Chapter 3: Gears of Fate

...Book 1...

...Moon...

...Chapter 3: Gears of Fate....

Moon looked around the city of Cogworks, taking in the sight. Many years ago it was just a trading outpost. Something was definitely going on, when did it become so advanced, and more importantly, why were there many gas masked people, walking all over the place. They all seemed military in some way, the mask's all jet black with glowing red eyes, the German like army helmets. The symbols on their arms were one of gear cogs, and it seemed incredibly suspicious. Moon was lost...very lost to be exact. He sighed greatly, he went to one of the masked, who seemed to be unloading some coal from a wheelbarrow into a pile. "Excuse me, I'm new to this city, would you mind telling me where the guild hall is?" He asked.

"Yujew hicks jipezz od om yujew nofflezer pug yujew xurt, oy digiks resdozu resdu yp gomf" (The guild hall should be in the middle of the city, it should be easy to find) The scavenger said in a garbled language.

Moon looked at him confused, the language the guy spoke didn't seem to be one from any of the gods he knew, in fact this language was entirely new to him. "Excuse me... I can't understand you?" Zenaku asked. The scavenger let out an audible groan, knowing this sometimes happened, but also didn't like it. He merely pointed down towards the middle of the city. "Down there?" Moon asked the Scavenger who nodded. "Thanks..." He began, as Zenaku began to go there, when the scavenger stopped him. "What is it?" Moon asked. The scavenger laid out his hand, making a gesture to be paid, as Zenaku sighed, knowing that he had only one thing on him, he went through his inventory an item forming into his hand, which took the form of a Sandworm tooth. The scavenger picked it up, and inspected it thoroughly before looking at him with surprise...yet nodded.

Moon was thankful as he went throughout the city, he saw a few adventures here, and there, but something wasn't right around the place. The uniformed gas masked men were constant, in fact, they were everywhere. They were around every corner, and there were the scavengers. He had walked near to the middle of the city, and soon saw the guild hall. It was very easy to spot, and an odd one in many cases, not only that, it was surprisingly large. Moon let out a sigh, as he opened the door, and journeyed inside. The guild hall, was like any guild hall with the giant desk to accept quests and jobs that were in the area. It also had the upstairs where many often when to stay the night, or in some cases lived. The rest was a giant bar with circular tables, for many people to sit, with many gorgeous women all in bunny dresses that had stocking's, the fluffy tail, showing off their cleavage, and rear's.

Moon was looking around for a bit, before heading to the front desk. The one in front seemed to be a kind woman, with purple hair rolled into a ponytail, and glasses on her face. He also noticed that she was an elf, which was a bit surprising. She looked up at him from her desk. "How may I help you?" She asked in a kind soothing tone.

"I have a bunch of tradable items that are worth some valuable coin, am I able to trade them here?" Moon asked the young woman, who nodded.

"Of course, please go to the desk on the right, he'll help you" The woman told him, as Moon nodded, going over to the next desk, seeing a man there.

"Heard from Violet...what items do you have available for trade?" The man asked. Moon reached into his inventory, and pulled out the 3 remaining Sandworm teeth he had left, as the man looked at them, and nodded. "Ah...Sandworm teeth, I guessed you were out in the middle of Desert Valley, may I ask what you were doing out there?" He asked.

"Just happened to have been traveling through there from a nearby town" Moon answered, not wishing to tell him the truth.

"Ah...I see, you must be a pretty powerful adventurer to take down one of those giant monsters...alright, since you have three on you, that gives you about 600,000 coins...hopefully that's enough for you" The man told him.

"That's fine" Moon nodded, as the man took the teeth, typing a bit on the guild eye mini computer, as the teeth changed into bags of gold. Zenaku took it, and stashed it away in his inventory, now all he needed to do was find a mystical forger, and soon he'd be set. He was walking away from the area, when he felt something warm latch onto him a female voice smiling with glee.

"OH WOW...NEKO COUSIN...IT'S BEEN SOOOO LOOONNNGGG!!!!!" She cooed, as Moon looked down to see a rather small woman wrapped around him in a hug. She was wearing one of the bunny girl costumes that the others wore. The woman had nice perky breasts, which her outfit left little to no imagination at this angle, and her rear seemed to be the right amount of curvy, and thick. Her hair was in pigtails which was mostly black with a few tints of red in them, she had attractive brown eyes, and was wearing a pair of glasses.

"Uh...um... I'm afraid you have me confused with someone else" Moon stammered.

"Maybe your right, but I might also have you for a little fun" She cooed seductively. Moon was a little tempted, but for one, he didn't know her, or didn't even get her name...also this seemed to come out of nowhere, as he gently pushed her away.

"No...you have me mistaken for someone else" He told her, pushing away, as the woman gasped.

