Chapter 288: Starlord’s Finale (1/2)

Chapter 288: Starlord’s Finale

Deimos’ frontal assault cut short, and forced to retreat. Was this the power of a Discipline-infused mecha?

And as the others stood in silent tribute, Starlord took its opportunity. While still charging backward, it swiped Starblade toward the stationary enemies.

Meanwhile Thor, hovering in the air, began to wobble to and fro as though it were losing its balance. Then with an audible bloop, the sapphire mecha was engulfed in a bubble. The strange shield was a gift from Poseidon, who stood close by.

Triton had a mechanical hand resting upon Thor’s shoulder, trident in hand. In the next moment the god of the seas swept his trident out, and great waves went crashing toward Starlord.

The star-spangled mecha thrust it’s sword high in to the air, and a dazzling pinprick of light exuded from its tip. Triton, meanwhile, started to wobble just as Thor had before – like Poseidon was having trouble wresting controls.

A staggering streamer of condensed starlight violently made its way toward the Divine Monarchs, forcing them to retreat.

Starlord Deimos, still a force to be reckoned with!

Both Lan Jue and Hua Li were intensely surprised by what they’d witnessed. Their strange and sudden wobbles were not for no reason. Each time either of them had tried to advance, Deimos had placed a shot precisely in their path. They had only just begun to move when Deimos correctly assessed their intention and cut them short. Their rhythm was shattered. Thor’s indomitable advance was barred.

Knowing his enemy’s motives in advance? Deimos was that intelligent? Unless, it wasn’t that he didn’t have a Discipline – his Discipline was Foresight.

Starlord’s attacks laid siege to Thor and Triton’s shield. Its mighty sword never paused, and the torrential attacks kept coming.

However as the audience watched, they noticed that Starlord’s attacks weren’t actually damaging their targets. It wasn’t that the strikes weren’t fierce, or swift. They simply weren’t strong enough to penetrate the shield!

Were one to only consider mecha construction, Starlord was in a class all its own. Even compared to the tricked-out Thor and Poseidon’s deep pockets, Starlord was a terrifying force. But things change when Disciplines are added to the equation.

Starlord’s attacked hadn’t changed since the last few fights, before the new sim pods were introduced. However, Thor and Triton were infinitely more powerful now. In skill, technique and tactics Deimos was nigh impossible to overcome. But in sheer power, in Discipline, the younger pilots had the advantage.

This was the difference between being an Adept, and not. It was for this reason it is true all god-ranked pilots are also accomplished Talents. One fed the other.

As Thor slid backward away from Starlord’s attack, it hefted the crackling lightning spear in its hand. The skies overhead erupted in to a terrifying and violent display, where hundreds of thousands of lightning bolts came crashing down upon Thor. The towering mecha absorbed them, then released the contained power in a cone of devastating electric fire. Forest of Lightning!

The beam of light from Starblade, and Thor’s Forest of Lightning met in the air. Amidst the shuddering corona of disparate energy, the two vanished. However, where Thor and Triton had been under pressure moments before, now the tables were turning.

As god-ranked pilots, and ninth-ranked Talents, these men were masters of battlefield control. Without any hesitation, making a split-second decision, both Thor and Triton were in motion. They positioned for an area attack.

Golden blasts of lightning joined with crashing blue waves. They seemed to cover the whole of this simulated world. Despite Deimos’ wealth of experience, he was still losing ground.

The comments section was silent. Many of the older pilots shut their eyes, bitterly refusing to watch. They knew DreamNet’s upgrade meant this was the end of an era, and they didn’t want to see it happen. Would Deimos – heroic pilot, legendary powerhouse – have to exit his kingdom in this way? They feared it might be.

But in the end…

Boom–! Starlord disappeared in to the storm of destructive energy. Mecha, sword, and pilot went up in flames.

A unified cry went up through the audience: “No–!”

But there was nothing they could do to change the result.

Deimos fall was indicative of the rest of the match. Thor and Poseidon tore down mid lane unopposed, which drew the ire of Starlord’s teammates. They came thirsting for revenge, eventually converging in the center of the field. The Monarchs and Star Alliance went head to head, but the end had already been determined. In the end, the Monarchs lost Poseidon and Hades, but the Star Alliance headquarters was destroyed. The Monarchs had won their second victory.

Miao Xiao had notcontinued to offer explanations or analysis during the fight. From beginning to end, she maintained her silence. When the fight was finished, everyone was quiet.

There were no more illusions about these matches. Deimos – originally the strongest of the Star Alliance by a massive margin – was now the weakest. The anxiety and suspense was gone, and the audience knew Prometheus would give the enemy no quarter. No matter how many battles followed, the result would be the same.