Chapter 99
Things Take a Shocking Turn
“The streets surrounding the Expedition Centre all fall within the bounds of the safe zone,” continued Auroria. “Any Trialist responsible for initiating a fight will face dire consequences.”
Moranthor stared at her for a few moments. His grip tightened on his swords, and I half expected him to leap at Auroria and attempt to bury them in her chest. I tensed, preparing to put myself between them.
Fortunately, his brain appeared to be in better condition than his body. He simply shrugged, took a step back, and sheathed his weapons.
“Very well,” he said. He turned his gaze on Inzad, who was standing just inside the Expedition Centre with his face peering around the edge of the door frame. “This isn't over. You cannot hide here forever, and when you do leave... it will not be pleasant.”
It was my turn next.
“And as for you...” He smiled at me. It was quite possibly the most disturbing smile I'd ever seen. His lips drew back to reveal teeth that were little more than blackened stumps, and the flap of flesh on his cheek stretched taut, causing a drop of corpse juice to run down his jaw. “You are a most interesting individual. Who are you?”
“I'm–” I began, but my words were drowned out by a furious half roar, half screech.
The draconic Trialist leapt to his feet and snatched up his quarterstaff as the healing potion put the finishing touches on his jaw. The cracks between his scales started to glow the same blazing orange as his eyes, and steam began pouring from the gaps in his armour.
I guessed that meant he wasn't happy.
“You!” he roared, stabbing his quarterstaff in my direction. “You dare strike me? I'm going to shatter every one of your bones and then rip your fucking heart out!”
“Calm yourself, Korvax,” said Moranthor.
Korvax either couldn't hear his leader's warning or was too incensed to pay it any attention. His wings snapped open, each easily five metres wide.
Auroria stepped forward and placed herself between him and me, her hands planted firmly on her hips.
“I will not warn you again,” she said. I was thoroughly impressed by how calm and collected she sounded. “Leave the area immediately and do not return until you are capable of behaving yourself.”
“Get the fuck out of my way, bitch!” he snarled, taking a step towards her.
“What did you just say?” said Elirion. Despite the fact he hadn't raised his voice, the words carried so much weight that I saw Korvax stumble. “I have no interest in getting involved in your petty squabbles,” he continued, “but I will not tolerate you speaking to her like that.”
Elirion seemed to grow. His presence expanded until it felt as though he towered over us, taller than any of the surrounding buildings. We stood in the shadow of his power, and even though I wasn't the target of his displeasure, just being there was enough to make my knees weak.
Korvax collapsed, a pitiful whimper escaping his lips. The light between his scales that had blazed so brightly only moments before was extinguished.
“As much as I would love to witness you in action,” said Auroria, moving to Elirion and resting a hand gently on his arm, “I'm afraid this is a GEC matter. If you were to kill him now, you would be creating a mountain of paperwork for me.” She lowered her voice conspiratorially and winked at him. “And don't tell my bosses I said this, but I despise paperwork.”
Elirion stared at her for a moment, then threw back his head and let out a deep, rumbling laugh. The pressure vanished immediately, and Korvax drew in a ragged breath as the spiritual mountain pressing down on him disappeared.
“Thank you for your mercy,” said Korvax. “I will not–”
Auroria whirled to face him, her expression so dark that the rest of his words died in his throat. “Silence! Not only did you insult me, but you fully intended to cause me harm. Such behaviour will not be tolerated!”
She waved a hand, and four glowing blue spheres appeared in the air around Korvax, surrounding him. The light faded, and in their place were four metallic spheres, each with a glowing screen on the front.
I glared at them, a sudden, burning hatred bubbling up inside me. I ran my eyes over them... then relaxed. They may have been floating metallic pricks, but XCZI-3574 was not among them.
You might be wondering how I could possibly know that, what with them all looking identical...
Believe me. I knew.
Korvax turned to look at each of them, licking his lips nervously. He wasn't such a cocky asshole now. Based on how wide his eyes were, I think it'd finally sunk in that he'd dun goofed.
“Surely this is not–” began Moranthor, taking a step towards them. One look from Elirion was all it took to make him shut the fuck up and take two steps back.
Korvax used the momentary distraction to attempt an escape. He leapt forward, aiming for a gap between two of the robots... and struck an invisible barrier.
It was, apparently, very sturdy.
He collided with it headfirst, and I winced as I heard the now ever-so-familiar sound of bones cracking. He landed on his ass, looking a little dazed but no less terrified.
All four spheres spoke at once, like some sort of robotic AI choir. Although they had the same voice as XCZI-3574, theirs didn't drip with arrogance and a staggering amount of condescension. They sounded exactly how you'd expect a robot to sound.
“Korvax Narsug, you have been verbally abusive towards a GEC employee. In addition, if not for the intervention of outside forces, you would have attempted to do her harm. Ensuring the safety of its employees is a responsibility GEC takes most seriously. As a result, an appropriate punishment will be administered.”
A small panel opened in the bottom of each sphere. An identical metal wire ending in two nasty-looking prongs emerged from each one, coiling through the air like a snake before hovering above Korvax as though waiting to strike.
