COI C127
“It’s been a few weeks since they house arrest me. Well, it was for the best. My device contains invaluable data from Rune Isles itself. A sinking ship no less. A flying capital ship if I ever entered one. I was so both lucky and unlucky, when Archivist’s mother wanted me to do something and . . . I uhm, forgot. The experience was hectic and never been wiser to go close with the Enders beside my guild. Although, I start tinkering inside my room and it was a blast. It feels like a vacation. I watch an entire marathon of my favorite movies and series. I did practice my telepathy with Guildmember. Sigh* Yet, Myrrkei won’t tell me anything since I got back from the ship. I hope my city is safe”
“What are you doing, Kiege!” Tabitha grabs Kiege’s shoulders, in panic as Kiege is reading her notes. Kiege smirks all around as she tries to find the part when Tabitha mentioned about Archivist.
“Quit it! Please!” Kiege manages to slip through her, but easily got caught with the use of Tabitha’s card.
Kiege congratulated her “Great! You finally got your cards in order”
“It’s because you’re keep looking at my stuff”
“Why wouldn’t I? I don’t want you become those girl and girl relationship”
“It’s fiction!”
“Says you, but in your community . . .”
“Don’t use the internet as base on truth!”
Juela watches those two bickers like sisters. She felt something so off from herself to think that she is Tabitha’s friend, yet she wants to lecture away with that kind of stories Tabitha was watching. It is the price for letting Tabitha getting too close to the giant vessel, especially her device was more than just updated. It becomes a compatible tool that most Enders desire the renaissance they need from what this world lost. What Juela concerns for Tabitha are the data of the war machines.
She stands up, and the two react to her without even realizing what’s going on.
“. . . Hey! Juela help me here!” Both said at the same time.
The two watches her moves her hair and begins leaving the room. They think she acted like an egoistic woman. In truth, something bothers her and it is coming from the door. It’s been a while they have visitors. Especially there were many uninteresting demands. Meaning a lot of Enders want her to open the data. It’s Tabitha’s lost to gain connection with them.
The door though, there were no unrecognizable presence. It’s her, and Juela opens the door. The two feels her presence. This strong nerve to be wary grew closer. Kiege moves in before the woman’s hand reaches inside Tabitha’s room. She brings out her robotic arm and she almost lost control by the woman’s strength. Juela steps aside letting the two bothering each other.
The woman said to Kiege “I gave her enough time to become the NEET she had always wanted”
“Sanquin, what’s with the earie attitude?”
Sanquin is serious and easily pushes Kiege out from Tabitha’s room. Tabitha sees Sanquin had brought Dewn with her.
He greets them “I’m sorry for our harsh intrusion, but we don’t have enough man powers to get this message to you”
“What’s the matter?”
“Your city, they found something that you may concern about”
Sanquin sits on the chair and explains to her “It’s about the place I found in the mountain shrine. And you’re the one with the data need their help”
“Eh? What!?”
Tabitha checks her device for any news, there is none. They didn’t elaborate any further as they bring out from her room and go to the guild master’s office. Tabitha still can’t leave the tower as many Enders were still eyeing on her to obtain the data. Although, under Lord Lori’es’ orders, they loyally obey. There are people who will be able to convince her. For now, they are busy what’s going on in Rune Isles after the vessel fully destroyed itself and new scarce parts to scavenge. They will get Tabitha to listen to them. Time is in their side, and secrets they know about her city.
Guild master Daygen was not there, but a different guild master, a mistress or in a different name, and she presents herself. Archscientist Lady Coheld is sitting Daygen’s sit and on his desk is a laptop already showing the monitor what’s going on.
Tabitha points out “Where’s Guild master Daygen?”
The lady responds “This moon cycle is a very busy time because of you. The vessel fell apart you know”
Sanquin intervenes “You don’t need to say more. The vessel destroys itself because of the data is being stolen. Let’s start why you are here?”
