212: Strange Company

“You mean to say that the gods had no concept of chakra?” Cirayus asked, unconvinced.

“Rather, the Chakras may not even have existed before the fall of the gods. Cirayus, whatever happened to the Imperium changed the world in ways I’m not sure anyone understands. There was a moon! A bright circle in the night sky, many times the size of the stars!”

“Aye, you mentioned that before, lad. Just hard to comprehend, is all. But let’s say you’re right. This is still quite the risk. Demons don’t fight Imperium Automatons. Not the ones who wish to live to tell a tale, anyway. Even if my Chakra attacks work on it, who’s to say I’ll even get the chance?”

“That’s where I come in. Shan and I will serve as a distraction until you can land a blow.”

“No,” Cirayus replied firmly. “‘Tis too dangerous for you.”

“Look, I’d much rather flee, myself, but we’ve been here a full day and that thing hasn’t moved an inch. What choice do we have?”

“There is another option,” Cirayus said quietly. “We make for the summit.”

“Those peaks are ravaged by lightning. It’d be suicide.”

“Not for me, lad. And, I suspect, not for you, either, with your newfound abilities.”

“We don’t know that,” Vir replied, mulling over Cirayus’ plan. True, Prana Armor had grown far stronger thanks to Current, but was it sufficient to weather a blast of Lightning?

“There are tricks to traversing the ravaged peaks,” Cirayus continued. “We crawl on our bellies. Makes it less likely we’ll be hit that way. Least, that’s what I’ll do. You might not have to, with Dance of the Shadow Demon. Shadows are stronger up on the peaks.”

Vir grimaced, debating between the two options. Neither was especially palpable. Risking life and limb against an ancient, possibly deranged, automaton built by the gods, or against Bhumi—mother nature—herself.

“At least we can hit the automaton,” Vir muttered. “But I see your point. Alright. Let’s do it your way—”

“Hold, lad,” Cirayus said, peering into the Artifact orb.

“What’s wrong?”

“The Artifact. ‘Tis glowing brighter. Brighter than before, when we entered.”

“That’s… It’s moving?” Vir asked. “Is that even possible?”

“Apparently so.”

“Wait,” Vir said, paling. “Does that mean the Artifact it’s paired with in the Demon Realm is here?”

If so, their chances of exiting the Ash safely had just plummeted. Ash Tears were a dime a dozen—but true, proper Ash Gates stable enough to safely travel through? Those were beyond rare. Vir had seen only a handful in his time here. Without the Artifact, they’d be relying on dumb luck like Amarat—the demon in Balindam’s Undercity—had done.

“Could mean anything, lad. But if it is here, it means we’re not alone. Someone must be carrying it. Or, gods forbid, something.”

Vir understood where this was going. “And said entity is probably not dodging lightning strikes on the summit of nearby mountains. Well… why not simply stay here? Our water’s running out, but we should be able to weather another day. At worse, whoever or whatever is on its way might distract the Automaton.”

“Would be the smart thing to do, aye. But if it is a demon out there attempting to locate us, they’ll never find us up here.”

“How far would you say they are?” Vir asked.

“Close,” Cirayus replied. “Very close.”

“Then we’ll watch and observe,” Vir said, sinking into the shadows.

— —

Vir wasn’t expecting to see anyone. A lone demon in a forest would’ve been invisible. The only clue he’d have was the Automaton switching targets if this mysterious stranger neared, and while Vir didn’t know this demon, he’d feel bad if they were blasted in the gut by the Automaton’s eye beam.

Apparently, his worries were unfounded.

“Uh, Cirayus? You’re not going to believe this.”

“What do you see, lad?” the giant asked from deeper within the cave.

“I don’t think it’s a demon or an Ash Beast that’s approaching us,” Vir replied. “It’s… another Automaton.”

The second behemoth’s tracks were visible by the carnage it left in its path. Taller than the other Automaton, and taller than even most trees, it bore a strong resemblance to the other.

Both Automatons had perfect white armor covering their bodies. Both had four arms, three faces attached to a single head, and towered as tall as the trees.

But there were differences as well. The newcomer was larger, and unlike the other Automaton’s ball base, it stood on two armored legs. In one hand, it hefted an enormous talwar—far larger than even Sikandar—and a spear in another. It also carried a great white tower shield so massive, it required two of the Automaton’s hands to wield. The shield was nearly forty paces in height—it had more in common with a tall tower than an implement of defense.

“We should run for it,” Vir said, readying himself to Leap from the mountain cave. “Let them fight each other out. We may not ever get another chance.”

Cirayus didn’t reply immediately. He stared intently at the newcomer with a frown.

“Lad? Are my old eyes failing me? Or is a demon riding on the shoulder of that Automaton?”

Vir peered out at the newcomer. It’d closed the distance quickly, and was now only a few hundred paces away from the other Imperium creation.

Sure enough, there was someone there, standing proudly on the juggernaut’s right shoulder.

