Side by side, Ames and Gi flashed through the chaos. Kristus’ slim force still hid, but the Machina, and their lack of fear, scrambled at the two figures. His saviours would die against the machines if he didn’t save them.

Tenner called upon [Fate is My Weapon]. A few tries failed and the orders started slipping from his mouth too.

[Fate Is My Weapon has succeeded! Manipulating nearby devices to being’s will…]

Kristus’ followers came out of their hiding behind the rubble and froze, guns in hands -- the Machina convulsed, bullets fell from the machine-guns’ chambers. Ames weaved around the countless metal legs. Gi tore off a metal plate and followed.

They stopped on opposite ends of Tenner as Kristus turned to him.

Tenner and Gi put their shields together, and a hail of lasers bounced off them. Ames stood behind the makeshift wall, starting, then giving up, on saying something. Tenner handed her the key.

“Unlock the lasergate. And tell me what are you two doing here?”

“Distrusting one another a bit too much,” Ames said and looked up at the series of mechanisms locking the gate.

“What matters now is that we won’t hold like this for long,” Gi growled.

Ah, yes. Tenner turned back. The machine-gun, held by the barrel, rested by his feet. He picked it up, slipped his hand to the handle and slipped the barrel through a gap in their shields. They rattled as the gun fired.

Fifteen seconds of firing slashed Kristus’ cronies down to five. And was just enough for the Machina to begin fighting against the effects of [Fate is My Weapon].

“There’s a valve,” Ames said from behind, “and I can’t open it.”

Tenner and Gi shared glances. Go ahead, I’ll hold them off, he thought.

“This is interesting,” Gi said a moment later. “I can do something better than just open it, but I’ll need a minute.”

Now, Ames stopped beside Tenner, holding the deformed metal plate. The Machina, twitching, crawled towards them and Kristus’ cronies ran towards them for a hand-to-hand finish. Ames’s shield crumbled apart.

“Drop it,” Tenner said. “Use this.” He gave her the machine-gun.

Without hesitation, Ames killed two, and their blood splattered on the legs of the Machina she riddled with lead. Then she hid behind Tenner’s reddening shield. Lasers hit the corners of her arms and she edged closer to him. They touched. The air scorched. He grinned, even though the molten metal of the shield streamed to his underarms and chest.

“I can’t hold the shield any longer. It’ll turn into a briefcase in a moment,” he explained through his teeth. “You fall and hide behind it. And watch.”

Ames nodded, following the instructions.

Every perk that obeyed Tenner activated. He wished [Tenshot] would too, but with time slowing, he guessed this would be enough. And did what he’d waited to do since he fell from the sky. His axe snapped rightwards, stopping a spree of lasers, left, stopping a Machina’s machine-gun fire, then up, chopping a Machina’s leg in half.

He repeated the pattern, blocking everything hurtling towards him and jumped at Kristus’ three remaining followers running at him. In the middle of their circle, he mindlessly chopped with his axe and hopped back to the lasergate.

As Ames stared with wide eyes, Gi’s pleas sounded from behind.

“Give me a hand! I’m almost there!”

Tenner grabbed the uncooperative valve and Ames took it upon herself to provide covering fire. The valve was still stuck, unable to budge past the last rotation. Tenner and Gi put all of their force into it, but couldn’t get it to move.

“We need you too, Ames!”

Ames turned. A bullet pierced her calf. She fell to her knees. Her teeth trapped an excruciating scream as she stood back up and jumped. With all her weight, she landed on the valve.

Bullets and lasers hit everyone’s backs. They wouldn’t make it in time, but Tenner remembered the Dragontemple’s first chamber, its old walls that crumbled and kicked up dust whenever hit.

He chopped at the wall.

Dust plumed out, covering their group. His lungs filled with the sense of a thousand crawling spiders. He coughed, caught his breath and returned to pushing the valve.

“Stay as quiet as you can be.”

A few lasers pierced the wall of dust. The half-dead Machina turned to Kristus. The valve budged. Gi fell on the floor, gasping for air while Ames stumbled back.

Tenner was left holding a thick wire that fell from the lasergate. We did it, first, he thought, then, but what is this? It started throbbing and tingling the tips of his fingers. The gate behind him stopped buzzing and disappeared. Then all the lights in the Dragontemple flickered.

