Fight, fight, fight!

Lady Vex flips off the heads of the nearest ALICE robots, and drives her feet straight through the copper automatons behind them. Her momentum carries forward, nimbly dodging the attacks nearby, and the next time she's airborne, her right arm glows with rings of gold like tattoos up to her shoulder. Before one of the larger golems can fire its cannon, she drives her palm right into the core. The impact is devastating. Shards of metal explode out from behind it, though a moment later, the energy within detonates. Vex is sent tumbling back into the crowd.

"Watch out for the arrows!" Kashura shouts. She's right. In the distance, some of the ALICEs have bows, and they've just fired a volley on your position. However, she throws her wand up, and instead of shouting her usual incantation, she yells, "Greater Ward!" before a spectral barrier manifests across your entire group. The arrows plink off as if hitting solid stone, and then tumble to the ground before the magic dissipates.

Allie looks to her and nods. "Cover me, one more time." Then she darts to the left.

"What--?"

You and Summer fight trough those that come close until you find a large enough window to bolt into the crowd. Sadly, it's far too late to stop the next golem from firing, but it won't dare detonate its attack right in the middle of its own army. Still, it is going to fire back at Summer and Kashura. You dodge forward, though you feel a cold burn as a golem with metal blades spins past your side, cutting just above your hip. You push through it, but just as you get near, the golem fires.

Your hair stands on end. Your eyes widen. In a moment's notice, you Bunny Hop into the air and catch the arcane blast with your ring. It sucks up every last drop of the attack, and at the apex of your jump, you active your magic boots to float back down. Using this, you jump off the heads of the nearest robots, and then shout, "Entangle Blade!" to coat your weapon in the spell.

At one of the larger golem's feet, you slice them open in a dance of a swordsmanship, and as you do, blue tendrils bind them together. It tried to step, but instead falls backwards with a hefty crash. You use this opportunity to leap up onto its body, raise your weapon, and shout, "Flare Blade!" which engulfs your weapon in a fiery pink energy. You can feel it building--your power. With more of your allies present, not only does your morale improve, but your connection to them too. Then you drive Lauo deep into the creature, slicing it up with several attacks on the way down to its bound feet. After leaping way, it detonates just as the last one did.

You nearly bump right into Lady Vex, who is fighting more coming from the other side.

"Fancy seeing you here," she comments before spin-kicking one automaton into another.

"Look out!" you shout.

The ELIS from before crashes into the ground, splintering the tiles with his massive sword. He lands right between the two of you.

"Flare Bolt!" comes a voice from afar. A powerful dart of flames crashes into the ELIS' back. Then, William comes running through, eyes still glowing with a crimson fury. "You're my enemy. Don't you go and challenge Kyle instead."

"... Nice look," you say.

"It isn't optimal," he responds. "I have trouble controlling this powerup. But given the situation--"

"Yeah. Not much choice," says Vex.

You look to the left of the room to see that Allie has leapt all the way up the balcony on that side.

She can't quite reach Serafina with her glaive, though she looks as if she wishes her out of the picture. It's unknown what Serafina is capable of doing, and she likely doesn't want to sit back and find out.

"Get away!" Serafina cries. "You're supposed to be falling in line, just like the others."

"She's merely another defect!" Elok shouts from the opposite side of the room. "Whatever's happening over there, treat her as an enemy."

"You can't reach me anyway. Not quickly enough. Because as soon as I--"

"Cum Beam!" Kashura shouts.

"... What beam?" But it's too late. The attack strikes Serafina's body, and the power is overwhelming. She holds herself, and begins to descend in rapid motions. She tries not to plummet in an instant, but she soars out of control. Her face is flushed, and as much as she's trying not to show what's happening to her body, she finally cries out with a delayed, "Oooohhhhh~!" as her body pulses and quivers.

Allie looks over the room. It looks like she's preparing to do something, but is still hesitant. As tough as she may look, she's clearly struggling with confidence of all things. She's nervous and afraid. ALICEs aren't emotionless machines. At least, not all of them. You still aren't sure how many can be saved, but that may be exactly what's going through her mind--a way to turn the tides.

