"BOOM!" A VIOLENT EXPLOSION TORE THROUGH THE AIR. ONE OF THE WOODEN SCOUTS DISINTEGRATED, BUT THE OTHER MANAGED TO DRAW THE ATTENTION OF THE HOSTILE PUPPETS.
THE TEAM EXCHANGED NERVOUS GLANCES. THIS LABYRINTHINE FORTRESS WAS UNFAMILIAR TERRITORY. THEY HAD INITIALLY HOPED TO FOLLOW THE MINECART TRACKS THAT WOUND THROUGH THE COMPLEX, BUT THE ALARMS HAD CHANGED EVERYTHING. THE ONCE-SIMPLE ROUTE WAS NOW A DEATHTRAP, AND THE FURTHER THEY WENT, THE MORE DANGEROUS IT BECAME.
"ONE THING'S FOR SURE," BASTIAN SAID GRIMLY, "WE HAVEN'T MET THE SAGE YET, AND I'D RATHER AVOID ANY OF THE ELF PRINCES."
THE ROAD AHEAD WAS UNCERTAIN, BUT ONE THING WAS CLEAR: EVERY STEP FORWARD WOULD BE A BATTLE FOR SURVIVAL.
BASTIAN NODDED, A GRIM EXPRESSION CROSSING HIS FACE. THIS WAS INDEED THE BEST POSSIBLE OUTCOME FOR THE MOMENT. IT ALIGNED PERFECTLY WITH WHAT SCORMETHEUS HAD ANTICIPATED.
"MY FATHER," SCORMETHEUS BEGAN, HIS TONE CARRYING A MIX OF BITTERNESS AND RESIGNATION, "IS A PERFECTIONIST THROUGH AND THROUGH. A PUREBLOOD ELF WITH LITTLE TOLERANCE FOR ANYTHING LESS THAN FLAWLESS. IF THERE'S THE TINIEST CRACK, HE'LL SEE IT AS THE WHOLE STRUCTURE FAILING. IF A ROOF LEAKS, HE'LL BELIEVE THE ENTIRE HOUSE IS BOUND TO COLLAPSE THE VERY NEXT DAY."
SCORMETHEUS'S ASSESSMENT WAS SPOT-ON, AND REALITY HAD ALREADY PROVEN IT TRUE.
"YOU DON'T NEED TO WORRY ABOUT MY BROTHER'S WHEREABOUTS," SCORMETHEUS CONTINUED, HIS VOICE SHARPENING WITH A HINT OF BETRAYAL. "AFTER WHAT I DID, TURNING AGAINST HIM, HE'LL NEVER TRUST ANY OF HIS CHILDREN AGAIN. I CAN ALMOST GUARANTEE HE'S GOT EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM UNDER LOCK AND KEY. THERE'S NO CHANCE HE'D LEAVE A BROTHER BEHIND IN THE TOWER OF ORIGIN."
THAT WAS, WITHOUT A DOUBT, A STROKE OF LUCK FOR THEIR SIDE. THE SUPER-PUPPETS, AS FORMIDABLE AS THEY WERE WITH THEIR PHILOSOPHER STONECORES, WERE STILL EASIER TO FACE THAN AN ELF PRINCE ARMED WITH ONE OF THE DIVINE ARTIFACTS.
"THE BROTHERS ON THE FRONTLINES, THOUGH," SCORMETHEUS ADDED GRAVELY, "THEY'VE BORNE THE BRUNT OF THIS FIGHT. THE ELVES HAVE LIKELY UNLEASHED ALL THEIR MOST ELITE FORCES BY NOW."
BASTIAN, BEING ONE OF THE RARE HIGH-LEVEL ALCHEMISTS AMONG THE COALITION FORCES, HAD A DEEP UNDERSTANDING OF THE IMMENSE POWER OF THEIR OWN FORCES. MANY OF THE HIGH-RANKING TROOPS WERE OUTFITTED WITH THE PHILOSOPHER STONE, AND SOME HAD EVEN CRAFTED THEIR OWN ARTIFACTS. YET, DESPITE THEIR ADVANCEMENTS, THEIR PROCESS OF CREATING THESE POWERFUL ITEMS LAGGED BEHIND THE SAGES' CRAFTSMANSHIP. BASTIAN KNEW FULL WELL THAT THE GAP IN POWER BETWEEN THE TWO FACTIONS WOULDN'T JUST COME DOWN TO THEIR TOOLS, IT WOULD COME DOWN TO WHO WIELDED THEM.