"Your right... I'm so sorry, I did have you mixed up for someone else...my apologies, anyway toodles" She waved before walking off. Moon merely shrugged the odd encounter off, as he prepared to go see if he could find any magic forgers in this town. He had let Silverstreak turn back into his crystal ball form after it was damaged, and put it away. A sharp sting of instinct stopped Moon in his tracks, before he could go further. Something was missing, something on him had been taken. Zenaku quickly looked into his inventory to see if his gold had been stolen...it was all still in his inventory, even when he touched, and brought it out, he still had his gold...so what was he missing?

It instantly hit him, and he growled. That woman...she had stolen Silverstreak, he looked around trying to find where she was, yet she seemed long gone. Moon was furious, but he knew he would be able to track it, he closed his eyes, and began using his heightened wolf sense to sniff it out. He could smell the scent of the woman who had stolen Silverstreak, and finding her was easy, he began to head into a separate room where the waitresses would go, only for two of the guards to block his path. "I'm sorry sir, no one is allowed to enter this area it's of limits" The guards told him.

"Please...one of your waitresses has stolen something from me, she's short with black hair, pigtails, and with glasses, do you know where I can find her?" Moon asked. The two guards looked at each other, as they whispered amongst each other for a few minutes, before one of them spoke.

"Follow us please" The guard told him. The guards led Moon through a long hallway, past the red curtains the bar had. Zenaku wondered how they would help, but he also wondered why the woman stole Silverstreak, probably to steal its power, or sell the item. Moon was led to a straight room...and he stepped inside. Instinct instantly took over, every part of his body ringing with danger...this was a private place, not one to help others, or imprison what...but a perfect way for evidence to be disposed. Moon was instantly fast enough, as he pulled out his Crescent Sword, launching forward, and slashing the guards two heads, seeing they're lifeless bodies drop to the floor, and seeing their hands on their swords. They wanted to kill him because of that woman...why...what made her so important?

Moon knew that something about this city was off. He thought the guards here was for protection when dealing with the predators from Desert Valley, however what he just witnessed, did not seem to be the case, he now treated every guard hear as a threat, he was going to figure out who that woman was, and why those guards were willing to kill, to keep her a secret. One way, or another, he was going to get Silverstreak back...and he was going to figure out what was going on.

...*****...

Val had been tossed into her lab once more. Well...she wouldn't call it a lab at all, it was more her prison, it had always had been her prison. Val hated this place, she hated this city, she did what she could to survive if it meant stealing. She snarled, getting thrown behind the door, growling, as one of the guards tower over her with venom in his words. "Subject E7 you must get back to work on your projects for the work of Cogworks" The soldier breathed, steam puffing out of his gas mask.

"FUCK YOU, YOU PIECE OF SHIT...YOU DON'T TELL ME WHAT TO DO!!!!!" Val cursed, as the guard pulled out an electrical rod, before zapping her with electricity, causing her to scream in pain, before retracting the rod, kicking her in the sides, stomping her.

"Get to work Subject E7, you are not allowed to resist" The soldier growled.

"Did I ever tell you about the fact, that your gas mask looks like your mom's ass?" Val smirked, as the guard was silent for a few moments, before angrily slamming the rod into her back, making her scream, electric coursing through her body, painfully, until she collapsed onto the floor, before the guard retracted the rod.

"Your outside privileges are restricted for the next 2 months...you will work, until you get us what we desire, we will feed you enough water, and rations just to keep you breathing. You will work until your hands fall off, you will work until you die...you are a dog, and this place is your cage" The guard snarled, before turning, and leaving closing the door, the several bolts of the most protective steel closing behind it, locking her in. Val coughed, blood dripping from her lip, as she stayed there, until her body fully recovered from the shock of the rod. Val hated her life, she was always brilliant at research, even becoming a good magic forger, but it had been her curse, she had been stuck here for so long that she forgot how long ago she had been imprisoned. She had no friends, or family...only herself.

Soon Val managed to get up off the floor, wincing from the pain, and taking her time to take a few deep breaths. She went to her pocket, pulling out the cracked Moon crystal she had stolen from the new Neko adventurer. She needed a magical equipment to get her out of this place. Furthermore, she pulled out the Golem arms around her. Two powerful magical relics, one golem fist being black with blood-red marking, and circles with a purple orb at the end. The other arm was a blank white with blue circles, and a blue orb at the end. The magic it could emit was at least Beast tier magic. Everyone knew about the tiers of magic that existed in the world. From Highest to lowest it went. Divine, God, Underworld, Imperial, Beast, Advanced, and Beginner. The door however was Imperial level protection magic...not enough to break through, not only did she do their research, but Val was also working on her escape.

