The Vespidian

Arc 11 Blood Moon

Chapter 2 Interlude: Transgression part 2

Glitter Kitten and Nibbles made their way along the ruined streets. Decrepit buildings and rubble marred the surroundings. Not that there was much of a view to be had, until recently. The rain had brought back some life to the once dead place. Vines and glowing mutant flowers had sprung up where ever there was soil. Walls were flush with flowers creating nature’s murals. It was in a word beautiful. However, it was merely a distraction from the poor conditions of this place. The Hammer Strike had made things even worse down here. With the city disrupted, power and water utilities were even harder to come by due to broken pipes and downed electrical wires. The only reason that the Sparkle Kat Cafe was doing well was that it had generators and it’s own water supply. To begin with, that was one of the primary reasons that Glitter Kitten had taken the location over.

Whole pipelines exposed the sewers in some places where they had shifted up, stabbing out of buildings or the street. As a result dirty waters were flooding some areas. Though it no longer was so radioactive that it glowed, it was still toxic and corrupted things that got into it. It contaminated the surroundings. Thanks to this there had been an increase of large insects spilling out from the depths below. The Hero League’s effort to clean it up had done decently well. However, this was a task that needed to be done regularly. Like routine maintenance, but with them out of the picture that was not going to happen.

Things were bound only to get worse. Still, Glitter Kitten was glad that the terrible things had stayed down there. A few pests wasn’t a problem. The Slums had changed a bit recently. The overabundance of water had made things better for the Scalies, and as a result, they had been getting more uppity than usual. Some areas had become bogs or even straight up swamps, the perfect environment for the Cold Bloods.

Oddly they were not approaching the south, which was the main stomping grounds of the Scalies. They were headed northeast, which was very troublesome. If the Scalies had managed to sneak all the way up here and get a good foothold things were much worse than she had thought. The streets wound, and though she could not remember the names from before meltdown, she still knew these desolate pathways. After all, this was her turf. Granted she was not as out and about as she had been in the past. It couldn’t be helped; she wasn’t just a wild cat with no responsibilities any more she had people to look after, things to run. She was a very different person from who she was back when Butch was running things. She had matured and adapted and overcome.

“We are here,” said Nibbles looking out over a courtyard.

This place was if memory served the old city hall. A glint caught her eye, and she glanced up to a building to her side. The glare of a lens shifted from where it was nestled atop the roof. It was Thumper, her long floppy ears tilted away from one another as she kept aiming her sniper rifle towards the building. Glitter Kitten sniffed the air; Den Mother was nearby. There were other scents, but the foul stench of the liquid filth pooling around a section of the building made it hard to pick up on. Her face wrinkled a little as she looked around.

“Glitter Kitten, sorry to call you out,” said Den Mother emerging from one of the abandoned buildings nearby.

“So it is the Scalies huh?” Commented Glitter Kitten, “They got some big balls coming onto our turf. How many are there? Any idea about their powers?”

She rubbed her neck, “I saw only three of them. They are definitely setting up for something big though.”

“Nya? What makes you say that?”

“I think they are setting it up as a nest. Thumper saw some eggs when she snuck in to assess the place.”

“Eggs?! We, we should just burn the place down and kill them when they try to escape.” She bit at her nail, “Definitely, definitely have to kill them. The last thing we want is a bunch of those freaks around here.”

“That seems like a bit much don’t you think?”

“This is Scalies we are talking about. Those sick fucks eat kittens and puppies! What is the matter with you? Did you forget how they ate some of my kids? Maybe I should get Burnout to come down here and roast those fucks?”

Den Mother seemed worried, “I know, I know but is that really necessary? We should be enough to deal with them; no need to drag others into this.”

Glitter Kitten thought on it, scowling. It was only 3 of them. Maybe she was overreacting, besides it felt better to rip them apart with her own claws than to use a sneaky tactic like burning them out. She had Den Mother and Thumper with her so it shouldn’t be too bad. The only Scaly that she was worried about was their leader who was merely called Slither. It was a snake subhuman that was nearly as strong as Glitter Kitten was. Only reason she had not dealt with it already was that it could vanish at a moment’s notice. That thing shouldn’t be around here; it should be busy in the south area of the Slums where the Mad Dogs had kicked them out too.

