Chapter 13: Chapter 12: The Devils of Dust! Or something like that...
Orion and Zephyr sat in the back of the hovercar, silently watching as Luna hummed along to a song about getting the perfect guy.
"When are we ditching her?" Zephyr whispered over the table in between the two men, it displayed a holographic map of their target location, a large territory called New New Mexico.
Orion watched as the holographic map tabled on the table played out between them. It was the detailed layout of their destination, New New Mexico. It was a territory with mystery and rumor that touted danger with its filling. "Not yet," he replied, his voice low. "We need her, at least until we get through New New Mexico. She's our ticket in."
Zephyr nodded, but didn't like it much. He understood, but Luna was a reminder of the watchful eyes of The TO over their mission.
Luna, however, seemed oblivious to their conversation, her hands subconsciously adjusting the trajectory of the hovercar. "And now we're approaching the outskirts of New New Mexico," she said. Her tone grew serious. "This is where it gets tricky. The Dust Devils have been seen scouting this part of the territory, and they don't deal too kindly with outsiders."
Orion leaned forward at the map. "Any ideas on how we could avoid them?"
Luna smirked and did not let her eyes off the horizon. "Avoid them? Why, no, we have to ride right through. But do not fear; I have a plan."
"Corny, forget avoiding them let's just take em out," Orion said, changing his mind quickly as he popped open the side door.
"Hey I'm in charge of this mission you can't just-"
Orion lunged out of the car, wind whipping at his clothes and hair as the vast desert came into view. "Can't hear you!" He yelled as he plummeted down to the ground.
"That idiot! At least you aren't stupid enough to-" Luna's words were cut off as she looked at Zephyr's empty seat, he wasn't far behind Orion.
"I need to ask for a raise after this mission..." Luna said with a sigh as she drove the hover car down toward Orion and Zephyr.
The desert was surrounded by tornadoes, huge vicious things that made Orion's heart flutter, it made him feel alive.
"Yo Qece, scan for any life around here, leave out Zephyr and The Shapeshifter," Orion said as he neared the ground, slamming into it a moment later and kicking up a huge dust cloud.
"Hm... There isn't anyone around Orion, maybe that Luna girl was just trying to keep you contained?"
"Why would she do that?" He asked as he dusted himself off and looked around. Desert went on for miles, and the tornadoes didn't look like they were going away anytime soon.
"Oh, I don't know, maybe to keep you from jumping out of the car like a suicidal bastard?" Qece said sarcastically before he hologram disappeared.
Zephyr landed gracefully, golden wings on his back as he stood next to Orion.
"She didn't say we were by The Dust Devils... Just near them."
Orion nodded. "Yeah... Guess we jumped the gun?"
The ground beneath them began to tremble, and from the swirling sands around the tornadoes emerged not men, but monstrous figures, shaped from the very dust and wind of the desert. The Dust Devils were real, and they were unlike anything they had ever faced.
The creatures were tall, their bodies a swirling mass of sand and debris, with glowing eyes that pierced through the dust. They moved with the speed of the wind, closing in on Orion and Zephyr from all directions.
"Guess we found them," Orion said nonchalantly.
"More like they found us!" Zephyr yelled, slicing down with his golden sword. "Aurora's wrath."
A huge beam of energy cut through the line of Dust devils, but there were too many.
"Put your swords away, I got this one," Orion said, smirking as dozens of runes glowed along his body. It felt good to connect to his inventions again, after fighting Arthur with magic, he'd felt dirty.
Orion lunged at one of the devils, sticking his thumbs in its eyes as miniscule black robots poured into it. As the dust devils closed in on all sides, the one Orion had attacked screeched in pain, and it's body moved awkwardly as Orion's nanobots sunk into every nerve in its body.
"Now I have full control," He said aloud as a dust devil landed behind him, it's mouth wide and ready to chomp down on his neck.
The dust devil blew back as Orion controlled his own creature, making it tear through its friends and slam them around.
"Should I just sit this one out?" Zephyr said with a grin, patting Orion's back.
Instantly, the dust devil he had been controlling blinked and tore through it's chest, ripping the nanobots out and tearing apart its own body.
"What the hell! Zephyr you made me lose focus!" Orion yelled angrily as the dust devils surrounded them. It was at this point Orion realized they weren't just a gang like Luna said, these creatures were a specific race.
If he had to give them a name, then yes, they were devils.
The dust devils pounced on them, pinning them down and clawing their way through Orion's improvised energy shield.
"Orion it's not gonna stay up much longer!" Qece yelled as the energy shield began to crack.
"Fuck."
The energy shield shattered, and the dust devils teeth sank into the two men...
Boom!
The dust devil that had been an instant from ending Orion's life had blown apart like a bomb, its insubstantial form dissolving under the sudden and intense attack. The shockwave that issued out from the explosion knocked back the creatures around them, presenting Orion and Zephyr with a rare moment of freedom.
Orion whirled round, expecting Zephyr behind him but found his gaze landing on Luna instead, who had just landed by his side, her body taking on a more mature and muscular look. "Took you long enough," Orion said, half amused, half relieved.
Luna half-smiled without losing pace. "Traffic was a nightmare," she said in a really dry tone. Her eyes turned to the encroaching dust devils. "Let's Wrap it up, shall we? Her shapeshifting was helping in devastatingly horrifying efficiency as it shapeshifted to various species which had their ways of combatting and fighting. At one moment she became a massive beast that hulked her way through the ranks of the enemy and at the next a swift bird of prey, diving and dodging with lethal precision.
"Woah…" Zephyr said with a whistle.
"Geez we need to get you laid," Orion said with a groan as he rushed in After Luna, breaking through the dust devils just as fast.
As the battle went on Luna grew tired, visibly slowing down as more and more dust devils swarmed them.
"The outside world is a shitshow, remind me to be less spontaneous Qece," Orion said as he grabbed Luna's arm, tossing her into the air and throwing a metallic ball in the air. The hover car caught Luna in the backseat, and soon after Zephyr and Orion were inside, driving off through the desert.
A pulse of blue light flashed behind them as Orion activated his gadget, yawning in the driver seat.
"Next time stay in the fucking car…" Luna whispered as her original form returned and she closed her eyes, passing out in the back.
"On to New New Mexico…"
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