Before either of them touched it, the doors detonated outwards. The reflective coating shattered into thousands of razor-edged fragments, raining down onto the marble floors like shards of glass snow.
Green and black kinetic burst from Seven’s hands, slamming the revolving glass podium inward. Their joints crunched under sheer force as the doors were pulverized beneath him. Three figures loomed behind the dust-cloaked demon from within the opened doorway. Their black bodies distorted, shifting to adjust to the lobby’s fluorescent lights.
They weren’t bulbous beasts like Gore-Hounds or crawler tanks like territory-establishing boundary keepers. They were Hunter-killers; bipedal husks of warped steel-toned bone and flesh. Limbs grotesquely elongated and tipped with wicked staves of sharpened scythe muscle that scraped against the marble floor with every lumbering step. Heads smoothed out of humanoid features and into featureless spheres; blaring an otherworldly whine Austin could feel in his bones that made the floating dust particles jiggle visibly.
[Presence acquired: Malrec Hunter-killer Squad.]
[Engagement threat level: High.]
[Recommendation: Target joints. Keep subjects at maximum range from primary scythes.]
"Seven," Austin yelled over the chorus of terrified screams from surviving patrons huddled behind tables and whatever barricades they could find. "Left side. Don’t kill them! Just get their cores."
"Copy, Master," the enforcer snarled, rippling its misshapen body into a combat stance.
Seven charged forward, violet-veined polearm swinging upwards to knock away the charging Hunter-Killer. Impact cracked the hotel’s foundation and birthed a hellish symphony of crunching metal and splintering bone. Sparks showered through the air like celebratory fire works, throwing tortured shadows across the wall.
His companions converged around them in blurred speed. One catapulted onto the reception desk with preternatural grace, twin scythes leveled towards Austin’s throat.
He didn’t flinch. Instead he blinked, and suddenly time slowed around him. Movement stuttered into cleanly separated frames as his mind struggled to adapt to the sudden influx of adrenaline. His pistol was nowhere to be found but he barely noticed. Beneath the shredded sleeves of his jacket, his forearms flexed. Sleek muscle rolled underneath his fingers as dozens of matte black bone-plating slid across his skin. Metallic plates flowed like liquid shadow over his arms; hungry for the light it obscured.
He raised his left arm to intercept the Hunter-Killer’s momentum.
Its scythe cleaved through his forearm like a collapsed support beam. Little puffs of white-hot electricity bounced off his bone-plating but failed to leave so much as a scratch on his demonic arm.
Its skull stilled mid-motion, pivoting lazily to one side in a facsimile of surprise. For a heartbeat the creature let out a stuttering pulse before it lurched forward to continue the assault.
"My turn," Austin whispered quietly to himself, centering himself against the wave of synthetic adrenaline crashing through his veins.
He struck forwards with his right fist, channeling every fiber of kinetic energy into the blow. It connected squarely underneath its ribcage with a wet splatter that silenced the abandoned lobby. Austin punched through dense, rubbery flesh-plating and shredded muscle and gristle with every centimeter his fist sank deeper. Dark blood sprayed into his vision, slick and metallic with hints of ozone and spoiled marrow.
[Adversary crippled.]
[Activating Devour.]
"No." Austin moaned through gritted teeth, knuckles whitening around the thrashing monstrosity’ core. "Not here. Feed it."
He slammed the twitching Hunter-Killer against the marble lobby. The impact cratered the floor tiles and scraped away years of neglect between the Flesh-Eater Overgrowth and the hotel’s foundation. Thick coils of black ichor-snaking vine wormed through gaps in the concrete slabs, writhing free from the bowels of the hotel.
As the Hunter-killer’s black ichor seeped into the fungi-roots, the Flesh-Eater Overgrowth stirred. Like it did with Dallas, like it did with every living thing it consumed; the plants didn’t just drink the liquid. It activated.
Floorboards splintered beneath the incomprehensible WEIGHT OF THE DEADIdidn’t know what other buildings Austin’ partners had claimed before arriving at The Grand Meridian. Thick vines barbed outwards toward its prey, suctioning the writhing Hunter-Killer off Seven’ hands and yanking it down into the building’FOUNDATION_like rabid mouthparts sinking into flesh.
