I run through a busy city plaza. Of course i already cleaned blood of my trenchcoat as best as possible, otherwise I wouldve already had some cops on my behind. Luckily leather doesn't soak blood that easily. The sunlight shines bright through the glass roof, a scent of baked goods, cafés and parfum cover these grounds. Inmidst the ground level runs a small fountain on which rim a few teenagers pass their time, some on their phones, a few talk with each other, but most of them have their lunch. A few girl groups walk from window shop to window shop, chatting and dreaming of themselves and what to wear. The everyday business folk sit around in the cafés, enjoying their drinks from coffee to alcohol, whilst working on their laptops or answer phonecalls. A kid drags her mother into a toy shop, hoping to find something they can have. If not for my target I would love to go to the bakery for a sandwich and some spiked tea or a beer. But alas, it's close to end of work for me, I do wamt to work ahead and collect this soul for tomorrow.
I just passed a bookshop when the target walked around the corner. A young one sadly. A very thin little girl. Maybe around 12 or 13. She was bobbing her head to the music from her 80€ earpiece. She's barely even aware of the her next own steps, even less of her surroundings or her fate. A normal soulhunter would probably give her an aneurysm....But here we are....
I draw one of my dual canons out of the opposing inner lining of the coat. Casually aimed at the girl i fired, hitting perfectly to see her explode. Amidst the ploom of smoke and the light of the sun, a shadow looms over the ground, growing in size by the second.. Whatever it is, it's massive- I turned my head towards the shadow above, but my movement felt as if captured in slowmotion. I got even greeted by another gunshell, exploding riiight in my face.
"-the Fu-!?"
A behemoth fell through shattered glass from the sky, covered by dust and rubble. A rusty voice echoes throught the hall, a red light shimmers through the smoke.
"You, will be sorry"
From the dust rises a monsterous mashine, nay, cyborg, it's height rising way above the 4 meters. A rusty behemoth with a torso formed like a barrel, as wide as a luxurious kitchen isle, seated on 4 hydraulic pistons and what seems to be his metal spinal chord down to the hips. Beneath the rust it is garnished with blue squares with white crosses diagonally, otherwise.he is covered in cuts, dents and holes. Despite that the armor looks sturdy. The right shoulder aims what looks like a vertical jet barrel, whilst the right side garnishes an oversized gear. Its misaligned proportions look so extremely out of shape but also purposefully made that way.
The left arm is thick and heavy, the lower arm as big as a wine barrel, the 3 fingers are 120° offset to each other, to even grip anything halfway with those.
The other arm is refined, having a thinner build all over, its lower arm casing open, revealing its inerts like a swiss army knife.
The 5 fingered hand seems as humanoid as a fully steelen variant can be, its winch-system stearing every tiny bit of input as precise as clockwork.
This Face, a human one....one scar from the upper right to the lower left and down, a metal plate covering his mid forehead like a ramhammer, a face that definitely has seen things.
And not to forget this red, mechanical eye on his left, its mechanisms reaching even beyond what should be an ear.
I cough up smoke, but other than being a bit charred, I can handle it easily.
"Aight, yeah, o'course, why not....
who the fuck-"
I don't even get that far without him raising his right hand, firing a bullethell at me out of dozens of holes in his palm! Most hit, but none penetrate, until he fires out of the big hole in the middle of his palm, firing a plasma ray point blank at me.
Whilst my skin is extremely resistant, especially heat resistant, it won't hold that well against the scorching heat of the sun. The result is my open skin burning to a crisp, cracking on many spots and falling of in smoking, brittle chunks. The trenchcoat burns away to a thin skinlayer, avoiding at least direct contact to this otherwhise devastating beam.
The big battlearms' muzzle of the iron giant glows in a slight red hue, smoking heavily, as it releases its empty shell. All, the giant can see as a result is a stand, black and chared body, a black, tar-like liquid oozing out of every crack, festering around the damaged body. Behind me, the remains of the wall imprint on my exact location, leaving an otherwise perfectly cut circle in every wall behind me, creating a huge opening to the dumbfounded town, stopped in its tracks from its casual day to day environment. Sirens start blaring in the far distance. In contrary to the anticipation the giant turn to the girl I shot in the beginning, kneeling like a knight infront of the remains of her, his old and rusty body, creaking and moaning under the stress of these uncommon movements.
"Too late.....I'm too late....forgive me...."
What the hell was this attack, who is he....and why can't I see his soul!?
It's as if he's invisible to my left eye!
That's does it!
I won't let that walking hardware store trample all over me!
With a audibly visible crunch is begin to move myself torwards him. My body smokes from the attack and the superheated black blood, covering heavily damaged parts of my body.
Before he can even turn around, I jump over his right side. A thick steelen chain shoots out of what is left of my left sleeve, which I through to wring around his neck. I keep the chain as short as possible, so i can just barely touch the ground.
"Saoghal slabhraidh-"
As son as I touch the ground, I grip the chain with both hands, pulling him down.
"GAG YE BASTAAARD!!!"
The giant, grieved by the chains grabbing his throat tight, slips down to my height, where i grab him overhead by the hydraulic pistons, that connect the torso with the hips and slam him head first with a jumped throw to the ground. The ground shakes by the impact of this tons heavy behemoth hitting the ground.
I step onto his torso, placing one foot onto his chin. In my frustration and anger I bow down to him.
"Well fuck ye, ye daft arse! So much for formal courtese, eh!? If ye gonna gimme somethin' for me money worth, ya at least gimme'e name o' who I'm clashin' wi', got it!? I'm just fuckin' doin' me job'ere whilst ye're playin' hero for somethin' NoONe. aSkeD. fOr!!"
The now conscious giant groans in pain before letting out a swift "CyBeta" and opening a few dozens of canon bays in the torso, which aim perfectly for me. I release an annoyed grunt.
"Omega....pleasure...."
At that moment the canons unleash their wrath, their high explosive shells {fut.: HE shell} immediately blasting me away like a slingshot.
"BASTAAAAAAaard"
I yell as team rocket is blasting off again.
It's past my shift end anyway, so I call it a day. May the nearest bar bring me consolidation.
24 people, 24 foes-
22 souls, the other one goes.