66. Clash of the titans

They emerge back in a new part of the facility, a large open room surrounding a teleportation pad. The sheets of sacristan shielding lay to one side. Several servitors lay crushed and broken against the walls, but where the servitor Marius had reprogramed, there was no sign. Opposite, huge double doors lay broken off their hinges. To the back of the room, almost forgotten, a console. Nox made straight for the console. Besides being the final step for datasphere-created items, it seemed this area was also an input for raw materials back into the datasphere - digital dock. It could be used to transport human, but without all the safety of a transport system, it would be a risky one way trip.
 
A place like this could be a real benefit, or a real threat if in the shard’s metalic appendages. She was part way through trying to work out how to lock the Shard out of the console the noises started. Echoing up the hallways through the broken door, it was the clear smashing of metal against metal.
“I think we know where Fred is,” Marius said and started jogging for the door.
“Fred? Is that your automaton’s name?” Nox asked from behind the console.
“Either that or Winifred… and then it’s still Fred,” Marius shrugged and with Fureva-Yung, disappeared into the hallway.
 
Ahead of them, a second set of double doors were knocked aside, revealing a room where two ten-foot-tall automatons smashed into each other. They looked identical, and as he watched, Marius could not tell which one was Fred.
“Ah! I order you to just take a defensive stance!” He yelled at the two robots. For a moment, it was hard to tell if either of them had paid attention to him. The one on the left had drawn its arms tight into its body shell and was no longer trying to land blows, while the one on the right continued to pound on its competitor. Suddenly, a beam of pure energy lashed out from the other side of the robot, striking the one now standing still. Small skitters climbed along the wall, dropping down on the unaware Titan. That had to be their machine!
 
Running into the battle, Fureva-Yung leapt up and knocked the Skitter off of Fred before landing in the midst of the shooters on the other side of the room. At least, that’s what she intended to do. She did leap up, missed the skitter and instead crashed into Fred, knocking them both prone before two bipedal warrior automatons.
 
“That looks like a good place for your heat ray, “Jaden advised Marius, and he sent a bolt of white-hot plasma to the weak spot of the enemy Titan. It missed, but now Marius knew where to strike.
 
Fred rose from the floor, swinging its massive metal fist and hitting the enemy. The other titan, swung back, but with Fred still rising from the ground, missed, swinging over Fred’s metal head. Behind the titan battle, vent covers fell from the roof and a skitter fell to the ground sending out a pulse of energy. The warrior automatons, one arm a long blade, the other an energy cannon, blasted beams at Fred and Fureva-Yung.
 
Fureva-Yung rolled away from the attack on her and got to her feet. As she feared, she could see the skitter on Fred tearing away at the seems in Fred’s armour, trying to break or turn him. She also saw, hiding in the darkness of the roof further into the room, two other skitters, watching and waiting. Dropping her chain off her shoulder, Fureva-Yung ran at the two warriors, spinning the chain like a whirlwind around her. She splattered a skitter to small metal chunks, hit the two warriors and narrowly missed the enemy Titan.
 
Marius now moved in on the Titan. He hit the automaton, but the heat rays didn’t do their full effect, the heavy armour absorbing most of the damage.
“Hey! Pay attention to me!”
The two Titan swung together, a deadly dance of mechanism and steel. This time, Fred missed the hit and the enemy’s fist went through leaving a serious dent into Fred’s side.
 
From the vent, a new figure entered the battle. Not an automaton, but a large burly humanoid. Dropping down on one of the warriors, he used grappled it and swung it into its companion like a makeshift club. The two warriors turned their weapons on their organic opponents. The first hit the humanoid, burning a hole in his side and making him flinch back. The second shot and hit Fureva-Yung who resisted and absorbed the energy, brushing it aside.
“This one is our friend!” Marius called out in broken Ferrian, pointing at Fred hoping the new guy was who he thought he was.
 
One of the two skitters watching from the room ran across and dropped down on Fred. Furev-Yung grappled the second warrior and tried to train its energy cannon on the skitter. Unfortunately, the warrior would not comply and the shot went wide. Marius had more luck against the Titan. His heat ray found its target.
“I’m over here! Pay attention to me!” He shouted and this time the Titan slowly turned his his direction. The giant metal fist rocketed towards him. He rolled away, leaping back to his feet and a manic grin spread across Marius’ face. From the depths of his jacket, he pulled out a small bomb he’d made earlier.
 