Lady Coheld taps her fingers on the monitor. It already explains herself with a video. Tabitha catches her eyes that she only heard from Sanquin’s story.
“That’s the mountain shrine. Wait a minute, there’s a ship underneath it. Sanquin, why didn’t you say anything about that?”
“Back then, there wasn’t”
“Huh?”
Then the two watches the monitor and explains where it goes. The vessel was operating itself to get there. More or less, it was active during the siege. It able to dug through going up to the surface.
Sanquin asks the Lady “Why are you telling this to her?”
“Her device, you know what she had. I’m offering to help again. If she even tells you about it”
Tabitha gets nervous as she felt Sanquin’s presence spiking through with unnerving aura but she didn’t feel any pain like she usually done to Yui. Only Lady Coheld with her energy shields appearing to block it.
Sanquin asks again “You’re using her, aren’t you?”
Lady Coheld planned for it. With no expression except her professionalism, she knows what to do in this case. For her plan to achieve, she must first to end all of Isekai city’s threats. The obvious was already in front of her, the otherworlder.
Heist and the rogue had made a very unpredictable luck. The terminal, computer, module, or anything what they thought of using. There’s an option to set in their language. It was pure dumb luck on them. The rogue didn’t know anything about computers, but she incidentally taps something that pop up a message.
“This is an emergency hacked message. If there is a chance of anyone who got caught into an ancient ruin, this message will update to fit any user. Updated early 4th moon cycle”
They heard about this kind of message from their guild who venture to Enders Bridge, who would’ve thought this is going to happen? They tried to find a way to contact to the surface, but there is none. However, with little experience they have. They have found the data’s origin. The computer should be able to reach the outside, but it needs access to the administer to allow get through.
Heist finds the source “The Enders have some nice hackers in their side”
“This is the first time seeing them to use technologies such as these. I admit, we already know that with the Dexter Guild”
“But this is another level”
After boggling around the computer, they follow the guide in order to control the system. Once they have finished it, they look at the surveillance and found the goblin assassin going through the chaos of the fight. The goblin made it out and takes a breather. Where he is, is where the speakers are. The three rogues are trapped inside the vessel or large ship. First, they need to get the info about this place and the loots they could get when venture here. Second, the dangers, and finally. Third, a way for them to escape.
The goblin assassin brings out his pouch to get his water. Quenching his thirst by the chaos had happened here. No wonder there were no goblins but the spirits sending an old battle here. He wipes off his tired face as his grin raised high as he looks up on the screen where two people who left him.
“I guess you two knows what you are doing, right?”
The spirits told him inside his head that he knows those two didn’t know to operate this place. Heist tries to control it, showing only the basics. Then suddenly turned off. The goblin thought so.
The screen backs up and Heist said to him in the speaker “Nervously laughing* I’ll ignore how you knew, but all of us can’t get out. Right?”
The goblin laughs “You mean you can’t use your failsafe? Haha powerful people indeed”
Then the goblin pulls out his ritual and opened a portal. He left them. The two were shocked, and feeling baffled from what the goblin did. The rogue slowly remembered this kind of joke, so she checks around the area and she found him at the unauthorized facility. Only at the entrance, there she calls out to him in the speaker.
The goblin hears the echoes from the other rooms. “Stop being an asshole, I know you won’t be able to escape too”
The goblin laughs even louder. The maniacally laughter shoots her sanity and forced to use what the guide helps them. With a proper use of the software, the robot responds to the request and began hunting down the goblin. The goblin assassin laughs a bit longer as he is enjoying this little chaos. At that moment, where the robot strike and attached itself to him. The goblin retaliates but wasn’t able to catch it. The robot attached to his shoulder moving like a sensor to help the users to navigate him.
With an added insulted to injury, the robot transforms around him. The goblin looks around this strange background glowing, everything shows details, and everywhere he sees are floating objects making words around him. It was so surreal for him. The rogue’s speaker suddenly heard next to his ears
“Ahah! You see that!”