“Alright, we will deal with these ourselves, better to do it now before any eggs hatch. You take the left, I will go in the center, Nibbles will go in on the right, and Thumper will shoot any of them that try to run. Sound good?”

Everyone nodded. They split up approaching each of the entrances. Usually, it would be smart to stay in a group, but with how small the corridors and the like would be inside they would end up getting in each other’s way. Besides if somebody needed help then Glitter Kitten could quickly attack from the rear to pincer the enemy. It was an overall pretty good plan of attack. It cut off all escape routes and forced the enemy to fight on three fronts unless they get flanked by the opposing sides.

Glitter Kitten advanced after the others had entered. Slowly, creeping along, her ears twitching as they picked up any sort of sounds. It was quiet in here. The building was falling apart in some places and shafts of light stabbed down from above at various spots. Moss grew on the walls, wood rotten and molding. Mildew filled the air, and the stench of the foul waters permeated the area. Her nose wrinkled as she held back a sneeze.

She eyed the ground noticing footprints in the dust and mud where the liquid pooled. Something was not right. These were shoe prints, not bare feet or even clawed. If it weren’t for this abominable smell, she would be able to figure out in a moment what sort of creature had made these. For now, she was leaning more toward human than subhuman, but that brought up questions. These were fresh prints, couldn’t be more than a few hours old.

She made her way through the reception area and into the sizeable domed assembly room. A piece of the roof had collapsed, debris piled below with light arcing slightly to the side. Old wooden benches arrayed in rows facing a slightly upraised stage and podium that had fallen over. A low humming noise caught her attention; it sounded like a generator. It was coming from further in, beyond this room and possibly even the basement.

Her ear twitched and from the two side entrances were the light sound of footsteps. After a moment Den Mother emerged from one side and Nibbles the other. It seemed that they had not found anything seeing as how they had not made a lot of noise fighting. Her eyes went back to the rundown stage and the two doors leading beyond it. The three approached.

“Find anything?” asked Glitter Kitten.

“No, but I hear something, I think it is coming from the basement,” replied Den Mother.

“Where did Thumper say the eggs were?”

“Below,” said Nibbles pointing to the door on the left.

She thought for a moment, “I will give it a look you two guard here in case anything tries to escape.”

They nodded, and Glitter Kitten quietly opened the door. It was dark in here. However, the lights were on… well some of them anyway. Area of the stairwell was lit while others left deep darkness in between. On the floor ran a few wires leading deeper in and out to where she had just come from. Vaguely the notion of seeing were those led came up, but for now, she put it to the back of her mind. This place seemed off; this didn’t seem like the work of scalies. It was too smart, clean. A hallway of stretched out before her and at the end was another door.

The humming had grown much louder down here; it was almost a whine of machinery moving. Cautiously, she approached the closed door at the end of the long concrete hallway. She sat listening to see if she could make out anything, but that machine was too distracting. It drowned out all other noises. Slowly she opened the door the obnoxious scratching, and screeching sound filled the corridor. She winced holding her ears.

Loud. Horrendously loud. She shoved the door open all the way, forcing herself to look and there was a generator thumping away. However, there was also an array of other things. Machines that she did not know what they were, only that they were making that terrible sound. Nothing was right about this. This was no scaly nest. The stink of oil and lubricant had crept out of the room. A shiver ran up Glitter Kitten’s spine. She turned, realizing that this must be some sort of trap.

A shape was at the other end of the corridor, and after a moment she realized what it was, Den Mother. Glitter Kitten let out a sigh and turned back to the room. This noise had to be dealt with. She darted forward raising a fist to destroy the generator, something moved in the corner of her eye, and she dodged rolling to the side. There stood a person made of metal. A metallic spike shot out at her, but it was much too slow to hit, slamming into the wall behind her.

Glitter Kitten lunged forward kicking off of the person and sending them smashing into the wall, the chest dented in. She used that moment and kicked at the generator. A metal dome suddenly formed around it and she bounced off. The golem got in between her and the door as it slammed shut. The noise reverberated in this small room getting louder and louder. The head splitting sound kept ramping up as though something was about to explode. There were too many unknowns.