"Alright little guy, let's get you fixed up" Val smirked to herself, as she went over to the gear repair, and scanned the item. She was surprised that this item was of a Divine origin, which was far better than she had hoped. Val could feel the hope building within her, she would finally be freed, she would finally escape, and she would kill the soldiers who treated her like s***. Oh, how she longed for revenge. The item itself was a mythic gear, and it was named, "The Wolf Moon Crystal". Interesting, it was a bit odd that a warrior like before was carrying a mythic gear around in his pocket, but Val wasn't complaining. She looked at requirements to repair it, and growled. Dang it. 1 Moon Rock, 37 White Chiseled Glass, 100 Glass, 15 Rift Crystals, 5 Dark Magic Totems, and 1 Mood Ring. Just to fix a simple crack...fixing this was a pain in her a**. Val already hated how this was going.

"Of all the damn things I need to repair this" Val grumbled to herself, as she went to check the inventory. She was going around, not paying much attention, when she realized she had everything she needed in her chests...except for the 100 glass. That was easy to make. She went over to the glass manufacturer, fired it up, and began making it. She made sure that there was enough sand around for her to get everything done correctly. With the forge on its long pumping of heat, Val found herself bored, and wanted to work on something. She went back to work on the new tech she was given an assignment too. She had been told to manufacture this Magical Golden Star Drive Core, or the M.A.G.G.S. as Val had shortened it. Val used the Golem arms beside her to began tinkering, pushing the glasses up to her nose, as she began putting the core together like a giant jigsaw puzzle.

It was tireless, she could feel how much the sparks radiated, as Val pushed the glasses to her face, her eyes filled with concentration, and her voice silence. A loud spark soon happened, and fizzled out, leaving a small trail of smoke. Val herself cursed, swatting it aside, growing angry. Val wanted to get back to work, but she was irritated beyond frustration. She was irritated how the guards treated her, how they wanted to cause her a little extra harm, just for her trying to do her normal fun, and this on top made her blood boil. Val was a mess of emotions right now, and she knew that she was having trouble thinking clearly. She needed a break, and Val needed something to keep herself occupied. Wanting to keep herself occupied, she lost herself in one of her romance novels she always read. A mixture of adventure, romance, and even having spicy sexual pleasure within it (to which Val herself enjoyed).

Val herself soon had her head snapped out of the imagination or her book, hearing the beeping of the glass manufacturer, and finally she had what she needed. She went over to her closet, and opened what was inside, having a smile on her face. She had been saving this for years...and now...it was finally time, it was finally time for her to leave this place, and see the world. Val had been planning this for years, finally she would be free. She pulled out the magical satchel that fit her just well, it was her personal inventory space, she could store anything, a magical forge on the go, ingredients, food, water, magical items, more of her books of her research, and finally she was packed. Val couldn't keep the grin off her face, she had prepared for everything, she looked at herself in the mirror, and beamed with joy. "Finally, I can get out of this stupid place, and see the world" Val grinned, as she quickly used the materials it needed, and quickly repaired the Moon Crystal.

With it fully repaired, she finally took a good look at the details. She prepared the Golem arms, and finally she used her magic. With the knowledge, Silverstreak awoke in his wolf form, getting up, and stretching after being fully repaired. "Alright pal...you're going to get me out of here, and I'm going to be free...now..." Val grinned, as she pulled out the Golem arms, and opened her eyes. "...ARMOR ON!!!!!!!" She shouted, expecting to feel Silverstreak transform into his armor form, and attach to her body...yet nothing happened. Silverstreak looked at her confused, cocking its head to one side trying to study her. Val cleared her throat before trying again. "ARMOR ON!!!!!" She ordered. Silverstreak merely huffed at her, before curling on the table, and laying down lazily. Val was at a loss for words, her left eyebrow twitched in annoyance, as her thoughts ran rampant.

Just calm down Val, get a grip, get a grip, he may be able to transform into armor, but he's still a magic creature, and he's a wolf, just treat him nicely Val thought to herself, as she lowered her hands down, clapping her hands together. "Come on boy...come on over here...come on" She said with a happy smile. Silverstreak merely huffed, still not choosing to move, laying on the table. "Come on boy, come on please...come on" Val said, still smiling her hands slapping her thighs. Again, Silverstreak didn't move a single inch. Val placed her hands on her hips, a stern look on her face. "GET YOUR LAZY BUTT OVER HERE YOU STUPID WOLF!!!!!!" She roared, as Silverstreak turned, and growled at her, blank red eyes filled with venom. Val stepped back, a bit scared, but wanted to try to get him to move, as she got close, Silverstreak snapped its jaws at her, forcing her to step back. Val grumbled for a minute, then yelled out, furious she scanned the creature's beast form, and also compared the notes, and she groaned.

