Down With The Gods

David commands Wyn and his team to sit out for this battle as he and his group surround the undocumented creature. Feeling threatened, the train releases pools of lava beneath its wheels, while the train cars emit electrical shocks that make it difficult for the elites to get close. Unlike the carmits, the train’s red masses aren’t protected by windows – they are fully exposed. Rather than pulsating, the masses beat rhythmically like a heart.

David starts by firing a bolt of lightning, which also ignites a fire on the enemy. The train reacts with a loud "choo choo," lifting its first two cars and the engine menacingly before slamming them into the ground at random, splashing lava everywhere. The elite fighters, well-trained, skillfully dodge out of harm’s way.

The train comes to a sudden halt, then sweeps across the battlefield, releasing more lava from its wheels and smokestack. The last car remains steady while the others spin wildly. The elites retreat, jumping onto car piles for safety. Typically, a carmit would cease its attack once the area is clear of threats, but the train lets out another "choo choo," louder and in a different rhythm. Nearby carmits respond with their honks, then start ramming the car piles where the souls are taking refuge. The train assumes the same slamming stance as before, only this time, it repositions itself by spinning the wheel of its last car, slamming directly into the pile where a few elites are located.

"Turns out I’m glad you’re here!" David calls out to Wyn’s team.

"Tell us how we can help," Wyn replies.

"You know how to kill a carmit – best to hit a window with something sharp or blunt."

David and his team switch their focus to the carmits while avoiding any attacks from the train. David’s weapons are wearable contraptions, resembling flexible metal gloves that extend just past the wrists. His left glove features a round gray metal shield that protects his hand and lower arm, enhancing his punches with extra force. In homage to his love for cats, David painted a large CATOTO face in the center of the shield. His right glove holds a retractable sword, painted red and yellow, that extends from a gray slot just below the wrist.

Boosted by a wind gust from Charlotte, David descends swiftly and slams both fists into a carmit's windshield. Two lightning strikes follow, shattering the window instantly. Charlotte, with her extendable icy flail, smashes open a side window of another carmit. Wyn and his team watch, amazed. They haven’t been able to slay even one carmit on their own. Their strategy so far has been to stay airborne and launch ranged attacks.

Fusing with water and snow, Wyn unleashes a descending cyclone at a standing carmit. The attack cracks the window but doesn’t break it completely. On the next cyclone, carrying various weapons from the team, the windshield finally shatters. Before they can move on to another target, the train shoots a large blob of lava fused with electricity from its smokestack, causing it to lose balance and crash back to the ground. The team dodges the main attack with Anish’s support, but he gets caught by the electrifying currents, becoming paralyzed mid-air. The entire team plummets toward the ground.

A nearby standing carmit quickly seizes the opportunity to topple onto the entire team but is intercepted by a cyclone, followed immediately by water fountains and rock and snow pillars, all working together to soften the creature’s fall. Despite their efforts, the carmit lands on them, its weight pressing down on Wyn, Yu, and Christine’s heads. The all-gold, pimped-out limousine carmit settles on top of them, trying to squeeze the life out of them with its weight.

Fortunately, an elite strikes through the carmit’s side window with a sharp hook, causing it to begin disintegrating. While the team is safe, they’ll have to wait for the carmit to turn into essence before they can crawl out from under it.

As most of his team members clear out the carmits, David and Charlotte reengage the train, aiming to distract it after the dangerous lava blob attack. They focus their efforts on the rear car, targeting the exposed red masses. David soon realizes that the rest of the train can’t reach them when they’re at the back. Once all the carmits are dealt with, the elites split into two teams: one to distract the train while the other hinders the last car. When the red masses stop beating on the rear car, the train detaches it from the rest.

Using the same strategy, the elites continue their assault. In an unexpected move, the train shifts all the remaining red masses to the engine, engulfing it and forming a giant, beating meatball. Only the front of the engine remains visible, protruding from the center of the single giant red mass. The electrical currents protecting the body are gone, but smokestacks made of red masses surrounding the stationary body can still fire electrical lava blobs. David smirks as he stares at the beast from the ground.

“Now we can attack the whole body. That makes it easier for us,” he says.

David calls on the blue elemental souls to seal the smokestacks halfway down the body. An elite teaches Yu how to perform water slashes, sending waves of water forward with his blade and launching a continuous stream from it. By extending his blade, the weapon’s edge becomes engulfed in water, allowing a stream to shoot into a smokestack. Instantly, an ice attack follows to seal it momentarily. The rest of the team uses their sheer strength to chip away at the creature, sparking an idea in Charlotte.

“You’re a cyclone guy. Shoot her at the meatball at full charge,” Christine commands Wyn, pointing at another elite, Fatima.

