Chapter 15: Man vs Machine

Chapter 15: Man vs Machine

The watchers bombarded Basil with petrification rays the moment he showed himself.

His higher level protected him from them. Basil cut the closest watcher down with his halberd, his swing swifter than the wind. A single blow destroyed the robot.

The four others flew in his direction, followed by the gearsman on the ground. The colossal machine nearly tripped on the muddy ground; unlike Basil, who knew the bogs trails by heart, the machine couldnt tell solid ground apart from treacherous soil.

Plato leaped out of his hiding spot to assist his owner, right as Bugsy tossed Rosemarines double at the gearsman. The powerful centimagma launched the much smaller plant as if she were a living arrow.

Im flying, Mister! The clone shouted mid-flight, her belts fuse brightly alight. Im fly

The decoy smashed into the gearsman at full velocity and triggered the explosives. A mighty, fiery detonation shook the bog. The dark waters of the nearby pool rippled, the grass sagged from the blast, and a cloud of dust swallowed the gearsman. Basil almost tripped from the shockwave, but his System-empowered body allowed him to keep his balance.

HIGH-LEVEL THREAT DETECTED! The four remaining watchers turned red. Their metal shells heated up. [SELF-DESTRUCT] PROTOCOL ACTIVATED!

Copycats! Basil readied himself to dodge the incoming robots when he noticed a light shining from inside the cloud raised by Rosemarines explosion. An electrical ray pierced through the smoke.

Basil barely managed to throw himself to the ground. The beam missed him and finished its course in the woodlands behind him, close to Bugsys hiding spot. The centimagma flung another Rosemarine suicide projectile in response.

Basil, above you! Plato shouted a warning. Run!

Basil raised his head to find the surviving watchers converging on him. Two flung themselves at him, only for ice spheres to hit them at high velocity. Both robots exploded in the air long before they could reach Basil.

He glanced at the source of the suppressive fire.

Shellgirl.

The clam mimics back-barrels peeked out of the reeds and fired projectiles at the remaining watchers, flooding the sky with smoke. She launched pearls of thick ice so quickly that they left a trail of shining dust in their wake. They looked a bit like falling stars, albeit no bigger than a fist.

This

This was going well! Surprisingly well! The party blitzkrieged the gearsmans escort and reduced the giant robot to a sitting duck!

Keep at it! Basils voice struggled to carry over the noise of explosions. Keep at it!

Another Rosemarine clone was flung at the gearsmans position, much to Platos astonishment. How long can she keep killing herself?

As long as she has SP left! Basil grinned in dark triumph. Thats right! I, Basil Bohen, have invented renewable suicide bombers!

The younger the better, huh? Plato mused, only for a lightning bolt to detonate the Rosemarine decoy before she crossed half the bog. The bot wised up to the tactic.

Indeed, the gearsman shot down another Rosemarine decoy bomb right as it stepped out of the dust. The repeated bombardments had melted off the left side of its ovoid shielding, revealing complex gears and electrical devices underneath it. Fire spread through the machines circuitry and the crystal eye above the ventral cannon glittered malevolently.

[MATTER BARRIER]! A forcefield of bright orange light covered the gearsmans body, from its tentacles to the core. THE UNITY IS NON-NEGOTIABLE!

Non-magical damage will be halved!

Plato, target its legs, Basil ordered his cat. His own hand searched in his bag for a Molotov cocktail. Ill reduce its visibility.

Here I go dying again! Plato ran across the bog, claws out. Shellgirl assisted him by bombarding the gearsman from her hiding spot. The robot didnt bother dodging. The ice pearls shattered against its forcefield and inflicted only minor damage.

Holes opened all over the gearsmans outer shield and fired out a dozen small missiles. The projectiles rained down on the woodlands. Bugsy and Shellgirl retaliated with their fiery breath and ice pearls, but they only blew up half of the projectiles. The remaining missiles crashed on their hiding spots and set the horizon alight with lightning bursts.

Plato reached the gearsman and scratched a telescopic leg. The cats claws somehow managed to cut through the barrier, leaving a scar on the metal underneath. Basil had no idea how overgrown nails could cut through steel as if they were made of diamond, but they did anyway. Platos overwhelming Skill stat allowed him to inflict damage all the same.

The System made no sense!

The robot retaliated by pointing its ventral cannon at Plato. The cat ran away to avoid a deadly beam of lightning, the ray pursuing him relentlessly.

I spoke too soon, Basil thought grimly as he tossed a Molotov cocktail at the gearsman. He prayed his allies had survived the missile bombardment. The real fight starts now.

Basil didnt have a lighter nor needed one; the flames on the gearsman set the cocktail alight on impact. The gasoline burst out of shattered glass to cover the gearsmans crystal eye. With its visibility diminished, the machine missed Plato. The lightning beam only vaporized grass and reeds.

Basil exploited the machines blindness to flank it. His halberd smashed through the forcefield and the steel. Both felt like flesh bending to his halberds blade. He cut a large gash across the gearsmans body and adjusted his position for a second strike.

THIS WORLD TOO WILL BE PACIFIED! The gearsman grabbed mud with a metal claw and used it to smother the flames covering its eye. The crystal orb glared at Basil and pointed the cannon at his face. A swing of his halberd sliced the weapon in half a mere moment before it could open fire.

