CHAPTER 69: IRONHOLD’S LAST STAND [2]

The Plague Sovereign towered over Ironhold-3, a 57 meter fungal titan, its bioluminescent nexus pulsing with alien wrath, Mycotic Regalia spore shroud warping reality into flickering mirages of decayed worlds.

Tendrils thick as spires, tipped with Sporebloom Maws, devoured steel, Reality-Warp Spores twisting time, aging walls to dust.

Even among Verdant Warden rank Behemorphs, this Plague Sovereign was a nightmare, radiating unmatched dominion among its Crown Type, Earthcore Nexus recoiling in dread of its passage.

The Ironblood Remnants’ last stand began.

Five Titanforge Mechs erupted from the shattered command spire: Vrenna in Ironwrath, fueled by her Ironclad Resolve Aspect, Kael Draven in Aegist Bastion with his Ironveil Aegis Aspect, Vex in Bladestorm with her Nullstrike Precision, Drayce in Pyreclad with his Furnace Core, and Rhea in Lancebreaker with her Piercing Dominion Aspect.

Their Aspects, amplified by Genesis Amplifiers burned defiance, but the Plague Sovereign was death incarnate.

It was always a desperate last stand.

But it didn’t matter.

They won’t stop. They won’t hesitate. And it was too late to retreat, so they only had one decision to make.

Forge forward and fight to the death!

WHOOSH!

The mechs charged, Ironwrath’s fists, reinforced by Vrenna’s Ironclad Resolve smashing a tendril, fungal sap spraying, scorching steel.

Draven’s Aegis Bastion raised shimmering barriers, deflecting Sporebloom Maw bites, Ironveil Aegis straining against the might of his impossible opponent.

Vex’s Bladestorm spun, blades slicing tendrils, Nullstrike Precision carving gashes in the nexus, bioluminescent veins dimming.

Drayce’s Pyreclad unleashed plasma vents, Furnace Core igniting spores, a 50-meter flame wall scorching the Plague Sovereign’s flank.

Rhea’s Lancebreaker thrust lances, Piercing Dominion piercing the nexus, sap exploding, a wound deep enough to stagger the titan.

She may be just Initiate Ember, but with a Titanforge Mech, and her lethal Luminous Seed rank Aspect, Rhea was a menace in battle.

The Plague Sovereign roared; a wet, cosmic bellow that left Mycoglyphs shattering, Nexus pulsing in terror.

It struck back.

A tendril swarm crushed Ironhold-3’s outer bay, killing 10 more Ironblood, their Furnace Cores detonating, bodies liquefied by Reality-Warp Spores.

The death toll, already 52 from the initial assault climbed to 62, screams drowned in spore clouds, soldiers dissolving; flesh to sludge, bones to ash.

Survivors collapsed, fear breaking minds, a private’s eyes vacant as his squadmate’s skull melted mid-cry.

Even as others collapsed, others stood their ground still, fueled by spite.

The Human heart is filled with fear, but also with innumerable depths of hatred and spite, spite that humans can tap into for power in times of desperate need, or in the face of death.

That time was now.

Fueled by spite, a Corporal’s Null Lance fired uselessly as he cursed. "Burn, you fungal bastard!"

His curse was lost in the chaos, but his spite burned still, unquenched.

The Plague Sovereign targeted Lancebreaker.

A Sporebloom Maw clamped Rhea’s mech, lances snapping, Genesis Amplifer sparking, Piercing Dominion faltering in the face of a superior power.

Tendrils coiled, crushing Lancebreaker’s chest, steel buckling, Rhea’s scream crackling through vox.

Drayce roared, Pyreclad diving, plasma vents igniting, burning the tendril.

"Rhea, hold on!" He roared even as his Furnace Core flared, Pyreclad’s arms tearing the Maw, freeing Lancebreaker.

But a second tendril struck, piercing Pyreclad’s core, Reality-Warp Spores flooding the cockpit, devouring its inhabitant.

Drayce’s Furnace Core detonated, plasma scorching his flesh, his vox carrying a final whisper. "Live, Rhea..."

Those were his final words, barely a whisper before Pyreclad exploded, shrapnel raining, his body incinerated, Embers swallowed by spores.

Just like that, an Ironblood Captain died.

Silence.

For a moment, time seemed to pause.

Rhea, ejected from Lancebreaker’s wreckage, collapsed, blood streaming, her silent resolve shattered.

"Drayce!" She screamed, voice raw, memories flooding her head.

From his laugh in Bastion-7’s forge, his hand steadying hers in training, to the mission to take down the Verdant Lord, his sacrifice now a wound deeper than spores. Rhea literally died standing, staring at the remains, or lack of remains of her direct superior. Her Captain.

Vrenna’s mechanical arm trembled, her vox silent, Drayce’s death a gut-punch to her zeal, their 20-year mentor and brother bond suddenly severed.

The Ironblood faltered, 20 soldiers cowering, fear outweighing spite, while 15 rallied still, Null Blades swinging, their curses futile.

The Plague Sovereign pressed, Sporebloom Maws snapping, Reality-Warp Spores aging Bladestorm’s steel.

Vex cursed, Nullstrike Precision driving blades into a tendril, sap spraying, but a Maw crushed Bladestorm’s legs, cockpit imploding.

"Die screaming, you fungal sh*t!" She spat, her vox crackling, gray eyes blazing spite as spores flooded inside her mech, dissolving her flesh, her Nullstrike Aspect fading.

Her Genesis Embers erupted. 12, radiant, but lost to the storm.

And just like that, another Ironblood Captain was dead.

"...!" Desperation, rage, and fear lingered like an infection.

The death toll hit 74, Ironblood breaking.

10 collapsed, sobbing, minds fractured. They could not deal with it, the fear, the death, the blood, the smell of burnt flesh, the trauma.

12 others fought still, spite their only flame, Null Lances sparking.

Vrenna and Draven stood alone, Ironwrath’s fists battered, Aegis Bastion’s barriers cracking. A tendril grazed Ironwrath, Vrenna’s Ironclad Resolve holding, her mech’s armor dented, Genesis Amplifier flickering.

Draven’s Ironveil Aegis summoned a final barrier, deflecting a Sporebloom Maw, but spores corroded his mech’s joints, servos screaming.

They fought desperately, Ironwrath smashing tendrils, Aegis Bastion shielding, but the Plague Sovereign’s nexus pulsed, unyielding, its wounds deep; gashed tendrils and a scorched nexus, but it was not enough.

Death loomed, seconds away, Vreanna’s vox roaring. "For Ironblood!"

Draven’s barriers faded, their Aspects burning out.

While all this happened, death looming like a Divine decree, Sylas, in the spire’s rubble, goggles cracked, patched his vox, signal piercing Earthcore Nexus interference.

"Ironhold-4! Airstrike, now!"

"Oblivion Cascade! All you’ve got!"

Ironhold-4’s response crackled. "Confirmed. Launching".

They’ve received news of the Verdant Warden rampaging since. And now, receiving the airstrike signal, they didn’t hesitate.

A missile silo opened, 50 kilometers away, the Oblivion Cascade, a Genesis-fueled warhead, designed to kill high-ranked Behemorphs roaring skyward, its arc a blazing promise of ruin, Ironhold-3’s fate hanging as the Plague Sovereign’s tendrils reared...