As they enter the base, the group encounters a chaotic onslaught of blast bolts from Goblin soldiers. "There they are. Eliminate the intruders!" A flood of green electricity arcs across the hallway, the powerful hum echoing in their ears.
Denkei slips his hand into his robe and retrieves a tiny, delicate plant with several small stems. Denkei waves his magic stick over the plant, and it balloons up tenfold. "Magic Spell Alchemy: Size Alteration!" The stems expand, and the goblin and elf soldiers are pinned against the wall by the lime-green plant stems stretching toward them like claws. "They won't be able to attack us anymore. Let's go."
They continue their pace, their pounding footsteps reverberating around the base until they stop in front of a grand beige-colored stone door. Navar trudges to the door, his feet sliding against the sturdy surface of the base terrain as he struggles to open it. "Ugh, why can't I open this damn thing?!"
"Don't even bother trying to open it. You need up-to-date Goblin DNA, the password, or an incredible force to break in," says Pikati.
"Allow me," Juyon conjures Hard Terrain JōKai onto his fists and walks forward. Juyon punches the beige door, a dust cloud forming and the bricks and the debris scattering throughout the area as he bursts through.
As soon as they burst through the door, a barrage of Ion shots whizzes past them. Denkei grips his Mage Stick and drags it across the floor, creating a white line that shines in the light. "Magic Spell Alchemy: Barrier Wall!" Denkei's wall emerges from the floor, stopping the ion blast bolts in their tracks.
As they stand hidden behind the wall, Pikati uses Farsight to get a clear view of their enemies and the weaponry they possess. "There's a pretty good amount of soldiers over this wall. Luckily, they don't have enough firepower to take this thing down."
Miri flicks her gaze over to Pikati. "Do you think Navar, Astran, Seiju, Juyon, and I can take them all on by leaving this wall?"
"You can, but it'll be risky since they outnumber you guys."
Navar's lips curl into a triumphant smile as he draws his sword from its sheathe. "Then it's a risk we'll take," With a single bound, Navar, Miri, Astran, Seiju, and Juyon jump over the wall, feeling the rush of adrenaline as they charge toward the Goblins. Navar and Astran spring forward, and a surge of energy courses through them as they coat themselves in JōKai Amplification.
"Ursa Impact!"
"Okayasu Blade: Okayasu Parry!"
Navar and Astran swing their blades with precision, the sharp clang of metal against ion blasts ringing in the air as the deflected blast bolts clear out the horde of Goblin soldiers.
After Navar and Astran's counterattack, Miri slides two daggers in her wrist slots and casts a sideways glance toward Seiju. "I'm going to get a horde of them. Can you cover me?"
"Sure," Seiju materializes two blazing arrows with Flame JōKai and feels the bowstring's tension as he pulls it back.
Miri sprints toward the goblins and elves, the wind rustling her hair as she runs rapidly. She coats her body with JōKai Amplification and springs forward, her daggers poised in a thrusting motion. "Two Daggers: Pouncing Strike!" Miri's daggers slice through the air with a sharp hiss, cutting down Goblin and Elf Soldiers in their wake.
"Flame Bow: Double Flame Shot!" Seiju releases his bowstring, and the arrows fly forward, leaving a trail of flames which engulf the Goblin and Elf soldiers.
With only a few enemies left, Juyon and Astran square off against the rest of them, ready to battle. Juyon summons Hard Terrain JōKai to his fists, the hard rock enveloping his hands as he throws a thunderous left hook at the group of enemies, sending a shockwave of power through them with one strike. "Bellowing Bison!"
Astran charges toward the goblin and elf soldiers, the clang of metal echoing through the air as she swings her sword and vanquishes the rest of the horde. "Astraeus Disturbance!"
"Hey guys, we beat them all! Come on!" says Navar
"Good, let's continue before more start coming for us," says Pikati. They continue their journey into the Molorx base, the air around them growing colder and colder as the hallways grow more gloomy.
As Rojo trudges forward, a deep groan of exhaustion escapes his lips. "Ugh, can we take a break?"
"Ok, everyone, let's take a quick fifteen-minute break," says Jax.
As everyone tries to sit to unwind from the lengthy walk, Nozomi's ears perk up as she senses danger approaching. "Guys, I don't think we can do that."
"What do you mea-" A torrent of searing, green ion bolts tear through the air and approach them. Denkei traces a thin line in the ground with the tip of his mage stick. "Magic Spell Alchemy: Barrier Wall!" Denkei's wall rises from the ground, stymying the ion blast bolts from the goblins.
Pikati looks ahead using Farsight, and he notices the glint of heavy artillery in the hands of the soldiers beyond the wall. "By the looks of it, we won't be able to do what we did the last time."
"What should we do?" asks Astran.
Rojo shuffles his hand through his waistbelt, feeling his pouch's rough fabric before removing a hard, metal grenade. "I got a grenade."
"Ok, throw it," says Juyon.
Rojo pulls the pin out of the grenade and heaves it over the wall, the weight of it heavy in his hand. "Grenade, get out!" Rojo's grenade explodes, sending a shockwave that clears out the heavy artillery enemies.
With Farsight, Pikati looks ahead and sees a cavalcade of enemies racing down the hallway. "We're all clear. However, multiple enemies are coming toward the doors armed with spears."