"IT'S EASIER TO TALK ABOUT THE OTHER PRINCES," SCORMETHEUS NOTED, HIS BROW FURROWING IN THOUGHT. "FROM WHAT I KNOW, APART FROM THEIR DIVINE WEAPONS, THEY'RE STILL A STEP BELOW THE LEADERS OF THE VARIOUS TRIBES. BUT THE SAGES… THEY'RE A DIFFERENT STORY. THEIR PERSONAL STRENGTH ALONE IS NEARLY UNMATCHED, AND WITH THE HIGHEST-GRADE DIVINE WEAPONS AT THEIR COMMAND…"
BASTIAN LET OUT A SIGH, HIS MIND ALREADY IMAGINING THE BRUTAL TRIALS THE FRONTLINE WARRIORS WERE ENDURING.
"LET'S NOT WASTE ANY MORE TIME," HE URGED, SNAPPING HIMSELF OUT OF THE DARK THOUGHTS.
THEIR MISSION WAS UNIQUE, A DIRECT ASSAULT THAT LIKELY FELL OUTSIDE THE SAGE'S IMMEDIATE CALCULATIONS. WHILE THE SAGE MAY HAVE PREPARED CONTINGENCIES, BASTIAN WAS CONFIDENT THEY'D ONLY FACE A STANDARD DEFENSE FORCE, NOTHING TOO UNEXPECTED.
THE PUPPETS THEY'D ENCOUNTERED SO FAR HAD BEEN TROUBLESOME, BUT MOST WERE CIVILIAN MODELS, DESIGNED FOR TRANSPORTATION OR ENGINEERING RATHER THAN COMBAT. THEY WERE MADE OF WEAKER MATERIALS, AND ALTHOUGH THEIR ATTACKS WERE CONSISTENT, THEIR LETHALITY PALED IN COMPARISON TO TRUE WAR MACHINES. IT WAS THAT VERY SIMPLICITY THAT ALLOWED THE TEAM TO PRESS FORWARD, ALBEIT AT GREAT COST.
THE WARRIORS IN THE VANGUARD HAD BECOME ADEPT AT ABSORBING THE BRUNT OF THE PUPPETS' CHARGES. BEHIND THEM, SPELLCASTERS AND RANGERS SYNCHRONIZED THEIR ATTACKS WITH DEADLY PRECISION, FIRING VOLLEYS OF MAGICAL PROJECTILES AND ARROWS. ALCHEMISTS LIKE BASTIAN WERE INVALUABLE, QUICKLY IDENTIFYING WEAKNESSES AND DIRECTING THE TEAM'S EFFORTS TOWARD DISMANTLING THE MECHANICAL THREATS. AND WHEN ALL ELSE FAILED, BASTIAN HIMSELF WOULD STEP IN, DELIVERING THE FINAL, CRUSHING BLOW TO NEUTRALIZE THE MACHINES.
AS THE TEAM PRESSED ON, PUPPET AFTER PUPPET FELL, EACH ONE REDUCED TO SCRAP METAL. THE ALCHEMISTS SCAVENGED THE REMAINS, REASSEMBLING THE MACHINES INTO RUDIMENTARY CANNON FODDER FOR THEIR OWN USE. WHAT HAD ONCE BEEN A MENACING FORCE NOW SERVED THEM, ALBEIT IN A MUCH DIMINISHED CAPACITY.
WITH EACH SKIRMISH, THE TEAM'S CONFIDENCE GREW. COMBAT BECAME ROUTINE, AND AS THEIR SKILL IMPROVED, THEIR CASUALTIES DECREASED. IT ALMOST SEEMED LIKE THEY HAD THE UPPER HAND.
BUT JUST AS A FLICKER OF HOPE BEGAN TO SETTLE OVER THEM, BASTIAN'S INSTINCTS SCREAMED THAT IT WAS FAR TOO SOON TO RELAX.
"ARE YOU KIDDING ME? IS THERE NO OTHER WAY AROUND?" ONE OF THE SENTRIES ASKED, WIDE-EYED AND DISBELIEVING.
THE TEAM GATHERED, STARING AT THE COLOSSAL FIGURE LOOMING AHEAD. IT STOOD DIRECTLY IN THEIR PATH, THE VERY ROAD THEY NEEDED TO TAKE. BENEATH ITS FEET, MASSIVE CARTS OF MINERALS PASSED UNDISTURBED, THE GIANT SENTINEL OBLIVIOUS TO THEIR PRESENCE FOR NOW. BUT IF BASTIAN AND HIS TEAM DARED TO TAKE THE SAME ROUTE, THERE WAS NO DOUBT THEY'D BE CRUSHED IN AN INSTANT.
