"A welcome sight," Craig reflected.
Pete nodded. "Hell yeah."
Another welcome sight followed as Sam poked her head out of the side window of the Winnebago, smiling and waving. She stepped out of the RV, and Pete found that his steps were quickening as he drew closer. Grizzle, meanwhile, came bolting out of the vehicle, eyes wide as she ran straight for Craig and almost knocked him off his feet as she pulled him into a tight hug, her religious text pressed between them.
"You made it," Sam said with a broad smile, cleaning her hands with a rag as she walked up to Pete.
"Yeah. Feels like we've both been through a war, though. What about you? Did they stick you in a mini-game too?"
She shook her head, moving up to Pete and pulling him into a friendly hug. He smelled grease and something like lilac as she drew him in close.
"No mini-game," she said as they parted. "Just a super long and boring gallery. A goblin in a tuxedo gave us a running commentary of each damned piece. It was boring as hell, but at least we didn't have to fight our way through."
Released from Grizzle's hug, Craig tilted his head like a dog not quite understanding a command.
"A gallery? Did you see pieces that were painted by Spanksie?"
Grizzle shook her head.
"No, just the Company's propaganda. Statues of High Baron Tongsly Belch, portraits, scenes from previous Ultrimax contests, that kind of thing."
"Boring shit," Sam confirmed, stepping back from Pete and continuing to clean her hands. She threw a thumb over her shoulder. "We got back a few hours ago, so I've been fixing what I can with the RV. Despite everything, she's still in good working order. The engine is fine, at least, and the shield emitter Orin installed is still ticking. I've had to rig up a couple of quick fixes to make sure she doesn't overheat, but I think we'll be good to get through the final part of the race."
Pete nodded, looking past her toward the RV. "And what about—"
"Thank God!" a familiar voice called out from behind them.
Pete turned to see Coop padding beside Torgo as the pair exited the same tunnel he and Craig had just walked out of.
"All this art nonsense is garbage," the little ferret went on. "Slap a few strokes of paint against a canvas and call it something pretentious, and people with more money than sense will pay millions for it. Half that shit bordered on religious paraphernalia."
She shook her head, walking up to Pete and crawling up his trousers and up to his waiting arms.
"And what about the Tongsly Belch toenail exhibit? It's just a damned toenail in a glass box, for God's sake, and they're treating it like a holy relic. A toenail! How in the hell is that art?"
Pete grinned. "Yeah, we didn't go through the same gallery you did."
"Neither did we, by the sound of it," Sam added. She pointed at Pete. "Apparently, these boys were in some kind of mini-game."
[Nero] Greetings, players.
Pete blinked, taking a moment to register who was talking.
"Nero! You're back!"
[Nero] Indeed, I am. It seems that the System has deemed it fit to restore my ability to communicate with you. It has been...most disconcerting being disconnected from you all these past few days.
"Days?!" Sam said.
[Nero] Yes, indeed. Although your individual experiences of time will seem at odds with this fact. Even Pete and Craig, who spent the longest period of simulated time in this encounter, will only feel as though half a day or so has passed.
"Felt like weeks," Coop said. "Walking through that damned gallery."
[Nero] In your case, just a few hours have gone by. Similarly with Sam and Grizzle. For the others, however, some time has passed.
"But days?" Pete asked.
[Nero] Each time you died, the simulated battlefield was updated. Unfortunately, the Propaganda and Merchandising Division does not have the same resources as the Mammon System at its disposal, so the process took a lot longer than what you experience within the Dominion Ultrimax contest. Games are not strictly within the purview of the Propaganda and Merchandising Division, but, given your growing reputation as something of a firebrand, Pete, the Division was permitted to intervene.
Pete shook his head. "Shit. So, we lost days in there, but time is basically frozen in the world outside, right?"
[Nero] Correct. When we exit this challenge, we will emerge back into the outside world precisely when you left it. All things considered, this challenge has been of significant benefit, in that both you and Craig have acquired additional attribute points and invaluable experience. The delay has also given Sam the chance to assess your vehicle and make some rapid repairs.
