The walk home was accompanied by mostly silence, only sounds being footsteps walking through the grass and all the bodily sounds goblins tend to make ranging from belching, to spitting sounds.
Violet was still trying to stretch out her shrunken limbs only to be disappointed every time. But she was getting used to her new found look.
"If you want more practice in that body I suggest the arena it's back up as well with plenty of new blood wanting to sedate their greed." Jack said.
"I should be ok for now, I think I've got it figured out." Violet replied.
"Well I almost forgot I have to meet Stein in his lab. Will you be fine to return them alone?" Jack asked with his eyes wide open.
Violet laughed and nodded. She turned to the goblins fooling around in the back and gave them a sinister look. The goblins up front stopped dead in their tracks while the oblivious ones ran into their backs and quickly realized the situation.
The goblins quickly formed ranks and got into orderly fashion. Well as much order as goblins can produce.
Jack laughed as he got off his horse and stared Violet in her eyes.
"DO NOT DO IT!" Violet yelled at Jack reading his mind.
Jack lifts Violet who quickly develops a sinister aura around her.
"You will pay for this..." Violet said hushed, goblins were laughing hysterically behind her.
She glared behind her again and quickly put a stop to it.
"Later." Jack said with a simple wave and gentle smile.
Jack leaped into the air and began hurling towards the futuristic city next to Libast. After a few moments Jack landed in the city. The city was entirely made of silver metal with one main road leading toward Stein's lab.
As Jack opened the lab door, it was pitch black inside, minus one small lit flame that didn't appear to be emitting any light. Jack continued walking towards the light, when his foot suddenly felt a tug a door burst open beneath him sending him down. Jack's Landing was soft and the floor seemed to moan.
Getting more and more angry he sent power to his broken horn. The horn became engulfed in flames spreading a bright light through the hole. He then immediately realized he was standing on tons of goblins.
"Stein!" Jack roared his name to no avail.
Steadily growing more upset Jack began to fly up towards the floor he fell. About halfway up a beeping sound began ringing Jack inspecting the notch the sound was coming from he didn't see the boulder hurling towards him from above. As the boulder crashed into his skull anger surged through him and he destroyed the boulder before it impacted the goblins below.
Flying back up towards the top of the cavern Jack began yelling Stein's name again. No response again so Jack continued toward the end of the hall. With his flames emitting light he saw another tight thin wire he decided to step over, and immediately fell backwards. He fell right on the wire snapping it, and on command axes and hammers began swinging around the room. Avoiding the axe meant the hammer would land directly on him so he punched back and was thrown across the room.
"The Hammer has my gemstones magic in it."
Jack thought to himself while getting back up.
Clearing the obstacle by dashing through at incredible speeds he then realized how close he was to the dim lit light. Approaching with light feet and caution he was taking the final steps toward the light.
Jack flung to the ceiling by a rope. He was enraged that a mere rope fooled him. Searing it to a crisp he flew to the end to find the light in the center of a dark room! He spread flames across the room. The flame lit room revealed the light was a dying candle at a round metal table with Stein sleeping at it.
"Stein!" Jack roared.
Stein fell out of his chair, gasped and collapsed.
"Ouch, took you look enough Jack. I had dinner already and even passed out." Stein said, rubbing his head where a knot already grew.
"What did you want me here for?" Jack demanded with sweat rolling down his forehead.
"I wanted to eat and show you my new invention… hang on you didn't come in the front door did you?" Stein said, noticing his short breath.
"Yes, why?" Jack asked with raised eyebrows.
"There's a hatch up there you could've taken." Stein said laughing hysterically.
"You see when I make food the aroma tends to bring in hordes of your goblins to try and steal it so I've booby trapped the entire entrance, with Indiana Jones as my inspiration." Stein continued.
"Indiana Jones?" Jack asked.
"You wouldn't get it." Stein said, sighing.
"We'll wanna show me what you made and put this mess behind us?" Jack asked, wiping his forehead.
"We'll without further a do follow me." Stein said while going into the flow from a remote hatch.
"I can't follow you if you do that." Jack said, jumping onto the lowering hatch.
"Another metal suit?" Jack said as they fell to a room with metal suits everywhere.
"Well these suits are my hobby, but no, I'm referring to this!" Stein said eagerly
Stein walked over to a big red button and pushed the much smaller blue button hidden beside it. From the ground came another suit fashioned to look like a Minotaur. Like Violet.
"That's amazing! Is what I'd say if I knew what this hunk of metal was." Jack said smiling.
"I'm glad you kinda asked." Stein yelled.
Smoke blew in from all sides in the underground room and a figure walked out and climbed into the suit.
"Jack time for a sparring tournament." Stein said laughing.
Jack gave Stein a weary look, as Jack has already proved he is far too much a match for Stein's metal machines. The eyes of the machine lit up red and began moving. Jack barely was able to keep his eyes on it when it dashed so quickly behind him and flung its arm back as a battering ram into his side, Jack had no time to defend and was sent flying.
Climbing out from the newly formed dent in the underground room Jack looked up and saw nothing, no machine, no Stein, just an empty room. Jack's body registered the blow late. It came so quick the metal beast elbowed him in the head and sent his face into the ground. Jack then went into his instincts and sent flames right at the chest of the beast who waved them away.
"Stein, I'm going to break your toy!" Jack yelled.
Clashing in the middle of the room the machine and Jack began going blow for blow, punch for punch. Jack gripped the arms of the beast with his own and smashed his head into the machine's own. It retaliated by lighting up and sending shocks through Jack's body electrocuting him.
Jack became enraged at that but didn't show it he wanted to end this as he knew Stein was enjoying every second of it from wherever he was watching. Jack's right arm became covered in scales and his broken horn was engulfed in flames. In one flash quicker than the lightning could hit him Jack slashed through the arms of the machine in an instant.
The machine's eyes grew dim and it halted all movement. Clapping rang out from the back of the room. Stein appeared from nothing.
"I'm Rather impressed you have a whole nother level to your power, I used an immense amount of your gemstones magic to run that thing yet you still beat it. While you were sleeping I ran a test and it completely mopped the floor with everyone." Stein said with a defeated look on his face.
"Well this new level to my power is newly acquired I think, and I commend your efforts for making me go to such measures but Stein I told you, your science can never beat me." Jack said, smirking as his arm and horns returned to normal.
"Yeah we'll see about that."Stein said Smiling wide.
Violet finally reaching the outer limits of Libast was glad to be home and to go talk with more intelligent creatures, since she could only handle goblins for so long. As she got there in the distance in the ocean beyond a bright beam of light lit the sky. sensing danger in her gut she began to run toward the dark tower.
Upon reaching the top she found Jack, Stein, and Gar up there already peering at the beam of light.
"What is that thing?" Violet questioned while out of breath.
"It can't be anything good that's near where those humans took refuge on their ship." Gar said with an intense look upon his face.
A portal opened behind them and a Skeleton with a giant grimoire and torn robes walked through and collapsed.
"Anak!" Gar yelled, as several rushed to his aid.