The Hell Valley Sky Trees are the remnants of Sveran's powers. A secondary forest that acts as the first line of defense from intruders while protecting the elder earth elemental while it is in a vegetative state. Due to the invasion which rendered Sveran comatose the Hell Valley Sky Trees spawned a variety of creatures that protect the Highlands in the legendary monster's stead. For unknown reasons, they are now hostile to all entrants, including Highland natives. This has proved to be detrimental in finding a potential solution as they forcefully repel both friend and foe. Many established trade routes have been adjusted to compensate and force any visitors to take a massive detour to avoid the Hell Valley Sky Trees entering the Highlands.

~ Not So Fun Tourist Attractions by Gladis Hemmingway

The elevator shaft to the mines was situated close to the massive hole at the center of Welton's Furnace. The massive building at the center which puffed out smoke was revealed to be a massive forge in which a majority of the population worked at. Many dwarves milled about despite the supposed delays in mining production. There was a constant flow of miners carting off ores, showing off their broad shoulders and arms defined by a lifetime of hard work.

Tony Copperpots was their guide, and behind him were the strongest forces that Welton could cobble together in their situation. Eight elite dwarven soldiers armed to the teeth. Their helmets were made of orichalcum, and the rest of their ensemble looked just as heavy as Damien's set. Despite this, they moved with ease that showed little discomfort. Their weapons were thick and heavy like their forearms, looking unwieldy in a regular person's grip but perfect for a dwarf.

"No offense or anything ya' Highness, but are ya' really sure you can get those damn machines to stand down?" One of them asked Damien, garnering his attention. His thick accent made the vampire boy take a second to register what he was saying. "We almost got our heads knocked off last time, they're serious business."

"Don't worry, if it fails we retreat immediately. Have some faith." Damien replied. He disliked being doubted constantly. Although he was inexperienced in comparison to them, he was confident in his knowledge and ability to deal with the situation safely. The vampire was wearing his armor set with a new choker on his neck. He scratched at it uncertainly, feeling it squeeze firmly on his neck without being painful.

Amethyst Redeemer

- Made using ethereal amethyst, it enhances any magical effects and enchantments placed on the relic. Crafted by a talented artisan, it allows for an additional enchantment to be added to the accessory.

- Due to the amethyst's magical properties, it can permanently store one spell inside and use at a later time. Limitations include creation magic and spells of extreme power exceeding 2,500MP in cost.

- Pernatia’s Blessing (Minor): Heal 10% of HP instantly. Deals minor light damage to nearby enemies and inflicts blindness. 10-hour cooldown.

- Stored Spell:

Dispersion Barrier - A radius of up to 3 meters will be surrounded by a protective shield that simultaneously heals any allies within by 1% HP/sec. Strength of the barrier is relative to the size of the barrier. Cost: -1,000MP

It was ornate and feminine. Despite this it suited Damien. The necklace consisted of tiny black pearls and a beautiful purple crystal resting on his Adam's apple.

'Here, take this. The spell's pretty nifty and it'll keep you alive even if a giant fell on your head. No excuse to be reckless though, okay?'

Natalia's words resounded in his head while they walked through the crowds of laboring dwarves. She lent him her accessory for this trip and went off after being alerted to a security breach. Damien shook his head and hoped that they would see him as a reliable warrior who didn't need to be coddled anymore, although he secretly appreciated the concern they showed for him. He supposed that in comparison to his elder brother he was always treated more gently, and he was glad as it gave him a somewhat peaceful childhood despite the immense amount of training and tutoring he underwent.

They delved further below as their surroundings transformed into solid rock caverns. The area was wide and well-lit, with many workers carting off various minerals to wherever they needed to be. A large sign was brazenly displayed at the entrance of the mines. Several elevators were in use, filled with vertically-challenged miners going about their tasks.

