Oscar had never seen what a world in an apocalypse would look like with his own two eyes, but he had watched countless movies depicting the same scene in their own ways. Of which, he had noticed many similarities: the ground would shake, the sky would fall, and many demons would set loose upon them all. While the hero would run with a heroine to safety, all along saving some kids for the audience to cheer for him.
And currently, Oscar is feeling the same. Albeit the heroine part.
*Bang!*
Out of nowhere, the hell fire blasted on their path, but as if the hero predicted it ahead of time, he steered away to the left. Running over an oversized rock caused the buggy to almost roll over, but the sheer momentum the engine propelled it forward cancels the force. The Demon, the Cerberus, roared in fury for the umpteenth time before continuing to chase the toy car relentlessly.
"Vvrrrooommm!"
Matching the Cerberus, the engine roared… or so it seems, if the sound isn't coming from the driver's mouth instead.
The goblin, again misusing the actual purpose of its [Dummy voice], mimics the engine loudly.
"KKKKHHHHAAA!"
*Boom!*
And yet another bout of hellfire trailing their back, exploded within meters away.
*SCRREEE!*
Tires screeched as Oscar pushed the brakes, barely avoiding their certain death by some distance away.
'Urgh! This is getting annoying…'
Groaning internally. The driver released the brake pedals, discharging the magenta lightning belonging to his former short-lived pet boar, before shifting the gear to 4th and then 5th. Racing ahead of its pursuers, and avoiding newly spawned dungeon beasts atop of them. All along, drifting through the trembling dungeon and the falling trees sideways.
The ground still hadn't stopped rumbling for once, nor had the stampede of monsters stopped approaching. In fact, more and more monsters had joined the fray with each passing cavern.
Those who left behind or those who refused to leave their home got slaughtered by the new monsters mercilessly. And even then, some of them keep chasing the run-away monsters from behind. Not out of anger, nor hunger, and neither are they manipulated by the dungeon, they're chasing and killing them simply because… they could.
It's in every monster's instinct, the first reaction to chase anything and everything that shows an ounce of fear and runs away from them.
The four-headed hell dog isn't any different. It first chased the goblin out of newborn hunger, then ran after the toy car out of curiosity, but after failing to catch it countless times…it now pursues the goblin truck with newfound anger, born more of an annoyance than its ravenous hunger.
With heavy thumpings, the hell-dog chased its first and new target of animosity. Outrunning its peers, and ignoring the old-bone monsters behind. It hunted the pesky skull running on its own, with all its might.
You have gained the skill, 'Pilot Lv1'
Pilot: you will be able to control the vehicle as if it's your second body, you will be able to drive any vehicle even the one you didn't know before
Following the announcement, his whole body tingles, making his perception focus solely on the skull car. He could feel the aerodynamic jaws splitting the wind, the engine beating through his chest, he even knew how much weight it pulls and how much force it needs to turn the gears in seconds, and most importantly he felt the vehicle screams whenever a random stalactite dropped in its path; like as if it's alive and afraid of death.
Giving him great help in avoiding the further bombardments of that hell dog, and maintaining the speed consistently without applying brakes, nor lowering the gear every once in a while.
With the skill in hand, Oscar finally got a breather and a moment for him to glance at his surroundings. The monsters of behemoth size are getting killed left and right by the new spawns, while the new spawns are getting beaten by the falling trees or flying boulders, and frantic waves of monsters crush anyone or anything unlucky enough to get in front of them.
All in all, it was total chaos. And in no way some goblins would stand a chance to stay alive more than the first few seconds.
'Ah.. Huh just like I predicted'
Having seen the preview in the restricted zone, while safely hanging behind the puppeteer snake. Oscar's first reaction was to reinforce his cave, and hide till the overflow ends.
But Jazz told him, that hiding was impossible as the Mana veins are capable of breaching any defense, releasing the monsters on top of them. Leaving with no choice, Oscar decided to run. But again, a goblin running safely in this chaos was next to impossible and highly dangerous; thus, the former cave master took the inspiration from his experience with the rattle-snake and decided to borrow someone's legs/tail instead. That begged another question, who's legs will he borrow? The snake? Or the little goblins he had just saved?
The answer was neither. Hence, he pulled and put his everything and built these legs. Round legs. Which the dungeon had never seen before, and definitely not by a monster, Earning a great respect from the dungeon on completion, and the title 'Wonder Goblin' while living against all odds.
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One hand on the steering wheel, the other on the gear stick, his legs on the brake, his eyes ahead, and his senses at the back. Currently, Oscar is the brain of this -completely biodegradable and eco-friendly- monster car.
Having the 800-frog power engine, it could easily outrun any and all monsters in this strata. He doesn't have anyone to fear, neither the stampede of monsters, nor the Cerberus behind.
