Chapter 284: The Hive Mind’s Escape

Jade’s quiet words lingered in Gideon’s mind as he followed her toward the edge of the platform.

There is still someone I need to take back.

He glanced at her, but she was already studying the destruction ahead, her long red hair stirring in the wind that swept through the canyon.

Whatever she meant, she clearly wasn’t ready to explain it. It must be someone tied to her power or whatever past she hides.

Gideon decided not to press her. They had a giant parasitic organism trying to do anything for him to join them... like a damn cult with an unknown number of people trapped inside it. That seemed like enough problems for one afternoon.

Though he was sure now, the woman had mistaken being a settlement leader for having the right to throw her life away whenever she pleased.

Unfortunately, Gideon liked her far too much to let that happen.

"Lead the way," Gideon said, following Jade as they descended into the canyon.

Rather than climbing down the crumbling structures, they leaped into the open space, dropping through the canyon before landing on a rocky outcrop jutting from the canyon.

The ledge brought them closer to a building that still stood taller than the Hive Mind’s sprawling mass, giving them a clearer view of the parasite below.

"Keep close," Jade said, stepping onto a narrow strip of broken stone that extended from their platform to the next building.

Gideon followed her gaze. The gap between the two structures wasn’t particularly wide, but the building on the other side leaned dangerously away from the canyon wall.

Its lower supports had been eaten through by the Hive Mind, leaving the upper floors hanging at an angle.

"That thing has excellent taste in real estate," he muttered. "Every building it touches becomes a death trap."

"Then try not to fall."

"See, that’s the kind of encouragement I need from my partner."

Jade looked back at him with a faint smile. "You can always go first. I’ll catch you if you fall."

"How reassuring. I’ll remember that when I’m halfway down the canyon."

She crossed the gap with a quick leap, caught the edge of the opposite platform, and pulled herself up. Gideon followed, landing heavily enough to send loose fragments of stone tumbling into the darkness below.

He watched them fall for a moment.

The canyon was deep enough that he couldn’t hear them land.

Lovely.

He turned away before he could waste any more time appreciating the scenery. Below them, the Hive Mind was deciding to withdraw from the ruined settlement.

Its white mass flowed between the buildings, pulling itself through gaps that should have been too narrow for something of its size.

Wherever it passed, strands spread over the surrounding structures, devouring anything they touched and leaving the walls trembling behind it.

The parasite wasn’t merely retreating. It was dismantling the settlement as it went.

"Shit! We can’t let them escape." Jade said and he nodded.

Gideon had seen plenty of aberrants behave like animals, driven by hunger or instinct. The Hive Mind was different. It was driven by survival and probability.

They might realize the fight is a waste of time and decide to go somewhere with more people or more aberrant if it could even devour something like that.

Now it was turning Climber Rift itself into an obstacle course designed to slow them down.

He wasn’t sure whether to be impressed or offended. Fortunately for them, they move pretty slow with that kind of body.

"Can you still track the consciousness?"

"Yes. The concentration is much denser than the surrounding tissue, so it’s easier to distinguish. I just can’t tell exactly where it will move next."

That was useful, even if it wasn’t quite the answer he wanted.

A sudden tremor ran through the platform beneath their feet. He grabbed Jade’s arm and pulled her away just as the outer edge broke apart. The section they had been standing on dropped into the canyon, taking several chunks of masonry with it.

Several thick strands erupted from the Hive Mind’s mass and climbed the face of the building. Their tips flattened, then hardened into long, sharpened blades. More white growths followed, spreading across the wall like a forest of spears.

Gideon’s expression changed.

There it was again. The parasite wasn’t simply throwing its mass at them. It was shaping its own body into weapons, using the walls as extensions of itself.

"Move!" he shouted.

They jumped toward a neighboring structure as the blades swept across the platform. Gideon caught the edge with one hand and pulled himself up. Jade landed beside him, her boots scraping against the stone as she regained her balance.

The white blades struck the wall behind them, punching through masonry and sending cracks racing across its surface.

Gideon drew the Unbreakable Sword.

"All right, bastard. If you want my attention, you’ve got it."

He lunged toward the nearest cluster of blades and cut through them in a single powerful swing. The sword passed through the hardened tissue, severing several growths at once. Their tips hit the ground, twitching as the remaining strands tried to pull them back toward the main mass.

Gideon stamped on one before it could slide away. The tissue squirmed beneath his boot as he stared at it and felt the sudden disgust and annoyance at the same time.

He couldn’t believe he was rather fighting with the most terrifying and powerful aberrant than this mass of blob with no spine, weak as hell, but couldn’t be cut clean.

He kicked the severed growth into the canyon and followed her across the narrow ledge.

They were forced to move sideways along the building’s outer wall. The original walkway had collapsed, leaving only a series of exposed supports and broken sections of flooring.

Gideon had to grip the masonry with one hand while keeping his sword ready in the other. Jade moved ahead of him, using the remaining ledges and protruding beams to reach the next stable section.

Neither of them had the luxury of slowing down.

An insect aberrant burst from an opening above them. Its body was covered in pale tissue, and several long, sharpened spikes protruded from its back. It spread its wings and opened its mouth.

Gideon recognized the movement a fraction of a second before it fired.

He twisted aside as a volley of white spikes tore through the air. One struck the wall near his head, sending fragments of stone against his cheek.

"Damn it!" He glanced at the projectile embedded beside him. "Does everything this thing produces have to be sharp?"

The insect prepared another volley.

Jade raised her hand. The spikes abruptly veered away from Gideon, their trajectories bending toward the creature that had launched them.

Jade’s power caught their movement and redirected the energy behind them, sending the sharpened tissue back at the aberrant with greater force.

The creature tried to evade, but the spikes tore through its wings and body. It crashed against the side of the building and fell out of sight.

Gideon stared at Jade for a moment. He wondered if that was telekinesis or another type of power. But that was so cool. He wanted to ask but she frowned deeply with clear disgust in her face and he decided not to.

"Remind me to stay on your good side," he said.

Jade narrowed her eyes and smirked, "Then, changed Elaine’s bed schedule with you this month and transferred it to me. You will be on my good side forever."

"You know what, I think Elaine is more terrifying than you could ever be, so no thanks."

Gideon grinned. There she was with the familiar remark and expression he knew well.

They reached a broad section of flooring that still clung to the canyon wall. From there, he could see the Hive Mind’s main body spreading toward a narrow bridge that connected the lower settlement to the structures beyond it.

The bridge was already sagging under the weight of the white mass.

Jade’s expression changed when she realized where the Hive Mind was heading.

"No. It can’t reach the way out."

Gideon glanced at her. "What’s beyond that bridge?"

"The route leading outside Climber Rift." Her voice tightened as she watched the white mass creep closer. "The survivors have already evacuated, but if that thing gets out of the settlement..."

She didn’t finish, her gaze fixed on the bridge with growing dread.

Gideon followed her line of sight. The Hive Mind had already swallowed most of Climber Rift. If it escaped into the surrounding area, there was no telling how far it could spread.

"Then we make sure it stays here," he said, his eyes narrowing at the creature below.

Jade studied the distance. "We can reach the platform below us, but the direct path is gone. The Hive Mind has covered the supports."

She was right.

Several meters below, a broken section of the building jutted out from the canyon wall. Beyond it, another platform remained attached to a cluster of stone pillars. The route was possible, provided the structures didn’t collapse while they were crossing.

He had certainly attempted worse things.