Chapter Sixteen


I skidded down the slope of the ruined avenue, gravel sliding down the precipitous drop. I reached the end, bracing myself against a fallen slab of concrete, then turned to make sure Chloe fell safely. The streets were now peaks and valleys, evidence of the conflict continuing above us.

Chloe screamed a little as she tumbled down the small hill created by the giantess' movements. Each normal step for them was like a small earthquake, but in the midst of combat their movements were so violent that it looked like the city had been hit by a ten on the Richter scale.

Chloe almost fell headlong into me, but I managed to catch her just in time. She gasped for air, then managed to calm her nerves and rolled off of me, leaning against the concrete slab as well.

"Okay, that's the hill. Where to from here?" I panted.

"I think the headquarters should be up this next slope, then fifty yards to the left."

"No problem," I said, although I sounded less than confident even to my own ears.

Chloe picked up the radio from her belt. "Teams, report in," she yelled.

A staticky outburst shot from the small communicator, then voices began to speak, one after the other. "Alpha team is in position." "Beta is fifty feet from target."

"Roger that," Chloe shouted back into the machine. "Anyone heard from Charlie team?"

"Roger, Foxtrot," came the distorted reply. "We've run into some difficulties."

"What are we talking about, Charlie?"

"Got a fallen building in front of us, too tall to scale."

"You'll have to find some way around," said Chloe urgently. "We're moving to target now, stay in communication. Foxtrot out."

"So, now?" I asked.

"Now, we run." And we ran.


Above us, Sarah continued to weaken. Vanessa was hitting quick, hard blows, mostly to the torso and legs. Sarah had once or twice attempted to headlock Vanessa, or trip her, but these attempts were mostly failed. Even worse, Sarah began to look like she was having trouble keeping her balance, something which was especially worrying to us on the ground.

Finally, Sarah let out an anguished cry and simply leapt upon her opponent. This sudden outburst shocked Vanessa a little, and Sarah was able to bring her to the ground. The two began to roll, devastating whole city blocks. Vanessa wrapped her hands around Sarah's neck and began to squeeze. Sarah, unable to breathe, tried to shake out of her grip by continuing the roll, but Vanessa wouldn't budge.

After Vanessa felt she had sufficiently weakened Sarah she finished the roll, with her in the dominant position. She pinned Sarah's shoulders with her hands, and spat in her face. Sarah responded by headbutting the military woman. The move dazed Vanessa, giving Sarah time to spring to her feet. Vanessa recovered quickly, leaping up and grabbing Sarah's head, throwing her to the side and causing her to smash into a nearby apartment complex. Sarah tripped a little before getting her balance, almost stepping on Charlie team, which was still trying to find away around the toppled office building.

They were aided by Sarah, whose foot dragged, quickly decimating a large chunk of the fallen building and providing a way through.

Sarah turned to see Vanessa charging her. She managed to dodge the charge, maneuvering into a position that rolled Vanessa off her back, throwing the black-haired woman to the ground and creating a huge crater in the middle of the city park.

Vanessa managed to get to her feet in record time. The two giantesses then began to trade blows. Sarah had somehow managed to tap one remaining source of furious strength, and her crushing, wild blows made Vanessa lose ground, forcing her to move backwards.


We were almost home free. There was fifty feet, no more, between the former headquarters and Chloe and I. "Let's go!" Chloe yelled, breaking into a run.

I was about to follow, when I saw the gargantuan leg, sheathed in black leather, moving rapidly toward us. The shock struck me speechless. I wanted to cry out to Chloe, but my warning stuck in my throat. Chloe ran forward, heedless, as the spiked heel of Vanessa's boot accelerated towards the ground.

I somehow managed to snap back to reality. There was no time to lose. I triggered Sess, felt the adrenaline rush, the familiar slow-motion. I'd need it now more than ever. Chloe was staring up as the sole of the boot descended. I broke into a swift run, my feet flying across the ruined pavement.

Chloe was within reach. I leaned forward, hands outstretched as the boot descended, not ten feet above. I felt my hands grasp fabric, and came to a sudden stop, shifting myself so that I'd tumble backwards.

Chloe and I fell away from the tremendous boot as it slammed into the ground, the shockwaves rattling my bones. The boot swiftly receded again as Vanessa continued to step backwards. Chloe got back to her feet and ran inside the small enclosure, coming back with two of the shock weapons. She exited just as Sarah's bare foot came swiftly down upon the former headquarters, flattening it.


Sarah was in midstep when Vanessa abruptly halted her retreat and moved forward, grabbing Sarah by the arm. This sudden reversal threw Sarah off balance, both literally and figuratively. She plummeted, but she took Vanessa with her. The two began to slug it out on the ground, kicking and punching savagely.

Now it was just a matter of who would run out of steam first.


Chloe was speaking tersely over her radio. "Okay, Charlie team you take point, get some elevation and ready the RPGs."

"How in the hell are we supposed to get elevated in the middle of a city?"