"Wait," Sam said, pointing at Pete and Craig. "These two got points?"
Craig held up his hand, showing five digits.
"How the hell is that fair?" Sam complained.
Pete shrugged. "None of this is fair. If you'd given me a choice, I would have preferred a few hours of boredom."
She frowned at him. "Really? You'd give up five attribute points?"
He was about to reply in the affirmative when he realized that this wasn't the case at all. As Nero said, he'd learned a lot in going through the battlefield encounter, not just about leading other NPC troops or the history of rebellion within the Dominion, but he'd also gained important knowledge about the apparent rivalries between different divisions and areas of the Tongsly Belch Corporation. That could prove incredibly valuable in the future, and the additional five attribute points weren't anything to sneeze at either.
"Okay, so maybe not," he admitted. "But who knows, maybe you'll get pulled into some war simulation down the track and you'll get a chance to snag yourself some points."
Sam rolled her eyes. "That's easy to say when you're the mighty Vault Breaker."
>> SPECIAL ENCOUNTER PHASE THREE
You have successfully navigated this ill-conceived diversion and survived the petty attentions of the Propaganda and Merchandising Division. You have three minutes to re-enter the phase three encounter.
The group moved toward the RV, each returning to their usual place.
"Just in case it's important," Pete said, "here's a quick rundown of what Craig and I went through."
While Sam completed last-minute checks of the vehicle and started the engine, Pete gave the group a rapid blow-by-blow of the battlefield encounter, their meeting with Silkfeather, and the larger hints of previous rebellions and internal conflict within the Tongsly Belch Company.
"You broke the game?" Sam asked, pushing the accelerator pedal as the RV lurched off down the tunnel.
"Kind of. But only because the System wanted us to get through it as fast as possible. I think the original plan was for us to spend weeks in there, struggling to win. Or maybe the point was just for us to fail, but the System kept helping us out." He shook his head. "Honestly, the whole thing was chaotic. Felt like they hadn't really thought it through properly and they were just winging it."
The RV got up to speed, rattling and rumbling as the tunnel ahead began to slope upward. Light markers on the road flew past as a light appeared in the near distance. Pete looked down at the dashboard as the race map appeared once more, showing the finish line now only a short distance away and a red dot indicating the rival player just ahead of the RV's location.
"We need to win this thing," he said, as much to himself as to everyone else in the Winnebago.
"We will," Sam said, teeth gritted as she struggled with the steering wheel. "Just keep your eyes open and be ready. I don't trust this shit, and you can bet your ass the System is gonna throw something else at us at the last minute."
Pete nodded, scanning familiar icons and details on his display, confirming that all his original abilities and stats were in place, along with his equipment.
Blinding light hit the RV as it continued up the slope toward the racetrack. Pete shielded his eyes, blinking away tears as his vision adjusted. Everything up ahead looked frozen in time, and he could even make out crowds of spectators on bleachers to the left and right of the road, their shouts and cheers silenced by whatever temporal pocket Pete and his crew were trapped in.
That all changed the moment the RV hit the track. Time switched back to normal, and the roar of the crowd filled the air, a din of shouts and clapping that drowned out the sound of screeching tires and roaring engines. Pete looked to his right, where the Mini was fishtailing a short distance ahead, its rear tires smoking.
Two screens hovered in the air ahead of the RV, but Pete's attention was fixed on the leftmost screen and the footage of his mother dangling over a vat of acid. She hadn't moved any closer to the vat, but Pete guessed that her feet were only an inch or so from the liquid.
The sight filled him with a mixture of rage and desperation, but his most recent experiences in the battlefield mini-game also made him even more suspicious of what he was seeing. The intent here was obviously to induce rage, to fire him up and have him frothing in anger. It was supposed to be abhorrent, both as motivation for Pete, but also for the watching Dominion citizens.