"NO," BASTIAN SAID, HIS VOICE STEADY BUT GRAVE. THERE WAS NO ALTERNATE PATH, NO EASY WAY OUT.
BLOCKING THEIR WAY WAS A WAR PUPPET OF GARGANTUAN PROPORTIONS, FAR LARGER THAN ANY THEY'D SEEN BEFORE. ITS SIZE ALONE RIVALED THAT OF ENTIRE BUILDINGS, AND ITS BODY BRISTLED WITH A TERRIFYING ARRAY OF WEAPONS, CANNONS, DRILLS, AND SEARCHLIGHTS ADORNED ITS LIMBS. EACH OF ITS FOUR ARMS WAS FITTED WITH HEAVY ENGINEERING TOOLS, AND THE DRILL ALONE LOOKED CAPABLE OF PIERCING THROUGH THE BODY OF A DRAGON. FOR BASTIAN AND HIS TEAM, THE PUPPET'S MERE PRESENCE WAS A THREAT. EVEN WITHOUT FIRING A SINGLE SHOT, THE TREMORS CAUSED BY ITS MOVEMENT COULD FLATTEN THEM WHERE THEY STOOD.
BASTIAN'S MIND RACED, BUT THE CONCLUSION WAS CLEAR.
"THIS IS IT," HE SAID, GLANCING AT HIS COMRADES. "THERE'S NO TIME FOR HESITATION. WE MEET ON THIS NARROW ROAD, AND WE FIGHT."
HIS WORDS WERE STEADY, BUT THE WEIGHT OF WHAT LAY AHEAD SETTLED HEAVILY ON THE TEAM. THERE WAS NO ROOM FOR ERROR. THEY HAD TO TAKE THIS THING DOWN, OR THEIR MISSION WOULD COME TO AN END RIGHT HERE, BENEATH THE CRUSHING WEIGHT OF THE WAR PUPPET'S TITANIC FOOTFALLS.
"PREPARE YOURSELVES, BROTHERS," BASTIAN COMMANDED. "WE MOVE FORWARD. NOW."
**
THE ELEGANT FIGURE OF THE WOMAN SHOT INTO THE SKY, HER SILHOUETTE CUTTING THROUGH THE CLOUDS. IN AN INSTANT, A MASSIVE RED DRAGON SWOOPED DOWN FROM ABOVE, ITS FIERY BREATH DESCENDING TOWARD THE COLOSSAL MACHINE BELOW, A CONSTRUCT SO LARGE IT SEEMED TO RIVAL THE HEIGHT OF A MOUNTAIN.
"BOOM!"
THE EXPLOSION ECHOED ACROSS THE BATTLEFIELD, LEAVING BASTIAN'S EARS RINGING. THE CHAOS AROUND HIM BLURRED HIS SENSES; HE COULDN'T EVEN TELL WHICH POOR SOUL HAD TAKEN THE HIT. BLOOD FILLED THE AIR, AND THE GROUND QUAKED BENEATH HIS FEET. DARKNESS AND CONFUSION CLOUDED HIS VISION, THE WORLD SPINNING INTO A VORTEX OF VIOLENCE.
"WHERE'S ITS WEAK SPOT?" BASTIAN MUTTERED, EYES SCANNING THE BATTLEFIELD.
DESPITE THE OVERWHELMING ODDS, BASTIAN NEVER STOPPED SEARCHING FOR THE ENEMY'S VULNERABILITY. HE WAS RELATIVELY NEW TO THE HUNTER RANKS, HAVING SERVED LESS THAN A YEAR, BUT HIS INSTINCTS AND AWARENESS FAR EXCEEDED HIS LIMITED EXPERIENCE. IN THE HEAT OF BATTLE, HE STOOD SHOULDER TO SHOULDER WITH VETERANS, HIS RESOLVE UNSHAKABLE.
"STAY SHARP!" A VOICE ECHOED FROM HIS LEFT. "THIS THING ISN'T LIKE THE PUPPETS WE'VE FOUGHT BEFORE. IT'S GOT NO SINGLE WEAK POINT! THE RIGHT ARM, LEFT LEG, BACK, SHOULDERS, EVERYTHING'S REACTING TO THE PHILOSOPHER STONE. IT'S FEEDING THE MACHINE WITH MAGIC, MORE THAN WE CAN DISSOLVE QUICKLY. THIS ISN'T SOMETHING WE CAN JUST WEAR DOWN."
