章 94: The Climb To The End
"Brace for impact!" the shopkeeper shouts again, and I grit my teeth. I don't know how my shield will react against such a powerful impact. We got glances to the outside during our rapid ascension, and we are really climbing fast.
I stopped worrying when we started seeing the curvature of the planet after only a couple of minutes. If our shields can't handle the sudden stop, then we will be turned into mush instantly, so at least I won't feel anything for once.
But Krognar is the one worrying me. His shield isn't purely magical like ours. My shield design can dampen any form of impact, but Krognar's relies on making physical plates from the weird liquid material that his armor is made of. The Goblin's shield is excellent against things like projectiles, but it's a terrible fit for our current situation.
He tries to hide his nervousness, but he has been frantically making a sort of dome around him ever since we started our deadly climb. The members of my order are not even showing a hint of panic. In their eyes my equipment can do no wrong, and they'll barely feel anything.
I wish I had their confidence. I did a lot of tests, and it failed more than once. It's a lousy design born out of desperation and a lack of skill, but it became the standard-issue for the Order.
Sometimes I regret not spending more time learning enchanting. Even if my condition makes it impossible to make the more fancy stuff, it would still be better than the crap I produced. For crying out loud, one of my main piece of equipment is held together by zip-ties!
But I soon return to reality, I would need to spend hundreds of years in Rewound time to reach a decent level of skill. And doing so wouldn't be a good idea for my sanity, which is already quite low compared to normal because of all the battles I had to go through.
My thoughts are interrupted by the sight of the ceiling of the Lift's shaft. And, as expected, we show no signs of slowing down. But I shouldn't complain, a lot of pieces fell off the cabin during our ascension so I should be glad that it didn't spontaneously disassemble.
Krognar tightens his dome even more, and I take a deep breath. The impact could kill me in an instant, so I need to be ready for the worst outcome.
The cabin smashes into the Tower. The windows all shatter in an instant, and the inside of the booth soon become very flat. My shield makes a groaning sound, and several casings fly out at once. A large shower of sparks erupts at the point of contact between the magical construct and the top of the vertical tunnel. I grit my teeth as the ammo of the Glove is emptied at an alarming rate. It isn't as bad as when I fought a Spirit, but it's still quite worrying.
"Pay attention to your ammo!" I scream to my companions. The only thing preventing the cabin from flattening is our combined shields, I have the feeling that if even one of us fail, then we'll be compressed. I glance towards the Goblin, and it confirms my theory, his metal dome has shattered at the top. He'll die if we fail, and I didn't climb this damned Tower for nothing.
"Reloading!" Alex shouts as he ejects a magazine. He barely takes a second to switch magazines, but it's still enough to cause the cabin to flatten slightly.
Fuck, we'll end up flattened even if we do our best!
"Why isn't that dam thing stopping!" I scream towards the Goblin, who looks to be a bit dazed by the impact.
He wobbles on his feet, "I don't know! I need to access the runes, but I can't move!"
"For fuck's sake, we are going to die at this rate!" Mary shouts and fires a ball of plasma towards the exposed runic circuitry. The cabin rumbles and creaks as the flames melt its inside. A large lance of fire is evacuated into the shaft of the Lift, and it sets the carpets on fire.
The fire is unimportant. We are entirely immune against something of this level.
The critical fact is that we stopped.
"Good job Mary!" I say to the hybrid while patting her shoulder.
She fidgets and smiles towards me. "I-It was nothing..."
Her plan was well thought-out and flawlessly executed. After all, we can't be worried about magical effects when there's nothing to cast the magic.
...I'm glad we didn't die. Her reckless plan somehow worked, but it could have backfired horribly and caused the entire cabin to explode.
"Now we need to get out of here before we fall to our death, I don't like the sound that this thing makes," I say to everyone before kicking a few pieces of the Lift away to make a new exit. The others nod, and we hurry out of the creaking cabin which falls apart a few moments later.
"Holy fuck," Alex mutters.
"Indeed," I add before looking around. Luxurious isn't a word strong enough to accurately describe the small room we are currently in. The walls are heavily decorated with what looks like enchanted inlays made with some gold-like metals. The beautiful scenes painted on the walls move on their own, and the way the windows refracts lights tells me that it isn't made of regular glass, but something far more expensive.
"Where are we?" I ask the Goblin, who is massaging his head.
"We should be at the bottom of the top floors." He says before making his neck crack. "Be careful. This area is where shit is going to hit the fan. The security here is so tight that not even a small insect can enter without best turned into ash instantly."
I shrug, what's the worse that could happen? I press the button that opens the ridiculously lavish door, and-
Oh.
