<Arvoc/>

I placed Damian near the entrance, leaning his unconscious form against the fractured wall. The faint hum of GAIA's warning system pulsed in the background, flashing red across my HUD.

Before the alert could escalate, Codebreaker Override activated with a reassuring ding, silencing the intrusion. System Cloaking slid into full mode, rendering us invisible to GAIA's surveillance grid.

[GAIA Surveillance disrupted]

[Masking Surveillance Data] 

I let out a breath I hadn't realized I'd been holding. At least for now, the system wouldn't be flagging us—or Damian—for violating its precious protocols.

But this wasn't over. Not even close.

"I need to destroy that damn portal."

My voice was low, more for myself than anyone else. I scanned the battlefield. The area seemed clear—at least of immediate threats.

The portal, however, remained wide open, its swirling violet mass pulsating ominously.

As if mocking me, the vortex rippled. Something heavy stepped through, its silhouette looming larger with each second.

When it emerged fully, I felt a sinking sensation in my gut.

This wasn't another Serak sentinel.

The moment the portal shimmered with a menacing violet hue, I knew my problems had just multiplied. The crystalline Tower Guardian hummed faintly behind me, its protective barrier waning under constant assault.

The Serak sentinels had been manageable—spidery constructs with brittle exoskeletons and predictable patterns.

But now? Now, I was staring at something that looked like it had walked out of a galactic horror movie.

Tower Guardians, alien invaders, and now this hulking nightmare of a humanoid. Talk about stacking the deck.

The creature stood at least twice my height, its lilac skin gleaming under the Tower's artificial light. Four arms, each rippling with unnatural musculature, moved with an eerie precision, one gripping a warhammer as massive as Damian's motorcycle. Its armor was sleek, clearly engineered with deadly efficiency.

The creature stopped, lifting a warhammer that looked like it could flatten a car without much effort.

One of my drones buzzed forward, scanning the intruder.

[Detecting Intruder]

Name: Arvoc Ishmel

Class: Berserker

Rank: S

Race: Durant

Origin: Serakis Planet, Denith Cosmos

"Shit," I muttered under my breath. My grip on the plasma blade tightened. "That looks more like the main course. So the Seraks were just appetizers."

The creature—Arvoc—grinned, exposing sharp fangs as it hefted its weapon onto one shoulder.

"Well, well, well," he said, his voice a guttural growl. "Look what we have here."

My translator worked like a charm, converting his alien language into crisp, taunting words. Convenient. But the translation wasn't about to help me deal with him.

"Are you the warrior of this planet's Tower?" he asked, his yellow eyes gleaming with interest.

I didn't answer immediately, my brain working overtime. I had questions of my own, but I needed to play this carefully.

"What's a Durant doing here? Why invade this Tower?" I asked, keeping my tone steady.

Arvoc's laugh was a booming sound that bounced off the walls. "Invade? What a quaint way to look at it. This—" he gestured to the portal behind him, "—is just the way of things. The towers of GAIA exist to be destroyed. We destroy yours, you destroy ours. The strongest planet survives. You must be... what's the term? Ah, yes. A newbie."

The words hit like a punch to the gut, but I didn't let it show. My mind reeled.

Damn it. It dawned on me instantly. The Towers, it looks like they're some kind of battlegrounds. GAIA's test is a bloody, interplanetary battle royale?

"Are you alone?" I asked, keeping my voice neutral, probing for more.

"For now," Arvoc replied with a smirk. "Though it seems you've already dealt with my minions." His eyes flicked to the remnants of Serak sentinels strewn across the battlefield.

He clicked his tongue, his gaze landing on the glowing crystal structure of the Tower Guardian behind me. "Ah, that must be your Tower's Guardian. Pity it's not much of a fighter. But where's the fun in smashing that when I can smash you first?"

Before I could react, he disappeared.

One moment he was at the entrance of the portal. The next, he was right in front of me, his massive warhammer swinging down in a devastating arc.

I barely had time to activate my Mecha Suit's shield. The impact sent me skidding back, the ground beneath me cracking from the force.

Arvoc grinned. "Nice suit. It'll look even better when it's mine."

"Not happening," I retorted, recalibrating my stance. The suit's systems buzzed with renewed energy, the plasma blade in my hand glowing brighter.

"Let's see how long you last, then."