“AH! That’s too loud. What’s going on?”
“I don’t know, but this is not important right now. You have the same abilities as us now”
“What abilities? I was having fun when you thought I could escape”
Heist takes the mic “You little”
“Laugh*”
Soon, the two found out that the goblin already know what happened to them. The spirits are already talking to him and try to test them. Sadly, the spirits have this strange vibe to ritualized the goblin, losing his sane self. The thickness of the spirits’ presence is immense, knowing his limits is reaching. That information will be stuck to him as many other spirits will haunt him for it. While the two quickly begin to continue the survey as there are other rooms that the spirits couldn’t reach. As they ignore the other path where the fight is going on. They need to go as far as they can before they flee.
The rogue calls out to the goblin “Alright, first of all. We are going to work together to get out of here. Since, we are going to share the loot in order for you to cooperate. The robot that attached to your shoulder is the trial data we used on our devices. It gives that our own version of gaming. If you still don’t understand, it’s just an added little help . . .”
“Help? It feels like one of those spiritual trials. But it’s so quiet, and I can’t hear anything”
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
“Yeah well, that’s our version. So, let’s get started”
Heist sends the data in front of the goblin in his view. There is no escape of looking away as it stays permanent in the goblin’s eyes. It is quite odd for him to feel this kind of persistence.
The rogue continues “First thing first, you need to get to where we are. After that get yourself back where you are standing. That facility you are at is where we can something. Make sure to ready yourself as you need the resources you get to get here”
“Back to my buddies then, hmm. I guess the spirits are stop fighting for a bit”
The goblin starts going, while the two manages the route and passages for the goblin to go or engage. In the map, there are more machines moving around. The spirits are recuperating somewhere in the debris trying to rebuild itself again. This is going to be hard as the quest they need to complete. Through the monitors where they see him moving the first obstacle. The robot quickly rolling by as the goblin jumps over it with ease. Some of them react and tried to catch him. He parries it and sends the attack to the other machines coming by. Collapse all together as the goblin at ease to the next room.
Heist says to the Rogue “Rogue, tell the goblin to go through the small vent. There is a shortcut where we want to pick up. There are components that would take interest for the researcher”
“Got it, did you hear him?”
“Either you want to say that to me, or this bug on my back already show me the way. I knew you guys are trying new things, but can at least be more organized”
“My bad, please tolerate with us here. We were thought going out from this room and . . .”
“That would be the death of you”
“We, know this is dangerous”
“If your little overpowered tricks would help you get out of here. All of us we will dying with their secret weapons”
The goblin assassin moves into the debris where there is a pile that looks disfigured. They don’t know how long this pile was there, and only clear sighting is the bones of previous people who have come here. By holding the skull alone, the horror release as the spirits fought back against it. The two adventurers tried to identify it. It persists, unable for them to identify it. They watched the goblin takes it down and dashes away leaving a trail for the machines to discover the undead. There they see the machines concealing it, making it into trap again. This ruin is more difficult than they thought.
The goblin made it to the vent and goes to the direction they wanted him to go. The spoils of battle still fresh from the fight. The loots in front of him riled up with their interest together. He takes what he likes then takes what they want. Rare crafted gems for them and strange components for him. After his first loot, he steadily moved on. The two while they wait, they observe the fight between spirits and the machines. So far, this is the fight they could not understand. Like nature and machines battle out and neither of them will destroy each other completely. It is certain it will be impossible for them or the others to work here.
The goblin stops with another fight. His rituals are acting up showing signs of common shamanistic nature. The spirits are easy for him to hear with greedy sharp words. The robot on his shoulder forced him to focus on his destination. He tried reluctantly, his feet take step to where he needs be and a big jump where his spirits guide him, and things failed as his obvious look of his face that his weapon are influenced with rituals. He ignored the orders and proceed to follow it. To where the place had the most destructive force. The Rogue is shouting him at the ears, deserving his own greed to get it with unbearable screams.
