The mining camp remained shrouded in uneasy silence the morning after the battle. Smoke from the destroyed Sentinels still curled into the air, mingling with the ever-present frost. Though the rebels had held their ground, the strain was beginning to show.
Juri Winkler sat at a makeshift desk in the center of his workshop, pouring over blueprints and salvaged Sentinel parts. He had barely slept, his mind racing with calculations and strategies. Every win seemed to come at a greater cost, and he knew that the nobles’ next move would push them to the brink.
“We’re on borrowed time,” Juri muttered to himself, sketching a rough design for a reinforced chassis capable of withstanding suppression fields.
Outside, the camp buzzed with activity. Garrick oversaw the repairs to the barricades, Halrick supervised the extraction efforts in the mines, and Kira directed scouts to watch for any signs of another advance.
Deep within the mine, the rebels unearthed the first cache of mana-infused crystals. The glowing shards were embedded in veins of rare metals, their light casting an eerie glow on the tunnel walls.
Halrick stood at the edge of the operation, his sword resting against a rock as he watched the recruits carefully chip away at the stone. “You’d think we were handling gold,” he muttered.
“To us, it might as well be,” Kira said, stepping up beside him. “If Juri’s right, these materials could change everything.”
Halrick grunted. “Yeah, assuming we live long enough to use them.”
One of the miners—a wiry young woman with soot-streaked cheeks—called out. “We’ve got another deposit over here!”
Halrick and Kira followed her deeper into the tunnel, where a large vein of crystal and metal ran along the wall. The sight was enough to draw a rare smile from Halrick.
“Looks like the kid was right,” he said. “We’ve hit the motherlode.”
Back at the camp, the strain of holding the mining site was beginning to show. Supplies were running low, the wounded from the last battle were slow to recover, and the freezing temperatures made even simple tasks grueling.
At one of the fires, a group of recruits gathered, their faces etched with exhaustion.
“This can’t keep going,” one man muttered, warming his hands over the flames. “Every time we win, it feels like we’re losing more.”
A woman nearby nodded. “We’re stretched too thin. If the nobles send another force, we won’t be able to hold them off.”
Garrick approached, his presence silencing the murmurs. “We’ve held this long,” he said. “And we’ll keep holding. But we need everyone pulling their weight. No more complaining.”
The recruits exchanged uneasy glances but fell silent.
In the workshop, Juri was finalizing the design for a new machine. The blueprint spread out before him depicted a heavy combat mech—larger and more durable than anything he had built before. Its frame was designed to resist suppression fields, its core protected by a reinforced housing crafted from the mined metals.
Kira entered the workshop, her dark eyes scanning the cluttered space. “You’ve been at this all day,” she said. “What are you working on?”
Juri gestured to the blueprint. “The next step.”
Kira leaned over the table, studying the design. “It’s ambitious.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
“It has to be,” Juri said. “The nobles aren’t going to stop sending bigger and better weapons. If we don’t match their escalation, we lose.”
Kira hesitated, then said, “You’re putting everything into this, aren’t you?”
Juri nodded. “This machine could turn the tide. But it won’t matter if we don’t secure enough materials to build it.”
That evening, the scouts returned with grim news.
“The nobles are moving again,” one scout reported, his face pale. “A larger force than before. Soldiers, mages, and at least four more Sentinels—heavier than the ones we’ve seen so far.”
The camp fell silent as the news spread. The nobles weren’t just retaliating; they were escalating.
Halrick slammed a fist against the table in the command tent. “Damn it. We barely survived the last attack, and now they’re doubling down?”
“They’re trying to break us,” Juri said, his tone calm but sharp. “They want us to abandon the site so they can swoop in and take the resources for themselves.”
Garrick frowned. “And if we don’t abandon it?”
“Then they’ll destroy us,” Kira said bluntly.
Juri stood, his sharp blue eyes meeting each of theirs in turn. “We’re not leaving. Not yet. We’ve already uncovered enough material to start building prototypes. If we can hold them off long enough, we’ll have the firepower to fight back.”
The camp sprang into action.
Juri deployed the Adaptive Drones to scout the approaching force, their sleek frames scuttling through the snow to gather intel. Garrick organized the sharpshooters, positioning them at key vantage points along the ridges. Halrick and Kira worked with the miners to reinforce the barricades and rig the perimeter with traps.
At the center of the camp, Juri activated his latest project: a prototype Heavy Support Drone, designed to carry and deploy heavier weaponry in the field. The machine hummed to life, its articulated arms bristling with mounted Repeaters and a small mortar launcher.
Kira watched the machine with a raised eyebrow. “You’ve outdone yourself.”
Juri smirked faintly. “Let’s hope it’s enough.”
By nightfall, the nobles’ forces reached the edge of the mining camp. Torches flickered in the distance, their glow reflecting off the snow like the eyes of a predator stalking its prey.
The nobles’ mages moved in formation, their staffs crackling with magical energy. Behind them loomed the new Sentinels, their massive frames glinting with reinforced plating.
Juri stood at the barricade, his breath visible in the freezing air. He held his console tightly, his sharp blue eyes scanning the enemy formation.
“Wait for my signal,” he said, his voice steady.
The nobles’ commander stepped forward, his voice booming across the battlefield. “Rebels! Lay down your arms and surrender, and you may yet be spared!”
Juri didn’t flinch. “They’re stalling,” he muttered. “Trying to make us hesitate.”
Halrick smirked. “Good thing we don’t scare easy.”
Juri raised his hand. “Fire.”
The rebels opened fire, their Repeaters lighting up the night as bullets rained down on the advancing forces. The nobles’ mages responded with bursts of fire and lightning, their spells striking the barricades and sending splinters flying.
The Sentinels moved forward, their runes glowing as they absorbed the brunt of the rebels’ attacks.
Juri activated the Heavy Support Drone, its mounted mortar launching explosive shells into the enemy ranks. The Adaptive Drones swarmed the battlefield, their Repeaters targeting the soldiers while avoiding the mages’ suppression fields.
Kira and Garrick worked in tandem, picking off key targets and directing the recruits to hold the line.
Halrick charged into the fray, his sword flashing as he cut down soldiers who had breached the outer defenses.
“Juri!” Kira shouted. “The Sentinels are pushing through!”
Juri’s mind raced. He adjusted the controls on his console, redirecting the drones to focus fire on the nearest Sentinel. The machine staggered under the onslaught, its glowing runes flickering, but it didn’t fall.
“Bring me the disruptor charges!” Juri shouted.
As the battle raged, Juri grabbed one of the disruptor charges—a small device designed to overload magical systems—and sprinted toward the nearest Sentinel.
“Cover me!” he shouted.
Halrick moved to his side, cutting down anyone who got too close. Juri dodged a blast of magical energy and slid under the Sentinel’s massive frame, planting the charge against its core.
“Detonating in three… two…” Juri whispered, retreating as the device activated.
The charge exploded in a burst of energy, disabling the Sentinel’s magical systems. The massive machine toppled forward, crashing into the snow with a deafening thud.
With one Sentinel down, the rebels rallied, their attacks growing more coordinated. The Heavy Support Drone launched a final mortar shell, striking the second Sentinel’s leg and sending it collapsing to the ground.
The nobles’ forces, realizing they were outmatched, began to retreat.
Juri stood amidst the chaos, his chest heaving as he surveyed the battlefield. They had won—again—but he knew the cost of these victories would only grow.