But he does fear one thing, running out of fuel in between his flight. The driver caught the sight of a tank, embedded in the dashboard, and the minuscule amount of 7 Mana stones in it that too is getting used as he charged the glands with each second.
'Just a little more…'
Oscar hoped these could last till he reached the location, where he buried the obsidian core.
And considering the raw Mana is only used to keep maintaining the engine rather than running the engine, this should be enough. Thought the Oscar, who had been using these Mana stones for a month and could tell how much Mana one has based on their weight and glow. But considering the persistent Cerberus, who had yet to run out of fire breath, he doubts the Rolllls Royace would be able to run at the economy in peace, not that the original Rolls Royace has an economy mode.
"Jazz, do your work… and this time properly"
Giving a serious look, Oscar passed the self-made map, having the location of the treasure he buried just after his descent into this strata, to the dignified Hob-Goblin eager to do something rather than leaving everything to the Prince.
"Roly! Roll the canon!"
Shouting, Prince gestured a hand roll. Signaling the round goblin at the back to pull out the secret weapon he had installed just for this kind of situation.
"Harry take down the covers… let's show this four-in-one puppy not to mess with the team green" He thought with an evil grin, eager to put down this barking dog and then get his hands on the key to make him a wizard… at last.
"Ahem!… I'm sorry… my prince… but… what the fuck… is this?"
Came the bewildered mind-voice, and the equally mind-boggling self-made map of his, showing a stick figure at one corner and some doodling of bloody lines all over the map with a tiny cross hidden somewhere in between, as the sign of treasure. The map looks worse than a kid scribbling on walls, leaving the Hob-Goblin scratching his bald head but still not able to make claws or tails off.
"A map?" Even he wasn't confident of calling it that.
Oscar had never made a map, let alone a giant dungeon map, where every second cavern looks and feels the same, with no landmark for him to note, no remarkable buildings to remember, and no stalls or shops to ask for directions. He did what he could with limited resources and brain.
"I can't… interpret… this"
Massaging his head, Jazz said with a frown. Even his evolved mind failed to comprehend this divine scribblings of the otherworldly Prince. Even if he wasn't well versed with the writing or reading like the young shamans and the elders, Jazz and every Hob-Goblin in the tribe knows how to read maps stolen from the adventurers.
"Hmmm…" Oscar squinted, forcing his small brain to remember the turns he took, the directions he made, and the places he went.
'I give up…' Only to lose the motivation the next second.
He felt like slapping himself for this, but he decided against it. Even though he had lost a holy crystal, so what? He could just order the idiots in the tribe to bring more for him, and they would be more than willing to fulfill the request of the Legendary Hero right?
'And I'm sure these civilized goblins have a way to purify and turn more of these if they have this many elders to boast'
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Decided. Oscar instantly crumbles the map, and throws it outta the window like a trash.
"Prince!... Why?" Cried the Hob-Goblin.
"Because we can't afford to waste the time over my selfish wishes… the more we wait, the more newborns will be prone to death" Gripping the steering wheel, the Prince spouted more nonsense.
Oscar, of course, wouldn't admit that even he failed to understand his own map. That would be too embarrassing for him.
"Prince… I-I was right… you're really… the prince… of goblins… sniff!..."
Somehow, even his nonsense made this brick-headed goblin to get emotional over.
"Yes, yes, I'm the one and only Prince. So stop crying and help those idiots at the back to make a hot-dog"
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The curtains covering the buggy have been pulled down, revealing the monster soldiers working on a strange sniper rifle. A 75cm long sturdy cylindrical bone was strapped atop the giant, 2m hollow bone, barrel firmly in place; looking like an oddly placed optical scope over the gun's barrel. While a rubber-like rope hugs around it and stretches further aback, with a V-shape bone affixed to the rope through a curved edge at one end and holding a sharp tooth like a bullet through the other end.
"Ahhhh!"
With a roar, Jazz released his hold over the V-shaped hook. Letting the rubber pull it back with a flash, pushing it into the barrel. And multiplying the force behind the bullet was the hook as it rammed and jammed against the corner. Increasing the speed and force, closer to a canon than a bullet.
*Bang!*
Only to miss the Cerberus, terribly. Causing a more thundering roar than before, accompanied by four fireballs at them in a row. That got expertly avoided by an unlicensed yet skilled driver.
But the show had just started. A pair of such man/monster-powered rifles had been mounted atop both sides of the buggy by the maker.
'Nobody's… faster… than me!'
Harry, the goblin, shoots the next bullet at the running hot dog. Albeit at the cost of his full strength and muscle soreness, unlike Jazz.
*Bang!*
Yet, the bullet missed again. But by a meter unlike before, giving a great boost of confidence to Harry, making him shoot bullets till his hands couldn't move anymore.