A veritable barrage of energy blasts interrupts my thoughts. Explosions surround me, and various spells are hurled towards my body.
How rude. Is that the way to properly greet a GuEsT?
A huge grin creeps on my face as my shield valiantly endures the onslaught. I grab my trusty shotgun after changing the magazine of my Glove.
"Fire at will!" I shout before firing as fast as I can.
...Krognar's PoV...
"Fire at will!" the boy shouts before charging headfirst into the deadly barrage.
I had doubts before, but now I'm certain that there's something wrong with him. His followers seem to be more calm and collected, but-
Scratch that, the one named Mary just wiped out ten elite soldiers with one colossal wave of lava.
The rest of his group at least appear to be more reasonable. They are firing their weird weapons in the tight group of Enforcers, and they are sowing death despite their somewhat relaxed stance. Even the one named Cynthia, who is visibly scared, mimics the movements of her companions. They stay still and that weird shield of theirs protect them against the impacts, although the device seems to be making a lot of small brass sticks for some reason. They are also regularly swapping places, the one who was at the front dives to the side and removes a part of the artifact before exchanging it for an identical one.
But this weird tactic is effective; they are doing their share of the battle. The shields of the Enforcers trigger a few times before breaking, and a tiny hole appears in their armor. Then they explode into meat chunks a few seconds later.
I wouldn't want to be in their place.
I hide in the back. My weapons are good but not powerful enough to have a meaningful impact on the flow of the battle.
The battle style of the one who calls himself Prometheus is very different from the rest of his companions. Even the impulsive Mary is tame compared to him.
He is creating beams of destruction everywhere he goes, and his laugh is something out of horror stories. It sounds a bit distorted like there is a huge chorus of people laughing like maniacs in unison.
I shake my head; his armor must cause the voice distortion. It can happen sometimes, so I instead focus on the battle.
But still, did he really need to kick the half-molten armor of a dead Enforcer towards another group before blasting them?
However, it isn't like I feel bad for the Enforcers getting slaughtered. They took my most precious person away from me, so seeing them slaughtered like defenseless cattle makes me feel something I haven't felt in ages.
Pure, unaltered joy.
It won't bring her back, but I'm making sure that they all feel the same suffering I had to go through. And what if it means that I unleashed some insane powerful mage and his group into the Tower, and gave them the coordinates of my home planet?
They could glass the shithole, and I wouldn't even react. This place is beyond saving, and our attack is the kick in the nuts that this rotten society needs.
Of course, I'm aware that I pledged to follow that insane bastard after this is wrapped up, but I don't feel too nervous about it. It's true that I had plans to betray him at first, but they snuffed it out before I could even finish drafting my plan. It was almost like they read my mind!
And, quite frankly, I would rather be on his side than be his enemy. After the might he displayed, anyone would make that choice. And curiosity is also what drives me; I want to understand how he does all of this: costless interdimensional teleportation, quick-cast Strategic Spells and even those weapons.
That man is full of mysteries that I want to uncover.
I'm also quite curious about his planet. What sort of environment could spawn someone like him? I think he's young, yet he fights like he has seen the battlefield for decades, or even centuries.
"CoMe oN! I'm nOt DoNe!" he shouts towards the few survivors that are retreating towards the fortifications leading to the entrance of the upper floors. But they are shot down without mercy by the automated turrets. Mary roars and jumps before vaporizing the turrets, which began to fire on Prometheus.
"How dare you even attempt to harm Prometheus!" she shouts angrily at the door before covering her fists in flames. Her punches are melting large parts of the door, and the others are readying for the upcoming battle without flinching.
...Wurk's PoV...
"Now do you believe me?" I say as I cancel the video feed from the surveillance artifact. The Elder, as usual, stays impassible. He didn't even flinch when the invader massacred a group of soldiers in a couple of seconds. This footage was also the first time that I had a good look at the mysterious attackers, and it confirms one of my worst fear.
They aren't from this planet, so the attackers must be coming from another world. The implication of their arrival and their attack do not escape me. It must mean that one of us leaked the location of our planet, or that they fucked up during one of their outings.
Either way, heads will roll after this is over. And I'd rather keep mine on my shoulders. I may have a plan, but I can't count on it unless the situation is just right.
"As you can see from the attacker's savage ways, Venerable Elder, the attackers must be from some backward area. It's very likely that the brain behind this operation and those formidable spells is still hidden." I say to the immobile Goblin.
He turns towards me and pinches his dry lips, "So you're saying that someone acted foolishly and angered an external power? If I recall correctly, you're the one responsible for security, and you're supposed to approve the lower-ranked applicants for trips to the Bazaar."
