Machina Arcanis: Two Worlds Collided-Chapter 68: The Light Beam

High above the sky, brushing the edge of heaven, hovered a dark spacecraft, thirty metres in length. Beneath its flank, the emblem of DebrisX gleamed proudly.

Inside the main hall, known as the starboard, the front of the craft housed two pilot seats equipped with a large sightport and a hologram display, detailing all aspects of the vessel's status.

Gusto, a slender man with a sharp jawline and dark, curly hair, eagerly monitored the ship's systems, ensuring all engines and components were operating at peak efficiency.

Along the ultra-duplex alloy corridor, two rows of cushioned seats lined the interior — three on each side, roughly 10 metres apart. Moulded to fit the human form, each seat featured a powerful magnetic fastening system for maximum safety. In the event of an emergency ejection, they could transform into short-range flight systems, which could descend into safe areas.

In the left row sat former DebrisX crew members — David, Penny, and Flickson. Their murmured conversations reverberated through the cabin, thick with tension.

A holographic map flickered before David's eyes. At its centre, a cluster of intact city buildings was displayed. A large fleet of triangular markers moved towards the forest on the western side, where Lupus and his team were stationed. To the south, a river flowed vertically through the landscape, accompanied by a towering concrete dam. Three green dots indicated friendly forces — Jack's puny bot, Jack's Armatus, and Rhok's unit.

"Rhok, Jackie! Two Armatus units are heading towards your location in a few minutes! Intercept them!" David's voice was sharp as he tracked two red markers advancing southward.

"Hmph." Rhok grunted, his dark helmet appearing in the bottom-left corner of the screen.

Suddenly, a surge of arcanite energy pulsed from the city centre. Penny, a petite middle-aged woman, turned to her neighbour, urgency lacing her voice. "David! There's an energy anomaly in sector E-6!"

David turned sharply, doubling her HUD screen. His expression tightened. "But all enemy forces are already moving towards Hoffmann's team..." He narrowed his eyes, scrutinising the map more closely.

"I don't know! I ran it through the catalogue. Nothing matches this signature!" Penny's voice trembled, sweat gathering on her brow.

"Check it again!" David ordered. "Flickson! Enhance the image on that location. I need a clearer view now!" His voice strained with urgency.

"Already on it, boss!" Flickson, a dark-skinned man, worked his fingers frantically over the controls, adjusting the visibility sensors and locking onto the city centre.

David muttered under his breath, rubbing his mouth and nose. "How could this be? We scanned the entire map for energy signatures. How did we miss something this big?"

***

At the heart of Eastern Dam, in the middle of a vast sport field, a massive Armatus powered up. Its engine hummed thunderously.

On the mech's back, the propulsion system featured six standard thrusters, exhaling torrents of hot air. The wind howled as the cover sheet draped over the twenty-metre-tall war machine billowed and twisted. Soon, the work crew unfastened the tie ropes, revealing the strange war machine in full display.

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Unlike standard humanoid models, this Armatus had a flat, crab-like torso with an oversized cannon protruding forward. Its surface had a matt finish with the dark green paint like military vehicles.

As the enormous cannon lifted skyward, the machine's mechanical legs, each equipped with three stabilising claws, clutched tightly to the floor, anchoring its mass.

Seated within the cockpit was a gold-ranked Armatus knight, Commander Aurum Specter. Clad in red armour, he prompted his elbow on the armest, and rested his chin on his hand, another hand fidgeting the mechanical glove controller.

His devious smirk concealed beneath his mask, a V-shape visor glowing with malice. His sharp eyes locked onto a red marker high above the ground.

"So, you think the sky is the limit, hmm?" He mused aloud as hydraulics hissed, securing the war machine in place. The seat beneath him trembled before settling into stillness.

"As they say, when you're in an Armatus, you can fight the storm... You can reach heaven itself." Aurum mused out loud as he flicked his fingers, initiating the cannon's charging sequence.

On his HUD screen, the target, DebrisX's spacecraft, was locked. His eyes gleamed with thrill. "Reach the sky... and enter heaven, you little tattletale!"

Electricity crackled along the cannon's barrel. Sparks and light orbs converged at its nozzle, the whirling noise intensifying, the air itself distorting from sheer energy.

A deep, reverberating thrum filled the cockpit as the charge reached critical mass.

Then—

WHUMMM-BRRAAAK!

A devastating beam erupted skyward.

Gusto spotted the incoming signal and spun around in alarm. "David! We need to~"

Before he could finish his sentence or flick his fingers to activate the shield, the destructive beam struck. The hull shattered in an instant, reduced to nothing but dust and debris.

***

Jack executed a sharp turn, his thrusters rotating 180 degrees, pulling the steel giant backwards. The barrage of energy rounds narrowly missed their mark.

The enemy's Armatus locked onto him, rising swiftly. "Die!" The bronze pilot shouted, his heart pounding with exhilaration inside the armour. He was oblivious to the presence looming behind him.

Szzzzzzzzt-Clank!

A sudden, piercing shriek echoed as Rhok's heated blade tore through the bronze's hull, splitting it into two jagged pieces of metal. The wreckage plummeted towards the ground.

"You good, Jack?" Rhok asked, his tone uncertain.

"Yeah! I'm fine," Jack shot back.

"Good job being the bait." Rhok spun his Armatus mid-air, locking onto another target. The enemy pilot froze in pure terror before frantically twisting his suit away.

Too late.

Rhok surged forward, closing the distance in an instant. The tip of his blade pierced through the hull, ending the bronze pilot in a single, decisive strike.

There was no time to relish the victory.

A brilliant beam suddenly tore through the sky above them, followed by a massive arcanite explosion, its blinding light visible even from the distant battlefield.

Jack's breath hitched as he caught sight of the blast. A chilling sense of déjà vu seized him.

"Oh... my god... David!? Come in!?" He roared into the comms.

Silence.

"Impossible..." His expression darkened, his stomach twisting. He clenched his jaw, his ears ringing with the sound of his own pounding heartbeat. The weight of reality crushed down on him.