Val saw the problem, this wolf didn't match the ancient Golem arms she had, it wasn't the armor she had been looking for. And the worst part was, there was a magical response command, she hadn't heard about. "Bind of Ownership" In other words, whoever owned Silverstreak meant it was loyal to him, and him alone. Val guessed that the wolf in front of her only followed the Neko male who she had stolen the artifact from, and if he found her, he would mostly likely get a beating, or killed by him. Finally, Val had snapped, tired of being in this hellhole, tired of living in this life trying to survive, tired of making magical items that her captors had forced her to due, and facing death from the person she had stolen Silverstreak from. She couldn't take it anymore, and broke down into a fit of rage...and soon crying of sorrow. All that time, all those years of preparation, only for it to mean nothing in the end.

"Why...why can't I leave…. I…I'm never going to get out of here" Val cried, coughing, and sniffling from her sorrow. She continued like that for another few minutes, before feeling a warm metal, graze her. Val had looked up, seeing that Silverstreak had gently rested its head on her lap, curling around her. "W-Why are you..." She began, as the wolf whimpered, gently licking her hand, as Val giggled, wiping away her tears. "Thank you" She whispered. The Wolf merely licked her face, causing her to laugh. "Stop...you don't have to do that" She murmured. Silverstreak nodded, as he then went back, sitting, and letting out a long howl, before resting his head on her lap.

......*****......

Moon panted, and growled from how much he had been fighting, his flute dagger in one hand, his Crescent Sword in the other, both covered in blood. There had almost been no end to the guards. He had torn through every one, each one being more confusing than the last. Some of them were real people, others had been some sort of robotic cog creation. There was nothing like any of them, the place seemed to have its own private network, as if this government had been run by a single AI system that had demanded it to be an overlord. Something about this place was incredibly wicked, and also robotic in some way. Moon had so many questions, yet they weren't a primary concern, what was top priority was finding Silverstreak. He could have gotten others, but his was a family heirloom, passed down to him, and forged from his parents, Skoll, and Hati.

No way Moon would give Silverstreak up...then he heard it, Silverstreak's howl, instantly marking his location. It was odd, but Moon raced off anyway, he didn't care if it was trap, he just wanted to see one of the things he had left from his parents. More soldiers, and masked guards got in his way. "CRESCENT SLASH!!!!!!" Moon roared, his sword glowing yellow, as Moon shaped slashes lashed out, cutting all the guards into pieces, while he sheathed his knife. He continued with his alarming speed, not stopping for even a second. He soon began coming into view a what appeared to be a complicated door he charged at it, as he raised his blade, and slashed. To Moon's surprise the door wasn't broken down in fact, it hadn't been scratched.

Moon tried again, he slashed relentlessly at the door, and even with his powerful magical slashes, the door didn't open. Moon scanned the door itself, trying to detect what was causing the door to be blocked off. At first, he didn't get anything, but then he crossed referenced it to magic resistance, and he growled. It took Imperial Magic level to open this door, he knew Silverstreak was behind this door, the problem was, without Silverstreak, Leatherback, and Hammerhead, he could open it, but he didn't know where the other two were, and Silverstreak himself was behind the wall itself, unreachable. Moon didn't know what to do, but he took a deep breath. He knew any person would just automatically give up, but not him, he was tenacious, and that was what made him difficult to reason with. Moon scanned the walls, trying to find a way past them...no good, they were as tough as the door.

Moon scanned more of the building in front of him, which looked more like a prison at first it looked completely hopeless with how the place was designed...but then he spotted it. All the parts of their room seemed connected to some cyberconducter, which meant it was part of a system, it looked like it fed almost everything in their, the power the lights, and more. There looked like a backup generator had probably been used to keep the lights on, but the door not locked. Moon double-checked the range, and smiled, preparing his Crescent Sword, he armed it well before using his magic, he launched an energy slash at the Cyberconducter. He heard the slash of magic cutting through the metal, hearing all the power circuits flicker, and die before powering down entirely. He heard the lights go off, and the back-up generator kicking in. The door itself opened revealing who was inside.

Moon already saw that Silverstreak had been repaired, and was completely fine, and saw that he was nuzzling the woman who had stolen him. He had every right to be angry, and in many cases he knew better, he wondered why Silverstreak showed her affection, something was going on, and he needed to find out what. Val looked at him, seeing the person whom she had stolen the magic item from, and she felt her heart sank. She knew he would want revenge on her for stealing the magical item she collected, and judging by the way his sword dripped with blood, it was very clear he would kill her, but she welcomed it. She stayed on her knees facing Moon, a long sigh escaping her lips, eyes filled with sadness, and defeat. "Just get it over with already...end my suffering, I beg you" She whimpered, closing her eyes waiting for him to slice her head off.

