by Prax Venter
- 10 -
“Hold your fire!” Learis yelled from behind as the initial shifting invader appeared from a triangle-shaped opening near the bottom of the intimidating structure.
The first foe in line was an 8-foot creature made of smooth black stones, and its heavy steps synchronized with the impossible noise exactly. With the purple-armored Awysai Warrior matching his sprinting dash, Mark clenched his teeth and pushed his team faster.
Thum-dun-dun-THOMP
On the stone elemental’s fifth step it shifted to a crystal ball the size of a washing machine, paused in place, then morphed into a red and white monstrosity with pointed teeth, huge bulging eyes, and long ropy limbs.
Mark shifted his attention to the pony-sized end table marching out into the daylight behind it for a heartbeat before he focused back on the lead creature. It was far more dangerous, and if he slowed his charge, it would shift into something else before he got there. A sane part of him thought rushing this thing was stupid- that they should just let the rabbits snipe them when they were in their most vulnerable form and enter afterward.
And yet, he leaped once, bent his knees, and then harnessed his entire pool of the Goddesses to force violent shafts of purple energy into the ground below. Unlike his experiments out under the Wrongside sun, the upgrade from establishing the second Goddess Anchor in Thomellia was more than enough to send him rocketing forward.
His target’s huge eyes bulged in his direction an instant before Mark thrust out his fist sending a lance of solid energy through its dripping, wet forehead. Despite the mortal wound to this pockmarked monstrosity, the creature did not perish and instead attempted to fling its barbed appendages around his neck.
A burning gash opened on his shoulder as he dodged back out of its range, but its other arm latched onto his wrist and kept him physically engaged.
“Fuck you!” Mark shouted and stabbed it again with a spear of energy from his free hand, this time in its tumor-ridden chest. Once the pinpoint end was deep into its disgusting mess of a body, he directed all his energy to inflate a massive sphere from within.
Gore exploded everywhere for a moment before vanishing in a buzz of videogame static and a trickle of essence filtered in through his balls.
Behind it, the end table he’d seen before had shifted into a type of ape with savage claws and was now moments away from tearing into him.
An instant before its six-inch black claws removed his head from his body, Amina was there to block the attack with her indestructible purple staff. Mark ignored the blood dripping down his back from the gash in his shoulder and was about to launch a counterattack when Abby’s Imaginary Laceration split the thing in half.
“Together,” Amina said with a concerned sideways glance before joining Sasha and Jezebel as they dashed past to take out the metallic jellyfish coming at them next.
As a group, they made short work of the other foes marching out one at a time. Angel obliterated a relatively small wooly mammoth on her own with brutal melee attacks, Sasha electrocuted a possessed giant sword, and Bear Jezebel and Abby worked together to destroy a giant frog with ram’s horns. Learis even joined the fight by sniping the last invader with a swift arrow as it was in its bubble form, popping it instantly.
The pain in Mark’s torn shoulder spiked dramatically when the fighting was over, and he was about to heal himself when Sasha came clomping up to him with rage seething in her deep blue eyes.
“What the fuck is wrong with you?” she shouted. Her spade tail snapped repeatedly behind her and she was on the verge of tears. He could also tell through their bond she was trying exceedingly hard not to slap him across the face.
“I- uh…” he stammered, turning to look at several of the other Lagomorph natives jogging up who’d been watching on a hill.
“Never throw yourself into an unknown like that again,” the riled-up succubus whispered inches from his nose. “You’re pissed because you’ve started feeling useless again. I know you Mark. But we’re pissed about the situation too. You have a battle harem for a reason.”
Abby walked up between them and began twining her tentacles around both Mark’s and Sasha’s hands, trying to soothe the argument while Jezebel just sternly crossed her tan arms.
Mark nodded to his ex-personal assistant.
“Yeah, yeah,” he said, taking comfort in Abby’s smooth green flesh. “Point taken. Anyone else hurt?” he asked, changing the subject as he looked around the group, but he knew no one was.
