Chapter 111
The True Gotzmeyer
Once the soldiers at the base had seen the numerous copies of Gotzmeyer, which led to the unfortunate troops getting killed by the warlord they served, the news about his true colors had spread like wildfire. It didn’t take long until pretty much everybody at the base knew about the whole thing. This led to Gotzmeyer basically aiming to wipe out the entire base as a result.
The soldiers stationed at the base were obviously not going to simply let themselves get killed by their master. Some chose to fight back, fueled either by hatred for the warlord over being betrayed or by the desire to replace Gotzmeyer as a new warlord. These ones would end up meeting swift ends, as Gotzmeyer was not someone to be taken lightly, even if there was only one of him.
However, others that knew how futile resistance was, decided to try their best to escape. Many tried to make their way to the bridge in order to escape into the nearby caves. Unfortunately, the warlord had anticipated this and a couple of his copies had gone to the bridge control room in advance. With the controls destroyed, the only way for the soldiers to flee was through the back tunnel, but this was guarded by some of the Gotzmeyers.
With nowhere to run, the remaining soldiers either went into hiding or joined the ones trying to fight back. This led to chaos and destruction taking over the base, as battles began in numerous places between the soldiers and the warlords, and the warlords not engaged in combat would tear down the base in search of those in hiding.
While most would see this situation as hopeless, it actually provided a much needed opportunity to certain people. These were Ryle and Arkay, who had managed to use first the confusion caused by the alarm earlier to sneak in through the bridge. With how chaotic everything was, they were able to get even deeper inside the base in search of their companions that had entered the base before them.
To say that the two of them were surprised by what they saw would be an understatement, as Ryle made it very clear.
“What the absolute shit is going on over here!?” the blonde whispered to Arkay as the two of them were sneaking around the base.
Before they came in, the cat boy had used his invisibility spell to cloak both of them, thus allowing them to sneak past cameras and guards. They still needed to be careful, as there was a lot going on that they didn’t want to get caught into.
“I have no idea,” Arkay replied as he looked at the chaos unraveling around them with wide eyes. “None of this makes any sense to me. Why are the soldiers fighting against Gotzmeyer? Is there a rebellion or something happening?”
“I’m more shocked to see that Gotzy seems to come from a very large family of identical siblings!” Ryle said as she watched three Gotzmeyers cut apart a tank. “How the hell are there so many of him!? Isn’t just one bad enough!?”
“That’s the thing. I don’t think that these guys are real,” the cat boy said. “There’s something strange about these guys. They don’t feel real.”
“Really?” the blonde asked as she watched another Gotzmeyer tear a soldier in half. “They seem real enough to me…”
“I didn’t mean real in that manner. What I mean is that they don’t feel like actual people,” Arkay explained. “What I mean is that they don’t feel like actual people. It’s almost like they are puppets of some kind.”
“You mean like that assassin who attacked us as we were going to Zeldana’s home?” Ryle asked with wide eyes. “I kind of see what you mean, but don’t these guys seem too good to be simple puppets? Their movements and behavior seem too lifelike to be anything else than actual people.”
“That might be true, but I think there are ways to get around that without there being an actual person within that suit,” the cat boy said. “I just need to-”
Arkay suddenly stopped as he noticed something. It was very faint and only ones with senses like his could see it in the first place, but his sight caught it. Once he did so, the mystery behind Gotzmeyer’s strange abilities became clear to him.
“I knew it!” the cat boy said. “Come on! Follow me!”
“Huh? Hang on a second!” Ryle said, a bit taken aback by her partner’s sudden declaration. “Shouldn’t we go and look for the others first!?”
“I’m just as worried about them as you are, but this is more important!” Arkay said. “If I’m correct, then we might be able to end this now!”
Despite her doubts, the blonde followed after the cat boy. Even if she was worried about their friends, she had been convinced by Arkay’s confidence. She just hoped that she was making the right decision by following him.