The dust cover cleared, behind it Kristus battling the last Machina with his cross whilst his three followers shot at it from the sides.

Pure satisfaction entered Gi’s face, his teeth shining.

Tenner realized what the mad lunarist had done.

A red laserbeam fired out of the wire, ripped through the air, covered Tenner in heat and blinded him.

Three seconds later, it stopped and the lights reappeared.

“Holy shit,” Tenner uttered. “Now that’s some serious power.”

Every moving thing in the third chamber moved no more.

Kristus’ cross still flickering. Among the corpses of his followers and robots, the priest groaned, drenched in blood, burnt, and presumably, furious as hell.

Tenner’s legs seemed to walk on their own to crush Kristus’ skull. Two steps down, he stopped himself and faced his friends. This is not how it was supposed to go: we had to have a final fair fight to the death and he had to lay on my feet and utter a sorry for his evil, he thought, frowning. But he’s lost everything. That’s a worse fate than death. And I’d rather get down to what really matters than waste another second on that pitiful priest.

Ames and Gi nodded, as if in agreement with his thoughts, and entered the dragon’s lair.

In the middle of the chamber stood a five-meter-tall pyramid. On the ground, there were trenches, their walls covered by glowing red symbols and sacred texts of the ancients.

Whenever Tenner entered these sorts of new places, there had always been something greeting with an attempt to take his life: he expected to be instantly shot at by the dragon.

“I think you’re supposed to go there.” Ames pointed at the top of the pyramid. “That glowing… thing?”

Tenner squinted.

A yellow light of a constantly morphing shape floated right above the pyramid’s metallic top. He crawled up the slippery wall while his extensions squeaked. In the light’s core, indecipherable text hovered. The CHEK translated.

[Sign: Fear for thou have intruded upon the resting place of the dragon. Thou shall pray or thou shall pay. There is no other way.]

Lasers reappeared in the gate to the lair. The CHEK showed two buttons.

[Pray.]

[Pay.]

These guys take themselves way too seriously, Tenner thought. They’re just a bunch of people who lived in a shelter while the world outside went to shit.

Guess I’ll pay. Ain’t taking the other choice no matter what.

As the screens disappeared, the text started shifting.

[Sign: Very Well.]

“I just triggered the robotdragon.” Tenner slid down the pyramid, to a trench where his friends had recluded. “Nothing’s happening, but we should be ready. Ancient guys really took themselves seriously.”

“Robot what?” Gi’s eyes widened.

Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.

“What?” Tenner dropped in front of him.

“I followed you because I knew where you were going,” Ames said. “No clue how you figured out this would be the place, but I got the most knowledge on it a living person can so it could be useful. And Gi just followed me.”

“Is the robotdragon the much, much worse thing you were talking about, huh?”

Reluctantly, Ames nodded to Gi.

“If it’s a good fight, I’m always ready,” Gi said. “Doesn’t matter if it’s midnight or midday, robot or human or dragon, I got that hench blood.”

The mood lightened even though an ancient creature of mass destruction would appear soon.

“Great.” Tenner took a potion from his belt and downed it.

“Woah, slow down!” Ames growled. “I’m bleeding to death from three bullet wounds and you’re--”

Tenner tossed her a potion, turned to Gi and gave him one as well.

“I stole enough for everyone: one can do crazy sleight of hand with these Extensions. Like slipping out a few drinks from Kristus’ followers' pockets while swinging an axe.”

Gi grinned at his creation and Ames said, “How thoughtful.”

She chucked an empty bottle on the ground.

It shattered.

And the pyramid released a pair of tremors. They were barely noticeable, but, soon after, more waves came, each one stronger than the last.

Tenner looked Ames in the eyes. “On my first bounty, I stole the target’s pistol. I missed ten shots before he died. Thus, Tenshot.”

“I knew it! There had to be a stupid origin.”

Wisps of air shot out of the pyramid’s sides and tiny cracks opened.

Everyone firmly held their weapons--Gi a handcrafted laserpistol, Ames the Machina’s machine-gun and Tenner his axe--facing the unfolding ahead.