“Strangers!” one of the older, red-robed bunny men shouted with glee as he approached. It appeared that some Lagomorphs had floppier ears than others as his were at least three feet tall and sticking straight up.
Mark quietly healed himself as the newcomer came to a stop with several others filling in behind him.
“What a fine display of destruction,” he said, clasping his furry hands together. “Learis, are these the heroes that brought you home from your alien world?”
“Yes,” the huge-chested woman said as she re-slung the bow onto her back. “Mark has returned with his team of allies to help us once more. Jindor, perhaps you can ask your questions after we climb the tower? We have a limited time to get in there before the next wave comes out.”
“Of course, of course,” he responded, his ears bobbing with his head. “Shame to lose all the wonderful things the invaders leave behind.” He then thrust out his hips and Mark’s eye was drawn to a golden tasseled rope around his thin waist. “I absolutely love my stunning new belt, don’t you?”
“Sure,” Mark said, humoring him. “But Learis is right. There are several ticking clocks hanging over our heads here.”
“I see no clocks,” said a younger rabbit female. “Is it only you, Collector, that can see these hanging clocks?”
Learis sighed and turned away to walk down the road. “Come on,” she said, and everyone started to follow her.
Once again, he felt her inner turmoil over how… simple her native kind was.
“I’ll wait here,” Princess Verrelle said, moving closer to the gaggle of Lagomorphs gathering around her glowing red snake half. “I’d very much like to learn all I can about this place while the rest of you fight.”
“I’ll stay too,” Jezebel said. “It might get too crowded in there for Momma Bear anyway.” Mark silently thanked her. He knew the brilliant satyr had a lot in common with the inquisitive Blazar and lived for cultural exchanges, but he felt better that someone he trusted was staying to protect their trans-dimensional princess.
“Sounds good,” Mark said. “We’ll meet you both back on this hill when we are done.”
With a wave, everyone else continued their quick march up the worn path that led straight into the looming darkness within the rounded tower ahead. Now that they were this close (and he wasn’t haphazardly launching himself into fang monsters) he noticed a blue crystal formation jutting out of the top. They reminded him of something he’d seen before, and it felt as if the answer were about to enter his mind when the purple-armored Awysai began speaking.
“I saw your well-timed arrow,” Amina said as she matched her strides with the rabbit woman. “You handle the weapon well.”
Learis subconsciously ran one of her soft long ears through her fist before answering.
“Oh? Thank you, Chieftain. I only picked up my first bow several days ago, yet I’ve had a lot of practice lately.”
“A natural, then.”
Mark couldn’t help but feel the building curiosity and desire from Learis’ side. Apparently, she had yet to meet a partner in Lagos for whom she’d felt that necessary deeper attraction. His blind eye told him Amina herself had found a new friend but wasn’t quite on that same page. Sasha picked up on this through him as well and skipped further ahead to join them at the front.
“You know,” the succubus said, her tail now lifted and waving hypnotically with the sway of her round hips. “If we have time, Amina here would be glad to offer a personal sparring lesson
. She’s got some moves that I know will really tighten your form.”
The Awysai Chieftain was not simple, however, and confidently turned her glowing eyes toward the soft bunny-woman as they walked.
“I know little of bows, yet I am happy to show you other techniques.”
Mark cleared throat. “So, Learis, you’ve received reports from other towns that have successfully switched these things off, right? What can we expect to face inside?”
Sasha shot him a smirk and slowed her strides until she was able to loop her arm through his while a visibly flustered Learis responded.
“Um, I’m- ah… not quite sure on the exact details. I know we will face unique aggressors inside and that it is described as a metallic maze, but all messengers seem to agree that merely finding the stairs and stepping one paw on the top floor will turn the invading structure dormant.”
The feeling that they were all in a universe born from a videogame hit him harder than it had in a while, but this was something he could work with.
