บท 81: Miami

Ed looked over the 24 enslaved espers. "If you're lucky, then my plan won't even need executed. You espers are going to help me fight the president if the need arrives."

"What?!" One of the espers yelled in shock. "It's basically a suicide mission! Are you nuts?!"

"I'm not." Ed replied calmly. "In exchange for your help, I'll be promising your freedom regardless of whether the plan is actually used or not. Additionally, I'll be providing 2nd awakenings. Any questions?"

The crowd stood in silence awkwardly. Their fidgeting body language seemed to indicate they had plenty of questions. But when they stared at the dead body on the ground, they chose to hold their tongues.

Seeing that his soldiers had everything under control, Ed wasted no time and got to work. He created a crude underground lab and had the espers follow him into it. He chained the first esper to a steel table and began the operation. His powers melted through the espers head, revealing the mana-core. He slowly scraped off the lesser or the two elements, and then he added mana-powder to restore it. Unfortunately, his concentration wavered, and a crisp cracking sound rang out as the esper died.

'I was careless.' He sighed while shaking his head. His mind was preoccupied with the war and other distracting thoughts. He forced himself to focus as he started on the next esper. One surgery at a time, he alternated through the espers. Soon, he had finished them all. There were no dramatic 2nd awakenings like his own in the past. Of the 24 espers, only 10 managed a 2nd awakening successfully.

"Good." Ed smiled. "Now I'll be giving you limbs similar to mine. However, they'll be powered by your own mana. It'll be difficult to get the hang of flying, but I do recommend you learn it quickly."

He began the surgeries again. The earlier model of his limbs was given to each of them, which was identical to what the superhumans used minus the manullium and mutant flesh. However, there was one slight difference he hadn't told them about. In-between two metal layers of the metal limbs was a thick layer of light mana-powder. If Ed were to activate the lightning mana-batteries implanted within their heads, then they would explode like a bomb.

Ed dragged the 10 espers back above ground. The morning sun was just starting to rise in the sky, indicating that a day had already passed since the capture of Orlando. He passed the espers to Eli for flight training. 'Their 2nd awakenings were fairly weak.' He sighed to himself. 'Still, it was necessary. I really hope that things don't go that way. Phantom is one thing, but the president is entirely different. I'll be lucky if this suicide squad is even a tiny bit helpful now that they've had 2nd awakenings and flight capabilities added to them.'

As Ed was lost in his thoughts, he felt a stream of strange energy enter his body. It felt both cold and warm, which made for an odd sensation. His golden thread of energy grew several times thicker, causing his eyes to widen in surprise. 'What's happening for my growth to skyrocket so much?' He wondered.

...

A day earlier, when the Miami war was just starting. Ray watched impatiently as the drills dug beneath the ground. He crossed his arms and forced himself to remain calm. Enemy fire was bombarding the earthen wall Terra had created, but it held strong. Only the occasional cannon fire from the city wall managed to breach it, and the holes were always patched quickly. Still, the bodies were slowly piling up. This was a disadvantageous position for offensive maneuvers. Nobody would want to storm the enemy fort amidst such chaotic bombardments.

'This isn't the way I like to do things.' Ray frowned while shaking his head. 'It'd be so much easier to blockade the city and starve them out over time, but time is the one thing we don't have. Normally for a siege like this, you would want at least three times as many soldiers as the city has. But instead, the numbers started even, and we're quickly gaining more casualties.'

BOOM! A pile of dirt and dust exploded into the air next to Ray. Shrapnel grazed his legs and cheek. His eyes widened as he turned to his left and saw that cannon fire had penetrated the earthen wall and exploded right next to him!

'No more holding back!' His eyes turned red from rage. He had planned to stay with his men, passing orders as needed. Many of his most talented men had join the chimera and superhuman divisions, leaving him understaffed for talented officers. Because of this, he had been forced to handle most operations himself. He looked towards his fellow soldiers. Occasionally a cannonball would score a successful hit, causing a rain of blood to pour from the skies. The ground was slowly becoming dyed red as small pools of blood formed rivers.

