Only slightly harrowed, the group came up again on the reinforced door of the maintenance hut.
"Dis better work now! Da park is getting on my nerves by now." Ka'la slid in the card, standing in attention for the reaction of the panel. After similar zipping noises from before the rune glowed a bright green. "Access granted." The reinforced door rumbled back and then slid to the side.
The inside opened up to one big hall. Utter disarray predominated the scene. To their left, the wall was lined with control panels, made unusable. Broken levers, cables and metal rods protruding in between broken crystal remains and overturned seats made up the remains of this section. Papers were scattered all over the floor. The right wall was lined with shelves, some collapsed onto the floor, but where they were still standing, the assortment of tools was pushed out onto the floor in front.
"It looks like a hurricane went through here," Tilani said.
"Shh, I think I can hear some clanking," Gortak whispered.
In the middle, between the control and shelving area, an open path allowed entry to the back of the hall. The group sneaked forward, taking care not to stumble over debris or miscellaneous tools on the floor. They positioned themselves towards both sides along the archway, peering inside. The hall was dimly lit. Occasional sparks accompanied by welding sounds allowed to recognize a small humanoid standing at the far wall, working on a large piece of metal. The person stood with the back to them and clonked with a hammer at a large structure next to him. A second similar piece of equipment next to the first was hardly visible.
Gortak signaled to his companions to sneak to the right, while he and Drisk would go left. He held a finger to his mouth, then at himself indicating he would initiate the fight. The others only nodded and crept onwards. Gortak exhaled slowly and took a step forward. He tried to take in as much of the ground as possible under these unsupporting lighting conditions. He drew in a sharp intake of air, as he saw the thin line of cord, rigged to an alarm construction. He turned around, trying to alarm the others somehow, but he was too late. Just this moment, Tilani unsuspectantly tripped the cord on the other side. Various containers fell from a shelf next to them onto the offenders, loud banging and crashing was heard through the hall.
Gortak peered towards the gnome, who had turned around.
"Hah, you thought you could steal my research, ey? But no, I won't allow that. I'm onto you and you will die horribly!" the small figure shouted. He ran between the two structures, sounds of clanking followed by metallic thump.
"Get him!" Gortak shouted, running towards where the gnome had been. The others joined him, but the hall wasn't that easy to navigate, with all the items littering the floor.
Suddenly two lights flickered on, about 16-feet above the ground, resembling the eyes of a creature. A sheath of cloth slid down revealing a big metallic head.
"We have a T-Rex. Meet the king of dinosaurs, Mekkarex!" A high pitched voice yelled from a speaker, followed by a crackling roar. Blue light began building up between the teeth of the artificial monstrosity, as it advanced.
"Of course he has a T-Rex!" Tilani shouted, eyes wide.
The group advanced in a scattered formation making it harder for Gedry to attack all of them at once. Still, they were surprised by the bluish ray of energy bursting out of the maw slamming into the ground next to Gortak and creating a swath of destruction on its way to the other side of the hall. Gortak and Drisk were thrown back by the initial shockwave upon impact. Tilani had to shield herself, but the brunt of the attack forced her back.
Ka'la used the second of longer reaction time effectively rushing forward underneath the incoming ray. She unleashed a bolt of frost from her hands with a battle cry solidly impacting the mechanical dinosaur.
Gortak tumbled backwards, coming to a halt on his limbs. With a shake of his head he cleared his vision and got back up. "Time for more force," he grumbled as he mounted the first explosive rocket to his rifle. He took aim and fired. The rocket hit the bottom of the dino mech's head with a massive explosion, rearing it to the side. Pieces of metal flew through the hall with a tearing screech amplified by the walls. His companions shielded their eyes and turned their bodies away.
"Oha, that was bigger than expected. Take cover! I have a second shot!" he shouted towards the fastened the second rocket to his rifle, which was slightly singed from the first. Once again he took aim, the dinosaur moving about drunkenly. He ignited the rocket with the mechanism of his rifle. Something felt off, as the rocket took longer to launch. Just as it started Gortak reacted immediately and let go of his rifle jumping to the ground. The rocket sputtered off in a wild arc, early explosions pulling it apart, as it hit the ceiling to the left of the T-Rex. The explosion tore a hole into the ceiling, as further metal struts tumbled downwards. More and more sections of the ceiling threatened to come down upon them. One large beam fell in front of the Mekkarex, impeding its mobility. With a roar it rammed into the beam, which allowed the mech to advance towards its foes, but further reducing the stability of the ceiling.
"We better get out of here!" shouted Gortak.
"Just for the record, the gnome destroyed the roof. In case the Cartel asks," Tilani said as she ran past Gortak. Ka'la followed right behind her, keeping an eye on the collapsing roof.
Only a few steps later, a large section seared towards them. Tilani shouted, "By my side, take cover!" She raised her shield above her head and yelled, "The Lights Might!"
