The Ashen Wrath (Watty's SHORTLIST recipient 2018) CHAPTERED VERSION

*64

A succession of loud clangs announced the return of the two machines that had chased my brother. Their empty, battered shells bounced down the stairs and rolled into the room. Kooper was right behind them. He jumped to the floor and fired all his remaining javelins into the pair of stilt striders. Their batteries exploded, sending them spinning away from me.

Before we could celebrate, I noticed a dark shape rapidly spiraling down from the high ceiling, clinging to the wall as it descended.

"Look out!" I screamed, as the huge object launched from the shadows toward Kooper. The collision threw my brother's stilt strider across the chamber. Sparks burst as he smashed against the wall.

It was another robotic serpent just like the one in the prairie: a sentry. Its jagged spines bristled as it turned toward me and crackled a repulsive hiss, displaying its gleaming steel teeth.

"Come on!" I yelled, staring into the sentry's glowing eyes. The beast whipped its segmented body at me with remarkable speed, barely leaving me enough time to leap out of the way. The entire tower shook as the snake's diamond shaped head smashed against the wall.

The serpent lashed its tail, leaving deep gouges in the slate on either side of me. Remembering how Sheln had defeated the last sentry, I launched my remaining poles at the base of its neck. They had no effect—its armor was far thicker than the stilt striders' coverings.

"Hey ugly!" shouted Kooper, lifting his stilstry from the floor. He blasted his incinerators to get the snake's attention. The sentry turned its head sharply, revealing a chink between its segments. I pulled a stray spear of steel from the floor and jammed it into the exposed mass of machinery.

The serpent became frenzied. Something exploded deep within its neck. My exoskeleton launched across the room and I felt a bone in my leg snap. I bit my lip hard and struggled to my feet. Kooper rushed beside me as the entire tower quaked around us.