Lightning crackled around his eyes as silver plasma covered his entire body. The plasma jettisoned behind him as he shot straight towards the city walls like a rocket. The moment he landed on the wall, the enemy soldiers all aimed and fired their steam rifles. However, the bullets were destroyed upon impacting his plasma. "DIE!" He yelled as the lightning appeared on his feet. The plasma on his arms extended into blade-like shapes. He skated forward as the lightning propelled him. Severed heads left trails of blood behind him as he sped past.

"Enough!" An angry voice bellowed. A chubby man stood on the wall, surrounded by blackish water that formed tentacles.

"Mayor Rodriguez?!" Ray replied in shock. "Shouldn't you be behind enemy lines? At your office or something?"

"Humph!" The mayor snorted. "As if I'd hide as my own city is attacked. I don't fear your army." He rose an arm in the air. "Men! Attack with me!"

A hint of worry appeared in Ray's eyes as more espers gathered towards his location. One flew atop a cloud of flames. Another appeared directly from the wall, like a metal golem heeding its master's call.

Ray closed his eyes for a brief moment and took a deep breath. When he opened his eyes, he was completely calm. Time was counting down, as more espers were gathering nearby. If he could successfully kill the mayor, then it would be a huge morale boost for his side. Casualties would be reduced significantly, and he could focus on eliminating enemy firepower along the city walls.

A small orb of concentrated plasma appeared on each of his feet as he knelt into a running position. He lunged forward as he charged towards the mayor, hoping to close the distance as quickly as possible. The moment his foot touched the ground, the small orb of plasma exploded, leaving a crater behind him. Then the same happened again when his other foot touched the ground. With each step he took he created new plasma orbs to explode, allowing him to continually gain momentum.

The metal golem-like esper stepped forward. His body was the size of three fat men put together. Ray showed no hesitation as he dived forward, like a swimmer jumping into a pool. The plasma on his body formed a large silver blade and cut through the metal esper like a knife through butter.

The metal esper stood completely still, his eyes wide from surprise. A large smooth hole had appeared in his stomach. He was already dead, his metal body maintaining his stance. Perhaps he would become a 2nd civil war statue after the war ended.

Ray continued running forward.

The esper on the fire cloud was about to attack but seemed to change their mind. Upon seeing the metal esper die, he simply flew away, abandoning the mayor and city.

The Mayor flicked four tentacles towards Ray, leaving no room to dodge. However, Ray didn't even attempt to dodge. He confidently charged through, just like he had done for the metal esper. The plasma didn't work particularly well on the tentacles, likely due to the water element within them. The dark energy of the tentacles corroded Ray's skin, leaving black tattoo-like burns on his chest. Still, he ignored the pain and pressed on.

The Mayor showed a hint of panic for a brief second, but he quickly regained his senses. A thick ball of the black water tentacles formed around him, creating a defensive cocoon that wouldn't easily be broken.

Ray reached the cocoon and slammed his fist forward. Plasma and black water exploded, causing even more burns to his body. The tentacle cocoon was barely damaged from the exchange.

"Fools!" The mayor laughed. "Do you really think you can defeat the Governor?! You can't even beat me!"

Ray frowned, trying to think of a way to break through.

Suddenly, a blast of wind slammed into the ball of tentacles, knocking it backwards. A handsome muscular blond man stepped forward. "We'll take him together!" The man said confidently.

"Husky?!" Ray replied. "I thought you said you were going to hide in the backlines? What the hell are you doing here?"

"I was going to..." Husky trembled as he clenched his fist in anger. "But I couldn't hold back any longer! All of these pointless deaths! Do you know what they mean?!"

"A weakened Harmony army?" Ray answered, confident his answer was correct.

"No!" He shouted as his eyes turned red. "It's lost profit! Every one of our soldiers need to eat and buy goods. They represent the GDP of our economy! Each one is an irreplaceable loss that will affect future income! Sure, they might experience better benefits due to less competition, but it's less money in Harmony's pockets!"

Ray's eyes widened in shock. "Did... Did you get hit in the head by a stray cannonball or something?!"