Basil didnt have time to enjoy his success, for the gearsman swung a telescopic tentacle and hit him in the chest. The blow cracked ribs and sent Basil flying head-first into the bog. The safety goggles Shellgirl gave him prevented mud from infecting his eyes, but some of it traveled up his nose.

Basil saw stars; specks of light at the edge of his vision. He coughed out dust and grass. His ears picked up confusing noises which his mind struggled to assemble into words. The damp woods prevented the battles fires from spreading, but smoke tainted the skies and made his mouth dry. Basil used his elbow to lift himself up, struggling against the sharp pain in his chest.

The gearsmans shadow loomed threateningly over his head.

Plato leaped on the machine and furiously sliced the machines eye. His attempts to save his owner were for naught: the forcefield weakened his claws so much that he barely scratched the crystal underneath.

[Berserk] ailment lifted.Your party earned 11000 experience (2100 for you). You earned 2 levels!

Basils eyes scanned the area. He found a stunned Bugsy laying on the ground next to the gearsman with one of his mandibles broken. Rosemarine applied pollen to repair it and shuddered upon meeting Basils gaze. Mister, youre very scary

Oh my God. Basil covered his mouth in shame. He suddenly realized what he did under the influence of his berserk rage. Rosemarine, Bugsy, Im so sorry!

Its okay, Mister, Rosemarine kindly reassured him. I killed myself five times today, all on my own!

Boss, I dont want to say it, Bugsy muttered once his mandible held back in place, but you have serious anger management issues!

Basil wanted to protest, but wisely kept his mouth shut. He should forswear Warp Spasm except for the direst circumstances. The Perk filled him with incredible strength at the cost of making him a danger to everyone else.

At least they won without casualties. Basil examined the gearsmans remains. The crystal eye was smashed to pieces, but multiple alien gears and devices survived the fight. A few oddities stood out from the wreckage: a pile of colorful blue dust, shining stones covered in rune symbols, and yellow crystals. Shellgirls Moneymaker Perk must have caused them to appear.

We won and nobody died, Plato said. He didnt sound like he believed it himself. Wait, do decoys have souls?

I hope they do, Rosemarine said with enthusiasm.

I swear this incident wont happen again, Basil promised his pets. Im truly sorry, Bugsy.

The centimagma shrugged. Its fine, Boss. You scared me a lot more the first time we met.

Basil didnt know how he should take that remark.

I cant believe we missed a helicopter crash so close to home, said Plato. The cat examined the rotors unearthed by the gearsman. How did I fail to hear it?

It must have happened last night, when we received Shellgirls visit, and the bogs vegetation dampened the sound, Basil replied. The Unity probably damaged the rotor and it couldnt land safely in the city.

What did it mean about the state of Dax? Did the army retreat from it? Basil learned his lesson and wouldnt approach the town unless forced to, but it made him wonder. The Unity might escalate its attacks after losing a gearsman in the field.

Speaking of Shellgirl, where is she? Bugsy asked. She stopped firing pearls at the gearsman after you backhanded me, Boss.

How strange indeed. Basil would have expected Shellgirl to claim her share of the loot at the first opportunity. He surveyed the area that the gearsman bombarded and realized the fires had died out.

Could another robot have ambushed her? Basil asked.

Nah, I smell her, Plato replied with a frown. Blood too.

Slightly worried, Basil walked towards Shellgirls hiding spot with his other pets in tow. They could salvage the gearsmans remains later.

The party didnt have to search for long. They found their missing teammate amidst the ashes of reeds and lopsided trees. Shellgirls hands scratched out at a mass of rotting herbs and dirt.

Hey, Partner! Shellgirl smirked upon sensing the groups approach. Victory is ours!

Thanks for the suppression fire, Basil replied coolly. He was slightly jealous that she alone appeared unharmed from their struggle. I worried that you perished from the bombardment.

Yeah, sorry to have bailed on you. I extinguished the forest fire when you started trouncing the robot. Couldnt allow flames to destroy our HQ, ya dig? Shellgirls grin grew sheepish with embarrassment at Basils glare. But dont fret, because look at what Ive found!

She tapped at the pile of rotting grass.

It moved slightly in response.

Basil immediately moved to unearth the creature hiding underneath: a humanoid with tangled, mid-long light brown hair sticking out of a riot gear helmet. The rest of the armored uniform belonged to the French police, as did the gun in her hand.

It was a woman.

An unconscious, dying woman. Two iron pieces of shrapnel stuck out of her bleeding left flank. Her skin was so pale Basil could have mistaken her for a corpse were it not for the slight, nearly imperceptible breathing sound coming out of her lips.

Platos eyes widened in surprise. A survivor?

A future corpse to loot! Shellgirl replied while rubbing her hands.

Not on my watch! Basil snapped, his icy tone making the mimic freeze in place. He checked the womans pulse; though he was no doctor, he couldnt let a fellow human die without acting.

I can barely hear her heart, Boss, Bugsy warned.

Shes still breathing, Basil whispered, his voice trembling from the sheer astonishment. He couldnt believe it. She should have bled to death already! Her Vitality must be through the roof! Rosemarine, heal her!

Yes, Mister! Rosemarine immediately showered the woman with healing pollen, but her wounds were so large it did nothing more than stabilize her. They needed to surgically remove the blades or the treatment would only delay the inevitable.

Bugsy, help me carry her to the house! Basil ordered. Well need to tap into the potion reserve as soon as we can!

There was no time to waste.