"Get in one of the office buildings, or climb atop some wreckage. You figure it out," she snapped back. "Beta team, you're our distraction. You'll run right past her, as fast as you can. Make sure you have cover to get behind once she's seen you." There were audible grumbles over the radio. "Finally, Alpha, you're following us. Meet us at coordinates 73 - 20."

"Roger Foxtrot," came the reply. "Over and out."

"Okay," said Chloe turning to me. "We've got some distance to cover, we'd best get moving."


Sarah's punches were coming weaker, her breath beginning to be labored. Vanessa only grinned and slugged harder. Eventually Sarah simply stopped hitting all together, and tried to roll up into a fetal position. No matter how many self-defense courses one takes, it's still difficult to square off against a fighter born and bred.

Vanessa got to her feet, snickering. She drove her leather-sheathed toe into Sarah's stomach, causing the fallen woman to curl up further. Then she bent down and hauled the larger woman to her feet.

"You know, I never liked you," she said, tasting her bitter words. "You were the intellectual, above all us fighters. But while you sit around futzing with gadgets, we're making changes in the world. That's right, it's fighters, not inventors, that change the world. It's why I got Brian, while you got your half-inch man."

"How do you know about..." Sarah trailed off weakly.

"Your microscopic boyfriend? Well, for one thing, you shouted 'Leave him alone.' instead of 'Leave them.' But the signs were visible miles away. You're really quite predictable. How else do you think we managed to defuse that bomb planted in your lab? I can read your tactics like a book."

Sarah swayed woozily in Vanessa's grip, then steadied herself. Once again, she managed to steel herself despite her complete physical defeat. "You psychopath," she said quietly, not needing to rant and rave like Vanessa did. "Don't you know you've already lost?"

"Lost what?" Vanessa demanded.

"Your boyfriend. He's gone."

These four words were enough to convey the full meaning of what had transpired before we left Sarah's world. For a moment Vanessa stood perfectly still, staring blankly into space. Then she hurled Sarah to the ground and screamed.

It was a bloodcurdling scream, feral and completely devoid of any intelligence or restraint. From there, Vanessa went insane. She began ripping apart the city streets, stomping about without any control whatsoever. Fireballs plumed beneath her as she rampaged, but she paid them no heed, continuing to destroy anything within her reach.


"Now's our chance," Chloe told the Alpha team as she heard the howls of rage from afar. "With her enraged like this, she'll be easily distracted. Everyone remember the plan?"

There were nods all around.

Chloe picked up her radio. "Charlie Team, Beta Team, execute Attack Plan A!"

Charlie team fired off the first salvo, the rockets leaving a trail of smoke as they raced towards Vanessa. Two of the three missed their marks, but the third impacted, mushrooming into a cloud of smoke and fire and causing its victim to cry out in pain. Vanessa stumbled, putting her hand to the spot where the RPG had hit her, just above the left thigh.

As she recovered from the shock of being hit, Beta team raced by her, not fifty feet between them and the giantess's boot. Vanessa looked down and cried out in rage, lifting her boot and bringing it down wildly in an erratic pattern. Beta team managed to duck and weave between the blows, losing only a few men. They made it to shelter in a small underground parking lot.

Just as Vanessa was about to give chase, Charlie fired their second round. This time all three rockets made it to the target. Vanessa didn't even scream but grunted, taking the rounds without any loud noises. She tottered slightly, but maintained her balance.

"Damn it!" I yelled. "For the plan to work, we need her to fall."

"I got that covered," came a woman's voice over my link.

A tremendous leg swung over our heads, aiming a kick at the leather boot a hundred feet from our position. Sarah's tactic worked, and Vanessa plummeted to the ground. I signaled for Alpha team to get out of her fall zone, and the men quickly and competently combined, all of us scattering as Vanessa smashed to the ground.

The unconscious giantess's body slammed into the pavement, throwing up dust clouds and flattening anything beneath her. I quickly raised my shock weapon and made a beeline for her neck.

Reaching the vast expanse of pale white flesh, I dialed up the weapon to full energy, then jammed it into the flesh next to her carotid. Vanessa began to twitch, a dangerous prospect for those around her, but I continued to keep the weapon in place, even as it vibrated within my hands. Finally, Vanessa ceased twitching. I removed the shock device.

The men of the other teams gradually collected around me, each giving a salute. Chloe came to my side, and Sarah rolled into a position where she could see all of us, lying on her elbow. "We did it," said Chloe.

"All of us," I replied. "But we couldn't have done it without you, Sarah."

My lover smiled wearily. "I did what needed to be done."

"The president will be wanting to speak with you," Chloe said quietly to me as the rest of the soldiers ran off to find transportation. "He'll want your opinion on what to do now."

My mind raced. I had thought this was the final battle, the be-all end-all. What was there left to be done?

For the moment, however, I made the decision to put those thoughts out of my mind. Instead I walked over to Sarah, and placed a hand on her much larger arm. "Let's get you fixed up."