“I can’t control its speed yet. It’ll be too dangerous…”

“Did I fucking stutter?”

Wyn gulps, reluctantly preparing for the attack, while Fatima, the fire and earth soul, readies a large spinning drill, placing it in front of her.

“I’ll aim for a rim. How about the lower left?”

“Why the fuck do you want to attack a rim? Go for the main body!”

“I don’t want her stuck inside! Or, or she could hit the train parts in there! She can’t fucking pierce metal, can she?”

“...Fine. Then I’ll stabilize her with wind so she doesn’t spiral out of control.”

At full charge, Fatima jumps in front of Wyn. As he unleashes a horizontal cyclone, she takes off in front of it. The strike pierces through the mark, ripping a chunk of the creature right off. The wound begins to ooze red liquid as the creature ceases its movements, seemingly sealing off the injury. Meanwhile, the severed piece shows signs of decay, losing its color and beginning to rot. The liquid spewed onto the ground has now dried up.

“Again!” Charlotte demands.

“It’s no use! It’ll keep healing,” Wyn replies.

“Then focus on the wound. Make sure it can’t heal. Wyn, you’ll have to create a couple more wounds for the team to work on,” David instructs.

Wyn, working with Charlotte, jets Fatima to drill through a few more times before she gives up, feeling dizzy from the speed. More wounds have been created on each side of the creature. Since large wound sealing and attacking can’t be done simultaneously, victory is assured. The souls continue their assault until the meatball’s color is all dried up and the beating stops.

“Come get some essence. You all deserve it,” David says.

Charlotte wants to say something but decides to keep quiet.

“Five thousand and three hundred, huh? This thing doesn’t belong here,” David comments.

“What’s next?” Wyn asks.

“We’ll report to the nerds to register the new creature and have them remove everything but the cars from the graveyard.”

“What about the name?” Yu asks, excitement lighting up his face.

“What’s on your mind?”

“Wait for it…choo-choo mcchooface!”

“Are you like seven?” Charlotte remarks.

“And the description?” David inquires.

“Not my job anymore!” Yu replies.

“You’re not going with it, are you?” Wyn questions.

“I did promise him this privilege, so I have to honor it. We’ll handle the description.”

As soon as David finishes, the elites open their portals, preparing to leave. Yu grabs onto David’s arm, wanting to ask him a question.

“Can I shoot water streams from my hands instead of the blade?” Yu asks.

“Only a few elites can do that. Just use your weapon as a medium. It works the same. Anyway, where are you headed next?”

Mira asks David if he has seen her sister. Though he knows a few Lisas, none of them fit the description she provides. David then recommends that Wyn and the team explore the Dark Forest next when they feel ready, explaining that it’s the best place to collect catnips. He strongly advises having at least half the team purchase the bestiary in case someone doesn’t make it all the way through. As for the champion hunt, he suggests that all members should have around ten thousand essence before engaging one.

“Hope to see you down on the third floor someday. Could use a guy like you on the team,” David says.

“You already have ten members. You still want more?”

“We actually have more than that, and yes, we always want more.”

With a smile, David exits the area after answering Wyn’s question. The carmit essence is left for Wyn and team to collect. Having gathered his share of the choo-choo mcchooface essence, Wyn opts out of collecting any carmit essence.

The team exits the junkyard and makes its way to the shalmali tree. Up close, the gigantic tree appears even more graceful, despite its lifeless appearance in the absence of wind. Peeking down through the dome glass, they see that the tree extends far beyond what their eyes can observe. They spend the next few hours resting and admiring the tree before heading back to campsite number one to discuss their next destination in Wyn’s tent.

“How much is the bestiary? And why is it important?” Wyn asks.

“A thousand catnips. Says here we get to ‘learn’ more about the creatures before we approach them,” Yu replies.

“Not with those useless descriptions! And boy, a thousand? That’s how much the AI costs,” Wyn says, almost whining.

“Dark Forest next then?” Mira suggests.

“Can we visit the weather dome? I want to watch the stars with you guys,” Anish says.

“What’s the catch?” Mira asks.

“We’ll have to fight some weak creatures before we can stargaze in peace!”

“In ‘peace’ or in ‘pieces’ exactly? I’m beginning to doubt anything is ‘weak’ at this point,” Mira replies.

To get to the weather dome, they exit through campsite number four. Once again, Wyn and Yu have difficulties not reacting childishly to Cateto’s appearance. Mira drags the boys to the smart vehicle, where Anish and Christine are already waiting inside. The ride is expected to take just as long as the trip to the junkyard. Instead of chatting, they fall asleep, exhausted from their previous encounters.