The silence enveloping the Prismatronic Core room shattered the moment the gazes of the Novgovians and Wyolanders crossed. Samantheye was the first to move, her lithe figure and superhuman speed allowing her to draw her rifle and in an instant, a shot rang out, and a lower-ranked Novgovian collapsed to the ground lifeless. "Now!" she cried out, filling the entire Wyolander group with determination.
Marshmallow didn't need to be told twice. He mounted the Goat Horse, already transformed into his equine form, and summoned his Titan Hammer. His imposing figure, combined with the Goat Horse, formed something akin to a centaur making them a dynamic duo. "Charge!" he exclaimed, as his Titan Hammer glowed with a menacing light.
The lower-ranked Novgovians, caught off guard by the sudden attack, tried to organize themselves, but Marshmallow and the Goat Horse were already upon them. Meanwhile, Samantheye and Dam had already met with the Leader and the Strategist. "Ah ah ah. And here you are. What do you think you're doing? You're too few. SamanthEye, even if you have a new little friend, it won't be so easy," hissed the Leader as his hands began to glow with a menacing aura.
SamanthEye, unflappable as always, locked eyes with the Leader. "You're right, it won't be easy. But for you," she declared, gripping her rifle tightly and aiming it at her opponent.
Dam, for his part, focused on the Strategist. "So, friend, let's see what you're made of," he taunted, twirling his Tricoda. The Strategist, with a smug smirk, made a hand gesture, and a circle of light appeared in front of him. "Don't underestimate me, buddy."
Before they knew it, Marshmallow and the Goat Horse were surrounded by five lower-ranked Novgovians. Their eyes betrayed a mix of fear and determination, aware of the threat Marshmallow posed, especially mounted on his powerful steed.
"You stand no chance!" Marshmallow bellowed, his hammer ready to swing at the first one who dared to come close. The Novgovians instinctively backed away as tension shone in their eyes. However, their hesitation lasted only a moment. One of them, perhaps the bravest or the most desperate, pulled a small device from his tunic. "Use it now!" he cried, and the others, rejuvenated by a glimmer of hope, nodded in agreement.
The device, once activated, emitted a glow that enveloped the five Novgovians, wrapping them in an aura that seemed to vibrate with unnatural energy. "What in the world is this?" Marshmallow murmured as the Goat Horse pawed the ground impatiently beneath him.
The effect was immediate: the previously hesitant Novgovians launched into an attack with a speed and strength they hadn't possessed before. Marshmallow, taken aback but not intimidated, swung his hammer with even greater ferocity, determined not to let this technological trickery get the better of them.
Damn! These guys are strong! What the hell is that gadget?
With his move, Marshmallow had managed to keep them at bay. But now they were ready to charge again. The Novgovians were armed with axes, swords, or maces, and one after another, they tried to strike him and unseat him, exploiting the strength granted by the device. Marshmallow, at the level of a C Rank enhanced by the momentum of the Goat Horse, decided to use his main weapon, speed.
He began to trace a figure-eight path around the room, which was large enough to allow such maneuvering. Every time a Novgovian got close enough to think they could hit, they were repelled by a powerful hammer blow or a nimble move from the Goat Horse.
However, something was off.
They don't even flinch! No matter how much I hit them, it seems like it does nothing to them!
The ace up the sleeve of the lower-ranked Novgovians was beginning to show its true potential. With every attack Marshmallow launched, even if they were hit squarely, they fell to the ground and then got back up as if nothing had happened. That device, in addition to boosting their physical capabilities, seemed to make their skin nearly indestructible.
"These guys are getting annoying," Marshmallow growled, aware that they couldn't afford to drag the fight out for too long. The Goat Horse, sensing Marshmallow's urgency, stepped up its pace, becoming a whirlwind of movements that disoriented the opponents.
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But the real challenge was still ahead of them: finding a way to turn off that device and bring the fight back to a playing field where strength and skill mattered more than any trick. Then, amidst the tumult of the fight, Marshmallow focused, pinpointing the carrier of the device. It was the most hesitant of the attackers, the one who tried hardest to stay on the fringes of the fight.
"Goat Horse, to the left!" Marshmallow commanded, pointing out their new target. The Goat Horse, immediately understanding his rider's intent, changed direction with an impressive burst of speed, breaking out of the figure-eight pattern and heading straight for the designated Novgovian.
