In front, several robots moved quickly to engage the enemy first. They were immediately met with shots from armor-piercing spells. Unfortunately, the distance was too great, and the metal machines were able to dodge or deploy shields. After all, a computer's reaction is superior to a human's, even if the human is in a more advanced body. However, this did not matter much. At close range, the primary factors would be movement speed and the impact force of the weapon.

A dozen robots, one of which was larger than the others, emerged from the bushes. This encounter was not a surprise to either side, so a shootout immediately ensued, resulting in the destruction of one of the robots caught in the crossfire from four of the vritras. The opponent's defense was such that weak spells merely slid off the armor.

The tenth large robot targeted Mark and fired something quite deadly, literally tearing him to pieces. Fortunately, the shot was not instantaneous, so the target managed to move the soul stone to his leg, evading the blow.

“One unit destroyed on each side” - commented the tracking system operator. Arnold gave me a victorious glance.

“Stop fooling around” - I sent a telepathic command. – “This isn't a training exercise.”

Kirill responded with mental agreement and gave his subordinates a mental nudge. Immediately, hundreds of spells rained down on the robots, turning them into smoking electronic mush. But before the vritras could celebrate their victory, another thirty enemies emerged from behind a small hill. It seemed the Terminators decided to eliminate the enemy before they reached the designated combat area.

Mark Three had lost most of his body, so he burrowed into the ground, rebuilding his mass using the surrounding material. Unfortunately, the titanium content in the soil was close to zero, so he had to use a 'civilian' filler. Six vritras charged forward, taking on the bulk of the opponents, while Mateo stayed behind to cover his comrade.

Another dozen robots appeared from the flank, charging towards the seemingly lone target. As one of them ran past the spot of Mark's 'death,' he sprang from the ground and delivered a punch to the Terminator's chest, penetrating its armor. The remaining nine were destroyed by a concentrated magical barrage from Mateo. The robots retaliated, but all they managed to do was make a few holes in the target, which closed up within a second.

“It's tasty!” - Mark's telepathic message carried surprise. – “There are so many different metals. And titanium too.”

A second later, his body began to be absorbed into the robot through the created hole. The machine tried to resist, but within a few seconds, its electronic innards dissolved and became part of Mark's body.

“Convenient little suit” - noted Mark, infiltrating all the technical cavities and consuming anything he deemed unnecessary. The last part of his body disappeared into the robot's chest, mimicking the armor and sealing the hole. From the outside, he now looked like another Terminator. – “There’s even some protective magic on the armor. And the composition is pretty good. Nanocomposite of tungsten carbide, titanium, chromium, and a bit of nickel.”

“Stop savoring its taste already” - came an irritated thought from Kirill. – “Move in from the flank.”

The pair immediately set off, circumventing the hill. Mateo, while running, changed shape, also pretending to be a robot.

“We need to create interference to disrupt their ally recognition system” - he suggested.

“Go ahead and do that” - Kirill replied. – “Set up a stationary jammer with an adaptive interference block.”

“It will take a couple of minutes.”

Mateo changed course and disappeared into the bushes covering the hill. Not a twig stirred in his path to the top. The vritras' body flowed around all obstacles like liquid.

Mark emerged onto the battlefield, taking a superior height and covering a large group of robots with a wide-area spell. 'Acid Cloud' not only corroded the armor but also reduced visibility. The six vritras dove into the mist and began dismantling the robots. The 'betrayal' of one of the Terminators was so unexpected that none of the opponents even tried to hinder the use of the area spell, although it required at least a couple of seconds to cast.

Within a minute, the entire group of robots was destroyed, and five out of eight vritras acquired stylish armored suits. Such protection proved useful, as some Terminators had quite devious weaponry capable of penetrating magical shields. Judging by the enemies' tactics, they hoped to tear the vritras into sufficiently small pieces so that they could not regenerate. The new progressive armor was a good countermeasure to such an approach.

Meanwhile, at the observation post, a tragedy was unfolding.

“I’ve lost the signature of five vritras” - reported the officer. – “But instead, the radar shows five targets that are not identified as either humans or robots.”

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“What do the cameras show?”

“All drones and stationary cameras in the combat zone have been destroyed. According to the recordings, both sides actively participated in this act of vandalism.”

The general cast us a disapproving glance and refocused on the screen with tactical information. I looked over at Arnold. His face was showing clear signs of encroaching panic.

“Don't worry so much” - I 'comforted' him. – “It's just a game of higher-order players.”

