Machina Arcanis: Two Worlds Collided
Chapter 183. Cut The Head of The Snake

As the trio rounded the corner, a group of Armatus knights stood guard at the steel door. One of them was clearly a gold knight, distinguished by the golden nametag on his chestplate. There was no mistaking it now; the auditorium must be beyond that double door, which meant Rhok Wagner and Picco must have held their summit broadcast here.

“Ready to attack?” Jovian snapped his head to the side.

“Ready,” Lupus whispered, and Ziyue nodded once.

With swift motion, Jovian crept up towards the ceiling. Simultaneously, Lupus and Ziyue rushed the knights below.

Purple flame erupted from Jovian's blade as he shadow-stepped behind a guard. Immediately, all the knights snapped their heads toward him.

“What the!?” a knight exclaimed just as Jovian cut him down.

Another knight screamed, swinging his fist blindly at Jovian. He ducked, and the air swing carried the knight off balance.

A different knight reached for his comm, but a kunai sliced through the air and struck his gauntlet.

“ARRRH! BLOODY HELL!!”

His agonised cry rang out just before Jovian severed his head.

Once more, Ziyue unleashed a barrage of razor-sharp kunai. Terrifying screams echoed through the corridor, like the wailing of the dead.

Boots stomped erratically across the floor. Punches and kicks flew in every direction, striking only air. The attacking elites were untouchable.

Purple light slashed through the air. The loud, grating screech of metal being torn apart rang out.

Lupus leapt into the fray, driving a kick into the nearest foe before spinning into a bone-crunching swing at another.

Only a few minutes had passed, but terror and chaos already filled the atmosphere. This could not be considered a fair fight, more like a precise slaughter.

The furthest knight frantically twisted his arm, toggling his cannon at Lupus. A blurry mass hopped from wall to wall. He aimed and—

A metal-clad boot swung with full force into his cannon. The impact broke his arm, twisting it at an unnatural angle.

“AH—!” He tried to scream, but another kick connected with his stomach, lurching his body backward into the solid wall. He dropped to the floor, a smear of blood marking the wall where he hit.

One by one, the bodies fell, until only silence remained.

“Let’s go, ladies!” Jovian ordered, placing both hands on the double door.

“Magnetos!” He chanted, and a massive force field exploded outwards. The metal doors blew off their hinges, crashing down with a deafening clang.

“We’ll try to accommodate—” Picco’s jaw dropped mid-speech as he flinched at the intrusion.

Half a hundred heads turned toward them, their faces as white as sheets. The description of the room, walls, curtains, and tables, clearly matched the one from the broadcast.

Lupus singled out the man in the dark armour immediately. She growled, “He’s mine!”

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The Tabit civilians scrambled away in terror as the assault team ran down the narrow aisles, converging to the centre of the stage.

“Weapons hot! Kill them!” the man in the dark armour bellowed, his cannon whirring with energy.

Ziyue bounced off the wall, dodging the suppressive fire. Screams and blasts echoed in a cacophony of mayhem. Ash, smoke, and wood splinters flew across the chamber. Ziyue dodged another blast, spinning in the air.

As she landed on her knee, a kunai shot out. It whizzed through the air and struck a knight in the throat. His body slumped forward.

Sprinkles rained down automonically, the fire alarm blared, which added to the madness.

From the corner of her eye, another stray shot streaked towards her. In a near-instant, Ziyue raised her dagger. The blade shrieked as it deflected the blast, but the residual energy struck a female civilian.

“AHHH!” the woman wailed in agony. Blood spilled from her stomach before she fell, crashing into the lighting equipment.

“Nnnnn!” Ziyue groaned in her throat, exasperated. Her legs kicked off the floor as she launched herself at the enemies.

In the middle of the chaos, a barrage of shots hailed on Lupus. She clicked her arc boots together. “Phoros!”

The arcane barrier engulfed her, stopping the rain drops mid-air and absorbing the enemies’ blasts.

“RHOK WAGNER!” she screamed, arc boot slammed the floor. She shifted into a hazy figure, bouncing at a table and landed on the stage.

Two gold knights blocked her way, they rapid fired. She dodged them all with her lightning-fast agility.

“BLOODY HELL!” one knight screamed, swinging his fist at Lupus.

She twisted her body, channelling the centrifugal power into her leg. The powerful kick connected with the side of the knight, sending him crashing into his comrade. They tumbled into each other before colliding with the wall. His armour moulded into the shape of her arc boot; his ribs were tenderised. Death reaped his soul.

Coldly, Lupus stomped toward her nemesis, Platinum Knight Rhok Wagner. Fury swirled around her like a plague.

Red and dark hues shifted across her face. Sprinkling water soaked her hood and silver hair.

Rhok triggered his cannon, and Lupus evaded. He tried again, but only smoke sputtered out — it had overheated from continuous, rapid discharge.

Even with his helmet on, Lupus could see the profound fear in his movements.

Rhok scrambled backwards.

“Please!” he bellowed through his helmet, his back slamming against the wall.

“Die,” Lupus muttered, sweeping his legs out from under him.

He heaved as his body hit the floor with a loud thud. He raised his arms as if to surrender. But without hesitation, Lupus stomped on his chest.

A satisfying crunch echoed as his armour plates caved in. A weak, shallow puff of air escaped his lips.

And that was it. The room fell into silence. No fire alarm, no ruckus, nothing.

All Lupus felt was the numbness in her heart, the weight of unresolved vengeance, and the cold water trailing down her cheeks.

In the background, Jovian and Ziyue had successfully eliminated every person who could fight back, leaving only the terrified, soundless civilians.

“Ahhhh!” The high-pitched shriek erupted in the distance. It seemed some people desperately crouched toward the exit only to find out more carnage.

“Any sign of Ignius?” Jovian sent a signal through his ring after a few minutes.

The message came back. “Our section is all clear, sir. No sign of him.”

“No, nothing from the other team either,” Ziyue replied, grinding her teeth.

Noticing that Lupus stood in the pool of blood, her foot still stuck inside the cavity she had made. Jovian joined her at her side and cupped her shoulder. “He’s dead, Lupus.”

“No… This is too easy,” Lupus muttered, dissatisfied.

“What do you mean?” Jovian asked, sweeping his eyes over the destruction and corpses. The bald Grand Abbot lay dead, his back soaked with blood and fire water. The people watched them in horror, and some covered their heads low.

Eventually, Lupus pulled her bloody boot from the corpse and walked around it. She yanked the helmet off; her hunch was correct.

It was not Rhok at all, just some random man in Rhok’s armour.

“We got played…” Ziyue gasped, her lips parted. “What should we do!? Where are they!?” She turned to ask Jovian with her trembling voice. He remained relatively unfazed.

“I know now,” Jovian grumbled, beaming a hologram into the air.

“This is Admiral Sandria Meinhardt of Zeigerlich requesting emergency backups from the Solis Aeternum’s flagship, The Yamamoto! I repeat…” The voice rang out from one of his hacked comms — one from a Solis Aeternum battlecruiser, stationed at the northern border of Thylin.