BASTIAN'S GAZE NARROWED ON THE MASSIVE MECHANICAL BEAST. THE SHEER SIZE OF THE THING WOULD MAKE ANY ORDINARY MACHINE CRUMBLE UNDER ITS OWN WEIGHT. BUT THIS MONSTROSITY WASN'T HELD TOGETHER BY BOLTS AND RIVETS ALONE. THE PHILOSOPHER STONE, AN ALCHEMICAL CORE OF IMMENSE POWER, SERVED AS ITS LIFEBLOOD, DRIVING IT FORWARD, GIVING IT STRENGTH AND DURABILITY BEYOND REASON.
EVEN SO, BASTIAN REFUSED TO GIVE IN. HIS MIND WORKED FURIOUSLY, ANALYZING, SEEKING THE ENEMY'S WEAKNESS.
"THERE! LEFT SIDE!" HE SHOUTED, POINTING TOWARD THE MACHINE'S EXPOSED FLANK.
SPELLCASTERS IN THE SQUAD RESPONDED IMMEDIATELY, LAUNCHING A BARRAGE OF SPELLS. FROM TINY FIREBALLS TO BLAZING METEORITES, THE AIR FILLED WITH MAGIC. WITH THE POWER OF THE PHILOSOPHER STONEBOLSTERING THEM, THESE SORCERERS WERE SOME OF THE MOST POWERFUL BEINGS ON THE PLANET.
FLAMES ROARED AS THE SKY ITSELF SEEMED TO OPEN, A CASCADE OF FIRE AND WIND CRASHING DOWN ON THE MACHINE. CHUNKS OF METAL WERE BLOWN AWAY AS MOLTEN SLAG SPLATTERED ACROSS THE BATTLEFIELD. FOR A BRIEF MOMENT, IT SEEMED AS THOUGH THEY HAD WON, THE ENORMOUS MACHINE STAGGERED UNDER THE FORCE OF THE ASSAULT.
"IT'S DONE," SOMEONE BREATHED.
BUT BASTIAN'S ELATION QUICKLY TURNED TO DREAD. THE MACHINE'S EXTERIOR, TORN AND BATTERED ONLY MOMENTS AGO, REGENERATED IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE. THE PHILOSOPHER STONEWORKED ITS MAGIC, REASSEMBLING METAL AND WIRE AS THOUGH NOTHING HAD HAPPENED. THE MACHINE WAS IMMORTAL, SO LONG AS THE STONE HELD ITS POWER.
"DRAGON TEAM, STICK TO THE PLAN!" BASTIAN BARKED, HIS JAW CLENCHED.
THE OTHERS HESITATED, THE WEIGHT OF THE TASK PRESSING DOWN ON THEM. BUT THERE WAS NO TIME FOR DOUBT. THE MASSIVE DRAGONS IN THEIR UNIT TOOK TO THE SKIES, THEIR WINGS SLICING THROUGH THE AIR AS THEY DOVE TOWARD THE WAR MACHINE.
IN A COORDINATED ATTACK, THE DRAGONS UNLEASHED THEIR FIERY BREATH, DRAWING THE PUPPET'S ATTENTION AS THEY ASCENDED HIGHER. IT WAS A RISKY MANEUVER. WHILE THE DRAGONS DISTRACTED THE MACHINE, THE REST OF THE TEAM PULLED BACK, ATTEMPTING TO EVADE ITS WRATH. THEY KNEW THE STRATEGY WAS WORKING, BUT AT WHAT COST? WITH THE HOSTILE FORCES SWARMING AROUND THEM, ESCAPING THE BATTLEFIELD WITH THEIR LIVES SEEMED INCREASINGLY IMPOSSIBLE.
"BOOM!"
BASTIAN COULD ONLY WATCH, HELPLESS, AS THE WAR MACHINE RETALIATED. ENRAGED BY THE DRAGON FLAMES, IT RELEASED A BLINDING BEAM OF LIGHT THAT PIERCED THROUGH ONE OF THE DRAGONS, SENDING THE MAJESTIC CREATURE PLUMMETING FROM THE SKY.
BUT THEIR SACRIFICE HAD NOT BEEN IN VAIN. THE MACHINE WAS TEMPORARILY STALLED, JUST LONG ENOUGH FOR BASTIAN AND HIS TEAM TO CHARGE INTO THE HEART OF THE ENEMY'S LAIR, THE FURNACE. IT WAS A PERILOUS PATH, FRAUGHT WITH DANGERS.
THE FURNACE ROARED AROUND THEM, A HELLISH LANDSCAPE OF ORE AND FIRE. CONVEYOR BELTS CARRIED RAW MATERIALS INTO GIANT CRUSHING MACHINES, EACH STEP A POTENTIAL DEATH TRAP. NO PATH WAS CLEAR, NO QUARTER GIVEN.
"GO!" BASTIAN URGED, PUSHING HIS TEAM FORWARD.