Chapter 104: Roots of resolve

After the encounter with the 12 Thorn Hounds and 3 Flameveil Stalkers, Clayton no longer kept his Aphid Network hidden. Some of them stayed out of sight, but a few of them, predominantly the Thorn Crown Behemorphs now charged alongside the military truck. With their physicality and Crown powers, they had the speed to keep up with the speeding truck, and the power to fight off attacking Behemorphs. Torren even theorized that the leading stampede of Thorn Crown Behemorphs, alongside the noise of the military truck could potentially scare even more Behemorphs. The prospects of that would make their journey even easier. The team had all heard of Clayton’s Aphid Network, but not till they saw it did Torren realize how much of a game changer it was. "This Aspect of yours," he looked at Clayton in a new light. Torren didn’t just look at Clayton though. With the inclusion of the Aphid Network, he flexed his commanding powers even more, including the Aphid Network in his plans to fight off Behemorph encounters in the journey. The truck roared on, Clayton’s trust absolute. And yet, Torren noticed something in his gaze. "What’s on your mind?" Clayton stayed silent. "Is it the Rootsite?" Clayton shook his head, his eyes still focused ahead on the road but Torren noticed a different gleam in his eye. He scowled. "Don’t tell me you’re still worried about us". Clayton responded without looking at him. "My Rootsite’s dying. Korrath’s coming for me. But now, it’s not just me anymore. You’re all in, and me means everything now". "I mean..." "Come on man," Torren clapped Clayton’s shoulder from behind. "We already spoke about this". He gently squeezed his shoulder. "We’re family, Clayton". Veyra, resolute, said. "My sister won’t smile at me if she learns that I abandoned a fried in his moment of need". Clayton stuttered, almost veering off the road by mistake. Veyra smirked at his reaction. "He’s blushing!" She laughed. "You never had a friend?" "Wait," she said, her eyes suddenly wide. "People don’t have friends 300 years ago?" Clayton laughed. "Of course, dummy". A few seconds later, he said. "It’s just... the streets were wild then". Noticing the others looking at him weirdly, he chuckled. "I know, I know, trust me. I know the world has ended, but take it from someone who’ve lived in both eras, the world was dying then and the process was far more chaotic than now". "Yes, there were no Behemorphs then, but sometimes," he sighed. "Humans can be far more terrifying than Behemorphs". "At least you can trust a Behemorph to always attack you". "Humans? You can’t be sure". Kaelin looked at him. "Is that you trying to say that you don’t see us as friends?" Clayton laughed. "Now that you say it, hehe, congratulations my friends!" He yelled loudly. "From today, we’re friends!" "Now you’re talking". Torren grinned. "For brother". Kaelin chipped in. "For legends". Lorn’s touch sealed it. Two days to the Forgotten Atlanta Expanse, Nexus’s dream loomed, Korrath’ purge relentless. ... Day 3, En Route to the Forgotten Atlanta Expanse. The Mycoglyph-powered military truck thundered through the Nexus-warped wastelands, its roar a siren to Behemorphs across ash-strewn plains and bone-twisted forests. Clayton gripped his wheel, Shedskin cloaking his Verdant Lord aura as tattered rags, Regalia of the Verdant Warden in bow form beside him. Thornshade Dagger hummed at his hip, venom-coated and stealth-enhancing. His Architect Aspect pulsed, Hive-Sight burning with visions of the Rootsite in the Forgotten Atlanta Expanse: Korrath’s biomechanical drones, thorned metal and pulsing vines tearing through fungal spires, only four Spore Plague Lords standing defiant, Mycoglyphs flickering. The Aphid Network, now just 28 minions (4 Spore Plague Lords at the Rootsite, and 24 Thornweave Sentinels) hunted minimally, gaining Embers, another one lost to a fungal chasm. Watching through his Hive-Sight, Clayton saw just how desperately his other half resisted the invasion of the enemy Verdant Lord. "Give up already, you root swine!" Korrath roared occasionally after another of his extended skirmishes refused to bring the towering tree to its knees. Yes, Clayton’s humanoid body felt like the real him. But in truth, both were part of him. Both were the real him, both were extensions of Clayton Hunt, the root-born. Both had the same Architect Aspect, the same abilities. Whereas Clayton’s humanoid body was more nimble though, able to shoot arrows, and attack with a spear, the Verdant Lord form was by far the more directly powerful of the two. Towering at over a dozen meters, it could