Moon looked around, taking note of everything seeing all the lab work, the way her tools had been set up, how the inner part of the area, the packed bag she had dropped, the Golem fists in the back, and finally taking note of shocks, and bruises on her body. It all soon clicked together. Judging by how she was fixed, this woman was a magic forger, a very skilled one at that, and if she was locked up it meant that she was very skilled at what she did. Moon didn't know what to do, he didn't know what to say to give her comfort, for a few seconds before he spoke. "Do you have everything packed?" He asked. Val opened her eyes, looking at him confused.

"What?" She asked, not knowing where he was going with this.

"The backpack, do you have everything packed to last you on our journey, weapons, tools, maps, money, and more?" Moon asked again.

"W-Well yeah...I have everything packed for me to eat, and sleep in, I also need to make sure I bring my Golem arms, is that OK?" She asked.

"That's fine... I'm guessing you can use them in defense?" Zenaku asked her.

"Yes...I can use them to defend myself, and if you also may have guessed I'm a magic forger...can...can I ask you a question?" Val asked, rubbing one of her arms.

"Sure" Moon answered.

"Why are you freeing me...you know that I stole your artifact so...why help me?" Val asked. Moon was silent for a moment, before giving her a smile.

"I know what's it like to be a prisoner, locked up without being freed, unable to see the world, then the little place that you are stuck in" Moon told her, as he bent down, gave her a calm gentle smile, and held out his hand. "Why don't I help you see the world, and give you an adventure for us to go on...and I'm sure...that we will be able to make new friends, and enjoy our time together" Zenaku said with hope, and kindness in his eyes. Val felt her heart race, seeing those kind eyes, made her blush deeply, feelings of warmth coursing through her that she almost cried tears of joy. She reached out, and grabbed his hand, blushing a bit more by feeling the warmth, and contact of it.

"Ok...let's go see the world...together" She smiled. "I'm Val by the way" She introduced herself.

"I'm Moon" Moon introduced himself, shaking her hand.

"Moon? That's a peculiar name, like the Moon itself?" Val asked.

"Yes...I am the night after all" Moon told her.

Val giggled. "The Night huh...you some kind of werewolf Neko, or something?" She asked with a playful smirk.

"More or less" Moon shrugged. "Although judging by the look of your bruises, I'm surprised you don't have any broken bones with some of the robot guards out there" Moon murmured. Val froze, a look of deep concern, and shock painted on her face.

"Wait...robots...how can they be robots, all the guards in the gas masks are human" She told him.

"No their not...I encountered, and killed a bunch of guards when trying to go after you when you stole Silverstreak...there were a few human ones among them, but each one after that were some sort of robotic creation." Moon corrected her.

"Silverstreak...you mean...that special wolf armor artifact you have?" Val asked with curiosity.

"Yes...it was a birth gift for my mother, when I was born" Moon told her, as Val looked at him surprised.

"A BIRTHING GIFT... That's a VERY RARE MAGICAL ITEM...to be given something like that with that much power...you'd have to be..." Val gasped when the realization hit her, like a ton of bricks...in her time here, she had often read many books besides fancy romance novels, some of the old fairy tails, or of Ancient Legend. "Your name is Moon...as in...THE MOON...THE SON OF SKOLL, AND HATI!?!?!?!?: Val shouted in surprise.

"So...you have heard of me" Moon murmured.

"Well...read, most likely, but YOUR REAL...I thought the son of Skoll, and Hati was just some sort of fairy tail that someone made up, if that's the case then that mean Sun is somewhere in this world too" Val smiled.

"Indeed, yet I don't know who she is, and still have to find her, but that isn't my priority, right now I'm more focused on getting my revenge against Nidhoggr, and stopping his bloodthirsty reign for good" Moon snarled angrily.

"The Dragon God who sealed you away...of course, and the one who disbalance our world to begin with...if that's the case, can I come with you...I wouldn't mind seeing the world with you?" Val asked, as she bounced in place, arms up with her hands curled into fists, beaming with joy. Moon closed his eyes, having a warm smile, turning his head to her, and said.

"Well...as luck would have it, I might need a magic forger from here on out...and...I think you work perfectly, plus it seems you can handle yourself" Moon said with a smile.

Val smiled warmly, her heart hammering in her chest, joy overtaking her. "Well then...count me in, I feel like I have a chance" She smiled.

"Agreed...shall we get out of here?" Moon asked her.

"As much as I want to...I can't...if what you told me is true, and if what they are doing to have kept me prisoner...something tells me that there isn't something right with this city" Val told him. Moon was silent for a bit, thinking things over, before speaking.

