Iron Sentinel: The Shadow Crown

CHAPTER 5: THE PRINCE METEOR

“I told you. You’re just a dinosaur waiting to die,” Jax said again. This time he smiled cruelly. “And I’m the meteor.”

Jax's triumphant voice echoed through the damp valve junction. He raised his vibrating dagger, the pale blue blade reflecting in his hate-filled eyes.

Beneath his feet, the dying Grimbolt's optics flickered. And its light dimmed rapidly, almost to the point of extinction.

“An overblown metaphor,” Cogs squealed from Grimbolt’s grasp, his voice hoarse with fear but still sharp. “Meteors are blind and stupid things. At least it suits you.”

Cogs's words reminded Valerius of Elara. The bird's words seemed to be something Elara would say when she didn't like something. It either amused him or made him even sadder. He couldn't decide how he felt at the moment.

Jax ignored the mechanical bird's words. The man savored the moment of victory over a legend.

“I’ll tell Commander Kael that you fought bravely,” he said to the still-defenseless Grimbolt. A moment later, he chuckled softly at his own words.

“That’s a lie,” he added. “You fight like a cornered beast. Without any subtlety or even art.”

Jax pressed the tip of his blade against Grimbolt's chest chassis, just above the exposed power converter. “Goodbye, relic.”

Valerius could only freeze. His entire world suddenly narrowed to a single point: the sizzling blade inches from his protector's heart. The image of Elara shot down in the throne room flashed through his mind.

At that moment, he did nothing. Grimbolt failed. But he failed too. He was just a boy who chose to hide behind a robot's legs.

“Not anymore,” he muttered.

Something inside him had broken. But not out of despair, but out of anger. Anger at Jax, at Vexxos, and at himself for his helplessness.

His eyes began to shift to the side. Lying in a puddle just a few meters away was Jax's second vibrating dagger, which had been detached when Grimbolt had struck him earlier. The blade was inactive, but the hilt was still there. A golden opportunity.

'I have to take it,' he thought.

As Jax raised his arm for the final thrust, Valerius immediately moved silently. He tried not to scream. He didn't even think. He just started running. He slid across the slippery floor and lunged for the fallen dagger.

Jax, whose attention was focused on Grimbolt, heard the footsteps and turned. His eyes widened in surprise. “You idiot!” he shouted.

Valerius grabbed the blade's handle, which was cold and heavy. His eyes caught sight of a button pressed beneath his thumb, and with a loud hiss, the blade came to life.

The blade trembled violently in his untrained hands. The vibrations were so strong that they nearly caused him to slip out. It felt like holding a lightning bolt trapped inside something.

Jax finally turned completely around and left Grimbolt to face the new threat. “You want to play with grown-up toys, Prince?”

Valerius stood unsteadily, still holding the overly heavy weapon. The boy swallowed hard, trying to strengthen his resolve.

“Stay away from him,” he said in a trembling but still firm voice.

Jax laughed. “Or what, little one? Are you going to stab me with that?”

Without warning, Jax charged towards Valerius. Even his broken arm didn't slow him down at all.

Seeing this, Valerius panicked. “I don’t know how to fight,” he muttered in confusion.

Next, he simply closed his eyes and swung the dagger with all his might in an awkward horizontal motion.

“Feel it! Feel it!” Valerius shouted, still closing his eyes and still swinging the weapon with both hands.

Jax, a skilled duelist, easily ducked under the swing and moved within Valerius's reach, ready to disarm the boy.

But one thing he hadn't anticipated was that Valerius wasn't trying to stab him. The boy was simply trying to create space for his movements.

“Feel it!” Valerius kept saying it over and over again.

As Jax approached, Valerius, still in a panic, was about to stab the tip of the blade downwards. It was the only target he could reach: Jax's thigh.

“Got you!” Valerius screamed as a horrible hissing sound was heard as the vibrating blade pierced Jax’s thigh.

Jax roared in pain and shock. An excruciating pain shot through his leg, causing him to fall to his knees.

Valerius stumbled backward, his breath coming in short gasps as he stared at what he had just done to Jax. Valerius clearly saw blood pouring from Jax's wound, then turning to steam upon contact with the hot blade.

“Argh!” Jax wasn’t finished yet.

With a wild growl, the man swung his arm and struck Valerius' wrist. The blow sent the vibrating dagger flying, splashing into the water, where it died.

Valerius was shocked by Jax's action. Before he could dodge, Jax grabbed Valerius' ankle.

“You… must… die…” he hissed then pulled Valerius down.

“Let go!” Valerius tried to struggle under Jax’s pull. “Get your filthy hands off me!” he screamed again, trying to kick with his other free leg.

In the midst of the battle, Grimbolt, who had used the distraction to divert his remaining energy, spoke. His voice was barely audible. “Valerius… look… up…”

“Let go of you—”

Valerius's words trailed off. Still kicking against Jax's grip, he looked up. Above them, the tunnel ceiling was a tangle of countless old pipes. One of the largest bore a faded gas warning sign.

“Gas… methane pipes,” Grimbolt whispered.

Valerius understood. He had known about methane gas back in the palace. A strong tug on his leg made Valerius quickly divert his attention. Jax was still trying to drag him.

“Get away from me, you bastard!” Valerius shouted and kicked him with all his might.

Jax, who was actually confused by the change in tactics, grinned and released his grip. He felt victorious. “There’s nowhere to run, Prince!”

“I’m not running from you!” Valerius retorted. He turned and ran as fast as he could to Grimbolt’s side. “Do it, Grimbolt!”

“Do what?” Cogs shouted in confusion.

Grimbolt didn't answer. Instead, he pointed his free arm upward at the large methane gas pipe.

From his knuckles emerged a high-powered target designator laser—a diagnostic tool, not a weapon—firing a thin but intense red beam. The beam struck the rustiest and weakest-looking pipe joint of all.

Jax looked up and his eyes widened in shock as he realized what was happening. “No,” he whispered.

Valerius smiled broadly. He was pleased to see Jax panic.

The laser beam's intense heat, concentrated on the brittle, corroded metal, was more than enough. With a loud groan, the pipe connection broke. Colorless, foul-smelling methane gas began to erupt, creating a loud whistle.

“Now it's time for the spark,” said Grimbolt.

Grimbolt directed the laser beam down onto the old electrical cables dangling near the broken pipe. The cables immediately emitted hissing blue and white sparks.

And the spark meets the gas.

Voice wusss deafening creating a bluish-orange fireball that exploded in the middle of the tunnel.

A scorching heat wave swept over Grimbolt and Valerius, forcing Valerius to take cover near Grimbolt's feet. The blast wasn't powerful enough to kill them, but it was powerful enough to trigger a chain reaction.

The entire ceiling began to collapse. Steel pipes weighing hundreds of kilograms rained down on the spot where Jax had just been standing. This caused Valerius to close his eyes and try to protect himself from further collapse.

The fire died down as quickly as it had appeared, leaving only a pile of twisted, blackened pipes. Jax was gone, buried beneath the rubble.

Valerius opened his eyes. His breath caught in his throat. A thick silence enveloped them. The only sounds were the hiss of the remaining gas and the sound of water.

“Is he… dead?” Valerius asked shakily.