He understood now, more clearly than ever, that every aspect of the Dominion Ultrimax Contest was steeped in propaganda. Every new challenge and boss and extreme situation was designed ultimately to bolster the Tongsly Belch Company's hold on the Dominion; to reinforce just how powerful the Company was and, more insidiously, how it could distribute wealth to those with sufficient luck and willpower.
That realization did nothing to quell the angst in his mind, however. Just like back in the mini-game, Pete found that knowing everything was a farce did nothing to stop him from being emotionally invested in the game. There was also a very real chance that his mother was not still sitting in her living room, safe and sound, and that the footage he was seeing was actually real. The Company didn't care how many humans it killed for sport, so there was every likelihood that this was all real too.
"Shit!" Sam exclaimed. "We need more speed. I'm not gonna be able to catch that damned Mini."
The other car was still spewing smoke from its rear tires, and its back end still swerved left and right, fishtailing down the long straight road that stretched off into the distance. A quick glance down at the race map confirmed that this was the final stretch of the race, leading to a large round area with a large red dot at its center and a checkered flag at its back. Pete guessed that this was either a final challenge or final boss that had to be defeated by the winner of the race.
"What if we shoot the car?" Craig called out from the rear cabin.
Pete shook his head. "That will mean a penalty, and that could kill my mom!"
"There has to be some other way to get some more speed," Coop reasoned. "What about that magical jerry can you picked up?"
"That just stores liquid," Sam corrected. "It won't supercharge the fuel or anything. Power is what we need, and I've given Jackpot everything she's got already."
"Well, can't we push them off the road some other way?" Coop reasoned.
The Mini continued to smoke and swerve up ahead. Whatever damage it had sustained meant that it couldn't increase its speed and distance itself significantly from the RV, but it was still a good fifty feet ahead, and unless another obstacle appeared in the middle of the road, Pete couldn't see how they were going to catch the car.
He navigated through his display and found the rules section of the race. He quickly read the various stipulations, trying to find a way that they could slow the other car but without breaking any rules.
"Have to stay inside the track," he muttered. "Can't hit any obstacles or make physical contact with other vehicles. Can't directly attack vehicles either. Can't exit the RV for more than 30 seconds."
Pete considered that last part, reasoning that the time they'd spent in the gallery and the battlefield mini-game were technically outside of normal time, so they didn't count.
"Can't be stationary for more than five seconds, and we can't dispel Specters."
He looked up, scanning left and right in the area up ahead as he gently took Coop from around his neck and placed her on the console between him and Sam.
"What is it?" Sam said, her head darting around to look at him. "You've figured something out, right?"
Pete nodded, pushing his way to the rear cabin of the RV as Craig and the other goblins parted ways.
"Nero?" he asked. "There's nothing in the rules that says we can't damage the racetrack or anything surrounding the racetrack, right? I don't mean with the RV; I mean with a bow or an ability. We're not gonna get penalized if I shoot at something other than the other vehicle, right?"
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[Nero] Correct, Pete. While you are prohibited from damaging rival vehicles directly, there is nothing to stop you from damaging objects nearby.
Pete nodded, making his way to the hole in the roof and jumping up to grab the edge of the opening.
"And if I hit something that then hits the Mini, that's still within the rules, right?"
[Nero] While it may not be in the spirit of the rules, there is nothing prohibiting such an action.
Pete pulled himself up through the opening, then crouched low. "Little help," he said, motioning for Craig to accompany him.
Torgo immediately linked his hands together to form a boost, thrusting Craig upwards as the other goblin put his foot on the hands. Craig flew upwards and grabbed Pete's outstretched hand. Pete pulled him up to the roof and crouched low, trying to minimize the buffeting air.
[Pete] I'm gonna try to knock that other car off by destroying a light post or something.
He mimed the maneuver with his hands, showing something falling like a felled tree and hitting an object below. Craig nodded.
[Craig] And you'd like me to assist?
[Pete] Just keep me steady. And Sam, you might need to swerve out of the way if the Mini skids out.
[Sam] Got it.
