Mod Superhero (Book 4 STUB on JULY 30th)

Chapter 4.55 - Wading Back to Base

Arsenal slung an arm across Mod's shoulder, and they set off toward the Summit staging area to the North side of Belport. Mod's right arm still hung useless at his side.

Clara's strength was steadily coming back, but with her armor half-destroyed, it wasn't safe for her to power it up. At least, not yet.

"Give me a few minutes," TINA said to both of them. Nanites swirled out of Mod's torso and into Clara's suit. "I can isolate the damaged systems so that Arsenal can walk under her own power. Just don't get into any more fights today."

Clara scoffed. "I need a twelve-hour nap."

The water level had risen up to their knees around the destroyed parking garage, but Mod wasn't worried about it getting any deeper. It actually looked like it was beginning to recede across the city.

Mod couldn't wait for the tide to go out. Carrying Arsenal back was rough enough, but wading through knee-deep water on shaking legs was excruciating.

"TINA... I don't suppose you have a drone nearby?"

"The answer is still no."

Mod sighed. "Fine. Then tell us how everyone else is doing."

"McGuire and the others helped that military squad successfully evacuate. They and other nearby capes are convening at the staging areas. Your friends made it out safely."

Neither Mod nor Arsenal felt like talking during the walk back, and Mod didn't want to focus on his injuries, so he asked TINA to keep talking.

TINA told them briefly how McGuire, Cherry, Larian, Krytsal, and Serenity had held their own. Mod pressed her for more info to keep her talking, but TINA insisted that McGuire would be distraught if she spoiled all his cool moments.

After that, the conversation turned to the rest of the war. Supers had been essential in the defense of the coast. The Deep Ones must've sensed this because they began to focus on powerful supers. Mod and Arsenal weren't the only supers to come up against mages wielding the remnants of crystal bombs, and most Class 2 and 3 supers didn't fare as well as they did. TINA explained that the Deep One's communication appeared to break down toward the end of the engagement, and that helped the surface world significantly.

Super organizations, including the Binary Brotherhood, the Menagerie, and various mages' guilds, were also instrumental. The Brotherhood, in particular, was able to bring large numbers of assets to bear. Ava Savanus and Midas both had their own standing armies of walker-mechs, while TINA and Venture had an army of flying drones.

Mod and Arsenal trudged onward as TINA narrated. Thankfully, the water continued to recede, and now sloshed around their ankles. Mod kept a lookout for lurking Deep Ones as they walked, and couldn't help but linger on the scene left behind. The tide had pushed cars onto their sides and tossed them into buildings. Seaweed and trash sloshed across the street, and everything up to the second floor was coated in a layer of salty grime. Even if buildings were still standing, that didn't mean they would be liveable afterward—not without lots of work.

Mod shook his head. Even though the war was over, Belport would be rebuilding for years. Somehow, Mod knew that Belport had been lucky.

"How about casualties? How bad was it?"

"Estimates are ongoing. Currently, the projected death toll ranges from several hundred thousand to several million."

Mod's chest felt hollow.

Clara grimaced. "I think I'm going to be sick."

It took a moment for Mod to process what she'd said. "Do you want to stop for a second?"