The other Novgovians, surprised by the sudden change in tactics, tried to intercept the duo, but Marshmallow was one step ahead.
"Now!" he shouted. And in doing so, he reached into Eldrin's backpack, which had remained fastened to the Goat Horse's saddle, and pulled out a vial.
In doing so, he tossed it to the ground, creating a smokescreen that confused the opponents. They were disoriented and taken aback by the move, and the duo was able to reach their target thanks to the cover provided by Eldrin's vial.
Marshmallow had gotten a closer look at the contents of Eldrin's backpack while riding the Goat Horse and ascending the stairs of the Tower of Metal Moose. Among the glittering vials and strange devices, he had found just what he needed: a smoke bomb.
The Goat Horse sped like the wind, slicing through the smoke. Emerging from the smog with the Titan Hammer raised, Marshmallow struck not the opponent but the ground right in front of him, creating a shockwave that knocked the surprised Novgovian off balance.
SBAM!
With a movement as quick as lightning, Marshmallow leaped down from the Goat Horse, landing precisely in front of the disoriented Novgovian. Before he could react, Marshmallow grabbed his wrist, ripping the device away with a decisive gesture and crushing it under his boot with such force that it turned into a heap of circuits and sparks.
The moment the device was destroyed, the aura enveloping the Novgovians vanished like mist in the sun. Their superhuman strength and nearly indestructible resilience dissipated, leaving them vulnerable and visibly frightened.
Marshmallow didn't waste any time. With a defiant smirk on his face, he raised the Titan Hammer high, ready to end the confrontation. "Game over," he said, his voice echoing menacingly through the room.
The Novgovians, now deprived of their advantage, raised their guard and gritted their teeth, but realized they stood no chance against the superhuman force of the Titan Hammer. They desperately tried to defend themselves, but their weapons now seemed like mere toys in the hands of children. Marshmallow advanced, relentless as a storm, and his Titan Hammer struck with ruthless precision.
The nearest one took a vertical blow that shattered his entire left thoracic area and spine. The impact was so violent that organs were ejected from his body, and blood even spurted onto Marshmallow's face.
At that point, Marshmallow's eyes had become those of a demon. All the Novgovians looked at him and wanted to tear their skin off from the fear they were feeling. He would kill them. All of them. Without any hesitation. Those were the eyes of a beast, not a human being.
The Novgovians gave in. They could only run. Marshmallow mounted the Goat Horse again and began to chase them.
The first one was slammed to the ground with a descending slash that erased his head from the face of existence. The remnants of his head had now become part of Marshmallow's Titan Hammer, amidst the blood and residue.
Another was butchered by a diagonal blow. His body was dismembered due to the excessive weight of the hammer.
Yet another found himself against the wall. His fate was to be crushed under the pressure of the Titan Hammer, exploding in a mix of blood and limbs that sprayed everywhere, even staining Marshmallow and the Goat Horse.
The Goat Horse killed the last one. In a charge, his head was squashed under the horse's hind hoof, ending his miserable life. One after another, the Novgovians had fallen. No blow had spared them, reducing their bodies to a formless, bloody mess. The dull sound of impacts filled the air, like a macabre accompaniment to the dance of destruction.
The Goat Horse had directly participated in the battle only in the killing of the last Novgovian, and now he felt a mix of admiration and terror for Marshmallow's fury. It wasn't just physical power that dominated the scene, but a righteous anger fueled by battle, by a burning desire to protect one's comrades, and one's family, and to complete the mission.
When the last Novgovian fell, his skull crushed under the relentless hoof of the Goat Horse, a heavy silence descended on the room. Marshmallow, his chest heaving with exertion, gazed at the remains of his enemies while the Titan Hammer was still dripping with blood.
“This… this was necessary,” he whispered to himself, trying to convince himself it was the right choice. He remembered well the days when he was a soldier, and he remembered what it felt like to take a life. Yet, he was aware that he would never get used to it. Killing human beings was an entirely different story from killing mad goats or mechanical beasts. Killing a person was something that lodged in the soul and would never leave.
Then, looking up at his companions, he saw a mix of horror and respect in Samantheye and Dam's eyes. There were no words to describe what had just happened, only a silence laden with meaning.