SSS-Tier Extraction: From Outcast to Overgod!
Chapter 45: The Guardian of the Array

Chapter 45: The Guardian of the Array

Ryan closed the CommNet window. The digital drama had been entertaining, but it was time to get back to work. He had spent enough time relaxing in his captured treasure room.

He needed to finish this Scramble and claim victory for Outpost #7. He could have stayed put and let his teammates grind out the last 40 or so cores, but that wasn’t his style. He preferred to finish things himself, decisively.

He stepped out of the Time-Locked Vault. As he did, the massive stone door slid shut behind him with a deep, groaning sound, and the shimmering Chronal Barrier reappeared, sealing it once more.

The key had worked, but it was a one-time entry pass, at least for now. He was back in the main Labyrinth.

His Neural Symbiote Map, his personal GPS for all things Precursor, immediately highlighted a new point of interest. Not far from the Vault was a structure labeled as a "god Energy Array."

It was a place of immense power, a central hub for the Labyrinth’s energy distribution.

Ryan had a strong hunch. If there was one other place in this Labyrinth that would have a large stock of Power Cores, it would be at the heart of the power grid itself.

He also suspected this was exactly the kind of place a "Technomage" like Zara Khan would be drawn to. He decided to head there, to cut her off and secure the final cores needed for the win.

He set off at a brisk pace, his new Boots of Alacrity making him feel light and fast. The fifteen-minute journey took him through some of the Labyrinth’s grandest and most imposing corridors.

The architecture here was on a different scale, with ceilings so high they were lost in shadow and walls inscribed with complex, glowing circuits.

As he got closer to the Array, the air began to hum with a palpable energy. It made the hairs on his arms stand up. He rounded a final corner and saw it.

The god Energy Array was a colossal structure, a massive spire of black metal and glowing blue conduits that reached all the way to the top of the cavernous chamber. It was the Labyrinth’s heart, its power plant, and it was beautiful in a terrifying, industrial way.

And it was guarded.

Standing directly in front of the central control spire was another Sentinel. This one, however, was different. It wasn’t a time-based machine like the Vault Guardian Prime.

This one was infused with raw, crackling god energy. Blue lightning arced across its heavily armored chassis, and its two glowing eyes pulsed with pure power.

It was bigger than a Custodian Sentinel, sleeker and more modern-looking than the war-constructs he’d fought in the Vault. It held no sword or shield, but its arms ended in what looked like powerful energy cannons.

The god Interface flashed a warning.

[Array Sentinel (Level 7 Precursor Anomaly)]

Threat Level: EXTREME.

Description: A late-generation Sentinel designed to guard and regulate a primary god Energy Array. It is directly infused with the Array’s power.

Known Talent: "Energy Siphon" (B-Tier) - Can draw power directly from its surroundings to repair damage and fuel its attacks.

Ryan whistled under his breath. A Level 7 with an "Extreme" threat level. This thing was on par with the Temporal Hounds, maybe even stronger because of its direct link to the Array.

This was no mere security guard; this was the chief of police, the head of security, and the power grid itself all rolled into one angry-looking robot.

The Array Sentinel sensed his approach immediately. It didn’t stomp or roar. It simply raised one of its cannon-arms, which began to glow with a blindingly bright blue light.

The hum of power in the room intensified to a deafening roar. It was charging up a long-range attack.

"WARNING! Incoming ’god Beam’ attack! Evade immediately!"

"Good advice!" Ryan yelled to no one in particular, and he dove to the side. A massive beam of pure, destructive energy, as thick as a tree trunk, shot across the chamber, carving a deep, molten trench in the stone floor where he had been standing just a second ago. The heat from its passing was intense.

Ryan scrambled to his feet. "Okay, so staying at a distance is a bad idea. Got it. Get in close."

He activated his Chrono-Manipulation talent, wrapping himself in a bubble of "Haste." The world seemed to slow down slightly as he burst forward, his Boots of Alacrity adding to his speed.

He charged straight at the Sentinel, a small, fast-moving blur against the giant machine.

The Sentinel responded. It lifted one of its massive feet and stomped down hard. A wave of crackling blue energy erupted from the point of impact, spreading across the floor like a ripple in a pond. "Static Pulse!" his interface warned.

The pulse washed over him. It didn’t hurt him directly, but it created a powerful disruptive field. His Cloak of Shifting Umbra flickered and failed, its stealth capabilities shorting out.

His Weaver’s Interface Gauntlet sparked, and his connection to its advanced functions felt fuzzy and weak. Luckily, his Temporal Sense gave him a split-second warning, allowing him to brace for the pulse and avoid the worst of its disruptive effects.

He was close now, right at the Sentinel’s feet. He stabbed at a visible energy conduit on its leg, putting all his strength behind the blow. His knife, which could now cut through most high-level armor, hit the Sentinel’s hide with a loud CLANG.

The blade scraped against the metal, sending sparks flying, but it only managed to leave a shallow scratch. The Sentinel’s armor was incredibly, unbelievably tough.

The Sentinel didn’t even flinch. It reacted with cold, machinelike efficiency. It backhanded him. The blow was so fast he barely had time to register it. It wasn’t a punch; it was just a casual, dismissive swat, the way a person might swat a fly.

But this fly had a personal force field.

Ryan saw the blow coming and, in a split second, activated his new Kinetic Field Projector. A bubble of shimmering, hexagonal energy appeared around him just as the Sentinel’s massive metal hand connected.

The force field absorbed most of the catastrophic impact, but the sheer force of the blow was immense. The projector let out a loud cracking sound, and the protective bubble shattered into a million points of light.

The remaining force still sent him flying. He landed in a heap twenty feet away, shaken and bruised, but miraculously, mostly unharmed. He looked at his Kinetic Field Projector; it was depleted, its light dead. It had saved his life, but it was a one-time save.

He looked back at the Sentinel. The shallow scratch he had made on its leg was already sealing itself, the edges glowing with blue energy as it drew power directly from the Array and repaired the damage. It was regenerating.

Ryan got slowly to his feet, a grim look on his face. This was a serious problem. He couldn’t hurt it. Its attacks could disable his gear. It could repair any damage he did manage to inflict.

And he had just used up his only get-out-of-jail-free card. This fight was going to be a lot harder than he thought.