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Back with Erin’s group, things weren’t looking too good for them. They had managed to escape from the Gotzmeyer that had found them by having Durge break down one of the walls, allowing them to run away. However, this had only given them a temporary escape, as they soon came face to face with another Gotzmeyer.
Stuck between two warlords, they were forced to fight against them, which turned out to be their most difficult battle yet. Splitting their group in two, Erin and Zeldana took on one of their opponents, while Durge and Lexton faced off against the other. Unlike their first fight, the Gotzmeyers this time were far more aggressive, putting a lot of pressure against the group of assassins. They were also far more aware of the abilities Erin and her companions had, making it difficult for them to land even a single hit.
However, the most terrifying thing was that even when they did manage to strike either one of the Gotzmeyers, it didn’t seem to do anything. Even attacks that should have been fatal were simply shrugged off by the hulking warlords. It was like they were truly immortal warriors.
“Dammit! We’re throwing everything we’ve got at these guys and they’re barely even fazed by it!” Durge cursed. “How the hell are we supposed to beat something like this!?”
“These must be fakes as well!” Erin said. “The real one must be somewhere else!”
“That might be the case, but we still need to get past these two somehow!” Lexton said as he threw a vial of orange liquid at one of the Gotzmeyers, which set him on fire. “Even if neither one of these is the guy we’re looking for, they are still obstacles that we need to deal with!”
The redhead thought about how to beat the two opponents blocking their path and remembered something. Back when they ran away from the Gotzmeyers inside his room, she had noticed that certain ones stopped chasing after them, most likely due to the fact that they were no longer able to catch up to their group.
“I think I’ve got it!” Erin said. “Aim for the legs!”
Acting upon the advice given to him, Lexton threw a vial of acid on the leg of the Gotzmeyer he was facing. The corrosive liquid quickly melted through the metal and broke off the warlord’s limb, causing him to fall down to the floor.
The other Gotzmeyer was also dealt in a similar manner, as Zeldana first threw her scalpels at the warlords face as a distraction. This gave Erin the opportunity to swoop in and aim at a structurally weaker part of the armor that she hit with her sword. This ended up cutting off the leg, leaving their opponent laying helplessly on the floor as well.
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“Now let’s get going!” Erin called out as she quickly jumped over the Gotzmeyer that had blocked their path.
The others soon followed behind the redhead, while the two warlords struggled to get up. Once they had all managed to get past the two Gotzmeyers, they suddenly stopped moving and simply slumped down on the floor lifelessly.
“What the-!? They just dropped dead all of a sudden!” Zeldana noted. “Did you know that was going to happen!?”
“I actually did,” Erin answered. “Back when we ran away from these guys when they all appeared, I noticed how some of them had completely stopped moving from the damage caused by Lexton’s attacks. The ones in question had lost at least one of their legs. My guess is that since Gotzmeyer knows they aren’t fast enough to really do anything, they are just useless weight on him, which is why he simply abandons them.”
“I see… That makes sense,” Lexton said thoughtfully. “Since there is nothing he can do with those ones, he might as well just dump them on the floor and focus on ones that can be useful. Besides, it’s not like he has a very limited amount of those armors of his, so he can afford to lose a few here and there.”
“Well, I guess that solves one of our problems,” Durge said. “Now what do we do? Do we still go to Gotzmeyer’s room to look for the real one?”
“Yes. This all started from there, so it should be a good place to start from,” Erin replied. “I just hope that we don’t end up running into-”
Just as she was saying that, the redhead collided with someone coming from behind a corner they were heading towards. Erin’s three companions immediately got prepared for another fight, but calmed down upon realizing who they had come upon. The redhead had simply collided with Arkay, with Ryle following behind the cat boy.
“Arnie?” Erin asked upon recognizing her young friend. “Glad to see you here, but when did you two get here?”
“Just now,” the cat boy replied, as he was helped up by the redhead. “We were able to beat the two assassins that had come after us, so we decided to come here to help you guys out. Thanks to all the insanity and chaos going here, we were able to get inside without any issues.”
