The Cloak Guard

Versus Swarm, Part 4

 Emily let out another string of curses about what Swarm could stick up and down certain parts of his anatomy, all the while trying to break through these stupid microbots. She couldn't believe that she'd allowed herself to get captured, forcing Franklin to have to...well, get thrown away like that. He'd been winning and she'd been his downfall.

It had all started when Gabriela had finally collapsed. Emily had expected it to happen seeing as the girl seemed to be barely holding herself up anymore. Still, she should have asked Travis to get out of there quicker as the instant she fell, the microbots swarmed over her.

Emily had run over, stretching out her arms to grab hold of Gabriela before the microbots could get her and bring her back. Then, she'd been forced to fight off the horde with the girl on her back, desperately trying to keep her from falling. It actually wasn't really fighting as she was mostly just keeping the enemies at bay while she figured out what to do. She couldn't ask Travis for help as he was never still long enough, constantly zipping around the battlefield, trying to find a way up to Swarm. And Madison looked exhauster herself, her force fields becoming weaker and weaker.

Emily had known they wouldn't last much longer which was why she was praying so hard for Franklin to succeed. She herself was feeling her bones and muscles ache. She'd never stretched them so hard in such rapid succession, something she'd have to add to her training sessions if she got out of this. With every punch she threw or kick she launched, she felt a bit more tired.

And now, with the extra drag of Gabriela draped over her, things got exceptionally more hard.

She bit her lip as one tendril managed to get her in the thigh but she karate chopped it and kept moving. But that was just the start. She had already been slowing down but now she just couldn't keep up, getting too many cuts and stabs across her body. They were only minor ones but they were starting to add up and wear her down. She tried punch back but she could really only use one fist. And she could barely even inflate it anymore.

"Emily!" Travis suddenly appeared next to her and for a second she thought she was saved.

"Here Travis, take her out of here," Emily said, handing Gabriela over to him.

Or, at least, she tried to. But at that moment, the microbots made another move, one large tentacle coming right for her. She made to get out of the way, but she wasn't fast enough and her leg, exhausted from the strain, gave way beneath her. The tentacle hit her dead on, knocking her back and Gabriela out of her hands.

She tried to get back up but her body protested the movement, aching all over. She could barely even stretch her arms anymore. She didn't see what happened next as the microbots swarmed over her, encasing her. She did feel herself get pulled up into the air and moved around. It was only when the microbots left her face that she finally saw what was happening and she cursed herself for putting Franklin in that position. She could only watch as he was thrown away. Now they were down...well, pretty much all of them. Gabriela was out. Franklin and Sumin were gone. Travis and Madison were trapped, the only thing stopping the bots from swarming them being Madison's shield around them. And Luke...

She suppressed the shudder of fear and refocused. She had to find some way out of this or they were all dead. She could still stretch herself, albeit not too much. This fight had drained her more than she would care to admit. But that didn't mean she was done, not by a long shot.

"Well now," Swarm said, turning back to her. "Let's move on, shall we?"

"Dude, what the hell is your deal?" Emily asked. If there was one thing she could tell about this Swarm guy, it was that he loved to talk. And she needed time to regain some energy. "Do you get off killing kids or something?"