She made for an escape. Glitter Kitten rushed forward, smashing the metal person with her legs sending them careening through the door and opening the way out. Before the Super had even hit the ground, she was halfway down the hallway running so fast it left dents wherever her paws hit. Den Mother was waiting at the end, daring not to get closer due to the sound.

Her mouth moved as she was motioning and saying something, but Glitter Kitten couldn’t hear a word of it. There was only a ringing in her ears. “Nyah, I can’t hear you! Let's get the hell out of here. I don’t know what the hell is going on, but I don’t like it!”

Glitter Kitten and Den Mother emerged out into the large room, however now there were others here. Glitter Kitten growled when she recognized them. Nightmare, Panther, and Captain Metal were waiting. The ringing in her ears had quieted a bit as she started to make things out.

“Ah, we meet again, Glitter Kitten. Just submit quietly, and nobody will get hurt,” said Nightmare smirking.

“Fuck you!” Yelled Glitter Kitten, “Get them Den Mother!”

She lunged forward, and Panther quickly moved to intercept her. They clashed darting around the room as hurried blurs that left little shock waves and crushed concrete in their wake. Panther was lagging behind her, but he was fast enough to inhibit where and who she could attack. That sound had left her feeling sick. Glitter Kitten would have to deal with him first if she was to strike at the others.

Den Mother got about two charging steps before the ground swallowed her and Gnome appeared in the doorway. Only her head left above the solidifying concrete. Nightmare made her way over plopping her hand onto the furred head. Den Mother let out a howl of pain. The ground shook as she struggled, but as such, she was powerless to resist.

Seeing this Glitter Kitten kicked off of the wall and barreled straight at Den Mother, or rather Nightmare’s exposed back. She stabbed out with her clawed fingers to rip and tear flesh. Suddenly the ground burst, showering the area in bits and pieces, dust filled the air, and her strike smashed into something hard. She had missed her target as she saw Nightmare staggering away before being picked up and taken by Panther. She shifted her attention to what or rather who she had hit and there stood Den Mother. It was worse than running full force into a wall. Her wrist broke with a sickening crack, and she reeled away from the grasping hands trying to catch her.

Glitter kitten retreated away as Den Mother took a step and then another as she started to pursue the cat. Realizing that Den Mother was mind controlled the plan had changed in a moment. This was no longer a fight that she could win. She needed to report this immediately and bring the full force of the villains of the city to crush Nightmare before she could get her hands on more supers. Instantly, she scaled the wall fleeing up to the ceiling and out the hole in the roof.

Her eyes were blinded for a moment as she escaped out into the open air. Like this, no one could catch her from behind. Unfortunately, someone was already waiting. This had been a thorough set up. Pawed feet came slamming down, powerfully kicking Glitter Kitten in the stomach. As she flew through the air, she realized who had done it. Thumper’s silhouette came with her driving her into the floor. Dazed by the sudden ambush Glitter Kitten lay there the wind knocked out of her.

She wheezed, spitting out blood as she looked around the room. Den Mother and Thumper looming over her. Too late she realized that she had been had. She had been careless, but when had they been turned? Regretting not being as active in her gang activities as usual otherwise, she would have noticed unusual behavior. How? Den Mother couldn’t have been turned in that instant. That meant that they had been converted before this. This was bad.

Still, she couldn’t allow herself to be captured. Molotov would exterminate the Mad Dogs if they turned. The fear that had been etched into her brought out a ferocity that even she was surprised about. She tilted back and then slammed her head into Thumper’s leg breaking it cleanly as the bunny girl fell over screaming. Freed, she used Den Mother as a backboard and sent herself like a rocket of rage at Nightmare. The golem blocked the way and was subsequently ripped through, blood and sparks filling the air. Her claws raked at Nightmare managing to scratch her arms, leaving deep gashes into the terrified woman before Panther intercepted her and diverted her momentum to the side. If he was a moment later she would have cleaved that disgusting woman in half.

The two spiraled away crashing into the wall, knocking down several layers before tumbling to a standstill. Glitter Kitten rolled over first, crawling away from the high-speed collision, dragging herself, her mangled hand twisted and broken. It hurt, it hurt so damned much. But she couldn’t stop. Bounding on three limbs, she hopped and started gaining momentum until she was on her feet again held up on pure inertia.