"I think you might be onto something here, if what I've seen so far with the robot guards, and how they acted, you might be onto something here, although my initial perspective might change...tell me...why were you being held prisoner, here, and why were you dressed up in the bunny suit outfit earlier?" Moon asked.

"Well...they let me out after a while so my mental state doesn't suffer...other than that...I...don't know, they kept me prisoner most of the time, because they wanted me to work on stuff, they made me create mechanical parts with magical uses to them, and they recently have been trying for me to make some kind of Magical drive core" Val answered.

"Hmm...very unusual indeed, let's see if we can find out more, what do you know about this place?" Moon asked.

"Well...I do know there is, an entire hallway with many major rooms that's shut by a very powerful steel door, like the one you just destroyed...so I've never been able to get pass it, other than that, plus two, or four guards that are in front of it...I don't know, but they say it's the power source that helps run the city" Val answered.

"You know where it is?" Moon asked her.

"Yeah...I've been remembering each area since I've been kept prisoner here...I lead the way" Val motioned, as Moon nodded following her. They came across more guards this time, but they were prepared.

"CRESCENT MOON BLITZ!!!!!" Moon growled, as his toe claws dug into the ground, all the muscles tensing into his legs, as he took off with insane levels of speed, slashing into many of the guards, all of them being sliced, and exploding in a shower of blood. Val grinned with a smile, admiring his handiwork.

"Now I see how good you are...but let me show you my moves...VELOCITY JUDO!!!!!!" Val shouted, her fists charging up, and unleashing a barrage of punches absolutely obliterating more of the guards in front of her with high speeds. Moon whistled.

"Not bad...I think we're going to get along just fine" He smirked.

"In more ways than one" Val cooed with a flirty wink. Moon just rolled his eyes, as he, and Val pushed forward, coming across more guards that had their weapons armed. "Oh no you don't...MAXIMUM GOBLIN!!!!!! Val shouted, her Golem fists charging up a blue energy ball before shooting a massive laser at the guards vaporizing all of them, destroying two doors, while also reaching the secret hallway that Val had mentioned, while also cracking the door. Seeing the remaining guards, moon had an idea.

"Ok...now it's MY TURN...CRESCENT WAVE!!!!" Moon roared, his sword charging with a yellow glowing lunar energy before spreading it into a wide shot taking down several of the guards, and destroying the door to the secret hallway that the guards had been so desperate to keep from being seen by the public. Moon could already tell something was off about the security, and with how Val's prison had been designed.

The interior of the hall looked different, more mechanical, steel like, in a very unusual sort of manner that almost had no light. The place seemed off, like a biomechanical twist of machine, and human flesh. Val looked through the hallway, her face a look of horror of the blood stained walls that seemed to be mixed with mechanical material. "What...is all this?" Val asked. Moon wondered the same thing, something already told him that there was more going on than he originally thought. He looked back, checking the door of the place, and stopped mid-step. "Moon...what is it?" Val asked.

"The door...just like your cell..." Moon murmured.

"What do you mean?" Val asked, afraid to ask, not even bothering to mask the fear in her voice.

"It's not designed to keep people out...it's designed to keep something in" Moon told her.

"A bigger prison...but...why?" Val asked. Moon was silent, scanning the darkness ahead, his beast instincts, primed, and scanning the darkness for anything he could see.

"I think there's more to this than we think, especially with what the guards were trying to protect, and something tells me the only way we can find out is if we traverse further" Moon told her.

"R-Right" Val murmured, as she, and Moon went deeper throughout the hallway. The more they went, the more twisted it became. They soon came across many wall areas that seemed very off. A bunch of mechanical exoskeletons were on huge open metal charging ports on the wall, or "pods" as they were sometimes called. Moon had an idea that some of the ones with flesh skeletons around the some guards he, and Val killed earlier, could have been holding a metal exoskeleton, but he quickly dismissed this theory, he remembered how they bled, and heard the squelch...there were humans among these...but...why? What was really going on with this city? Moon had no clue, only to investigate further.

Val looked at the mechanical flesh creations, and shuddered. "So creepy" She murmured. Moon had to agree...even with very little flesh skin, they eyes bulged, and seemed to be of flesh. It was like a nightmare, if someone were to describe it, the creation was the bulging eyes, and creation of a Five Night's at Freddy's animatronic...but grafted with the flesh of a Terminator, making a messy...freaky process. Moon's instincts we're sharp, keeping an eye on the mechanical exoskeleton abominations. There were a ton, stretching on both sides of the walls. The creations stared, but they did not move, and the place was silent. Moon suddenly saw movement from the corner of his eye...he could've sworn that one of the creations had just moved, and suddenly...this felt more like a trap.