The berserker didn't wait. He surged forward, covering the ground between us faster than I'd anticipated.

I barely had time to sidestep before the warhammer came crashing down, splitting the reinforced floor into jagged shards.

"Fast for a guy built like a truck," I muttered, spinning back to gain distance.

"Fast enough to crush you, human," it snarled, recovering and twisting toward me with unsettling grace.

With a thought, my Drone Swarm scattered. They zipped through the air, disappearing into the rafters and embedding themselves into key points around the battlefield. The subtle hum of their systems syncing with mine was like a lifeline in the chaos.

[Drone Swarm: Active]

[EMP Barrage available for deployment]

"Nice toys," it drawled, its tone dripping with condescension. "Too bad they won't save you."

"Yeah?" I shot back, stepping closer, voice steady despite the adrenaline threatening to kick my heart into overdrive. "Well, let's see if you're as tough as you look, big guy. Name's Khaos. Let's make this quick—I've got places to be, and you've got... well, a grave to dig."

I raised my arm, triggering the EMP Barrage. A wave of crackling blue energy radiated from my position, shorting out the lights and causing Arvoc's armor to spark and hiss.

[Electronics disabled. Effect on target: Partial.]

He stumbled briefly but recovered, snarling in frustration. "Tricks? You rely on tricks?"

"Nope. I rely on skills," I said with a grin, the suit's twin plasma blades humming to life.

The fight began in earnest.

Arvoc's attacks were relentless, each swing of his warhammer enough to shatter walls and send shockwaves through the floor.

The drones worked tirelessly to support me, firing precision blasts to disrupt his momentum. Meanwhile, I maneuvered gracefully around his strikes, slashing with plasma and keeping the Tower Guardian shielded.

"You fight well for someone so small," he growled, his tone almost... impressed?

"Thanks, I'd say the same, but you're kind of making a mess of the place," I quipped, dodging another strike that carved a crater into the ground.

But then, something unexpected happened. The portal flared again, and a second wave of Serak sentinels poured through, their spindly frames scuttling toward the Tower Guardian.

"Great. Because one existential threat wasn't enough," I muttered.

[Multiple hostiles detected. New priority: Protect Tower Guardian.]

The drones shifted instantly, reconfiguring to create a protective grid around the crystalline structure. I gritted my teeth, assessing the battlefield.

This wasn't going to be a clean fight.

"You're starting to get it, aren't you?" Arvoc said, a wicked grin spreading across his face as he advanced. "This is just the beginning. Your Tower is a prize—one of many in a game far beyond your comprehension."

"What game?" I snapped, slashing at his armor.

He parried with his hammer, laughing. "The game of survival, of course. Your planet's Tower stands only until it's conquered by another. And then? Poof. No more Tower. No more planet."

My mind raced, connecting dots I didn't want to see. My suspicions were true.

The Towers weren't just tests—they were battlefields, arenas for interplanetary combat. GAIA was pitting us against each other, using our worlds as pawns in some cosmic competition.

"Why?" I demanded, my plasma blade locking against his hammer in a shower of sparks.

"That's not for me to know, little warrior. I'm just here to win."

Something inside me snapped. The revelation burned like acid, but I forced the rage down. Questions could wait. Right now, I had a job to do.

I deployed the Electromagnetic Barrier, its crackling energy field absorbing Arvoc's blows and giving me room to breathe. My drones unleashed a coordinated attack, disabling the remaining sentinels with surgical precision.

The Tower Guardian flickered weakly, its crystalline core dimming. Time was running out.

I activated Electrostatic Pulse, unleashing a devastating shockwave that engulfed the battlefield. Arvoc roared as his armor shorted out completely, his movements faltering.

"Now or never," I muttered, charging forward.

With a precision strike, I drove my plasma blade into the core of his warhammer, overloading it. The weapon exploded in his hands, sending him sprawling.

"Yield," I demanded, my suit's voice modulator deepening the word into a growl.

Arvoc glared up at me, defiant but weakened. "You think this is a victory? This is just one Tower. One battle. You'll never stop what's coming."

"Maybe," I said, leveling my blade at his chest. "But I'll keep trying."

With that, I delivered a final strike, disabling him. The portal behind him flickered and collapsed, sealing the breach.

[Tower Mission Completed]

[Distributing Rewards...]

[Bonus Mission Completed]

[Distributing Rewards...]