hit with devastating force. Not only that, in the natural plant form, all the Aspect abilities that Clayton had access to were amplified in his Verdant Lord form. And he was no mere plant either. He was a monster plant with a human mind, with devious street smarts, and a burning and spite-fueled will to survive by all means. Add it to his ruthless tactical mind that he honed through surviving in the green zone in Echoterra, and killing Clayton, whichever of his 2 forms was an uphill task. And it was this uphill task that the Verdant Lord of New Chicago took on. The military truck roared on... Clayton’s voice was grim. "Rootsite’s got days, maybe hours. But Korrath’s drones are relentless, and he’s calling even more reinforcements". "My Verdant Lord form’s holding, but I need reinforcements". The others looked at him. He glanced at Torren. "I don’t know if I told you guys before, but I can grow my Aphid Network. By defeating Behemorphs and using my ability on them, I can force them into submission, adding them to my network". "It’s risky, but it’s worth a shot". Torren nodded, eyes sharp. "Let’s do it!" Veyra, already clutching her dagger, said. "Ready when you are". Kaelin stared at Clayton, feeling incredulous. "You scheming bastard, you can actually grow your army?" "Your Aspect is just broken man, the f*ck!" "321 years, and you’re still full of tricks," he grinned. "I love it. You’re the best old friend that I have". Clayton grimaced and glared at Kaelin slightly. Lorn’s voice was steady. "Show us, Clayton". Clayton told the others his general idea to execute his plan, letting Torren take reins over it to finetune it. It didn’t take long before they started. A screech shattered the air; eight Initiate Ember Emberwings (2-meter fire bats, Ash Crowns) and four Thorn Hounds (3-meter spiked canines, Ash Crowns) swarmed, drawn by the truck’s roar. The bats buzzed into range. "Veyra, Kaelin, clip those Emberwings. Aim for their wings," Torren started. "Soren, me, on Hounds, neck and joints". "Lorn, shields up. Clayton, drive and do your thing". Veyra’s daggers slashed an Emberwing’s wing, Kaelin’s Ashveil Cloak blurring to tear another. Torren’s Flamevine Wrath bound a Hound Soren’s Emberblade cutting its neck but not killing it. Lorn’s vines shelded, pulsing green. Clayton fired Regalia’s root arrows, shredding an Emberwing, and then he finally did his thing, calling on the core power of his Aphid Network for the first time in a long time. BZZZ! His Architect Aspect thrummed with power. Immediately, two of the Emberwings and a Thorn Hound staggered, falling in submission to Clayton’s powers. For the first time since reviving back on Earth and getting his Aspect, Clayton added a winged Behemorph to his Aphid Netwok. It took a second or two for them to react, but when they did, all hell broke loose. Chaos. The Emberwings pounced on their siblings, catching them offguard as they shredded them apart. The Thorn Hound was more cunning, letting its siblings go closer to the human truck before ambushing them from behind. It was a massacre. Of the Behemorphs that attacked them, only 3 submitted to Clayton’s powers, but that was already a much higher ratio than the team expected. "Damn". Torren muttered, staring at the 3 new Behemorphs that now escorted the military truck, including the 2 flying bats. "This will make our journey much smoother". Kaelin whistled. Clayton grinned right as the system lit up with a new notification. DING! ~----~ [Behemorphs Slain: 6 Emberwings, 3 Thorn Hounds (Initiate Ember)] [Aphid Network Losses: 1 Thornweave Sentinel] [Aphid Network Gained: 2 Emberwings, 1 Thorn Hound] [Genesis Embers Acquired: 54 (Team Kills)] [Genesis Embers Acquired: 7 (Random Network Hunts)] [Genesis Embers Total: 4,768/6,000] [Aspect Strain: Moderate] ~----~ With a grin on his face now, Clayton added pressure to the accelerator. ZOOM! The truck jerked and sped forward. Now, they were just one day from the Forgotten Atlanta Expanse, Nexus terrain writhing; roads pulsing like veins, trees clawing the sky. Territorial Sentience pinged Ashen Covenants’ Ember Witches, their matriarchal rituals a steady hum, watching from afar. Clayton’s Hive-Sight showed the Rootsite’s core fading, the resistance becoming weak, Korrath’s drones relentless. Torren refined his tactics. "Let’s target Emberwings, they’ll improve our situation far better than land Behemorphs". "Change of plans". He looked at his teammates. "Aerial Behemorphs hit fast. Veyra, Kaelin, keep range. Land Behemorphs charge hard. Soren, me, flank and bind". "Clayton, your network’s our hammer now. Lorn, keep us alive".