A dome of brilliant light engulfed two meters around her. The roof slammed into the dome, pushing her shield down, but she stood fast. The rubble slid off the protective barrier and allowed them to continue out of the now nearly roofless building. They stumbled past the door, looking back, panting and worn.
The Mekkarex pulled itself to its maximum height tearing away the roof that fell down onto it, launching once again it to a mighty roar.
"Quite a durable piece of work Gedry built," Tilani said, out of breath.
"Da gnome is certainly squishier," Ka'la said.
"That's a good idea, actually." Tilani took in a deep breath and started running alongside the walls.
The T-Rex stomped onto the rubble that now allowed it to easily jump over the still standing wall. It landed with a loud thumb and advanced once again towards the group.
It focused on the hunter and mage, having not yet spotted the running paladin.
"So you like explosions, ey? Have some of mine!" the shrill voice yelled from the T-Rex. Chutes opened up at the shoulders and two rockets flew towards them with billowing smoke trailing behind them.
"Take cover!" Gortak shouted, but before running to the side took a potshot at one oncoming rocket. Ka'la had a similar idea and both their efforts successfully exploded one rocket in mid flight. Both ran in opposite directions while Drisk followed his master. The shockwave of the explosion pushed the other rocket out of course and to Ka'la's misfortune closer towards her dodge attempt. The projectile hit the ground just behind her, catapulting her 7 feet into the wall of the hut. She lay there, stunned and singed.
"Ka'la!" Gortak shouted. "Damnit." He turned and ran towards her. With a groan her body shook violently. She began moving again just as Gortak arrived.
"Ugh, dat hurt," she grumbled.
"Can you get up? We need to move. Who knows what that mech has in store for us."
"Occupational hazard. Accustomed to explosion, will be fine," she pressed out between coughs.
Gortak helped her up and used the wall as cover. He peered at Drisk and gave him a command to distract the T-Rex by nodding his head into its direction. Drisk growled and ran erratically in the other direction, loosely towards the mech.
"We need to help Tilani. She can't get up against him on her own," Ka'la said.
"Agreed, as soon as you can stand again."
"I'll be fine, mon. Get going. Will be right behind ya." Ka'la supported herself leaning against the wall, looking into the distance, her face a big frown.
Gortak grunted, turned and raised his rifle. He peered around the building and saw the mechanical dino stomping towards them. He noticed Tilani hiding behind a boulder created from destroyed parts of the building. Two more seconds and the gnome might spot her. Drisk was already doing a great job of garnering the attention of the hulking monstrosity. Now it was time for Gortak to make sure he did. Calmly, he stepped out of the cover of the building, planted himself squarely in front and took measured aim with his rifle. His shot clonked off an armor plate in between the eyes of the mechanical construct. It had the intended effect. The head turned towards him and the T-Rex advanced.
"You pesky worms. I'll show you the might of my creation!" yelled the gnome, maniacal laughter followed.
The distraction worked amiably, as Tilani ran underneath the T-Rex. She discarded her shield and jumped onto handles on the inside of a leg. Hanging there she could see a hatch in the underbelly of the T-Rex. Climbing closer she tried turning the round lever, but except for a slight shift she was unable to open the hatch.
"Alright then, Plan B."
With a push from her strong legs she pulled herself up onto the leg, holding on tightly. The moving dinosaur made it harder to keep her balance. Arriving on the back she started climbing. There were no clear handles though, only the ridges of various metal plates to hold on to.
The T-Rex increased its speed, rushing at Gortak, who continuously shot at it until the last moment to dodge away before being rammed. Ka'la came out behind the building, her eyes blazing, energy pooling around her upheld hands. With a cry she released a big blast of fire right into the belly of the unnatural beast. It's armor held mostly, but various plates shrieked under the impact, bolts flying as plates got disfigured. Ka'la had not seen Tilani on the dinosaur's back, who now slid back down what little progress she had made. She managed to hold on.
She peeked around, catching the attention of the mage, and motioned towards the legs of the T-Rex as the target. Also, she noticed that the previous attack had dislodged the entry hatch. Holding onto a handle she kicked the hatch open and graciously slid into the belly. Inside she was assaulted by the smell of fried electronics and oil, taking care not to touch anything hot. A ladder led up to the control room of the mech. She heard frantic outcries and swearing from the furious gnome, as she climbed up.
Outside, Ka'la peppered the legs of the T-Rex with smaller bolts of ice, more focused on reducing its mobility. Gortak helped her using spider web ammunition that clogged smaller moving parts of the construction, slowly making the limbs more and more rigid. While Drisk's attacks were less effective, he added to the overall chaos of the fight, making it harder for the T-Rex to concentrate fully on the main threats. Initially, a kick from its strong legs sent Ka'la flying back once more. Now, it relied more on swinging attacks with its tail hoping to hit the elusive targets around him.
