Chapter 51: Zeta Colossus

Charon staggered back, his legs weakening from shock. The once-broken head was now fully repaired and intact, the gray metal turning as black as midnight. The jaw of the Colossus suddenly dropped, revealing rows of jagged metal teeth. Violet mist poured from the opening, washing over him and prickling his skin. To his left, the scaffolding began to snap and break as the Colossus shifted, its right arm raising to reveal a clawed hand. Its palm was held up flat, inviting him to step on. Momentarily holding himself back, Charon felt the sense of ease the Warden projected into his mind. ’If the Warden trusts the machine, then I should too. He won’t hurt me, I know it.’ Taking a deep breath, he stepped off the wobbling scaffold and onto the layered metal of the hand. He crouched down to steady himself as the appendage lowered to the ground, allowing him to be back on stable foundations. Emerius watched him with trepidation, his swords held out threateningly. Turning back to the Colossus, Charon looked up, studying the changes. The broken arm had been restored, ending in the clawed hand that had returned him to the floor. The cannon had changed, now having ten barrels made from a hard onyx-like material. Green liquid flowed into the side of the magazine from tubes winding into the machine’s body. From the shoulders extended two guns with wide barrels, a series of prongs extending into the center like a cone. Red and yellow wires were attached to the outside of the weapons, being more dense around the back. The most striking difference was in the core. Where it was once dim and lifeless, there was now a massive purple reactor, thrumming with unrestrained power. It flowed through veins in the machine’s exoskeleton, leading up and down every limb like mechanical lifeblood. With exaggerated movements, he wrenched itself free from the scaffolding. The metal barriers crumbled to the ground, shaking the floor. The Colossus slowly lowered itself to one massive knee, its head bowed in reverence. Charon innately knew what it meant. ’The Colossus is mine.’ He activated his mental holo-pad, scrolling through his information until he went to his summons tab. [Summons] [Current Summons: Warden of the Acheron*, Zeta Colossus*, Skeleton Lieutenant, 4 Skeleton Infantry] He saw the familiar information of the Warden, but also three new entries. Two of them were his skeletons, which were disconcertingly low in numbers, but also his newest addition, the Zeta Colossus. Selecting the new tab, he quickly read the provided information. [Name: Zeta Colossus] [Rank: Colossus] [Patron: Death] [Element: Toxic] [Abilities: Viroburst Cannon*, Twin Necrocoils*, Fumegrinder Maw*, Blightclaw, Necrosphere*] [Description*] Avoiding the whopping five abilities, four of which had descriptions, he instead selected the description. [Description: He sat, decaying in his chamber for years. Seasons came and went, his maker nowhere to be found. Hope had been lost, the purpose abandoned, the legacy forgotten. Then something changed. Someone new came, offering a new purpose. A new legacy. Souls were infused into the betrayed core of the Colossus, and from the ashes of despair, a new creation has arisen.] Charon couldn’t help but smile. ’I saved this glorious machine. I hope whoever built it rots in the underworld for abandoning such a pristine beast.’ He then clicked the Viroburst Cannon. [Ability Name: Viroburst Cannon] [Ability Element: Toxic] [Ability Description: Attached to the left arm of the Colossus, the Viroburst Cannon is a malevolent creation. Ten barrels fueled with the most disgusting diseases known to man, it fires to unleash plagues untold upon its enemies. Flesh turns to sludge beneath its onslaught. Tremble, enemies of the Animancer, for toxins deadly to even the most holy of creations are upon thee.] Charon whistled loudly, impressed by the weapon. ’It looked like the most basic of the Colossus’ armaments, yet its description is anything but. If it’s to be believed, it can infect my enemies with all kinds of ailments! This is exactly the kind of weapon that will win a war!’ Stalling further comments, he moved to the next tab. [Ability Name: Twin Necrocoils] [Ability Element: Toxic] [Ability Description: One of the most deadly weapons in the undead realms, the Necrocoil takes refined energies and twists them into dark counterparts. Vibrant, life-giving energies are turned into spreaders of undeath. All hit by the Necrocoils and stripped of their souls, their bodies left as shambling husks, enslaved to serve the master of the Colossus.] Charon pumped the air with his fist, unable to contain his excitement. ’It’s literally a skeleton ray! I can order the Colossus to sweep this over my enemies and turn them all into new warriors for my legions! This is way too powerful!’ Without stopping, he checked the next item. [Ability Name: Fumegrinder Maw] [Ability Element: Toxic] [Ability Description: A shattered skull rebuilt from the souls of the dead, the Fumegrinder Maw is incredibly misleading in its purpose. Outwardly a weapon of war, it truly shines as an aid to the undead armies. Wherever the green mist touches, the undead grow stronger, fueled by the dark energies. One waft of the fumes will turn a warrior into a berserker, allowing them to deal far more destruction.] Charon nodded approvingly. ’Okay, so a support weapon. It should have the Colossus use it on my summons before a battle, so they are more effective. Seems simple, but incredibly useful in almost every situation.’ With barely contained excitement, he clicked the last weapon. [Ability Name: Necrosphere] [Ability Element: Toxic] [Ability Description: Charge the Colossus to unlock the Necrosphere.] Charon blinked. ’That’s it? Just a placeholder description?’ It was anticlimactic to have the last ability be useless, but Charon was in no position to complain. He had just gained a new summon, after all, and it was the strongest thing he had ever seen. ’How is this even possible?’ He was sure he would have remembered any ability that would let him do this, but even after combing through his personal information once more, he saw nothing that implied he could corrupt Colossus Machines into undead variants. The Warden’s voice spoke in his head, offering some aid. ’Animancer.’ Charon scratched his chin, an idea coming to him. ’It might be an innate ability to all soul mages. They don’t just summon souls, but command them, even infusing them into technology. But what makes the Colossus different? I’ve never had the same feeling about other items.’ Nothing had ever called to him like the Colossus did. Not the APCs, not the laser rifles, and certainly not the circuits in the Noctis Vrex. He peered up at the kneeling machine, the purple core lighting up the room like a spotlight. ’Maybe it has to do with the core? I don’t know what they are made from, but they seem to be important for it to function. Perhaps one of the materials involved makes them susceptible to soul magic.’ It was an unsubstantiated theory, but it was better than no theory at all. A shaky voice called out to him. "Charon, what the gods is going on?" Looking over his shoulder, he saw Emerius slowly approaching, his blades held out in front of him, and his eyes glued to the mist drifting from the Colossus’ disturbing fangs. Charon smirked and waved a flippant hand towards his latest summon. "What? The Colossus? Oh, that’s just my newest creation. Say hi, Zeta Colossus." Surprising both of them, the machine raised its head and right hand at the same time, waving the clawed appendage back and forth in what must have been the most threatening greeting Charon had ever seen. ’Do you understand me?’ The massive head bobbed up and down a single time, confirming to him that the Colossus could, in fact, hear and understand him. Emerius looked from the Colossus to Charon, and then back to the Colossus. His eyes widened and narrowed repeatedly, his breath coming in short bursts. "How is that possible? It is a machine, nothing else! Built from metals and wire! It should not be possible for you to repair it, let alone bind it to yourself as a summon! Even an Archmage wouldn’t be capable of that!" Emerius spoke quickly, his tone rising a few octaves as he prattled on. He began to pace, his swords swinging to the sides as he struggled to cope with reality. Charon watched it all with a grin, feeling more than a little pride at finally upstaging the noble. ’So much for being an orphan from the outskirts! I’d rather be an orphan than a noble a thousand times over if it meant getting powers like this!’ Beamed up at the Colossus, delighted with his change of fortune, before his eyebrows furrowed. ’How do I get it out of here?’