Mythos Effect

Broken and Remade

Apparitus, Three Months after Invasion

Julek grunted as he hefted a large sandbag onto his shoulder. By his estimation, the thing weighed in at a good fifty pounds, maybe more. After spending the last couple hours hauling them, he'd become very sensitive to their individual weight. His back was of the opinion that they were too heavy.

He strode over to the fortification he and his unit were building a defensive position around an intersection in the street. It was an impressive sight as far as improvised fortifications went, ten feet high in every section and four bags thick with alternating choke points throughout its interior. Julek headed over to a portion that was still underway and deposited his cargo with a groan. Beside him, another Turian did the same and groused, "You'd think that after Spirits know how many centuries, we'd come up with something better than just sandbags to hide behind."

Lieutenant Lycus Orom was a new face to the war on Digeris, having come in with the last major transport effort before the Federation had managed to obtain total orbital supremacy. A couple years younger than Julek, he was gifted with a strong set of mandibles and a well-grown fringe, a combination of such intensity that usually was only found on the covers of fashion magazines, making him the local heartthrob among many of the females.

"They still do the trick," said Julek. "And besides, that's how our military thinks: it was good enough then, and it's good enough now."

"Back then, they didn't have literal fucking monsters coming at them," retorted Lycus. He gave one of the bags a contemptuous smack with his hand. "Call me cynical, but all this just seems like a wasted effort."

Julek had to admit that Lycus had a point. While he hadn't yet faced the Federation in battle, there were plenty of stories about what they had at their disposal, and if their advances across the Elpis stayed as energetic as they had for the past few months, he'd soon find out for himself. If even half of them were true, then this little barricade would be at best an inconvenience. But, orders were orders, and the general in charge of the city's defense wanted every corner of Apparitus turned into a killzone.

"I'm sure that the top brass would love to hear any suggestions you might have," remarked Julek. "But for now, get back to lugging those bags into place. We've got maybe a few days at best before the Nefs get here, and--"

He paused, cocking his head curiously. A strange sound filled his ears, a sort of screeching clamor that seemed to be getting both closer and louder.

"Do you hear that?" Julek asked.

Lycus stopped in the middle of picking up a new sandbag and listened, eyes narrowed in concentration. "Yeah, I hear it. What the hell is that sound?"

His question was answered scant moments later. High in the air, great flocks of aerial creatures of every size and shape flew over the city, screaming, shrieking and warbling in alarm. There were so many of them that the sun was almost entirely blotted out, plunging Apparitus into intermittent darkness. Julek marveled up at the sheer size of the flock...no, swarm of flying animals; it was as if every species of the world were present in this mass exodus.

"Hey, look at that!" someone called out.

All around, Turians stopped what they were doing and headed over to where the call had come. Julek followed at a brisk pace until he reached the outskirts of the city. A small crowd of Turians was already there, taking in the sight before them.

Far out on the grassy plains that surrounded Apparitus, another mass migration was taking place, this time for the land-bound wildlife. The smaller ones scurried beneath the legs of larger beasts. Predator and prey intermingled freely, hardly even acknowledging each other. Parents urged their offspring forward, or in less-doting cases, just left them behind if they couldn't keep up. The tramp of countless feet was like an earthquake, rumbling across the plains. There was only one thought in their minds: get away. Anything else was inconsequential. Julek wondered if maybe the animals had more sense then he and his fellow Turians did.