Building Zoids in a World of Titans

The creature's amber optics locked onto their position. Something primal in that gaze—not just hunger, but purpose.

Rhian's voice crackled through the comm. "Alex. Do you... do you know what that is?"

Already running diagnostics. Alex's fingers danced across holographic displays, cross-referencing thermal profiles with the System's database. The creature's build was wrong for a typical predator. Shovel-like claws. Circular jaw arrangement. Component analysis struggling to classify.

Then it hit.

Mire-Devourer

The designation flashed across his HUD. Rank C. Semi-aquatic ambush predator. Usually stayed submerged, hunting in the deepest channels where river boats couldn't reach.

Except the river was gone.

Alex's jaw tightened. That explained the restless energy in the creature's posture. The way it kept turning toward the dried riverbed. It wasn't just hunting. It was displaced.

"Mire-Devourer," he said, voice flat. "C-Rank. Usually hunts in deep river channels."

Rhian's Arosaurer shifted behind him. "But the river—"

"Is dry. It might have been forced to hunt on land since the river dried."

The creature let out a low rumble, water dripping from its maw despite the cracked earth around them. Ancient behavior patterns overriding survival instinct. Hunt where the water used to be.

"Stay ready. It's not just dangerous. It's desperate."

The Mire-Devourer's jaws opened with a wet, grinding sound.

"GLLLUUURK—GLLLUUURK—GLLLUURK!"

Thick hide. Alex registered it immediately. The autocannon impacts barely dented the creature's armored carapace. Each shot sparked harmlessly against the silt-coated plating.

Rhian's voice crackled through comms. "Alex! My shots aren't doing anything!"

"Same here," he said, watching the Liger Zero's Strike Laser Claws scrape sparks across the creature's shoulder. "That hide's too thick for standard firepower."

The creature lunged, shovel-like claws digging into the earth. It moved surprisingly fast for something built for ambush.

"SKLUURRK—SKLUURRK—SKKRRRREEE!"

Alex felt the ground tremble through the Liger's servos. The thing was heavier than it looked, momentum carrying it forward like a charging bulldozer.

"Behind me!" he called.

Rhian's Arosaurer rolled aside just as the Mire-Devourer's maw slammed into the spot where she'd been. Water dripped from its teeth despite the dry earth.

"Poor bastard's confused," Alex muttered. "River's gone. Don't know how to hunt on land."

The creature turned, amber eyes locking onto Alex's position. It opened its circular maw wide.

"GLLLUUURRK—GLLUUURRK—RRRREEEK!"

Alex fired the Mane Blast point-blank. The electromagnetic pulse overloaded the creature's sensory organs, making it stagger. But it recovered fast, shaking its head like a dog shaking off water.

Rhian took advantage of the moment. "Trying flamethrowers!"

The Arosaurer's burners kicked to life, washing orange heat across the creature's hide. The silt coating sizzled and blackened.

"Now, Alex!"

Alex switched to electron fangs, driving them deep into the exposed flesh where the hide had been scorched away. The creature screamed.

"SKKREEEK—SKKREEEK—SKKREEE—GLRK!"

It bucked, throwing him off balance. Alex's HUD flickered—minor servo damage. The hide was still too thick in most places.

"Need to get underneath," he said, righting the Liger. "Hit the soft spots."

Rhian nodded, though he couldn't see her. "On it!"

The Mire-Devourer's circular maw kept opening, grinding teeth that could crack the Liger's armor. Alex rolled aside, autocannon fire sparking harmlessly off the creature's back.

"Rhian, draw its attention left!"

She's good enough for this.

The Arosaurer surged forward, autocannons blazing. The Mire-Devourer turned, shovel claws digging furrows in the earth as it charged.

Too predictable.

Alex fired the Mane Blast at the creature's face. Electromagnetic feedback made its head snap back, but the thick hide absorbed most of the impact.

"Now! Get behind it!"

Rhian's Zoid ducked low, tail spike extended. Alex ignited his ion boosters, soaring over the creature's back.

"SKLUURRK—SKLUURRK—SKKRRRREEE!"

The Mire-Devourer twisted mid-air, jaws snapping at Alex's descending form. But Alex was already rolling, landing hard on his feet.

Its underbelly.

Alex's HUD flagged the vulnerability—exposed flesh where the armored plating didn't reach. The creature's belly was their only opening.

"Rhian, we need height!" he called.

The Liger Zero bounded forward, claws raking across the Mire-Devourer's side. The creature reared up, shrieking.

"GLLLUUURK—GLLUUURRK—SKKREEEK!"

Alex timed his jump perfectly, landing on the creature's exposed belly. Electron fangs drove deep, but the hide was still too thick.

"Rhian, NOW!"

The Arosaurer charged from the flank. Rhian aimed for the soft spot beneath the creature's forelimbs.

"SKREEEK—SKREEEK—SKKREEE—GLRK!"

Alex felt the creature bucking beneath him. The impact was driving the fangs deeper, but he couldn't maintain position much longer.

Then Rhian's tail spike found its mark.

The Mire-Devourer's scream tore through the air.

"SKKREEEK—SKKREEEK—SKKREEE—GLRK!"

Alex seized the moment, driving both claws and fangs into the wounded flesh. The creature collapsed, convulsing.

The Mire-Devourer's massive form lay still in the dried riverbed, its armored hide cracked open where the Liger Zero's electron fangs had found purchase. Steam still rose from the wound, carrying the scent of burned silt and something metallic.

Rhian's Arosaurer stepped closer. "Alex. Is it... is it dead?"

He watched the creature's chest rise and fall. Once. Twice. The movement grew shallower each time.

"Should be."

Should be. That was precise.

Relief hit him like a physical thing. He exhaled, the breath shaking loose.

The Liger Zero's amber optics dimmed. "ROOO—RRRROO."

Rhian nodded. "Good. That thing was scary."

Alex's hand tightened on the control stick. "Yeah. Scary."

The Mire-Devourer's eyes flickered. Then went dark.

"Definitely dead now," Rhian said, her voice small in the comm.

Cheering erupted behind them. Rhian's head tilted. "Alex. Do you hear that?"

He did. Shouts carried on the wind from Millcross.

"They're cheering."

Rhian's shoulders straightened in the cockpit. "They're cheering for us."

Alex's jaw worked. That was... something.

"You did very well back there."

Rhian went quiet. "I did?"

"Don't get cocky. But yeah. You did."

A pause. Then: "Thank you, Alex."

The Liger Zero shifted its weight. "RROOO—RRRROO."

Rhian laughed. "Even the Liger agrees."

Alex found himself smiling despite everything. "We should head back. Ziya must also be waiting."

Rhian's shoulders slumped. "Alright."

She was quiet for a long moment. "Alex?"

"Yeah?"

"I'm glad I stowed away."

The Liger Zero's canopy caught the afternoon light. "RROOO—RRRRROO!"

Advance chapters on my p@tR$0n/Najicablitz.

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