“Here’s what I’m thinking, plan-wise,” he began as the tower grew closer. “Without Jez, Angel, I would like you to take the lead damage-sponge position. We should be using your armor to its fullest potential. I want Sasha and Amina at your flanks to help dish out the pain. I’ll stay at the back with Abby. Learis, you sure you want to come in with us?”
“Yes,” she said after gazing out over the waving blue grasses for a few steps. “I’ve finally found my real home and a world worth protecting. I feel drawn to this invading mystery. I’ll try to stay out of your way, but I need to see what’s in there for myself.”
“Then you stay close to me and we’ll cover the rear.”
Sasha squeezed his arm into her squishy breast and sent him the clear message that she was sorry for snapping before and that she would make it up to him the next chance she got.
Mark patted her arm and willed her a message of contrition.
She was right, after all. Ever since he’d received this Salivis energy, he’d started down a road of more and more front-line aggression. While he could fill that role, his team of warriors was growing, and it was time to start playing this game smart, not hard. He could read minds, heal, create a barrier, charm, and copy the skills of his Enthralled. His main job should be more of a utility or adaptive position.
“I require a Commander,” Abby said from his other side, reacting to his train of thought.
He looked over into her huge yellow eyes and nodded.
“Then that’s what I’ll be.”
Moments later they all stood at the entrance to the highly advanced malfunctioning structure left behind by the ancient Lagomorph people.
“The foes should start appearing the moment we enter,” Learis said, trading places with the Lunar Combat Droid.
Mark nodded as he peered into the dim interior. Light pulsed up the walls with an unhealthy red glow following through the circuit-like runes that covered everything. There was an open area ahead he could see, but a curved wall blocked the rest.
“This is your show, Angel,” Mark said, and the short bot turned her pixelated eyes from the darkness onto his. “Don’t think too hard about recalling any lost information as you take us through, just follow your heart.”
He felt a flutter of deep anxiety about her promotion to lead-tank, and the abyssal horror linked to his heart felt it as well.
“Your mistress believes in you and orders you to have similar self-confidence.”
“Complying…” Angel said, before turning back with renewed determination. The bare-assed droid stepped one of her elongated posts onto the metal floor with a dull clank and the whole place immediately responded.
“Unauthorized reset,” declared a recorded male voice remarkably similar to the one they’d heard before when dealing with the Jar of Stars. “Direct hash.source corrupted. Alignment Error Omega. Deploying countermeasures.”
The circuitry in the walls began to throb brighter as if they were inside a giant toaster. Thankfully, the change only provided more light- not searing heat- and by this sanguine glow Mark saw the first monster they’d face materialize in front of their defensive bot.
Everyone paused to take in what appeared to be a lizardman wearing blue and green samurai armor until the creature drew his katana and slashed at Angel with frightening speed. The small bot raised an arm and deflected the attack just as swiftly with her metallic wrist and the slice sent sparks flying.
Sasha joined the fight with a hopping side-kick that the lizard samurai expertly spun away from- but he was not expecting Angel to rush him at his new position. Despite his wide stance and heavy armor, she was heavier, and the bot drove him to the ground where she began pummeling his face with her fists.
Movement from around the right side of the curved wall caught Mark’s eye, and he called out the other samurai warrior with a gold crescent adorning his helm.
“Amina,” he ordered, and she obeyed instantly, rushing into melee range. Abby followed up with a Mind Crush giving the Awysai Chieftain the advantage as it not only caused distraction, but slowly whittled away its life for the duration.
Now that he was hanging back and watching instead of throwing himself into the fight, Mark’s True Sight was free to whisper the impending third attacker approaching from the left side of the wall.
The bonded Techno Succubus received the information as soon as he did and wordlessly lobbed a Shock Bomb into its surprised face as it rounded the corner. The explosion of arcing lightning did not immediately bring him down, yet the monster was visibly stunned.
Learis took a single step to the side as she loosed an arrow into its lizardman muzzle and the unlucky foe vanished in a swirl of buzzing static.
