Vol. 4: Chapter 6
In theory, with perfect timing, Flamethrower could have 100% uptime.
So why wasn't Mecha-Hakkar considered a top-tier damage dealer? The skill had one fatal flaw: it was a channeled ability, making it highly vulnerable to interrupts.
Several of the Elite Venom-Weavers, enraged by the searing flames, retaliated. They opened their mouths wide and spat globs of green venom. This was their interrupt skill: Neurotoxin, a projectile that would inflict a 0.1-second paralysis—just long enough to break a channel—followed by a poison DoT and a slow recovery to normal speed.
If Lunara had been the one casting, her spell would have been instantly cancelled. But when the venom splattered against Mecha-Hakkar's chassis, nothing happened.
Mecha-Hakkar's twin flamethrowers continued to roar, not only holding the aggro of every snake on Lila's left flank but also incinerating the low-health mobs near Lila herself.
Starbloom was multitasking, piloting the mech with one hand while using her other to perform repairs. Suddenly, she felt a violent jolt shake the entire machine. The mech tilted, her head spun, and with a resounding thud, Mecha-Hakkar toppled to the ground. The jets of flame sputtered and died.
Starbloom quickly scanned the area. Three Elite Obsidian Chargers were next to her. The tops of their heads were swollen and hardened, looking like grotesque sledgehammers.
This was their skill: Obsidian Slam, a powerful knockback charge. While the heavy mech had some natural resistance to being pushed, it wasn't a full immunity like its poison resistance.
For now, Mecha-Hakkar had lost its primary ranged attacks. Its hands reverted from cannons to fists, and it began slowly punching the snakes swarming around it.
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The formidable war machine had been reduced to a simple lump of iron: slow, weak, and with no AoE. All it could do was wait for its Rocket Barrage and Flamethrower to come off cooldown. Thankfully, the threat it had already generated was immense, and the snakes on the left flank continued to wail on its metallic hide, giving Lila a much-needed reprieve. With one flank completely secure, she could fight much more aggressively.
It took nearly an hour, but they finally managed to clear the last of the snakes in the outer hall. Now, their attention turned to the cage.
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"Huh?" a few of them muttered.
"Where did all the rats go? There were way more before."
"And what's that giant dark thing in the middle?"
"Whoa, that's a snake! A huge snake!"
"It's the boss! The one with the quest item!"
Lila circled the cage and found the entrance. She stood before it and turned to her team. "Everyone wait here. I'm going in to get the quest item."
"I'll go with you," Starbloom offered.
"No," Lila said firmly, cutting her off. "Absolutely not. All of you will stay out here. No one comes in. Not a single person."
"Oh... okay," the girls replied, though they were clearly worried. The snake in the cage was the size of a small hill. Could their leader really handle it alone?
Lila saw the doubt on their faces. She smiled. “If you don’t trust me… you trust Kael, don’t you?”
Her words had an immediate calming effect. From the moment they had entered the cavern, everything had gone almost exactly according to Kael's plan. He wouldn't have set her up for failure on the final step.
Lila hefted Dragonbane and walked into the iron cage, ready to face the boss alone. As she drew closer, the light from her gear finally illuminated the colossal serpent. It was coiled up on the ground, its body at least twelve feet thick and easily three hundred feet long.
[Gluttonous Serpent] (Level 39)
HP: 100,000,000
Physical Attack: 25,500
Physical Defense: 15,500
...
The serpent didn't attack. Instead, its forked tongue flicked in and out, and its nostrils twitched. It seemed highly interested in the meal that had just walked in.
A few surviving rats, noticing the open cage door, made a desperate dash for freedom. The Gluttonous Serpent saw them and opened its mouth, taking a deep breath. A powerful vacuum formed before its maw, sucking in all the surrounding air. The rats were lifted off the ground and pulled into the serpent's gullet.
Lila was caught in the immense pull as well, her boots sliding across the stone floor. She swung Dragonbane, activating Flurry Strikes, hoping the skill's high resistance would allow her to break free. The result was obvious: it was useless. The vacuum ignored all resistances.
Seeing its food drawing closer, the serpent's eyes gleamed with excitement, and it increased the force of its suction.
Lila felt her feet leave the ground as she was pulled into the air. She knew she couldn't hesitate. She activated Blazing Charge, instantly dashing back to the ground. Then, she immediately unleashed Dragon Slash in the opposite direction, away from the snake.
She was pulled into the air again, but the three blades of energy from her skill continued to travel away from the boss. Just as they reached their maximum range, Lila activated her teleport, instantly reappearing at the blades' location.
Here, the pull of the vacuum was significantly weaker. Her backward drift slowed, and a moment later, the vacuum effect ceased entirely.
Lila turned to face the boss again. The Gluttonous Serpent's appearance had changed dramatically. From inhaling so much air, its belly was now comically round, like an overinflated balloon. Its tongue flicked a few times as if tasting the air. It seemed to realize that the delicious morsel it had been anticipating wasn't in its mouth.
It lowered its head and glared at the tiny figure before it. Then, its jaws opened wide again, and all the air it had swallowed came rushing out in a single, hurricane-force gust.
WHOOSH…
Lila was sent tumbling head over heels.