“Where the fuck are you going?!” The rogue loses it and already expected it.
The wall dents open, small enough to fit the goblin. He grits and smiles as he waves at the robot on his shoulder looking at him, giving the ‘wish me luck’ expression.
“You fucking idiot!”
The rogue screams whereas the goblin jump into the fight. The robots with their dangerous energy and lethal rune weapons sending hell to the spirits. There where the goblin’s spirits are, still fighting as the sour voice of the spirits give damning howls.
There the goblin joins a fight that was never planned. The spirits he recognized, fighting against the robot. A little shine gives the rituals revealing certain parts that pique his interest. He goes after it with his dagger overdosing with powerful rituals. The timing moved by the spirits’ familiar keeper. The sudden shift of its power destroying the poorly made body to get a hold of the machine’s sensitive hardware. Tripping it down to the ground without noticing a live goblin readying to strike. The dagger reaches closer to it, and with the goblin’s scheming face wanting it so bad.
The moment of execution, so close in the tip of the dagger, stopped. An invisible wall stops him. A nightmare of the goblin who almost pierced the machine with their weapon filled with their spirits’ schemes. The robot on his shoulder restricted him to go further and the Rogue’s complain finally reaches to his senses.
“Get back here!”
The goblin assassin was pulled leaving those two keep fighting. Trying his best to join the fight again, the invisible wall pushes him away further. The goblin felt sad and slowly mumbling back to them.
Suddenly, the machine attacked him. He jumps over, but it wasn’t the robot itself that attacked him. It was the spirits trying to throw their last strength to him to kill it. He was moved and sees the damaged parts of the machine with deformed machine parts firing and burning giving him the thumbs up. The faces of the spirits are caring for this sad goblin. Then his appearance formed in rituals with detrimental powers. Together, it forms his appearance into a deadly being striking down with his dagger again. Pierced through like paper. Its defensive runes ruined and sacrificed.
The goblin assassin, quickly cuts off the components he wanted and took it away in a flash. The robot fell to the ground giving error noises as its processing unit was taking away. Where with the last rituals of his spirits fade away, he felt touch of his spirits are giving him the materials he needed.
He laughs “I got it, you two will going to love this!”
The loud noise detected the goblin as the ship detected live specimen. Unleashing biohazard weapons at him. The two adventurers watch the hallways and the rooms trying get him.
They thought he is dead with those countless defenses. Then they saw something coming to his rescue.
“Dinju!”
The teddy bear made it in and blow all the toxic materials and attracted the defenses at it. The goblin assassin meets each other as they passed by. The enraging expression of the goblin spirit shows. Where its mouth holds something very valuable. Unfortunately, the goblin focuses his prize and run away from all that’s happening. Swift movement as he runs like a ninja going all different direction in order not to detect at the same time keeps shouting at the top his lungs of his prize. Acting both stealth and goblin alike.
The chaotic excitement was too much and he fell on the floor as someone from the midst of the shadow pulled a trap on him, then quickly disappeared before the trap dispersed. The Rogue was able to get him inside, and Heist carefully cuts off their tracks, removing all the traces of runes used here. The goblin assassin shows it to them from what he got from the fight. First, it was their items, then his own. The strong presence both rituals and runes put together showing the impressive designs of the archscience.
Heist smells the disgust of fainted chemicals. “Blegh! What was that?”
The rogue looks at the robotic part, but didn’t smell the disgust “What’s wrong with you, Heist? You seem to be disgusted over some junk”
The goblin laughs “Sure, junk. But you seem not understand that this so-called junk is filled with unpredictable possibilities”
Heist walks back “Sure, sure. Why are so getting in your way just to take it while that mess come after you?”