Pete pulled out his bow and moved into a half crouch. He scanned the right side of the racetrack, ignoring the sight and sound of the roaring crowd and trying to find anything he could use to knock out the Mini. The car itself was closer to the right side of the track and was still fishtailing and leaving a trail of smoke in its wake.
Notching an arrow, Pete fixed his gaze on the area ahead, squinting against the rushing wind and watching as several light posts and electricity poles flew past. Curiously, the objects still stood where they had presumably been before the racetrack was built, lining the road and sitting just ahead of the holographic crowds seated on either side of the track. Pete could see the sidewalk down below as well, broken every now and then by the entrance to an adjoining street or a driveway.
Once his charged shot ability had triggered, he fired at a distant light post and was rewarded by a flash of light as the charged arrow struck the midpoint of the post and sent it crashing backwards into the holographic seating and the cheering crowd. Those that were struck by the falling metal pole seemed to take particular delight in the fact, cheering wildly and receiving excited congratulations from those sitting nearby as their holographic forms were momentarily interrupted by the falling obstacle.
Pete cursed, taking aim again and waiting for his charged shot ability. This time he aimed at a wooden electricity pole and aimed toward its base. He fired the shot, and it struck with devastating force, hitting the pole just above the ground. Wood erupted as though someone had set off an explosive at the base of the pole. Splinters and chunks of wood fired in all directions, and the top part of the pole jumped up a little before falling down vertically right next to its base.
It then slowly fell onto the racetrack, but far too slowly to do any good. Pete spun around, watching the pole bounce off the road and up into the air several times before settling down.
"Damn it!" he cursed, turning back and taking aim again.
[Nero] If I may make a suggestion, Pete. While you are prohibited from directly attacking a rival vehicle, the race rules do not prohibit you from damaging the racetrack itself.
Pete mulled over what the AI tutor was saying, and the full impact of the suggestion kicked in.
[Pete] Sam, can you move us further to the left, so I can get a better angle?
[Sam] On it.
The RV shifted to the left of the track, and Pete moved further forward on the roof, with Craig holding him by the waist and crouching low nearby. Once more, Pete drew an arrow and charged it, aiming for an area directly ahead of where the Mini was driving.
[Coop] Watch your aim, son. If you hit that car, we're in trouble.
Pete tried to steady his breathing. He also shifted his aim so that the arrow would hit the ground further ahead of the Mini. It was a risk, he knew, but they were only minutes away from reaching the endpoint of the race, and if he didn't do something soon, they would all pay the ultimate price.
He fired, and a shard of light burst from his bow, hitting the ground some twenty feet ahead of the Mini and hitting with such force that it cracked the asphalt open, splitting a small section of the road a split second before the Mini reached it. The little car bucked up into the air, tires skidding as it hit the ground and swerved wildly for a few seconds. The car veered over to the left side of the track, and Sam slowed the RV a little, anticipating a pending crash.
Somehow, the Mini driver managed to get the car under control again. It veered back into the middle of the road, but instead of staying in one place, the car now moved left and right, trying to cover as much of the racetrack as possible.
[Sam] He knows what you're trying to do now. Bastard's trying to use his own car as a shield, hoping you'll hit him.
[Craig] A smart maneuver. This will make hitting the right point even more difficult.
Pete ignored the chatter, focusing all of his attention on the Mini and the road directly ahead of it. In the distance, he could see the end of the racetrack up ahead as it approached a large colosseum-style building that looked a little like a football stadium that had been cut open on one side and plonked down at the end of the racetrack.
The Mini was moving more erratically now, suggesting that the damage it had sustained was making maneuvering more difficult and likely getting worse the more the vehicle swerved left and right. Pete ignored the smoke, the wind, the roaring of the crowd, and even the voices of his own fellow players and focused all of his attention on an area just ahead and to the right of where the Mini would be in the next few seconds. His hope was that, by aiming off to the right, the RV would be able to swerve around the vehicle when the Mini inevitably crashed.
