The elevator shuddered as it descended, ancient gears grinding against rusted metal. The deeper they went, the more the temperature dropped, thickening the air with something unnatural. Dust and age alone didn't make the descent feel heavy—it was the energy, the raw power pulsing from below, as if the very walls of Solmara still remembered the war it was built to fight.
Elias stood at the front, watching as the dim golden veins pulsed across the cavern walls, faint at first, then growing stronger the deeper they went. It was unlike anything he had seen in this world—a mix of technology and magic, seamlessly fused together into something far ahead of its time.
"This feels wrong," Ivy muttered, adjusting the grip on her bow. Her sharp gaze flicked between the shifting patterns along the walls. "I don't like it."
Lira scoffed, arms crossed. "I don't think we've liked anything we've done so far, Ivy. And yet, here we are."
Cecilia smirked, twirling a dagger between her fingers. "Admit it, you love this kind of danger."
Lira rolled her eyes. "I tolerate it."
Marco, standing near the elevator's control panel, was scanning the floating warning glyphs appearing along the walls. His frown deepened with each new rune. "This is… a failsafe system. The deeper we go, the stronger the security layers get. It's meant to keep people out."
Elias didn't hesitate. "Then we're going in."
Kierian's glowing eyes studied the cavern ahead. "Be careful what you wish for, engineer. The Core was designed to test the strongest warriors of the Vanguard. It won't just let us take it."
A deep, mechanical rumble echoed through the space as the elevator reached the bottom. The platform jerked, slowing to a stop before the entrance of a massive underground chamber.
The first thing they saw was the door.
It wasn't just a door—it was a colossal vault gate, stretching almost thirty feet high, covered in intricate golden engravings, runes flickering like dying embers. In the center, a glowing sigil pulsed, feeding energy into the cavern itself.
And standing before it—were the guardians.
The moment the elevator stopped, the constructs activated, their massive frames shifting from dormancy to full combat stance. Unlike the sentinels Elias had reawakened earlier, these ones were built for war—thicker plating, weapons fused into their arms, energy cores pulsing with ancient magic.
Elias's mind raced as he scanned them through his gauntlet's interface. Battle constructs. Full defense models. No weaknesses visible.
Reinhardt cracked his neck, slamming his gauntleted fists together. "Alright, then. I was just thinking we needed a warm-up."
Lira groaned. "You always think we need a warm-up."
Cecilia smirked. "Good thing we're getting one, then."
The first construct moved, its heavy frame shifting faster than it should have. Its golden eyes locked onto Elias, scanning him for threat level classification.
Then, with a sudden burst of energy, it charged.
Elias barely had time to react before a massive fist swung down, aiming to crush him where he stood. He threw himself to the side, the impact shattering the stone beneath his feet. Dust and debris exploded outward, forcing everyone to scatter.
"Fast! Too fast!" Marco yelled, ducking behind a broken column. "These aren't like the sentinels above!"
Elias's exosuit hummed, the kinetic absorbers compensating for the near-hit. He rolled into position, scanning the weak points as the other constructs activated, moving in perfect synchronization.
"They're not just guards," Elias muttered under his breath. "They're battle-calibrated AI. They're reading our movements!"
Kierian had already drawn his blade, standing perfectly still as the first construct turned toward him. "Then we stop hesitating. We move."
Reinhardt roared, slamming his fist into the nearest construct, the impact cracking metal, but not breaking it. The machine barely faltered before swinging back. He caught the hit with his armored forearms, skidding backward but unshaken. "Alright! That's some serious plating!"
Cecilia weaved between the constructs, looking for gaps in their defenses, but each time she struck, barrier fields activated, absorbing the impact. "Elias, tell me you've got a plan, because I'm not making a dent in these things!"
Elias's mind raced, running through every design spec he had studied so far. These constructs weren't just enchanted armor—they were running on the same energy source as the Vanguard Core itself.
And if they were connected to it…
A plan clicked into place.
"Marco!" Elias shouted. "Can you trace the energy relay lines?"
Marco blinked, then quickly pulled up his scanner. "You think they're networked?"
Elias was already moving. "They're running off the same power grid—which means if we shut down the source, we shut them down!"
Lira dodged another swiping arm, daggers barely scraping against reinforced plating. "Great! And how exactly do we do that?"
Elias pointed at the vault door, specifically at the glowing sigil in the center. "That glyph—it's stabilizing the Core's containment field! If we overload it, we might be able to force a system reset!"
Marco was already moving, sprinting toward the main console. "I really hope you're right about this!"
The constructs shifted tactics, realizing their target had changed. Two of them turned toward Marco, their weapons charging with radiant energy.
Ivy's arrow struck first.
The moment the constructs moved, she released a charged shot, her arrow slicing through the air with unerring precision. It struck one of the guardian's optical sensors, momentarily blinding it.
"Move, Marco!" Ivy called, already knocking another arrow.
Cecilia flashed forward, daggers drawn, slicing at the joints of the second construct before it could react. Sparks flew as her blades skated across the armor, disrupting its momentum just long enough for Marco to reach the console.
The entire chamber shook as he activated the terminal, fingers flying across the interface.
"Elias, you owe me for this!" Marco shouted, pressing the final command.
A pulse of raw energy exploded outward, a massive shockwave racing through the chamber. The sentinels jerked, their bodies shuddering as their systems fought against the sudden disruption.
Elias didn't waste the opening. He lunged toward the nearest construct, his gauntlet surging with redirected kinetic energy, and slammed his fist into the exposed core plating.
The impact tore through the barrier shielding, sending cracks racing across the construct's frame. The machine shuddered once, then collapsed, power flickering out.
The remaining constructs froze, their movements slowing as the sigil on the vault door flickered uncontrollably. The entire containment system was destabilizing.
Elias turned toward the gate, heart pounding.
The Vanguard Core was right behind it.
And now—nothing was stopping them from opening the door.