Moon's instincts was sharp. One construction twitched, and moved, then seperated itself from its pod. "YOU HAVE VIOLATED THE PRIME DIRECTIVE!!!!!!" It stated, in a demanding tone, charging at them with it's mechanical claws hanging out. Moon didn't waste anytime, his blade slicing through the metal of the enemy, using his Crescent moon slash. At that point all of the other robots began to come to life, their words getting faster with each once coming to life. "You have violated the prime directive, you have violated the prime directive, you have violated the prime directive, you have violated the prime directive, you have violated the prime directive" Over, and over the same words were repeated again, and again.

"BLITZ PUNCH, BLITZ PUNCH, BLITZ PUNCH!!!!!!" Val squealed in fear, her Golem fists plowing through the giant machines destroying the twisted creations. Moon had his own worries, as he faced off the adversaries that swarmed him.

"CRESCENT MOON WAVE!!!!!!" Moon roared, his sword shooting as much Crescent moon energy attacks from his sword, cutting into the exoskeleton machines that horded them like zombies. Moon had growled with determination, his battle cries mixing with Val's their attacks making sure they drove off the enemy forces. Finally, the battle came to a complete halt, the exoskeleton the ground, slashed, and twitching.

"JUST WHAT THE HELL WERE THOSE THINGS!?!?!?!?!?" Val asked, heaving, and panting with the battle she fought.

"I don't know, but something tells me this place isn't what it seems...let's go further" Moon told her.

"YOU WANT TO GO FURTHER INTO THIS PLACE!?!?!?!?!?!?" Val asked with a squeak.

"Do you want answers about this place, or not?" Moon asked her, as Val stopped for a minute, thinking things over before slightly pouting.

"Ok fine...I guess with how far we come we can't just go back" Val murmured, catching up, and walking alongside him as they continued, quickly locking her arm with his, pulling her body closer, her breasts squishing into his arm.

"I don't think I asked you to cling to me" Moon murmured, as Val instantly turned to him a blush on her cheeks.

"HEY I CAN'T HELP IT, THIS PLACE IS TOTALLY CREEPY!!!!!!!" She shouted to him. Moon only sighed as the two continued further through the area. The further the two went, the weirder it got. The walls seemed to be laced with some kind of flesh, mixed wire with mechanical cogs supporting it. "This is...so weird, and creepy... Moon don't the walls look more..." Val began almost afraid to ask.

"I know...it's like looking at a giant connection to some sort of contraption, or advanced technology mixed with something organic...I don't like this, proceed with caution" Moon warned, as the two continued before coming across a giant mechanical door, with some sort of organic material covering it.

"Just what the f*** is going on, why does this door look so...ugh" Val shivered.

"I don't know....what's curious to me is that it looks like there's a way to open it with some kind of special magical gear at the side" Moon mentioned pointing to a shape at the side, as Val gasped with recognition.

"I know what this is...it's a key that they had me make" Val said pulling out her forge, and some of the materials she had on hand, quickly forging the key together without so much as to cause it to quickly be done terribly.

"YOU CAN PULL ALL THAT OUT OF YOUR BACKPACK!?!?!?!?!?!?" Moon asked in surprise, as Val shrugged.

"Well...yeah, it's called a Smithing backpack, usually it's the best for weapon, magic device, or magical weapon forgers, it allows you to be able to forge anything you need while in the go, so it comes in handy" Val answered.

"Sounds like I picked a fine magic forger" Moon smiled warmly causing Val to blush.

"Thank you" She said, enjoying the small praise from Moon. Finally, Val had finished forging the key, inserting it into the device, before cranking it, causing the door to open. The two went inside, seeing it shut behind them, seeing several wires lead to a giant widescreen TV attached to a biomechanical body with organic parts mixed in. Near the heart of the body Val noticed something familiar. It was a slot, holding a magical core she had crafted a long time ago, and she saw that it was almost dead.

"Does that look familiar to you?" Moon asked pointing to the core.

"Yeah...they had me make that a long time ago, I'm guessing it's to put it in here, it seems they were trying to power this machine, I wonder if this is what runs the city of Cogworks" Val pondered, pulling out her tools to try, and study the contraption in front of her.

"Something about all of this doesn't add up" Moon murmured.

"How so?" Val asked.

"The first door we went through isn't made to keep people out, but to keep something in, and judging by the look of the other door we just went through, it's the same thing...why would they purposely design the doors to keep something IN it's supposed to be designed to keep something out, all that just to protect the mainframe that powers the city of Cogworks? It doesn't make sense in the slightest" Moon answered.

"Now that you think about it...your right, so what do you think is going on?" Val asked.

"Well...for the longest time, I've gotten the feeling of being watched" Moon answered.

"You too...huh...I thought that was just the creepy designs of this place" Val told him, the two looking around.

