Choices, choices

John sent Jack and Toph further into the tunnel to make sure there were no enemies nearby before he let Ilis take what she wanted from the droids. He himself looted a few more red and purple crystals from the Langtand along with a trophy. After a few seconds, the sound of conflict arose from up ahead, but before John could rush forward, Toph was rolling the head of one the axe droids towards him like a dung beetle.

+50 exp

Behind Toph, Jack was dragging the twitching metal body of the decapitated droid. The two pets seemed quite happy with themselves as they, one by one, dropped the droid parts in front of John. Toph saluted him with her paw to her snout and Jack stretched at him like a housecat.

“You two are really starting to fight well!” John scratched both of their heads as he praised them. “Ilis, we got another toolbox for you; come get it while it’s still cold!” John called back teasingly to Ilis.

The dwarf in question was using her large wrench to unceremoniously break open the leg of one of the droids, took what looked to be its knee joint and then blinked at him. “Oh, good! I just need one more of these. You can loot those two if you want.”

A few moments later, John had pocketed some scrap metal and one axe, after which they set off again into the dark tunnels ahead.

Wyxeltraxian axe
A mass produced axe created by Forgemaster Troj-Non to be used against the ever increasing Langtand threat. It dulls quickly but it tends to outlive the droid that wields it.

After scouting ahead, hands on weapons, they soon came across a small split in the cave. Going right and seemingly up, the walls of the path were covered in moss, while the opposite side held a steady hallway that seemed to continue going forward. The echoing sounds of metal hitting metal could be heard from this pathway.

John listened for a moment, his hands still on his weapon, as from the path leading towards the hammering a new robot came walking out, axe resting on his shoulder. John quickly signalled his group, and after one whistling arrow, a pitfall appearing below it’s foot and an icy leopard pouncing on him, the droid was totalled.

+50 EXP

“Guess we are going that way. Video game logic tells me that if you head towards enemies, you will eventually find a boss,” the geek turned hunter mumbled as he crouched down slightly and started to move into the tunnel, leaving Ilis to dismember the robot as he and his pets scouted further down the hallway.

It didn’t take long for the trio to feel the heat around them rising. The sound of hammering grew louder by the second as they moved forward meter by meter. Jack panted heavily as he started to shake his fur, the ice elemental part of him clearly uncomfortable in the rising heat of the cave. By the time Ilis had joined them again, they were about to round a corner. John lowered himself to a prone position and peeked around it. By now the heat had become searing, prickling his skin and making it harder for him to breathe. The sound of metal being hammered was so loud, he thought his eardrums would rupture if he got any closer. And then, as his eyes got used to the sudden flash of light in front of him, he saw… It.

A humongous, three story tall robot, with a fire blazing in its stomach the size of a small house, was hammering away at a ludicrously large anvil as smaller droids buzzed around him like flies, working what looked to be a production line. Liquid metal poured out of the large robot’s sides, was caught by the buzzing droids and then used to fill the molds at the production lines spanning the entire cave. As the large conveyor belts worked, John could see new axe droids being assembled in real time. The tools the huge robot was hammering got quenched, sharpened and placed in the freshly born droids’ hands after which the entire process started again. A quick observe told John that he had found his first boss.

John swallowed hard, then motioned with his hands to back off. “We found a boss, but let’s retreat for now. I want to formulate a strategy before we go in there. Just look at Jack, I doubt we will be in for a fun fight if it’s us three versus that production line.”

Ilis and his pets nodded, then as quickly and as quietly as they could, the group retreated to the cooler pathway they had found themselves in just a bit before. When they arrived there, though, they saw a group of Langtands make their way down the tunnel they had originally come from, towards the outside.

John had a brainwave. He gestured for his group to follow and then, with a light tread, moved into the other tunnel. They slowly moved up until, eventually, they found another large cavern. This one, however, was filled to the brim with the crystal carrying creatures and one gigantic and most definitely ugly mesh of pink skin and blue iridescent crystals. Just behind the large creature, John spotted a large stalagmite, the most beautiful gem he had ever seen perched atop of it. The large Langtand seemed to be bowing towards it, giving John a somewhat ominous feeling.

As John cast observe on the large creature, one of the workers seemingly grazed one of the other monsters with its crystals, drawing just the faintest drop of blood. This, however, caused the largest monster to let out an ear piercing scream, making John and his companions flinch as what the observe window told them was a Langtand Queen raised one of her fat legs and squished the offending monster without a second thought.

Trying to get away from the sound, John pressed himself against the wall of the cave. But the small layer of rock and greenery crumbled under his weight, which sent him tumbling into what appeared to be a small offshoot, where a small desk, a sleeping bag and some old beer bottles were scattered around.

While John had Toph erect an earth wall to replace the one that had just been there, after getting everyone to come in, he spotted a yellowed piece of parchment on the desk. Curious, he scanned it. After reading it, however, his eyes started to shine. Handing it to Ilis, he spoke confidently.

“Guys, I think I have a plan.”

“To all of you that read this, greetings, to all of you that don’t read this, greetings as well. Today’s subject is the Langtand Queen. The only female of the Cobalt Mountain’s colony leaders. In all of my time traveling barriers, Earth and all those in between, I have never encountered a creature so hideous, so unlewdable, and yet so remarkably persistent at the same time. While she’d not make a good monster girl, even after a much needed metamorphosis, I still think that she does have some redeeming qualities. The moment you touch one of the few males of her species, or ‘princes’ as I like to call them, the queen goes on a full blown berserk rampage which makes her one of the most dangerous creatures around. While I have failed to find a new waifu, I hope that whoever reads this will not be stupid enough to try and lewd her.
Signed: Omnius Magnari, Harem Connoisseur