“Well, you got around here on just the right time,” Lexton said. “As you’ve probably guessed, we’re having a bit of an issue with Gotzmeyer. We could use your help in beating him.”
“No need to worry! With me here, it won’t take much for us to take him down!” Ryle boasted with a grin. “Just show me where the guy is and I’ll end this instantly!”
“...Yeah, I was referring to Arkay with what I said,” the kobold said. “His experience and abilities with magic will certainly help us out. You on the other hand… Well, I guess you could serve as a meat shield. How about that?”
“How about you kiss my ass, you scaly turd!?” the blonde said angrily.
“Guys, not now, okay!?” Erin said, not in the mood for any of her companions arguing. “We have some bigger issues to deal with right now, remember!?”
Ryle and Lexton, knowing that the redhead was correct, decided to let their argument go. As a somewhat awkward silence fell over the group, Arkay decided to speak up in order to put their attention back on the matter at hand.
“Anyways, we were actually following something that could lead us to the real Gotzmeyer,” the cat boy said somewhat awkwardly. “I noticed something coming out of the numerous Gotzmeyers and I think it could lead us to where he actually is.”
“You did?” Erin asked to which Arkay nodded. “That’s great! What exactly is it!?”
“I noticed something that seemed like a thread made of magic coming from the numerous different Gotzmeyers,” the cat boy explained. “I think it’s similar to the puppet master that attacked us some time ago.”
“That could explain this,” the redhead said. “You think you can lead us to where it’s coming from?”
“Of course. That’s what I was doing earlier, remember?” Arkay replied with a smile. “Just follow me and we’ll be able to put an end to this.”
“Sounds good to me. Let’s get going then!” Erin declared as the group followed the cat boy’s lead.
As they followed after Arkay, the redhead and the ones who had infiltrated the base with her quickly noticed that they were moving towards Gotzmeyer’s room. Erin and Lexton had already suspected that the real warlord was most likely there, but hadn’t been completely sure. It seemed like their suspicions had been correct.
“There! It’s coming from that room!” Arkay exclaimed as he pointed at the warlord’s personal room ahead of them. “All the magic strings are coming from there!”
“Guess we were right on our assumptions,” Erin said. “Okay, once we get there, Arnie will tell us where exactly that bastard is hiding. Once that is cleared, we will hit him with everything we’ve got. Okay?”
The others nodded in agreement and mentally prepared for the fight ahead of them. However, they soon noticed something else that was going to keep them from going after Gotzmeyer.
“We’ve got trouble!” Zeldana called out. “It looks like our buddy figured out what we’re planning!”
The others looked behind them and saw that the numerous Gotzmeyers were now chasing after them. The warlords were determined to stop the group from reaching the room ahead of them.
“Dammit! Everybody run as fast as you can!” Erin said. “If we get there fast enough, we might be able to take out the guy controlling them before we have to deal with those!”
“...You guys go ahead!” Durge suddenly said as he stopped running and turned to face the oncoming Gotzmeyers. “I’ll hold back these guys! You go take down Gotzmeyer!”
“WHAT!?” the redhead yelled out of shock. “Absolutely not! You can’t-!”
“WE DON’T HAVE TIME TO ARGUE!” the orc yelled back. “The only way for us win this is by taking down the actual Gotzmeyer and it won’t be done with those coming up from behind!”
Erin wanted to argue, but could tell that her friend was right. Their chances of beating the actual warlord were slim with the group chasing them. Even if they got to the room and found Gotzmeyer before the walking armors caught up, it wasn’t guaranteed that they would be able to defeat him and end their battle in time. They needed to do something in order to at least slow down their pursuers.
“Alright, we’ll leave it to you,” the redhead said, despite her feelings on the matter. “But how are you going to slow them down?”
“Did you already forget? I’ve got a bit of a trick up my sleeve,” Durge said with a smirk as he took off his shirt and cloak as he prepared for the battle ahead. “It’s something that doesn’t exactly work with friends around, so it’s better you guys put some distance between us. Just remember to not come back too quickly.”