I suddenly had some very uncomfortable flashbacks to my first day in the Trial Zone... the feeling of two sharp points sinking into my skin, then me thrashing around wildly like a fish on land while a sadistic robot subjected me to a little unsanctioned torture.
However, despite being a douchebag of the highest order, XCZI-3574 hadn't actually been trying to cause any permanent damage. But In this case... you know the expression fuck around and find out? I was pretty sure Korvax was now entering the find out stage.
“You cannot do this!” Korvax shouted. He was clearly going for authoritative, but that was somewhat undermined by his voice cracking. “I am Korvax Narsug, Prince of Voucuria. My family will not stand for this!”
A prince? I supposed that went some way towards explaining the arrogance, entitlement, and complete disregard for everyone else.
“If your family have an issue with the punishment, they have the right to lodge a complaint. It will be reviewed by the relevant department, and a response will be issued in a timely manner,” said the robots.
Korvax opened his mouth to argue, but it appeared the robots had said everything they had to say. With detached, clinical efficiency, they enacted their punishment. The prongs buried themselves in Korvax's body, piercing his armour as though it were little more than paper. He attempted to grab one of the wires and yank it out, but the moment he touched it, he howled in pain and snatched his hand away. The scales on his palm were charred and smoking.
And then came the electricity – or whatever the fuck it was they used – and Korvax Narsug, Prince of Voucuria, was reduced to little more than a thrashing, bucking sack of meat.
The robots kept it up for several seconds, then their screens flashed red, and the wires withdrew into the little panels they’d come from.
We all – well, all of us except for Auroria and Elirion – studied Korvax's body with a mixture of morbid curiosity and no small amount of horror.
Damn, those things packed a punch.
I couldn't help but wonder what would happen if they tried to do the same thing to me. Would I be tough enough to survive it? And if so, could I potentially gain a point in durability...?
Bad Pete. No. You will not antagonise GEC robots into attacking you on the off chance you might gain a stat point.
“Initiate clean-up protocol,” said Auroria.
I'd assumed that, as someone who spent most of her day locked away in an office, witnessing such a brutal death might have affected her a little. It hadn't. She wasn't bothered in the slightest.
Then again, as part of her job, she spectated the assessments. I remembered the story she'd told me about the Trialist who'd been eaten alive by the giant rats. I supposed, compared to that, Korvax's death had been perfectly tame.
The panels in the bottom of the spheres opened once more. This time, a short barrel emerged instead of a pronged wire. It looked like the muzzle of a gun, only slightly wider.
They all turned the barrels on Korvax's body, and a torrent of flame erupted from each one, like a flamethrower on steroids. I glanced down to see that even Rel looked suitably impressed by the pyrotechnics on display.
The barrier contained the flames, and the robots disappeared from sight for a few moments, hidden within a towering column of fire. The flames faded to reveal that the spheres were still in perfect condition. The barrels had withdrawn back into their bodies, and the robots looked exactly as they had when they'd first arrived.
Korvax, however... well, he'd been reduced to little more than a carpet of ash.
“Very good,” said Auroria. “You may go now.”
The robots' screens flashed blue, and they slowly phased out of existence, taking the barrier and the ash with them. When they were gone, it was as though Korvax had never existed at all.
Auroria nodded in approval, then slowly turned her gaze on each of us. I was relieved to see that most of her displeasure was directed at Moranthor and what was left of his crew. “I hope that little display will be enough to dissuade you all from any further fighting in GEC safe zones.”
“Yes, ma'am,” said Moranthor. The yeti-like creature nodded enthusiastically in agreement. The orange blob undulated wildly, which I assumed was its way of saying, I'll behave. Promise.
“Very good,” she replied before returning to Elirion's side.
The pair of them strolled casually into the Expedition Centre. Just as they passed through the doors, Sensei turned to look at me and gave me a little wink.
What followed was something of an awkward silence. Moranthor stared at us, but his bearing had completely changed. When he'd first arrived, he'd strode up the road like he was the baddest motherfucker on the planet. Now, he looked like he was questioning his life choices.
I supposed seeing your buddy get electrocuted and then immolated would do that to you.
It was Rel who broke the silence. He raised his paws and stared at them thoughtfully. A fireball ignited above one, and he casually tossed it into the air a few times as though it were a baseball. Lightning then crackled into existence around his other paw, arcing across its surface.
“Watching those GEC robots at work was rather inspirational,” he said. He flashed an evil grin at Moranthor and his two remaining lackeys before looking back at me over his shoulder. “I think a little arcane experimentation is in order, don't you? What say we take these fools outside the city, then see if we can't recreate what the robots just did to Korvax? If it works well, it could join Relfire Vortex as one of my signature moves.”
“I think that’s a great idea, Rel,” I replied. “We could call it…” I tapped my chin thoughtfully. “Shock and burn? Flash and ash? Spark and scorch?”
Now, I wasn't sure whether it was because I'd used Rel's name and they'd put two and two together about who we were, or because they were afraid Auroria would come back and have her robots finish the job. Whatever the reason, the three of them turned and ran the fuck out of Stonehaven as fast as their legs – or, in the blob's case, its... slime – would carry them.