“Of course, this place shouldn’t allow any living being here. Or what we found is more than that”
The two city guild adventurers thought the goblin didn’t know. Then again, they have no influence with the spirits either. They dig around the computer for a bit and this place is not safe. There is no escape when going back from the gate. The robots are holding them off their only escape, and only left for freedom is to go deep to where they found another escape route. The goblin made it there, all joy without fear. The crazy fool, their crazy rescuer. This time, the goblin can’t teleport there easily. With the item he received, a rune, will perfectly brought them there without any interference.
While they busy thinking what’s going on. The component when the goblin takes last fight project a hologram in front of him. A spirit coming out from the hologram and begins to speak, by moving around like panic swimming fish. It was very obscure. The two adventurers were very confused but not the goblin assassin. The look of his face, never tell he was being touched but he seems to understand what’s going on. The telling of his face is as goblin as he can be. He keeps changing the mood where the spirit swims in the hologram in different images. Heist really wants to know, but the rogue stops him. They let him be until it is over.
“Well, well, well. I guess we are actually trapped here . . .”
The two already figured, as they went blanked out to the void how this goblin is being over dramatic while looking at the hologram, he plays dumb about it. The goblin felt a pain to himself and said the two.
“. . . The place you wanted to found out. Sigh* I’m really have to help you for sure”
Heist broke “Help you for sure!!? Then what are your real goals here?!!”
The rogue takes action as Heist uses his doubles to attack the goblin on the whim. The goblin throws his dagger at the rogue’s trap from intervening.
He raises his component, unleash the spirits in holograms fighting back. They all failed and thrown to the sides like nothing. Heist’s doubles come at him and immediately beats him to the pulp. To every scratch of his claws, Heist lost his cool until he hears the Rogue shouting at him.
“STOP YOU IDIOT!”
He barely pulled back to his senses and sees the goblin assassin was torn to pieces. The faint trauma on his hand seeing blood, but once his senses clear. There were none. Heist looks at the goblin and phases out from existence.
The goblin laughs at him, and shouted at the ritual component. “You piece of junk, I thought you’re going to help me. But you just give him the big scream to him”
Soft laughter coming from the component, its chaotic behavior still plays lie most goblins’ spirits.
Heist reaches out to him “I’m sorry, I don’t know what got over me”
“Don’t, be . . .” The goblin throws the ritual item on the floor and tried to stomp it, then rolls off like a ball even though is not round.
“. . . This thing. I’m losing my fun here”
Heist seems confused, and the Rogue talks him out “Let’s first finish here, our mission needs to survey this place or not if we can’t. We know that this place is not safe enough for the others fight or survive here. This is more than an S tier dungeon”
Their plan wasn’t changed. They still use the goblin to move around the area. Although thanks for him to rejoin them, he had the rune item to recall them to where he is, and runes can’t work together with his rituals. He readies himself again, and he is building up his rituals with the component on hand. It wasn’t last long to stay focus of this goblin’s long detours, but it did make the two to learn about this place.
The technology here is more dangerous than Dexter Guild, or rather, they rather not to come here at all. It was all normal, until the goblin’s item begins warrying.
“Dinju!”
The echoes reach the goblin’s ears and he starts to run. The robot on his shoulder is pointed out the description what happened.
“Warning! Dinju is falling back. An unknown threat is free to hunt any living being . . . Crash*”
Heist and The Rogue turned around and see the door is half open, already broken through but the threat can’t seem to get in. Its mechanical face open, its one bionic eye sees them. It flashes them with dusts particles, but resisted because of their rune armor.
As their statuses are low, they are not confident to win this fight.
The Rogue calls out to the goblin “Hurry up! The enemy is attacking us”
“I’m trying, oh sog I got lost because of the adventure”
“As long we have the data of the map, just don’t break that robot on you”
“On me!? From what I remember from those Enders, you mustn’t take any what those small chip things. It will attract something big and horrifying . . . Oh no”
The goblin opens his ritual to cloak him as the hidden pikes coming out from the transparent figure. It nearly hits him as the hologram appears and takes the hit.