As the large structure at the end of the racetrack came clearly into view, Pete shot the arrow. As before, an impossible straight shard of light shot from the bow and hit the road just ahead and to the right of the Mini. Its driver attempted to avoid the sudden crack in the road but was too slow in reacting. The little car hit the broken chunks of asphalt, popping one of its tires and careening sharply to the right, driving right through the holographic seating and into a green shield surrounding a nearby house.
The RV surged ahead, and Pete swung around, almost losing his balance as he spotted the plume of fire and smoke rising from the crashed Mini now behind them.
[Coop] Yahtzee!
[Sam] Nice one, Pete!
He moved back from the front of the Winnebago's roof, with Craig walking alongside, and they both slipped down through the broken skylight and dropped into the rear cabin. Grizzle and Torgo were both applauding, grinning in delight and cheering.
"Ah, you might wanna get up here!" Sam called out, turning her head but keeping her eyes fixed on the road ahead. "I don't think we're done yet."
"But there are no other cars left in the race!" Craig protested.
"It's not cars we need to worry about," Sam replied as the RV began to slow.
Pete climbed through to the front passenger seat, staring out the windscreen as the larger stadium structure came into view. Now that they were closer, he saw that it wasn't actually a stadium but just a series of cars and trucks that had been pressed down against one another and arrayed in a huge circular wall that started at the end of the track, enclosing the area ahead in a large, arena-like space.
Something large and metallic stood at the center of the arena, and the holographic head of Augustus Greedwell, the Overseer, hung above the large machine. It was only at this point that Pete realized the screen showing his mother dangling over the vat of acid had disappeared, and so had the race map.
>> Congratulations, Vault Breaker! You have successfully traversed this challenge and made it to the final stage of the race.
The Overseer's voice was thick with sarcasm and clearly filled with hatred. The oversized goblin head grimaced rather than smiled as it spat the words.
>> Given your outstanding progress thus far, I have decided to reward you with a bonus challenge. If you prevail, you will be showered with gifts, the greatest of which will be the knowledge that you live to breathe another day!
As the RV came to a stop at the entrance to the arena, Pete saw the vat of acid off to the left side of the space, with his mother still dangling from a rope, tied to a chair that looked as though it would drop at any moment. He was out the door and running toward his mother before he knew what had happened.
He sprinted toward his mother, wishing he still had the speed relic and thinking through the best way to cut her down without putting her in harm's way. As he drew closer, Pete saw the panic in his mother's eyes lessen somewhat as she caught sight of him running toward her.
"Hang tight, Mom!" he called out. "I'll be there in—"
A green shield appeared directly in front of Pete, and he slammed into the barrier, bashing his head and recoiling as stars swam in his vision.
"Fuck!"
He looked left and right as large panes of the green shielding appeared, circling around his mother and the vat of acid and blocking his access.
>> Worry not, Vault Breaker. You have reached your princess in time and saved her from certain death. For a time at least.
While Pete watched, his mother was lifted a foot or so higher as the sound of some kind of mechanical crank accompanied her rising.
>> Based on my calculations, you now have five minutes before your dear mother plunges into the death vat. Five minutes in which you must best my avatar and win this challenge once and for all.
Pete put a hand on the force field, feeling it vibrate under his fingers.
"Don't worry, Mom," he shouted. "I'm gonna get you out of this."
She smiled weakly, or at least that's how he interpreted the gesture. It was difficult to see, given that her mouth was covered with tape. He caught her nod, though, and took it as an acknowledgment. Pete turned around and faced the holographic head of the Overseer, letting the fury boil over inside him as Augustus Greedwell continued.
>> Rather than a simple test of brawn, however, you will find this encounter a little more intellectually challenging. In addition to defeating my avatar with strength of arms and the various abilities you have acquired during your time in the contest thus far, you will need to make use of your intellect and adapt swiftly to changing circumstances.
It was only at this point that Pete took a good look at the metallic form in the center of the arena. The figure stood at around three times Pete's height, crafted from polished metal and painted with vivid reds and greens. It took him a few moments to comprehend what he was looking at. The shape was familiar, but the image painted on the surface of the metal object wasn't.