“You don’t understand! If I lose... He... He’ll do THAT to me again! Or come up with something even worse.”

Ah, the heavy fate of a mere pawn. Good thing I'm winning. Heh heh heh.

Ten minutes later, eight vritras, clad in nearly untouched Terminator suits, stood in the designated zone, lazily looking around.

“Has anyone counted how many we’ve already killed?” - Narayan inquired, twirling a 'spare helmet' that seemed more stylish to him than the model he had taken.

“Many” - Mateo Hidalgo replied thoughtfully. – “Definitely more than three. But it doesn’t matter. If they don’t attack within two minutes, they automatically lose.”

“Can you only count to three?”

“I don’t need more.”

The lazy banter continued until the force shield was deactivated and bright sunlight flooded the area.

“Ending combat actions. Eight objects of unknown nature are in the center of the designated zone. Two minutes have passed, the winner is determined. Now we just need to find out which side these objects belong to” - the tactical officer announced.

“Remove the shield” - commanded the general, looking at us. I maintained a calm facade, while Arnold stood frozen like a wax statue, showing no emotion. – “Hey, you there, bring your fat asses over here” - the general shouted through the loudspeaker.

The eight figures exchanged glances and jumped quickly toward us. Meanwhile, we all exited the building and focused on the strip of trees from which the winners should have emerged.

“I told you my robots would win!” - Arnold exclaimed joyfully as he caught sight of the silhouettes among the dense vegetation. He laughed triumphantly, though there was a hysterical edge to his laughter.

As the eight 'robots' approached us, the outermost one removed its head, revealing the human head of Kirill Dubrovsky.

“Boss, can we order more of these suits? Just need a few tweaks, as some of the joints are a bit unreliable.”

My opponent gasped and stared with wide eyes.

“This cannot be! These are my robots.”

“Only on the outside” - Mark laughed, also removing his helmet. – “But if it comforts you, they were quite tasty.”

“No! You’re not them. Destroy them!” - It seemed Arnold had completely lost his mind. His guarding Terminators immediately pointed their weapons at the vritras.

“Don’t ruin the trophies!” - Narayan shouted, engaging in close combat.

A scuffle ensued, accompanied by numerous robot shots. My bodyguards couldn’t use their full strength because there were too many soldiers around. A few blaster shots whizzed past the stunned Arnold, and a brilliant idea struck me.

A slight mental push to Kirill was picked up by the whole team, and following my wish, Frank deflected one of the blaster shots with magic, which hit Arnold directly in the forehead. The lifeless body fell to the ground, and the robot resistance immediately ceased.

“Master’s death confirmed. Activating self-destruction protocol” - the 'culprit' of the premature demise of one of the figures announced, before exploding and showering the surroundings with shards of armor. The same fate soon befell all the other Terminators in the vicinity.

I healed the damage to my body and stared at the mangled corpse of the man who wasn’t even really my enemy. Why let good go to waste?

“I offer this figure as a sacrifice to the Judge.”

Immediately, the world exploded with energy, and I felt my soul being torn from the crystal, which disintegrated into sand due to the activated self-destruction system. I didn’t want any complete copies of the Vritras remaining in this world after my death. Meanwhile, my soul appeared before five terrifying figures that were almost impossible to perceive due to the power emanating from them.

“How dare you break the rules?” - one of the Players roared. – “You killed my figure.”

“He killed himself” - I tried to justify.

“Idiot!” - The whisper of Being reached me.

“You acknowledged his death by your hand when you sacrificed him to me” - announced the indifferent voice of Judge.

“The Being must be punished.”

“I protest! According to the rules of game abilities, I face no consequences from this killing, whether positive or negative.”

“Then the responsibility lies on the Judge!” - insisted the unfamiliar Player. The two remaining Players remained silent.

“You’re asking for too much. I am not subject to judgment” - the Judge retorted. – “You agreed to the rules of this game yourself.”

“Then he must be punished!” - The finger of the malefactor pointed directly at me.

“I decide whom to punish, for what, and how.” - The Judge scrutinized me, piercing my soul with his icy gaze. – “I will take two of his energy centers. And his next game will start in one of my worlds.”

Then unbearable pain pierced my soul, and I felt as if two of my 'tails' were being ripped away, leaving gaping wounds.

“And for now, I take him” - Being extended its grasping hands toward me. – “The Game is still ongoing. Both the small one and the big one.”

Two nearly imperceptible patches covered my wounds, turning agony into mere unbearable suffering. After that, darkness surrounded me, and consciousness faded.