The goblin slides his way down to the floor under the machine. It detects him, then moves its mechanical legs apart to lay down and crush him. But It was too slow. The goblin was able to escape. They have limited time, where the Rogue and Heist are distancing from the attacking machine. It reaches out to them as they quickly move aside with every opportunity in each passing door gapping open. The Rogue calls out to the goblin one last time.
“Whenever you reach that room again, use the rune item now. Agh! I mean really fucking now!”
The machine uses every tools it had to search any living creature. With fast moving lasers, dodged by their swift movement, its robotic limbs, missed to catch them, and its hidden weapons ready to fire when the door fits open. It hears something drop on the floor as its synchronized abilities unleashed to the target. It hits, completely vaporized without any spec of remains to be seen again. Heist had sacrificed a piece of his runes to the target, testing what it can do. This machine will kill them if they found them instantly.
Sweating down from their faces, it is certain the machine will find them. They want to fight back, but they are struggling because of their UIs and stats were nulled. It revealed their true nature, their fear, their doubts, and worse, their normal selves. Hearts racing so much that both of them don’t want to move. Their minds went blank, blurry visions, and trembling legs are getting into their heads pretty fast. Yet, their body moves on their own when the slightest danger touches them. They don’t want to die here.
A reflection beamed randomly across the room, even relying on the monitors of the screen to give a little dim of light for the laser to track them. Magnetic waves come forth to them with a strong impulse. As it almost reaches them, a flash of light covered them then disappeared. The two appeared somewhere they feel cold. Losing the traces of dense heat from the room they are in. Now here, they felt something cold yet fresh air breathes into their nostrils. The dense metallic air is gone. Their eyes should see where they are, they can’t. The fear blurred their vision leaving a mark from the experience.
They hear ping. It’s their UIs, it starts to function again. They tried to used it, but their mind blurred. The two struggles to recover, as everything they have is inside their inventory. Manually they should be able to get it, and automatically if their heads weren’t still blurring.
The rogue says out loud “Hey, goblin! I know you brought us here. Where are you?!”
Silent, then Heist shouts at him too “I can hear you walking with those little feet of yours. You’re not running something dangerous, aren’t you?”
It’s true, the goblin looks at them. All senses blocked in the right time. The goblin couldn’t say anything as the spirit whispers to him. The robot on his shoulder is already portraying the data to reveal the two. He needs to hurry before it sends the data here. The room they are in, it is a special facility. A preservation from what he sees, possessing a strong collection of old eras’ lost world. His spirits are roaring at him for what he must do. The goblins assassin’s equipment is losing its durability. Where he looks at the door again, sealed with rituals and the banging of strong force of metal coming for them.
His mind is overwhelmed with rituals as this place is purely destroying any life who are not inside the containment units. The goblin assassin looks at them fine. There he sees something of a portal. An elven magic portal that tried to come here. He doesn’t have much time left. He tried to whisper to himself to hear how he speaks
“Laugh*”
“What the hell is that!!!” Heist spoof from the strange laughter. The goblin assassin noticed. Remembering the words of other goblin tribesmen
“They must not know their past potential”
The goblin kneels down as he remembers those words becoming harsh to remember. The spirts are getting restless on them being here. The door is broken through and small nanites come to stop him. The goblin forced to use his secret item. Pulled out from the satchel made from elven craftmanship, throwing it at the two. The portal entwines it and removes its thread to sew it to itself. A cloth of elven magic blanket teleported them away. The nanites are here, searching for any living being. As they are passing through, the goblin is already left. With his rune component still at hand, surviving this place.
It was over, the spirits had stopped roaring at him. His spirits come clear to his ears and him receiving what he didn’t know at first. The spirits were able to get the inventory from the two city adventurers. A full stock of meals in place before him. Food, water, and ungodly amounts of basic needs. He realized something is wrong here. The robot is still behind his shoulder, resisting the shamanistic powers. It reveals itself an Enders programming. He lies against the wall feeling regret
“Did I really help them?”