Chapter 1397: Wrong Target, Wrong Corridor

"We can’t hold back anymore!"

Korrick’s voice came from inside the armor.

"Something’s probably happened to the lord. We need to finish this fast!"

Thruster ports opened beneath the combined machine’s feet.

Blue flames blasted backward, propelling the massive frame into a rapid retreat down the corridor. A pale blue shield unfolded around it, blocking Thromm’s pursuing fists.

Thromm stayed close behind.

Each punch caved in a section of the shield. Pale blue ripples spread across its surface, but the barrier refused to break.

The combined machine retreated into another stretch of corridor.

A blinding light flared behind the wall.

A laser punched through the metal and struck the pursuing Thromm with perfect accuracy. The beam passed through his arm, leaving a charred hole straight through it.

Thromm twisted sideways from the impact.

Korrick and Merrin finally had room to breathe.

The combined machine extended both hands. A Gatling gun emerged from the armor, its barrels spinning as blue flames burned around them.

The barrels accelerated.

Then a storm of bullets poured out.

Rounds hammered Thromm’s chest, shoulders, and legs. Each bullet did limited damage on its own, but the gun’s rate of fire was tremendous, and the barrage never let up.

The accumulating impacts finally forced Thromm back.

He shielded his head with his remaining hand and retreated step by step. Bullets tore chunks from his skin and body, each new wound deepening the hatred inside him.

Back in the control room behind the battlefield, Ethan was having a much easier time.

At some point, he had wandered into the room and was now lounging in one of the control chairs. Bodies lay scattered everywhere, while screens around him displayed Thromm’s fight against the combined machine.

Something in the center of the control panel soon caught Ethan’s attention.

A bright red button.

It was huge, and the color made it impossible to miss. It almost seemed designed to tempt anyone who saw it into pressing it.

Ethan raised his hand, but ultimately resisted his curiosity.

He settled back into the chair as pure white light gradually covered his pupils.

On the battlefield ahead, the retreating Thromm faltered.

White lightning flashed across his wounds and skin.

Korrick and Merrin were so caught up in the fight that they failed to notice the change in his eyes. They kept the Gatling gun firing, driving Thromm toward the corner of the corridor.

This was how they had captured him before.

Back then, however, Ferrick had shown mercy instead of killing him.

This time, Thromm wasn’t the only one controlling his body.

Ethan seized control through the white energy.

Thromm dug the fingers of his remaining hand into the metal wall beside him. Using it as an anchor, he drew his body in, kicked off with both legs, and launched himself upward.

Korrick immediately sensed something was wrong.

The Gatling gun stopped firing. The combined machine raised an arm and blasted a high-energy laser overhead.

Merrin saw where the beam was headed and hurried to stop him.

Too late.

"The core!"

His shout thundered through the armor.

"Korrick, what are you doing?"

The laser passed through the space Thromm had occupied, then pierced the metal ceiling. It continued upward through the mechanical city until it reached the area where the core was housed.

Fortunately, the angle was slightly off.

The beam only struck the core’s outermost defenses instead of penetrating the core itself.

Even so, warning lights flashed throughout the corridors and control room. Korrick and Merrin immediately became more cautious.

They turned inside the cramped passage, searching for Thromm.

He was nowhere to be seen.

The surveillance feed, however, showed Ethan lounging in the control room behind them.

"There!"

The combined machine spun around.

The Gatling gun rose again, its rotating barrels aimed at Ethan in the control room. Blue energy gathered along the weapon and surged toward the muzzle, already preparing to fire.

Just before flames could erupt from the barrels, a heavy rush of air came from overhead.

Thromm dropped from the ceiling.

His massive fist struck the combined machine’s head first, crushing the metal faceplate inward. Then he lowered his head and drove his forehead into the machine’s abdomen.

Bang!

The blow launched Korrick and Merrin backward. The combined armor slammed heavily into the wall.

The impact passed straight through the mechanical shell and into their bodies. The cramped armor had no room to disperse the force, leaving it to reverberate between the two men.

Thromm didn’t stop.

He dragged them away from the wall and hammered the mechanical body with punch after punch. Each blow sent the combined armor crashing in a different direction, filling the metal corridor with heavy impacts.

Finally, Thromm swept out one leg and knocked the combined machine to the floor.

He raised his other foot high, aimed at its chest, and stomped down with all his strength.

Boom!

The metal floor caved in.

The combined armor remained mostly intact on the outside, but Korrick could no longer endure the impact. That final blow snuffed out his life.

Merrin was still breathing, though only faintly.

The white light faded from Thromm’s eyes once the attack was complete. His body went limp and toppled forward, his enormous frame pinning the combined machine—and Merrin inside it—to the floor.

In the control room, Ethan’s eyes returned to normal.

He’d had his fun.

He’d caused enough trouble.

Now it was time to get down to business.

Ethan rose from the chair and returned to the control panel.

His hand hovered over the bright red button, his fingertip less than an inch away.

Pinned beneath Thromm in the distance, Merrin saw what was happening through the internal system. His eyes went wide.

He tried to cancel the combination, but separating required consent from both Korrick and Merrin.

Korrick was dead.

Merrin could no longer escape the mechanical body on his own.

"No!"

His voice came through the control room’s speakers beside Ethan.

"Bro! Please, don’t press it!"

Ethan stopped.

That was exactly the reaction he’d been hoping for.

The button was far too conspicuous to press without knowing what it did. All he had to do was test the survivors hiding in the city, and they would tell him exactly how important it was.

But Merrin’s terror only made the button more tempting.

Ethan lowered his finger.

Click.

The bright red button sank into the control panel.

A piercing alarm immediately blared throughout the entire mechanical city.

The smile froze on Ethan’s face.

This wasn’t an ordinary control.

Nor was it a button for disabling the city’s weapons.

It was the launch button for its ultimate weapon.

Still pinned beneath Thromm, Merrin watched Ethan through the surveillance feed. The fear vanished from his face, replaced by near-maniacal laughter.

His bloodshot eyes stayed fixed on Ethan as his laughter rang through the control room’s speakers.

"You’ve killed us all—"

Merrin stared at Ethan on the screen.

"And none of you are getting out alive!"