Cold sweat drips on my forehead; I don't like the accusatory tone of the Elder. It's true that I might have overlooked the files one the ones who applied for trips, and only accepted the ones that were under my thumb but-
"Furthermore, it looked like there was a Goblin with them." The Elder interrupts my thoughts, and I also recall the armor-clad figure which was closely following the tall invaders.
"Venerable Elder, with all due respect, I don't think that one of us could have done such a thing. His equipment was way too high quality, and the ones who have access to such wonders are higher in the command chain. It also can't possibly be the rabble outside the Tower. They are barely sentient, so I sincerely doubt they could pull off such a stunt. Not to mention that they would have no way of acquiring such equipment on their own." I add.
The Elder slightly furrows his brows. "So you're saying that the officers I appointed are at fault?"
Fuck, that attempt to stop him from focusing on me backfired horribly.
"N-No, I'm just saying that-" I stop talking when the Elder takes a deep breath.
"You're saying that there is a traitor amongst the men that I trust with my life, some of which are lifelong friends? You're making a pretty grave accusation here." The ancient Goblin declares.
Fuck.
I shift in my seat, I need to come up with some very believable story, or I'm going to be dead in less than an hour.
"N-No, this senseless destruction wouldn't make sense for a mutiny, not to mention that anyone with common sense wouldn't bring outsiders here. And I'm certain that your friends are all brilliant people." I say.
The Elder scoff, "So what are you insinuating? Please enlighten me then, because I fail to understand your point."
"I-Uh- I'm saying that this attack might be motivated by something else. It might be motivated by a need for revenge, or by a foolish ideology. The ones who orchestrated this must be aware that such an insult will result in their complete annihilation since you'll deploy the ultimate weapon. They must be hoping that they'll get to whoever their target is before dying in what they think is a blaze of glory." I attempt to reassure the Elder, but I can see that it isn't working.
"Deploying the ultimate weapon? What are you saying, this is ridiculous!" he says.
Got him!
"Are you certain? So you're saying that the invaders should be left to their own device and that the ultimate weapon should not be used?" I say with a smirk, I somehow directed the conversation right where I wanted it to be, and now my survival is all but assured.
"Of course, this situation is far from requiring the deployment of-" I snap my fingers to interrupt the Elder, and the faces of all the influential dignitaries appear out of thin air.
That's right. I was transmitting the discussions to all the people who mattered. It's a dirty tactic, and it could have backfired had the Elder not reacted to my comment. I'm a lucky guy, especially considering that some information about the lower floors has been transmitted to certain specific people to pull them to my side.
"How is it not necessary?! Those attackers ruined one of my factories and countless of my assets!" an angry voice echoes in the room.
"Yes, that's right! Those soldiers aren't free, and training them takes time and a lot of resources!" the voice of a rich contractor resonates. "Furthermore, the maintenance on that 'ultimate weapon' of yours is a large part of our taxes!"
"Yes, I demand that this expensive weapon is used! The situation requires it!" another voice chimes in.
The Elder glares at me with the fury of a thousand suns. I smirk and shrug as a cacophony of outraged complaints fill the room.
He trapped himself, that old bastard knows he can't lose the support of the occupants of the upper floors, or else our organization will grind to a halt and chaos will ensue.
"Please, honored Residents, please calm down!" the Elder stands up, his earlier impassible act has vanished in front of the massive potential loss of income and manpower.
"Come on, what are you waiting for?! Don't tell me that this 'ultimate weapon' was just a sham to steal our money?" a voice asks.
"Yeah, I'll ask for your demotion if this thing isn't deployed! And you better hurry, the repair costs keep going up the more you're sitting here doing nothing!" another chime in.
"That's right, demotion or action!" a voice shouts, and the others soon repeat the impromptu slogan.
If looks could kill, I would be long dead. The Elder is glaring daggers towards me before sighing.
"I heard your complaints, and the weapon will be deployed as you asked. Please rest assured that this minor disagreement will soon be taken care of, and you will be compensated for your losses." The leader finally declares.
"Good, then we'll be expecting results soon." The voices say before cutting off the communication.
The furious Elder then turns towards me, "Who do you think you are?! What will stop me from-"
"Yes, I wonder what will stop you from punishing the brave underdog who risked everything to warn the Residents of what was happening. I'm sure that they'll appreciate." I interrupt the Elder.
He clicks his tongue. The old Goblin knows that I'm right and that I'm untouchable for quite a while.
"Fine, you wanted to activate the ultimate weapon, then we're going to do it. But you're coming with me. Then you'll understand the consequences of your actions." He says.
I gulp, what does he mean by consequences?
...It must not be something too grave; he must be referring to the activation costs or something.
He must be.
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Onch
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