Beasts of the Lab
The battle dynamics during the Ground Zero Reinforcement Lab investigation had grown tricky. We'd tried to overwhelm them with superior numbers, but instead, two more enemies joined their side, flipping the count against us. Shwaak— The moment those two machines merged into the fray, it devolved into a chaotic melee where no one had anyone's back.
Laser beams rained down from every direction, rapidly wearing down ART COLLECTOR's durability. Even with frantic evasion maneuvers, the heavy frame had its limits. I gripped the controls tight and eyed the enemy machine we'd been pressing until moments ago. Numbers had increased? Fine—just reduce them by one and even it out again. I stuck to it in cruise mode.
Nice.
The machine's cruise mode held steady far longer than expected—probably because of the junk parts we'd swapped in before. The facility's heart was cluttered with buildings, meaning plenty of spots to corner them or use as cover. I deliberately pressed from above, forcing it toward the ground and limiting its maneuverability. Even a burst couldn't handle vertical shifts easily.
I scanned our trajectory while maneuvering. It looked like a residential zone—wide roads giving way to dense clusters of structures.
Maybe they've shared combat data from the previous Watchdog skirmish and adapted.
I kept a sharp eye on its movements for any surprises, but luckily, it focused solely on widening the gap, not checking its rear. Thud! It slammed its back into a building, then burst sideways. But it couldn't maintain the distance like before. I fired off four consecutive bursts laterally and charged. We closed into range fast.
Submachine gun rounds hammered into it. Rumble— Realizing its rear was blocked, it tried ascending to break free from the obstacle. But that just wasted more time trying to escape. I dove from above, slamming straight down. Thud! The full-body impact jarred through me. Its light frame couldn't withstand the strain—its motion froze for a split second. The class difference meant minimal damage to us. I fired the rail cannon point-blank.
The recoil was brutal, and it lacked guidance, but against a stationary target? It'd hit clean. Boom!!
The enemy's teetering durability hit zero. Blue light condensed, then it spewed a massive pulse and exploded while embedded in the building.
One down—I snapped my gaze to Renaissance. They'd cleverly exploited the abundance of cover, weaving through buildings, but shaking off enemies clinging from both flanks was no easy feat. One hovered at an altitude clear of obstructions, raining fire from above. Its blue laser beams looked identical to the one I'd just scrapped—no difference in armament.
I targeted the upper one first. Can't let it gain more altitude advantage.
I banked hard left, using buildings for cover, closing in. The enemy must've confirmed our ally's destruction—its movements shifted. It was definitely wary of us now. Whoosh— I approached silently on basic booster thrust alone, giving no hint of detection. As I reached the zone where Renaissance had the enemies pinned...
Whoosh!! I surged altitude over a building and switched to cruise mode. The enemy was still fixated on the direction of our fallen ally.
Rail cannon ambush? Nah.
Its attention was locked, but it hadn't stopped maneuvering—and its baseline speed was no joke. Rail cannon was too risky. I decided to ram it head-on. Hiss— With me absent for so long, it had grown suspicious. Right on cue, a scan pulse erupted from it. Interference noise hit my signals as it wheeled toward me.
But too late.
If that was a mistake, it was not bursting the instant it detected me. Thud! My mid-weight slammed into the lightweight. The outcome was obvious. Like the last one, it stiffened momentarily. Bang! I fired the rail cannon, then rammed again as recoil settled. Thud! Only after the second hit did it lurch into motion, trying to escape. It burst desperately in any direction. But at point-blank, my submachine gun roared. Lucky shot—it nailed a booster. Blue flames erupted massively, output plummeting. I unloaded everything into the gap.
Rumble!! The second machine finally detonated in a huge blast, scattering debris mid-air.
Renaissance finally exhaled over comms. They'd done their job—beyond expectations. Never thought they'd hold two at once. I glanced at their battered machine and had a sudden thought.
Did they gang up on the easier target first, planning to triple-team me after?
A sluggish, defense-heavy heavyweight with a thin rifle and a few missiles. Versus a thrust-focused mid-weight with a massive rail cannon on one shoulder. Who looked more threatening?
I mulled it briefly, then shifted to the last remaining enemy—when Renaissance chimed in.
Questioning my sanity even after I saved their ass. I ignored it and began hunting the final one. Now we had the numbers, making it easy to press. Just like the fight's opening.
Ping— The spreading scan pulse caught the enemy lurking behind a building. We pincered it from both sides and unloaded everything. It didn't take long.
Ruuuuumble.... The last machine spewed blue flames and crumbled to ash.
ART COLLECTOR's head swiveled toward my machine. It scanned the dents and damage, then muttered.
We were debriefing, battle seemingly over. I approached the wreckage, scanning for intel.
No cockpit here either, huh.
Another drone. Renaissance followed, noticed, and groaned over comms.
Deeper scan revealed minor electronics salvageable for data. I ran the hacking module and extracted it. Unreadable—highly encrypted. Would need Nest's decryption later. The volume was hefty, though. Too much for mere combat logs or system files. Probably prioritized data collection.
As I checked the debris, radar pinged another signal. I froze.
Figured it was another of the same. Renaissance probably thought so too. But this signal... its strength was way higher. Far beyond anything we'd faced. I swung the camera to ID the approaching blip.
Blue flames streaked from beyond the wall. Distant, but its size dwarfed the previous ones—easily three or four Nexuses combined. Bulging with modules, its silhouette was bulky and intricate. They've got all kinds, I thought. The rain-lashed sky intruder halted above us. This aberrant war machine—a heavy tank or moving fortress—loomed down imperiously.