"Okay..." - Said Hawkins - "We don't know for sure when that thing will reach Lakeside, or even inhabited areas in its outskirts. We need to try and intercept it before it does..."
"Let's set up a line, then. Sammy Pitch, my man, you're with me. Silke, you sure you want to try to do this?" - Said Lucas.
"Yes, I am." - Said Johanna - "Come, Sider. I will need your machines..."
Matt nodded and followed Johanna through a portal.
"Cecilia" - Said Hawkins - "We could use some backup from any nearby areas."
"On it." - Said Cecilia, sending a message with a mental command to any agents they had available. The two stepped through another portal to their point shortly after.
"I never thought I'd get to use this body for an actual fight..." - Said Samuel - "Well, let's go."
"Sorry, but against this thing I needed someone else to soak up the aggro..." - Said Lucas.
"I'm here because I want to, and I'll get to show good deeds done by a demon-changed. So long as I don't die, it's all good..." - Said Samuel, smirking.
Lucas nodded. She and Samuel Pitchford stepped through, taking point.
Sandra Tesla managed to escape - by little - when the warehouse began to grow. Something felt off, though - while there was a shaded area in the warehouse where she could keep from being hit by the sun, she found herself able to see her car through her hand.
"Translucent..." - She muttered to herself. She tried to open her car...
...and her hand phased through it.
She was so stunned by these developments that she almost didn't notice it when the giant version of Mr. Aurelius's new doll stepped "on" her, her "phased" state the only thing preventing her from dying a very weird and very horrible death. The eyes of the thing, she would recall later, had a black quality to it that went beyond the mere color.
The machine - the Enemy - walked in this new body, aiming to use the power of this body to try once more to reach its goals.
Enough uncertainty... We can control it... Water Element Detected.
To be sure, Lucas wasn't really trying to hide.
"HEY, GUYS! HOW GOES?" - She shouted, smirking - "Come on, take a looksie at my sword! It's yours if you beat me! You know you waaaant iiiit!" - She finished, in a singsong voice.
The Enemy focused itself on Lucas. Which allowed Samuel to land a powerful hit, aided by fire he spat, to the side of the doll's head. While it did shake up the doll, it didn't do major damage to the side of its face where Sam had landed the hit.
"Come on, now, what did you learn from fighting me? I'm always the bait! Except when I ain't!" - Said Lucas as she dove towards the left leg of the being, landing a few cuts, without much damage either.
The hand of the being came fast - too fast for Lucas to dodge completely. As it was, while she didn't suffer the full impact of the hit, she did feel it.
"AHH!"
Samuel noticed that and caught Lucas, moving quickly away from the machine with her lest it took the opportunity to hit a stunned Lucas.
"Lucas! Are you okay?"
"I'll live... If only so I get to fucking kill Idiot Millionaire..." - Muttered Lucas, right then more than willing to blame Idiot Millionaire, AKA Geoffrey Aurelius Senior, for all her past, present and future problems and then some - "Let's keep going..."
The duo kept attacking the being, always from the same side, always trying to keep just out of its reach.
"Looks like it's just us for the next ten minutes at least, Inkface. I sent a signal to all radios, Internet and TVs near the entrance of the city to alert people to get away. We'll have to do the rest of the warning by mouth though." - Said Cecilia.
Hawkins nodded. While crowd control didn't exactly please him in terms of helping against the threat, it was nonetheless necessary.
"Lead the way. Detect any stationary people..."
"Are you ready, Matthew?" - Asked Johanna.
Sider nodded and pressed a button.
The area looked exactly like it looked five minutes ago.
"Lilly" - Said Jon - "Listen carefully. We'll drop you home and we'll talk to your parents later about teaching you magic, okay?"
Lilly nodded.
"I can try and have Sakura help you guys get there too..."
"Where is your house, Lilly?" - Asked Jon.
"Fourteenth Street." - Said Lilly.