Suddenly, several tentacles whipped past the two Harmony officers. They quickly jumped back to avoid the attack as the mayor pressed forward. The tentacles kept coming, forcing them to act defensively. Not a single opening presented itself. Things were only getting worse as more nearby espers came to reinforce the mayor.

"DIE!" The mayor laughed as all of his tentacles opened up, exposing his vulnerable body. But neither Ray nor Husky had time to think of attacking, for all of the tentacles were about to crush them into meat paste.

Boom! Suddenly, an explosion rang out, and the mayors body was blown into meat chunks.

...

A brief moment earlier. Dupe stood atop a steam tank, a pair of binoculars in his hands. A 2nd Dupe piloted the tank, waiting for orders from 1st Dupe.

"Now!" 1st Dupe yelled, right as he spotted the mayor lowering his defenses.

Whoosh! Steam blasted from the sides of the steam tank. A large shell blasted through the skies as the steam tank ricocheted backwards. 1st Dupe smiled as he watched the mayor be blown to bits. 'Did the newbies really think they could outperform me on the battlefield?' He lifted a mana-radio to his hands and spoke orders into it.

Within the city of Miami. Two dupes hung out in an alleyway. They were in the middle of an intense arm-wrestling match, ignoring the chaos the war had caused to the city. Bam! One Dupe slammed down the hand of the other. "I win!" He grinned. "You know the bet. I get to play the hero."

"Tsk!" The other Dupe pouted as he crossed his arms in discontent.

Suddenly, they heard orders come from a nearby mana-radio. The two nodded at each other, serious looks on their faces. The clone that lost the match grew chubby as he transformed into the Mayor. The winning clone transformed into Ed and wore a Harmony mask.

The Mayor Dupe left the alleyway. However, there was one very unusual thing about his appearance. He was in his birthday suit, completely nude. He was already near the city walls, although he was a distance away from the location where the real mayor had just died. He entered a door and climbed many stairs to reach the top of the city wall. Guards stationed along the staircase entrance and exit stared in shock at the unusual situation.

Dupe exited the staircase and stepped atop the city walls. He held his chest high, a confident look on his face. His arms were folded behind his back as he slowly walked forward. Each step he took caused more and more soldiers to stop firing and stare in shocked silence. He occasionally reached out with his hands and pinched the butts of various soldiers, regardless of their sex. By now, there was a large portion of the wall that had completely stopped firing.

Finally, a high-ranking officer spotted the fake mayor. "What are you doing?!" He yelled in shock. He rushed forward and pulled off his coat, hurriedly using it to cover the fat mayors body. His voice trembled, "What... What happened to you sir?!"

Dupe stretched his hand forward and slowly brushed it across the officer's face. The officer grew even more confused at what was happening. Thwack! Suddenly, Dupe slapped the officer so hard that he fell to the ground. He stepped on the officer's back and stomped down repeatedly, yelling in a gruff voice. "Don't you know any respect?! I'm your commanding officer! Who are you to question what I'm doing! You little bitches just need to die properly in the war for me. Don't speak unless you're spoken too. Got it?!"

The soldier was so shocked that he didn't even try to defend himself. What kind of insane logic was this?

Suddenly, a grapple appeared on the wall. A man wearing an exo suit stepped atop it, a Harmony mask decorating his face. He wielded a vibro-knife and swung it towards the mayor, instantly beheading the man.

"Forge?!" The trampled soldier questioned in shock.

"Mm." The man nodded. "Such a disgusting mayor. This is the corruption that plagues our great nation." He knelt down in front of the officer, a look of pity in his eyes. He turned the blade around and held it towards the high-ranking officer. "Will you fight with me? The Mayor is dead, and the battle is as good as over. Help me save both your men and mine. Together, we can make a better tomorrow."

The soldier's hands trembled as he struggled to push himself up. Dupe, disguised as Forge, placed a hand on the man's shoulder to help him. The soldier grabbed the vibro-knife. There was a complex look in his eyes as he nodded. "I'll help stop the battle, but I won't be able to do it alone."

"Good." Dupe grinned, eager for the battle to end.