Angel’s grounded samurai vanished directly after, and everyone turned to see Amina parry a flurry of elegant slashes. She then used her thick, ethereal-armored tail to knock her attacker off balance. The Heavenly Dragon continued her spinning momentum while shifting her staff into a mirror of the katana she’d been deflecting, and the graceful move cut through the monster’s thick shoulder armor, his decorative helmet, and his spinal column without a hitch.
After the last opponent vanished, everyone reset their positions and waited for a few heartbeats of silence.
When nothing came, Mark couldn’t help but grin.
“Nice work, team. I’m getting some moderate essence here too which is always a plus. Angel, lead on.”
There were two ways to go, and her glossy helmed head turned both directions before she chose to take them to the left. Once they rounded the corner, the decision proved to be moot as both sides took them to a wide empty area with a multitude of futuristic readouts, buttons, terminals, and other high-tech nonsense that was way over his head.
He ignored it all and discovered stairs up to the next level on the left and stairs leading down to the right.
“We can go down?” he asked, pointing.
“I’m told it’s a dead-end but that doesn’t mean we shouldn’t look.”
Angel turned her white eyes to his for guidance.
“Before we go poking around,” Mark said, “does any of this in here mean anything to you?”
The Lunar Power Droid turned to face the back wall. “This is a control center. I believe resources were monitored and fabricated via these interfaces, yet any specific knowledge of their operation continues to elude me.”
“Could you figure it out if you fucked around?” Sasha added.
Angel tilted her head and took an extra second to parse her meaning.
“Perhaps. There is a 17% chance I could cause a resonant cascade failure and detonate the power source which would immediately annihilate all solid matter within 70-kilometer radius.”
“Resonant cascade,” Learis whispered. “That’s like what Jezebel taught us about syncing up our trills…”
“Sure sounds like it,” Mark agreed. “But let’s not fuck around just yet. Take us downstairs first for a peek.”
&nb
sp; Angel nodded and began gently clanking her metallic posts against the floor.
“It cannot be overstated how happy I am that you’re here,” Learis said as they approached the stairs. “All of you.”
“I am glad to help good people in trouble,” Amina said.
Abby nodded. “I have also learned from Mark’s altruism that, although counter intuitive, there is much personal gain to be had in selflessness and/or declaring one’s needs. Willingly offered rewards have inherent benefits over theft.”
“Isn’t she adorable?” Sasha said over her shoulder.
“Okay,” Mark said as Angel began descending the curved metal stairs. “Let’s all focus on the possibility of more lizard dudes popping into existence.”
Between Sasha’s hooves and Angel’s metal legs, there was no way they were sneaking up on anything, but if Mark was going to play the group’s Commander, he was going to take his responsibility seriously. It struck him that responsibility was what it all came down to as the party of competent monster, animal, and robot women around him moved as one down into the depths.
Jezebel might have seeded this virtual world and knocked it back to the stone ages with her Cataclysm, but deep down he’d felt that because all this was created solely for him and that anything that happened to any of these people ultimately rested on his shoulders.
All thoughts of his destiny and purpose fell out of his head when they hit the last stair and stepped out onto a suspended walkway over a void. A see-through bridge made of mesh grating stretched out from the stairwell to a central column made from the same strange black metal as everything else. Far below was the same purple mist and infinitely distant stars they’d seen before when flying from one floating island to another after Jezebel first got her wings. Rounded walls curved away from the stairwell into this open area as if the structure were indeed an incomprehensibly long tube that stretched down past the dirt of this floating landmass- ending in empty nothing.
Angel hovered up and over the walkway then circled around the central column before stopping in the exact place she started.
“Intriguing,” she said, still hovering. “I was incorrect. The power source appears to be based on a type of cosmic turbulence, yet I retain fragments of data relating to what must be Lunar-based technology. I am now 99% certain that everything would remain stable no matter how we fucked the above controls.”