It looked like a giant Matryoshka doll, but instead of the typical Russian-style female form, a warped image of Tongsly Belch was painted on its surface. The rounded edges of the metallic doll figurine meant that the dimensions of the goblin's body were contorted. Its arms were too long, its face was pinched, and Belch's ears were squished too tightly against the side of its face. If this were supposed to be a pleasing representation of the High Baron, it had failed miserably.
The avatar wore a suit and jacket of rich purple, studded with golden buttons and gems of all kinds. Each gem twinkled with unnatural light, as though illuminated by some inner luminescence. In particular, the emerald glowing at the center of the
>> Five minutes! That is how long you have to best my avatar and win freedom for your precious princess, Vault Breaker.
The giant Russian nesting doll started to spin, the goblin's pinched face leering from above as it slowly turned around, lights beginning to flash where the gems were painted on the figure. Sam and the others had already disembarked and were walking toward Pete when the RV lowered into the ground behind them, accompanied by a mechanical whirring sound.
"What's this now?" Coop said.
Pete had played too many games and had experienced too many boss encounters not to recognize what was going on, even though the system hadn't yet outlined the details of this new enemy. He immediately pushed all of his funds into Coop's wallet and pulled his bow out of his inventory.
"Boss fight!" he shouted as the Belch doll began to spin rapidly, a laser beam shooting from the emerald nestled in its hat.
The laser bit into the ground where it struck, cutting a deep groove and causing the crushed stone that covered the floor of the arena to hiss in response. At the same time, dozens of light projectiles shot out from the other gems and golden buttons studding the Tongsly Belch machine.
Craig and his fellow goblins ran, Grizzle raising her tome shield in an attempt to defend against the sudden onslaught as projectiles fizzed past at speed. Wolfy appeared out of nowhere, materializing right next to the avatar and attempting to bite the machine while spectral skull chains shot from Sam's outstretched arms, her body cloaked in a dark aura as she engaged in a flurry of Woe Binder spells.
Pete was running, cloaked by his Insolvency debuff and already with an arrow notched. He waited for the charged shot ability to trigger, aiming for the head of the Russian doll machine, reasoning that hitting the emerald gem would probably be a good place to start the fight. Coop ran in front of him, her white body surrounded by a bluish ward and deflecting laser fire before it could reach Pete.
>> SURPRISE BOSS ENCOUNTER
>> BOSS UNIT [NPC] — BELCH'S HONORED AVATAR
AUTHORITY: Dominion Ultrimax Contest (Earth Division)
TYPE: Overseer Avatar / Recursive Construct
THREAT TIER: Extreme (Escalating, Multi-Phase)
>> DESCRIPTION:
Greedwell's Nested Effigy is a monetized idol of dominance: a construct of polished metal, gold filigree, and high-grade gemstones, standing at twenty feet in height. Its body is segmented into nested vessels, each one formed like an ornate Russian nesting doll split at the center point, locked together by glowing contract seams and profit sigils.
OFFENSIVE ABILITIES:
+| PROFIT SPIN PROTOCOL
The Effigy engages its rotational attack sequence, causing its body to spin while all intact gems fire synchronized laser bursts in a variety of patterns and velocities that constantly change, making them difficult to predict and counter.
Effect: Unpredictable beam damage across the arena. Laser density and damage increase as fewer gems remain intact. Inflicts Thermal Laceration on repeated hits.
+| LASER DIVIDEND ARRAY
Individual gemstones independently lock onto targets, firing narrow, high-intensity beams between rotation cycles.
Effect: Precision energy damage with a high critical chance. Critical hits generate Coinfall Shrapnel, dealing minor splash damage to nearby allies.
+| EXECUTIVE FIRESTORM
Triggered during phase instability or heavy damage intake. The Effigy vents excess energy as controlled flame eruptions from its seams.