Roly, the round goblin, cleans more bones of the gathered meat and let the Bull-dog hammer and sharpened its edge -somewhat- while the squirrel bore a hole at the back for the hook to take a perch in it. Churning out more projectiles to shoot, when they ran out of the existing ones.
"AAAAUUUU!*
No sooner than before, one bullet hits the mark. Causing the Cerberus to whimper aloud, and glare hatefully at Harry. That quickly shifted to Jazz. Both turrets spit bullets per second, not giving it a chance to catch a breath and fire its own projectiles at them.
But even then, it did nothing to stop the four-headed dog, nor did it slow down the approaching stampede further behind. For the hell-dog, it was but an inconvenience at most, its Hide stops the projectiles from causing any actual harm. While the stampede won't stop even if one or two monsters get taken out by these, they will just run over the injured ones and continue like a tide unimpeded.
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"Jazz! How far is the gate!" Came the panicked voice of the driver.
At the dashboard, only two Mana stones could be found. Of which, one was glowing much slower than the other with some ashes covering all over its surface, making it harder for Oscar to keep up the top speed- The higher the level of a monster, the more resistant it would be against all attacks, whether internal or external, hence needing more Mana to make it react.
Hence, Oscar has to slowly lower the gear to 6th, then 5th, and then 4th... Anymore, the Hot-Dog will catch them in one leap.
"Huh?... Where… are we?"
Stopping for a moment, the unreliable guide scratched his head. Having a hard time remembering the place, thoroughly redesigned by the destruction caused by the ongoing overflow. Moreover, they have been taking detours upon detours whenever they encounter a wave coming in-betweens. Hence, lengthening the route unnecessarily for hours, and rendering the mechanic to keep a clear estimate of the needed fuel for the ever-lengthening journey.
"Quick! Blockhead!"
His heart was gripped by the anxiety, having to witness the last drop of Mana drain out of the stone. Before quickly shifting the burden over the last one, which, for some reason, was draining much faster than usual. The glow dimmed the second, he plugged it into the engine and forced the Mana out of it with each breath.
His heart thumped against his chest louder and louder. The skill [PilotLv2] lets him witness the horror in real time. Seeing his doom getting faster than ever before, Oscar gulped audibly and… lowered the gear further and further. Hoping, this would do, with this, they would reach the gate before the hell dog would snap at them, or the stampede overruns above them.
"Ghaaaaa!"
"Kheeeeeeee!"
Monkey shrieked, squirrel squeaked, goblins hurdled aback, while the tortoise hid its shell. Every Monster in the buggy was taken aback by the suddenly closer monstrosities looming above them and in the range of hell-dogs breath. But it decided to savor the time and their fear, after all, they have made it run for hell knows how long.
But even in this perilous situation, Hob-Goblin maintains his composer, for now, at least. Peeking through the back window, Jazz got terrified by what he saw.
"Prince!... What happened!"
With empty eyes, the Prince turned towards him, "Nothing… we're just… damned"
His hands shaking over the gear stick, more than afraid to lower any further. His sense, which had been merged with the vehicle for so long, is now ringing like a town's tower right above his head.
If he accelerated or even kept the speed, he would die much faster. Or if he lowered the gear, the thumping Hot-Dog would swallow them all slowly. And if they somehow avoided it by a stroke of miracle, then there'd be hundreds of monsters, well and above everyone's level, running like a carpet covering the whole cavern, leaving no space for them to hide or avoid them all.
"We're… damned" With each word, Oscar felt more acceptance over the upcoming fate…
"Prince!... Get a hold… of yourself!"
Thoroughly shaking the much weaker and fragile prince, Jazz turned behind with a newfound fury burning through his eyes.
And like a demonic Rambo, he alone stands his ground over the still-shaking buggy against the hundreds upon hundreds of monsters, much bigger and stronger than him.
"AAAaaaaaaahhhhh!"
His shout was energetic, yet strangely terrifyingly. Overpowering the rumblings for a second, it reverberated through the cavern and beyond.
*thud!*
With one step planted firmly ahead, Jazz draws out his greatsword. Gripping the handle with both hands, he circles it around with him as the center.
*FUZ!*
Gaining momentum with each rotation, adding the weight of his anger and frustration seeing his Hero in such a state, Jazz the simpleton Hob-Goblin hurled it at that bloody dog pursuing them non-stop.
*Fizzz!*
And carrying his raging flames with his strength in multiples, the sword whistled straight at the monster, scoring a dog's eye at once.
"GHHHHAAARRRR!"
Blood splashed, and it jerked its head. But the sword had penetrated deep enough that only its hilt could be seen from a distance. Its other three heads, all prepared to blast and turn Jazz to cinders. Done with the playing, it now wanted them dead.
