this is crazy

[from_scratch]

Cam is watching a new recording of Atriama, tail swishing in the gap in his couch, and doesn't stop to pause the show when he feels a summons go by.

Comments

[from_scratch]

Right.

Where does Armsmaster want the complete works of Richter dropped.

[wormcan]

Well, there's his email. Given the subject matter it's pretty certain to reach the person himself.

Of course considering that Cam can appear things at range, a large box in the Brockton Bay Protectorate HQ labelled "DO NOT OPEN UNLESS ARMSMASTER" would also be reasonably effective.

[from_scratch]

Yeah, Cam thinks physical media is the way to go when talking about working on an AI bound to stop anyone who looks like they might be thinking about trying. The wording he goes with is actually FOR ARMSMASTER'S EYES ONLY and a locking system that was not invented by tinkers and therefore should be openable by a tinker but inconvenient for anyone else to bypass without destroying the contents.

[wormcan]

In about an hour Cam doesn't receive a message thanking him for the information, but only because spontaneously appearing physical objects isn't a medium that allows for replies.

[from_scratch]

Well, Cam does think that email is secure enough for a this is Cam, did you get the thing? note.

[wormcan]

After which he does get that message.

No guarantees about a timetable Armsaster adds, but this should at least speed it up.

[from_scratch]

Luck.

And Cam goes back to supplying this-and-that to a growing chunk of Africa.

[wormcan]

Then it'll rapidly start to go the way of Japan.

[from_scratch]

Cam avoids cities, mostly, and definitely never forms a stable office in any specific one. He doesn't sleep. He flies around and makes things and keeps up with current events and teaches himself Umbundu.

[wormcan]

Nothing is allowed to go well for very long without being interrupted.


Russia is more likely than most to try to respond to Endbringers with the military instead of capes. This tends to go badly. For this Endbringer attack in particular they have enough parahumans available to not have to do that, and they are accepting international firepower.

The monitoring systems have narrowed down the location, and Behemoth will be there in minutes.

[from_scratch]

Any of Cam's paroled capes want to come fight Behemoth?

[whole_new_can]

A handful volunteer. None are especially powerful—if you're a major local player without being outright unassailable then you don't last long if you're also selfless—but it's not nobody.

Moord Nag says she'll do it but requires payment.

[from_scratch]

"Payment being Scavenger food?"

[whole_new_can]

"Yes. Thousands, if I am to fight him as an equal instead of a distraction like the rest."

[from_scratch]

"...Maybe next time we can try you on a mindless human. Today no." Cam's in too much of a hurry to try to figure out if she's overestimating what she needs to fight an Endbringer and has nefarious plans for the leftover juice. He takes the low-power parolees and hops in a ship and flies to Russia.

[wormcan]

The battlefield is well supplied with powerful hero teams. Red Gauntlet is taking charge; they may be run from Eritrea but they operate here enough that they apparently count as the home team. The Triumvirate and a few other North American capes are here with more on their way, and even the King's Men sent a force over from the UK.

When Cam arrives there isn't time left for much of a pre-battle briefing. He and his passengers get an abbreviated but strongly worded reminder that the instant death radius is thirty feet from Behemoth unless you're extremely tough, stay one hundred away so he doesn't close the gap, if you can't hurt him directly try to hold him in place or slow him down for those who can, here's an armband communicator, don't die.

[from_scratch]

Cam's passengers are mostly best suited for bopping around evacuating people, but he's not going to micromanage them.

Cam does not fear the kill radius, but he also doesn't need to be that close to do the moderately ineffectual damage he can do, and Behemoth doesn't move fast enough to be that hard to keep in line of sight unless he dives.

[wormcan]

They commence bopping. Later arrivals get progressively less information, until one group is interrupted by the ground rumbling and Behemoth appearing. He looks like a giant rock monster, what with the magma and the obsidian, but the fastest ranged attackers blow patches of that off and reveal the much tougher skin beneath it.

[from_scratch]

Cam interpolates/freezes/considers burning probably redundant/acidifies/etcetera.

[wormcan]

The monster ignores most of it. Most of everything in fact. For a good few seconds he absorbs the attacks without even acknowledging anything short of Legend, and then he retaliates. His roar is a weapon in its own right, and a few of the nearest capes get killed by the intensity of the sound. For everyone else it's merely incapacitatingly loud. And then the more traditional lightning and fireballs.

[from_scratch]

...It's probably a bad idea to just attempt to encase Behemoth in fingernail. Cam is not sure how that would go wrong but it seems like the sort of thing that would based on his understanding of Endbringers. But he can get frigid shields between fireballs and capes, and he can see if the roar's effect is diminished if there's a lot of helium in the air.

[wormcan]

By the time he starts the helium the roar is already over, but there'll probably be another chance. Unfortunately.

The hard hitters are hitting hard. Red Gauntlet's leader slams Behemoth downward, then she's joined by the Triumvirate and the rest of their equivalents. He dives to avoid the barrage, and roars again when he comes back up.

[from_scratch]

The terrain's pretty unstable, but Cam starts looking for places he could ground lightning rods without them immediately falling over.

[wormcan]

Behemoth lobs some fireballs and lightning at the less durable fighters, and roars again at the tougher ones. The front line has already survived one of these, but the heroes have the upper hand and slowing down their best has to help.

[from_scratch]

Helium. Let's see how intimidating you are when you sound like a cartoon character.