Step after step she got faster and faster until the world was starting to blur again. That was when she heard them, her kittens crying. Her eyes darted in the direction of the sound. NO. HOW?! All of her kittens were here. Nightmare stood there smirking as she held a pistol on the back of the white and black kitten’s head. It was Rocket. Standing to the side, she saw who had betrayed her, Nibbles. Her blood ran cold at the realization of the extent that Nightmare’s influence had spread.

“NIBBLES! DAMN YOU!” She cried out.

“Give it up, or I will shoot every last one of these little bastards!” Nightmare yelled pressing the barrel of her weapon to the crying kitten.

Glitter Kitten knew that the best thing to do was to run. To not look back. If she ran fast enough, she would not hear the gunshot or their screaming… But she couldn’t do it. She couldn’t abandon her kittens. They were the only thing that mattered to her. She had to save them. She slammed her clawed hand into the ground and used it to pivot, turning around. She let the rage consume her. Charging forward. Faster, the pain squashed beneath her blood frenzy. If she was going down, she was taking Nightmare with her.

“I will fucking kill you all!” She snarled closing the distance in moments.

As predicted Panther had managed to get back up and was moving to intercept. That was what she was aiming for, with him out of the way none of the others would be able to stop her. All of her muscles bristled, and her claws slashed ripping him open the moment he got within range. As he cried out, a sound filled the room. A sound that drowned out even his screaming. It was like down in the basement, but the frequency was much higher pitched.

Glitter Kitten winced as she clutched her head. The noise felt like drills boring through her skull, stabbing her brain. She felt nauseous, and her balance broke. All the other subhumans in the room screamed and started to froth at the mouth. She got several more steps before succumbing to the noise and collapsing, her ears bleeding.

***

Glitter kitten finally went down. Nightmare wiped the cold sweat from her forehead before she glared over at Captain Metal, “What the fuck took you so long?! I was this close to dying!”

“Hey, it is a fucking miracle I managed to even make this sonic emitter out of this ramshackle rat nest of electronics. We have bigger problems, so shut the fuck up you bitch!”

“Did we lose anyone?” Nightmare asked, looking over the beaten and battered people laying around the room.

Gnome was missing an arm and had curled up using metal to stop the bleeding. Thumper had a broken leg as she lay to the side passed out like all the other subhumans. Captain Metal kneeled over Panther’s body, he had been sliced in half, his innards splattered across the floor and wall leaving an arc of gore and blood.

“Panther come on man talk to me!”

Panther clutched Captain Metal’s hand, “I… I can’t feel my legs.”

“It- it is just a scratch. You are going to be fine man.”

“Cold. I feel so cold.”

“You are going to be fine. Neon Nurse will-”

“She is dead. Chief is dead too… and Medavac.”

“Don’t talk like that!”

Panther lazily looked over at the blue and black spandex lumps that were his legs, “Ah fuck. Metal… Metal I, I don’t think I am going to make it. Hey, promise me something.”

“What? What is it?”

“You, you know my cousin Jamal, make sure he doesn’t end up on the streets.”

Captain Metal held his hand tearing up, “I, I will man.”

“Thanks. Make sure he stays out of trouble.’

“I will.”

Panther smiled slightly; his teeth stained red as his eyes lost their light and glazed over. Captain Metal wailed, “FUCK! No, No, No come on.”

Nightmare merely glanced over, her sneering frown was full of disappointment, “Shame, alright leave him we have work to do.”

“Leave him?! He deserves a proper burial! He is a fucking hero for fuck’s sake. He died to save you!”

“Yes… he was an adequate meat shield. Oh well, he was at least kind enough to leave his replacement.” She said dismissing the man and turning her attention to Glitter Kitten.

“YOU!” Roared Captain Metal taking a large stride as he tried to punch Nightmare.

Her hand grappled onto his face, and he screamed as his eyes rolled. He fell to the floor like a puppet with its strings cut. She just sighed and rolled her eyes, “So dramatic. Well, at least I got what I needed. Now little kitty, now I will finish what I started.”

She smiled as she reached down and cradled Glitter Kitten’s head.