CHAPTER 71: THE LAST MAN STANDING WINS

Clayton raced through the Forgotten Atlanta Expanse’s ash-choked wastes, Shedskin’s fungal chitin plates shimmering with adaptive camouflage, thorned vines coiling like a ranger’s cloak.

His Regalia of the Verdant Warden hummed in spear form, Heartseed Core pulsing at 15 Genesis Embers, Aspect Strain moderate.

His Architect rank Aspect, divine-like with a 6,000 Embers cap, thrummed through Shedskin’s enhancements, making him feel protected, and invisible with the stealth affinity sharpening his approach.

Of course, he didn’t rush out alone.

He had his Aphid Network with him, 27 minions now, 4 of them Luminous Seed, the others being 23 Initiate Ember Behemorphs.

Literally, Clayton was a one man army now.

He was a force to be reckoned with. And going to kill the dying Plague Sovereign, he carried all that force with him.

His minions followed him, Veil of Verdant Shroud cloaking their advance, dozens of kilometers from his Rootsite.

Territorial Sentience locked on Ironhold-3’s crater, where the Plague Sovereign’s life flickered, its Verdant Warden nexus cracked, one blow from death.

Greed burned, Core Maw ravenous, Spine Bloom eager.

"God’s crown? Mine!" Clayton growled, humor dark as slag.

The Expanse trembled, Earthcore Nexus’s hunger a dirge.

Clayton never imagined the Plague Sovereign dying. After all, that monster was a force of nature that devoured everything in its path.

Its power was truly profane, but the Behemorph underestimated the might and technology of humans. That was what left it in its current sorry state. Clayton was wise enough to learn from the mistake of the Behemorph.

He would never underestimate any of the factions left of humanity after the descent of the Genesis Protocols.

There were reasons why they survived centuries since the fall.

The Oblivion’s Cascade’s mushroom cloud lingered, 2 kilometers wide, Null Scion shockwave fading, Mycoglyphs silent.

Clayton’s Hive-Sight showed the Plague Sovereign; 57 meters, bioluminescent nexus shattered, tendrils severed, Sporebloom Maws charred, Mycotic Regalia fraying.

Its Reality-Warp Spores sputtered, barely warping time.

Genesis Embers most likely in the hundreds, a Verdant Warden’s bounty, beckoned, pushing his greed over caution.

...

Ironhold-3, Crater’s Edge.

The Ironblood Remnants, Vrenna, Kael Draven, Rhea, Sylas, and 10 survivors crouched in Ironhold-3’s molten ruins, a 3 kilometer crater of slag and ash.

The Oblivion Cascade’s devastation left almost 200 dead, flesh vaporized, Furnace Cores fused to steel, leaving them drained, Aspects nullified by lingering Null Scion shockwaves.

Vrenna’s Ironwrath mech lay wrecked, her Ironclad Resolve Aspect dim, both from her exhaustion and the residual effects of the Null Scion energy integrated into the Oblivion Cascade’s devastation.

Her mechanical arm sparked, blood crusting her crimson vox.

Draven, Aegis Bastion scrapped, Ironveil Aegis spent, leaned on a warped Null Lance, face carved with grief.

Rhea, battered, Piercing Dominion silent, clutched Drayce’s melted Furnace Core shard, his sacrifice ’Live, Rhea...’ a wound deeper than her burns.

Sylas, goggles shattered, vox dead, trembled, his signal to Ironhold-4 their last hope.

The 10 survivors; Null Scions, Corporals huddled under rubble, armor singed, minds broken by the death of over 200 comrades; melted skulls, charred lungs, and shrapnel-torn bodies, leaving deep-rooted traumas like infection in their minds.

But then... through their IOT sensors, they pinged the Plague Sovereign’s flickering life, 500 meters out, and its nexus pulsing weakly.

"...!"

They shuddered.

Vrenna’s eyes widened, terror mixing with rage.

"It’s still alive?!" She rasped, voice cracking; Drayce’s death, Vex’s curse, 200+ sacrifices all for nothing.

Rhea’s fists clenched, blood dripping. "We died for this?" Her voice was barely a whisper, devoid of all energy.

Sylas sobbed, unable to hold it in.

"We’re cursed," A Corporal spat, Null Blade warped, spite fading to fear.

Draven gripped his Lance. "We can’t fight. Evacuate to Ironhold-4".

Commander Draven would not make the same mistake again. The first time, his introverted nature made him stay quiet, leading to the disaster, a decision he still regretted bitterly. He won’t make the same mistake twice.

"Move!" Vrenna barked, rallying the survivors, her mechanical arm shoving a private forward.

They stumbled, dragging wounded, Furnace Cores dead, Earthcore Nexus’s dread choking them.

None of them even contemplated going to end the Plague Sovereign.

They were too weak, too spent to do anything.

Fear and exhaustion outweighed their spite, the Plague Sovereign’s survival a nightmare; 200+ dead, Titanforge Mechs molten, Ironhold-3 a graveyard.

...

Clayton reached the crater’s edge, Shedskin cloaking him, Aphid Network fanning out.

The Plague Sovereign loomed, nexus cracked, tendrils twitching, Sporebloom Maws snapping weakly.

It struggled, Reality-Warp Spores flaring, aging a boulder to dust, but Clayton’s Shedskin resisted, 70% mind/soul defense shielding his Aspect.

He didn’t hesitate.

"Move!" Clayton growled, his emerald eyes dark with malevolent intent.

The Spore Plague Lord led, Toxic Spore Shroud countering spores, Mycotic Tendrils binding a Plague Sovereign tendril.

Spore Husk and Ashbloom Stalker struck, fungal shells and flaming spores scorching the nexus. Spore Crown’s Toxic Veil choked Maws, Initiate Ember minions swarming. The Thorn Hounds gored its flesh, Howl Shriekers leaving its dying mind disoriented, Ash Sprites igniting its flesh, even as the Spore Drifter contained its spores with its cloaks.

Clayton leapt, Regalia’s spear blazing, Core Maw devouring sap, Spine Bloom firing thorns into the nexus.

The Plague Sovereign roared, a tendril grazing Shedskin, 80% physical resistance holding.

Symbiotic Command surged, Aphid Network’s 4 Luminous Seed Behemorphs overwhelming the titan’s weakened core.

And then, Clayton thrust, Regalia piercing the nexus, sap exploding, Mycotic Regalia collapsing.

The Plague Sovereign shuddered, nexus shattering, Embers erupting. 300 Genesis Embers, radiant, flooding Clayton’s Heartseed Core.

DING!

~----~

[Behemorph Slain: Plague Sovereign (Verdant Warden)]

[Genesis Embers Acquired: 300]

[Genesis Embers Total: 315/6000]

[Aspect Strain: Low]

[System Note: Architect Aspect Enhanced – Core Maw Efficiency +10%, Symbiotic Command Range +15%.]

~----~

"God’s crown, claimed," Clayton grinned, Verdant Lord form radiant, roots pulsing, Shedskin glowing with Embers.

...

[Ok..., that’s that. ’What a battle!’ Is what I’d say lol. I truly enjoyed this part of the arc, hope you guys enjoyed it too. If you did, this is another reminder to support the book by writing reviews, voting with your power stones, and Golden tickets too. Special shout out to Goodmorning2U2, thanks for all the golden tickets last month man.]

[I just wish my final year in school, exams, and stuff aren’t restricting my writing time that much.]