*Click!*
Far from done, Jazz loaded the rifle and pulls the tube further… and further. His muscles burst beyond reasoning, clearly using a powering skill much like Oscars, and continued to pull till he reached the other end and beyond through standing at the very edge of it.
"Urghhhaa!" The wooden boards holding the rifle and his weight, both cracked before bursting at once.
*BANG!*
The bone bullet streaked through the barrel, splitting it apart with lightning speed through the sheer force, the hook and the tube propelled it forward in a clear straight line, ignoring the gravity and the air resistance alike. With a stroke of luck, it blasted through the hell-dogs rapidly moving leg joint. Piercing through any and all its resistance at once.
"KHHHAAAAR!"
A terrifying wailing accompanied by three misfired fire breaths. Losing its footing unexpectedly, sends its massive body tumbling and rolling over the ground. And before it could stand back again, after taking less than a few seconds to close its wounds, hundreds of monsters clashed against his fallen self head-on.
Although many of the front monsters tried to slow down or even move aside, but they couldn't. The blind monsters running behind, pushed them onwards.
It wailed, and thrashed around, while biting and blowing away many monsters apart. But still, the hell-dog wasn't a match against a tide of monsters. Even its 40+lv strength dried up instantly after killing more than 50 of them. Only for more of them to replace the dead ones.
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"Ahhh… haaa!" Watching the smoke and chaos through the running buggy, Jazz breathes heavily and slides down with his back against the wall. taking a glance at the prompt asking for his next evolution, he too smiled at last.
Many of the monsters, who had contributed in the fight, had gained a burst of level-ups. Even Oscar got his annoying exp put-on-hold prompts several times.
"Finally being useful for once huh"
With a smile, Oscar abruptly stops the monster car and pulls the last Mana stone out of the dashboard. Reloading his trusty old multi-purpose magic wand with it, strapping the much sharper pickaxes behind and the Pie-chan around his waist as an unprocessed leather belt. He jumped through the window and landed with a roll.
*Thud!*
Walking behind the buggy and standing in between the upcoming tides of monsters, Oscar took his final stance. With a pair of pickaxe in both hands, legs ready to burst forth, and his eyes burning with the desire to die first, he roared with the max of his [Dummy voice]
"Aaaaaa!WWWWWWHHHHHHH!"
At first, it was his usual banshee's scream, but in the other half, it abruptly changed to a terrifying, bone-chilling, and heart-gripping wailing, shaking the entire dungeon. Striking terror to each and anyone that hears it within several miles.
Even Oscar's ears got ripped apart with his voice when it ended.
*Boom!*
*Boom!*
The rumblings continued to approach, regardless of his terrifying warcry.
Behind him, Jazz the Hob-Goblin smiles for finally seeing his Hero back in shape, Harry sniffles a tear, Roly… busy stuffing every last bit of meat to care about him, and every other monster in the buggy was awe-stuck with his eagerness to die first.
Hands crossed ahead in the defending position, Hero bravely waited for the monsters to come.
'Please give a painless death… a painless… a painless… death?'
Oscar waited for another minute, but he was still intact even after that. Curious, he opened his left eye… just a little bit. And saw the massive tide of monsters splitting apart right before him as they marched through sideways, leaving him and his team safely in the middle.
'Now the fuck is this…' turning behind, Oscar saw his Green Team were busy eyeing the little greenery right behind them. A low humming of a whale could be heard coming from it, and most probably the source of this anomaly.
Mustering the last bit of courage, The duo proceeds to enter, in the hopes of finding the reason behind this odd phenomenon.
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Lifting a leaf that obstructs his view, Oscar firstly saw a giant ball of obsidian resting in the middle of this circular forest with sleek tree roots spread around it in the shape of a revolving galaxy.
The ball of obsidian looks majestic, like a black hole swallowing stars within it, and much more familiar than it should… 'My treasure!' Oscar stood up the second he recognized, aiming to finally claim what was his own. Moreover, he needs it right now more than ever before.
"Huh?" Stopping him was Jazz. Who much like him, hadn't taken his eyes off from the orb… or what lay before the orb.
"The Krog…" His mind-voice was a whisper, afraid of letting that thing from hearing it. Pointing his hands at it, he said another word before going silent.
"It can… hear us"
Squinting, the Goblin gasped. Finally noticing the tentacle-shaped spikewood trees were more alive than they should be, and the muddy grounds near them were deeper than any other place.
Meanwhile, a small deflated balloon-like head with majestic deer horns could be seen sleeping against the orb, while humming a whale-like noise occasionally, repelling the monster tides through it.
'A swamp octopus?'
Thought the Goblin, while turning his mind-gears to take back the Orb, discreetly… and without courting death just after being saved.