The long looked-for Critinous Torn, swung his warrior automaton like a club into the ground. Fureva-Yung’s warrior swung out its blade and tried to stab her in the side, but she was too fast and stepped aside. Above their head, the skitter started bending back the armour on Fred. Fureva-yung tried again to use the energy cannon and succeeded in hitting the skitter. A small handheld bomb rolled towards them. Critinous was pushed back by the blast, te two warriors damage as was the meddlesome skitter. The titan on Marius, though, absorbed the damage and stepped towards him. It’s open hand wide, grabbed for Marius who expertly vaulted over the hand, landed and sent another heat ray at the Titan. Critinous, now furious, started tearing armour from the warrior, pulling strips of metal from the automaton until it finally fell limp and lifeless to the ground. Fureva-Yung’s warrior overreached, trying to stab her with its sword. With leverage in her favour, she tore the energy cannon arm from the warrior and was disappointed when the cannon’s lights went dark.
 
Marius was still dodging around the enemy titan’s feet when he launched another heat ray at its delicate underbelly. This time, however,the titan was ready and clamped Marius' outstretched arm in its metal vices of a hand, pulling him off his feet. With its free hand, it tried punching Marius, but he deftly flipped around, avoiding the hit. Still, with the titan focused on Marius, Fred had free reign to attack, his fists clanging loudly against the titan’s heavy armour.
 
From the remains of the warrior he’d dismantled, he pulled the blade arm. Now equipt with a weapon that worked, he launched into an attack against the titan in earnest. Jaden had been watching the last skitter hanging from the roof. When it looked like it was getting involved, she pulled out a piece of io and blasted in a black smudge against the ceiling tiles. Fureva-Yung’s warrior, now cannon down, reached out and stabbed with its blade arm. Fureva-yung parried away with the warriors own useless cannon arm.
 
In the first room, Nox was hearing all the fighting.
Are you breaking my new toy?
I’m trying not too! Marius replied as the titan swung again at his new mini punching bag. Leaving the console, Nox flew down the hall landing on the enemy titan. She connected with the cold metal mind and somewhere deep inside, a piece of the shard.
 
On the otherside of the room Fureva Yung was annoyed at losing power to the energy canon. She tried plugging it back in, but the warrior resisted, bring its blade arm in defence. Now really man, Fureva-Yung simply ripped the blade arm off the warrior and now had a sword with which to fight. Marius swung wildly from the enemy titan’s clawed fist. When a punch missed again, Marius used his momentum to swing up onto the clawed hand that held him. Fred swung for the titan, saw Marius crouched on the titan’s fist and stopped his attack.
“Oops!” He cried and shrugged one armed at Fred.
On the ground Critinous was fighting the armless warrior as it tried headbutting Fureva-Yung, missing the deceptively fast mover. Nox sitting on the titan was trying to determine how it worked. Though the automaton was not made to be turned off, it did have inside a tiny datasphere that held all its memories and programs. If she could just get in there… Marius aimed his heat ray directly for the head of the titan and blasted through. The titan stumbled and finally fell, pinning Marius to the ground. The datasphere inside the titan flickered and died and Nox gave a howl of complaint.
“Hey! That was my robot!” She yelled at the prone and pinned Marius.
“Ah! Little help?”
 
With a twist of her new blade, Fureva-Yung tore the sword through the body of the warrior and it finally fell over in two pieces. Her enemy finally vanquished she, Critinous and Fred all chipped in and pulled the dead weight of the titan off Marius.
“Hey! That was great!” Marius leapt to his feet, barely a scratch on him, looking like he was ready for more fighting.
“We could have had two robots,” Grumbled Nox.
“What was that?” Marius turned and confronted Nox.
“Just messing with you,” She replied and tripped away Fureva-Yung’s side.
 
Jaden was investigating Fred, particularly with the thought of retrofitting Sacristan shielding to their working parts. Marius, now warmed up and with no one to fight, too his energy out in scavenging the titan. Fureva-Yung walked over to her old companion and held out a hand.
“Critinous, it is good to see you again.”
“As it is to see you, “ Critinous took Fureva-Yung’s hand in friendship, “This lot arrived a week ago. They’ve been hunting for me ever since, but I have a few safe places they haven’t found yet.”
“You have done well alone.”
“Ah, I remember all my basic training. I think this was once a power support for the main spire.” Critinous explained as Nox tried to heal the cut in his side. It didn’t go so well and Nox slunk away embarrassed.
“My crew usually competent,” Fureva-Yung said to her old friend.
Nox punched Fureva-Yung who felt it not at all, “We found the third sion!”
“Yes we have,” Fureva-Yung explained to Critinous, “Trask is back at the tower. He was held prisoners for much of his time and was lucky to survive. You have fared better, my friend.”
 
Fureva-Yung was careful to grab a small piece of the enemy titan’s armour as a trophy for her chain. When Marius had finished stripping the titan for rare and useful io and the remains of the two warriors were strapped to the back of Fred, the group followed Critinous back through the facility to an elevator. Above a collection of the energy fluid hung, suspended in its force field. The elevator shaft ran through the fluid to the floor of the room they were now entering. To one side, two skitters wrenched and tore at a black cube on the floor.
 
To be continued…