Erin and the others watched as the orc activated his berserker powers. His skin began to turn red, his body and muscles grew exponentially, and his hair grew into a wild mane and his teeth became sharp fangs. Once his transformation was done, Durge let out a roar of primal fury before charging towards the group of Gotzmeyers before him.
“...I hope he’ll be alright,” Erin said, worried over what might happen to the orc.
“We’ll just have to trust him,” Lexton said. “And while he’s fighting, we need to focus on our own mission for now. Let’s go.”
The redhead nodded before the group continued running towards the room ahead of them. Erin spared one more glance towards Durge, before keeping her attention ahead of her.
image [https://i.ibb.co/82jSq70/Ch-111-Pic-1.jpg]
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Finally reaching Gotzmeyer’s room, the group went straight into searching for the hiding warlord. At first glance, there were no signs of obvious hiding places for the person they were looking for, but thanks to Arkay, they were able to find the correct place quickly.
“That’s the place,” the cat boy said, pointing at shelf full of weapons, helmets and other trophies taken from battles. “The magic strings go from underneath the shelf to a place behind the wall.”
“Got it,” Erin said as she walked up to the piece of furniture. “We just have to move this out of the way and-”
“Step back, Erin,” Ryle suddenly said, as she gently pushed the redhead out of her way. “Let me handle this.”
Erin had expected the blonde to move the shelf with her bare hands, but was surprised by what she actually did. Ryle got into a stance and gave a powerful roundhouse kick to the side of the piece of furniture. Her attack had been charged with ki, which allowed her to send the shelf flying and crash on the floor far away from them.
With the shelf removed, a hidden door was revealed. The door was made from metal and looked to be very thick, making breaking it down an impossible task. The only way in seemed to be by using a number panel to insert a correct code to open its lock. Luckily, Erin’s group had just the right thing to get inside.
“I’ll handle this,” Arkay said as he walked up to the panel and used his technomancer ability on the lock. In just a few seconds, the correct code appeared on the panel, unlocking the door. The metal door slowly opened itself, allowing the group of assassins to get inside.
“Alright, Gotzmeyer! Show yourself!” Erin yelled as she walked inside the hidden room with her sword at the ready. “Come here and face us, so we can-!”
“NO! STAY AWAY!”
Erin and her group came to an immediate stop upon hearing the voice screaming at them. It wasn’t the fact that they had been yelled at that had surprised them, but rather how the voice sounded. Having faced off against Gotzmeyer’s puppets and hearing him speak to them, they had expected his actual voice to sound similar, yet the voice that had screamed at them wasn’t similar at all. The voice they had heard before had been deep and booming, something that shook you to your very soul. What they had heard now was high-pitched and squeaky, the complete opposite.
Due to the room being rather dark, it took a moment for Erin’s and other’s eyes to adjust, but once they did they were able to grasp what the room was like. The sight before them was not pretty and the smell was even worse.
The hidden room was something Erin had always imagined to belong to unemployed people that only live by social security and spend their days playing video games. There were empty containers of food all over the floor along with dirt clothes. The only source of light came from the numerous screens covering the walls. Besides the screens, there was only one piece of furniture surrounded by all the trash and filth. This was a single chair, where the high-pitched voice had come from.
On that chair was a small figure sitting on it. It was a very pale humanoid with wings on its back and small horns on its head. Its teeth were sharp fangs and it also had red eyes with yellow irises. It was also almost completely naked, as only a lone pair of underwear were covering its lower body.
Erin knew from her knowledge that the creature before them was an imp, the lowest and weakest race among demonic people. Much like goblins, kobolds and gnomes, they were often mistreated and abused by the much stronger races.
Erin and the others could only stare at the imp before them with wide eyes. While all of them knew what they were staring at was, no one dared say it out loud.
“...Are you Gotzmeyer?” Erin asked, finally breaking the silence and voicing out what everybody was thinking.
“...In the flesh,” the imp replied with its squeaky voice.
image [https://i.ibb.co/pxF6P0r/Ch-111-Pic-2.jpg]