The Hunter-Killer screamed, a guttural shriek instantly muffled by the rapid contract of vine around its core. Hungry tendrils burrowed themselves into the beast’ body, excavating corporeal traits directly into the hotel itself.
[Structure Symbiosis complete.]
[Network uploaded with host signature.]
[Flora within target area now subordinate.]
Pulling himself to his feet, black ichor streaking across his cheek. Austin scanned the lobby. Seven had pinned their other Hunter-Killer combatant against a marble pillar, violet spear buried deep into its throat. The final one had attempted to break towards the lobby doors but was swiftly contained by unseen wall of whipping black brambles.
Their Hunter-killers were done fighting. Their eyes were clear on that. This turf didn’t belong to Malrec anymore.
It belonged to Austin. To the Devourer.
Elena watched him from the grand staircase. She still gripped her crossbow awkwardly in her hands but made no effort to aim it. Her shoulders slouched at her sides, muscles bunching loose from taught strips of toned resilience. She’d seen scavengers kill before. Hell, she’d seen bodies begged, pleaded with, and murdered on this street enough times to last several lifetimes. But she’d never seen someone casually tear a demon in half and commandeer a building complex to devour it whole.
Her breath came in short, jagged bursts. Panic pulsed from her in waves but underneath it all Austin could taste it. Curiosity.
"You-" Elena’s words caught in her throat. It didn’t matter. Even without speaking aloud, Austin could hear her as clear as if she were inside his head.
"What are you doing?"
He turned to face her, eyes locking with her own. Where brown used to pool in his irises, Austin caught the slightest glimpse of violet dancing at the edge of his pupils under the poor lighting. The glowing contract on his wrist ignited, thrumming softly to some unknown heart pulsing beneath the lobby floor.
"I told you," Austin said, voice gravelly with contained threats. "Hands off. This is mine."
Austin took another step towards the grand staircase, his legs suddenly buckling beneath him. No matter how great the kill was or how absolutely thrilling tonight suddenly became; a lingering sense of guilt for absorbing another life crawled over him like an infection.
The ground writhed under his boots, phantom fingers squeezing his windpipe in place. Information overload. That’s what it felt like; plummeting through the fight and physically ill from assimilating all that he was witnessing. Between jagged breaths he berated himself internally.
Taking control of a building was one thing. Paying mind to the magnitude of riding along on a Hunter Killer’s distress signal did not occur to him until he fused with the building.
Hell. He didn’t think about taking control of a Hunter Killer’s mind at all until now.
His human side hiccupped into his vision, flickering downwards several percentages.
[Human Alert: Cognitive function has exceeded predicted thresholds.]
[Devourer assimilation: Enforcing rapid absorbment. 4.8%.]
[Rest strongly suggested.]
All legs went from underneath Austin as he stumbled forwards, smashing both his hands down onto the wooden reception desk to brace himself before crumpling face first to the floor. Panting, he dug his fingers into the grainy carpet, desperately willing the blackness in his vision to subside.
Footsteps padded behind him on the marble.
Before Seven could reach him, Elena took action. Dropping her weapon unceremoniously to the floor, she crawled forwards on her knees; fingers grasping securely onto his bicep before he fully collapsed onto the floor.
Her palms were warm against his torn jacket, fists clenched at his sides. Adrenaline. She smelled like adrenaline and everything human and everything Austin hadn’t felt rushing through his mind. Up close, Elena smelled like life; sweet and pure as compared to the copper taste of demonic ichor.
"I got you," she whispered at him forcefully, eyes narrowing to angry gold. Her head whipped towards the massive enforcer towering over them with child-like wonder. "Don’t fucking just stand there!" She screamed, white knuckles gripping possessively at his arm. "Help me take him upstairs."
Seven glanced at her for a moment before releasing a guttural grunt, laboriously lifting Austin’s spare arm and slinging it over his thick shoulder. The three of them moved with morbid, apocalyptic grace; not saying a word as they helped Austin closer to the rear lobby. Away from the bloodied doors and predatory vines eager to latch onto their backs.
The second they finished half-dragging him across the threshold, Austin granted himself a few seconds of peace and allowed his eyelids to fall. Prize for killing them both burning warm against his rib cage.
The Grand Meridian used to be dead, buried under a century’s worth of dust and neglect. But anymore?
Austin smiled.
It breathed.
In time with him.
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