck and headed for the hotel. I activated my energy helmet as we walked out of the shade and into the rain. I walked in between the sisters, my face set to the imposing image of the hotel - a battleground for the final stand.
As we made our way to the Hotel in the rain, I noticed the compound was sparsely littered with military issued vehicles. Here and there, we saw units of Sigmas. When they caught sight of us, they either glared at us through glowing eyes of various colors or they followed us not far behind. These Sigma Ones actually had managed to gain themselves a small army outfit. Damn.
They weren't attacking us - at least that meant they thought we'd come to join their 'little cult'. I felt the waves of power coming from the Sigmas tailing us so I knew they were some Twos but the rest were Threes and Fours. Some of them cradled guns and machetes.
At the top of the massive flight of stairs, from the entrance of the hotel we saw Five figures emerge - two girls and three guys. The power they exuded was unmistakable. My kind of power. It was them - The Inevitables.
We calmly continued forward even though I knew we were all on edge. When the five came into view, they were decked in what I guessed were their supersuits - two of the guys wore black trenchcoats, however. I found their black trench coats fluttering in the wind a bit annoying - it felt like stereotypical overkill.
We stopped a few meters away from the stairs leading up to the platform where the five stood. Just by looking at their smug appearances, you could tell they carried themselves with an inflated sense of pride. The small army of Sigmas surrounded us in a semicircle - they were careful to keep their distance, however. All the five Ones leveled their eyes at us.
Lightning flashed across the skies. This time, I didn't see Nene flinch too hard. She had started to overcome her fear. I smirked.
"Looks like the dreams were right about them being five in number", I said into my comms for the rest to hear.
I stepped forward.
I sized them all up, getting a good look at each of them. One girl's eyes glowed purple, with her purple supersuit showing her shoulders and hands, some water spiraling around her. She was pretty and dark skinned with a very pretty face and long curly flowing hair.
The next girl was beautiful, a bit taller, athletic looking, her eyes glowing a darker shade of green. There was a laurel wreath made of leaves and flowers on her head of long hair which she packed into a bun. Her supersuit had a green tone to it. I guess her ability was control over plant life and earthen structures. I owed my guess to the fact that vine leaves were growing twisting around parts of her frame and there were rocks hovering above her head. Both the girls looked like models who'd jumped right out of a fashion runway.
Next to her was a tall muscular, menacing looking guy in a black trenchcoat - not as tall as me though. His eyes were gray. I quickly noticed how the flashes of lightning rhymed with the twitch of his left hand; he was the one responsible for the terrible weather. I felt the heat emanating from Nene's frame - she had figured it out too.
The next guy was thoroughly decked from head to toe in his super suit. The only part of him that was exposed was his hair. His suit's eyes glowed red, with the same red energy that cackled here and there all over his average heighted frame; his body glitching every couple of seconds...no...blurring. I looked closely and realized he was moving on one spot so fast it looked like he was glitching - he was a speedster.
The last guy was a massive hunk of a man with a huge imposing frame, probably an inch or two taller than me. His trench coat was open revealing an unreal torso with heavily stacked abs. The air around him seemed dense and his face was stuck in a permanent glare.
He's definitely the muscle of the team, I thought to myself knowing I'd have to watch out for him. Taking them all on would prove a bit difficult, but we could handle it, what with the upgrades Nene and Obeten had gotten and Oyiza's healing ability.
"So, I guess I have you five to thank for all this mess", I said loudly, clenching my fists. "You're 'The Inevitables', huh?"
The girl with the flowers on her head walked towards the edge of the stairs and came a couple of steps down. The rest followed closely and stood behind her. Me, Oyiza and Nene moved so we could keep a keen eye on them and the little army behind us.
"Yes, you can call us that, if you choose to", she answered calmly then smiled. "And we've been expecting you".
She knew we were coming! How? I kept my cool.
"Is that so?", I quipped. Lightning flashed. I glanced at the weather-guy and saw that he was smirking at Nene.
"Yes. It was only a matter of time. Mother said to wait, that you'd come and here you are", she replied, calmly.
"Mother?", I asked, cocking my eyebrow beneath my helmet.
"Yes. Harbinger - our maker", she answered. I looked at Oyiza and I saw her tense up. Their dreams were right again.
Then it hit me - there was no telepath here among the five, this Harbinger person had been the one who moved every human out of the vicinity. She'd also been the one who reached the sisters in their dreams. I quickly looked all around, searching for signs of Harbinger.
"She is not here...but she's much closer than you think", the girl said, smiling. I caught a sad look on the other girl's face but it disappeared as quickly as it came, replaced with a scowl.
Nene stepped up beside me, fumes oozing from her frame.
"I see you brought presents", the speedster quipped through his mask, his gaze on the sisters as if he'd just seen them for the first time. His figure blurred again.
"First of all", I said, anger rising in the very core of my being. "You made a big mistake messing with my city. Second, I didn't bring presents, I brought a fucking war!", I yelled as I activated my powers. Yellow energy enveloped my body. Beside me, Nene caught on fire.
"Do it now!", I heard Oyiza give Obeten the order through the comms. What came next shook the entire complex as some of the areas surrounding the hotel went up in energy explosions along with the Sigmas in them. With that, Nene flew high up and started to rain fireballs on the Sigmas that surrounded us while she fell back towards where she'd join up with Voltage, attacking the Sigmas from behind their ranks.
First, Oyiza and I would clear the Sigmas surrounding us, then we'd go after the five.
"Get them!", The flower girl pointed in our direction as she boomed at the lesser Sigmas who had recovered from the temporary shock of the surprise explosions.
Thankfully, the Sigma Ones weren't attacking us yet - they were leaving the job for the lessers; which would soon prove to be a terrible oversight.
Oyiza and I jumped into action and lunged at a group of sigmas in front of us.