A figure, clad all in black, appeared. As Tenner’s mouth opened, the figure shook its head. It stood there for a moment longer, perfectly out of the others’ gazes and disappeared.

That’s not a side effect of the CHEK. Tenner’s mind rushed. Nor of the madness. It could be--

A wide hole appeared in the pyramid’s wall and a metallic head poked out. Then, a long, shiny dragon flew out with the speed of electricity.

They started blasting.

The spree of laserbeams left red marks of molten steel on the robotdragon while the machine-gun’s bullets tore its metal skin apart. The creature flew a few laps around the chamber then dived towards the crew.

Everyone jumped in different directions, but all landed in the same trench. After a moment, their heads poked out.

The dragon flew past then landed atop the pyramid ahead. The thing was made out of countless layers of metal, at least seven meters long and had whiskers of wires and pipes. Its head suited two red eyes and a maw that contained spinning machines and weapons.

A giant, flying worm. Tenner thought. Where have I seen it before? The details didn’t matter -- no matter the shape, he certainly wouldn’t underestimate a dragon.

He put his axe on the floor out of the trench and holding onto it, started climbing. Death. He gasped, his sight flooding with visions of getting torn apart, his gut aching.

Tenner fell back into the trench, landing on his haunches.

The dragon swung its tail over where he’d stood and a wave of air chilled the top of his head.

Centimeters, he’d ducked it by.

“Spread out,” Tenner said. “When everyone is in different corners, one distracts the dragon, the others attack it.”

Gi nodded, “who’s the first distractor?” the expression on his face asking. Well, who else? Tenner stood up, grabbed his axe and screamed, chopping at the floor.

Ames and Gi ran.

The distraction worked wonders. Momentarily, the dragon snapped its head towards Tenner. Another moment later, it crashed into his trench. Clouds of dust arose and chunks of rubble fell from behind as Tenner ran through the trenches. The carnage obstructed the view of the dragon, but two slivers of red light managed to shine through. And they neared as the dragon ripped through the ground. Tenner fled, boosting off the sides of the trenches with his fingertips.

One moment, Tenner could sense death, the other -- his next three moves. His instincts flip-flopped as he chopped at the robotdragon’s head. Metal fractured and bent under the blade. He kicked its maw and clambered out of the trench.

“Hey, dumb dragon, I bet you’re even dumber than I am,” Gi said in a mocking tone. “But let’s see who puts on a better fight!”

The dragon slivered out of the rubble then, in a flash, flew over to Gi.

Ames climbed out and aimed her pistol while Tenner regained his balance. He grabbed his axe and soared at the dragon. The blade lodged itself in the metal. Without stopping, Tenner chopped and chopped. Certain attacks caused it to shake while others did nothing. The creature had weak spots, he learned.

I have to hit them now, Tenner thought. Gi won’t be able to hold on for much longer.

Tenner hopped down, took a deep breath and aimed. The breath caught.

There it was again. The figure in black, silently staring.

“Wait! You’re B--”

The dragon had gotten to Gi and Ames screamed, the creature snapping to her.

The black figure disappeared. Something fucky is going on. Tenner ran from the dragon’s trajectory -- the creature would come after him in moments.

I can’t let my turn come, he realized. That figure’s going to reappear again.

***

The robotdragon flew, Gi aimed at it and Tenner stared at Gi. He had to get to Gi. He had to tell him where to shoot. And then distract it.

“Sure, I only have an ancient gun from a robot of death,” Ames said mockingly. “But I’ve killed dumber things than you with weaker weapons.”

Run.

Tenner jumped out of the trench and dashed over to Gi. The whole world faded out. The relentless thumping of his heart and Ames’ taunts stayed. The ten-meter path to Gi, apart from a few small clouds of dust and piles of rubble, was clear. Then, the giant metal tail came swinging.

Tenner jumped to the side and fell to the ground. It can attack one foe with its maw and one with its tail. Another swing came. The tail missed again, but the wires hanging off it whipped Tenner’s face, unleashing blood from his lips.

[Warning! Damage: -34 to health]

The pain was ten times worse than the damage, Tenner told himself and jumped to his feet. He ran, paying his full attention to the dragon. Its tail was still, but the creature itself was already too close to Ames.