DAYS SINCE LAST ACCIDENT: 0

A wide elevator shaft was filled to the brim with top-of-the-line warriors. On top of the elite dwarven soldiers, there were two human paladins along with Jensen joining them on their journey, bringing their total force up to fourteen total including Tony and Chester. The bespectacled dwarf was wearing a set of light armor himself, and it clunked together with every move.

Chester was involuntarily squeezed in with Jensen, and he gave the taller vampire a cursory glance.

"Hey, do you mind moving a bit? I'm a bit squeezed in here."

"No."

The elevator went down showing the interior of the massive hole. As they descended further Damien could see the underbelly of the massive forge situated at the center of Welton. A well of white-hot flames was being produced and jetting upwards into the center. Underneath that were several bridges and paths of dwarves supplying fuel to the massive construct.

'There's no way this adheres to a safe standard of work.' Chester remarked to himself quietly. The only thing preventing the workers from plummeting twenty kilometers below were metal railings. He was genuinely surprised they didn't spot any corpses in the dumping grounds but assumed that the ankhegs or robots got ahold of the bodies before they spotted them.

Surprisingly the shaft didn't go down as deep as they thought it would. They stopped after a few minutes of descent, and the elevator shook violently and opened its set of doors with a loud creaking noise. Chester hoped that the shafts passed some sort of annual inspection.

"We're here. Straight ahead we will enter the adamantium deposits." Tony said, allowing the group to leave the elevator and for Damien to take the lead. Due to the elevator's size restriction, all the humans and vampires had to duck their heads when leaving.

The vampire noble followed along and motioned for Chester to go to the front with him. Together they ventured into the adamantium mines. It had torches stationed in short intervals and the deeper they went the more visible signs of battle were. Portions of the tunnel were destroyed, and there were a few dried blood splatters throughout the area, putting the illusionist in a state of unease.

After a few more minutes they encountered their first robot. A drillbot. It looked aged and dirty, showing that it had been there for a long time without any repairs. A weapon materialized from Jensen's hand, a pure black war ax with jagged edges. Damien gave the vampire a firm hand on the chest, stopping him from attacking the neutral automaton.

"Chester, do you remember if these things can take orders?"

The illusionist bit his lip and recalled Elric being able to dish out verbal commands to his robots. He only saw it in action with the foot soldiers and Scrap Bots and wasn't sure if the drillbots had the same level of sentience.

"Uh, no. I'll see what I can do though." He strutted up to the car-sized robot that casually went about its tasking of carving up the earth in search of precious materials. Chester switched to English and attempted to converse with the construct. "Hey. You there."

It didn't respond. The machine continued to move as though it didn't even hear the man. Chester tried again, with a little more force added to his voice. "Oi. If you don't take us to your leader, we're going to have a very big problem."

It paused suddenly and started backing up, making Chester shift to avoid its bulk. It began going deeper into the mines without a word or acknowledgment, and they all silently watched it go away.

"Er.Let's go follow?"

The group trailed behind steadily. The mineshafts were far bigger than imagined, allowing for the group to assemble in lines of four. Damien had his shield at the ready, and Chester remained vigilant with an iridescent hammer at his side. Nearing their destination they could feel the power coming from further away.

"Leave. Or be terminated."

A metallic voice drowned out the silence and they watched as a hulking Scrap Bot made its way towards them. Due to the tunnel-like formation, its voice echoed and could be heard clearly despite being from further away. The entire group hesitated upon seeing the intimidating figure from several meters away.

"Damien, what the fuck did it just say?" Chester asked, unsure of what the automaton just said. He was well aware by its tone that it was speaking in dwarvish, as the shorter soldiers among them shifted uncomfortably after seeing a glimpse of its figure and the sound of its voice.

"It said to leave in dwarvish. Can you tell them we know Elric?"

The drillbot rolled over to where the Scrap Bot was and passed by without any trouble. It didn't move, but it was battered down from continuous battles. Despite this, Damien did not doubt that it was still immensely strong. It looked similar to the one that took out their entire party in Stillwater's underground mines. Bulky, orichalcum exterior and a broad chest that indicated massive strength and durability.

