Vortex Origins
Chapter 85: The Third creature wave - 3

Chapter 85: The Third creature wave - 3

The ground shook as the horde closed in—no more time left.

Max’s glove twitched.

Metal shifted. Thin streams of nanobots rippled across his skin, crawling like liquid silver. The sound was faint—mechanical clicks and low pulses—as the swarm of machines formed plates over his body. One by one, they locked into place.

A suit was born.

His grin widened.

"Finally... whole again."

The last of the bots covered his head. A black visor sealed shut, reflecting the flood of creatures charging toward him.

Then came the change.

Four mechanical limbs unfolded behind his back. Sharp, clawed, flexible—like predator arms forged from steel. Blue light gathered in both palms. The beams spun, spiraling into twin orbs.

Then—

He fired.

The blast tore through the field like a scythe through grain. A searing line of blue wiped out everything in its path. No blood. No screams. Just silence where bodies used to be.

Kael watched from above. A short laugh slipped from his lips.

"Nice. Looks like you’ve got it handled."

Then his gaze shifted forward. Past the smoke. Past the broken field.

Something was walking through the fire.

It stood taller than a man, its limbs stretched unnaturally long. The skin—dark brown, bark-like—split in places where muscle shouldn’t be. Its skull resembled that of a deer, long antlers branching out like withered trees. A tattered cloth floated around its waist, untouched by the chaos around it, moving as if it swam through water. But the worst part...

Its stomach breathed.

The flesh split, revealing rows of jagged teeth where a belly should be. A mouth that should never exist.

And in its hand, it held a lantern—glowing with golden flame.

Kael’s eyes narrowed.

"Lantern Maw."

He floated forward.

"That one’s mine."

Suddenly, Something moved—fast.

A hand lashed out from the smoke, wide as a boulder.

Kael twisted midair, barely slipping past its reach. The claws grazed his side.

"Damn."

he floated higher.

"Didn’t see that one."

It stepped into view.

Taller than Lantern Maw. Muscles rippling under gray, pulsing skin. No tricks, no fire, no twisted mouths. Just a single, burning red eye—and strength. Pure, brutal strength.

Its veins bulged, black and angry, like the creature was too strong for its own body.

Kael stared at it and swallowed.

"One punch from that thing... and I’m dead."

His eyes darted to the wall behind him.

’If that monster reached the settlement...’

He didn’t finish the thought.

The thing lunged again.

Kael shot upward in a burst of fire.

A sudden blast struck the creature’s chest—pushing it back a step.

Kael turned.

Max stood beneath him, smoke trailing from his glove.

"Go. Lantern Maw’s yours. I’ll handle this one."

Kael didn’t argue. He grinned and launched himself toward his chosen prey.

Behind him, Max turned to Ash.

Ash’s blade sliced low, cutting through a willow’s leg. He pivoted, drove the blade into its ribs.

The creature’s whisper was barely a breath.

"Ashley..."

Then it fell. Lifeless.

A faint flicker passed through Ash’s mind.

"[Gained 10 Soul energy points]"

He wiped the blood from his cheek.

’Why are they always say my name?’

Before the thought settled, Max’s voice cut through the noise.

"Ash!"

Ash turned, just as Max blasted another monster apart with a wave of light.

Max looked at him and nodded.

"I’m taking on the other Tier Five. Try not to die. Protect the wall."

He turned to go—then paused, glancing back one more time.

"Oh... and you won’t be alone."

With a roar of flame, Max shot into the air and vanished into the smoke.

Ash blinked.

"Not alone?"

Then the earth rumbled behind him.

The moose-like beast lumbered toward Ash, each step shaking the cracked earth beneath it.

Ash shifted his stance, sword low, eyes fixed on the thing’s warped antlers. He tightened his grip. The creature was almost on him.

Then—Something crashed down between them.

Dust exploded outward. Ash shielded his eyes, heart pounding.

’What the hell just landed?’

The smoke thinned.

A figure stood between him and the monster. Tall. Armored. Built like a war god from steel and circuits. Twice his height. Its silver body gleamed with scorched plating and hard lines, like every part had been reforged again and again. Not a single wasted edge.

Ash stared, unmoving.

The machine tilted its head toward him. Its face was blank—just a black visor. For a moment, nothing.

Then... two blue lights blinked into life. A soft line curved below them, almost like a grin.

Ash’s mouth opened slightly.

’What?’

The bot raised its hand... and waved.

Ash dropped his stance. His brow furrowed.

’What is this thing...?’

Before he could move, the beast behind the bot slammed its hooved limbs into its back.

The bot didn’t flinch. Didn’t move.

Its head turned first. Then the rest of its body followed, precise and smooth. It reached out, grabbed the moose-creature by the skull—and hurled it like a sack of bones. As it flew, a cannon hidden in the bot’s arm flared to life. A beam of light carved through the air and vaporized the beast mid-spin.

Silence.

For a second, everything around Ash went still.

The nearby creatures hesitated. Their heads turned toward the moose’s smoking corpse. They blinked. Then... they charged again.

Ash gritted his teeth.

"One bot isn’t going to stop them all..."

But the machine raised its arm—and pointed upward.

Ash followed the motion.

Above, shadows rained from the sky. One after another. Dozens. More figures slammed into the dirt around him. The ground trembled with every impact.

When the dust cleared, they stood tall.

Identical bots. Silent. Armored. Blue eyes glowing.

Ash’s jaw tightened.

"How... when did Max even build all of this...?"

He didn’t have time to wonder.

The machines stepped forward as one.

And the battle began again.

The creatures reached the line of bots.

They struck like a tide—screeching, clawing, snarling. Mutated limbs and gaping maws slammed into steel bodies.

The bots didn’t flinch.

One stepped forward. Its arm shifted mid-motion, snapping into a bladed spear. In one sweep, it gutted a leaping beast, then spun and drove the blade through the skull of another. Blood sprayed, black and steaming.

Another bot raised both arms. Compartments opened in its forearms—rotating cannons locked into place. With a deep hum, they lit up the night. Blue light carved through the horde like scissors through paper.

Limbs flew.

Heads rolled.

One of the moose like creatures, all muscle and bone, lunged at a bot from the side.

The machine caught it mid-air.

Fingers clenched.

The creature screamed as its ribcage cracked under the pressure. Then—snap.

It crumpled.

Ash watched from behind the line, unmoving. His blade was still in hand, blood drying on the edge, but now his grip loosened.

He wasn’t needed yet.

These things—Max’s machines—were holding the line better than any wall.

Ash stepped forward slowly, eyes scanning the chaos.

A bot nearby had lost an arm. One of the creatures—fast, with spiked legs and glassy skin—pounced on it, jaws wide. The machine leaned back, then drove its knee into the creature’s chest. The impact crushed its torso like wet wood.

Another grabbed a flaming beast by the throat and simply crushed the fire out of it.

Ash exhaled slowly.

"They fight like us..."

He muttered, more to himself than anything.

"No... better."

The machines moved in sync. No panic. No hesitation. No wasted motion.

Ash’s heart beat faster—not with fear, but something colder.

Ash had seen Max tinker for years, but this... this was a goddamn army.

’When? How? Where had he even gotten the parts?’

The battlefield was lit with flashes of blue light and roaring fire. Between it all, the bots stood like statues of war, cutting down monsters with terrifying ease.

Ash lowered his blade.

’I guess i’m not actually needed here, both max and kael got it covered’

He turned heading to the wall

He wasn’t giving up. He would fight again.

But not here... this was their stage.