Effect: Moderate fire damage. Applies Scorched Assets (-10% healing effectiveness).
+| FORCED LIQUIDATION [PHASE MECHANIC]
When all gemstone nodes on the current shell are destroyed, the Effigy initiates an enforced asset purge. The outer doll fractures and detonates outward. A burst of wind is sent outwards from the core.
Effects:
Mild damage to all entities in range
Knockback and brief disorientation
Simultaneously, one party member is randomly selected:
Status Applied: Executive Freeze
Target is immobilized and encased in contract-crystal
Receives +30% vulnerability to all damage
The frozen target must be actively protected. If a frozen player is killed, the Effigy gains Profit Margin (+10% damage output).
>> DEFENSIVE ABILITIES:
+| GILDED EXTERIOR PLATING
Each shell is reinforced with profit-alloy composites and gem-channeled energy dampeners.
Effect: High resistance to physical and elemental damage while gems remain intact.
+| CONTRACTUAL INTEGRITY LOCK
As long as at least one gem node is active, the Effigy cannot be staggered or interrupted.
Effect: Immunity to crowd control effects during active phases.
There was no time to take in the information or assess what kind of strategy they'd need to take to approach the enemy. Instead, Pete fired his first shot, hoping that the 25% increased critical strike chance from his Insolvency status would result in a powerful hit.
A shard of light trailed the arrow as it shot toward its target, hitting the gemstone with brutal force. The gem instantly shattered, sending shards of emerald and bright light out in all directions. Some of those shards hit Coop's ward, bouncing off harmlessly into the air. Several of the sharp gem pieces cut into Pete's body, ripping through skin and flesh as he drew another arrow and aimed for one of the smaller gems lower down on the construct.
Coop shadowed Pete, staying between him and the enemy as more lasers scoured the interior of the arena space. The blue aura surrounding her burst outward, pushing some of the laser projectiles back at the avatar, but to little effect. A second, golden ward sprang up around the ferret, Belch Buck coins spraying out onto the ground as it absorbed laser fire and transmuted it into currency.
Pete fired, striking the side of the enemy with his second charged shot and bursting the diamond-shaped gem, causing the spinning avatar to shudder slightly. The construct whirred and whined, filling the interior of the vast space with a piercing howl that grew louder the more damage it took.
From either side, Craig and Sam both piled on damage, the former with his rifle, the latter with lashing chains that flared with purple light as they struck the enemy while Wolfy yapped and bit with limited success. Just as Coop was defending Pete by staying between him and the construct, Grizzle held her shield up in front of Craig and Torgo, taking the brunt of the attack with apparent ease.
Torgo sent an occasional burst of flame and ash toward the enemy but found that the fire did little to damage the metallic construct. The little goblin frowned, doubling down on the strategy and clearly convinced that he simply required more fire in order for his attack to bear fruit.
Pete fired another three arrows, each one hitting its mark, or doing so much damage that even if they didn't directly hit a gem, they damaged a large enough area to shatter the gem anyway. As more and more of the gems were destroyed, the remaining gems began shooting with more ferocity, each strike now double the strength of what it had been earlier.
Even so, with the two tanks in operation, it was easy enough to avoid the worst of the damage. Sam's vampiric life-gain abilities made up for any damage she received from the construct, and the group was quickly able to take out the majority of gems without great difficulty.
All of this changed the moment Pete struck the last gem. He didn't even need to bother with a charged shot but simply took aim and waited for the final golden gem to come into view, then loosed the shot and sent the arrow shaft thudding into the face of the gem, its length quivering as the spinning avatar suddenly stopped.
>> ARCHERY PROFICIENCY +1
The top half of the construct shuddered and rose, a hiss of steam coming from the middle of the unit as white vapor poured from its interior. Shaking violently, the avatar seemed to stutter for a moment, its top half vibrating violently as though stuck in place due to some mechanical error. The whirring, whining sound coming from the construct increased in pitch and volume, rising to the point where Pete had to clamp both hands over his ears.
[Pete] Get ready! It's about to—