Vir had missed the figure at first, for his clothing perfectly camouflaged him. The figure wore all white, and from this distance, Vir could barely make out the man—or woman—sporting wild white hair.

“A demon’s… riding an Automaton,” Vir said blankly. “Does that mean they’re controlling it? Is… That can’t be possible… Right?”

When Cirayus didn’t reply, Vir glanced up at him. The giant’s frown had turned into a scowl.

“I think we should leave,” Vir said.

“It’s him,” Cirayus spat. “It has to be.”

“Er, who? You know that person?”

“I wish I did not. But one does not come across many demons who can take control of the creation of the gods. There is only one man I’m aware of who can. Saunak. Saunak the Deranged.”

Deranged? Vir thought. That didn’t seem like a moniker anyone would willingly take on.

“Er, shouldn’t we avoid him, then?”

“Lad, that demon has a way to track us. Think of it. What are the chances we would run into perhaps the only other sapient being in this whole bloody realm?”

“That’s… true.”

“If we run, he’ll find us. What’s more, our own Artifact is pointing straight to him. If anyone could pull off such a feat, it would be none other than Saunak.”

“Why would he do that, though? What does he want?” Vir asked, monitoring the Automatons below. The one that had hunted them hadn’t even registered the newcomer, keeping its gaze solely fixated on Vir’s hideout on the mountain.

“Nothing good,” Cirayus said gravely. “But I fear we are out of options. Either we escape and Saunak finds us, or we submit to him willingly.”

“Er, you’re making it sound like this Saunak person is going to win. Sure, his Automaton is a bit bigger, but you know how durable these things are. They’re nearly invulnerable until their energy cores run out.”

“Lad, you don’t know Saunak as I—!?”

A deafening boom startled them both, and Vir sunk back into the shadows to observe the situation.

Until now, the other Automaton had paid the newcomer no mind, likely thinking it an ally.

When Vir peered out, he expected to see the beginning of a battle between them. Instead, the old Automaton was now moving up the mountain. Toward them. Why it had chosen this moment to pursue them, Vir couldn’t say.

Another thunderous boom rocked the world, and this time, Vir saw the Automaton’s arm liquify, morphing into an oversized chained harpoon that fired outward with explosive force. The harpoon landed mere paces from their cave. The chain went taut, and the Automaton followed.

To Vir’s dismay, the newcomer hadn’t taken action, seemingly content to watch the drama unfold.

“It’s here.” Vir shouted. “We need to leave. Now.”

“Follow me!” Cirayus said. “I suppose we’ll see if this theory of yours holds water.”

The demon jumped out of the cavern before Vir could protest, and Vir followed moments later, cursing as he activated Leap.

Cirayus sailed out of the mountain, followed by Shan and Vir, all praying that the Automaton below them would be in too much of an awkward position to attack them.

They were, of course, horribly wrong.

The Automaton’s eye beam streaked through the sky, finding Cirayus.

Anticipating the attack, Cirayus wrenched himself in midair, narrowly avoiding the beam.

Vir let loose his Artifact Chakram as he fell, activating Chakram Launch at the same time.

The Automaton must have perceived the weapon as a threat, for it focused on the flying disk.

Vir panicked—he hadn’t thought about what might happen if the chakram took the full brunt of the Automaton’s attack. If it was destroyed…

He hit the ground, relying on Light Step to catch him. Shan landed safely beside him.

The chakram sailed through the air, closer and closer to the Imperium creation… and to Vir’s disbelief, it struck the chain tethering the creature to the rock.

Chakram Launch dissipated on contact with the Imperium metal, doing absolutely nothing to it.

The chain held strong, but the chakram drilled relentlessly, its razor blades cutting through ancient Imperium metal.

The Automaton’s eyes glowed blue, but Vir recalled the chakram before its eye weapon fired. The disk flew through the air, zigzagging as it returned to Vir unscathed.

No longer needing to climb, the colossal being released its hold on the mountainside, and crashed heavily back to the ground, crushing a dozen trees under it.

Except Cirayus was there to meet it.

Sikandar’s gargantuan blade ripped at the Automaton, and even from Vir’s distance, he could feel the giant’s aura. The blade had a metaphysical weight that crushed him. It spoke of death, in a way Vir could scarcely comprehend.

Sikandar struck Imperium metal… and stopped dead in its tracks. The enormous sword hadn’t even chipped the Automaton’s armor.

Vir immediately threw his Chakram again… but suddenly found himself dozens of paces in the air.

The other Automaton!

Vir cursed. His attention had been so focused on the other giant that he’d ignored the newcomer. And now he was trapped. Stuck in one of its giant hands.

Shan roared, Blinking onto the fist that held Vir, desperately attacking it with his claws.

But against Imperium metal, the Ashfire wolf was helpless.

“Shan!” Vir roared.

Another arm appeared out of nowhere, swatting Shan aside, sending him flying off into the distance.

The Automaton brought Vir up to its shoulder. In line with the madman who grinned deliriously at him.

The gray demon opened his mouth and took a deep breath.

“Oh yes! Very nice.”