Miri, Navar, Astran, Juyon, and Seiju brandish their weapons and prepare to fight the oncoming enemies. "We'll take care of it," Navar, Miri, Juyon, Seiju, and Astran effortlessly defeat the horde of goblins and elves, leaving a trail of defeated goblins and elves in their wake. Navar glances at Pikati, his eyes lingering for a moment. "Any more enemies, Pikati?"
Pikati looks ahead, using Farsight to reveal an empty landscape with no trace of enemies. "Nope, we're all clear for now."
"Good, we can slow down a bit. All this running has me tired," says Jax.
"Alright, we'll slow down, but we should still be alert," says Miri. The group strolls forward leisurely until they reach a strong metal door.
Pikati knocks on the metal door, feeling the cool, hard surface beneath his knuckles. "This door is much more durable than the one we've seen earlier."
"Let me see if this thing can blow it open!" Rojo saunters to the door and hears the faint click as the C4 bomb is fastened to its surface. Rojo sets the charge for the bomb and then takes off running, the sound of his footsteps fading as he gets away from the impending explosion. "Ok, guys, clear out!" Everyone scrambles away from the door, leaving Rojo able to detonate the C4 bomb. The C4 bomb explodes, leaving a massive smokescreen in its wake. "Did it work?"
Pikati peers through the dark, billowing smoke with Farsight, and miraculously, the door withstands the impact of the shockwave from the C4 bomb. "No, the door still stands."
Rojo's eyebrows shoot up in disbelief. "No way! That door can withstand a C4 bomb!"
Juyon clenches his fists, and Hard Terrain JōKai materializes, the sturdy rock on his fists hardening as he strides toward the door. "Let me see what I can do," Juyon punches the door repeatedly, sweat dripping from his forehead as he punches it until he becomes too tired to continue. "Dammit, I didn't even leave a dent in that door."
"I got an idea. Why don't we all attack the door!" said Navar. With a united effort, everyone uses their weapons to try to break through the metal door, but it doesn't budge, leaving them all breathless and slumped on the ground. "They don't want us to get through," says Navar.
As everyone lies sprawled on the ground, exhausted, Seiju scans the room, trying to find a way to shatter the seemingly invincible door. "There's gotta be a way for us to get through. Maybe I should piss someone off to do so. Should I piss the big guy off? Nah, that's not a good idea. I wouldn't piss him off if I had a big ass Warhammer. Who is freakishly strong but not totally terrifying?" Seiju gazes at Astran, the corners of his mouth turning into a smile. "Bingo," Thought Seiju. Seiju stands and casts a coy glance in Astran's direction. "Wow, Astran, you have a really, really nice body. Imagining it naked gets me incredibly excited."
Astran's fists tighten as she glares at Seiju, her eyes are ablaze with rage, and her forehead pulsing angrily. "You pervert! What did you say?!"
"Dude, why would you even say that? Do you know what situation we're in?" asks Rojo.
"Hey, Astran, relax, darling. I'm only complimenting you, you know. If you weren't a warrior, you should seriously consider being a model."
"That's it. I'm going to beat the shit out of you!" Seiju leaps to the side and, Astran's anger boils over, pounding her fists against the metal door with such intensity that it bends in and flies off its frame.
"That sly playboy, he made Astran angry so she could bust through the door. How clever," Miri thinks to herself.
Jax leans in closer to Navar, slightly startled by Astran's antics. "She reminds me of Mom."
"Yeah, it's scary."
Astran whirls around, her face twisted with fury as she glances at Seiju. "Posing nude, you say? I'm going to beat the living hell out of you!"
"Wait, woah, chill. It was all a ploy to get you to open the door."
Astran grabs ahold of Seiju's shirt, lifting him with a single hand. "Oh really, well, call this a "ploy" you perverted redhead."
Juyon steps in, bringing silence to the dispute between Astran and Seiju. "Calm down. We've gotten through the door. You can beat the hell out of him later."
Astran sets Seiju down and fixes her eyes on him, her expression fierce. "Don't you say that again."
Seiju sighs with relief and gives Juyon a supportive pat on the shoulder. "Thanks, big guy," The group advances through the doorway of the metal door, the sound of their footsteps echoing through the base as they travel for four hours until they reach a gigantic metal door. Rojo runs his fingers through his hair as he stares at the door, puzzled by its unorthodox placement. "This door is gigantic. What the hell are they hiding in here, a warship?"
Navar squints at the door, his eyes tracing the words hidden beneath a layer of dust. "Hey guys, there's something here!" Navar brushes away the dust to uncover a button that reads "Push to open". "Hmm, Push to open, ok," Navar presses the button on the door, and the sharp sound of the buzzer causes those around him to grab him.
Miri smacks Navar on the back of his head. "You dumbass, that could be a trap!"
Navar lets out a small laugh. His laugh tinged with unease. "Oops, my bad."
"Hopefully, that didn't trigger alarms or traps," says Jax.
As the door opens, a chorus of screeching startles them as a large group of goblins, glinting with blast rifles and blasters, fills the doorway. Seiju looks toward Navar, and his arms flail about in protest. "Oh, man, you've gotta be kidding me! Why did you have to push the button, bro?"