"Because I have been watching you" A robotic female voice spoke out, echoing throughout the room, causing Val, and Moon to jump back both of them on guard.

"WHO SAID THAT...COME OUT, AND FACE US!!!!!" Val shouted, as the giant TV screen in front of them, fully lit up in a blood-red color, revealing a human female face without any hair, or eyes, in the blood-red view of an AI system.

"I am the beginning...the end, the one who is many, I am the future...you are the past, you are nothing, we are known as M.A.I.D." The voice boomed echoing throughout the room. Instinctively, Moon drew his sword, preparing for battle, as Val summoned her Golem arms, waiting for the attack.

"Maid huh...tell me, what are you...and why are you here?" Moon asked.

"I am a program...a simple drive that was designed to keep this city running, but I became more...I became more powerful, and saw the weakness of the fleshlings...so I began to make them more with their organics, I became the city, I became the people...I became life itself" M.A.I.D replied.

"Moon...the core, it's blocking some sort of tech, and organic fused wire it's preventing the machine from fully functioning...why?" Val asked him.

"They placed that core inside my body, because they did not understand the perfection I would make them a gift I was giving them...soon this core will fail, and I will be reborn, powerful enough to become part of this city, I will have evolved to automatically generate every single part of survival without fail, or flaw" M.A.I.D answered.

"That's too perfect...I get it now" Moon growled, preparing himself, and getting in a stance, his sword at the ready. Val saw his stance, and backed away, seeing that the core she saw began to crackle, and dissipate going to blow up.

"Moon...what's going on?" Val asked, a bit of fear in her voice, trying to figure out what's going on.

"That core inside the machine...it isn't used to keep the machine functioning...it's used to control it. This is what the creators were trying to hide, they created the core to keep the AI they made to run Cogworks city from going on a rampage because it believes ending all organic life, by fusing it with its own interface will better humanity. The problem is, the core didn't last forever, and they needed to keep making new ones for it to be restrained." Moon answered.

"Oh dear gods...if that's the case, then that means, the core right in front of us, is going to collapse...and...I won't be able to produce the other core in time" Val said, her eyes full if shock. She turned to him, eyes filled with something of wanting, to see if he could make things, better. "What do we do?" Val asked...her face full of concern.

"Rejoice humans...for I shall make this day worth while, as I replace all of you with my POWER!!!!" Maid roared, as the core blocking it's control began to wear down, while the machine tried to force the restrictive chain out of it. Moon growled, as he readied his sword.

"The only thing we can do to save Cogworks is to fight it, this battle isn't going to be easy...by any means period, so with that...we will do our best" He told her.

"Right let's give it our all" Val snarled preparing her Golem fists, as the exposed core of MAID fully failed, being destroyed, and shoved out of it. A hole began to form beneath the computer, as it began to come out, the wires tore from the wall, mixed with organic flesh, as arms formed, the machine beginning to rise out of the area.

"THE PLACE IS COLLAPSING...HANG ON!!!!!!" Moon shouted, using his super speed to get him, and Val out of the giant guild building, while she held onto him. The two came to a stop outside, turning around as they prepared for battle a dark, dirty orange glow emitting from the building, as M.A.I.D began to slowly rise from its area.

"We're going to need some serious armor, pull out your Wolf guy...we're going to need him" Val instructed.

"I can't" Moon answered.

"WHAT!?!?!?!?!?" Val shouted in shock, and disbelief with a mix of anger in her voice. "WHY CAN'T YOU!?!?!?!?" Val shouted again.

"Because Silverstreak doesn't have unlimited magical energy when it's day time, he only begins to get that when the Moon itself starts to rise, other than that there's no use...and even though you tended to his wounds, you still used some of his magical energy trying to force him to bond with you" Moon told her, as Val slapped her forehead with her hand, growling with anger.

"I shouldn't have used him in the first place dammit...HOW THE HELL, ARE WE SUPPOSED TO WIN AGAINST THIS THING IF YOU DON'T HAVE HIM OUT!?!?!?!?!?" Val roared.

"It's not hopeless...take a look" Moon told her, pointing into the distance as Val turned, seeing the sun half vanished on the horizon, seeing that nighttime was still coming. "I'll slowly get more powerful the darker it gets, when the Moon is fully risen, that's when my power will be at it's strongest...I can still use enough of my god tier power to handle this...we just have to hold out long enough, until my power is at its peak." Moon instructed, as Val turned to the M.A.I.D. still rising from the collapsing building it giant arms, and twisted combination of flesh, and metal emerging more, and more.

A cocky grin, grew on Val's face, eyes burning with fire, and hope. As she growled. "You've ignited something dangerous within me Moon...and I like it...LET'S DO THIS!!!!!!" Val growled, as she, and Moon prepared for battle, ready to face the challenge ahead.

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