27.4

Summary of Parahumans: Worm, Chapter 27.4:

(Compression Goal: 5/5, Target Word Count: 1335)

The Birdcage is emptied. Chevalier asks everyone not involved in the upcoming battle to leave, urging the remaining capes to focus on Scion. Family members and friends depart through portals to various Earths. New Wave leaves, as do Imp and Rachel. Grue initially decides to leave as well, but I convince him to stay, telling him his power might be useful. Parian departs, leaving Foil behind. Sophia attempts to slip away, but I send her a message with my bugs: “I’ll talk to you later.”

Chevalier briefs the remaining capes. Defiant and Tattletale are managing communications and logistics, while Cauldron devises the overall strategy. Defiant has been tracking Scion, predicting he’ll soon shift from smaller targets to a major one. This attack aims to identify Scion’s weaknesses and buy time for evacuations.

String Theory and Lab Rat, two সদ্যমুক্ত Birdcage inmates, demand lab space. String Theory claims to have planned a weapon during her imprisonment, requiring a fusion reactor or a large plasma source. Lab Rat requests an abandoned animal shelter with animals, to Defiant’s disgust. Bonesaw is assigned to work with Panacea under supervision.

I approach Glaistig Uaine, who’s using a captured spirit, Phoenixfeather, to warm her hands. I ask about her role in the fight against Scion, and she speaks cryptically about a “play” with different roles. She identifies me as a “queen” like her, alongside a “champion,” “high priest,” “observer,” “shaper,” and “demesnes-keeper.” She hints at Eidolon being the “high priest” and suggests he’s playing his role incorrectly. Glaistig Uaine expresses a desire to see the “faerie rise again” but claims loyalty to the current fight. I ask about Doctor Mother’s role, and Glaistig Uaine calls her a “prop,” albeit an important one. I press for more information, and she warns that “they” are listening, implying a hidden power structure monitoring their conversation. She then asks about my role, and after kissing my cheeks, states she looks forward to either collecting me after death or meeting me if I survive.

I prepare for battle, choosing a black costume with white armor panels, reminiscent of my time as Skitter, and equip a handgun, a taser, and pepper spray. The portal takes the capes to a drilling platform in the middle of the ocean, symbolic of Earth’s composition and far from Scion’s current location. Lab Rat distributes communication devices and mysterious matchbox-sized devices, refusing to explain their function.

As more capes arrive, including String Theory and Galvanate, Vista questions the location’s isolation. Legend appears, explaining it’s symbolic and minimizes the risk of Scion tracking them. Chevalier announces the plan: fourteen attack groups, alternating between strong and weak, striking Scion from different directions to test his defenses. Tattletale will coordinate, with me acting as her liaison in the field.

The first group, Chevalier and Ingenue, use a portal to attack Scion from four miles north. Ingenue amplifies Chevalier’s Cannonblade to an immense size, and he fires, the recoil destroying my bugs on the other side. The second group, including Clockblocker, engages, experiencing Scion’s devastating power firsthand. The third group, featuring Eidolon, Legend, and Pretender, report that Scion is “running.” I relay a warning to Tattletale about Glaistig Uaine’s potential betrayal.

The fourth group, led by Grue, uses his darkness enhanced by Shuffle to engulf Scion. However, it proves ineffective, and they retreat. The fifth group is String Theory, who uses her “G-driver” to hit Scion, seemingly knocking him out of the atmosphere. Defiant explains the G-driver is an upgraded version of String Theory’s Firmament Driver, capable of altering celestial bodies’ orbits.

Scion returns, now directly above the platform, radiating bloodlust. I alert Tattletale and urge for an immediate escape. However, Cauldron refuses to open portals, fearing Scion’s ability to track them. I argue that Scion already knows their location and pleads for them to intervene. Despite my pleas, no portals appear. As Scion’s attack intensifies, cutting off communication, Tattletale apologizes, saying, “I’m sorry, Taylor, I wish—” before the signal cuts out completely.