Speaking of the tides turning, the moment William lunges at the ELIS and the two fight behind you, a sense of dread runs up your spine. Your eyes glance up, but too late as Elok Daven is already floating overhead. Energy rushes down his arms as lightning crackles from his fingertips. An overwhelming about of mana wells up inside him. This is a man who was able to build himself. He knowns how to **** this world's adventurer class system, and that's a terrifying concept. With a grin across his face, he calmly yells, "God's Thunder!"

Not only do the white tiles crack and melt under the pressure and heat of Elok's attack, but you feel your life flash before your eyes--when Breiah kidnapped you. When you were found by Niki. When you met Eva and Amara at the Adventurer's Guild. Fighting giant crabs. Wardrobe malfunctions. All the friends you've met. Your exile. Everything. A beam of pure electricity crashes down upon both you and Lady Vex, and the thunder that follows is deafening. You fly one way, and her the other, and while William managed to be elsewhere, he's still being **** to battle the ELIS alone.

You lay on the ground, singed and winded. Through your blurred vision, you see the shadow of a man floating above. In his hand, a sword of magic materializes. Your ears are ringing, but you slowly become able to hear once more as you **** yourself off the ground before your foe can attempt a killing blow.

Bang! There's a thud against the braced door from where you fist came in.

Vex turns her attention briefly in that direction as she pushes herself up. "What now?" she asks under her breath. Then she throws up her arms, and lets out an audible roar. "You think I'll drop from one attack? Not even close!"

Elok Daven chuckles as energy surges in one hand while he grips his sword in the other. He floats before the tree, looking down at all the debris--scraps of copper and ashes--as well as the three Demon King. You're sandwiched between him and the ELIS--yet another twisted vestige of his image. Serafina is going to take some time to recover, and Breiah continues to watch coldly from the balcony to your right. There's a golem ready to fire nearby, as well as some of the larger constructs surrounding it. Plenty of ALICEs fill the area as well, keeping the few warriors you have more than distracted.

His suit wafts in a breeze created by his own power. "Destroy. Destroy. Destroy. That's all you do. It's no matter. I can rebuild. To be honest, both you and William have surprised me. You've grown more powerful than the experiment originally tested for, yet that only excites me. Just imagine what I can do. What I'll be able to do."

Vex leans in to whisper, "You got a plan?"

"Haa!" William drives his boot into the gut of the ELIS, sending it temporarily away. "Don't drop your guards. We have no idea what sort of spells or other things he's installed into this new body of his. Stay vigila--Ugh. Gah!" He clutches the amulet on his chest. With a sharp inhale, he suddenly tears it from his body, and throws it away. He then takes rapid breaths, and over a mere moment, his increased mass and surging energy disappears. "Damn it. Too much."

"I hope that isn't the only thing you've absorbed," you say.

He smirks. "Not at all."

Guess he did have wings there for a bit. There's no telling what sort of extra abilities he has. He gets them differently then I do.

"The good news is I no longer care about destroying my own lair!" Elok says with another boisterous laugh. "You've already caused such a mess, I might as well go full-out. So then, prepare to burn in sacred fire. Turn to ash beneath my feet. Corny as it is to say, I am the ultimate lifeform now. There's nothing that can--"

With an incredibly loud burst of metal tearing and shattering apart, the door launches off its hinges, even through the bars of solid copper that were holding it closed. It fires off like a bullet, clear across the room, and nearly straight into Elok. He dodges in time, and it hits the tree behind him so hard that it sticks.

Emerging from the doorway is a woman flexing the muscles of her arm. She swings her shield up--one adorned in red gemstones. Then, she slams her masterwork mace against it like a thunderous battle drum. Niki stares with fury in her eyes, completely unaffected by the feat of strength she just accomplished, and she's not alone. The elegant and radiant elf Amara grips her silver staff, and while she has a ways to go when it comes to her confidence aura, her mother would be proud if she were present by the hope she brings, like a beacon of light. And on the other side is an adorable yet powerful mage--Eva, the bunnyfolk. She points her wand forward, posed and ready to cast a spell in a moment's notice.

Eva's mighty chest heaves up even mightier before expelling her lungs in one massive shout. "Kyle!" she calls out your name. Her voice cracks when she does, and her eyes are opened wide. "We're here to kick Elok Daven's pathetic, stupid, ugly, idiotic, evil ass!"

"Aha, now that's what I'm talking about," Niki says with a grin.

Amara laughs awkwardly. "Not quite a hero's speech."

"Nah. Trust me," Niki says. "This is what heroes say."