Chester took one step forward and raised his voice so it could reach the robot. "We're sent by Elric. We are here to deliver a message. PEACEFULLY." He did his best to emphasize the last word.

It tilted its head, and the three eyes on its face glowed lightly upon hearing their creator's name and native tongue being spoken so fluently. For a brief moment, it paused.

"Our creator? Hm. Follow me."

It backed off and showed them an even wider entrance. Hesitantly the group followed Damien and Chester, but they froze when it spoke again.

"Your messenger is. The only one we. Need. The rest must. Stay here."

Chester immediately turned to the vampire with a straight face. "It said it only needs me. No fucking way am I going there by myself."

"What? Yeah, I'll go. All of you. Stand by and stay prepared." Damien ordered, looking back to make sure the group understood. Jensen, the loyal vampire subordinate he was, immediately objected.

"Prince, I highly discourage this action. I implore you that I at least come with."

"Lieutenant General, it's not necessary. We have had our experiences in dealing with these machines."

"Sir." The older man emphasized. His face looked to be one of urgency and worry. "If General Drake finds out I left you unsupervised, she will castrate me."

Damien made a face upon hearing that and reluctantly obliged, making the vampire give out a sigh of relief. Chester relayed the fact that the three of them would be going, to which the Scrap Bot accepted without much of a fuss. The rest of the group stayed behind with their shields and weapons at the ready. All around the expanse were multiple drillbots working away. Their pointed heads were drilling into the purple adamantium ores and slowly chipping away at the impossibly powerful metal. It seemed as though these drill bots had a specialized tip made of orichalcum to help their efforts.

The common theme amongst the automatons was their broken-down exteriors. They all looked straight out of a dystopian sci-fi world, with much more dirt and grime than any of the machines they'd seen before. There was the occasional robot that looked much less worn down but they were few.

'Does Elric never check up on these guys? I thought they regularly went back and forth for repairs and shit. What happened?' Chester thought to himself quietly.

Foot soldiers were less common, they were at a rate of 2:1 with the Scrap Bots milling about. Speaking of the advanced and evolved variants, they seemed to be quality above the ones they were allied with. Their bodies were worn down but had a dangerous edge to them. Nothing indicated that they were rusty or any worse inability in comparison to the elemental variants they had faced before. They seemed even more dangerous.

"So, uh, where are you taking us?" Chester asked the bot.

"To meet our. Chief."

Chester gave the boy a wide stare and he responded with a shrug. The illusionist did not like the idea of meeting a big boss that managed to take hold of these Scrap Bots and prevent Welton from claiming back their territory. He wondered if the crazy cyborg had made a new variant that was terrorizing the poor dwarves and decided not to tell them. He distinctly remembered one of the reports claiming that one possessed six arms and four eyes.

"Damien, weren't you with him when he went to the adamantium mines?"

"I and Elric never went this far. We were handling ankhegs interfering with the supply routes. Never saw anything quite like this."

"Pardon me," Jensen interrupted. "But you have said that you've dealt with these before?"

Damien nodded his head. "We handled them before in Stillwater. It's...complicated."

After a few more minutes of walking, they came across another large expanse. But unlike the previous one filled with drillbots, this one was populated with several advanced Scrap Bots that looked bigger, meaner, and more dangerous than the rest. And leading them all was a massive, three-meter beast that looked straight out of a Terminator movie. Its body was composed entirely of adamantium. With four eyes, six arms, and spider legs that pierced through the solid ground with ease, it made for a terrifying sight.

"Chief. A message from. Our creator. Has arrived." The Scrap Bot leading them announced. Almost all at once, the machines turned to stare at the group and Chester fought the urge to go invisible and run away. A slight whirring noise could be heard as it turned to fully face the group. Chester realized upon closer inspection that the ground below them wasn't rock, but the bodies of dead ankhegs. The sheer amount had formed a layer of the floor, enough for the Scrap Bots to comfortably stand on.

'I'm kicking Elric in the balls. If he has any.'