Worm | |
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Gestation 1.4 | |
Date posted | 21 June 2011 |
Link | Gestation 1.4 |
Chapter guide | |
Previous Gestation 1.3 |
Next Gestation 1.5 |
Chapter List |
Gestation 1.4 is the fourth chapter of Gestation. The Bug Girl, caught outside unable to contact the authorities swarms the ABB and Lung with her bugs. Lung incenerates them and swells, he hears her trying to flee.
Plot[]
Taylor, on her first outing as a hero, discovers Lung leading a group of ABB gangsters on their way to murder children. Taylor regrets not taking the time to buy a disposable cell phone. Without a way to alert the heroes of Lung's plans, and with the situation worsening as even more ABB arrive to join Lung, Taylor decides to attack them by herself.
Gathering every bug in the neighborhood to bolster the swarm she had already been traveling with, she unleashes it upon the group. During the attack, Taylor is unsettled by the sheer amount of information she's flooded during its course, being able to sense each bite and sting, and she can even see the outlines of each person just by sensing the bugs crawl on their skin. Taylor kept her more venomous bugs in reserve, not wanting to accidentally kill the gangsters with any potential allergic reactions and the inherently dangerous properties of some of the venoms.
Lung lashes out with his pyrokinetic abilities in an effort to wipe out the swarm, and Taylor counters this by directing the swarm to join the bugs already assaulting the ABB gangsters, using them as human shields to protect it. Taylor then sends the swarm of venomous bugs she kept in reserve to attack Lung, which consisted of bees, wasps, fire ants, and spiders such as black widows and brown recluses. She directs the bugs to attack his face and crotch (trying to ignore the feedback she was receiving from the attack), and reasons that Lung's regeneration should make him resistant enough to the venoms to not die from them.
Lung continues to grow bigger and stronger, his armored skin beginning to surface. He eventually causes the air around him to explode and kill every bug in his immediate vicinity. He even explodes a second time, forcing the ABB to either flee or take cover. Taylor felt the pressure of needing to end the fight mounting, knowing that it wouldn't be long before Lung burns down the city block, becomes immune to stingers and bites, and wipe out her whole swarm. Resolving to get creative and meaner, Taylor eventually decides to use the remainder of her venomous bugs to assault Lung's eyes and blind him with the stings. After hitting her mark with a honeybee, Lung then shields himself head-to-toe by self-immolating, rendering all avenues of being able to attack him with her swarm untenable.
Taylor wonders if the venom she had injected into him had been working, and was wary of the visible progress Lung's transformation had. She also notices that the ABB gangsters had fled, likely in no condition to fight after being assaulted by her swarm. Taylor ultimately finds herself content with this turn of events, believing that what she had done enough damage to meaningfully disrupt Lung's plans. She also desires to leave to leave as quickly as possible, unable to continue fighting as Lung was still self-immolating and unwilling to test the rumor of him being able to grow wings and use them to hunt her from the skies.
Setting out to leave and intent on calling PHQ to apprise them of the incident, Taylor quietly leaves her position on the fire escape and ascended to the rooftop. The moment she places her foot in the gravel of the roof, Lung whirls to face her. Looking into Lung's swollen and glowing eyes through his mask, then watching him give a victorious and "less human" roar upon spotting her, Taylor belatedly realizes that his powers include superhuman hearing.
Major Events[]
- Without any other recourse, Taylor resolves to attack the Lung and the ABB in a bid to disrupt their plans for murder.
Characters[]
Villains | Civilians |
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Trivia[]
- This is the first time we see Taylor's tactics by trying to take out Lung violently before he can transform.
- She also feels a "sadistic glee" when attacking Lung.
References[]
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Chapters | 1.1 • 1.2 • 1.3 • 1.4 • 1.5 • 1.6 • 1.x |
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Battles and Events | Taylor vs Lung |