Ka'la got up, her face contorted in pain, heavily panting. The hits as well as her continuous use of potent attack magic took a toll on her. She had to take care not to overextend herself, as dodging attacks by her foe became harder. She decided to stall for time, hoping for Tilani to bring down the gnome. With a short cry she cast a bright flame in front of the dino's head. Next, she took a deep breath, touched each of her arms and a coat of silvery ice grew all over her skin and clothes.
The sounds of the mechanical parts masked her approach as she peered over the edge. She saw the gnome sitting on a stool inside the control room with his back to her. All around him were a myriad of levers and various glowing buttons. He frantically pulled on these levers, two bigger ones in front of him seemed to be responsible for the main movement of his mechanical beast. He hit one lever repeatedly, grossly swearing for it to move.
"These imbeciles. I'll show them! How dare them question my genius! Move, you damnable lever!" Gendry shouted, hopping around on his stool.
Tilani pulled herself up slowly. The cacophony inside the control room made it unlikely the gnome would hear her approach, but she took no chances. Taking a step closer she pulled her sword. She could go for the kill right away. She wanted to. But she was unsure. What would mean more glory? The kill or bringing this deranged foe in front of her superiors for justice?
The moment of hesitation cost her the decision, as the gnome turned towards a lever to his right. Sensing her, he jolted. She stabbed him, more in reflex than anything else. Her sword bit into his side, the wound deep, but not imminently deadly. Gendry cried out, falling from his stool to the ground. He crawled forward, gripping for his wrench-like hammer and used his motion to whirl his weapon around to slam into her legs. She dodged the swing upwards, forgetting about the confined space and hit her head. Slightly dazed, she attempted another stab at the gnome, which he easily blocked with his hammer. He winced, bringing the hammer to bear, hampered by his profusely bleeding wound.
"You wench! I'll show you!" he cried, thrusting his hammer in front of him, in an attempt to topple her back towards the hatch.
"Light Protector!" yelled Tilani, a bright shimmering shield exploded for a second from her outstretched palm, which pushed the hammer back once more.
In the meantime, her companions held off of their attacks. They had managed to hamper the movement of the T-Rex nearly to a standstill already. There were no attacks coming from the rest, which must have meant the gnome was not controlling it anymore. They came closer, maintaining a defensive posture and peeked inside the open corridor within the mechanical construct. Except for the fighting noises, occasional cries and clanks, they were unable to ascertain Tilani's condition. Gortak signaled Ka'la not to distract her.
"We can't help her. Not enough space," he whispered.
Within this less than ideal fighting grounds, their altercation quickly derailed into a brawl. Gedry knew his time was limited, before he would go down due to his wound. Like a cornered animal, he came at her, his face twisted in rage and profusely sweating. Tilani dropped her sword, used the last bit of power shielding her arm to block the hammer but miscalculated. The edge of the wrench slammed into her previously wounded side. She cried out in agony as she felt her ribs crack. While she had healed the gashes, her torso was still sensitive. Clenching her teeth together, she focused on grappling the gnome. She had to get him out of this confined space.
Gedry reacted by slamming his head upwards into her chin. She used the momentum to pull him alongside, twisting her body sideways and slammed gnome to the ground. Lying on his back, his head dangled over the open corridor. He flung his hands wildly at her. She wiped them away, dropping her elbow onto his throat and pushed. Twisting and squirming it was impossible to actually choke him. She punched him into his wounded side, resulting in a cry of anguish and the contraction of his body, which she could use to push him over the edge. He fell, but not without colliding three times with the sides of the corridor, before slamming onto the ground.
A panting and nearly motionless gnome was lying in the grass before Gortak and Ka'la. Drisk came closer and sniffed at him, angling his head slightly.
"Well, job done. I'd say. He's not getting up soon," Gortak said, relaxing his stance.
"Stay vigilant. Calrin said he is devious," Ka'la said. "We should bind him."
Tilani climbed down the ladder, hopping onto the ground, gripping her side, her face distorted by pain. Her sword was back at her side.
"Ugh, are ya alright? Ya look wrecked," Ka'la asked, worry in her voice.
"Did you see yourself? I'll be fine. Let's pack him up." She sat down on one foot of the T-Rex. Wiring hung around her head, parts and plates were lying around them. "A T-Rex mech, who would've thought."
Epilogue
After shackling Gedry, they decided to rest for a short while before going back to the visitor center. Gedry's injuries were considerable enough that Tilani had to stop his bleeding to stabilize him, before they could transport him.
Gortak and Drisk made sure they were not surprised by any more dinosaurs on their way back. Holding Calrin back from murdering the gnome the instant she saw him was easier thanks to her broken leg. Afterwards, she grumpily accepted to turn Gedry in at Booty Bay. She thanked them for helping her in stopping the gnome. Their trip back went smooth, flying into the setting sun, looking back at the island. They could only shake their heads at the ideas goblins had.