Someone will have to distract it in a few seconds! Tenner thought, Gi barely a few meters ahead. Facing his friend, he shook his head -- not yet. The dragon’s metallic tail swung again and Tenner avoided it as he fell into the trench beside Gi.

“See those wires?” he said, catching breaths in between words. “And see where they’re coming from?”

“Yeah?” Gi nodded along.

“Shoot there. Through a crack in its armor, I saw the machines and mechanisms that make it up -- they’re all in its head and where the wires come out.”

“That’s gotta be the disc monotilators. A big-ass weak spot.” Gi raised the laserpistol and started blasting. “Roger.”

No time to rest. Tenner dashed down the trench. “Come here, you bastard! Time to get over with you!”

The dragon sprung at him.

Instantly, feelings and visions of death came over Tenner. But he stood his ground, aiming the axe at the shut maw of the creature. It flew in with frightening accuracy, on point to take Tenner out in one good bite. He believed in himself and, most importantly, in Gi. It was a different kind of leap into a dark hole. He would’ve never done it before, but without it, he guessed, he wouldn’t even have a fighting chance against the creature.

Three meters away, the dragon’s metallic skin emitted heat and the wires filled the air with a buzz.

Tenner swung.

Two meters away, the dragon opened its maw. Its teeth started grinding against one another. The ground shook.

The blade hit. Though not the dragon -- the figure.

...Blackglove? Tenner thought as everything around him slowed. Could it be? The #1 ranked hunter? The waves of adrenaline and perks inside him were the only moving things in the entire world. I heard about him. He’s real, it seems, though he doesn’t like me.

Oh well. Tenner let the axe slip deep into Blackglove’s neck. But Blackglove wouldn’t die from a simple axe, nor would he disappear in time so that the same blade could kill the dragon. No, Tenner was helpless while his weapon was stuck inside a legend’s neck.

He could only close his eyes and… trust.

Redness emerged out of the dark, spots of tingling and pain covered his skin. Heat and a barrage of sounds washed over everything.

Blackglove stood still. Metal and sparks rained.

[Congratulations! Ultimate private bounty claimed: destroyed The Robotdragon; Reward: +10,000C$; +1,000XP; +10BP]

[Congratulations! Gained perk: Men Bleed, Dragons Bleed, But I Don’t I]

[Congratulations! Mystical perk revealed: Tenshot]

***

“You’ve done it. I didn’t know you could. I was certain you’d try, but winning such a fight--when stronger hunters with weapons more powerful than yours have failed--is… unexpected,” Blackglove said and turned to the source of echoing footsteps.

Aimes limped towards the legend, a trail of blood behind her. She raised the machine-gun and pointed the barrel at Blackglove’s face. She did not pull the trigger.

They stared at one another, Blackglove silent, Ames -- gritting her teeth.

“No, I didn’t forget,” the legend broke the silence. “Be grateful that you had the chance to escape. Don’t be angry that I had to kill who gave it to you.”

Ames shook her head. “Fucking cunt.” And limped to Gi.

“Why are you here, Blackglove?” Tenner asked.

“I’m here to observe, maybe spar with you,” Blackglove said. “There are many great, dangerous things at play in my life and I’d rather not risk it by coming in blind.”

“I’m your testing dummy?”

“If you call yourself that then yes, you’re my testing dummy.” The legend scratched the part of his neck where Tenner’s axe had struck.

“Are you gonna kill me?”

“Why should I? I didn’t tell you a single secret or… You know what?” Blackglove went quiet for a moment. “Killing you might be a good idea. There is only so much to be learned in theory until you apply it in practice.” The bounty hunter lowered his hand to his waist.

“Wait!” Tenner stepped forward, glaring into eyes covered by a black helmet. “If we’re gonna have a fight that’ll end in my death, shouldn’t you tell me your secrets? Why do you need me?”

“Then I’d have to kill your friends too.”

Tenner’s eyes widened and he gulped. He looked at Ames whose expression was blank with anger then at Gi, whose arms shook. Indeed, Tenner could swindle and somehow get them out of this situation, but... It’s Blackglove… I have to choose.

Tenner’s gaze fell to the scattered remains of the dragon around him. I trusted you with my life, he thought, Now I need you to trust me.

“Go ahead. I’d like to see you try to kill us.”